Best copy of COMPLETE dyrl movie

[macII]

Was just recently reminded of the DYRL movie and streamed it. Was immediately blown away, just like when I was a kid. Decided I must own this movie!! The problem, which version. Did some research and found that there are many versions on different formats. I understand that the latest BluRay version is edited/censored, so that is a "NO". Also found that there were some dvd versions released in the last few years, so possibly one of those.

Can someone give me some advice or opinion on what is the best UNCUT version of this movie and why? If it happens to be an out of print or older edtion (or boot), that is fine too--don't mind hunting. I just want the best experience of the uncut movie.

*I own a region-free dvd player, VHS player and Laserdisk player.

THANK YOU!!

[Agent ONE]

Its not just a matter of uncut... There is also a clip that comes before the film that was made years later and featured in a video game:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0P5e3Qt2lM

Then there is the final- final finish of the film, which was also made years later. This clip is called 2012 Flashback:

I have two versions of the film, one dubbed in English, and one subtitled. I had to stitch the clips together myself to have the "final" versions of the film.

I am not sure which DVD is the unedited version.

[Renato]

I would actually recommend the Blu-ray even despite the minor edits (it's not like they cut out entire scenes or anything -- the running time is the same), but if you really want it uncut, then your next best bet is the "HD Remaster" DVD release from 2007: It came in two editions, standard and limited edition. Both are quite easy to find and not so expensive now (dumb Amazon prices notwithstanding) since consumers appear to have conceded that the BD has totally improved pretty much every aspect of the movie (except, of course, the edits). I have the limited edition which comes with 3 discs (two versions of the film plus an extras disc), and storyboards and lineart books. The standard edition is just the regular movie.

Link:

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-%E6%84%9B%E3%83%BB%E3%81%8A%E3%81%BC%E3%81%88%E3%81%A6%E3%81%84%E3%81%BE%E3%81%99%E3%81%8B-HD%E3%83%AA%E3%83%9E%E3%82%B9%E3%82%BF%E3%83%BC%E7%89%88-%E3%83%A1%E3%83%A2%E3%83%AA%E3%82%A2%E3%83%AB%E3%83%9C%E3%83%83%E3%82%AF%E3%82%B9-%E5%88%9D%E5%9B%9E%E9%99%90%E5%AE%9A%E7%94%9F%E7%94%A3/dp/B000VPOV36/ref=sr_1_3?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1368751932&sr=1-3&keywords=%E3%83%9E%E3%82%AF%E3%83%AD%E3%82%B9+%E6%84%9B%E3%81%8A%E3%81%BC%E3%81%88%E3%81%A6%E3%81%84%E3%81%BE%E3%81%99%E3%81%8B

[locidm]

good info. I assume that one has no subtitle either (same as bluray), so take that in mind before purchasing.

[Tochiro]

Renato to the rescue - you beat me to it damnit! lol. But I seem to remember you mentioning that one of the DVD editions had some really bad Edge Enhancement - do you recall that conversation at all?

Just to add my 2 yen to clarify the situation (or perhaps make it more confusing ^^; ):
Like Renato, I too think that the BD is worth owning. It's not the definitive version of the movie, due to the 2 or 3 small edits, and the fact that some of the scenes dont look focused, but in the scenes where it looks good the movie honestly looks the best it ever has or ever will. The only way for it to look better would be to find a 35mm print somewhere - something which we can only dream of, lol.

Also, if you can find/afford the deluxe box of the BD, it comes with Flashback 2012. having said that, the original masters of Flashback have been lost and the BD doesnt look noticeably better than an upscaled DVD.

Now, as Agent One said, DYRL has had various supplementary footage made for it over the years. These have never been released together in one 'film' though and I don't think they really should be. The Flashback 2012 footage, while originally meant to be included in DYRL, was cut due to time and budget restraints. And having seen both versions at the cinema I think that this actually worked out for the best. The (small) amount of new footage in Flashback 2012 is gorgeous and much, much better appreciated when it doesnt have staff credits taking up part of the screen. Similarly, the prologue footage made for the Saturn DYRL game a good 12 years after DYRL looks gorgeous - it also looks quite different in quality to DYRL (CG vs hand-drawn, etc)and has never been made available in more than 480p resolution, making the jump in resolution quite jarring imo.

So, if you don't want to support the recent edited BD release (which I suppose I can understand) but want absolutely everything DYRL related, you will need 3 DVDs: DYRL, Flashback 2012, and the Macross 20th Anniversary Premium Collection.

DYRL - Theres an older and newer HD remaster DVD. The newer one also has a limited box set and standard versions.
Original DYRL DVD 1999
http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/aw/d/B00005EDM2/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?qid=1368745750&sr=8-4π=SL75

HD Remaster DVD 2007 (standard)
http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/aw/d/B000VPOV3G/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1368745837&sr=8-1π=SL75

Flashback 2012 - no real difference between versions afaik, so I'd say go with the more recent 2008 release.
Flashback 2012 DVD 2000
http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/aw/d/B00005FX3B/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1368746075&sr=8-1π=SL75

Flashback 2012 reissue 2008
http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/aw/d/B000Y9OKLM/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?qid=1368745986&sr=8-2π=SL75

20th Anniversary Premium Collection (only one version! Includes Saturn OP footage)
http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/aw/d/B00006ALYI/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1368746194&sr=8-1π=SL75

Hope this helps. And kudos for wanting to support the franchise by buying a physical copy :-)

Edited May 17, 2013 by Tochiro

[Renato]

Renato to the rescue - you beat me to it damnit! lol. But I seem to remember you mentioning that one of the DVD editions had some really bad Edge Enhancement - do you recall that conversation at all?

Yeah, but I figured he doesn't care about that as much as he does the edits. Actually it's not that bad, anyway.

EDIT -- I should add that if you get the limited edition of either the BD or the 2007 HD Remaster DVD, you do not need the 20th Anniversary thing since the Saturn game OP footage will be in there anyway -- and not just that, but they included the Mika "Misa" Doi narration in between the cutscenes, too, which is not in the 20th Anni DVD.

Lastly, there is a cool retrospective documentary on the bonus disc of the LE Blu-ray, too, which is good.

Edited May 17, 2013 by Renato

[Checkmate]

Thanks for the very informative posts, guys! I was about to ask the same questions that OP did.

[macII]

Thank you all, for all of the information and recommendations! I think I've narrowed it down to either the 2007 HD or the 1999 dvd. Would I be correct in guessing that the 2007 HD has the better picture, and sound since it is the latest? What is " bad edge enhancement"? Can someone explain the Misa narration (I never knew this existed). Also, between the aforementioned 2 versions, do either of them have the Flashback ending?

[treatment]

I say, get all the official versions...

[Gubaba]

My two cents: the far right on Treatment's post is the only one that *I* need... I prefer the "theatrical" version of the movie (i.e. no Flashback ending, and the nice mono mix of the soundtrack), and that's the best version of that.

I'm probably alone in this opinion, though.

[Vifam7]

Thank you all, for all of the information and recommendations! I think I've narrowed it down to either the 2007 HD or the 1999 dvd. Would I be correct in guessing that the 2007 HD has the better picture, and sound since it is the latest? What is " bad edge enhancement"? Can someone explain the Misa narration (I never knew this existed). Also, between the aforementioned 2 versions, do either of them have the Flashback ending?

One thing I should note from my experience. The video quality of the 2007 HD Remaster DVD looks fantastic when played on a regular CRT TV but terrible on my modern LCD HD TV (looks grainy as heck). The video quality of the 1999 DVD looks fine on the HD TV. However, do not play the 1999 DVD on an ancient cheapo DVD player like my infamous Apex AD600A. Playing it on a crap deck like my Apex will result in playback issues.

[Graham]

Personally, I don't like the Bluray version, there are many times when it looks too grainy.

Graham

[Renato]

One thing I should note from my experience. The video quality of the 2007 HD Remaster DVD looks fantastic when played on a regular CRT TV but terrible on my modern LCD HD TV (looks grainy as heck). The video quality of the 1999 DVD looks fine on the HD TV. However, do not play the 1999 DVD on an ancient cheapo DVD player like my infamous Apex AD600A. Playing it on a crap deck like my Apex will result in playback issues.

Yeah, until I got a PS3, the 1999 DVD was UNWATCHABLE. There is a ton of interlacing issues and it takes a lot away from the film, especially during the action scenes.

It's not bad (just dark and murky overall) on a fairly good set-up.

Edited May 19, 2013 by Renato

[Renato]

Thank you all, for all of the information and recommendations! I think I've narrowed it down to either the 2007 HD or the 1999 dvd. Would I be correct in guessing that the 2007 HD has the better picture, and sound since it is the latest? What is " bad edge enhancement"? Can someone explain the Misa narration (I never knew this existed). Also, between the aforementioned 2 versions, do either of them have the Flashback ending?

"Edge enhancement" is one of those digital techniques that can be employed to make movies clearer and sharper. It's rather artificial and not really a "remaster", so consider the "HD remaster DVD" just something that they put through a bunch of filters, rather than actually going back to the masters and cleaning that up.

The film is dark to begin with, so bringing out detail means that you're gonna get a lot of grain, which is what happened with the 2007 release.

The Blu-ray is a remaster in the true sense -- however, the image quality varies because of the way that the movie was filmed in the first place: every imperfection shows up now, including the numerous out-of-focus shots, which is quite distracting.

All in all, they all have their pluses and minuses.

As for the Flashback ending, they all have it. If you get the Limited Edition of the 2007 DVD, you have the "theatrical version" of the movie without the Flashback ending as a bonus disc. The Blu-ray has two modes in the same disc and can be configured to play with or without it.

Finally, the "Misa narration" refers to the narration which you hear in between levels of the Saturn DYRL game. They include all of those along with the extra game-only footage (the attack on the Prometheus, the ARMD attack, Destroids preparing for deployment, the jamming station, Minmay saying "Listen to my song!" [well, not exactly, but sort of!] etc...) on the Limited Edition versions of the 2007 DVD and the Blu-ray.

Edited May 19, 2013 by Renato

[treatment]

some snapshots while watching from a 7" tablet...

not bad, i say.

[connor99]

I say, get all the official versions...

Is that Hidetaka Tenjin art on the box in the left hand side of this pic from Treatment?

[Tochiro]

Is that Hidetaka Tenjin art on the box in the left hand side of this pic from Treatment?

Yes it is, although since its wrap-around, you can only see half of it. That piece has some awesome detail. I wish i could have afforded one of the framed replications of it that were offered at the Macross gengaten Exhibit last year.

[IdeaOfEvil]

So just to clarify, there are no official releases of DYRL on any format that came with English subs, right?

[Tochiro]

So just to clarify, there are no official releases of DYRL on any format that came with English subs, right?

That's correct.

[Strumvogel]

My two cents: the far right on Treatment's post is the only one that *I* need... I prefer the "theatrical" version of the movie (i.e. no Flashback ending, and the nice mono mix of the soundtrack), and that's the best version of that.

I'm probably alone in this opinion, though.

No, I'm with you there. It was something I wished the BD release had along with with a digital 1080 remaster to go along with it. I was... disappointed.

I say, get all the official versions...

Where's the Laserdisc version?

That's actually the one version I wish I have actually.

[Renato]

Where's the Laserdisc version?

That's actually the one version I wish I have actually.

It's here, yo, among with the rest of my DYRL stuff (apart from the Gold Book, which I keep in my office).

Edited June 2, 2013 by Renato

[Fortress_Maximus]

Nice collection Renato! Those Dvd covers are great.