Why do they need 4-6 months to release it?
- Undoubtably Netflix paid for exclusivity and right now Neon Genesis Evangelion is most likely available for streaming on at least one or two online sites in Japan and possibly a few other countries as well. They can't just remove NGE from those streaming services overnight but instead have to fulfill their pre-existing licensing contracts which probably end in early 2019. Also Netflix does have a very specific release calendar mapped out at least a year in advance - they just don't share with the public most of their release dates early because they've worked out some math about people binge longer if something they're interested in suddenly shows up and they don't plan for it, Netflix is all about keeping you on the site as long as possible to data wrangle viewing habits, etc - and the date they choose for NGE is one they feel is best for them to get the most viewers - possibly in between anime seasons, etc - and won't conflict too heavily with their Original content.

Netflix most likely can only license the streaming rights for the show for a set period of time. Netflix Licensing contracts last one, three or five years. Then Netflix has the option to renew the licensing contract or someone else can pay for it. I'm sure Netflix could throw a very fine offer to buy up NGE in perpetuity but if King Records did that they would be fore-fitting all future profits from NGE which come on, that show is still making money almost 25 years later. Since Netflix is only "borrowing" NGE for a few years I don't see why they'd put up even the small amount of money it would cost to do a new English dub. I guess the bigger question is is there an anime series on Netflix that doesn't have the "Netflix Original" stamp - i.e. Dragon Pilot, Devilman Crybaby, Little Witch Academia are all out of the equation because their Netflix properties for all time until they decide to sell - that they ponied up the money to do a new recording? Only reason I could see them doing it is for the extra exclusivity - "See the New English Dub ONLY on Netflix" - but since they've already got assurances fans will watch it already I'm uncertain they'd bother.

Anywho, the bigger curiosity will be to see how Neon Genesis Evangelion fares in the Netflix model. Netflix encourages BINGING. Just this weekend I devoured Dragon Pilot: Hisone & Masotan and while I loved it, I most likely will never return to watch an episode not because I don't want to but because when I log onto Netflix there are all these other new things I should see so when it comes down to revisiting a work again or watching something new I - and roughly 99% of Netflix viewers - go for the new. It's why Netflix will likely never have a Game of Thrones type hit which grew week to week, season to season into the centerpiece of pop culture it is today. A show like Stranger Things or Maniac or Sabrina will be huge for a week or so because the viewers ALL binged it that weekend but a week or two later they've all moved on to the next big thing because they can.

Will NGE, a show that isn't as visually flashy as all that other digitally made anime on Netflix right now and a show that demands so much of a viewer to engage with it beyond a surface level, still be a phenomenon to new viewers when they watch the whole thing in a week and then the next day immediately start watching a new series?

Either way, the next two years are going to be interesting times as an Eva fan.

Gendo'sPapa wrote:Will NGE, a show that isn't as visually flashy as all that other digitally made anime on Netflix right now and a show that demands so much of a viewer to engage with it beyond a surface level, still be a phenomenon to new viewers when they watch the whole thing in a week and then the next day immediately start watching a new series?

Either way, the next two years are going to be interesting times as an Eva fan.

I dunno, man. Stranger Things, etc. have proven that the retro “lo-fi” A E S T H E T I C is in with the kids and normies these days. And NGE’s own strangeness will probably bring about its own rewatchibility in some form or fashion. I think NGE will do just fine on Netflix for at least a few years. The important thing isn’t to question the show’s survivability on Netflix, but rather how NGE molds a new generation through its brief run on Netflix’s platform. Say the show only does 3-5 years tops on Netflix. You honestly think that people who finished the original series will stop there? Eva’s gonna blow up after all this in a noticeable way. I actually think this garuntees a US disc release through Funi or Nozomi within the next few years, whereas before it wouldn’t have. More people will know of it through Netflix, and more people will become dissatisfied staying there afterwards. This is gonna be HUGE.

Reichu wrote:Yeah, not sure how to feel about this. New people are going to be flocking to our wiki which is a garbage dump that needs an unimaginable amount of work done. I feel accountable for the state of that place (rightly or wrongly) but I don't know how to fix the problem in a way that doesn't play ball with my neuroses and other dysfunctions.

Well, why not ask people to collaborate...?
Like, make a list of articles in dire need of revision. Someone requests it to fix, then we do some peer-review to fix it and then you can simply add it to the wikia...

FreakyFilmFan4ever wrote: Eva’s gonna blow up after all this in a noticeable way. I actually think this garuntees a US disc release through Funi or Nozomi within the next few years, whereas before it wouldn’t have. More people will know of it through Netflix, and more people will become dissatisfied staying there afterwards. This is gonna be HUGE.

At least it finally has a chance to garner the recognition it deserves in the West. Also, Funimation has been bought up by Sony, which means much deeper pockets than before, so if Eva blows up considerably this could really mean a disc release down the line.

All in all, despite Reichu's understandable clamoring for obscurity of her favorite show, at least Anno's wallet might have very bright days ahead.

Oh, I love it when seiyuu talk together on Twitter. Yesterday, Ogata and Iwanaga (Kensuke) chatted about the Netflix deal/referenced episode 4:

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— twitter-user (@username) date

Also, I think we can all agree the trailer's vastly improved now!

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— twitter-user (@username) date

Netflix is going all in on classic 90s anime (kind’ve) having just now announced a 10 episode live action COWBOY BEBOP is coming to Netflix.

Shrug.

^ Shinichiro Wantanabe already did a live-action short film for Bebop that featured Faye. I can't see myself enjoying these 10 episodes more than that one short film. (Or the actual anime series, for that matter.)

robersora wrote:All in all, despite Reichu's understandable clamoring for obscurity of her favorite show, at least Anno's wallet might have very bright days ahead.

I wouldn't worry too much about the newcomers. For lack of a better term, Eva is a series that will "gatekeep" itself in the West, and there's no need for us to worry about it. Netflix's own retention rate statistics will probably attest to that. It’ll be a pretty solid binge up until the late teens/early 20s episodes, a good solid pause, and then another binge to finish up the show and the movies, followed up by whatever kids show it takes to help audiences feel again. Shows like that don't gain a massive casual following. (Especially in our binge-happy era of media consumption.) They separate the adults from the children, and chase away the stereotypical Soccer Moms. Within two days tops of Netflix dropping it onto their platform, most newcomers will either realize that they can't casually watch a 30-mile-tall Rei decapitate and collapse into planet Earth and shut it off, or they'll realize that this show is what they've needed their whole lives.

Besides, unlike the entitled Star Wars fandumb, I don't want my favorite fandom in the West to die with my generation. This is a great opportunity to pass the torch.

Gendo'sPapa wrote:Either way, the next two years are going to be interesting times as an Eva fan.

Final-ly

That re-edit of Netflix's trailer is pure MAGIC.

I hope that putting this on Netflix doesn't bastardize the name of Evangelion more than it already is, being an object of popular culture. Having Netflix as a publisher can repel some cinephiles. I know it's stupid, but it was the case for me... I was almost serious about Mubi earlier.

TBsq wrote:I hope that putting this on Netflix doesn't bastardize the name of Evangelion more than it already is, being an object of popular culture. Having Netflix as a publisher can repel some cinephiles. I know it's stupid, but it was the case for me... I was almost serious about Mubi earlier.

You realize this show is very much pop culture in Japan right? And has a shit ton of merch/figures/video games/clothing/razors/toolboxs etc attached to name. Or the memes which are very much ingrained in the West. Not sure how Netflix is the one to “bastardize” the name. But I’m the guy who is fascinated by the business and technology side of things so what do I know.

One CANNOT bastardize a property by simply making it available in it's original form. The absolute WORST thing they can do to Evangelion is use the English dubs from D&R and EoE, which is a thing that we have already survived and lived through as a community without any lasting damage to Eva's reputation. We're fine.

Most excited for the End of Evangelion release on Netflix tbh. I already have the original series on blu-ray, but getting any release of EoE other than the Manga Entertainment release is exciting

FreakyFilmFan4ever wrote:One CANNOT bastardize a property by simply making it available in it's original form. The absolute WORST thing they can do to Evangelion is use the English dubs from D&R and EoE, which is a thing that we have already survived and lived through as a community without any lasting damage to Eva's reputation. We're fine.

This more than anything. Eoe’s dub is an amazingly awful dub. Seeing as most casual viewers will watch the dubbed version, I really hope Netflix will spend the money to fund a faithful adaptation, even if it’s different from the rebuild cast. Plus it would give me a greater incentive to watch when it’s released, as it would be a new version of a film I’m very familiar with.

I agree actually

Come to think of it, I'm kinda hoping that they do a new sub/dub track at least for D&R and EoE. The mistranslations and factual errors in the Manga Ent. version is confusing at best and embarrassing at worst. Otherwise, I wouldn't care what they did. (Especially with the dub.) But we don't need that kind of confusion for a show that is already confusing when properly viewed.

On reflection, I'm sure the cost of new subs and dubs would not put Netflix off doing them. I mean, they really roll them out already. For instance, The Piano Forest was released three months after its Japanese transmission with something like (from memory) a score of sets of subs and eight dubs. And if they could get rights to the subs and dubs in some languages that are OK and available, then redoing the worst (i.e. English) would be a pretty small matter for them.

@Freaky:

Yeah, unless there's some major thing I'm forgetting, NGE's Platinum subs at least, were on point. (The dub has the usual issues like Ritsuko's vastly different characterization, and using Tiffany Grant all 5 times for the "This isn't the real me!" ep 22' sequence, and I think a line in ep 2 about brain damage? I'm generally a subtitles gal with Eva, so )

Death/EoE 100% needs a retranslation like I mentioned back here. Despite my excitement, I personally feel anxious enough about translation matters to ask Dan Kanemitsu himself (or Netflix) what's up, but I feel like it's too early in this stage for them to give an answer—assuming they're allowed to discuss that to begin with (NDAs, etc, etc).

For all of ADV's faults, their subs/dubs ended up being translationally accurate. (I'll have to check, but I think they might have even fixed the "Brain Damage" line in their later releases. I at least remember them addressing that issue in their audio commentary for the episode.) But, yeah, I tend to focus more on subs than dubs myself as well. But even then, EoE is a train wreck of nonsense.

I'd think that Netflix could get back as much of the original cast as possible. Even if they're stationed in California, I'm sure all of the Texan actors could arrange satellite recording station with Netflix. Does anyone know how Netflix usually does voice dubs? Because that would be interesting.

FreakyFilmFan4ever wrote:For all of ADV's faults, their subs/dubs ended up being translationally accurate.

Exactly, that's why I liked 'em, too. Mangle Entertainment on the other hand...no offense to them, but hoo boy.

(I'll have to check, but I think they might have even fixed the "Brain Damage" line in their later releases. I at least remember them addressing that issue in their audio commentary for the episode.)

Ahh, I remember that too. Pretty sure you're right and they did fix it