SDF finally on BD

[hulagu]

I don't know, feels a bit too busy with all the extra flash overs added, like they tried to cramp everyone in like a modern OP.

I just realized as pivotal a character as Minmay was, she never appeared in the original OP.

[Reïvaj]

[...] I just realized as pivotal a character as Minmay was, she never appeared in the original OP.

Wow, it's true! I had never realized that either!

[nhyone]

Call me nitpicking, but I prefer the original OP.

This remake OP, the "physics" seems off.. the planes and other mechanical objects seem weightless.

It's the uncanny valley of death.

[Strumvogel]

I mainly liked the original OP more in part due to familiarity and it's "softer" picture look. There some real charm to it.

The remake just look too sharp which like nyhone said, pushing the uncanny valley line. Though kudos to it making the focus more on the characters since they are the ones that really made the series work.

[nanoplasm]

It's obviously not Mikimoto.

Second. SDF w/o Mikimoto = do not want.

The kit will be released in 4 days. Anyone else on the sideline like me?

AMZ jp already has a bunch of 1 star reviews, mainly people complaining about the price and re're're'release on the BD format.

Edited May 20, 2012 by nanoplasm

[Keith]

Any signof early copies yet? I'm curious to see if the huge LE has the smaller box inside to hold the disc cases.

[Strumvogel]

Second. SDF w/o Mikimoto = do not want.

The kit will be released in 4 days. Anyone else on the sideline like me?

AMZ jp already has a bunch of 1 star reviews, mainly people complaining about the price and re're're'release on the BD format.

So they're complaining with a 1 star review saying it's a re-release without the actual product? Safely say we can discount them for now.

If you know where to look(I'm talking about in Japan here, just in case) you can usually find stocks before the release date though they get harder to get ahead of time the more expensive the product is, and this is really expensive.

I've gotten books, CDs and DVDs anywhere from days to week ahead of time that way. Some books I heard have turned up a whole month ahead of time this way.

[Keith]

So they're complaining with a 1 star review saying it's a re-release without the actual product? Safely say we can discount them for now.

If you know where to look(I'm talking about in Japan here, just in case) you can usually find stocks before the release date though they get harder to get ahead of time the more expensive the product is, and this is really expensive.

I've gotten books, CDs and DVDs anywhere from days to week ahead of time that way. Some books I heard have turned up a whole month ahead of time this way.

That's the one thing you can count on with amazon no matter where in the world you are. It's full of haters who hate on products long before they actually come out.

[nanoplasm]

That's the one thing you can count on with amazon no matter where in the world you are. It's full of haters who hate on products long before they actually come out.

I think it's okay to bitch about fans being milked for the same content over and over again.

[Keith]

I think it's okay to bitch about fans being milked for the same content over and over again.

New HD transfer isn't being milked, plus those extra's are sweet.

[xrentonx]

HD is a pretty significant new feature for me so I don't feel like I'm being milked at all. It's the first time the series is being released in an HD transfer. Now if they released it again on bluray down the line and added in a tiny insignificant extra, they can cry "MILKING THE FANS BOOHOO" all they want. But why cry in the first place? Just don't buy it and move on. Problem solved.

[ReAnimator]

I'm ready to give them my money for this release, I just want to see some screencaps first to make sure the remastering is up to snuff. Screencaps anyone???

[Renato]

HD is a pretty significant new feature for me so I don't feel like I'm being milked at all. It's the first time the series is being released in an HD transfer. Now if they released it again on bluray down the line and added in a tiny insignificant extra, they can cry "MILKING THE FANS BOOHOO" all they want. But why cry in the first place? Just don't buy it and move on. Problem solved.

Because of the high price, and the widely-held opinion that very few moments in the series actually warrant a Blu-Ray transfer in the first place. For example, are Sadako Minmay's empty black demon-eyes suddenly beautiful gems in HD? Or the "YF-1R"? Or the human-sized "OMG IT'S POWER ARMOUR!!" Destroids?

[xrentonx]

Because of the high price, and the widely-held opinion that very few moments in the series actually warrant a Blu-Ray transfer in the first place. For example, are Sadako Minmay's empty black demon-eyes suddenly beautiful gems in HD? Or the "YF-1R"? Or the human-sized "OMG IT'S POWER ARMOUR!!" Destroids?

No, but the parts that are nicely animated will look even better to me. You can't cherry pick the bad parts and say it isn't warranted. Well, you can but it is no more valid than me picking the nice parts and saying it is worth it.

Is it really a widely held opinion or is there proof somewhere? Numbers? Statistics? A poll?

Edited May 21, 2012 by xrentonx

[Renato]

No, but the parts that are nicely animated will look even better to me. You can't cherry pick the bad parts and say it isn't warranted. Well, you can but it is no more valid than me picking the nice parts and saying it is worth it.

Is it really a widely held opinion or is there proof somewhere? Numbers? Statistics? A poll?

That opinion is pretty widely held among anime fans in their 30s and 40s here in Japan to the extent that I have heard after talking to people for years, and the very Amazon reviews that we are discussing I would say are a fairly good cross-section of that:

http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E8%B6%85%E6%99%82%E7%A9%BA%E8%A6%81%E5%A1%9E%E3%83%9E%E3%82%AF%E3%83%AD%E3%82%B9-Blu-ray-Complete-Edition-%E5%88%9D%E5%9B%9E%E9%99%90%E5%AE%9A%E7%94%9F%E7%94%A3/dp/B006QRCBG2/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1337583624&sr=8-4

Most of these are fans that genuinely like the show.

This discussion here is quite interesting, too:

http://www.amazon.co.jp/review/R35H67ECDQ1CY7/ref=cm_cr_dp_cmt?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B006QRCBG2&linkCode=&nodeID=561958&tag=#wasThisHelpful

You might need a translator, but basically the main guy is saying that the price is too expensive for such an old show if you compare it to modern anime -- and yet, as one respondent points out, that is STILL giving this set the benefit of the doubt, simply because SDF Macross was not made using the more modern business model of the production committee, where the main aim is to make money off the property through sales of video packages -- that is, VHS, LD, DVD, BR ,etc. SDF Mac came before all of that. The show was designed with most of the money to come from toys and models, and we all know they cleaned up big time with that, and STILL do (thanks to Yamato et al). What this means is that there ought not be any incentive for BV/BW to charge this much since they have all long recouped their investments. My guess is that most of this money is probably going towards those crazy 1/1 valks and musical events that they have planned.

At the end of the day, people have two main problems -- the price for what you get (many wanted DYRL and FB2012 included, some don't even care about the Pachinko stuff) and that the very idea of putting this show on BluRay is considered dubious in the first place.

[xrentonx]

Thanks for the links but yeah, my Japanese is almost non-existent if you don't count the semester I took in college

Still sounds anecdotal to me. Anyhow, I'm happy (at least I hope to be) with my purchase and that's all that counts. (fully aware there are no English subs)

Edited May 21, 2012 by xrentonx

[Keith]

While the quality of animation may not be up to snuff in some episodes, it's pretty damn good in enough episodes. HD itself isn't just about fancy animation, it's about max detail & color with minimum lost to compression. But hey, I've seen people that still swear VHS is good enough for them, and all I can say is those people should be locked away in padded rooms.

[Tochiro]

WooT! Mine just shipped :-) Will hopefully have it tomorrow. Will post pics after work.

[MacrossCN]

WooT! Mine just shipped :-) Will hopefully have it tomorrow. Will post pics after work.

SDF:M's BD：4:3

Gundam SEED's BD：16:9

T T

Edited May 23, 2012 by MacrossCN

[Tochiro]

SDF:M's BD：4:3

Gundam SEED's BD：16:9

T T

Of course there's a ratio difference. What were you expecting? The trailers for the BD remaster were all in 4:3. Or are you just trying to troll?

Apart from a good 20years between the two shows, the Seed project is not a straight remaster. It's been re-edited, new footage animated and added and some of the voice work redone. It's even getting aired on tv because of these differences. You are comparing pineapples to oranges.

[Keith]

Plus the SEED remaster has a lot of cropping. Why the hell would you want them to crop Macross?

[sketchley]

No, no, Tochiro's hit the nail on the head.

When SDFM was made, it was done at 4:3. If you want a 16:9, then the ENTIRE series has to be reanimated. (Not just refilmed, but the edges of all the art have to be drawn in).

[That or serious croppage. But who wants that???]

Edited May 23, 2012 by sketchley

[sketchley]

Above image cropped to 16:9.

Just for fun.

[MacrossCN]

When SDFM was made, it was done at 4:3. If you want a 16:9, then the ENTIRE series has to be reanimated. (Not just refilmed, but the edges of all the art have to be drawn in).

T T

[Tochiro]

Guess what finally came? ;-)

Some unboxing pics follow below.

There are 7 blurays in total - 6 for the series (6 eps per disc) and 1 for the extras. The 6 series discs are split between 3 cardboard/plastic cases with unique art on the cover of each. The extras disc gets its own case.

The extras disc is far from comprehensive but has several music clips composed of footage from the pachinko game, several old Takatoku tv commercials, a long promotional video for the old PS2 game and a 30min documentary that recently aired on cable as part of a 30th anniversary rebroadcast (have only watched first 5 mins - includes interviews with Kawamori and Mikimoto), as well as some other things.

Pic quality on the series is pretty much what I was expecting - its clear and the colors are great, but the dirt and layering can be very noticeable at times. But to be honest that is exactly how I like it :-)

But Hikaru, what happened to your face?

This is for Save.

Oh crap, humanity is doomed....

Edited May 25, 2012 by Tochiro

[VF5SS]

No smoking on the bridge, Shammy!

[xrentonx]

So pretty! Can't wait for mine. Wanna see ALL the flaws....in 1080p!

Edited May 24, 2012 by xrentonx

[Keith]

The only disappointing aspect to that packaging is that the RE got a bluray sized box with bluray cases using the same art. That said, it looks like the extra's more than make up for that. As far as I can tell, it's the height of 1 DVD case + and length of 2 DVD cases laid flat? How thick is it? I'd like to see a side profile shot against another box for comparison.

And while I'm at it, if anyoen could do individiual case cover scans to add to the release section on the main site, that'd be awesome.

Edited May 24, 2012 by Keith

[TheLoneWolf]

I'm working on revamping the video section of the main site, and the blu-ray set will definitely be there.

[nanoplasm]

damn it you fiends with your pictures! I guess I am getting it. =p

[ReAnimator]

Pic quality on the series is pretty much what I was expecting - its clear and the colors are great, but the dirt and layering can be very noticeable at times. But to be honest that is exactly how I like it :-)

Me too!!! Can I take that to mean they didn't smear the grain away with digital noise reduction?

[UN Spacy]

More pics...plllllease.

[Marzan]

That set looks sooooo sweet.

[TMBounty_Hunter]

DHL seems to be giving my package a world tour

[jet660]

Happy to announce my Macross Blu-ray Box set has arrived! The Amazon jp shipping box was thrashed when it was dropped off. Thank goodness the box set had its own cardboard box and was in prestine condition. It took three days to get here Osaka - HK - US. Very odd way for a package to travel halfway round the world. So, I feel the pain some ppl will go through using DHL.

Like Tochiro said, the picture quality looks great. You will notice the dirt and layering at certain while watching. There is minimum grain here and there, but does not distract the overall picture quality. However, the Macross Special (ep.1 and 2) does not look like it was remastered and the original episode 11 looks like it was copied from a VHS. The pachinko footage is pretty interesting to watch since it consists of short music clips. For the Macross Perfect Memory book, it is the Out 10 version and includes the SDF Macross poster in the back of the book. It is slightly smaller compared to the original one, but does fit nicely in box.

The only complaint I have so far is the three inner jackets that holds the 6 blu-ray discs. Though the jackets are laminated, it still has a very cheap cardboard like feel. I think BV could have done better by having a mini box similar to regular edition or some sort of plastic case.

Overall, I have to say I am very impress with the presentation of this wonderful box set. Some people will be turned away from it because of the lack of English subtitles and its price point, which I can perfectly understand. For me, buying this set was a worthwhile investment despite those shortcomings. I believe BV gave the best treatment for this 30 year old anime that we grew up with.