Man, I love it when I get a press release that amuses me as much as this one does. I know that sex sells and all that, and I’m all for releasing foreign shows and movies over here in their uncut versions (I don’t think the cartoons in question should have been cut in the first place), but this just seems like a parental complaint waiting to happen. If they hadn’t sanitized things so much in the first place, I bet most people wouldn’t have noticed the religious symbols, cleavage, etc., but now that parents are used to seeing Yu-Gi-Oh! all clean and safe, this may end up shocking some as they glance in on the electric babysitter.

Dear Editor,

I would like to bring your attention to some exciting news on behalf of 4 Kids Entertainment Home Video, Inc.! Hotly anticipated special DVD collector’s editions of Yu-Gi-Oh! and Shaman King are being released on October 19 in association with FUNimation. The discs will contain the original, unedited Japanese animation, never before available in the U.S. and Canada.

The collector?s editions will restore the many features of the original Japanese versions, changed due to the necessities of American broadcast standards. For example, religious symbols including pentagrams, crosses, and stars of David were replaced by nondescript images. Similarly, depictions of violence such as the slicing of monsters, firing of weapons and the showing of blood were reduced or removed. In addition, cleavage was reduced, skirts lengthened and clothing added to numerous characters, in order to diminish sexually provocative content. Everything has been restored, including footage cut in order to meet on-air time requirements for commercials.

The releases will also feature newly recorded English language tracks with the entire original cast, as well as the original Japanese tracks and English subtitles. The versions broadcast on U.S. television contained English dialogue that was substantively different from the Japanese in many ways, due to the same considerations that necessitated alterations and cuts to the visual elements. The new tracks accurately reflect the Japanese script as originally written.

The News