Is it worth it?

back when i was younger there were three major anime licencing companies fighting for my money.
these were not the only companies who licensed things... just the companies that licensed stuff i tended to enjoy.

ADV, Geneon, Funimation.

these three took most of my money.... ADV taking the most and Funi taking the least.

now i wasn't super loyal to adv and i didn't hate funimation... it was just kinda how things ended up... ADV had a large variety of 13-26 episode titles and tended to be packed with special features which is something i look for when i think "is this worth my hard earned money."

Geneon also tended to have a lot of nice features and also had a lot of episodes per disks.

Funimation had some great titles but they were either long or just not my thing... i also wasn't a fan of paying that much for a cardboard boxset.... a but more on that later.


However today is a much different picture.

1. I grew up so i have access to more money.
i'm still as frugal as ever though
2. Geneon went down and ADV followed suit shortly after.
the was sad not because some shows that were made got held in storage half done for years. (though tht did suck)
no this sucked cause while funimation still had to compete with Bandai... bandai seems to be in their own little 'we give no shits about what the others do' mindset... which... well now they don't license anythign new as far as anime... anyways Funimation lost most of it's major competition.
3. how things are priced is a little extreme.
I understand why anime today is so expensive... with rampant Downloading if companies want to make back the money they lose they have to force those who actually buy their stuff to pay more...
but again... is it worth it?
4. New companies have emerged
this is what i will talk about at the end cause it is both good and bad.

back when i spent most of my money on anime i had a few ground rules.
no figures about $70 unless it's special.
No Hardcover boxsets over $100
No flimsy cardboard thinpacks over $50
no movies over $40
and no manga over a certai ncover price cause being canadian screws us over big time on books... they will char 3-5 extra bucks on things even if the dollar is at par.

back in the day this was easily possible... i didn't always follow it... ADV sailor moon boxsets i spent 120 and 125 on... and if you look how much they go for now i think i made the right choice AND each set contained around 50 episodes.
anyways my point was those were the values i couldn't go over cause i couldn't justify buying stuff any higher then that.

for that reason i don't own much anime... i can't justify the price.

now it's damn near impossible for me to get shows UNLESS one company gets it...

so who's still around?
Funimation - currently hold a lot of geneon and ADV library as well as their own stuff... still their cheap carboard thin packs with no special features going for 50 bucks  for half a season?
no... i just.... 13 episodes? for practically nothing... pass.

Sentai - i'm not a fan of these guys cause i was burned by them when they first started.
the way i order my anime and manga is a talk to the owner of a store and they order stuff for me. when i Saw Clannad come up on the list i was so happy cause i loved that show and really wanted to own it.
so i get the dvd and it wasn't cheap... 50 bucks for half a season but it was in a nice case and i figured i like the show so sure.
Sub only.
No special features.
....
I was not happy with this... granted i've heard the dub, it's not really my thing but still if i'm spending that much i expect both languages and some special features... clean openings and endings do not count. i felt so ripped off that after i finished clannad i haven't bought a single title of theirs and i actively avoid buying stuff from them if i can.

Section 23 - they haven't licensed anything i want to buy but from what i understand these guys and sentai are semi offshoots of adv.... don't quote me on that but i was pretty sure that was the case.

NIS America - when i first heard that NISA was licensing anime i did a double take.... are you telling me the guys who brought me some of my fav games like Disgaea are now releasing some of my favorite shows?
great!
boxsets are going to be around 70 bucks after shipping? oh... thats kinda-- wait... i get a lovely, sturdy box... an art book... as many special features as the can cram in... both blue ray and dvd (where applicable) and if i am part of the first batch to order i ever get a free item?
also if multiple come out in one month shipping doesn't hurt as much...
just.... take all my money

now there are a ton more companies but i'm just gunan jump to the thing that started my rant.

Aniplex
This company has a lot of shows i like, madoka magica... blue exorcist... just things i really want to own.

lets look at Madoka for a sec.
a single dvd with 4 episodes - 30-40 bucks. depending on if you want dvd or blue ray
want that same 4 episodes but super special edition with all sorts of neat stuff? 75 bucks.
for 4 episodes.
thats nearly 20 bucks an episode...
yes the special edition has some cool stuff..... but not 75 bucks worth of cool stuff... not when i have to pay that 3 time to get the other disks.

what about the movie?
madoka magica has 3 movies.
1 and 2 are retellings with slight changes.
they have been kind enough to combo the two together... how much does it cost.
90 bucks.... for the standard edition.
....
105 for the limited edition.
....
um.... is this... a joke
"oh we have this popular show that all those animu kids love so lets just jack up the price cause they will buy it anyways~"
...
ok well whats in the special edition other then the movie?
∗ Exclusive new cover art

∗ Digipak
∗ Deluxe booklet
∗ Original Soundtrack CD
. . .
you want me to pay 50 bucks per movie, which is just a retelling of the series,  and all you add is that.
...
i used to wonder why i dont own aniplex dvds.
now i know.
that is insane... just cause there is so little ompetition doesn't mean you get to rip people off.
and how do i know they are just rippign fans off cause it's popular?
look at blue exorcist... another really good show...
approx 7 episodes per disk
30 bucks (no blue ray)
is has some shorts and web stuff as special features as well as a reverable cover...
while still a bit much for my frugal taste (i'll just wait for the box set that'll probably never come) i think it's much better then the equivelant of 4 episodes 30 bucks
and only this shit as special features
∗ Ending theme song "Magia" music video by Kalafina
∗ Original Japanese and English languages!
∗ Trailer collection
∗ Textless Opening

please, as a fan who urges people to do whatever you can to watch anime Legally (crunchyroll, Anime network on demand ect) ... do not buy stuff that is simply overpriced cause it's popular.
you need to speak with your wallet and if you think something is unfair then you need to let them know this by not buying it till the price drops to something more reasonable.
if you do buy the movies at that INSANE price tag you are simply sending the message that yes it's okay for large companies to walk all over the fans cause were too stupid to think that maybe, just maybe, things are getting a little out of hand. 
i'm not saying it was any better in the past... in fact it was the same until comapnies just started to only do box sets or half season sets.... i like the box set formula better even if it means i may not get as many special features as i may want... at least i'm payign anywhere from 40-70 bucks for the bulks and sometimes all of a show.

a good example...
NISA box sets at a base price sell for 55 bucks.
they always contain 13 episodes.... except for Natsume yuujinchou season 1 & 2...
this was 24 episodes.... in one box set, with no blue ray... for the same price as every other box set on their site.
because thats how much their stuff costs...
and i love them for it.
i don't ever feel like i'm getting ripped off... they have great customer service and the free stuff they give i tend to use...
in that case... it's worth it... for me at least.

in the end it alwasy comes down to the titles you want to buy... most people don't care who licenses their show of choice just that they can get it... i'm just asking that if they are charging too much you maybe wait a bit to send the stern message of 'no i'm not letting you walk all over me'