Tag Archives: Shout! Factory

Kamen Rider Ryuki Roars to Blu-Ray Feb 7, 2023!

8 Jan

Kamen Rider Ryuki: The Complete SeriesShout! Factory, in collaboration with Toei Company Ltd., is proud to present a special collection, Kamen Rider Ryuki: The Complete Series on national home entertainment shelves on February 7, 2023. Available for the first time in North America, this long-awaited 8-Disc Blu-ray set contains all 50 episodes from the original Japanese masters and the film, Kamen Rider Ryuki: Episode Final: The Director’s Cut.

Kamen Rider Ryuki: The Complete Series is a must-have for loyal fans and pop culture collectors. Pre-order is available now at ShoutFactory.com. Fans who order the release will also receive a poster, while supplies last. Folks can also preorder this set on Amazon USA.

Originally premiering in 1971, the long-running Japanese television series Kamen Rider follows the exploits of a masked, motorcycle-riding hero who fights the forces of evil. The number one kids’ program in Japan for 50 years, Kamen Rider has proved to be beloved through multiple series iterations and generations of fans and Riders.

Continue reading →

Tags: , , , ,

Jackie Chan’s Ready to Rumble in 2023 with a Special Collection and Streaming Brawl-a-Thon

2 Jan
Jackie Chan at his Prime

Available to order at Shout! Factory (with mini-poster (not shown) while supplies last) and Amazon

Unbeatable. Unstoppable. Undeniable. Jackie Chan stands alone among action heroes thanks to his death-defying stunts, unparalleled fight scenes, and his signature sense of humor. An international superstar, Chan has thrilled fans around the globe for decades. As the standard bearer for martial arts action, Chan has forged a legacy that never has nor will be matched.

On January 24, Shout! Factory will release The Jackie Chan Collection Vol 1 (1976-1982), a collection of seven classic films remastered on Blu-ray which showcase the unique mixture of martial arts, action, and comedy that has made Jackie Chan a cultural icon.

To add to the excitement, Shout! Factory TV will be celebrating the release by airing a special Jackie Chan Brawl-A-Thon (link) on January 28th beginning at 12pm PT/3pm ET. This martial arts extravaganza will stream simultaneously across Shout Factory TV, including the TokuSHOUTsu and Shout! Cult channels for 24 hours of your favorite kicks, flips, and Chan’s unique blend of hilarious comedy!

The Jackie Chan Brawl-a-thon Films Includes:

  • Battle Creek Brawl
  • Dragon Fist
  • Snake & Crane Arts of Shaolin
  • The Killer Meteors
  • Shaolin Wooden Men
  • To Kill With Intrigue

And as for the home video release, The Jackie Chan Collection Vol 1 includes:

Continue reading →

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Studio Laika’s Coraline and Paranorman are Back in Glorious 4K Steelbook Editions! And Future Release News

12 Dec

Studio Laika's Coraline Steelbook Inside CoverAnyone wanting to ditch their Studio Laika Blu-ray collection will find the collectable Steelbook releases of Coraline and Paranorman worth the upgrade. This ultra high-definition release by Shout! Factory have a lot of fantastic artwork to admire. Not only do fans have a beautiful display piece which César Moreno and Kevin Tong crafted that honours the spirit of each film, but also love the expanded Dolby ATMOS soundscape.

In this remastered edition, Dolby Vision is used to enhance the detail. For example, Coraline’s hair is even more defined than I remember, and the colour palette is exquisite. When examining this work up close, all those textures are even more realistic. That’s moreso because of the sets than the characters. In Paranorman, the transparency effects used on the ghosts are more pronounced. Also, I wanted to see if I can notice where the digital effects overlaps with the stop-motion. It’s tough to spot!

In this package, the mini-essay that’s included reminds fans why the movies from this Portland, Oregon studio are special. The talents behind each work put their heart and soul to these animatronics, and to spend years animating a few minutes per day is better explained with the bonus material that’s on the included Blu-ray disc, which is basically the past release. I’m glad that two versions are offered since I can trade in my old discs for some other titles, and I’ll be upgrading my collection for sure!

Continue reading →

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

loundraw’s Summer Ghost Lingers into Home Video

2 Nov

GKIDS & Shout! Factory

Even though Halloween is over, Summer Ghost (サマーゴースト) is here to stay. The home video release the day after feels appropriate to show how those emotions can linger on. This Japanese animated short film is about what it means to be alive instead of the opposite. Each of the heroes here are seeking the spirit of a girl and hope to “get advice” on how to carry on.

This short animated film produced by Flat Studio and directed by loundraw is wonderful. The home video release has two documentaries included which look behind the scenes of this anime, and an interview with the director himself. They help expand what’s already known, assuming viewers watched the film first, and perhaps learn something more. It’s terrific to revisit this anime I saw during Fantasia, and to see how close I was to understanding this director’s vision. That review can be read here.

The former focuses on the team discussing how they look up to the loundraw. They often say he’s like a big brother, which is a touching gesture. This individual made his debut as an illustrator for Gara Nagata’s Hoshi no Nemuru Mizuumi e -Ai wo Sagashi ni- before spreading his wings and now becoming a director. If the dialogue is any sign, there’ll be more stories to come.

With the second piece, loundraw reveals where his idea came from, the type of colour template used and much more. It’s definitely worth the watch after the film, and it certainly made me appreciate Summer Ghost a lot more. Despite the title of this work and when it’s been released to home video (and theatrical), it’s quite the post-Halloween treat. In fact, this work is very appropriate to release during the week when Día de Muertos takes place! Both this anime and celebration honours the afterlife, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the reason why this release was timed for this week.

Summer Ghost Official Trailer

Tags: , , , , ,

The Iké Boys and Saving the Day, Namely the Hell that was Y2K

7 Oct

The Iké BoysShout! Factory
Coming to Digital and VOD Oct 11th

The Iké Boys is more than just a hero’s journey about two guys from Oklahoma who want to escape from the ho-hum. It also takes a peek back in time, when Japanese pop culture became part of the western media fixture in the 90s, and recognises what is great. We’re allowed to believe in miracles, and get to be a power ranger! The best part of this movie is that it includes vintage style anime and sentai action in its presentation.

In the case of Shawn Gunderson (Quinn Lord) and Vikram ‘Vik’ Kapoor (Ronak Gandhi), they’re not so ordinary in the sense that they’ve been branded losers in high school. That is, all they have is their anime fantasies to keep them happy. The latter dislikes the label and wants to be part of the crowd. He’s trying to do more with his life, but when Miki (Christina Higa) arrives, that one step forward (he’s crushing hard on her) ends up being two steps back as things go terribly wrong for them.

Continue reading →

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

← Older Entries

%d bloggers like this: