Extra, Extra!

Something else I did last w/end was properly finish off some of the anime I've been watching recently.

Slightly bizarrely, and I'm not sure I've ever been in this position before, I had loads of extras to plough through. I mean, that never happens with anime--extras generally just run to clean opening and closing credits.

Agent Aika R-16 had interviews with original Japanese cast members and director and character designed as well as interviews with the English dub actors.

Black Lagoon had a music video and an interview with the English dub casts (all a bit light for an entire separate disk :/).

But Witchblade had the most - interviews with the original Japanese cast members and a series of 20-minute-ish documentaries talking to the Top Cow people.

Not sure about Aika, but I'll definitely be reviewing the other too, although I may roll Black Lagoon up together with Second Barrage. I understand they're not really particularly 'distinct' as seasons--more like one of those full seasons done in two parts you get with anime. Plus it's several distinct individual story-lines anyway.

Plus Funimation are pumping Second Barrage out one disk a month so it makes sense. As I noted before, it's just the Geneon release, but distributed by Funimation. I'm also hopefully about to get my grubby mitts on the last part of Gurren Lagann too.

Funimation seems to be on the verge of taking over the world. I've mixed feelings about that--if it means I can get hold of anime DVDs then it has to be a good thing, but if I'm honest I've never been that big a fan of Funimation. They seem to be the company most responsible for buggered about translations, although they are also the company that often offers the most extras/freebies and best episode-per-disk count.

If they get the last Welcome to NHK and Red Garden disks out--and they're consistent with the old releases--then I may be swayed.