What % of the anime that you've watched do you own?

[khyronic]

When I first started watching anime, I would rent them. Then I started buying some series that I had rented(Cowboy Bebop, Escaflowne etc). Now I pretty much buy them, either because of good reviews, word of mouth, or even if the director or producer is someone with a good rep. Occasionally, a friend will tell me of a good series and if I watch a few episodes I'm usually hooked.

So, the question is simply, given the amount of anime that you have seen, how much of it is in your home right now, as opposed to ones rented or borrowed on watched online("copied") etc. Just curious if I'm the only who has bought quite alot.

[JsARCLIGHT]

I've seen tons of anime... been watching since the '80s and have seen hundreds of titles, quadruple digits perhaps. All I own on DVD is Macross TV and DYRL now, my "collection" was sold off years and years ago. So, in numerical terms, I currently own something like 0.02% of all the anime I have ever watched. At my height of collecting around 93 or so I would say I owned something like 40% of all the anime I had ever seen, and that was 200+ tapes.

[bandit29]

Ya I've been watching anime since the 80's too. I've bought & sold off alot stuff over the years. Just a guess but I think I own about 30% of what I've seen. That's about 150-200 DVDs right there. All of my old VHS tapes are long gone. DVDs that I didn't want anymore have been sold on ebay.

I don't buy as much as I used to. Thank you Netflix. Most new anime right now isn't worth watching more than once.

[jenius]

As a rule, I avoid anime. I do own some good 80s stuff though so I'd say I own like 80% of what I watch and that number will continue to drop with whatever Cartoon Network anime show I happen to catch.

[chrono]

Anime I'd have to say around 85-90%, but it would be higher if I had the more current seasons & the cheap boxsets of 70's material(Manzinger, GetterRobo, G-Force, etc)available.

But when it comes to cartoons realistically it's less then 35%.

[areaseven]

On an average, I own about 5% of all the anime titles I've watched. And I currently own over 40 anime DVDs.

[Kamjin 639]

Most new anime right now isn't worth watching more than once.

Quoted for truth.

I can't count how many times I've watched and re-watched Bubblegum Crisis, the Area 88 OVA, Megazone 23, the Ghost In The Shell and AKIRA movies...and that's not even to mention the Macross series. It really has made me think twice before even bothering to watch post-2000 era Japanese animation...

Edited April 18, 2007 by Kamjin 639

[eugimon]

anime DVD's are ridiculously overpriced for what you get. I own some, mostly GitS: SAC and macross stuff, but I'd rather just watch cartoon network then pny up 25 bucks for 4 episodes of naruto or whatever.

[bandit29]

Quoted for truth.

I can't count how many times I've watched and re-watched Bubblegum Crisis, the Area 88 OVA, Megazone 23, the Ghost In The Shell and AKIRA movies...and that's not even to mention the Macross series. It really has made me think twice before even bothering to watch post-2000 era Japanese animation...

Well I like some post 2000 anime. Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex and its sequel 2nd Gig , Last Exile and Hellsing to name a few. Shows like Bleach or Eureka 7 are terrible though.

Actually I always thought Akira and Megazone 23 were steaming piles lol

[promethuem5]

I have only actually been watching anime for a little whole now, and I probably own around twenty percent of it... Macross and VOTOMS DVDs, the Patlabor movies, Gundam Wing Endless Waltz and F91, and some Miyazaki. I have on my computer almost all of Gundam, and a few misc other shows (Elfen Lied, Mac0, BGC 2040, Patlabor TV, NGE, FMA, and Mospeada.) I find that DVDs are waaaay overpriced, and alot of my stuff is either unavanliable stateside, or TV rips anyways...

[areaseven]

anime DVD's are ridiculously overpriced for what you get. I own some, mostly GitS: SAC and macross stuff, but I'd rather just watch cartoon network then pny up 25 bucks for 4 episodes of naruto or whatever.

I can't help but laugh whenever someone complains about anime DVD prices. Back in the early days before DVD was invented, many of us coughed up $30-50 for one subtitled episode of an OAV series on VHS. These days, you can get an entire OAV series on DVD (complete with both English and Japanese languages, extras, etc.) for much less. And I'm not even talking about used or bootleg copies.

[Kamjin 639]

Well I like some post 2000 anime. Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex and its sequel 2nd Gig , Last Exile and Hellsing to name a few. Shows like Bleach or Eureka 7 are terrible though.

It's true, and like Last Exile, I feel like I could put anything put-out by GONZO on the "good" list, but in general, a lot of post-2000 Japanese animation and especially post-2002 Japanese animation just doesn't cut it (at least for me) compared to the older stuff. (I generally tend to think that Gundam SEED started this trend of weakening strong-written characters for the sake of attracting a greater diversity of fans to watch certain shows.)

Actually I always thought Akira and Megazone 23 were steaming piles lol

Daaaaamn. That's all I can say.

[eugimon]

I can't help but laugh whenever someone complains about anime DVD prices. Back in the early days before DVD was invented, many of us coughed up $30-50 for one subtitled episode of an OAV series on VHS. These days, you can get an entire OAV series on DVD (complete with both English and Japanese languages, extras, etc.) for much less. And I'm not even talking about used or bootleg copies.

so because option A sucks, option B is good? your logic is flawed. anime discs are overpriced compared to other TV show DVDs. I'm glad you can bargain hunt your DVDs and find your season collection of Avatar or whatever for 50 bucks, but the ticket price for these disks are usually between 25 and 30 dollars, which puts them ten dollars shy of what an entire season of any given TV show would cost.

[areaseven]

so because option A sucks, option B is good? your logic is flawed. anime discs are overpriced compared to other TV show DVDs. I'm glad you can bargain hunt your DVDs and find your season collection of Avatar or whatever for 50 bucks, but the ticket price for these disks are usually between 25 and 30 dollars, which puts them ten dollars shy of what an entire season of any given TV show would cost.

Anime DVDs costs more because they're not as widely mass-produced as TV show DVDs. And since when were we talking about non-anime TV shows?

[Kamjin 639]

anime DVD's are ridiculously overpriced for what you get. I own some, mostly GitS: SAC and macross stuff, but I'd rather just watch cartoon network then pny up 25 bucks for 4 episodes of naruto or whatever.

Well, I mean, there's nothing wrong with watching animé on television. Hell, the availability of it is growing every day. But the problem arises when animé fanboys decide that they're no longer satisfied with what's on television in their area but still remain obstinate toward paying the prices of the DVDs, and turn to bootlegs, fansubs, or other illegal copies.--That's the real problem, here, because if one just admits to himself the "whys" and "hows" of the animé distribution industry in his area, then there becomes less of a justification for cheating-out the same companies which actually make the animé possible.

[eugimon]

Anime DVDs costs more because they're not as widely mass-produced as TV show DVDs. And since when were we talking about non-anime TV shows?

Really? do you have figures to back up that claim? And if the amount of discs stamped is the reason for the price of a disc, why is it that novelty discs and limited run discs cost less than AAA titles?

And, I brought in non anime TV shows because you claim you can pick up an enitre series for 20-30 bucks. Which is about what you can get a season of TV drama for. Which is funny because I see anime DVDs on sale at target for 25 bucks and I see box sets on sale at Fry's for around 100 bucks, while a season of buffy runs you around 30-40 bucks.

Edited April 18, 2007 by eugimon

[Beltane70]

anime DVD's are ridiculously overpriced for what you get.

Just be glad that you don't have to pay what the Japanese do for DVDs!

[areaseven]

And, I brought in non anime TV shows because you claim you can pick up an entire series for 20-30 bucks. Which is about what you can get a season of TV drama for. Which is funny because I see anime DVDs on sale at target for 25 bucks and I see box sets on sale at Fry's for around 100 bucks, while a season of buffy runs you around 30-40 bucks.

Yes, but I was talking about OAV series, NOT TV series.

Okay, let's make things a little easier to explain:

Back in 1991, you had to pay $40 for a subtitled VHS copy of Project A-Ko. Today, you can pick up a DVD copy of the same film for $6.99. Not only do you get the fully remastered film with both English and Japanese audio and English subtitles, you also get behind-the-scenes footage as well. And you even get the soundtrack CD to boot.

Now, in terms of OAV series, here's a great example:

When Gunbuster first came out, you had to pay $34.99 for two subtitled episodes on VHS. Getting all six episodes would've cost you $104.97 plus tax. Today, you can get all six episodes on one DVD package with liner notes, loads of extras and much better cover art for $44.99.

So, are you still gonna complain about DVD prices?

Edited April 19, 2007 by areaseven

[hevangel2]

It depends on the definition of "own"

official DVD: 0%

pirated DVD: a few old series

BT download backup in DVD: the rest (over 200 data DVDs, 1TB of data)

Edited April 19, 2007 by hevangel2

[Mr March]

My viewed-to-own ratio would be WAY off. I saw over 170 films last year alone, including anime. My entire DVD collection is just a little greater than that, anime DVDs included. So obviously I see way more than I could ever hope to own.

I do own a respectable amount of anime on DVD. I have the complete SDF Macross series, the complete Cowboy Bebop series, the first season of Ghost In The Shell Stand: Alone Complex and the first few volumes of the Samurai 7 series. I also own two OVAs and about sixteen anime films all on DVD. I've easily seen at least ten times as much anime as I own and it's likely more.

Edited April 19, 2007 by Mr March

[chrono]

Just be glad that you don't have to pay what the Japanese do for DVDs!

LOL! Bandai wants you too and with the 'increased production costs of HD anime' you will see anime head into the 35-38 for 3 episodes and stay there.

[khyronic]

Back in the day I bought all the Robotech vhs tapes that I could find(I ordered the old Palladium versions of 2nd and 3rd Generation). I bought Akira and I had dubded a few tapes from buddies to get Macross Plus, Macross II, Miyu, Genocyber, Vampire Hunter D and some others. So, outside of Robotech tapes(which were about 30) I had about 6 other tapes of anime.

Then years passed, spent using Dragon Ball and Sailor Moon as anime to watch.

Then came dvd's. That's when I went nuts and bought tons of shows(Cowboy Bebop, Silent Mobius, all the Kenshin and Escaflowne, Evangelion, Lodoss War, Bubblegum Crisis and about 40 other series. I would read an online review of a new series and then buy it. This went on until about 2 yrs ago.

Now I usually rent first, then buy, but now I'm reverting back to just buying them and saving money on renting. Most series I can get for around 30 to $40 bucks on eBay but I'm trying not to be like I was previously, when I would buy a series a month. Too musch $!!. So, for me I own about 95% of what I 've watched and have about 60 complete series and about 20 OAV's on dvd.

Not good, but not bad either.

[eugimon]

Yes, but I was talking about OAV series, NOT TV series.

Okay, let's make things a little easier to explain:

Back in 1991, you had to pay $40 for a subtitled VHS copy of Project A-Ko. Today, you can pick up a DVD copy of the same film for $6.99. Not only do you get the fully remastered film with both English and Japanese audio and English subtitles, you also get behind-the-scenes footage as well. And you even get the soundtrack CD to boot.

Now, in terms of OAV series, here's a great example:

When Gunbuster first came out, you had to pay $34.99 for two subtitled episodes on VHS. Getting all six episodes would've cost you $104.97 plus tax. Today, you can get all six episodes on one DVD package with liner notes, loads of extras and much better cover art for $44.99.

So, are you still gonna complain about DVD prices?

apples to oranges. but let's keep throwing out red herrings. Please trot out your favorite 20 year old series as an example of how anime DVDs are priced competetively with other DVD releases.

BTW, I too can go to blockbuster and pick out DVDs from their bargain bin, it doesn't mean that all DVDs are priced at 5.99.

Edited April 20, 2007 by eugimon