The sales figures for the third DVD of Endless Eight have been released, and they serve either as a damning indictment of Haruhi fandom or rather strong praise for Kadokawa’s marketing ability…
In its first week, the first volume of Endless Eight sold 14,104 copies, and the second volume 12,708, whilst the recently released third or 5.428571th volume managed 12,278 – DVD buying Haruhi fans are evidently 95% willing to spend $35 an episode on eight all but identical episodes of glib moe marketing.
By comparison, the pre-Endless Eight volume managed 21,812.
With fans so willing to reward such behaviour with their patronage it seems no wonder the industry is in the state it is…
Yui Hirasawa Tops Newtype Character Rankings
Gundam 00 Movie Release Date – “September!”
Snow Miku Nendoroid Irresistibly Appealing
Haruhi Movie Reaches #7 in Japanese Box Office
Sea Shepherd to Attack Tuna Fishing Boats
Mugi-Mania Grips Otaku
Busty Yoko Cosplay
Pedobear “Vancouver 2010 Olympic Mascot”
Anime Industry Laments Bust: “We Could Sell Anything!”
Marisa Kirisame Figma
Nippon Ichi Stock Plunges as Profits Wiped Out
Wonder Festival Winter 2010 Mega-Digest
Tony Works Ciel Chronicle Erotic Indeed
LDP Fields “Hair Nude” Candidate Miyako Aso
Noizi Ito’s Lightning
Final Fantasy XIII Sells for $20, Sales Now a Damp Squib
Bizarre Japanese Vending Machine Gallery
Sexy Pizza Munching C.C. Cosplay
Ohigetan
Matataku
Mischievous Suzume Gallery
Asuka Langley Cosplay by Kanda Midori
Otaku Bukkake Gallery
Nagato Yuki Disappearance Winter Version Cosplay
Mikupan
Sakuya Tsuitachi
Pathetic.
Otaku are. KyoAni is a marketing genius.
Actually, they're not.
12k copies vs 21k - that's more than half of potential profit lost for each disk, considering all costs that have to be covered.
And not like KyoAni saved anything - each episode was re-drawn and voiced anew.
It's a loss-loss situation for both consumer and producer just because of some epic fail guy who had the saying within the company.
It's not a loss for KyoAni, or else they wouldn't do it.
What do you think is easier?
Scenario 1:
Revoice a few lines, there's even a possibility that they reuse some of the lines. Also note that these lines were probably done in less sessions than a whole story arc. And as for animating each scene, the scenery is obvious in the same area, so no new research material need to be made.
OR, animate a totally new novel, breaking your head over how you should direct it to give off the ideal effect. Go and photograph new sceneries to use in the backgrounds, voicing a whole story arc, with lines you need to work on to give an authentic feel.
The choice is obvious, especially because the economy in general wasn't that stable that time (it still isn't).
^@Darkrockslizer
Actually they are marketing geniuses.
You try to market the same product thrice over with no improvement, while everyone knowing that it's the same product thrice over.
For the effort of one episode, KyoAni is rewarded with total of 14k+12k+12k. That is a testament on its own.
Hardly a 50% loss given the fact of selling the same crap over and over.
It's people's stupid acceptance for uncreative and repetitive crap that has led to utter degradation to all areas of entertainment industry, from games, through movies and anime to books.
Conformist bitches, fuck you! :)
It's not a loss for KyoAni like you sad, but not for those reasons. The funding for the animation doesn't come from KyoAni. Usually the money needed for the production and marketing of an anime comes from the production comity. In the case of Haruhi the production comity mainly comprises of Kadogawa (at least I couldn't find any names involved besides Kadogawa). And because Haruhi is Kadogawa's IP, biggest power to say what they will or won't do would lay at Kadogawa. But this is deducted through the company's who are involved. It could be different due to some contract KyoAni and Kadogawa (and the other company's which may be involved) made, but I highly doubt it.
The points you state wont matter that much. It's not like research material costs that much (a few train tickets or some photo books). Also the scripts and storyboards have to be made anyway and the price doesn't differ between a original or an unoriginal script. It's more like not a loss for KyoAni because Kadogawa pays anyway.
it is a clear loss you morons, have you ever visitd college in your free time?
With the same amount of effort they spent on EE, KyoAni could have easily made something much more attracting with the Haruhi franchise. so 1.2k-sold vs 2.4k-or-more-potentials it is a clear loss from a business perspective.
Well It still possible that KyoAni won't benefit if they had produced something better or worst than EE. It totally depends on the contract and how big there stake is in the production committee.
I can't imagine Kadogawa giving KyoAni any royalties from DVD sales if Kadogawa payed all the costs. So it still possible that KyoAni made a brake-even deal with Kadogawa and it wouldn't have mattered if they made a better series.
But speculating the possible loss for KyoAni due to EE is fruitless if we don't know the details of the production committee. For Kadogawa's side it's equally difficult to estimate because we don't know how it affected there total revenue from the haruhi IP.
Well It still possible that KyoAni won't benefit if they had produced something better or worst than EE. It totally depends on the contract and how big there stake is in the production committee.
I can't imagine Kadogawa giving KyoAni any royalties from DVD sales if Kadogawa payed all the costs. So it still possible that KyoAni made a brake-even deal with Kadogawa and it wouldn't have mattered if they made a better series.
But speculating the possible loss for KyoAni due to EE is fruitless if we don't know the details of the production committee. For Kadogawa's side it's equally difficult to estimate because we don't know how it affected there total revenue from the haruhi IP.
actually, considering that the next thing to be animated is The Disappearance, it's not 1,2k vs 2,4k but more like 1,2k vs 4,8k+
But oh well. With every day I am more and more okay with that decision of theirs.
Instead of watering down Endless Eight and airing a watered down The Disappearance, they made epic EE (terrible to the viewers, but nevertheless epic) and they will probably make an epic The Disappearance movie, which will get much more dvd sales.
God damn I like Yuki.
haha...I like your train of thought..this is actually a good way of thinking of it...I shall adopt that stance from now on.
Well, it's nice to see the 9 episode where they each where different outfits..so yea..this is not bad at all.
I am sure Haruhi fans are no where nears as other hardcore fan from some of the other things people liked.
Hah, thanks!
Then, bonus round of optimistic thoughts!
Japanese otaku buy the EE dvds simply to provide the finance for an epic The Disappearance.
...
Yeah, I know, this is dangerously close to Kafuka's train of thought.
Could it be that fans were supporting endless eight as a way to counter Kyoani's troll to destroy the franchise?
It was pretty obvious they were bidding to destroy the series's reputation, so they could move on.
Possibly, Haruhi fans with their where's the next season crap pushed Kadokawa and kyoani as to destroy the franchise.
It's possible that they were anticipating that the franchise would die, so that they get less mail about the next season, had the second one had ended inconclusively.
However, in the end, true Haruhi fans saw through kadokawa's and kyoani's troll and refused to let the franchise die in such way. This explains the sale figures for Endless Eight.
What's so genius about it? We should pity the people who feel so compelled to own anything "Anime X"
I think this might be more a testament to the fact that people like buying things than the notion that otaku are pathetic or that KyoAni are marketing gods. When faced with a collection of goods that become a complete set when you buy them all, some people tend to do just that - even if they aren't huge fans of whatever they're purchasing.
it could also be that the buyers are mainly animalized otaku, which Azuma Hiroki talks about.
Collecting for the sake of collecting is retarded. If you don't like it very much, it's stupid. Spend your money on something you actually enjoy instead.
Some people like the feeling of having completed collections, that's their enjoyment. So I don't see how their happiness is less than yours just because they have different ways of achieving it (and they ARE spending money in a way they enjoy).
Kadogawa is doing the marketing, KyoAni is only responsible for the production of the anime.
Either there are a whole bunch of braindead Haruhi Otaku or KyoAni and Kadokawa bought most of the disks to save face...
It's simple, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is Japan's version of Twilight
Also, I'm becoming more and more convinced I was drawn in solely by Hare Hare Yukai, and staying only because of Nagato.
Then you should go back, watch it and pay actual attention. I also thought it was just a crappy mainstream show with some cheap fan-service thrown to lure people in, but it is actually very compelling, interesting and unique. I do think EE is a waste of time, but the first season is not just meaningless dance and moe characters.
In that I wish that Japan knew when it was an APPROPRIATE time to pirate anime.
"Endless 8 Movie gathers million dollars on first weekend"
I can see this now. lol
wow..... I really hoped that the japanese fans would teach Kyoani a lesson.
I've got to learn not to hope.
there is no hope is this world
I can't actually force myself to believe that data, sorry...
Either most Haruhi fans are masochistic, or just obsessed. Totally glad I haven't gone that far.
Well, we already established that around 10000 people in Japan are braindead in the last Haruhi sales article, not sure why people weren't expecting the same people to keep buying Endless Fail.
maybe each persons buy 8 copies, so only 1500 people ate braindead
I don't understand why people say KyoAni are marketing geniuses - otaku are just stupid. They still probably could've made more money if they had made new episodes. And (serious question here) wouldn't it cost pretty much the same to make new episodes of the same quality of all the endless eight episodes? Or around the same budget? Forgive me if I'm wrong, I'm kind of just assuming here.
If they'd make different episodes, they'd probly either make the same amount of profit here, or at least more, but certainly not less. :o
I thought Endless Eight is not very efficient at all. There's just changes at the visual things. Scripts and plots are the same. Yet, people still like the endless eight because idiots(semi-otakus), love the visual part, rather then the story...So making the episodes are cheaper for them.
No they redid all of it not just the parts that were different. They redrew every episode, and re-voiced them all too. So yeah if they had just made new episodes it would have cost just as much and they would have pulled in more money too.
they are "genius" because otakus are "stupid".. I mean, because KyoAni/Kadokawa made X DVDs of the "same thing" and the sales didn't go down thaaaat much (people expected endless eight to sell very bad because it was repetitive)
Am I mistaken or wasn't the whole Endless Eight debacle due to Kadokawa - the Publisher, rather than Kyoto Animation - the Developer/Animator.
Yes, the problem is that a lot the poster here doesn't know it.
It's both. They both sit on the Haruhi Production Committee and so both have a say on the matter. People are just trying to defend Kyoto by saying that Kyoto didn't have a say when they really did.
Even myself being a huge haruhi fan dropped the second season, I can only take so much crap the movie better not suck or my haruhi wall scrolls will become biribiri wall scrolls
biribiri is superior.
As much as I'd prefer Index to resume instead of Railgun, and as much as I thought the first Railgun eps were fail, biribi IS indeed superior.
and the nightmare that is Haruhi continues...
I LOVE THIS SHOW.
Well, one explanation might also be that they actually liked it. I don't see the series as anything special myself, really, but E8 was by far my favorite part of it.
Dang well trained otaku are well trained
In the end endless eight was a pretty good advertisement for the movie (coming soon?). Haruhi fan or not, I think by now pretty much everyone at least heared about haruhi and got curious. The only way of stopping the trolls is to not buy a ticket for that movie. After all, the profit from the movie could pretty much cover up every losses kyoani potentially had.
"The only way of stopping the trolls is to not buy a ticket for that movie."
sadly, I don't think otakus are going to do this..
But what if the movie is good?
The overload of moe has putrefied the brains of japanese otaku and made them mind-slaves of KyoAni, they'll devour anything, as long as it has moe.
The industry pandering to the moe-loving otaku zombie horde is the real culprit here.
Exactly, this is just proof that there are diehard moe fans out there who will buy whatever is shoveled in front of them.
Seems like some people got way to much money...
Grats to the marketing department. As long as there are utterly batshit retarded people, there will be smart people exploiting their stupidity.
On some levels I have to agree. Any right minded businessman who sees an opportunity to make more for less would take it every time. That's what Kadokawa has done.
Still shitty for the people looking for actual quality out of their products though. I'd tell them they are looking in exactly the wrong place with today's moe otaku driven anime scene but.....
There IS another explanation, albeit one not likely to be taken very seriously.
Anime-viewers are not cattle, they like it when something different comes along. That's a big part of worshipping the sleeper hits of the past- the Cowboy Bebops, Evangelions and Lupin IIIs.
They're also not stupid, and know that since becoming a recognized market, they're not getting the same quality series any more- there's no controversy and risks- it's all mass produced to tap existing veins of otaku.
So flashback to earlier this year, when an unremarkable show about schoolgirls and omnipotence did the unthinkable, all summer long, in the process provoking more reactions, press, and IRL drama than any of the shows purposely designed to.
Endless eight may not have been a giant middle finger towards business as usual, but it certainly scores points for ballsiness and distinctivneness.
Maybe some viewers are responding to THAT, and not the admittedly suspect contents of those episodes.
...Alternately, maybe it's a money laundering campaign of epic proportions!
I hope the people buying these are getting it for what ever extras it comes with and not for the actual episodes it self. If it is for the episodes I would be lost for words.
Besides it should have been two-three episodes long this is another way it should have been done, KyoAni would have been really creative if they did it this way.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeNfnUg7ZZE&feature=video_response
So it's quirky and ok to us if an otaku buys hundreds of the EXACT same item, but we call them idiots when they buy a couple of a similar item? Why do I get the feeling nobody here would care about the DVD sales if this weren't Haruhi?
Because on the internet, EVERYBODY has something to prove.
It is ok?
who said it's just quirky and ok if an otaku buys hundreds of the same item? =/
It'd be much better if people actually bought what they liked instead of bitching about sales figures on the internet.
I enjoyed the moe on the first Haruhi but damn, endless eight was shit. It lacked everything a substance to back it up.
I weep.
I bought 7 copies just so artefact would have to write about it :D
I'd buy all of the DVDs if I had the money. Not because I enjoyed Endless Eight, but because I'm a collector at heart; it would kill me to have a gap in my collection.
why collect shit?
do you not flush the toilet are you take a dump?
All hail whoever it is in charge of Haruhi at KyoAni, they are officially the Uwe Boll of anime.
Are you so sure Uwe Boll wasn't involved?
the episodes aren´t identical for a suzumiya fan
show of hannds, who thinks Ed Wood could have directed a better second season of Haruhi?
http://www.sankakucomplex.com/2009/12/02/make-this-image-cool-vipper-challenge/
I hope moe dies so we can go back to watching animes that are cool, gritty and meaningfull. This bland as fuck moe shit needs to die.
.
Pretty much.
I hope this doesn't encourage further trolling from kyoani for the movie.
I like the series, sorry deal with it :)
Hey, it's not like I have had to spend a cent on it or anything.
for me its stupid to wasted money on this but the company has now earn easy money. So i hope the will putting more effort in the movie then the crap season 2. What have we learn here it doens't matter if the is good or crap they will still make to much money ...
dance stupid monkeys, dance...
Loser.
Endless Eight, the arc that makes Batman and Robin look like The Dark Knight
While 12000 copies sold is good for any anime release, it's dismal for Haruhi as the drop from 21,800 to 14,104 showed.
So, there are 14000 foolish otaku out there still, but at least 2000 of them had the good sense to only by buy the first E8 disc. I imagine the last E8 disc will have a slight uptick as well.
If Sighs jumps to 21k again, Kadokawa have been punished (although not nearly enough, IMHO) for the Endless Eight fiasco by the loss of profits.
ALL HAIL HARUHI OUR GODDESS!
You know, this strange success of the Haruhi series is kind of similar to the success of the Twilight series. They both start out as a series of books that somehow became popular, the first of their presentation into the visual area was well recieved and made tons of money (for Haruhi it was season 1 and for Twilight it was the first movie), and the second entry was almost universally hated but still made tons of cash.
Another parallel between the two is that to anyone with a brain, the main pairing sucks and the alternate love interests for our main character are actually better.
It is probably the artist-animators who are buying the extra DvDs to see their artwork used over and over and them not getting any extra pay beyond the 1st dawn scenes. They want to make sure theres not something more in there they or he could have received pay for.
Kadokawa is a fucking marketing genius
Still think the movie will be good, provided it's not another troll.
Haruhi is still a good series, just not a great one, it was a great one, and could be a great one again, but not if they keep pulling shit like this.
Also, the "moe is the cancer killing anime" thing is starting to get old. This industry, like many others, has had scares, and it's always made it through, this will be no exception, and hell, in the minimal chance that it is, it's been a nice ride at least.
Will the movie be the next Plan 9 from Outer Space?
When this gets licensed in the US. I hope it'll all be in one dvd, if not I'll just buy the last one.
Funny, I've always thought that experimentation is the sign of a healthy industry, and found those who support it tend to be more intelligent than average. If KyoAni had merely produced a season season of Haruhi which was just like the first, the you could accuse buyers of buying the same old recycled moe shit, perhaps. But instead, they tried to connect us with what a time loop actually feels like to those inside, the sheer frustration of it. The first time this has ever been done on TV or film.
Now, you can judge whether or not this was actually a successful experiment, whether we watch TV to feel things like this. But to accuse them of recycling, for being that very rare type of company which is willing to try something dramatically new with their flagship show? That's some of the most spectacular point-missing ever.
And the best way to make you you get nothing but recycling henceforth.
Kind of made my day : I've always thought that Haruhi was a shitty anime. Now I know that its fans are retards.
Look on the bright side, at least it's not number 1 this week.
ROFL, you guys have no idea, do you? Have you even bought any of the dvds and seen the "OMAKE" that comes with it? Why do you think the number of sales hasn't diminished?
Can't say too much, since I'm a Haruhi fan, and I've made a promise after watching the dvds/obligated not to spoil, but the movie is the real troll. Fitting the Disappearance into a single movie... LMAO.
Btw, did you know:
1/7 = 0.142857...
2/7 = 0.285714...
3/7 = 0.428571...
4/7 = 0.571428...
5/7 = 0.714285...
6/7 = 0.857142...
The numbers (142857) are merely shifted, and are repeated non-stop? i.e: 1/7 = 0.142857142857142857...
Arigato, Yuki sensei!
Now if you'll excuse me, I need to hide before the wrath of 2ch and 4ch falls upon me. Enjoy your movie, jackasses!
Wow did not really know that since I use this thing....
Ummm.....
It's called....
Ummm.....
A CALCULATOR!!!
Haruhitards are the most pathetic form of otaku.
Please elaborate.
It's now a proven fact:
Otaku Japanese are Fucking Utter Morons to continue in the purchasing of these episodes.
Though.. I have to also take note that some of those sales are done by noobs unaware of this cluster fuck and being complete morons. Decide not to check up on the crap before dropping the yens, that kyutard pulled.
If this is the case, the sales of later discs will plummet.
But I bet ya, them nerds be absolute - Complete - Fucking beyond the pale - DUMd Assed Fools
Actually, Americans paying hundred of bucks for a sports game ticket at a live stadium when they can get better views from TV doesn't make much sense to me either. As well as buying all that beer and hot dog at oh I don't know 500% profit at least...
ya know, many things in life wasn't exactly fair, but we all happily jump after it anyway.
IT'S BECAUSE JAPANESE ARE STUPID!
AND EVERYONE KNOWS THAT
If Japanese are stupid, you'll play Microsoft's stuff.
well i bought the DVD too ^w^ but im just a child not an otaku
Lost profit equals oppertunity loss which equals net profit loss.
HELLO SEASON THREE!
Which is better the Haruhi series or the Twilight series?
I wish people would stop complaining about endless eight. We got our second season. So be happy that you got anything, also, Endless 8 was probably made to test out the Haruhi fanbase AND so that we feel Yuki's pain... We COMPLAIN so much and alot of previous fans hate Haruhi now because of it. Yuki went through it how many THOUSAND times?? How would you like to be Yuki? So DON'T complain.
Haruhi is an amazing anime and light novel series and I hope Kyoani does a big hit with the adaption of the beat Haruhi book so far, and return Haruhi to her fame and glory.
I wish people would stop complaining about endless eight. We got our second season. So be happy that you got anything, also, Endless 8 was probably made to test out the Haruhi fanbase AND so that we feel Yuki's pain... We COMPLAIN so much and alot of previous fans hate Haruhi now because of it. Yuki went through it how many THOUSAND times?? How would you like to be Yuki? So DON'T complain.
The dvds are selling pretty well, nothing compared to the first season but still more then many others. The disappearance movie will be worth the wait and disappointment so I wish people would stop hating on Haruhi... You all know your gonna watch the movie in cinemas, or get it online or buy it once its out on dvd.