Toei Channel To Broadcast 4K Restorations of Toei Doga Classics

From September to December, Japan's Toei Channel will broadcast new 4K restorations of classic Toei Doga animated features, including Hakujaden, Little Prince and the Eight-Headed Dragon, Wan Wan Chuushingura, Horus, Prince of the Sun, Puss in Boots and Animal Treasure Island. These films will be broadcast under the banner, Toei Doga Meisaku Anime Gekijo, or "Toei Doga Anime Masterpiece Theater."

According to the official Toei website, this series will coincide with the hotly anticipated daytime drama series, "Natsuzora," a retelling of the animation studio's early days. All of the characters are based on real Toei alumni, including Reiko Okuyama, Yoichi Kotabe, Yasuo Otsuka, Akemi Ota, Michiyo Yasuda, Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki. The drama will appear on the NHK network, which many Studio Ghibli fans will recognize.

In addition to their animated features, Toei will broadcast a 1959 documentary about the making of the studio's second feature, Shonen Sarutobe Sasuke. It should prove to be an invaluable document of the era, even though its portrayal of the making of an animated movie will most likely be itself carefully staged. Hopefully, we will catch a glimpse of a very young Isao Takahata, who worked on the film as assistant director.

Best of all (for me) will be the premier of a new documentary program on Horus, Prince of the Sun that features interviews with the artists and animators, a look at production artwork and more. I do hope the show's creators were able to speak to Paku-san while he was still alive. I would hope that there are some new discoveries to be made about this anime masterpiece. I shared pretty much everything I know for the BD audio commentary track, as well as the supplemental essays and production gallery (and, by the way, you're freaking welcome).

For those of us in the West, the most exciting prospect of these 4K restorations is the possibility of new home video releases on Blu-Ray or Ultra Blu-Ray. Of the classic Toei Doga library, only a handful of films have been released in Europe and America, and continuing rights issues over the domestic (dubbed) versions may complicate matters. As always, such matters can be solved by writing a lot of checks, but the limited appeal of classic Japanese animation may stop such plans cold.

In Japan, the only Toei Doga anime film to be released on Blu-Ray was Horus, Prince of the Sun (which was also released here). Everything else was released on DVD, but nearly all of those titles were simple transfers from LaserDisc. Most of the DVDs were given English fan translations some years ago, but it's nearly impossible to find any of those movies online today.

Needless to say, now would be a terrific time for Discotek or GKIDS to pick up these movies for a US release. Start your email and letter campaigns immediately, kids. Christmas is only three months away.

Animal Treasure Island on DVD

Out of curiosity, I checked Amazon to see if the 2005 Animal Treasure Island DVD was still available, and to my surprise, copies are still in stock. Yay! This Discotek Media release has been out-of-print for many years, so be sure to pick up a copy while you can. I see that Puss in Boots is more difficult to score, so don't dawdle.

This DVD is pretty bare-bones, but does include both English subtitles and the original US English-language dub. The cover design is pretty good. I do wish Toei would reissue this movie on Blu-Ray, but they seem very reluctant to preserve their history. Horus remains the only "classic era" title on BD, and all of the movies on DVD were single-layer discs released around the year 2000. Oh, and they're all LaserDisc rips.

I really can't explain that. Am I really the only one who cares about these classic animated feature films? Maybe. Anime fans, who are mostly high school and college students, won't touch anything older than a decade, and they especially won't touch old Japanese cartoons that were modeled after Walt Disney. Whatever.

Get this movie. Click on that link at the beginning of the post and buy Animal Treasure Island on DVD. Don't bother waiting for a BD to arrive. It won't.

Hayao Miyazaki Comics: Animal Treasure Island (1971)

Since we recently looked at Hayao Miyazaki's newspaper comic adaptation of Toei Doga's Puss in Boots, I thought we should also look at his version of Toei's 1971 classic, Animal Treasure Island. I love this movie, a true cartoon classic full of slapstick humor and adventure like a warm box of sunshine.

These newspaper scans are all in black-and-white. Judging by their quality, I have always assumed that the originals were in color, but that is only my personal speculation. These look like they were run off a photo copier long ago, and then later scanned into digital computer files. Thankfully, the page sizes are large enough so that you can read everything clearly (just click on the images to view at full size). I would be very happy if we could find originals, but these remain the only preserved copies of this 1971 comic.

This Miyazaki comic appeared after People of the Desert, his original epic manga serial from 1969-70, and so we see his drawing style far more established than in Puss in Boots, which still followed the style of Osamu Tezuka and classic cartoons. Notice the extremely dense, packed pages, a Miyazaki trademark. The arrangement of those panels communicates its own energy and tension, and it's a quality that continues throughout his career. Most Japanese manga comics are very spacious, zen-like in their arrangements and compositions. Miyazaki-san is just the opposite; he just packs together as much material as he can possibly fit onto a page.

This Animal Treasure Island comic series follows the plot of the movie fairly closely, albeit in a condensed fashion, and with a lot of the lighter material removed. We don't get to see the famous pirate battle (conceived and animated by Miyazaki, one of his all-time classics) recreated here, but space was no doubt a premium and there's only so much you can do with 13 pages. You just know that if given half a chance, Miyazaki would have cranked out at least a couple hundred without breaking a sweat.

This comic comes at his final year at Toei, as Miyazaki-san left with Isao Takahata and Yoichi Kotabe to join Yasuo Otsuka at the A Productions studio to pursue their ill-fated Pipi Longstockings project, as well as Lupin the 3rd, where Miyazaki served as co-director with Paku-san. Add in the Pipi project, the two Panda Kopanda short films, assisting on a couple other A Pro anime series and putting together Heidi, and you just marvel at the man's work ethic. I don't think Miyazaki ever took so much as a coffee break during this time. He must have lived solely on a diet of coffee and cigarettes and boundless ambition. He was out to conquer the world and would settle for nothing less.

Animal Treasure Island: International Pirate Day

Today is International Pirate Day (or, to be more specific, International Talk Like a Pirate Day), which means it's time to pull out our favorite pirate-themed anime film featuring Hayao Miyazaki...Animal Treasure Island!

The Discotek DVD has been out-of-print for several years, but copies are still widely available online. When I last checked this morning, I found several sellers on Ebay. The Japanese LaserDisc release is still available, so if you're a diehard fan, you're really in luck.

I've always had great affection for this movie. Its blend of classic cartoon slapstick and heroic adventure never grows old. Perhaps it's because Japanese animation steered away from this very Western style of cartoons that flourished so widely in the 1960s. Anime in the 1970s and 1980s would  embrace pulp violence, sci-fi soap operas with giant robots, or Neorealist literary adaptations.

The centerpiece of the movie, as always, is the fantastic pirate battle that was conceived and animated entirely by Hayao Miyazaki. It's one of the all-time great cartoon comedy bits, with endless waves of pig pirates, thrilling escapades from tall heights, and lots of little sight gags in the corners of the frame.

The heroine Cathy is a direct descendent to Nausicaa, the pirate Captain is a direct descendent to Porco Rosso, and the movie's climax, where a treasure ship is revealed underneath a lake, is a direct descendent to The Castle of Cagliostro. Miyazaki's creative fingerprints are all over this movie, even with the presence of beloved Toei Doga veterans like Yoichi Kotabe, Reiko Okuyama and Yasuji Mori.

Released in 1971, Animal Treasure Island failed to become a success at the Japanese box office, which is just baffling when you consider that its previous movie, the 1969 Puss in Boots, was a grand success. Perhaps kids were just turning away to watch cartoons on TV. Perhaps the weather was just lousy that summer. Who knows? In any case, this movie remains criminally underrated and deserves to be widely known. Here is an anime film that Disney could use! Where's Pixar when ya need 'em?

Oh, well. Get Animal Treasure Island by any means necessary. It's well worth the effort.

Discotek DVDs For John Lennon Fans Who Completely Missed The Beatles

One thing I can't wrap my head around is the fact that most American Hayao Miyazaki fans are completely aware of his vast career before the founding of Studio Ghibli.  Even prominent animation scholars and movie critics think it all began with Castle of Cagliostro or Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind.  It's a bit like meeting a diehard John Lennon fan who's only aware of his 1970s solo output..."Beatles?  What's that?  Never heard of it."

Thank God for Discotek, I say.  The US distribution label has steadily grown into one of the best anime publishers around, and they've done an excellent job providing us with the pre-Ghibli works of the 1960s and 1970s.  In 2006, they released a trio of Toei Doga classics: Puss in Boots (1969) and Animal Treasure Island (1971).  In 2012, they released Lupin III: The Complete First TV Series (1971-72), of which I contributed three short essays, and Panda Go Panda (1972, 73).

Discotek also released the 1979 Toei feature, Taro the Dragon Boy, which was not connected to Hayao Miyazaki or Isao Takahata, but old friends Yoichi Kotabe and Reiko Okuyama were the Animation Directors, and the movie was a surprising throwback to the Toei Doga classics of old.  Every self-respecting anime fan should have this DVD in their collection.

All of these DVDs seems to completely disappear from the radar, and remain criminally overlooked.  These classics manage to fall between the cracks for varying reasons: too old, too clunky, lack of quality dubs, lack of advertising or marketing, no presence at retail.  Ignore all of that.  Just buy everything directly from the Discotek website, and send them your thanks.

Where are all these so-called Miyazaki and Takahata fans I keep hearing about?  I've got a whole stack of Beatles albums, just waiting to be discovered.

Puss in Boots (1969)

Animal Treasure Island (1971)

Lupin the 3rd: The Complete First TV Series (1971-72)

Panda Go Panda! (1972, 73)

Cool Retro Toys - Horus, Hilda, and Captain Silver

Here's something for the die-hard toy collectors out there: figurines based on Horus, Prince of the Sun and Animal Treasure Island.  As you may know, these are my two favorite Toei Doga movies, so I'd be pretty thrilled to have these sitting on my shelf.  Horus and Hilda make a good pair, but Captain Silver is the big surprise.  I never expected to find any merchandize related to ATI anywhere on the web.  Once again, Google proves its worth!

You can buy these items from this website.  It's a Japanese merchant, so be careful when clicking around.  They're a bit pricey, at 5,980 Yen (roughly $65), but these are vintage collectables.  If that's your thing, happy shopping.

Photos - Animal Treasure Island

Every once in a while, I have to throw up some screenshots from Animal Treasure Island, one of my all-time favorite anime cartoons.  It's probably my favorite Toei Doga movie after Horus, Prince of the Sun, and usually the one I reach for when I need a quick laugh.

This is easily the most "Miyazaki" of the Toei films; he really seems to be in the driver's seat on this picture, instead of being part of a larger team.  Or perhaps everyone was just in the mood for a fun, rollicking adventure movie.  It's basically a cliffhanger adventure serial with a lot of slapstick comedy.  The colors are terrific, the character designs are memorable (in that iconic Toei way), and the action scenes are terrific.  The epic pirate ship battle, animated by Hayao Miyazaki. is worth the price of admission alone.

Discotek released Animal Treasure Island (DVD) on our shores a few years ago, alongside 1969's Puss in Boots and 1979's Taro the Dragon Boy, all anime classics that seem to be, strangely, ignored by most anime fans.  It may be tough to find these movies at most retailers by now, so your best bet is to order directly from the Discotek website.  These folks do a fantastic job, and they're sticking their necks out by delivering classic anime to a scene that only wants what's "NEW."  Whatever that means.  I'm sure to a teenager today, Akira is ancient history.

Buy a copy of Animal Treasure Island (and Puss in Boots) if you haven't done so already.  This is a great, old-school cartoon.  You can't ask for much better than that.

Riffs - Future Boy Conan #01, Animal Treasure Island, Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind

I wanted to show a couple riffs that appear in the first episode of Future Boy Conan.  There are a few more, but you can dig those out if you're so inclined.  But these should help you out when you're engaged in your Miyazaki Riffs Drinking Games.

This first example is a gag of Conan tumbling down a set of stairs.  He's getting water for Lana, who is lapsing in and out of consciousness after being rescued from the beach the day before.  It's a funny little gag, perfectly suited for the physical Conan, and Miyazaki used it before, during the classic pirate battle in Animal Treasure Island.  In that movie, Jim, the hero, also stumbles down about four flights of stairs, past a couple of funny sight gags in the process.  This battle scene is packed to the rafters with tiny details and throwaway gags.

Our second Conan riff comes from this scene, where Conan is showing off his island to Lana, carrying her around and running all over the place.  He feeds her some fruit, which is...um, a little sour tasting, and Conan gets to make some funny faces.  This big was used a few years later in the Nausicaa film, in the photo you see above.  That's rather interesting, because there's hardly a joke in the entire film.  The very few bits drop in and out very quickly.

Photos - Animal Treasure Island

Good Lord, yet another massive Storm of the Century is roaring across the American heartland.  Time to hibernate indoors and watch Animal Treasure Island and spin some records.  So I'm throwing up another batch of killer screenshots, just because I can.  This is clearly the most "Miyazaki" of all the Toei Doga films, and certainly the zaniest, thanks to the teamwork of the entire Toei crew as well as old friends Yoichi Kotabe, Reiko Okuyama, Akemi Ota, yadda yadda.

Is this movie sitting in your DVD collection?  If so, terrific, I hope you're showing off for everyone in sight.  If not, why not?  What are ya waiting for?

Polish Anime Movie Posters - Animal Treasure Island, Puss in Boots 3

In an age where Photoshop and marketing departments have drained all the fun out of movie posters, there is still Poland.  This nation has produced some of the most ingeniously inventive designs anywhere in the world.  If you're the sort who enjoys collecting vintage movie posters, then you need at least a couple Polish designs on your wall.

A number of Toei Doga films have been given the Polish treatment.  The first photo shows the poster for Animal Treasure Island, one of my all-time favorites.  I love that movie to death, and it's always within reach if I want to impress someone with classic Miyazaki (and friends) anime.  This design is pretty abstract, definitely "inside baseball."  If you didn't know what movie this was for, you'd probably miss it completely...score one for the dedicated fans.

The second photograph is the poster for Toei's Puss in Boots 3 (Around the World in 80 Days) from 1976.  I'm not a fan of the third movie; in fact, I think it's just dreadful.  But I am a huge fan of the original 1969 Puss in Boots, so I would be happy to have this poster among my collection.  I really dig this psychedelic, Peter Max-inspired watercolor design.  This reminds me of a lot of the trippy cartoons that played on Sesame Street way back in the '70s.  Animation was seriously trippy back in the '70s, wasn't it?

Would you like to buy these Polish anime movie posters?  PolishPoster.com has them for sale.  The Animal Treasure Island poster sells for $36.12 and is available here.  The Puss in Boots 3 poster sells for (ouch) $82.56 and is available here.  Let's hope they'll have enough inventory to go around.

Buy These DVDs Already!

I always make it a personal habit to pitch for the Discotek DVDs once per year, and since the topic came up, here we go again, kids.  Buy these DVDs for Puss in Boots and Animal Treasure Island!  These are excellent discs, containing the full movies with Japanese language, as well as long-lost English language dubs, trailers, and very nice packaging.

Of course, I would wish the image quality was better, but this is the fault of Toei, who only released their classic animation movies in single-layer DVD format in the year 2000.  That's right, they haven't touched their "Golden Age" films in a decade.  Amazing, isn't it?  Well, let's show some support and prove the demand is out there.

Oh, and lest I forget, Discotek also released Toei's excellent 1979 anime Taro the Dragon Boy.  It's a rare return to form for the company, whose fortunes had long since faded by that time.  It's very much in the style of the lavish production and Disney-esque visuals from Toei Doga's golden era (1958-1972).  Be sure to grab this one while you can.  If Puss in Boots and Animal Treasure Island have only sold a few copies in the USA, than Taro probably sold in the single digits.  Again, anime fans need to support their history.

Today is Pirate Day!

Yaarrgh!  Today be International Pirate Day!  We´re going to be watching Animal Treasure Island, drinking lots of beer, and causing mayhem whenever possible.  I suggest you better do the same.