Crunchyroll panel was filled with news and membership giveaways. People who asks questions are able to get a 30 day trial Premium membership. Free membership is also given to those who get trivia questions.
Subtitles are available in 7 languages {Italian being the most recent addition) and streaming in over 185 countries. “Every country aside from North Korea.” *audience laughs* The Crunchyroll app is available on PS3 and PS4, Xbox One, Wii U, Vita and android and Apple devices.
Turning the conversation to the manga section of the site, the host noted that it has been around since Oct. 2013 and is up to 70 titles including Attack on Titans and Yamada in the Seven Witches. Manga can be accessed on Apple and android devices as well as via computer. Manga is also simultaneously released: as soon as Attack on Titans and Fairy Tail hit shelves in Japan, it is available on the site.
For two free memberships, they asked the attendees to name 5 devices Crunchyroll is available on and name three benefits of having a Premium edition. Hilariously, the answer was on the slide that was on the screen which made everyone laugh. Since that was like a giveaway, the host gave another free membership by asking attendees to name 5 manga titles.
Crunchy News is has articles about the latest anime news with writers in Japan writing about the music scene and pop culture. On the main site, news is on the front page and there are site news which is a way to hear about new content and announcements. News can also be found on twitter, facebook, instagram and tumblr. The host plugged the twitter account, noting that something is always being twitted, screenshots, news, photos and gifs. Flash contents are held frequently which include membership prizes, merchandise items, Love Live prize packs, video games and more. There is also the video podcast, The Crunchycast which is on the site and youtube and other podcast sites.
The Crunchy store sells legit merchandise and Premium members can receive 10%-25% off of orders and free shipping on certain items. Premium Plus member get free shipping on everything in the store. The host revealed that since she started working with Crunchyroll, she bought 50 figures and “It’s a problem, but it’s a problem I’m into.” *audience laughs*
Turning to the top anticipated anime of the Fall season, the first is The Asterisk War which is by the staff of Sword Art Online. A meteor storm hits Earth and cities were destroy. However, mana was found and those who evolved were called Genestella. A trailer showcasing the battles at the schools were shown. The episodes will be released on Thursdays at 9am.
The Perfect Insider which started earlier in the day is a murder mystery show based off of a novel by Mori Hiroshi. The setting takes place in a lab and about a boy and a girl who discovers a dead body. The short snippet teased the drama. The episodes will be released on Thursdays at 2pm.
To the cheers of the crowd, Haikyuu season 2 was plugged. Besides the plethora of fujoshi fans of the series (and the host noted that there are a number of fujoshi in the office with their figures,) the host pointed out that the vivid animation and story cater to many people. The episodes will be shown Saturdays at 3pm.
Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans was the next big plug to the cheers of the fans. The host noted that there are fans of the series in the office and there will be a Gundam giveaway on twitter (reminding all to follow) via a contest. Premiering Sunday, 10/11 at 4:30pm. The music and animation is wonderful in the short trailer.
For something different, Anti-Magic Academy trailer was shown teasing pretty girls in military uniforms (non-standard, super skirt issued of course) and guns. Based off of a light novel series by Yanagimi Toki-sensei. The episode will air on Wednesday at 1:45pm.
The host noted that there are more series that have not been mentioned and more are on the site with more being announced over the weekend. More memberships were given out with trivia questions, one of the harder being the creator of the The Perfect Insider.
Special announcements! The first was Is the Order a Rabbit? season 2 about girls in a rabbit cafe. Manga announcement is Arakawa Under the Bridge, the first three volumes will be available later on in October.
Cheers were heard for Testament of New Sister New Devil anime series. It starts on 10/9, airing, Friday at 2pm. It follows the adventures of two succubi, Maria and Mio as they decide the fate of the demon realm.
Manga Cuticle Detective Inaba is about a detective with a hair fetish. The anime is also available on the site and the first volumes will be up later in October. Another manga is boob-filled Ladies versus Butlers as well as the sweet Gugure Kokkurisan. Again, the first three volumes will be available later on in October with more being announced later on.
More free memberships! A tough one is naming everything that was just announced. Interestingly, the first one who answered was able to name it practically backwards. The floor was then given over to Q&A.
- Q: Will you be adding more dubs to the site?
A: We understand that dubs are something people want and we do want to add more dubs to the site.
Q: How come some anime are not licensed by Crunchyroll like Seraph of the End?
A: Funimation has that anime. It depends on the US distributors since all the companies are going after new series every season. Whoever wins that show, gets it. It depends on the monday, relationship with the content providers.
Q: Will you be getting the second season of Bloodlad or The Devil is a Part-Timer!?
A: If I knew, I would have already announced it, however, I wouldn’t know and I couldn’t tell you. If there is the first season on our site, we definitely want to get the ongoing season.
Q: You’ve been adding more OVAs and movies like the Card Captors Sakura movie. Are you pushing to get more movies onto Crunchyroll?
A: It depends since getting OVAs is very different from getting an anime tv series. It is definitely something that we want. For many of the questions, we agree, it’s something that we want, but will it happen? We don’t know, but we want it as well.
Q: As a Premium member, will there be any more changes with the membership?
A: There has already been a big change in January [2015] with Premium members getting access to all content and discounts. I don’t have a timeline of any further changes. We’re growing, so it should get better and better.
Q: Something funny that has happened in Crunchyroll?
A: We have human-sized cardboard stands from Love Live, we have abused them so much. Not intentionally, but we did things like putting them on the escalator and it folded. A big idol took Umi on a date to Burger King. Sat her down and bought her a burger. It went viral on facebook.
Q: Recommendations from the new season?
A: For me, I would choose, The Perfect Insider, Sakurako’s Investigations and Testament of New Sister New Devil.
Q: With both anime and manga, which one will you be focusing more on in the future?
A: Anime is big and we’re going after every show, every season. Manga is different in the production side of things. It is hard to compare the two. We definitely want to grow our manga service. When we started, we initially had 20 titles and now we have 71. I think it is very awesome growth and it’s very good for the site. We have big titles like Princess Jellyfish and Attack on Titans. It’s a difficult question. We have our anime and we still-not figuring out-but definitely working on that strategy.
Q: Will you ever have a 18+ section on Crunchyroll? How will Crunchyroll handle censorship in the future? *audience laughs*
A: We do have some anime uncensored on the site for a little bit. Usually uncensoring is saved for the BD and DVD releases. We don’t deal with that. Unless the publishers want to give us the show uncensored after the BD and DVD releases, we won’t have uncensored. We don’t have a section for 18+. We do have a mature filter. Are you referring to straight up hentai? *audience laughs* I don’t know. We’re a really family friendly site. It’s hard to say.
Q: What are some shows you watch again and again?
A: Here are my own top shows that are on the site, Mononoke which is the medicine vendor show that is very obscure and cool. I love it so much. Shin Sekai Yori (From the New World) which I watched multiple times. Chihayafuru *audience applauds*, Naruto and Arakawa Under the Bridge.
Q: What was the big announcement at the Crunchyroll special panel?
A: It is a 250 page anthology that will be coming out for Attack on Titans. It is being written and illustrated by western comic artists.
Q: Differences between free and Premium manga member?
A: If you’re a free member, you get the first and latest chapter free with the ad banner at the top. As a premium member, you get access to all the available manga with no ads.
Q: Are you getting Overlord soon?
A: No, Overlord is by Funimation.
Q: What is your favorite anime that has plot and alot of plot…if you know what I mean. *audience laughs*
A: Plot and alot of plot?
Fan: If you don’t know what I mean, I can explain it.
Host: Yeah, explain it. Monster Musume has a lot of boobs and but not alot of plot. Prison School is really good, extremely ecchi and the story is very fun.
Q: Will you picking up light novels?
A: People have asked me this before. It is something that I personally want as a huge fan. Licensing light novels is very different but it definitely is not off the table.
Q: Is Fairy Tail one of the top 100 most watched on Cruncyroll? It is also on Funimation. Do you share the series?
A: Yes, Fairy Tail is usually in our top ten. And it is in our top 5 manga. Yes, it is also on Funimaton. We share a few series including Attack on Titans, One Piece.
- Q: Do you think Case Closed ever end? Do you prefer the dub or the sub? Will you get the past episodes?
A: No, I don’t think it will ever end. *audience laughs* No, I only watch the sub. Some people like the dub and some like subs. I support both of them. Some dubs are really good, but I usually watch subs. Past episodes, not at this moment but you want them.
Q: Some OPs and EDs are translated and some are not….
A: It is something that we understand people want. The licensing for that is complicated. Some shows get translated and some don’t but we don’t know which ones.
Q: Are you going to go back to having dub and subs very every single show?
A: Every single one? Having dubs for every single show is most likely impossible. We definitely want more dubs and subs on the site and we’re working on getting more dubs on the site.
Q: The subscription plan used to be monthly, 3 months and the yearly. But after the change with the premium memberships, I don’t know how to switch to another plan.
A: If you have the 3 month one, you have to wait until your month runs out and then you can switch to the year.
Q: If given the option to choose sub or dub, you would choose subs?
A: I’ve always grown up watching subtitles. The first Japanese anime I ever saw was Totoro and I was 4 years old which was subtitled. I watched the dubbed too, had the original one on VHS before Disney redubbed it. I pay more attention to a show when it is subtitled. It is my personal preference.
Q: How come there is no more Kamen Rider episodes?
A: We want to get more episodes. The US companies need to know that fans are willing to watch more shows like Ultraman. Watch it on the site so that we can make a case with the publishers to get more of these series. “Hey, this is going to be popular on Crunchyroll.”
There were several more questions concerning what they can license, but of course, the response is that they hope to license it since they know the fans want it. And yes, they’re looking to update the genre tags so that they’re more accurate. As a special gift to those who stayed until the end of the panel, they show a special video from the people behind the site. It’s pretty awesome that we have a face to put behind all the people who put this together as well as the simple message that as fans, we are also part of the viewership and contributors like those watching in Japan.
“Thank you for watching!”