A second season of The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi has NOT been announced… yet.
On a totally unrelated note, I hear Newtype Japan just sold a shitload of magazines.
Archive for the 'Industry' CategoryPage 3 of 3
The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi has NOT been licensed… yet.
I’m not too keen on the idea of paying for downloads. Never have been. Ultimately, if I’m shelling out money for media, be it music or video, I care more about quality than convenience. Why would I pay $10 for a compressed, DRM’d version of a music album via the iTunes Music Store when I can purchase the same album in high fidelity on CD for just a couple dollars more? I don’t have anything against compressed music - I download my fair share of anime OP/ED singles, after all - but I’m enough of an audiophile to recognize the difference between MP3s and CDs, and I just can’t bring myself to shell out actual money for compressed music, especially when the uncompressed alternative is reasonably affordable.
What about anime? Would I pay to download anime? Only if I got DVD quality video and a new hard drive as part of the deal. Chances of that happening? Zilch.
Let’s get real for a moment: if Hollywood can’t figure out how to make online digital distribution work, what makes people think the domestic anime industry can pull it off? There seems to be a consensus that ADV should be the torchbearer for this new distribution method, but, last I checked, ADV’s track record when it comes to new business ventures is pretty poor. They fail at pretty much everything they do. And it’s not like the rest of the industry is in a position to make it work. They’re having a hard enough time selling DVDs.
And, of course, how does the industry compete with fansubs? I don’t see how online digital distribution and fansubs can coexist. Furthermore, fansubs have a natural advantage in the market, given that they’re free and fast. All the anime industry can offer is slightly better quality and perhaps better translations. Then again, could a domestic distributor obtain a license for a show, procure high quality masters, and put together a competent translation in the time it takes the average fansub group to release a show in its entirety? Doubtful. And if you’re a dub fan… well, might as well ask for a pony while you’re at it.
Honestly, if the domestic industry decides to give online digital distribution a try, fansubbers are in deep shit. There’s no way the industry will continue to tolerate fansubs with the entire online distribution market at stake. One reason I don’t buy into the “fansubs are killing DVDs” argument is that, if it were truly the case, the industry would be doing a hell of a lot more to actually rectify the situation. Fansubs will kill online distribution, however. I wouldn’t expect the anime industry to sit around and let that happen.
Then, when the whole thing comes crashing down… well, you get the picture.
So, what’s the ailing North American anime industry to do? I don’t know. Really, I don’t. If you ask me, the industry’s current troubles are mostly the result of overexpansion and poor business decisions across the board. Central Park Media’s teetering on the edge of bankruptcy doesn’t surprise me. The company’s presence in the marketplace has been lacking these past few years. But what of, say, ADV? A couple of years ago, ADV ruled the marketplace. What happened? Well, they licensed a bunch of crap shows, for one. Then, they wasted a bucketload of money on a number of failed ventures: ADV manga, ADV toys, and the Anime Network. No wonder they’re hurting.
A year or so ago, I was interviewing for a public relations position with the Right Stuf, and the question of why I was such a particular fan of the company came up. My feeling was that the company’s close relationship with the fan community was key. The fact that the Right Stuf was essentially managed by fans made a big impression on me. And, for all basic purposes, the Right Stuf has milked this close relationship for all its worth, surviving on inexpensive niche shows that appeal most to dedicated anime fans.
But, I fear the Right Stuf is the exception to the rule. Because, if you look at the state of the domestic anime industry today, the companies that appear to be weathering the storm best are those with good business sense and serious financial backing. Perhaps “fan-oriented” ain’t all it’s cracked up to be. Is it time for the domestic anime industry to grow up?
Kanon WIN! Haruhi LOSE! Oh noes!
Seriously, folks…
Planning committees are generally responsible for determining episode count, long before a show goes into production. Obviously, available resources factor heavily into that determination, but if the committee has a target episode count, it can always work to procure the resources necessary to make it happen. Animation studios don’t fund themselves from within; the funding for a project comes from outside sources. Ultimately, those sources play an important role in the planning process. They’re footing the bill, after all.
Of course, outside involvement doesn’t cease once a show enters production. If it were up to a single animation studio alone to produce an entire show, start to finish, we’d only see a few new shows each year. Animation studios simply don’t have the manpower or talent necessary to do anything and everything under the sun. So, what’s a studio to do? Outsource, that’s what. Studios rarely do their own in-between animation; typically, the work is contracted out to “sweatshop” studios overseas or large domestic studios such as GAINAX or Production I.G. In fact, some studios exist solely to do in-between work for “marquee” studios. In the case of The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi, in-between work is being handled by Ani Village, a Korean studio.
Clearly, “marquee” studios can (and often do) work on more than one show at the same time. For example, Madhouse is juggling five shows at the moment: Nana, Black Lagoon, Kiba, Yume Tsukai, and Strawberry Panic - and that’s not even counting the shows they may be doing in-between work for. Not all of these shows receive the same priority, however. Nana may be Madhouse through-and-through, but watch the ending credits for Strawberry Panic, and you’ll see a string of Korean names. (For the record, even Nana is being outsourced in part to DR Movie, yet another Korean studio)
Kyoto Animation is no Madhouse, of course. They’re nowhere near as large, nor are they anywhere near as established in the industry. Essentially, they’re a “support” studio that only recently moved up to the big leagues. Even though they’ve been around since 1981, they’re still the new kid on the block.
Now, it’s no secret that Kyoto Animation made a name for itself with its work on Air. And, it’s no secret that the companies involved in the production of that particular show, including Visual Art’s/Key, have made a bundle of money. So, it should come as no surprise that Visual Art’s/Key would choose Kyoto to animate a remake of Kanon. And it should come as no surprise that Kyoto jumped at the opportunity. Kanon is a very, very big deal, after all.
The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi, however? Not a very big deal, I’m sorry to say. But, before crying “Ayu killed Haruhi!,” consider that the episode count for Haruhi was likely decided before the planning process for Kanon even got underway. And, even then, Haruhi doesn’t strike me as the sort of show that would run for 24-26 episodes. Sure, enough original material exists for that number of episodes, but if every show adapted from a popular manga or novel series was animated to its full potential, 100+ episode counts would be commonplace. Compression is a big part of adaptation, and history has shown that you can do a lot with a mere 13 episodes, especially if you’re working with an open-ended story.
Of course, Haruhi sports an odd episode count at fourteen. Granted, odd episode counts seem to be all the rage these days (along with special DVD episodes), but is fourteen really as strange a number as it seems? If you subscribe to the idea that the Kanon remake trampled all over Haruhi, you have to assume 14 = 24-10. But doesn’t 14 = 13+1 make more sense? Especially when the first episode of the show was, essentially, a gag episode?
In other words, fret not fellow Haruhi fans: the show isn’t being cut short. We’re getting an extra episode. And a Kanon remake, to boot! I sure as hell won’t complain.
I’ve never cared much for discussing fansub politics. The topic usually sends me running for the hills. But, this got me thinking, so… here comes the hate mail.
First, let me lay a few things out…
I watch a lot of fansubs. I own about 300 anime DVDs, mostly R1, some R2. I own a small amount of character goods and other assorted memorabilia, most of which were purchased when I lived in Tokyo. I’m not the type to “collect” stuff, anime or otherwise. I’m neither rich nor poor.
So, why do I watch fansubs? Or, to be more specific, why do I watch anime episodes distributed illegally over the internet? Because, as an anime fan, I care more about the Japanese “scene” than I do the American “scene”. In other words, because I care most about what’s current, I watch what’s current. North American barbarian that I am, downloading anime episodes distributed illegally over the internet is pretty much my best and only option for keeping up with what’s current. Subtitles are an added bonus, of course, but if I only cared about translation, R1 DVD releases would suffice.
So, why do I buy DVDs? Or, to be more specific, why would I buy DVDs of shows already distributed illegally over the internet? The quality differential is important, obviously. Any person who claims “fansubs are better than DVDs!” is full of shit. But is that enough? Of course not. To address this issue, I consult my patented “Rewatch Rule”, which goes a little something like this…
“Will I ever want to watch this show again?”
OK, so it’s not very original. It sure as hell ain’t patented. What it means, however, is that my DVD collection is stocked with the shows I love - shows I watch again and again, until the ridiculous amount of money I spent on them no longer seems like such a big deal.
Of course, this also means I no longer waste time “collecting” fansubs. After all, if a show’s worth rewatching, I’ll buy it on DVD. If I plan on buying it on DVD, why save the fansubs? The only exception to the rule would be shows worth rewatching that stand little chance of being licensed for R1 release. That’s not a very common combination nowadays, however. If it’s good, chances are, it’s coming out on DVD… someday.
I’ll be honest… people who brag about the size of their DVD collections bug me. But that’s nothing compared to people who brag about the size of their fansub “collections”. You have 500 GB of fansubs? Umm…wow? You must have a lot of money to blow on hard drives. Or blank CDs. Good for you?
I don’t know about you, but I prefer to watch anime, not hoard it. Hoarding is for small rodents and people with obsessive-compulsive disorders.