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Daizenshuu EX - Updates from January 2011 |
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31 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 8:14 pm EST -- The oft-delayed "Manga Review of Awesomeness" returns to the podcast for Volume 37! The new story arc is still off to its start, but we now have an entirely new group of gods introduced, as well as what seem to be the first in a series of evil henchmen. The kids also get a chance to shine alongside the adults, which is definitely fun times. Also tune in for news recaps, releases, and even an in-depth discussion about fans in other countries desperately looking for ways to purchase higher-quality legit products in their region. Download the show now, or head on over to the podcast page for more information or to subscribe.
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30 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 4:16 pm EST -- In preparation for our next podcast recording, a bunch of news needs to make its way to the home page... so let's get rocking!
Big thanks to our buddy sangofe for keeping up on this one. After not being on television for around a decade, the DragonBall Z TV series is back on TV in Denmark, airing Monday through Friday at 2:30 pm. The series was originally dubbed up through around the point that Goku turned Super Saiyan. A quick synopsis of the series is up on ontv.dk.
Big thanks to tinlunlau for the info and links on this one. DragonBall Kai apparently began airing in Taiwan back on January 1st. A localized website with a quick trailer is available for viewing — it looks like the dub kept the original Japanese performances on the theme songs, which is a nice touch.
We reported about a month ago that the "Limited Edition" versions of the Bakuman anime's R2 releases would be coming with bonus CDs that contain cover songs from DragonBall. It looks like volume three is going to continue the trend, this time with a cover of "Romantikku Ageru yo", the closing theme to the first DragonBall TV series. This one is due out 24 March 2011 in Japan. Our copy of the first volume with its cover of "CHA-LA HEAD-CHA-LA" is due in next week, so expect a couple quick thoughts here on the website and podcast.
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27 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 4:58 pm EST -- Both CDJapan & Amazon Japan are listing the upcoming DragonBall Kai Original Soundtrack IV as coming on 23 March 2011, a delay of exactly one month from its originally-listed date.
DragonBall Kai Complete Song Collection appears to still be on-track for release on 23 February 2011, though. |
26 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 10:38 am EST -- Nothing particularly huge in this batch of minor news updates, but a little bit of clarification, some new art, and other fun stuff.
First up, the Amazon Japan listing for the upcoming DragonBall Kai Complete Song Collection now has cover art:
WorldScreen lets us know that Argentina has some DragonBall-branded dinnerware coming their way courtesy of Daysal, while GC Properties will be bringing out scooters and some other accessories. Over in Mexico, Falcom will be releasing a new batch of stickers and albums (we presume "album" to be "sticker albums" rather than a music album). Over in Chile, Richtext will be bringing out a new line of towels.
Latin America has certainly been in the news somewhat frequently over the last couple months, with plenty of licensing news back in July 2009 and a minor fandom "revolt" over Kai voice re-casting this past September.
Finally, FUNimation has issued a bit of clarification to Anime News Network regarding their streaming of the DragonBall franchise. While the original press release noted that FUNimation had obtained "exclusive rights to the U.S. and Canadian online streaming" of the series, the versions that went live this month eventually went with a standard Hulu player that locked viewing to only the United States. While the company does indeed have Canadian streaming rights, they do not currently have "a vehicle in that region." Sorry, Canadians — I would not hold my breath. |
23 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 9:14 pm EST -- We are back after missing a week with a quick catch-up episode. The last two weeks worth of news all gets covered this episode, as well as some of the more recent written content here on the site — FUNimation's re-release of the first DragonBall movie (reviewed last week), and our complete review of the Kokoro no Hane CD single (see below). Download the show now, or head on over to the podcast page for more information or to subscribe.
We initially covered the Kokoro no Hane CD single last summer when it was first released, but the second closing theme to DragonBall Kai gets some new attention from us with a complete and exhaustive look in our "Reviews" section:
Comparisons with the movie Brazil, translations of a short Q&A with Masako Nozawa... the list goes on and on with this one! Who ever would have thought that a release like this would give us so much content to work with...? Read on!
Finally, we have to give huge congrats to "DKIRBYJ" who is the winner of our Battle of Omega CD single contest! As we announced on this week's podcast, the next contest will actually be for daizenshuu #4 ("World Guide"), which will start up in conjunction with our 250th podcast episode in just a few weeks, so stay tuned! |
22 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 1:14 pm EST -- Big thanks to Super Sonic on our forum for the heads up on this one! Viz's American version of Shonen Jump will be hitting its 100th issue next month, and in celebration, none other than Cross Epoch will be presented!
Cross Epoch was a single-chapter collaboration between Akira Toriyama and Eiichiro Oda (author of One Piece) originally published in 2007's #4/5 issue of Weekly Shonen Jump in Japan (which was actually released Christmas Day at the end of 2006).
The one-shot featured various characters from both the DragonBall and One Piece universes all teaming up and going on wacky adventures together, culminating in a giant tea party with Shenlong. No, really. Giant tea party.
The last DragonBall spin-off to be featured in the American Shonen Jump was Neko Majin Z 5 back in the October 2007 issue (though the chapter number was removed, leaving any uninformed readers with no idea that it was part of a larger story). |
21 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 11:27 am EST -- I figured February's Kai releases might be the last music we would see for a while, but leave it to Japan to prove me wrong!
A soundtrack for Raging Blast 2 (LACA-15111) is due out 23 March 2011 in Japan for ¥3000. No track listing details are available just yet, and we usually do not expect them until shortly before the disc's release. By itself this is not surprising news, but is moderately interesting if you look back just one game prior.
Europe received a "Collector's Edition" of the first Raging Blast (PS3/360) in 2009. Part of the giant package was a bonus soundtrack disc which contained 29 tracks (though the opening theme, "Progression", was not among them). Beyond this European-only inclusion, no soundtrack for the game was formally released, even in Japan.
Europe also received a "Collector's Edition" of Raging Blast 2, though this edition did not come with a soundtrack disc.
Other than CD singles with opening theme songs, the last game to receive a full soundtrack was Infinite World two years ago back in January 2009 — last year's Wii game did not receive a soundtrack, and portable games generally do not get soundtrack releases.
Speaking of music and CD singles, you have a little bit of time left to enter our current contest! Up for grabs is a (very relevant!) copy of the Battle of Omega CD single, the opening theme to Raging Blast 2. |
18 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 2:23 pm EST -- We may not have a podcast episode for you this week, but we have a wealth of new additions coming to the "Reviews" section! First up is a DVD release from last month: FUNimation's re-release of the very first DragonBall movie, available uncut and in Japanese for the first time ever in North America:
Another doozy of a review will be hitting the website this week, so stay tuned! In the mean time, be sure to enter our current contest for a chance to win the Battle of Omega CD single.
One final tidbit to put out there is that FUNimation has indeed launched their online streaming for the franchise, beginning with the first fifteen episodes of the DragonBall Z TV series. As previously reported, these episodes are based off their orange brick "season set" masters (which includes all extraneous smoothing/filtering, cropped image, etc.). A bit of clarification, though — while the episodes are available subtitled in their original Japanese format, the corresponding English versions do not feature the North American broadcast music, but instead feature the original Japanese score from Shunsuke Kikuchi. |
13 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 11:44 am EST -- Well this is some unfortunate information. According to a tweet from FUNimation (and later reiterated via a blog post), their upcoming streaming of the DragonBall Z TV series will use the video masters created for their orange brick "season sets" released from 2007-2009 (with the questionable remastering process and cropped video). While the episodes will be available both in its original Japanese and English dub, the dub side will use the American broadcast music, a harsh step in the opposite direction from what FUNimation has been doing in recent years by exclusively sticking to and reverting back to non-replacement scores.
Our recommendation? Stick with and show your support for the Dragon Box sets.
No such cropped masters exist for the first TV series or DragonBall GT (though the latter of which did have a replacement score), and all work FUNimation has done with Kai has been in its intended 4:3 aspect ratio, so we have much higher expectations for the eventual streaming of those shows.
VegettoEX @ 9:30 am EST -- Almost immediately after Nintendo unveiled the upcoming 3DS at the most recent Electronic Entertainment Exposition (E3), Namco-Bandai announced they would release a DragonBall game for the platform. No specific title or even time frame was given. Nintendo has unveiled their tentative 3DS game release schedule through Spring 2011, and no DragonBall game appears on the list (though the recently-revealed Naruto 3DS game is on there).
The next game due out for the franchise is DragonBall Kai: Ultimate Butôden, a fighting game for the existing Nintendo DS, dropping in Japan on 03 February 2011 for ¥5040. The game has not been announced for distribution outside of Japan just yet. The game is available for pre-order on CDJapan and Play-Asia — note that standard Nintendo DS games are region free (though it sounds like 3DS games will not be), so rest assured that you can import and play Ultimate Butôden on your system, though the text will be entirely in Japanese, as should be expected.
As a quick video game aside, our buddy LaRésistance slapped together a fun little video showcasing his "Top 5 Dragon Ball Z game intros". As a true showcase of worldwide fandom, the video is narrated in French and subtitled in English. Check it out over on blip.tv:
We used to do a series of "Inconsistencies" videos and such, but have held off on these types of creative works in the recent past. Are you interested in Daizenshuu EX productions along these lines again? Let us know what you'd like to see. |
11 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 6:42 am EST -- We are kicking off 2011 with a pretty laid-back episode that has possibly too much laughing for our own good. Amongst the shenanigans you will also find a good deal of in-depth discussion regarding the recent announcement from Toei and FUNimation that the DragonBall franchise will soon be streaming online, and we review (in audio form, this time!) the recent Battle of Omega CD single from Hironobu Kageyama, the title track of which was used as the opening theme in Raging Blast 2. Download the show now, or head on over to the podcast page for more information or to subscribe.
Incredible thanks go out to Karan for our amazing new podcast album art, which you will find on all episodes going forward:
In conjunction with our recent written review and this week's podcast episode, we are also starting up a new contest to give away a copy of the Battle of Omega CD single!
You have just about two weeks to get in your entries, so head on over to the "Contests" page for the full details. |
07 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 2:58 pm EST -- It seems as if these are only just starting to make the rounds to retailer listings! Amazon Japan currently has pages for two new DragonBall Kai CDs, both due out the same day in Japan on 23 February 2011, and both of which have heavy implications for the fate of the "refreshed" version of the show:
DragonBall Kai Original Soundtrack IV will be a single disc retailing for ¥2960, and while a track listing has not been divulged, it will likely follow the style of November 2009's DragonBall Kai Original Soundtrack 2 with TV-sized versions of the opening and ending themes, along with a decent amount of background music from the show (see: Amazon Japan).
DragonBall Kai Complete Song Collection is another single disc which will contain all eleven tracks from the previously-released DragonBall Kai Song Collection (sans-"Complete") from November 2009. In addition to those songs, it will also contain the three new vocal songs (all also used as insert songs in the show) from this past September's DragonBall Kai Soundtrack III & Songs, as well as the current ending theme, "Kokoro no Hane". The track order has yet to be finalized, but those will indeed be the contents of the disc. The disc will retail for ¥2625 (see: Amazon Japan).
One has to wonder that with the word "Complete" tossed into the title and having a release date so soon after a prior compilation, does this add fuel to the fire of speculation that Kai is indeed coming to a close before it reaches the Majin Buu story arc?
It is unfortunate to see a collection add a mere four songs to what already exists as a disc, which I can only speculate is another last-ditch grab at their audience. |
06 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 3:53 pm EST -- Despite this new "Reviews" addition going live on the site yesterday, I somehow managed to forget to actually come add it to the home page of the site! All you Facebook and Twitter followers got a freebie on this one.
The opening theme to Raging Blast 2 had its CD single released last month. "Battle of Omega" is performed by Hironobu Kageyama, and while you have probably heard it ad nauseam in the game, there are some things about the disc you may be interested in. Read on! |
03 January 2011
VegettoEX @ 11:43 am EST -- Wow. Certainly was not expecting this kind of e-mail to hit my box this morning. This is the kind of wild prediction one of us should have made last podcast episode.
FUNimation Entertainment and Toei Animation Announce Online Streaming of Dragon Ball Z
Anime Leaders to Stream Episodes of Iconic Anime Series
Flower Mound, Texas – January 3, 2011 -- FUNimation® Entertainment and Toei Animation Co., Ltd. have entered into an agreement giving the American anime leader exclusive rights to the U.S. and Canadian online streaming of the studios’ signature animated series “Dragon Ball Z.”
Starting Saturday, January 15th at 7:30 PM CDT preceding the One Piece simulcast at 8:00 PM CDT, FUNimation will stream the series from its beginning via the official Dragon Ball Z website www.dragonballz.com in addition to www.dragonballzkai.com , www.funimation.com and FUNimation partner site www.hulu.com.
FUNimation will offer its professionally-produced, uncut, English-tracked and English-subtitled adaptations of the hugely successful series beginning with the first episode as well as other chapters of the Dragon Ball franchise: Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball GT and Dragon Ball Z Kai.
“We are pleased to offer the first legal streaming of this seminal anime series,” said Gen Fukunaga, president and CEO of FUNimation Entertainment. “Dragon Ball Z and One Piece are the crown jewels of our digital content strategy and we are proud of the diverse selection of series that entertains established fans and new ones as well.”
So there you have it. Apparently the entire franchise will be making its way, both in its original Japanese incarnation (subtitled) along with an English dub, streaming online starting with the first episode of DragonBall Z, and it all goes down on January 15th.
The online coupling of DragonBall and One Piece mirrors the current "Dream 9" time slot on Fuji TV right now, which airs DragonBall Kai at 9:00 am, followed by One Piece at 9:30 am on Sunday mornings. This coupling appears to be in for some type of shift this coming April, however, with the series Toriko taking the Kai slot.
This is just hitting today, so we will of course continue to follow-up with additional information as it becomes available (items such as musical scores being used, possible availability outside North America, etc.). |
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