First of all, I must thank Shady and the posters of Arctic Nightfall for providing the information contained in this thread.
I. What are HK DVD's?In a word, HK DVD's are bootlegs. The reason they are referred to as HK DVD's is because these bootlegs are primarily produced in Hong Kong, China.
HK DVD manufacturers are generally able to sell their DVD's at extremely low prices, compared to Region One (R1) and Region Two (R2) DVD's, because they pay no licensing to anyone.
While some HK DVD producers simply copy R1 DVD's and sell them as their own, many companies do not. Since R1 DVD's are generally released months to years after a program originally airs, many HK DVD makers use R2 DVD's and Laserdisks in addition to live television feeds for the basis of their Japanese audio and video. English subtitle scripts are then created by HK DVD producers or are taken directly from fan-subtitled (fan-subbed) material.
Once the Japanese audio and video are combined with the English scripts the discs are pressed and sold to the public.
II. Who Makes HK DVD's?There are primarily four companies that produce HK DVD's. Those companies are: Anime Cartoon/Manga International (AC/MI), Anime Studio (AS/MAC), Animation Video (AV), and FX/EZDVD.
AC/MIAC DVD cases usually have a small, orange triangle with the words "Anime Cartoon" printed on the lower, left-hand corner. The original MI disk cases have a small, green "M" with the words "Manga International" stamped on the lower-left hand corner. As of the creation of this guide, MI no longer places any logo on the exterior of the DVD case.
MI is often considered to be one of the better HK DVD manufacturers, usually boasting superior audio, video, and subtitle quality. Said quality is usually looked upon with high regards but do not expect the same quality of officially licensed DVD's.
Unfortunately, many of MI's newer releases have greatly decreased in quality. Rather than basing their DVD's from official R2 DVD's or Laserdisks, many of MI's newest series are based directly from the on-air television signal, which allows the company to stay more current but results in poorer audio and video quality.
AS/MACAS DVD cases usually have a small, blue moon with the words "Anime Studio" printed on the lower, left-hand corner. Although the current releases feature a yellow moon.
The quality of AS's DVD's is usually regarded less than AC/MI's. The quality degradation is usually a result of compression, which forces more episodes onto a single disk.
AS changed their name to MAC in mid-2003. As MAC, some old titles were remasterd and all of their new releases are under the MAC banner. MAC's DVD's are usually direct copies from other companies with no alterations, ranging from FX/EZDVD, MI, and R1 DVD's.
You may visit AS/MAC at their website, located at
http://www.animegod.com/.
AVThe old AV DVD cases usually have a small, red triangle with the words "Animation Video" printed on the lower, left-hand corner that bears a striking resemblance to the AC logo. The new titles, however, don't use this logo anymore.
In the last year AV has looked to beat MI's reputation as one of the better HK DVD manufacturers. While their primary video source continues to be directly from on-air feeds, their subtitles are considered to be of equal quality of MI's but with a font that's simply easier to read.
FX/EZDVDFX DVD cases usually have a small, red circle enclosing the green letters "FX" printed on the lower-left hand corner. Although many releases don'carry any logo. In place of the "FX" logo,
Animation World International Limited or
Animation City International Limited is usually printed on the back of the DVD case. In late 2005 EZDVD became the new name of choice for FX.
FX DVD's are primarily copies of R1 DVD's and are often regarded as "perfect" copies. As it is with any other HK DVD manufacturer, no release is actually "perfect" but many of FX's reproductions have few flaws.
Since using the EZDVD banner FX's somewhat famed quality has deteriorated. Rather than using R1 DVD's as a source material, MI's and AV's DVD's have become their new standard.
III. Will HK DVD's Work For Me?While the majority of HK DVD's are region free (R0), North American DVD players are NTSC while the rest of the word are PAL. All PAL DVD players output NTSC and most PAL TV's will display NTSC video without any problems.
To put it simply, any R0 DVD should play on any DVD player without complications.
IV. Where Can I Buy HK DVD's?AS/MAC is the only company you can buy from directly. Granted, the downside of ordering directly from them is that the people answering the E-mails are not fluent in English. You may contact them at
cartoon_mac@yahoo.com or visit their website at
http://www.animegod.com/.
Many websites sell a multitude of HK DVD's that have been manufactured from every company mentioned in this guide. Some of the best-known websites are
ANIMEniacs,
Import-anime, and
SundevilDVD. If you are not interested in making a purchase at one those E-retailers, countless HK DVD's can usually be found under your favorite titles at
eBay.
V. What Are These "Glue Spots"?Many HK DVD's appear to have "glue spots" on the readable side of the disk. These "spots" have been known to prevent disks from playing, skipping chapters, and otherwise freezing. Unfortunately, there's nothing that can be done about thse "spots" because they're not glue.
These "spots" are actually burn marks that are imprinted over serial numbers. Otherwise, the serial number could be used to track down the physical machines used to print each HK DVD.
VI. Is This Series Any Good?Before requesting any quality checks/reviews from your fellow posters, please visit
Import-Anime. You can also do a search right here at this message board to see if certain titles have been reviewed. All you have to do is checkout the
Search function.
VII. What Else Is Coming Out?Really, we don't know. It must be understood that
no one at Arctic Nightfall knows which titles will be released in the future or when titles will be announced. Each HK DVD manufacturer is extremely secretive and must be to avoid interference from their competitors.
If you still have any unanswered questions please feel free to jump right in and post whatever is on your mind.
