I'm most concerned about my movie-watching habits, though. I loved receiving Netflix movies in the mail, because I enjoyed watching subtitled anime shows. I decided to cut spending on my Netflix rentals about two months ago, because I wanted to save money for some of the video games I wanted.
Overall, the video games are great. However, I haven't been cranking out as many video game reviews and features as I would have liked. It's nice to play these games, but games don't include all the deep analytical themes of anime that I love. You know, in video games, you see the images of cyberpunk, but you don't get to see how cyberpunk represents the disconnect of the human body to become something less than human. You don't get to see the literal references to stories such as "Catch-22" or "The Snows of Kilamanjaro."
In short, I miss all the visual representations of themes that are larger than life. So I'm going to try out a two-DVD-a-month routine, to get me back into the DVD reviewing mood. However, I think I might try out some of the rental services that specialize in anime rentals. The two mail services I'm looking at are:
It looks pretty legit for a website, owned by Anime Nation in Florida. The $20-a-month price is a little hefty, but you can't go wrong with unlimited rentals of three DVDs at once. The website even includes the "Patlabor" movies and the entire "Urusei Yatsura" television series. You can never go wrong with that kind of deal.
animetakeout.com
It's another good stockpiler of anime shows and manga, headquartered in Pasadena, California. However, the monthly price is a whopping $26 for unlimited rentals of two manga/DVDs at one time. Not only that, but the site's database is a little clunky.
Of course, there's always Netflix, which offers the widest range of options. However, it doesn't have the most complete collection of anime anymore. It doesn't update their selections as regularly as the other rental sites, either.
If anyone finds a better rental service, please be sure to leave a recommendation in the comments section. I will gladly consider it.
Images courtesy of Netflix and animenation.com
