Available to order on Amazon USA
A lot of longtime fans are thankful for what Justin Sevakis is leading. In addition to re-releasing a bunch of old AnimEigo titles considered long out of print in new packaging, his video post-production company, MediaOCD, is offering works which haven’t seen North American home video release, like Nobody’s Boy Remi. This operation produces all the Blu-rays for Discotek Media, NIS America, and many more.
This title came out last week. Back in the day, as part of World Masterpiece Theatre on CBC’s French television channel, I viewed a curated selection in what English literature offered. Although I didn’t read the original by Hector Malot, the desire wasn’t there. But with other titles like Sherlock Hound to which I read, to know the differences was essential. In the cartoon, that added sense of whimsy drew me in.
However, for Remi, there’s a tragic undertone which I found disturbing. In the introduction, his father got hurt at work and can no longer continue. He came home a changed man, and revealed his son is a foundling! This scared the eight-year-old boy, and while his mother said he’ll always have a home, the patriarch thought of other ideas, including selling him off! For nostalgia’s sake, I watched this series again in French, with the subtitles turned on.
This coming-of-age tale shows how this lad must fend for himself. He’ll have to deal with abuse and other issues often portrayed in literature from the Victorian era. Les Misérables is another example, and in anime, the love for “Ruined Childhoods” became a trope for many titles released during the 70s and early 80s. Although not as prominent now, there’s something to be said about why audiences love tragedies.
In the umbrella series, many stories such as Remi, Les Mis and Heidi of the Alps got adapted. With the former, I never got to see it in full and am glad to get caught up many decades later. Despite all the hardships, this naïve boy is optimistic. I’m still not done with the entire 51 episode run, but had to get this review out sooner than later. I don’t think this older series is required to preview the updated version, Nobody’s Girl Remi, which ran in 96. It’s the same story but gender swapped.
What’s presented is an epic hero’s journey and the picture quality is quite exceptional, especially when considering its age. The colours are bold and the image is very crisp. Occasionally, I’ll put on the 3D glasses to look at the added effect since I won’t be hurting my eyes with a low res image. Whether that’s putting depth to forest environments or giving that alpine landscape a sense of vastness, its usefulness in the narrative is more like window dressing. Unlike today’s dual-camera movie filming techniques for RealD, the Pulfrich effect creates a sensation of layering with no cumbersome glasses.
Before, simple cardboard lenses were required to view films. On television, what’s worn can either be that or a pair of optimized filters to allow each eye to process the illusion. In theatres, they’re polarized glasses, and hard light technology has not yet been invented for entertainment. For this latest title, I prefer to keep them off because I wear glasses. To put on even a paper made pair that’s not customised for my frame is too much.
Midway through the series, I had to wonder what other shows MediaOCD is planning for release, and communicated with Sevakis to ask some questions.
How did the idea of creating the Ruined Childhood label come about?
“Ruined Childhood” is a cheeky way of referencing the very rough, dark stories about kids. We had several that were on our want list (and still are), and several others that we could license. Many of these shows were not previously licensed for North America because people decided they were simply too dark, and couldn’t market them. However, I disagreed—by leaning into the darkness, I think folks will find them and be able to identify with them. After all, life without suffering isn’t real.
Were there any challenges in remastering Remi, especially with the 3D built in?
We actually didn’t remaster Remi, a new HD transfer was done quite some time ago, and we simply published the HD masters that the producer/licensor TMS provided to us. Since the 3D effect is an essential part of the animation, there was nothing special to be done to preserve the effect.
Are there any plans for theatrical works as part of this new label? There are some classics from last few decades which I’d love to see.
I can’t comment on works that have not been announced yet, but Galaxy Express 999 and Adieu are currently available from Discotek Media and have been for several years. However, various newer Leiji Matsumoto OVA series, including Maetel Legend, are not currently licensable because of one producer going out of business.
How much info can you reveal about upcoming projects?
Sorry, can’t talk about unannounced titles. However, we have already announced the Black Jack OVAs, Looking for the Full Moon (Full Moon o Sagashite), Sasuke (1968!) and Romeo’s Blue Skies.
As for other AnimEigo titles waiting to get a re-release, is AD Police files somewhere on the queue? I see Vampire Princess Miyu is coming this summer, and can you say what bonus material / special packaging may be in store?
Nothing to share about AD Police at this time. Vampire Princess Miyu will be delayed slightly, as we’re still waiting for packaging approval. It doesn’t have much for bonus features, but it is a gorgeous new HD scan of the original negative.
Nobody’s Boy Remi Trailer
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