Sailormoon American rebirth possible?

Jumbled Thoughts · Post by **MarioKnight** » Fri May 20, 2005 10:14 pm

With the Funimation acquisition of all thee Slayers TV series, this appears in my mind that there is a chance of Sailor Moon getting such a rebirth as well. The three Slayers series aired alongside the last three Sailormoon series in Japan, so they're about the same age. Slayers was treated right from the get-go when brought over here with a faithfully translated dub if I remember correctly and sub available when the show was released though no TV airtime even though FoxKids did pick up airing rights for it (which was a stupid move in my book since they did nothing with them besides keeping the series off airwaves and preventing the series to grow exponentially in sales). Sailor Moon was treated like crap from the get-go though did make it on the air and enjoyed great success nonetheless. However, subs were scattered in release and out of order, causing the sales of them to suffer seemingly (if anyone has proof of otherwise, let me know since I have no solid evidence), and a last ditch effort by ADV in the end didn't generate much momentum. Be it because of the (lack of) quality of their releases, the fact that the first two seasons were the last to come out, or a combination of both, this last ditch effort didn't get the expected results and Toei outright denied renewing any American contracts of the brand, which is now all but dead on this side of the ocean.

Comparing and contrasting how both shows were treated and such over here, it seems odd how Slayers has been given this rebirth and Sailor Moon has been denied from even having the final season come over here. Don't get me wrong, Slayers is an excellent show and is well-deserving of getting this new breath of life. I hope that this sets a precedent and that other shows can have this happen to them. I think that Sailor Moon is very deserving of having this happen, and this would be a great time for it. It will celebrate being a decade old on this side of the ocean, but hasn't been given much of a chance to live up to its potential. If a company were to pick up all rights to the show, then we could finally see a faithful dub and better releases. The slate is pretty much wiped clean right now, and like I said before, maybe this is in the works. Hell, with Toei releasing some of their stuff themselves over here now, I wouldn't be too surprised.

Right now though, no one wants to do anything with Sailor Moon. As you'll see when Genvid L.L.C.'s Warriors of Legend book is released and the site goes up, they were unable to get a license to the brand to aid the book (so no pics from the series, fanart, etc), and publishers turned them away as well, saying that the book wouldn't sell well enough for them to do. I'll preach on about buying the book and more in its thread, but I will say here that this book is sort of a last hope of SM fans over here. Companies are watching this project to see how it fares. If it does really well considering that no one is putting anything behind it besides Genvid L.L.C. and people like me, this will open the eyes of the higher-ups, and increase the chance of a rebirth that is well deserved and good treatment that is long overdue.

This project gave me some hope of a revitalization of the brand over on this side of the ocean, and now that I've seen Slayers get a new breath of life by Funimation after CPM gave up on it, I realize this is possible.

Thoughts or comments?

Malachite · Post by **Malachite** » Fri May 20, 2005 10:25 pm

I hope you're right. I've been satisfied with the subs I have so far, but I'd still love to see Sailor Moon redubbed with the same faithfullness as Slayers was.

But at least in Sailor Moon's case, there is a subbed version available here in the US. I've been waiting and hoping for a sub of Digimon to appear here, but to no avail. For those of you who don't know, Digimon was hacked up and butchered in much the same way as Sailor Moon and Dragonball Z were.

Speaking of DBZ, I heard a while back they were going to go back and re-dub it. I'm a little behind on it so I'm not sure if it's even out yet. If all goes well, though I hope it'll be a sign of good things to come.

RattleMan · Post by **RattleMan** » Fri May 20, 2005 11:49 pm

Malachite wrote:Speaking of DBZ, I heard a while back they were going to go back and re-dub it. I'm a little behind on it so I'm not sure if it's even out yet. If all goes well, though I hope it'll be a sign of good things to come.

They have, and they've been releasing it on DVD. It usually has the EXACT same script, except it has cut scenes from the original run, new music, the Season 3 VAs, etc.

Anyway, I REALLY hope Stars is dubbed =\

Dinozore · Post by **Dinozore** » Sat May 21, 2005 1:49 am

RattleMan wrote:Anyway, I REALLY hope Stars is dubbed =\

Toei would need to pull that stick out of their asses and allow it to be licensed, though. And you just KNOW they'd give it to 4Kids or something...

Starscream · Post by **Starscream** » Sat May 21, 2005 6:11 am

I think the problem with getting the animated "Sailor Moon" relicensed is two-fold: 1) TOEI is a greedy corporate machine that does not want the image of the Sailor Moon cartoon ruined by a widespread, uncut version, and 2) Naoko Takeuchi practically hates it. With TOEI, you have a company who sticks to its guns, and when it makes a conviction, will not let it go. Sailor Moon in the US (and most of the rest of the world) is a prime example; they allowed companies like DiC and Cloverway to make the changes they did, mostly to preserve and promote a "dumbed-down" version that would do well with the same demographic they were shooting for in Japan. Having failed, TOEI sees the show as a lost cause, and not wanting to stray from their beliefs about the intended audience, would rather see it dead than let another company release it with better audio and video and more accurate subtitles.

Umino · Post by **Umino** » Sat May 21, 2005 8:32 am

Starscream wrote:2) Naoko Takeuchi practically hates it.

As far as I know, Mrs. Takeuchi has nothing to do with what Toei does to the anime. If she did, I doubt the series would be released on DVD right now. (in Japan)

Aya Reiko · Post by **Aya Reiko** » Sat May 21, 2005 11:05 pm

"In the near future", don't count on it.

Somewhere in the future, maybe, but I wouldn't put any bets on it.

Above everything, I would expect Toei to release Pretty Cure first into R1 markets, then re-release SM. Considering Toei's initial foray into the R1 market, it's probably better SM comes later rather than sooner.

Malachite · Post by **Malachite** » Sat May 21, 2005 11:21 pm

RattleMan wrote:They have, and they've been releasing it on DVD. It usually has the EXACT same script, except it has cut scenes from the original run, new music, the Season 3 VAs, etc.

Sounds like FUNi let me down again. So, Kuririn still sounds like he's got nasal congestion, the 'other dimension' is back, and Tenshinhan can still see those damn parachutes. Urrgh.

Jumbled Thoughts · Post by **MarioKnight** » Thu May 26, 2005 11:22 pm

Something interesting I noticed that I'd like to throw out here.

Entire article at http://www.icv2.com/articles/home/6944.html

Warriors of Legend should delight hardcore anime/manga fans, and although Toei and Kodansha have yet to renew American licenses for the Sailor Moon anime and manga respectively, when the property is re-launched in the U.S., this volume should be an indispensable guide for those who want to get more than just the entertainment of great storytelling from a manga series, whose success in bookstores here during the turn-of-the-century was one of the key events underpinning the current manga boom.

Bolded for emphasis. Note the word when, and take into consideration that this article was written by someone who knows the industry inside out.

Cardcaptor Takato · Post by **Cardcaptor Takato** » Fri May 27, 2005 8:05 am

Even though Slayers is getting a re-release very soon after its license just expired in the U.S., I still think it would be too soon for Sailor Moon to get a re-release. If I'm not mistaken, Slayers has been available on DVD in the U.S. for quite some time now, but while Geneon's Sailor Moon DVDs have also been available for a while now, ADV didn't release their uncut Sailor Moon DVDs until about a year or two ago. I don't know about you, but I think I would be pretty pissed off if I found out that I wasted almost over $200 on a mediocre DVD release when if I just waited two or three years, I could've bought a re-release that might have had better quality. I think Toei is better off waiting a while before giving Sailor Moon a re-release in the U.S. if they want their sales to be higher. Otherwise, some fans might think this is all part of a grand marketing conspiracy to get more money and they would be forever pissed at Toei. And this is slightly off-topic, but does Geneon and Cloverway/Optimum still have their rights to S and Supers?

Aya Reiko · Post by **Aya Reiko** » Fri May 27, 2005 8:32 pm

Cardcaptor Takato wrote:Even though Slayers is getting a re-release very soon after its license just expired in the U.S., I still think it would be too soon for Sailor Moon to get a re-release. If I'm not mistaken, Slayers has been available on DVD in the U.S. for quite some time now, but while Geneon's Sailor Moon DVDs have also been available for a while now, ADV didn't release their uncut Sailor Moon DVDs until about a year or two ago. I don't know about you, but I think I would be pretty pissed off if I found out that I wasted almost over $200 on a mediocre DVD release when if I just waited two or three years, I could've bought a re-release that might have had better quality. I think Toei is better off waiting a while before giving Sailor Moon a re-release in the U.S. if they want their sales to be higher. Otherwise, some fans might think this is all part of a grand marketing conspiracy to get more money and they would be forever pissed at Toei. And this is slightly off-topic, but does Geneon and Cloverway/Optimum still have their rights to S and Supers?

In a sense, Cloverway's licence will never expire since they're Toei's NA arm.

Judging by the fact that they're still listed on Geneon's site, I think the S/SS/Movies licence is still active.

Jumbled Thoughts · Post by **MarioKnight** » Fri May 27, 2005 9:38 pm

Actually, the license to the movies ended with the new year (2005), and last I heard, Geneon isn't able to extend their contract with S and SS (like they couldn't with the movies) so those two seasons' license will end soon as well, though it hasn't been announced excatly when this is yet. Granted, the main license is with Cloverway, but with Toei letting all license die off with the brand, it wouldn't suprise me if they lose it when Geneon does.

About the other point brought up, yes, it might be too early to bring back Sailor Moon into the market, but in another viewpoint it might not be. Using Slayers as a comparison point, the first season had a rerelease with fixed audio a few years back, either about the same time as ADV's first SM box or within a year prior, I don't remember excatly but it wasn't far off. Slayers only recentally lapsed and has been widely availble everywhere during this time. ADV's first box didn't even get a year of time on the shelf, the second barely got half. Granted, anime-specific online stores stocked up when they heard about the license expiring, but these stores are a small percentage of every store that sells anime and even though stock of them took a good while to deplete, these boxes were not widely availble for a good year now. Take into consideration that 85 - 90% of anime is sold is b&m (brick & mortar) stores and not online (quote David Williams, ADV, on the AoD forums), a very high percentage of people haven't seen a Classic or R Sailor Moon product in over a year, whereas Slayers hasn't suffered in this department. I do see the point you're trying to get across, however in this case, the arguement you bring up doesn't work. There are also similar cases in anime which have had re-releases with little time between. Look how many times and ways the classic Bubblegum Crisis has been released on DVD. Most recentally, EVA, with director's cuts making their way over here early last year, to only have the platinum remasters released late that summer.

It's a general rule that waiting yeilds better products at better prices, I could cite more examples but don't feel like doing so at the moment. Therefore, I really don't see sales suffering if a relaunch were to happen soon. I don't expect such a thing to happen soon, especially with S and SS still having a license over here, but in the odd case it did, sales wouldn't suffer.

Anna Roz · Post by **Anna Roz** » Tue May 31, 2005 11:23 pm

I would LOVE to see the rest of Sailormoon air here in the US, or make it onto DVD (heck, dubbed OR subtitled's fine). It'd be interesting if Funimation were to be at the helm if it were to be redubbed. Although stuff like Stars wouldn't likely make it onto TV, it still would be a great DVD release.

Unfortunately, I don't think Toei's Moon-embargo is ready to die off yet over here. Although it's not as popular as it was ten years ago, it still does have a US fanbase (be it in the Dic dub, the Cloverway, or the subtitled Japanese versions).

The only big problem I could see with a possible relaunch/redub of the show is that the DVDs would be very expensive, with only a few episodes on each (no season sets). But it'd be better than nothing, right?

RattleMan · Post by **RattleMan** » Wed Jun 01, 2005 12:48 am

I would love, and take an official subtitled Stars release right away. I THINK (if I don't, please tell me) I currently have all the Sailor Moon anime there is to own: C box, R box, Episode 67, S box, SS box, and all three movies. (I also have Makeup! Sailor Senshi, Ami-chan no Hatsukoi, the 3 SS Specials ep, and all Stars eps on AVIs spanning 9 CD-Rs, but those aren't official, they're VKLL's subs). I would love to have my OFFICIAL collection completed with the hi-quality, full-motion DVDs for my unofficial VKLL-subbed stuff.

...speaking on that, since ADV already released the C and the R boxes (abeit messily and missing Ep 67), will anyone be able to re-release the episodes with the quality, sound, previews, extras, and episodes that they're supposed to have? I would love that and I would spend my money on that even though I already have the ADV boxes.

Cardcaptor Takato · Post by **Cardcaptor Takato** » Wed Jun 01, 2005 8:25 am

Since ADV no longer has the rights to the first two seasons of Sailor Moon, it's possible for another company to come along and re-release the episodes on DVD as that's what Funimation is doing with Slayers, as already mentioned earlier in the thread (although how likely it is to actually happen is debatable). And there are two more Sailor Moon specials other than the ones you've mentioned you have. There's also Dreaming Moon and The Wonderful World of Sailor Moon S.

Umino · Post by **Umino** » Wed Jun 01, 2005 3:04 pm

Cardcaptor Takato wrote: The Wonderful World of Sailor Moon S.

What's that?

Cardcaptor Takato · Post by **Cardcaptor Takato** » Wed Jun 01, 2005 4:24 pm

It was a Sailor Moon special, which according to Hitoshi Doi's Sailor Moon site aired on Japanese television in '94, but I don't know if it was released on home video any. http://www.tcp.com/doi/smoon/special/sms-world.html

Aya Reiko · Post by **Aya Reiko** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 12:47 am

Chances of Returning: Dwindling, dwindling, dwindling...

Reason (From AoD):

Toei Titles Suspended (01:58 PM EDT): According to information received from various retailers and some other bits online, Toei has suspended the release of their two series, Slam Dunk and Air Master, with this months releases that never surfaced (volume 4 of Air Master and volume 5 of Slam Dunk). No future solicitations have been made past this volume and both series appear to be in dire trouble of seeing further release.

Usagi777 · Post by **Usagi777** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 1:51 am

I'm sure that someday they'll bring sailor moon back. i wonder if there's something us fans can do to help bring it back and sailor stars to american tv

jupiter23 · Post by **jupiter23** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 9:41 am

The only thing I can think of to do is to continue to just be fans of the show. Maybe one day our wish will be granted then.