I was wondering if any of you tried downloading some episodes. I downloaded 3 episodes of Gunsword (meh), then I tried Trinity Blood (good stuff). It's 160 points per episode, so a little over a dollar. That's not bad considering I used to shell out $30 for the dvd's.

I thought the video quality okay, the picture was washed out with some stuttering framerate on cgi effects and camera pans, but it didn't detract from the overall viewing.

I'm looking forward to more content, but for those of you interested check out: Trinity Blood, Last Exile and Samurai 7. I would have downloaded the last two, but I already have them on dvd.

I might need to get the 120hdd or hook up the 360 to a dvd recorder.

jap w/ subs or english dubbed?

if it's dubbed, no thanks.

I hope the library expands to include 90s titles from a variety of different publishers (Geneon/Pioneer, ADV, Funimation, Media Blasters, Central Park Media, and Manga Entertainment), rather than just recent releases from only one or two firms.

Just dubbed so far.

I'd also like to see it expand to include other publishers... but I want new titles, I have most of the older ones on dvd already.

Akira is available in HD, but only as a rental and at 5.6 GB it sounds like it's going to be an overnight download.

I downloaded Akira, but normally I only download anime via **********. Then stream that badboy to the old 360. Basilisk will be coming to the marketplace. I could only recommend Trinity Blood or Basilisk IF it had the original Japanese dialogue. Better yet, do yourself a favor and download Deathnote. Very good story.

I tried out a few samples.
No playback problems.
Tried Trinity Blood (which is running on the 'Toon Network) to get up to speed on the first three episodes, which I'd missed.
Gilgamesh seems...intriguing...
Guyver... Didn't show me anything in the first episode...
A couple others I haven't gotten around to watching yet.
They have a decent mix of styles and genres so I'll probably sample most of the other series since the price isn't bad by anime DVD standards.

so everything is dubbed on live so far? i wish they would give you a choice... seems like they could have 2 downloads, one dubbed and one with subs hardcoded.

i wish cartoon network would air everything in native dialog with subtitles, i dont think i've ever found any voice acting that i enjoyed.

i'm not a huge anime junkie, i like trigun, berserk, bleach, champloo, etc.. i may have to check out death note and trinity blood.

so everything is dubbed on live so far? i wish they would give you a choice... seems like they could have 2 downloads, one dubbed and one with subs hardcoded.

i wish cartoon network would air everything in native dialog with subtitles, i dont think i've ever found any voice acting that i enjoyed.

i'm not a huge anime junkie, i like trigun, berserk, bleach, champloo, etc.. i may have to check out death note and trinity blood.

If your dub experience includes those titles, I can see where you'd be turned off. Texhnolyze, Elfen Lied, and Ghost in the Shell: Standalone Complex are good dubs, IMO.

If your dub experience includes those titles, I can see where you'd be turned off. Texhnolyze, Elfen Lied, and Ghost in the Shell: Standalone Complex are good dubs, IMO.

no, i watched elfen lied and ghost in the shell w/ subs.

i try not to watch anything dubbed, but every now and then i'll catch something dubbed... just horrible, naruto/bleach/inuyasha on cartoon network.... horrible.

i didnt mind the dubbing on FF:AC, but still preferred the japanese voice w/ subs. also i didnt mind english on berserk (it was natively in english right?), but anything other than that i havent been satisfied with.

LOL at Anime.. I don't get it, even the porn Anime..

Was Speed Racer considered Anime?

LOL at Anime.. I don't get it, even the porn Anime..

Was Speed Racer considered Anime?

i used to say the same thing until i actually watched something decent... it's no different than watching any other cartoon, english or otherwise. you never watched transformers or thundercats or voltron? basically the same thing, only there are anime series that are current and more interesting than anything us americans have to offer... it's like watching a good action flick, only animated.

and yes, speed racer is an english adaptation of a japanese anime.

LOL at Anime.. I don't get it, even the porn Anime..


Should't that be "especially" the porn anime? ;-)

To paraphrase the greatly unappreciated Theodore Sturgeon (look'im up!) 90% of anime is sheer crap... but then, 90% of *everything* is sheer crap.

Two things to understand about anime as a story-telling medium is that it is:
1-a multilayered medium where the real story often lies underneath the surface of the action and mayhem (for example, an adult-grade romance novel can be found hiding inside a story outwardly about a cross-dimensional invasion--RahXephon--or a debate on the proper uses of military power and the price of blind allegiance to ideology within a saga about giant robot tanks--Gundam Seed)

2- formalized, almost formulaic, in its storytelling language, using a handful of outwardly similar story formats to ease the viewer into what otherwise be very alien worlds and concepts. The stylized aspects of the sub-genres within baseline anime (giant robots, untrustworthy military, rebellious teenagers on motorcycles, young girls with wings, honking big swords with no mass or inertia, etc, etc) are concentions of the genre much like skintight costumes and steroidal body types are a staple of superhero comics or guns that never run out of bullets are hollywood staples and no more define the actual story being told than the costumes or art style define the quality of a comic book. And just like a superhero story or hollywood flick can hide a meaningful story about life as a minority in modern society (XMEN2, anybody? "Have you tried not being a mutant?") or a political alegory about taking a stand against evil, regardless of the personal cost (Batman Begins) or the cost of *not* taking a stand ("The Village") good anime is about ideas and emotions.

Of course, since anime is a modern japanese art form, it is infused with japanese attitudes and japanese lore and customs which is to some part of the appeal.

So, yeah, 90% of anime is crap and not worth a second look. But the other 10% can be very rewarding whether as a mere diversion from video games or regular TV shows or as an entry into some very interesting fantasy stories told with a visual/thematic language just a bit different from the one we're used to dealing with. And often come with... interesting ideas/concepts...

Of course, tastes vary, but the genre isn't all about giant robots or underdessed youg girls with guns; if you look carefully you can find more traditional SF and Fantasy stories, just told with a different sensibility.

One recent example: the same folks that created Cardcaptor Sakura (the series that the WB kiddie-ized with some success into a saturday morning cartoon) have a sort-of follow up about an alternate-universe version of the same characters that could easily be a standard NYTimes-best-selling fantasy if the story were told in traditional narrative prose. Instead, they told it as an ongoing Manga (japanese comic book series) and then adapted it as an anime that is just now being released in DVD form in the US. If you get past the "magic girl" visual language trappings, (which for *some* folk is the primary draw) you'll find a story of an epic quest by three heroes (a scholar, a warrior, a mage) seeking to restore the lost memories and power of a Magical princess by travelling through multiple universes and societies. The characters are well-defined, charming, clever and witty, each with a worthy story of their own, and the series oozes charm and wit and should easily appeal to fans of Piers Anthony's massively successful XANTH books. Not an inconsiderable audience that one.

Just like in regular movies and books, the medium of a story--whether print, filmed, or animated--tells you nothing about its quality and sometimes the best of stories are found in the least likely of places. (Harry Potter, anybody? A 10 year-old boy in a school for wizards and witches? Riiiight... How many publishers passed on that? :cool: )

And, that is where the Anime by 360 channel in video marketplace comes in.
Anime in the US is emerging from the "cool underground" into the mainstream, with VOD channels on cable and a couple of emerging 24x7 anime channels developing, to say nothing of the anime sections in video stores. The core demographic of anime matches very closely to the core demographic of the 360 with one minor exception: Anime is more popular with fems than games are. So if MS is trying to make 360 appeal to a broader demographic, one useful tool is added Anime.

Plus, Anime on DVD tends to be priced more like movies than TV shows so the $2 an episode cost will meet with less resistance from those used to paying $20 for 4-5 episodes on a DVD. In other words, there's money to be made there.
Its not everybody's cup of tea but if you have any interest in SF or Fantasy or even (gulp!) romance novels, there just might be something you might like in there.

If nothing else, it is very different from the usual fare you get from Hollywood. (Just check out Gunslinger girl's premiere episode for proof of that...)

Have fun!

FYI: fjtorres was referring to "Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle" earlier. I'd also recommend it, but we'd be getting off topic. ;)

FYI: fjtorres was referring to "Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle" earlier. I'd also recommend it, but we'd be getting off topic. ;)
Off topic or not I appreciate all the name dropping and recommendations in this thread! I'm way behind the times anime wise but picking up some of the titles mentioned here. 3 eps into Death Note right now and it's certainly got my attention.

i'm 6 eps into death note and so far so good.

to stay on topic, all the recommendations can now be "requests to be added as live downloads" hehe

like i said before, i'm not a huge anime fan, but maybe that's because 90% of it sucks, there is definitely a 10% margin there that i really like.

one thing i hate is that some really good anime is really short (5-15 episodes) and some crappy anime can go one for 200-300+ episodes.

FLCL and Elfen Lied for example, really good yet really short.


what i'd like to see on live:

FLCL (subs)
Elfen Lied (subs)
Bleach (subs)
Berserk (eng)
Trigun (subs)
Death Note (subs)
FM Alchemist (subs)
Samurai Champloo (subs)

i guess the problem is that most of the subs are fansubs and that's "illegal" especially if you were to charge for them, hopefully MS can work some deals out, there is quite a bit of money to be made if they choose the right series'

I wouldn't rank Elfen Lied among the better anime shows out there. Elfen Lied was produced by a studio notable for it's softcore hentai offerings, and this lineage shows. It takes more than gratuitous gore and constant nudity humor to make a good story.

Below is a short list of anime I've enjoyed as a 20-something guy who never grew up. I typically recommend these to people who are new to anime. Note: I enjoyed these all the way through. A lot of shows start off great but fall apart or have a lousy ending and thus aren't worth mentioning.

Cowboy Bebop (bounty hunters in space, action/adventure/comedy)
Death Note (drama/thriller)
FLCL (action/comedy)
Fullmetal Alchemist (magic users & action/adventure)
Fighting Spirit (aka Hajime No Ippo, sports/boxing)
Love Hina (romantic comedy/harem-style)
Rahxephon (action/adventure/mecha)
Samurai Champloo (samurai/action/adventure/comedy)
The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi (comedy/romance/highschool)

If you don't like anime, you might still like Ghost in a Shell, mentioned above. I didn't even know that was considered anime. Is anime anything that is a cartoon, or is it a particular genre of Japanese cartoons?

Should't that be "especially" the porn anime? ;-)




Should't that be shouldn't? :)


And I said it right since I like 99.9999% porn

If you don't like anime, you might still like Ghost in a Shell, mentioned above. I didn't even know that was considered anime. Is anime anything that is a cartoon, or is it a particular genre of Japanese cartoons?

Anime is just an abbreviation of the word "animation". Outside of Japan the term mostly refers to animation originating in Japan.

In Japan, not all animation is considered anime; and anime is considered a subset of animation.

basically in america, anime=japanese based animation, usually inspired by manga (japanese comics), and Ghost in the Shell is every bit Anime.


it's basically a really broad term, meaning animation, which has many many subset genres.

Oooh I love to pontificate about Anime :)

Cowboy Bebop (bounty hunters in space, ction/adventure/comedy)


I'm a member of the "90% of Anime is Crap" fanclub, but only because I used to really enjoy browsing Mangas and checking out what Anime I could in the 80's, before Anime became the rage in the 90's. I mean, I am a Battle of the Planets lover, Star Blazers, all the americanized stuff just amazed me with the depth and complexity of their stories (well, to an 8 year old)....they were like..so adult. Then later with Robotech, same thing. Akira? Opened the floodgates. But then the 90's happened...and everything changed.

I tried watching this series when it was on Cartoon Network, and frankly, it made my skin crawl.

One of the posters above hit the nail on the head, Anime has reached the point where nothing makes sense, and its all layers upon layers upon layers. A film noir murder mystery only set in feudal japan but instead of samurai they are elves and wizards and....and so on and so on. Its like bad fiction that some people think is genius simply because they stuck with the story long enough to figure it out..and then its usually the "same old thing".

I also can't seem to get past the stereotypes anymore...in the Anime I have watched in the past 10 years, the heros are always brooding, mulling about about some past misery and questioning their existance....to the point of nausea. The chicks are all half dressed (even in space), the girls are all ditzy.....the fat guy is always the comic relief...I mean this was the same in robotech in the 80's (Macross, Mospedia, whatever)...and its the same old stereotypes.

I mean...Jin Roh was this way, Cowboy BeeBop was this way, and man Evangelion I loved (that 10%) due to the quasi religious aspects of it, but even ITS main character made me want to kill him every single episode with his whining and his crying and "why am I like this?"

I get the impression that every teenager in japan suffers from a massive inferiority complex and it comes out in every single Anime title released, its like every hero in a Japanese Anime that isn't a goof or a comedy title is somehow needs healthy doses of Prozak, cries around girls, and goes home to ponder his existance and morality while he's piloting his mech, or cutting people down with his sword, or what have you...


Fullmetal Alchemist (magic users & action/adventure)

This one too.....couldn't get into the whole "kids" thing......guess its an age bias but I felt like I was watching "JAFA"...Just Another F'in Anime. I suppose it hurts me that I'm not really down with the Wizards and Warriors stuff...so anyways clearly not for me.


The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi (comedy/romance/highschool)

Ok...Someone needs to start putting some english names on these things that don't sound like they are bad Engrish conversions :)

Would I want to watch a show titled THE MELANCHOLY OF SUZUMIYA HARUHI?
Or GENETIC BLACKFISH SPYKER A.D. (yeah I totally made that up but it SOUNDS like you can order it from ADV doesn't it!) :D

Like I said....Evangelion was the last that I really liked....and even though it suffered from alot of teh same nonsense that turns me off to Anime in general, it had some very cool premises to it..the whole Religious aspect to the series (christianity) was new to me, the way teh Evas were....or were there...mechs :) The "can't fight without power for more than 60 seconds" or whatever, all of those made the series appeal to me.....it made it seem more complex than it probably was, without burying it in endless overlapping plot points.

Tho I admit, it got worse towards the end with that aspect of it.....and of course the movie that wraps the series is one of those "Huh....ok....uh.........Huh." experiences :)

Tho I admit, it got worse towards the end with that aspect of it.....and of course the movie that wraps the series is one of those "Huh....ok....uh.........Huh." experiences :)

End of Evangelion and Death and Rebirth were the product of the creator giving the finger to fans. I find it hilarious because I hate Evangelion with every fiber of my being.

End of Evangelion and Death and Rebirth were the product of the creator giving the finger to fans. I find it hilarious because I hate Evangelion with every fiber of my being.

I've heard similar things about that one...
I've kept my distance.

HeadRusch:

"The Melancholy of [name here]" is grammatically correct. It's a story about this one girl's morose boredom, or melancholy if you will ;)

Also:

It just sounds like you grew up and got pretentious. A lot of cartoons I saw that seemed awesome when I was a kid I really can't bring myself to enjoy anymore. Try watching those old shows you saw...you'll find the magic's gone. It wasn't anime that changed, it was you.

Probably.....guess I just outgrew the format, but there is still Anime I can enjoy (yeah I can still watch Star Blazers, cruddy animation and all).....I just can't seem to buy into alot of the new stuff. Seems like every storyline I start to read about makes me slap my head in disgust.

I mean, it would be the equivelent of seeing a new Rambo movie come out where Rambo is a brooding anti-hero, only he's really half Mecha, and his mecha side is cyberlinked with Gaia, the great mother earth spirit who is really just a supercomputer running the earth which we think is a planet, and there are a couple of kids who have telekenetic powers that can save Gaia before the great Star Armada sets loose the ancient crystal which will bring forth Demons from another dimension and....

..and somewhere in there are moral lessons, Rambo questions his existance, and a chick in a short skirt flashes her panties and takes care of her cat over and over, plus she's a hired assasin-ninja. etc, etc, etc.

I can't keep up :D

Why is every pretentious anime fan so against the big bad Americans ruining their Anime? I for one am a huge fan of most English dubs.

Why is every pretentious anime fan so against the big bad Americans ruining their Anime? I for one am a huge fan of most English dubs.

if that was aimed at me, i'm really not an anime fan, i havent seen but a few different series, and there isnt a whole lot that i like. i dont care for the japanese or their culture, and anime is no different to me than watching something else that interests me. i dont know why it is, but i just hate english dubbing, i'll see something and literally laugh because it's complete garbage. now i'm sure there are good dubs out there, and i probably havent seen them, but i've already explained all of that :)

in otherwords, i'm not against dubbing, i'm just against horrible dubs. i dont see how someone can watch naruto or inuyasha on cartoon network, it's horrendous.

Something to keep in mind about the anime dub/sub debate:

Many anime characters are designed to have unique or annoying voices/accents/speech patterns. For a non-Japanese audience, these subtleties of personality & voice/speech pattern are lost. It's hard to tell if someone speaks in a really annoying way if you don't actually understand what the hell they're saying without reading a translation.

English dubs, or atleast some of the super-annoying ones, try to keep the unique speech patterns & accent types, and transfer them over to the English world. This is why Naruto is freaking annoying. Now, it's true, some dubs are truly awful and use voice actors complely innappropriate for the characters they portray. However...most of the time, it's the former problem.

To compare:

I hate the Texan drawl/twang. I hate the mannerisms, the personality, the expressions of the deep south. If some Japanese guy tried to do a Japanese-localized imitation of a deep southerner and I watched him with subtitles, I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be nearly as annoying to me. What's the Japanese equivalent, a Kansai or Osaka accent?

Addendum: a lot of hardcore anime fans hate dubs for another reason. Most of us watch pirated fansubbed anime before it's licensed & available in the western world. We get used to the character's voice & the personality implied by it, as well as the translated script. Once an official script & dubbed version become available, our brains are a bit shocked by the difference (however subtle or not-so-subtle) in voice & the difference in script translation as well. A lot of anime fansubs are translated for clarity & meaning, without regards to trying to sink up the facial movements or talk time like a real English script would have to do. So we're just shocked/dismayed because something we learned to love is different in an unmistakable way & everything just seems "wrong". Kinda like the new coke.

To be quite honest, I'm not interested in any marketplace video content unless it is 720p.

To be quite honest, I'm not interested in any marketplace video content unless it is 720p.

What's the point in upconverting 480p content to 720? It's not like you eke out any additional visual information. All you get is a significantly greater filesize & download wait.

What's the point in upconverting 480p content to 720? It's not like you eke out any additional visual information. All you get is a significantly greater filesize & download wait.

I'm not talking about up converting SD content to HD. Basically I'm saying I want more than a 480p video, which I can simply buy a DVD.

I'd rather be getting straight HD rips of shows that currently broadcast in HD, or perhaps a remastering of a certain show to HD resolution.

I guess you can say I'm not interesting in spending money on media that is not "next gen" ;) as well. The same reason I'm not buying original Xbox games anymore either, or straight emulated ports of games on Xbox Live Arcade.

I'm not talking about up converting SD content to HD. Basically I'm saying I want more than a 480p video, which I can simply buy a DVD.

I'd rather be getting straight HD rips of shows that currently broadcast in HD, or perhaps a remastering of a certain show to HD resolution.

I guess you can say I'm not interesting in spending money on media that is not "next gen" ;) as well. The same reason I'm not buying original Xbox games anymore either, or straight emulated ports of games on Xbox Live Arcade.

I don't know about you, but great games don't get any less great as time goes by. Same thing with great TV shows. Fact is, if you compare the amount of content available at standard definition vs HD, you're talking about several decades vs a few years worth of programming

When I try watching a couple episodes of an anime I've heard about but never seen, the year of its creation and the "high-tech"ness of it is quite honestly the last thing from my mind ;)

If they put Trigun or Cowboy Bebob they would be awsome and if HD selection was available that would be a plus.

i'd shell out major points for a subbed HD trigun series.

Addendum: a lot of hardcore anime fans hate dubs for another reason. Most of us watch pirated fansubbed anime before it's licensed & available in the western world. We get used to the character's voice & the personality implied by it, as well as the translated script. Once an official script & dubbed version become available, our brains are a bit shocked by the difference (however subtle or not-so-subtle) in voice & the difference in script translation as well. A lot of anime fansubs are translated for clarity & meaning, without regards to trying to sink up the facial movements or talk time like a real English script would have to do. So we're just shocked/dismayed because something we learned to love is different in an unmistakable way & everything just seems "wrong". Kinda like the new coke.


Let's take this one step further. The original Akira Dub was one of my favorite animes. I was not hip to the subs at this time, so most I would only get anime that was translated.

Fast forward a few year ago and Akira is released on dvd *Remastered english with new voices!!!*.. OMG Horrible. It was not even in the same class as the original dub... I long for the original dub on DVD..


So to your point Lexx, I agree. Shocked and dismayed at the smallest changes to our perceptions..