"The LD is dead. Long live the DVD."
—Animeigo website (www.animeigo.com)

Since its inception nearly 3 years ago, the DVD (Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) format has left audio/videophiles either deeply in love with the new format or greatly defensive about protecting their laserdisc collections. Sides were chosen and for the first year or so, the battle was somewhat even; it seemed almost that both the laserdisc and DVD formats could co-exist peacefully.
But eventually, the laws of economics prevailed and there is a clear winner as to what the new format of choice is today: DVD. Since our first look at the DVD format, consumer tastes have changed and a simple fact has emerged: DVD is mainstream. While the aging VHS platform is still king, DVD has certainly surpassed laserdisc as the videophile's platform of choice. Sure, collectors will still hold onto their laserdisc libraries, but compared to DVD's price point, mass market availability, and ever-expanding library of titles, laserdisc is quickly being left behind in the rearview mirror.

Pioneer's Serial Experiment Lain DVD series has proven to be a best-seller among fans and includes sticker sheets in most volumes.

Anime on DVD

When EX first looked at anime's availability on DVD, the niche market in regards to domestic sales was still in its infancy. Even today, this genre of animation that so many retailers label as "Japanimation" can still be seen as newborn. But despite its youth (and certainly the entire format is still young), anime has made many in-roads with the DVD format.
As DVD players—the obviously vital component to making the DVD format truly mainstream— get cheaper and cheaper (Chinese manufacturer Konka has released a sub-$200 player in the United States), studios and companies are sure to release more and more titles. This certainly includes U.S. anime companies. To date, almost all U.S. companies have released titles on DVD and with the year 2000 rapidly approaching, their future plans for anime DVDs seems bright.
To help keep anime fans in the know, Chris Beveridge of Anime on DVD provides an online DVD resource that has proved to be invaluable. Started in March 1998, Beveridge's site has become the de facto source for anime DVD fans. Since then, he has chronicled practically every move made in regards to anime on the DVD format.
"My original idea of the site in terms of content was to provide information not to anime fans, but to the DVD crowd," Beveridge explained. "At the end of 1997, Pioneer released their first TENCHI MUYO movie on DVD which went over very well with the early adopters, especially since Disney was extremely absent from the party. I'd hoped to capitalize on this and bring in more fans to anime, since to some extent, we're a very inbred crowd."
With daily news updates and archived DVD title reviews, Anime on DVD caters not only to consumers, but to the companies as well. Much like DVD Resource's relationship with major Hollywood studios, U.S. anime companies are quite receptive to Anime on DVD.
"Not only were we attracting more readers as more anime fans became curious about the DVD format, but we were getting more contact from the various anime companies," Beveridge said. "Since DVD still is in its infancy, they were more receptive than I think they've been for a number of years in terms of listening to the core audience, especially in a technical vein."

The Features

When DVD was first announced, the possibilities the format offered almost seemed like an anime fan's dream come true: Widescreen or Pan & Scan options, multiple language soundtracks, multiple language subtitles, Dolby Digital or DTS sound, and room for supplemental materials galore. But does the reality of the format live up to the theory? While the answer may be "no," the reasons are perhaps the source's own fault.
Much of the anime licensed in the States consists of television shows or original video animation series. With TV shows, the original source is already full-frame and usually in either stereo or mono sound. And especially with older titles, a company would be hard pressed to offer a Japanese language soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1. But it seems U.S. companies are trying their best to offer the most of what they can with DVD. The video signals are generally very clean, if not spectacular, and English language soundtracks are generally offered in Dolby Digital when possible. "Status quo" can almost be used to describe most of what anime has been released on DVD here in the States.
"Realistically, there are certain titles that will not benefit too much from the extra effort," stated Chad Kime of Pioneer USA. "A good example would be TV series such as TENCHI UNIVERSE or EL HAZARD: THE ALTERNATIVE WORLD. Since these programs were intended for television, the production values are often lower and a really good DVD transfer may simply expose all of the warts."
But what about extra features that can make a good title extraordinary, especially movie releases? Features like having the best possible video and audio transfer can help distinguish a must-have, reference DVD for one's collection. For the more dedicated home theater fans with a theater-aspect television (often called widescreen TVs), an anamorphic transfer would be the icing on the cake.

Serial Experiments Lain Copyright © Triangle Staff, Pioneer LDC. Adventures of Mini-Goddess Copyright © Fujishima Kousuke.