Media Blaster Restarts Yaoi Line

[Vata_Raven]

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/20 ... ga-in-2011

I found the link saying that Media Blaster is restarting their yaoi line. They are the people with Crimson Spell.

[lore]

I found the link saying that Media Blaster is restarting their yaoi line. They are the people with Crimson Spell.

That link is from November of 2010. All of 2011 passed with no new BL titles from Media Blasters. No one should be getting their hopes up over this.

[Vata_Raven]

I talked with them, they said they were, but not with being new titles, but reprinted popular titles and making them better. But if you also knew, they also fired 25% of their workers, about 13-15 of them. They're still very active with releases.

[maywong]

I'm not going to be holding my breath with this publisher about getting "Crimson Spell" released. I wish they would sell the rights to a publisher who would actually publish the rest of the "Crimson Spell" series.

[Vata_Raven]

Try emailing them. I can't because my internet is to damn slow to load their page...as I have dial-up and it's becoming harder for me to load simple sites.

[lore]

I talked with them, they said they were, but not with being new titles, but reprinted popular titles and making them better. But if you also knew, they also fired 25% of their workers, about 13-15 of them. They're still very active with releases.

I did know about the layoffs. I also know that, again, there's been no new BL title, book or DVD, from Media Blasters in over a year. In fact, Media Blasters' online activity is limited solely to FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Media-Bla ... 23?sk=wall

The MB web site directs people to MB's FaceBook, which appears to have been started around July of last year, and no BL titles were announced there. Even the Media Blasters Ebay account has had no new activity since April, 2011. Media Blasters, for whatever reason, has abandoned regular BL publishing. Granted, it might try to take advantage of its "Crimson Spell" license, if MB still holds it, eventually, but, overall, there's no reason to hope that MB will renew its BL activities.

When, exactly, did you talk to someone at MB, and is it an online conversation that we could be pointed to?

[Vata_Raven]

At an anime convention during the middle of the year. They said they were working things out and said it shouldn't have been taking so long for the hentai and yaoi stuff to be coming out. They were meant to have Crimson Spell 3 like years ago.

[lore]

So, 7 - 8 months ago. Thus, the point to readers is that while you can always hold out hope, it should be tempered with the fact Media Blasters is moving its BL projects along at a glacier pace.

I mean, Drama Queen came back after years of being dormant. Unfortunately, its comeback only lasted for 3 books, and it now appears dormant again, but it did happen. Media Blasters also could bring back its BL works, but until there's an actual release announcement, people shouldn't get too excited.

[Vata_Raven]

I won't say what's on my mind about...you.

Contact them yourself, they'll email you back. I bought new yaoi from them at that convention. Those guys will tell you what you might like by watching what things you pick up, they talk to you, and tell you what they plan to do. Kitty Media is like 801, they don't advertise their stuff out on the market. And as it is, they really don't have a website...making it hard for people to see what they have.

[lore]

Again, it's a little misleading to continue to say that Media Blasters is putting out new BL books or videos when there's no proof of new work in the last year. For example, here's MB's Facebook page, which is now the only online presence MB regularly maintains - even MB's web site points people to the Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Media-Bla ... 3719921223

Surely the Facebook page would be mentioning new BL releases if there were any. I'm sure, Vata_Raven, that you did buy books from MB at the convention that were "new" in terms of being un-used, but they were backstock items. I doubt any of the BL books had a 2011 publication date.

https://twitter.com/#!/mediablasters

In fact, a look at MB's Twitter feed shows that it re-listed the last BL book title it wanted to print, Wintertime Love, as being released in January, 2011. However, I know that book never came out as I was one of the many canceled pre-orders (twice) for that book. The last remotely BL item Media Blasters released was a DVD of the "Loveless Vocal Collection" early last year.

Here's the latest news on Media Blasters, dated last month:
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/20 ... -its-staff

I think Media Blasters is a great company, and it clearly has excellent customer service, but it has been reduced in size and online presence quite a bit in the last year, and, to reiterate, there's been no new BL offerings from MB in almost a year (if we count Loveless, longer if we don't). It's great that MB has earned your loyalty, V_R, but continuing to maintain that there's been new BL from the company in the last year is incorrect. Also, if there's new BL in the works, Media Blasters isn't making it public knowledge yet. This company is in a "wait and see" state.