Treasure Hunter — A Bunch of Oddly Fitting Halloween Themed Releases (Part 2 of 2)

Tales of the Abyss is an anime adaptation of the 2006 PS2 video game of the same name. This series was originally aired in 2008 and 2009 in Japan, acquired by Bandai Entertainment in 2010 and was finally released on DVD on October 11. Interestingly enough, Tales of the Abyss fell into the abyss of constant delays as it was originally supposed to be released in July. Either way, fans of the game and anime can finally purchase part one of this series in North America. The first volume of the limited edition includes the first book of the second manga adaptation, Tales of the Abyss: Asch the Bloody. Volume 1 of the newest Tales anime has an MSRP of $35. However, Rightstuf is currently selling it for $21, nine dollars cheaper than at Amazon.

Rurouni Kenshin: The Movie is the latest Kenshin related blu-ray import available from Aniplex. The movie, also known as Samurai X – The Motion Picture, has a plot that isn’t found in Nobuhiro Watsuki’s original manga. Given how old and popular Rurouni Kenshin is you’ve probably already seen this movie since its release ten years ago on DVD. Or at the very least you’ve either seen the anime series, read the manga or both. Like Aniplex of America’s other RK releases this blu-ray comes with a deluxe booklet and an English translation book. The blu-ray has an MSRP of $70 but Rightstuf has it for $55. The BD was announced in July and I would have expected Aniplex to have cover art available by now– sadly this isn’t the case. Rurouni Kenshin: The Movie was released on October 26.

The limited edition Oreimo DVD box set was released on October 18th. A brief synopsis of the series can be found in my Aniplex of America at Otakon 2011 write-up. Oreimo has an MSRP of $75 but Rightstuf is selling it for $60. Sixty dollars for 16-episodes on DVD is definitely more than what many anime fans are willing to pay– especially those used to cheaper FUNimation box sets. For the money Aniplex has included a number of goodies including a mini-poster, 24-page booklet filled with character and production designs and 16 postcards– one for each episode. If you’re a hardcore box set collector, a fan of Oreimo or you simply enjoy slice-of-life comedies this box set with its included swag is probably worth the money.

A special mention goes out to volume two of Katanagatari which was released in September by NIS America. For some reason I completely overlooked it in last month’s Treasure Hunter. However, I did write about part one, so I believe it’s only fair to give a quick mention to this subsequent release. If you enjoyed the strange katana collecting story from volume one, volume two concludes the story. Like Aniplex’s Oriemo, Katanagatari is expensive at $56 for only six episodes. However, box set collection includes a 30-page hardcover art book and six glossy art prints that are double-sided. The art prints are only available from NISA’s online store. Fortunately, the shipping’s free so you’ll only pay for the price of the box set. Unlike Oriemo, this series is also a DVD/BD combo pack making that $50+ price tag a little more justifiable– especially for anime on blu-ray buffs.