Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

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peterx
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Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by peterx » Wed Jan 19, 2022 2:32 pm

Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release or the Steelbook Blu-ray is the "best" that Funimation can produce in terms of picture quality for this 30 year old show?

Actually I've missed this steelbook BD and thinking about buying it (first time DBZ in HD), but I don't know if it's worth waiting for a 4K release if that even possible.. or will we get another blu ray release in the future?

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by TheGreatness25 » Wed Jan 19, 2022 3:35 pm

No, it's not "the best" that they could release. In fact, they posted some shots of their totally untouched, not "remastered" film, and that arguably looked better than their 30th anniversary release. Funimation's Level set release, where they legitimately made frame-by-frame restoration, arguably looked better than their 30th anniversary release.

It's all subjective, I guess. People hammer Funimation for the decisions that they've made with the 30th anniversary release regarding colors, grain removal, and artificially adding grain back in. People have also criticized Funimation for using the Japanese audio that they already had instead of the "better" broadcast audio that was passed onto Chris Sabat, who allegedly said something to the effect that he'd try to have it used--to be fair, I never expected this to happen and would be absolutely shocked if Funimation used fan-sent audio rather than what they have.

But, Funimation loves Dragon Ball Z as a moneymaker, so I have zero doubts that a terrible 4K release will be pumped out sooner or later. Unfortunately, 4K will be the gimmick. We would have to wait for a second 4K release to see what they decide to add to it.

Also, from my understanding, Dragon Ball Z has pretty much maxed out its specs on Blu-ray, so a 4K release just basically has the ability to put more episodes per disc. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, as I'm a total dummy when it comes to video and audio.

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by peterx » Wed Jan 19, 2022 4:22 pm

TheGreatness25 wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 3:35 pm Also, from my understanding, Dragon Ball Z has pretty much maxed out its specs on Blu-ray, so a 4K release just basically has the ability to put more episodes per disc. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, as I'm a total dummy when it comes to video and audio.
Thanks for the answer! :)
Yeah, this is exactly what I'm interested in that did DBZ really "maxed out its specs on Blu-ray"? There is no true 4K quality possible only "upscaled" 4K from the source material?

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by Dragon Ball Ireland » Wed Jan 19, 2022 4:28 pm

I'm quite certain that at one point Funimation will use UHD Blu-Ray as an excuse to milk Dragon Ball Z again.

There wouldn't be any point in releasing another 2K Blu-Ray as the "291 episodes in full frame" gimmick has already been utilized, so a new format (which is starting to take on and is getting more and more titles by the day) would be the next logical step.

Apart from less episodes per disc, and smaller cases to save shelf space (as they will likely fit seasons on 2 discs) I could also see Funimation using the capacity of 4K discs as an opportunity to include foreign dubs other than their own, because, as we've seen with the Ultimate Uncut DVDs they are not above including other audio tracks besides the English and Japanese, and with series like Cowboy Bebop creating Latin Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese dubs.

People will say there is no benefit to be gained from a 4K remaster, but was there any benefit in the process Funimation used to remaster the series in 2K? No, but they did it anyway, because this series always sells, 4K will be no different.
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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by TheGreatness25 » Wed Jan 19, 2022 5:14 pm

Dragon Ball Ireland wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 4:28 pm I'm quite certain that at one point Funimation will use UHD Blu-Ray as an excuse to milk Dragon Ball Z again.

There wouldn't be any point in releasing another 2K Blu-Ray as the "291 episodes in full frame" gimmick has already been utilized, so a new format (which is starting to take on and is getting more and more titles by the day) would be the next logical step.

Apart from less episodes per disc, and smaller cases to save shelf space (as they will likely fit seasons on 2 discs) I could also see Funimation using the capacity of 4K discs as an opportunity to include foreign dubs other than their own, because, as we've seen with the Ultimate Uncut DVDs they are not above including other audio tracks besides the English and Japanese, and with series like Cowboy Bebop creating Latin Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese dubs.

People will say there is no benefit to be gained from a 4K remaster, but was there any benefit in the process Funimation used to remaster the series in 2K? No, but they did it anyway, because this series always sells, 4K will be no different.
I think having a clear Latin American dub (like they started with Ultimate Uncut) would be great. But, I don't expect it. And I definitely don't expect alternative English dubs on those either.

I do wish they at least took a crack at Dragon Ball and GT on Blu-ray. Not that it would make any difference, but it seems like the rest of the series is pretty much ignored.

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by Dragon Ball Ireland » Wed Jan 19, 2022 7:32 pm

TheGreatness25 wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 5:14 pmI think having a clear Latin American dub (like they started with Ultimate Uncut) would be great. But, I don't expect it. And I definitely don't expect alternative English dubs on those either.

I do wish they at least took a crack at Dragon Ball and GT on Blu-ray. Not that it would make any difference, but it seems like the rest of the series is pretty much ignored.
I actually own most of the Ultimate Uncut volumes, and I was actually considering checking out the Latin American dub for a new experience of Z. And yeah, Funimation isn't going to release English dubs that exclude their own cast. With things like the Westwood dub Funimation can make the excuse of it being edited, it's not theirs, etc, but then you take the Pioneer versions of Z movies 1-3, dubs which they produced and are fully uncut, yet have never been re-released on any edition since the original DVDs (you could say Rock the Dragon, but that only has the edited TV versions). There is literally no excuse for those uncut movie dubs not to be used an extra audio tracks. There would be no licensing costs involved, no need to create a separate video track, nothing. All they'd need to do is slap on an extra audio track, as they always do to please Faulconer loyalists (Dragon Boxes notwithstanding). I would argue having the Pioneer dubs would only give more people incentive to buy any subsequent releases of the movies. Simply put Funimation don't want to promote other English casts, and will do everything they can to keep them a distant memory from fans who grew up with them.

I think there is a loud minority of fans like us that want OG Dragon Ball or GT on Blu-Ray but it's probably not going to happen because Funimation seem obsessed with milking Z for all its worth.
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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by Robo4900 » Wed Jan 19, 2022 7:59 pm

I hope not.

We already have about three or four really shitty releases from Funimation, we don't need any more.
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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by Anonymous Friend » Wed Jan 19, 2022 8:26 pm

Robo4900 wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 7:59 pm I hope not.

We already have about three or four really shitty releases from Funimation, we don't need any more.
Why not have them keep re-releasing the series every few years? What's the downside in that? They do another release that everyone here hates? Best scenerio is they release something that people here don't hate?
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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by LostTimeLord » Wed Jan 19, 2022 8:48 pm

For the time being, UHD Blu-rays seem rare for TV series outside of HBO and BBC nature series. That being said, it's pretty standard for movies, and we'll see how much of the Blu-ray collector crowd upgrades their equipment over time.

If Funi were planning 4K DB releases, they'd probably start with Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero; whether they'd then go back to the classic movies or upscale the other three modern ones first, I'm not sure. The double features are still the most recent American BDs of the classic movies, so repackaging them makes some sense. But I think that, most likely, they'll wait for Toei to produce 4K masters first.

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by peterx » Thu Jan 20, 2022 5:28 am

LostTimeLord wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 8:48 pm For the time being, UHD Blu-rays seem rare for TV series outside of HBO and BBC nature series. That being said, it's pretty standard for movies, and we'll see how much of the Blu-ray collector crowd upgrades their equipment over time.

If Funi were planning 4K DB releases, they'd probably start with Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero; whether they'd then go back to the classic movies or upscale the other three modern ones first, I'm not sure. The double features are still the most recent American BDs of the classic movies, so repackaging them makes some sense. But I think that, most likely, they'll wait for Toei to produce 4K masters first.
Thanks, sounds good! :thumbup:

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by MasenkoHA » Thu Jan 20, 2022 7:18 am

[Stares in Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball GT don’t even have a blue ray release]

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by Dragon Ball Ireland » Thu Jan 20, 2022 7:19 am

LostTimeLord wrote: Wed Jan 19, 2022 8:48 pmIf Funi were planning 4K DB releases, they'd probably start with Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero; whether they'd then go back to the classic movies or upscale the other three modern ones first, I'm not sure. The double features are still the most recent American BDs of the classic movies, so repackaging them makes some sense. But I think that, most likely, they'll wait for Toei to produce 4K masters first.
I could see Super Hero getting an UHD release. More recent anime films like Weathering with You and the Violet Evergarden movie have seen releases on the format.

The old movies are one installment apart from the Z series I could see Funimation trying to squeeze one more Blu-Ray release out of before UHD becomes the standard for everything, as the TOEI remasters would likely sell well given its been so long since they released those movies, and it's more Z content, which we know Funimation loves to milk.

Another format I'd love to see Funimation take a crack at is SD on Blu-Ray. That would be perfect for a re-release of Rock the Dragon, but sadly no anime distributors other than Discotek seem to do it.
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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by kei17 » Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:30 am

MasenkoHA wrote: Thu Jan 20, 2022 7:18 am [Stares in Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball GT don’t even have a blue ray release]
GT has never been distributed on film, so only Toei are able to re-scan the film masters. Of course Funi can upscale the 486i Digibeta footage they've got, but that would be pointless.

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by MasenkoHA » Thu Jan 20, 2022 10:04 am

kei17 wrote: Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:30 am
MasenkoHA wrote: Thu Jan 20, 2022 7:18 am [Stares in Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball GT don’t even have a blue ray release]
GT has never been distributed on film, so only Toei are able to re-scan the film masters. Of course Funi can upscale the 486i Digibeta footage they've got, but that would be pointless.
Eh the original Dragon Ball is more important.

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by pixie_misa » Thu Jan 20, 2022 10:09 am

honestly i'd be perfectly happy with a nice SD-on-BD release with some really cleaned up and color corrected masters, but alas

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by OmegaRockman » Thu Jan 20, 2022 5:47 pm

Probably, and it'll probably suck. Honestly, I'd be more interested in a Kai 1-98 rerelease that has options for 4:3 and 16:9 to match the Japanese broadcast (and so we could get that handful of expanded redrawn shots for kicks). Granted, it would be without the Yamamoto score so it wouldn't be truly "broadcast faithful," but I prefer Kikuchi Kai anyway and I think it would be more interesting a release than a bad 4K remaster by Funi.

If it were a legit 4K remaster you might have my interest, but even then I doubt an old 90s TV anime needs much more than basic HD. With my limited knowledge of this stuff, I imagine only those 35mm eps would gain anything significant from 4K. A finally good remaster of any sort might be the push I'd need, though.
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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by ZombieVito » Sat Jan 22, 2022 5:19 pm

MasenkoHA wrote: Thu Jan 20, 2022 10:04 am
kei17 wrote: Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:30 am
MasenkoHA wrote: Thu Jan 20, 2022 7:18 am [Stares in Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball GT don’t even have a blue ray release]
GT has never been distributed on film, so only Toei are able to re-scan the film masters. Of course Funi can upscale the 486i Digibeta footage they've got, but that would be pointless.
Eh the original Dragon Ball is more important.
It's insane there's no Bluray release for Dragon Ball yet here. Spain got one not too long ago so I don't know why Funimation wouldn't get that one.

Peterx, Walmart is going to release DBZ next month on 3 Bluray sets. I have no idea if they will be the 30th anniversary masters or the older ones in 16x9. You might want to check that out instead of the steelbooks if they are the former. I will definitely get them if they are.

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by peterx » Sun Jan 23, 2022 6:14 am

ZombieVito wrote: Sat Jan 22, 2022 5:19 pm Peterx, Walmart is going to release DBZ next month on 3 Bluray sets. I have no idea if they will be the 30th anniversary masters or the older ones in 16x9. You might want to check that out instead of the steelbooks if they are the former. I will definitely get them if they are.
Niiice, thanks! :mrgreen:

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by Super Sonic » Mon Jan 24, 2022 7:38 am

Has Funimation put out anything in 4K? And I'm not just talking what ifs for DB, but sister series?

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Re: Will we ever get a 4K Dragon Ball Z release from Funimation?

Post by Dragon Ball Ireland » Mon Jan 24, 2022 8:45 am

Super Sonic wrote: Mon Jan 24, 2022 7:38 am Has Funimation put out anything in 4K? And I'm not just talking what ifs for DB, but sister series?
They released Akira, as well as Transformers the Movie and Ghost in the Shell in the UK. I imagine they will continue testing the waters with classic movies like that, and maybe Super Hero on 4K, but once they start to sell well Funimation will start digging into their back catalogue. I could see the TOEI remasters potentially coming in Q4 this year to milk one more 2K Blu-Ray release, and then from some time next year onwards we could see every re-release of the newer or older movies coming to 4K, or an attempt to release the Z series before or around the same time.
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