After months of inadvertent leaks, Manga Entertainment has officially announced that the Dragon Ball Z TV series is coming to DVD in the UK.
As anticipated and revealed in earlier leaks, Manga will be releasing a version of FUNimation’s orange bricks originally released in North America from 2007-2009. The first of nine sets will be released 02 July 2012 for £34.99. A time table has already been set for all of the “seasons”, slated to finish up with the ninth set 16 September 2013.
On their Twitter account, Manga UK noted in response to fan inquiries that the masters used will be the PAL versions from Madman’s Australian release, itself converted from FUNimation’s original version.
At the time, the orange bricks were the first and only consistent release of the Dragon Ball Z TV series available in North America from episode 1 all the way through 291, replacing a canceled home release of the “Ultimate Uncut Edition“, itself redubbing and replacing the first two “seasons” of the show with an uncut and bilingual home release.
Created from a multi-generational film master, the top and bottom of the frames were cropped off to fit the video into a widescreen format and downscaled from an HD version captured with support from Studio Post & Transfer (now “&TRANSFER”) in Texas. Despite going on to massive sales figures, the sets were met with harsh critiques from fans (notably us), with even Madman noting for their sub-licensed Australian release that they “would have ultimately been happier with a 4:3 release“.
North America saw the “Dragon Box” release from 2009 to 2011, offering fans a 4:3 remaster of the show originally performed by Toei and Pony Canyon in Japan for its first-ever home release in its native country.
A new remaster of the show by FUNimation for Blu-ray — preserving the 4:3 aspect ratio and addressing many other concerns from the orange brick releases — was announced last summer and unceremoniously killed off just this past January after only two releases.
DRAGON BALL Z SERIES ONE Comes to U.K. DVD on 2nd July 2012
DRAGON BALL Z SERIES ONE (cert.12) will released on DVD (£34.99) by Manga Entertainment on 2nd July 2012. Manga Entertainment will release all 291 episodes across nine season box sets starting on 2nd July (full dates below).
Fast Sell: One of the biggest anime franchises of all time – and the one that introduced many anime fans to the genre in the first place – finally comes to DVD in the UK, digitally remastered from the original Japanese film masters and captured in high-definition widescreen!
Key Talent: Scripted by Akira Toriyama< (creator of the manga on which it was based) and directed by Daisuke Nishio.
Synopsis: The Saiyans are coming! The last survivors of a cruel, warrior race, these ruthless villains have carved a path of destruction across the galaxy, and now they have set their sights on Earth. They will stop at nothing until they have the wish-granting powers of the seven magic Dragon Balls for their very own.
With the fate of his family, friends, and the entire human race hanging in the balance, Goku, the Earth’s greatest hero, must rise to meet the approaching threat. As he prepares for the fight of his life, Goku embarks on an epic journey that will take him to other worlds, pit him against new and old enemies alike, and force him to confront the dark secrets of his own past. At the end of his path, the most powerful opponent he has ever faced awaits – the evil Saiyan Prince Vegeta!
We Like It Because: This release is pretty much the Holy Grail for Dragon Ball Z fans. Featuring 39 episodes over six discs, it delivers over 900 minutes of pure anime action beautifully remastered to create a stunning visual and audio experience. Dragon Ball Z has never looked or sounded this good before.
Hot Quotes:
“A lot of fun from start to finish.” DVD TALK
Special Features:
Revised English dialogue – English voice track with original Japanese music in Dolby 5.1.
Dragon Ball Z Rebirth featurette.
A New Look featurette.
Textless opening and closing.
Trailers.
DRAGON BALL Z SERIES ONE (cert.12) will released on DVD (£34.99) by Manga Entertainment on 2nd July 2012. Manga Entertainment will release all 291 episodes across nine season box sets starting on 2nd July.
Series 2 – 27th August 2012
Series 3 – 1st October 2012
Series 4 – 5th November 2012
Series 5 – 7th Jan 2013
Series 6 – 11th March 2013
Series 7 – 13th May 2013
Series 8 – 15th July 2013
Series 9 – 16th September 2013