Bootleg Big-O

Since I noticed a growing trend of Paradigm-City members (and other anime loving people) buying bootleg Big-O stuff, I decided to post this. I tried to find the best price, while still getting the real deal. There is more information on how not to be cheated below the list. Also, I will be making a better version of this at a later date, it will include how to notice if you already own a bootleg.

For Big-O DVDs:
Bandai and Sunrise released the following sets, and nothing more.
1. The Big-O: Volume 1 (Out of Print)
2. The Big-O: Volume 2 (Out of Print)
3. The Big-O: Volume 3 (Out of Print)
4. The Big-O: Volume 4 (Out of Print)
5. The Big-O: Collectors Edition (first season) $40.48
6. The Big-O II – Paradigm Lost (Vol. 1) $21.99
7. The Big-O II - Missing Pieces (Vol. 2) $21.99
8. The Big-O II – Enemy Attacks (Vol. 3) $21.99
9. The Big-O II – Aggressive Negotiations (Vol. 4) $21.99
10. The Big-O II – Complete Collection $40.48

For Big-O CDs:
These are the only official CDs released. This info is also on Paradigm-City’s main site under Soundtracks.
1. The Big-O Opening and Closing Theme Single (Rare and\or Out of Print)
2. The Big-O Original Sound Score $29.95 VICL-60493
3. The Big-O Original CD Drama Theater (Out of Print) VICL-60526
4. The Big-O “Respect” $9.40 VICL-35452
5. The Big-O Original Sound Score II for second season $24.78 VICL-61057

If you want to find a lower price feel free to look, but be careful.
1. Only buy direct from the retailer. Don’t buy from other people, even if you see NEW and FACTORY SEALED its bootleg. The bootleg company in Taiwan did seal it and it is new but it’s not what you are looking for. Remember you get what you paid for.

2. All DVDs and CDs have a unique number assigned to them, if the number does not match, don’t buy it. That in the number listed after the price on my list. The DVD numbers will be coming soon, but for now follow the links to find the correct UPC number.

3. The harder it is to find, the more likely you are going to get a bootleg.

4. Low prices are fine, but really low prices equal bootleg.

5. Know information about what you are buying. Visit the links above to see the correct cover design. Many bootleg groups make their own cover designs up. Bandai releases all of the US DVDs, no one else does. OST 1 and 2 are released by Victor.

6. Know the website. If it carries other products you know are bootleg or not officially released or licensed, don’t buy from them. If the website is poor quality, look else where. Don’t but anything on sites like EBay; they are a breeding place for bootleggers.

7. Use your head. If you don’t like anything about the deal, not buy.

8. Quickly return anything you believe is bootleg to get your money back. Report the company to authorities (more on that later).

I think I have a bootleg copy of the Original Big O Soundscore. But I don't care. I'm not paying for that again.

You're not going to find a better deal than this:

http://www.kcdvd.com/BigO.html

>_>

I'm fairly sure I've got a bootleg copy of subbed FLCL, but other than that I've been fairly strict about getting legit stuff.

I don't have Big O yet, though if I wasn't sick, that'd be a nice way to spend my rebate cash...

quote:

Originally posted by Spoderman You're not going to find a better deal than this: http://www.kcdvd.com/BigO.html

Thats a bootleg. Notice the big bold Collection letter. 3 discs? Bitch, please.

Well I didn't know that.

I wouldn't have bought it if I knew it was bootleg.

Yeah, I got the three-disk bootleg as well, it was sent to me instead of the first season collection. I had let it slide because I had been planning on getting the three disk version anyways, and I only learned afterwards that it was bootleg so I left an 'acceptable' feedback on their profile. Bah.

I eventually picked up the real first season collection, to right what had been wronged.

I kinda fell into the bootleg trap myself. I rejected the idea of buying all the bootlegs that my dad found on the internet (he prefers them because their cheaper). I finally found one that looked a real one after searching for several hours to find one that had a low price on it. However, after all the trouble I went through to find a real DVD set with a good price, it turned out to be a bootleg!!! I felt pretty stupid after that.

I'm probably going to get some actual Big-O DVDs pretty soon to make up for it.


REMEMBER, IF IT"S UNUSUALLY CHEAP IT'S PROBABLY BOOTLEG!!!

quote:

Originally posted by Spoderman You're not going to find a better deal than this: http://www.kcdvd.com/BigO.html

It sounds like I need to hurry up my better bootleg help document, because you are all be suckered. To get the complete collection of season one and two, you should end up with 8 DVDs. Don’t stray from the list. I know it’s cheaper to buy bootlegs, but the quality sucks. There is no other way to put it. The bootleg discs rarely work to begin with, and usually die within months. The ripped movie or soundtrack also, tend to be low quality and may even be the wrong stuff. A friend of mine bought Cowboy Bebop and on the DVDs was Sonic the animated series.

LEGAL NOTE: In many states owning bootleg material counts as you stealing it. So, be very careful on what you buy.

What do you mean, "Die within months"?

quote:

Originally posted by Spoderman What do you mean, "Die within months"?

As with any material you buy (DVD's, CD's, VHS, etc.), there comes a time when the item stops working properly. Bootlegs, to my knowledge, don't last very long compared to properly made DVD's. As I never bought one before, I could be wrong.

By the way, Overstock.com has the complete collections of Season 1 and Season 2 at a very good price, and are not bootlegs. Season one's info is incorrect, however, so take that into consideration when buying that set.

quote:

I also found that strange, but it appears to be an error in the database that they get their DVD descriptions from. See this post for more information.

Got it. Thanks for the info, Krang.

Recently, my mom was shopping at Dollar General and somehow stumbled across two discs of Big O Season II, and two discs of Witch Hunter Robin Season II. They looked fairly official, they had extras on the discs, and the subtitles and dubbing was indeed that of the TV version. However, they were all only $3.00 each.

Now, either Dollar General has been bamboozled and does not realize the value of these things, or I've got something fishy. What do you think?

Great thread, Xeon Negotiator. With bootleg box sets and soundtracks popping up everywhere, it's important to know the differences between them and the official releases.

quote:

Originally posted by Asirt EDIT -- On a second look, season 1 looks fishly on Overstock because it says "2 Disc set". Anyone who's bought it off of overstock.com verify if it's the real thing or not.

I also found that strange, but it appears to be an error in the database that they get their DVD descriptions from. See this post for more information.

quote:

Originally posted by Randolph Recently, my mom was shopping at Dollar General and somehow stumbled across two discs of Big O Season II, and two discs of Witch Hunter Robin Season II. They looked fairly official, they had extras on the discs, and the subtitles and dubbing was indeed that of the TV version. However, they were all only $3.00 each. Now, either Dollar General has been bamboozled and does not realize the value of these things, or I've got something fishy. What do you think?

Do they have the Bandai logo on them? Also, how many episodes are on each DVD? If they are bootlegs, they will not have the logo on them and will most likely have more than 4 episodes per disc.

Unless Bandai Namco released a new unscheduled edition of season one, Overstock is selling bootlegs all the way. Season two looks like it should though. Remember, if it is a single volume, it should have one disc with three or four episodes. If it is a collection it will have 4 discs each containing the same numbers of episodes as the single. Big retailers are not immune to selling bootlegs. I bought Cowboy Bebop on Amazon and it was bootleg, but I bought it from one of their retail partners. If you see that, report it to the company. They don’t want to be sued over it. I reported the seller, and I got my money back, and the person was banned. I also reported it to the FBI, because I don’t like being messed with.

As for the discs at Dollar General, they maybe real, they maybe fake. Follow Krang’s advice on what to look for. I will work on a better guide this weekend, with pictures of real and bootleg, along with more in-depth info on how to spot a bootleg.

The Three Disc set DOES have the Bandai Logo, as well as previews for Bandai Anime.

Spoderman, if you have the three disc set and can post a scanned copy of the front cover, back cover, and the read side of the discs please do so. I would like to see what they look like. I have never found any case were bootleggers actually use real logos. I am guessing still that it is a bootleg, since Bandai Namco has no mention of this set.

To look up info about a Bandai anime release visit Bandai-ent, and search for the title.

quote:

Unless Bandai Namco released a new unscheduled edition of season one, Overstock is selling bootlegs all the way. Season two looks like it should though.

Perhaps. It could also be that the site have the real item, but its information page is incorrect, as explained in this post. I haven't had any problems with bootlegs at Overstock (bought a couple anime DVD's there), but I do agree with you when you said that big retailers are not immune to selling bootlegs (they are less likely to have them, however). Buying anime and imported goods online in general is very tricky, especally when you don't know if the item is real or now. That is, unless you know already what the real item looks like. There's no way of telling until you make the purchase.

Buying from auction sites such as eBay.com and Amazon.com's Market Place are not recommended unless you have made sure that the item is the real legal item. Those sites are what I call "Bootleg Paradise", so I would use them as a last resort.

With anime not released in the US, it's even more difficult. I always recommend that people should buy R2 DVD's and other Japanese imports at online stores located in Japan, such as amazon.co.jp and cdjapan.co.jp.

Despite all this, though, spotting bootleg products has gotten a lot easier over the years (for me, at least).

Since this topic covers bootlegs, I figured I'd post these two pages. The first link leads to a page about how to find bootlegged CD's and a list of eBay sellers who sell bootlegs (I've seen more not listed, but it's a good starter point). The second link contains information about bootlegs in general with most products. Both are good resources for spotting bootlegs, and lastly do your homework. Make sure that the item you buy is truly the item you are seeking.

Chudah's Corner - Reference on bootlegs

Anime Digital - The Pirate Anime FAQ

quote:

Do they have the Bandai logo on them? Also, how many episodes are on each DVD? If they are bootlegs, they will not have the logo on them and will most likely have more than 4 episodes per disc.

Well, the BANDAI logo appears on the DVD, as well as the logos of a number of other companies I forget the names of. Vol. 1 contains episodes 14-17, while Vol. 4 has episodes 24-26. The odds of it being pirated seem pretty slim.

And the bargain could easily be explained by the dim businessfolk about town. Most of them don't even know what anime is, they just sell it because they know it's popular. Half of them don't even know it's Japanese.

Overstock.com and other overstock places work like this: bookstores can return any book/CD/DVD that doesn't sell to their distributor and get their money back. If an item sits on the shelf for a while and doesn't sell, back it goes. The bookseller isn't going to let books age forever on the shelf; most books get a little less salable every day. A lot of times, some really good stuff gets returned along with the junk, because it happens that the customers of that particular bookstore aren't interested.

So mountains of new, sorta-new, shopworn, and damaged books/CDs/DVDs are returned all the time. Specialist sellers like overstock.com take these at enormous discounts and try to move them.

Selling bootlegs would be biting the hand that feeds them, and would be incredibly stupid. Not that this necessarily stops them. More likely, bootlegs would appear in their inventory by accident or as a scam by someone else (retailer sells the real copies and returns bootlegs as "unsold inventory" for a full refund).

Because the overstock business is a high-volume business that deals with truckloads of books, if the UPCs match, they probably won't notice. So a full-up bootleg that simply copies the Bandai artwork and Bandai UPC would be the kind most likely to hit overstock.com, and this is exactly the kind you won't be able to detect until it arrives in the mail -- if then.

My solution is to refuse to worry about it. I always buy the official edition of something I like, if one exists, so if I end up with an edition I'm not sure of (which happens sometimes when I buy on eBay), I always buy the real one, too -- though I may wait until it comes out in English.

The issue can be pretty confusing because the rules aren't the same everywhere. Years ago, when I asked a colleague who was going to Japan on business to pick up a copy of "My Neighbor Totoro" for me, he came back with a high-quality copy sold quite openly in the video store. He was told that only rental places used the factory originals. Either there's a way for getting the royalties to the right place in this case, or he was suckered. I'm not sure which. I bought a real copy on LaserDisc a year or two later.

Why would you watch "My Neighbor Totoro" in the first place?