Unboxing [UK]: Samurai Flamenco - Part 1: Collector's Edition (Blu-ray)
Saturday, August 6, 2016
Better late than never. Figured I'll pickup a couple items before the return to Uni next month. Got this from Zavvi using a student discount code as a test.
Samurai Flamenco aired during the Autumn 2013 season and was actually one of the first shows I watched during its simulcast and while Aniplex of America picked it up, Anime Limited just started and acquired the show alongside Kill la Kill for its special Wakanim UK streaming service (which is now defunct). This show is hard to explain because it goes through various phases during the storyline. It starts off like a Kick Ass style series and then goes batshit crazy about seven episodes later, effectively turning into a Super Sentai inspired series. As a result of this, many people dropped the show and pretty much bombed in terms of Japanese sales. Heck not even Aniplex of America bothered to put it out on home video, so it's been stuck on streaming sites only.
Since Anime Limited have the home video rights for UK and France, they decided to release the series on Blu-ray only in two collector's edition sets. It's Japanese with English subtitles but there's also a French dub and subtitles to go with it (in case you didn't know, France has a pretty huge anime market). It's worth noting this is the only way to get the show on Blu-ray with English support. It's also Region B only playback and the subtitles are locked.
This Collector's Edition is packaged similarly to Kill la Kill, where it keeps the Anime Limited logo and the mini note that states whether this is Part 1 or a Collector's Edition (or both), but doesn't have the BBFC logo or content info anywhere on the box. There is a slip-piece on the back cover with all of the content info (much like how Funimation does it with their limited editions). The packaging also includes a digipack to hold the 2 Blu-ray discs as well as a 20 page booklet with some artwork.
Blu-ray Specs:
Languages: Japanese, French
Audio: DTS-HD MA 2.0 [Japanese, French]
Video: 1080p HD Native 16:9
Region: B
Subtitles: English, French
Subtitles Locked: Yes
Discs: 2
Plot Synopsis (via Anime Limited):
Masayoshi Hazama: a man who has become a superhero “by himself” with no superhuman powers or any sort of high-tech conversions, NONE! Hidenori Goto: a cop who found out the true identity of “the superhero” by a strange twist of fate and thus constantly gets in trouble thanks to Hazama, the superhero.
This is the story of the birth of a true hero featuring these two young men with a touch of comedy and serious drama, while they come face to face with hardships as they search for the true meaning of becoming a hero of justice in this world!
On-Disc Extra Content:
Textless Opening & Closing
Collector's Edition Extras:
Chipboard rigid box packaging with digipacks
20 page Booklet
Samurai Flamenco is only available as a Blu-ray Collector's Edition set from Anime Limited for an SRP £44.99. It's also available on DVD from Madman in Australia.