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Something to Watch: Discs

Movies bring X-Men: Apocalypse home, which I am excited about because I haven’t seen it yet. It is probably the only Marvel movie of the last few decades I didn’t get to see on the big screen, and I am determined not to let that happen again any time soon. I likewise missed Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV in the theaters, with the difference that I have no intention of watching it at home either. The low key and intelligent Into The Forest is a post-apocalyptic tale with heart, and no zombie hoards or maniacs with muscle cars and chain saws anywhere to be seen. Probably the less said about The Purge: Election Year the better, but I do have to mention the quirky Swiss Army Man also comes out this week.

How many of you saw the 3D version of It Came From Outer Space when it hit the big screen in 1953? It was only the 6th movie ever made with a stereo soundtrack, and that too has been restored in the new Blu Ray 3D release coming out this week. They also fixed a number of problems with the vertical being out of alignment between the two film tracks, and corrected several scenes where the 3D was reversed (the stuff in the back of the scene appeared closer to the audience than the stuff in the foreground). Since they remastered it from the original duel film strips, they were able to convert it from its original red/green anaglyph format to the modern Blu Ray 3D format, so you will have none of the lose of brightness that format induced by virtue of limiting your visual input to just 2 parts of the spectrum.

Anime starts with a live action film this time, Attack on Titan Movie: Part 1, for those who missed it because its theatrical run was so limited. Gundam Reconguista in G takes place after the war torn Universal Century has ended, but the new century’s peace and prosperity hides some serious problems. Re-Kan! is a bout a new girl in school who hangs out with Ghosts, and pretty soon one of her classmates is seeing them too. Naruto Shippūden uncut box 28 brings more Ninja goodness home.

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion: Complete Collection is the first time both seasons can be found in a single box set. Strike Witches The Movie is also out on disc for the first time this week, which completes that series, with seasons 1 and 2 already being out in a S.A.V.E. edition. Blood-C: The Complete Series and Blood-C: The Last Dark are both coming out in S.A.V.E. editions as well.

Something to Watch: Discs

The fantasy/adventure Warcraft comes home this week for those who enjoyed it as much as I did. I can’t really speak for Cell, having missed it in the theaters, but it was based on the excellent Steven King book of the same name, so I have my hopes for it.

Anime has Chaika – The Coffin Princess Avenging Battle, which is a well done sword and sorcery warfare story. Maria the Virgin Witch is also about medieval magical warfare and how to stop it, with more adult themes. Seraph of the End: Vampire Reign has humanity on the edge of extinction, three guesses from what threat. The complete collection is a bit pricey, I will wait for a S.A.V.E. edition. The Labyrinth of Grisaia/Eden of Grisaia are two OVA series of about 5 episodes each that expand the story told in the original 13 episode anime series The Fruit of Grisaia. Mikagura School Suite: The Complete Series is another Magical Girls Combat School, this one oriented for the Yuri audience. The second half of Plastic Memories also becomes available this week, but I will wait for all 13 episodes to come out in a single box set before picking it up.

Sci-Fi by Real Scientists!

Humble Bundle is a great way to get some amazing deals on nerd-centric stuff and support charity at the same time. As an example, right at the moment their home page actually redirects you to their current Game Maker Bundle, with over $1,880 worth of software to let you create your own games and distribute them online, which you can pick up for less than $13. They don’t normally do that, but I think they got excited when even at such a low price they crossed the 2 million dollars in sales mark. That one is still going on for a day or two, but there is another deal you ought to check out: Sci-Fi by Real Scientists, with the charity being the Sci-Fi Givers Fund. That charity fund is one of several being run by the SFWA, and supports all the other funds, including the legal and health care funds, and their educational and grant system. If you are as addicted to reading as I am, this is an excellent way to help the independently employed authors (what, you never heard the expression “don’t quite your day job”?) keep doing what they are doing. The deal only runs for another week yet, until the morning of the 28th, and the e-books download to all the standard formats, so whatever computer or tablet you are running they will read just fine.