Special Announcement from Chris Beveridge

[Chris Beveridge]

For any reader of this site, the last couple of years have been interesting to be sure. We’ve seen long time studios disappear and new companies crop up only to fail as well. All of this has come about at a very interesting time within my own life as well. During the summer of 2006, my doctor informed me that unless I made radical changes to my life, I’d likely be dead within a few years. I took this very much to heart and have since made those radical changes to my life. For those that have heard me talk about it here in the forums of AnimeOnDVD and other venues, as well as in person, those changes have all been for the better. It’s also changed my outlook on life and how to approach it and how to enjoy it.

Last month, AnimeOnDVD celebrated its tenth anniversary. We started this site in the early days of DVD to provide a voice for consumers who wanted quality presentations of bilingual anime DVD releases the way “we” wanted it to be. During those years, everyone who has been a part of this site both as reader and as staff has been an instrumental part in helping to shape the way DVDs have been released. This site has been something that I’m incredibly proud of and has been a true labor of love and joy in my life. Back in 2004, I left a very well paying job at Fidelity Investments in order to pursue this site full time in order to give it my all. In the time since, as my wife will surely attest, I spend upwards of ten hours or more a day watching shows, writing about shows, researching things and interacting with the amazing and wonderful community that has sprung up around it.

The challenges of the last year on the personal front have been well dealt with which has left me to deal with the business issues that have come up. With the anime market changing as drastically as it has, I’ve been looking for ways to take this site to something more than it is. AnimeOnDVD is very much a community effort and I have a fantastic staff of volunteers who plug away at all manner of reviews and work within the forums. But at the end of the day, it comes down to what I can do with it. And I want to do a lot more with it which is why I decided to sell the site to the folks at Mania.com who I’ve known for several years now. Working with them, I and the entire staff will be taking this site into their larger platform where we’ll be heading up their anime and manga platform.

I’m incredibly excited about this and what it will bring to the table as we ramp things up and move forward in the coming weeks and months. While there will be changes to be sure, such as our move to the Vbulletin software last week, the main important point that I want to stress is that it’ll be business as usual just with a different look and a lot more support and infrastructure behind it. We’re expanding into covering new areas within the anime and manga release model such as digital distribution and our community will be pretty much as you see it today, if not with a bit more expansion to cover more anime and manga related aspects.

AnimeOnDVD has been a group effort for a long time but it has also been my vision and my voice that has guided it. That isn’t changing. I’m heavily involved in this and am looking forward to doing this job for many years to come because it’s a job that I enjoy. That enjoyment is something that I hope shows through to you, the reader that I talk with on a daily basis. The last eighteen months in my personal life has shown more growth and change than any other time in my adult life. I view this phase as the next part of the life of the site and I cannot wait to see how it will grow and change like I have. And I look forward to all of you being there for it with me and the staff of AnimeOnDVD.com

[The Great Bear]

Well, that was a bit unexpected, but then again, not totally unexpected ;)

Chris, you've done a great job all these years (I haven't been here for all 10, but I've been around as a lurker and then a poster for at least 5 or so). It's amazing that you managed it all as a one man operation for so long.

So long as they are willing to keep you at the helm, I'm not going to be worried for the future of this site.

[LordGeo]

You kind of snuck the Mania.com anouncement into the message, but aside from that it's cool to see that AnimeOnDVD.com will only become larger and larger.

And I'm sure everyone else here will be interested to see what comes from it.

[joelgundam01]

You kind of snuck the Mania.com announcement into the message, but aside from that it's cool to see that AnimeOnDVD.com will only become larger and larger.

Yeah, that was kind of unexpected, but it sure explains why we don't have any site sponsors and are getting some crazy (non-anime) banner ads lately. :catgirl:

[ADC]

Cool. This is the only online community I've really participated in, so I'm glad to see you and the staff are sticking around.

[Chris Beveridge]

Cool. This is the only online community I've really participated in, so I'm glad to see you and the staff are sticking around.

And that's sort of the crux of it in my mind. We're still doing what we've been doing (I'm working on a Zeta review right now!) but we'll end up with a different wrapper in a few weeks where it's all contained. The core important piece both I and the Mania folks are working to ensure is that the community isn't lost because this is a sizeable one. While we'll be intergrated, I believe the plan is to have our forums "separate" since we cover such a wide range of subjects that wouldn't blend well.

[stfram]

I took this very much to heart and have since made those radical changes to my life. For those that have heard me talk about it here in the forums of AnimeOnDVD and other venues, as well as in person, those changes have all been for the better.

While there will be changes to be sure, such as our move to the Vbulletin software last week, the main important point that I want to stress is that it’ll be business as usual just with a different look and a lot more support and infrastructure behind it.

AnimeOnDVD has been a group effort for a long time but it has also been my vision and my voice that has guided it. That isn’t changing. I’m heavily involved in this and am looking forward to doing this job for many years to come because it’s a job that I enjoy.


If anyone needs to take anything away from this announcement, I feel it's what I've quoted. :)

Glad to hear you're gonna be OK, and you've got enthusiasm for the future of this site, Chris!

[u_nick]

I too, while not a regular, am a fan of the site. I wish you and the site the best of luck. I look forward to more good things in the future.

[mibuwolf]

I was a bit shaken before I read the announcement, but it's good to find that the effort is expanding. What I've got to have are the title reviews by Chris. I picked up the 800+ R1 domestic DVD titles that I have over a span of the last 8 years of my life. The majority of titles that I've picked up or avoided had been largely influenced by Chris's highly detailed and well articulated reviews. I rarely buy something that Chris doesn't grade with at least a B- in Content. AnimeOnDVD.com is my browser's homepage at home on my Mac and my PS3 and at work on my PC. It's the first place I visit whenever I connect online.

[Ty]

Cool. This is the only online community I've really participated in, so I'm glad to see you and the staff are sticking around.

And that's sort of the crux of it in my mind. We're still doing what we've been doing (I'm working on a Zeta review right now!) but we'll end up with a different wrapper in a few weeks where it's all contained. The core important piece both I and the Mania folks are working to ensure is that the community isn't lost because this is a sizeable one. While we'll be intergrated, I believe the plan is to have our forums "separate" since we cover such a wide range of subjects that wouldn't blend well.
That's good to hear. The only fear that cropped into my mind after reading the announcement was if we were going to get assimilated as a community into something larger at Mania some point down the read. So long as the forums remain it's own entity I'm nothing but excited to see where you plan to take this ship and how it will grow.

I think I speak for everybody here when I say we're glad to be along for the ride. Congratulations on your successes up to this point Chris. :)

[Chris Beveridge]

I think I speak for everybody here when I say we're glad to be along for the ride. Congratulations on your successes up to this point Chris. :)

Ten years is an eternity in internet time!

[Chuplayer]

That's good to hear. The only fear that cropped into my mind after reading the announcement was if we were going to get assimilated as a community into something larger at Mania some point down the read. So long as the forums remain it's own entity I'm nothing but excited to see where you plan to take this ship and how it will grow.

THIS. Please, Chris, don't let the forums lose their identity.

Otherwise, I could see how Mania can help the site out. Maybe some more writers to review more manga? That would be cool.

[TheFly]

I'd never heard of mania.com until now, so I'll reserve judgement until we see how this actually turns out. Right now I'd classify my feelings as "cautious optimism", and it's encouraging that Chris is so positive about it.

While we'll be intergrated, I believe the plan is to have our forums "separate" since we cover such a wide range of subjects that wouldn't blend well.

If this is the case, most of my fears are laid to rest immediately. Retaining the same forum community whilst overhauling and improving the main site sounds good to me.

[something]

Oh.

Wow.

This answers my Feedback question about why there are no more site sponsors :sd:


Well, I'll hope for the best. You said you are still staying at the helm, which is a very good thing. It's always a bit frightening when a site "goes commercial" because that brings in an entirely different mindset. But if you're still calling the shots, if you still have the vast majority of control over the direction of the site, that's what matters in the end. I wouldn't want it any other way.

(...And maybe Mania can lend you a programmer to fix threaded mode... >_>)

[Chacranajxy]

Interesting info, that. Hopefully corporate backing will end up being a good thing for the site. And given how good the site's been to us for years and years, I've got faith that it'll continue to grow.

[Freeman]

First and foremost I'm glad that the changes you have made are better for you and hope everything will better moving forward.

I was worried at first but, I am probably sure that many here will be excited at what the new changes will bring as am I. I'm glad the site will continue as I am honored to belong to a site with an assortment of characters who always seem to make me smile from day to day. Unlike some other sites I'm never disappointed to belong here and look forward to the bigger and brighter changes ahead.

[Hielostar]

Cool. This is the only online community I've really participated in, so I'm glad to see you and the staff are sticking around.

And that's sort of the crux of it in my mind. We're still doing what we've been doing (I'm working on a Zeta review right now!) but we'll end up with a different wrapper in a few weeks where it's all contained. The core important piece both I and the Mania folks are working to ensure is that the community isn't lost because this is a sizeable one. While we'll be intergrated, I believe the plan is to have our forums "separate" since we cover such a wide range of subjects that wouldn't blend well.

If this can all work out while keeping this community, then I am all for it. Can't wait to see what it all looks like after the transition is complete! :sdsmiley:

[Fluffy]

Congrats Chris. Well deserved. I welcome our new corporate Mania.com overlords. As long as they let us keep the horsey...

:horse:

...and the Richard Gere bedtime buddy...

:noodle:

...then I'll stick around.

[bctaris]

I will just echo comments I made in the 10th Anniversary thread in R1: the hobby is in a serious phase of transition, and it's hard to see what may or may not come out the other side, but I'll stick through it as long as Anime on DVD--meaning you, Chris, and the community itself--do.

[icepick314]

as long as the site remains subscription free, i will continue to support...

but then again, i would still pay as long as it's resonable...this site is one of my main anime site that i continue to read on regular basis...

good luck on changing of the guard!!

[LordGeo]

Congrats Chris. Well deserved. I welcome our new corporate Mania.com overlords.

Ah yes, Mania.com... I think I'll call them "The Company".

Let's not displease "The Company". Well, as long as "The Company" doesn't get in too much in our way...

[mighty_vespa]

I'm sure I haven't been the only one wondering when (and if) AoD would be sold to a larger internet site because it seemed like the most logical "next step". The site and its community has only gotten larger and larger, in the ten years since it started. I couldn't imagine what the bandwidth costs were and how much site sponsorship (and member click-throughs) were helping to defray them.

I don't imagine this site drastically transforming into something unfamiliar and stale. I know very little about Mania.com, but I'm sure we'll learn more about them as the site moves underneath their umbrella.

I'm just relieved that it wasn't IGN Entertainment you were hitching the wagon up to. :beat:

[HitokiriShadow]

Interesting. So that solves the problem of keeping the site financed. I'm glad to here the community will remain the same (with some improvements) and I look forward to seeing what other kinds of changes and additions come along as a result.

[lostnomad84]

Congratulations! I hope this new venture will open up more opportunities for you Chris, expand the site to make it an even better place, and will also lessen the burden on you that you have had all these ten years.

I'd never heard of mania.com until now, so I'll reserve judgement until we see how this actually turns out. Right now I'd classify my feelings as "cautious optimism", and it's encouraging that Chris is so positive about it.

While we'll be intergrated, I believe the plan is to have our forums "separate" since we cover such a wide range of subjects that wouldn't blend well.

If this is the case, most of my fears are laid to rest immediately. Retaining the same forum community whilst overhauling and improving the main site sounds good to me.

Agreed this is my biggest concern and the main reason why I keep coming back. As long as you keep the forum community the same as it has been, I will happily keep coming back.

[akcoll99]

I need to check out Mania.com now, I guess, as I've never even heard of them. Still, I'm glad to hear that AoD has a future in store for it (my big fear was an announcement that the site was closing down...) and that Chris is getting his personal affairs well in order.

I had noticed the banner ads changing and the site sponsorships at the top of the page gone, and now with the the forum changeovers, it's all starting to make sense.

Nonetheless, here's to 10 years of AoD and many more to come. :)

[malazar]

Ten years is an eternity in internet time!

It really is something to be proud of. I was thinking about that when you made the anniversary post. When I started coming here I was 19 or 20. Now I am 29. So many of us have spent such a large percentage of our lives as part of the AoD community.

I am glad to see that you and the rest of the excellent staff will be staying on board. Hopefully they have given you some assurances as far as job/income security and stuff that you no longer will have to worry about as a self-employed one man show. :)

[Danime]

I'm glad everything's right on track for you Chris, when you created these forums, you created the seeds for one of the most amazing forums I've seen. I love this place!
I hope it will never lose its spark, and I'm sure this new deal will be really great. I'm so glad this forum isn't going to merge with another, it's just perfect the way it is!

Long live AoD!

[Serial Experiments Nobue]

Wow... I guess this at least partially explains the sudden forum software change. :bigsmile:


Congratulations! I too am happy to hear that the community here will remain as it has been, just becoming part of a bigger whole.

Here's to 10 more years!

[Jarred]

Congrats Chris, both on your new business initiative and your own personal health. Keep going strong!

And dammit, why did I quit being a manga reviewer? I could've now gotten even more schwag!! :p

[nekonene]

Well.. this certainly came outta left field. Congrats are in order :sdsmiley:

As others have said, as long as CB and the crew aren't expelled, and the place doesn't turn into a corporate portal for "The Company", all will be well.

[hikaru004]

Never heard of Mania.com but as long as this site doesn't become another PiQ then it's okay.

Thought the site looking different was a bit strange. Now I know why.

Anyways, congrats and here's hoping for another 10 years for AoD. http://planetsmilies.net/kaos-not-tagged-smiley-4710.gif (http://planetsmilies.net)

[Vicserr]

Cool. This is the only online community I've really participated in, so I'm glad to see you and the staff are sticking around.

And that's sort of the crux of it in my mind. We're still doing what we've been doing (I'm working on a Zeta review right now!) but we'll end up with a different wrapper in a few weeks where it's all contained. The core important piece both I and the Mania folks are working to ensure is that the community isn't lost because this is a sizeable one. While we'll be intergrated, I believe the plan is to have our forums "separate" since we cover such a wide range of subjects that wouldn't blend well.

Let's just hope that The Corp doesn't screw up too much in the AOD part so you don't have to go Ziv Zuulander on their corporate asses...

As stated above by some of the AOD denizens, I'm cautiously optimistic.

[ZGMF]

Congrats to Chris and the rest of the staff on the Tenth anniversary! I hope everything goes great for years to come. I find Chris's announcement very exciting, and I can't wait to see what happens in the near future on the site. It's great that Chris and everyone else are still going to be on board as it just wouldn't be the same at all with them. Hopefully the boards do remain separate, as stated in the announcement. ^^

[Kaikou]

Congratulations Chris! Hopefully this move will be an enjoyable and profitable venture for you and your family; well deserved.

I'll still be sticking around as long as this community stays intact.

[Damius]

Thank you Chris for this good work. Thank you to take the time to bring this website to what it is today. Thank you for this really useful reviews you made that help me so much to decide what to buy.

Keep this good work and have a good health!

[Haywire]

Well.

Have to say I was somewhat taken aback by the mania.com revelation, but only because I had grown so comfortable with the active community here. Though I very rarely post, this is a site I typically visit several times a day and have truly relied upon for insight and amusement for many years.

Much of this enjoyment is born of the tone and enthusiasm brought by Chris, and I am very glad he has been able to weather the turbulence of the last few years and is still as excited and energized about this creation of his as he ever was.

Thanks, Chris...for everything.

I hold cautious optimism as to how this not-so-little microcosm of fandom will fit into the Mania "wrapper"...but I'm sure as long as everyone continues to contribute it will start to feel like "home" very quickly.

(I hope. Can't say I'm exactly giddy about the Mania UI and current forum threads. But then I've only just visited there for the first time...)

[Orihara_Kaoru]

Okay. So I think I'm slightly terrified? Maybe?

I think I just hate change and need to realise the world doesn't revolve around me. :P

So! Best of luck with the new endevour! I hope the community/forums gets to stay the same. :)

[davesimmons]

I've just been lurking for most of AoD's lifespan but I've always appreciated the reviews and recommendations, especially in the old days before netflix carried anime and I had to buy blind.

I'm glad to hear that you and the staff will still be around to help me decide what to rent and buy, and thanks for all of the help in the past :)

[Collectonian]

Okay. So I think I'm slightly terrified? Maybe?

I think I just hate change and need to realise the world doesn't revolve around me. :P

So! Best of luck with the new endevour! I hope the community/forums gets to stay the same. :)

That's about how I'm feeling (particularly since I first saw the headline on ANN that AoD was sold before seeing the post). :depressed: Not nearly as cautiously optimistic as others, but will hope/wish Mania will realize part of AoD's awesomeness, besides the reviews, are its forums and that they won't be mushed into their less appealing one. AoD has become a daily staple of my life, especially the forums, so I'd hate to lose it. I do worry about the new look as I'm not that fond of Mania's site design, but its tolerable enough I guess. I also wonder/worry how this will affect relations with the various companies that have a presence here. On the flipside, maybe AnimeOnDVD can finally get its own Wikipedia article. :P

[JakiChan]

I'm hoping that part of the change will be that the database becomes a lot more useful. There's a lot of great data in there but it's really hard to find. I was thinking about trying to do something like get it in to Freebase or something but maybe the Mania will make it better.

[Shiroi Hane]

I've never heard of Mania.com and I have to admit to some trepidation, as I've been member of other communities which have sold out then changed so much that I have left, e.g. when ikonboard was sold to Jarvis.

[Cplhicks]

Having been here since the beginning, I'll admit to being a little nervous about this change. I don't want to lost the site we all know and love. But as Chris seems pretty confident about it, and with the obvious issues in the industry lately, I understand it, and I'll try to be hopeful about it and see what happens. I guess I've been focusing on blu-ray too much lately, because I was actually MORE surprised to hear about your health problems, Chris, then the change in the website. Glad to hear you're gonna be okay. This site wouldn't be much with you running it, and your reviews are the ones I usually trust most (though I'm still amazed by your dislike of Spirited Away!) Anyway, good luck with the future, and let's hope it does stay much the same as it has.

[Orihara_Kaoru]

I also wonder/worry how this will affect relations with the various companies that have a presence here.

Ooh, good question. I really hope all the industry reps can continue to have the same relationship with the site. In particular, AoD has such a close relationship with TRSI, and I hope that doesn't change.

[crimsonmanticore]

Cool. This is the only online community I've really participated in, so I'm glad to see you and the staff are sticking around.

And that's sort of the crux of it in my mind. We're still doing what we've been doing (I'm working on a Zeta review right now!) but we'll end up with a different wrapper in a few weeks where it's all contained. The core important piece both I and the Mania folks are working to ensure is that the community isn't lost because this is a sizeable one. While we'll be intergrated, I believe the plan is to have our forums "separate" since we cover such a wide range of subjects that wouldn't blend well.

I've loved everything you guys have done with the site and hope that this site continues to prosper.

[railohio]

I would say that I'm cautiously cautious. I've been a member of two forums prior, both railroad-related, that "went corporate" with, I dare say, disastrous results. One of them just introduced a huge forum structure that was such a burden. The other actually went through two buyouts only to end up back in the founder's hands a few years later. It, too, now sucks.
I do wish Chris and everybody else here the best with this transaction, but based on the precedents I've seen I might be interested in that PiQ subscription...

~BS

[Greywing]

Well, I hope it goes well for you Chris. However, having being personally burned by Mania.com and its editor, Chip Meyers, I'm not sharing many others' "cautious optimism".

[Daniel_Perales]

I think I speak for everybody here when I say we're glad to be along for the ride. Congratulations on your successes up to this point Chris. :)

Ten years is an eternity in internet time!

Yep. I remember when I started to visit this site way back in 1998 with my Amiga 4000 with a 33.3bps modem. I also remember that there were 2 Anime On DVD websites back then, too. But this one survived while the other faded away.

Anyway, I'm sticking around for the ride.:catgirl:


Danny

[Justin T. Williams]

Wow, I had been wondering why the forums where changing, but this I did not expect.

Firstly let me say how much enjoyment and help you have given me over the years.
I live in a small town in Texas and while dealing with health problems of my own and taking care of a disabled parent AnimeonDvd.com has been my sole source for Anime news, reviews, technical information ( double thank you for this! ) and release information. For this I can not thank you enough, truly.

Secondly, I have always known that the information on AnimeonDvd.com was as fair and accurate as it could be made and that is just about the highest praise that can be given to an information web site in my opinion.

Thirdly, AnimeonDvd.com has made me feel like part of a community of fans and enthusiasts even when I'm all by my lonesome and given the entire Anime fan community a feeling of stability and permanence. Which has never been more important than during the last few turbulent years in Anime. Thank you for always keeping a cool and subjective head about the site.

Lastly, I cannot say that the switch to a corporate model does not leave me with trepidation, but after all the years I have come to count on AnimeOnDvd.com for news, information and a place to pin my banner of fandom I trust Mr. Beveridge to do what is best for the site and for Anime fandom in general.

So here is to another ten years of keeping us informed, entertained and a community, Thank you.

Take care Y'all, Just Justin

[Fudce]

Best of luck with the transition. I'll still be here, as always.

Anime On DVD has been here for years, supporting our fandom, and now it's time for us to return the favour by supporting Anime on DVD through what will hopefully be a minor change, with major impact.

[Immortal1982]

My name is Luke, and i am a moderator of Mania.com's comic book/adaptation forum. A few of you may have been aware of me as a member of AOD's forums before, but i must even admit, i am as surprised as you are.

I can admit, mania.com is an interesting place, for good and bad. I joined Mania back in 2002 when Cinescape (Mania's predesecor) bought Patrick Sauriol's Coming Attractions. I have been there through thick and thin, and have enjoyed everything about both Mania and AoD. I hope it can work, and am definatly thinking we can make it work.

Thanks for the hard work of Chris and crew. We hope to see ya on Mania and the forums.

[Suwako Moriya]

Honestly I never heard of mania.com. So all I can hope is their presence will be a positive one rather than a negative one. Still this has been a rather interesting forum and I think part of the reason I post so much here is because of the comfortable feel it has. Hopefully that will never go way. Heh funny I do a quick check of the forums before going off to do other things and I find a huge announcement.

[Vicserr]

My name is Luke, and i am a moderator of Mania.com's comic book/adaptation forum. A few of you may have been aware of me as a member of AOD's forums before, but i must even admit, i am as surprised as you are.

I can admit, mania.com is an interesting place, for good and bad. I joined Mania back in 2002 when Cinescape (Mania's predesecor) bought Patrick Sauriol's Coming Attractions. I have been there through thick and thin, and have enjoyed everything about both Mania and AoD. I hope it can work, and am definatly thinking we can make it work.

Thanks for the hard work of Chris and crew. We hope to see ya on Mania and the forums.


Well, I guess your anime board (pretty small compared to the rest of the Mania forums) wil get very big soon now.... or I'll guess you'll tell the guys that participate there to jump to AOD then...

[AdyHart]

I have been visiting this site for a long time and I have seen how much work Chris B has done over the years (and that is only the stuff he does on the surface never mind all the other things) he deserves a lot of praise and thanks for what he has done.
I come to these forums everyday and is now a part of my routine and I enjoy it.
Some forums just feel like a place for people to shout at each other, but AOD is friendly, informative and an interesting place to be (just read the "thread drift" and Loafy's posts for some great fun)

I am cautious about the Mania.com revelation but not in a bad way. It is interesting to see how it all turns out and it will be a great shame if the soul of AnimeOnDVD gets destroyed but I doubt Chris B would let it. Lets hope we see it flourish and grow into an even better place.

Thanks for all your work up to now Chris B and congratulations on the sale, I hope you can accomplish your vision for the site and also congrats on your health improvements I wish you the best of luck and success in the future.

Now on to the new Era :)

[WTK]

I can't say that I'm that surprised by the announcement. I have only been here for under 2 years and this is a wonderful community for fans alike (or not). Chris has done a fabulous job running this website. Personally I have never heard of Mania.com, so I'm curious what the future will bring to this site. I hope the transition will be seamless.

[Mafty Allegro]

Well, it's good to hear, at the very least, that you'll still have control over the vision of the site and have a greater amount of backing and investment. So many companies get sold and lose what made them special in the first place, so I do hope that things will go for the best here.

I've heard of Mania.com here and there, so it will be interesting to see the fruits of this new alliance.

[Eeeper T Gozza]

For my two cents I'll say this; Chris strikes me as a level headed kinda guy. He wouldn't throw AODVD's hat in with Mania unless he knew what he was getting himself into. I hope that everything works out for you and the team with the transition, Chris.

The anime and manga is in a state of transformation as many have already said. Change is good. Sometimes it's painful(Geneon). Sometimes it's unexpected(AODVD). But always it is interesting. I hope that this place stays around for many more years to document the industry and it's continued metamorphosis.

[Lego]

My name is Luke, and i am a moderator of Mania.com's comic book/adaptation forum. A few of you may have been aware of me as a member of AOD's forums before, but i must even admit, i am as surprised as you are.

I can admit, mania.com is an interesting place, for good and bad. I joined Mania back in 2002 when Cinescape (Mania's predesecor) bought Patrick Sauriol's Coming Attractions. I have been there through thick and thin, and have enjoyed everything about both Mania and AoD. I hope it can work, and am definatly thinking we can make it work.

Thanks for the hard work of Chris and crew. We hope to see ya on Mania and the forums.


Well, I guess your anime board (pretty small compared to the rest of the Mania forums) wil get very big soon now.... or I'll guess you'll tell the guys that participate there to jump to AOD then...

I'm with my buddy Vicserr here, but can only think of what happens to sites when they get sold or taken over by larger companies. I hope the AOD forums and site and remain the same, especially the forums because I really can't see myself migrating to yet another site just to post and wade through tons of different subforums. Vain and selfish I know, but I guess I'm defensive when it comes to the site that I've been coming to for a good three years now(more before I registered).

I take Chris at his word that things will stay the same with some expansion, so hopefully the great place that is AOD stays and doesn't get crushed like Rotten Tomatoes did. I guess the only thing on my mind when I read it was "don't fuck it up, don't fuck it up, don't fuck it up"

See what MANIACS are asking:
My psp won't turn on. What's the prob...
What sims gaME ( other than sims 2 and castaway...
I am playing zelda the phantom hour glass on th... (1 answer, Nintendo DS )
DOes anyone have sims 2 cheats ( for the PS2)? ...
Does anyone have sims 2 cheats? ( PS2) (1 answer, Sony PlayStation )
Where can i find information about juvenile Big...
Who is the cutest Anime Girl ever? (7 answers, Anime )
What Anime show should i watch? =3 (8 answers, Anime )
If you are one of those, like me, who sometimes... (14 answers, Anime )
Does chanting the phrase "bloody mary&quot... (25 answers, Paranormal phenomena )
Which disney villan to you like best: Scar/The ... (17 answers, Disney )


Oh yeah, this is going to work out REAL well..

[GHardin]

That bit of news was rather unexpected...but not necessarily in a bad way. Hopefully it will expand the site in bigger and better ways. If anything, I doubt it would be cause to abandon the community. This site started the friggin' anime DVD addiction for me (that, and the decline of VHS helped...); it'll be interesting to see where it goes from here.

[bci110]

I take Chris at his word that things will stay the same with some expansion, so hopefully the great place that is AOD stays and doesn't get crushed like Rotten Tomatoes did. I guess the only thing on my mind when I read it was "don't fuck it up, don't fuck it up, don't fuck it up"

I'm with you there. I'll be cautiously optimistic that this partnership will work for all parties involved.

Best of luck to Chris and the AoD staff for a smooth transition. I'll still be supporting this site for many years to come.

[Orihara_Kaoru]

I don't know if this has been decided yet or if you're still trying to work out all the details, but will AoD be more of a "sister site" to mania.com or will AoD be basically merging into mania.com?

Will the aod.com address still be mostly separate, link directly to mania's anime/manga section (basically it will become this section), or will it direct to the main mania.com index page?

[aleczman]

Hmm, interesting. I had never heard of mania.com prior to this announcement but, I look forward to see how AoD does under its new leadership.

It's been quite interesting seeing AoD change over the years. I stumbled upon AoD in the late 90s (when I made the transition from VHS to DVD for my anime). Although I haven't been as active as I used to be (you know, this pesky "life" thingy keeps getting in the way), I always come to AoD whenever I need information for anything anime DVD related.

Good luck and best wishes.

[warren upperton]

I've been reading your reviews for 5 years now, and consider you my eyes and ears of anime.
I'm here for the the long haul. Please look after yourself.
Warren Upperton-u.k.

[akitafuki]

Well, it was a bit unexpected, but I don't see myself leaving this wonderful community anytime soon as long as everything remains somewhat the same. :)

[Noodle]

Anime On DVD has been here for years, supporting our fandom, and now it's time for us to return the favour by supporting Anime on DVD through what will hopefully be a minor change, with major impact.

This is an amazing, insightful and beautiful response, Fudce.
Thank you.

[Legion]

*whistles* This is a doozy.

Like several others have said I don't know much about Mania.com. However, it goes without saying this isn't a decision you would make lightly and you mentioned you've known the people who run Mania.com for several years. I trust you're making an informed and wise decision. You've done tremendous work for a decade and I look forward to more of the same.

[Talyn]

hm.... interesting announcement. All I'm gonna say, is the second Chris is no longer in charge I'm leaving. As long as we retain him and our own forum separate from others then alright.

Good luck, we're all with you.

[Lego]

hm.... interesting announcement. All I'm gonna say, is the second Chris is no longer in charge I'm leaving. As long as we retain him and our own forum separate from others then alright.

Good luck, we're all with you.

While I share your sentiments Talyn a big litmus test for me will be when they start to roll out their design, their integration and we see what really happens to the main AOD site and our beloved forums.

[bci110]

Anime On DVD has been here for years, supporting our fandom, and now it's time for us to return the favour by supporting Anime on DVD through what will hopefully be a minor change, with major impact.

This is an amazing, insightful and beautiful response, Fudce.
Thank you.

I concur. That was an excellent response.

[Jimmie M]

Best wishes on this new venture Chris but more importantly, keep taking care of yourself healthwise. It sounds like much will remain the same here and I am certainly glad for that.
Regardless, I'm sticking around for the long haul.

[AstroNerdBoy]

Sorry Chris, but looks like my days of visiting AoD may soon be over. I used to visit Cinescape.com daily back before that became "Mania.com." After the switchover, the site slowly but surely became more fluff and less substance. The layout changed and things just became pointless. So I stopped going there to get my movie/sci-fi news. I just went over there again today because of this announcement and just rolled my eyes. Eventually, AoD will just be another segment in their bloated whole, where they try to be all things to all people and have a huge base of people who don't care about much, but Mania will somehow get revenue from this so...*_* I'm sure they are counting on everyone just coming over and by the time people realize the things that made AoD special are gone, its too late.

For me, its kinda of sad, but you had to do what you had to do and I don't blame you for getting paid sir. I'm sure I would have done the same. However, I hated what Mania did to the old Cinescape site and based on how they look now, I can't see how I'd visit that place just to get some anime stuff.

[nakimushi]

Wow.

Since I'm in the business of keeping websites running, I can understand why you would do this to get more support. I can imagine that keeping AOD running with only yourself and volunteers could be burdensome at times, and obviously a limiting factor if you want to expand.

After checking out Mania.com's boards, I now understand the quick switch to vBulletin. :)

Having lived and worked through many sales and mergers of websites over the past 10 years, I can tell you what I have seen that worked and what I have seen that hasn't.

The examples I've worked with have been (many of them were community sites):

1. The purchased site is allowed to keep its editorial staff, and largely remains the same.
2. The purchased site is integrated into a larger site.
a. The editorial staff stays
b. A new editorial staff takes over.
3. The purchased site is re-imagined and relaunched (almost always with new editorial staff - usually to save money, the editorial duties are just given to people who already have other editorial responsibilities with the purchasing site).
4. The site was purchased only for the technology behind it, with little thought of actually maintaining the current content.

From those examples, after 1-2 years, the only examples where the site continues to exist are examples 1 and 2a.

Without exception, in the case of examples 2b, 3 and 4, the site was gone in that period of time - usually ending up as a mere redirect to shunt traffic to the purchasing site.

Example 1 is not really a typical case. It usually only results from either a situation where the content does not fit in with the purchasing site, or it runs on a platform that is completely different from the purchasing site, and the purchased site is of such a considerable size as to make migrating it not worth the effort.

Example 2a is more common. The trick is preserving the identity of the purchased site in the new framework. Sometimes even if the editorial staff is not laid off, they end up being diluted because they move on to other areas of the purchasing site (sometimes voluntarily, sometimes not). This situation generally has the same effect as example 2b, except the site content doesn't completely vanish, but diminishes because it isn't maintained as well, and the community decreases along with it.

Anyway, this probably isn't news to most people here who have seen other sites they visit get sold/purchased over the years.

Chris, I really appreciate everything that you and your staffers have done to keep AOD running all these years, and I also really hope that you will have the time and desire to keep it from being lost or buried in the new site, if the plan is to actually integrate AOD into mania.com's existing site.


I'm not sure if the plan is to fold all of the content into the mania.com domain, but if it is, tell them to make sure to use 301 code redirects to preserve the AOD pages' search engine rankings. However, if they know what they're doing over at mania.com, they should already know that. :)

Again, thank you for everything over the years and I plan on sticking around to see what you have in store for us.

[Ty]

Sorry Chris, but looks like my days of visiting AoD may soon be over. I used to visit Cinescape.com daily back before that became "Mania.com." After the switchover, the site slowly but surely became more fluff and less substance. The layout changed and things just became pointless. So I stopped going there to get my movie/sci-fi news. I just went over there again today because of this announcement and just rolled my eyes. Eventually, AoD will just be another segment in their bloated whole, where they try to be all things to all people and have a huge base of people who don't care about much, but Mania will somehow get revenue from this so...*_* I'm sure they are counting on everyone just coming over and by the time people realize the things that made AoD special are gone, its too late.

For me, its kinda of sad, but you had to do what you had to do and I don't blame you for getting paid sir. I'm sure I would have done the same. However, I hated what Mania did to the old Cinescape site and based on how they look now, I can't see how I'd visit that place just to get some anime stuff.

I'm glad you're so sure this is how it will turn out. When you're done with it I wouldn't mind borrowing your time machine and confirming for myself.

[AstroNerdBoy]

Sorry Chris, but looks like my days of visiting AoD may soon be over. I used to visit Cinescape.com daily back before that became "Mania.com." After the switchover, the site slowly but surely became more fluff and less substance. The layout changed and things just became pointless. So I stopped going there to get my movie/sci-fi news. I just went over there again today because of this announcement and just rolled my eyes. Eventually, AoD will just be another segment in their bloated whole, where they try to be all things to all people and have a huge base of people who don't care about much, but Mania will somehow get revenue from this so...*_* I'm sure they are counting on everyone just coming over and by the time people realize the things that made AoD special are gone, its too late.

For me, its kinda of sad, but you had to do what you had to do and I don't blame you for getting paid sir. I'm sure I would have done the same. However, I hated what Mania did to the old Cinescape site and based on how they look now, I can't see how I'd visit that place just to get some anime stuff.

I'm glad you're so sure this is how it will turn out. When you're done with it I wouldn't mind borrowing your time machine and confirming for myself.

Hey, I call 'em like I see 'em. Then again, maybe you didn't read the part about what happened to Cinescape.com after it became "Mania.com." Maybe things will be fine, but I belong to the school that (1) looks at what has happened in the past and (2) fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.

[meganly_chan]

I admit, this has me feeling a little weary. I've been witness to sites selling themselves to a company, and then becoming a ghostly, depressing shadow of what they once were in a matter of a few years - look at livejournal.com - they're doing things they said they would never do. So please forgive my caution. I've never heard of mania.com.

I come to this site almost every day and I have fun here, so I hope it can stick around for years to come.

[bci110]

Sorry Chris, but looks like my days of visiting AoD may soon be over. I used to visit Cinescape.com daily back before that became "Mania.com." After the switchover, the site slowly but surely became more fluff and less substance. The layout changed and things just became pointless. So I stopped going there to get my movie/sci-fi news. I just went over there again today because of this announcement and just rolled my eyes. Eventually, AoD will just be another segment in their bloated whole, where they try to be all things to all people and have a huge base of people who don't care about much, but Mania will somehow get revenue from this so...*_* I'm sure they are counting on everyone just coming over and by the time people realize the things that made AoD special are gone, its too late.

For me, its kinda of sad, but you had to do what you had to do and I don't blame you for getting paid sir. I'm sure I would have done the same. However, I hated what Mania did to the old Cinescape site and based on how they look now, I can't see how I'd visit that place just to get some anime stuff.

I'm glad you're so sure this is how it will turn out. When you're done with it I wouldn't mind borrowing your time machine and confirming for myself.

Hey, I call 'em like I see 'em. Then again, maybe you didn't read the part about what happened to Cinescape.com after it became "Mania.com." Maybe things will be fine, but I belong to the school that (1) looks at what has happened in the past and (2) fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.

Well, at least you were nicer to Chris B. about this than GATSU was on the ANN forum. But then again, GATSU hates Chris B. for some reason.

[something]

Sorry Chris, but looks like my days of visiting AoD may soon be over. I used to visit Cinescape.com daily back before that became "Mania.com."
Chris has indicated that the forums will remain largely separate, and that he's still at the helm, so to speak. I'm not familiar with Cinescape but we can't really assume it'll be the same thing.

While it'd be nice if everything stayed the same, I'll be fine if only the forums stay as they are. I spend 99% of my AOD time on them anyway.

[bci110]

While it'd be nice if everything stayed the same, I'll be fine if only the forums stay as they are. I spend 99% of my AOD time on them anyway.

If the forum stays as is, I think most of us will be alright with it.

As for me, I spent 95% of my AoD time on the forum. The other 5% is split between reading the reviews and browsing the Upcoming Releases page to prepare for the polls.

[The Great Bear]

Well, at least you were nicer to Chris B. about this than GATSU was on the ANN forum. But then again, GATSU hates Chris B. for some reason.

Let's leave ANN comments where they belong…;)

…

The future is always uncertain, but Chris and the staff are not going anywhere, so everything should be fine.

[coyotemalito]

Congratulations Chris on this new venture, hopefully it will be for good.

The thing for which many of us are afriad lies on the fact that the site should keep its escense after the takeover; otherwise, it will be justa matter of time in which the community will be looking for another forum board.

However, I'm still sure that the forum will preserve the identity for which is known for many of us.

[bci110]

Well, at least you were nicer to Chris B. about this than GATSU was on the ANN forum. But then again, GATSU hates Chris B. for some reason.

Let's leave ANN comments where they belong…;)

…

The future is always uncertain, but Chris and the staff are not going anywhere, so everything should be fine.

Right on both counts! ;)

[dunno001]

hm.... interesting announcement. All I'm gonna say, is the second Chris is no longer in charge I'm leaving. As long as we retain him and our own forum separate from others then alright.

Good luck, we're all with you.

While I share your sentiments Talyn a big litmus test for me will be when they start to roll out their design, their integration and we see what really happens to the main AOD site and our beloved forums.
One thing's for certain- if they screw this up, I might not have much choice but to leave. I'll admit that I'm still reserved myself, but I'll give it the benefit of the doubt, as long as Chris and all the other fine posters stay around. But if you take Chris out, and tell me to start taking orders from these other people I don't know, I quit. (And maybe then I can start denting this backlog I have?)

[DeadlyMessiah]

What is mania.com?

[Collectonian]

I don't know if this has been decided yet or if you're still trying to work out all the details, but will AoD be more of a "sister site" to mania.com or will AoD be basically merging into mania.com?

Will the aod.com address still be mostly separate, link directly to mania's anime/manga section (basically it will become this section), or will it direct to the main mania.com index page?
I'm going to be cautiously optimistic that they will retain the original domain. Presuming Mania's interest includes AoD's existing presence, to suddenly drop the domain would result in hundreds of thousands of broken links and lost traffic. I also really hope that in the coming changes, if the site structure changes that the appropriate measures will be taken to ensure that the existing review links do not break.

[LOUiE]

Holy moly, that was out of left field. I read the headline at ANN while updating my most wanted anime list and came straight here afterwards. I think this will be a good thing as long as Chris stays at the helm and the forums stay separate.

I'll be along for the ride Chris. Just steer the ship.

[reddrake]

Well, congratulations on 10 years, and I hope the site benefits from the changes!

[shinster]

Hey Chris -
Congrats!
(on everything)

Thanks for everything you've
done for the anally-picky fans +
the anally-stingy industry both,
with this not too bad of a site all
these years.
;)
Wishing you, Melanie and the girls,
+ the staff continued success + health.
Peace, bro
-Shin

[itsuka]

I'm not quite sure what to say. I'm confident you gave it a lot of thought, and I really wish I could feel more optimistic. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any succesful takeovers where the party taken over managed to retain its culture and identity. Original creators/owners are sadly shoved to the side all too often, as retaining an existent culture might be a hindrance to bigger and better profits.

I really hope your contract with mania can protect you if you don't want that. Having said that, it's your work, and your decision, and I sincerely hope it works out well for you personally, even if we'll have to stomach some changes here we're less enthusiastic about.

If there's anyone who knows more about the type of company mania.com is, what kind of people are behind it, and what their goals with AoD would likely be, it's info I'm interested in. The company info on www.mania.com (http://www.mania.com) doesn't say anything useful.

[Nork22]

Rock on! So long as the community remains lovable, I'll still be around. Good luck with this new venture.

[christianlf]

Huh, wow. I wish ya the best of luck in this, Chris. You've given us a great playground over the years, and if this is what helps you continue it in the best possible fashion, more power to you.

I am a bit cynical about this sort of change typically, but I have no experience with Mania, so I have not much with which to judge them. If the forum stays the same, with the same atmosphere, and hopefully, not with an influx of morons, then cool, I dig it. But if this ends up making this forum anything like some of the other anime related forums I've read, well. Let's hope not. I'll join the cautiously optimistic camp.

All that said, I don't know if this is rational in the least bit, but the fact that this is now no longer privately owned makes me a bit more hesitant than I would have previously been posting more personal stuff. For instance, I don't think I'd now post my pic in the gallery (if there will even be one) or talk frankly about anything going on in my life in OT. That may not make a lot of sense, but I guess the comfort level isn't gonna be there with a bigger magnifying glass. Not a big deal, of course.

Anyway, before I ramble too much, good luck, Chris, I'm definitely more than willing to give ya the benefit of the doubt and see where this transition takes us.

[dreamweaver3d]

While I know I should be happy for ye, dear olde Chris, I cannot help but feel a tinge of sadness that the site I've been lurking around since 1998 is no longer going to be the same in the near future.

That said, it's not that I don't understand. It's not easy doing the same thing for 10 years, especially when [1] it's a labour of love and [2] not always appreciated by the masses.

My guess is that your role is probably going to be reduced in the new site. The only reason you'll still be around is cos the corporate entity needs a link to the old community that's been here for so long.

But that's ok. You've fought the good fight long enough, maybe it's time to try something else.

Rock on dude.

[Quarkboy]

I'm not quite sure what to say. I'm confident you gave it a lot of thought, and I really wish I could feel more optimistic. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any succesful takeovers where the party taken over managed to retain its culture and identity. Original creators/owners are sadly shoved to the side all to often, as retaining an existent culture might be a hindrance to bigger and better profits.
I always thought the takeover of gamefaqs by CNet was handled pretty well. I wouldn't be surprised if most users of that site never even really noticed.

[MegsLeigh]

I admit, this has me feeling a little weary. I've been witness to sites selling themselves to a company, and then becoming a ghostly, depressing shadow of what they once were in a matter of a few years - look at livejournal.com - they're doing things they said they would never do. So please forgive my caution. I've never heard of mania.com.

I come to this site almost every day and I have fun here, so I hope it can stick around for years to come.

I was thinking exactly of LiveJournal when I was reading this as well. Things there have gone to hell in an absolute handbasket.

[MegsLeigh]

And dammit, why did I quit being a manga reviewer? I could've now gotten even more schwag!! :p

There, there, Jarred. Come sit with me in the "old-time former reviewers" corner. I have cookies!

[MegsLeigh]

Chris, congratulations on the move. It wasn't an easy one for you to make in any way, shape or form. I've been following your health progressions on LJ and I am so immensely proud of what you've done for yourself.

As the economy has gotten steadily worse, as well as the anime market, I've wondered from time to time what you would do with the site. While I'm concerned that things with AoD will go the same route that things with LiveJournal have gone since Brad sold to SixApart, I think you've probably been aware enough of that situation to avoid the pitfalls. No matter what, you made the absolute best decision that you could for yourself and your family. For that, I'll always support what you decide to do.

[Lego]

hm.... interesting announcement. All I'm gonna say, is the second Chris is no longer in charge I'm leaving. As long as we retain him and our own forum separate from others then alright.

Good luck, we're all with you.

While I share your sentiments Talyn a big litmus test for me will be when they start to roll out their design, their integration and we see what really happens to the main AOD site and our beloved forums.
One thing's for certain- if they screw this up, I might not have much choice but to leave. I'll admit that I'm still reserved myself, but I'll give it the benefit of the doubt, as long as Chris and all the other fine posters stay around. But if you take Chris out, and tell me to start taking orders from these other people I don't know, I quit. (And maybe then I can start denting this backlog I have?)

Thats pretty much me right now. I'm cynical yet catious about this. For me it's a big "wait and see" and hoping, as I mentioned earlier, that they don't "fuck it up". The biggest asset to AOD aside from the reviews are these forums, and it would shameful if we got integrated into the main Maniac site with topics of "KEKEKE WHICH CAHRACTER DO YOU LOOK LIKE?" and "WHY DOESN'T MAH PSP TURN ONORZ!"

[GrateSaiyaman]

All I can say is I hope things just keep getting better.
{Not that anything was going bad.}
This is one community I feel pretty comfortable in, I'd hate to see "that" change.
:blush::blush1:

I thinks it's o.k. to be optimistic.

[Andre]

Chris/AnimeonDVD/Mania people,

Given Animeondvd's longstanding anti-bootlegging policy, I'm kind of curious about all the banners for AnimeFever which have been popping up. It's more or less the same as CrunchyRoll. Anyway to filter those out of Google ads?

It's very unclassy to have that sort of thing on a site that is very industry-focused.

[Caesar]

I admit, this has me feeling a little weary. I've been witness to sites selling themselves to a company, and then becoming a ghostly, depressing shadow of what they once were in a matter of a few years - look at livejournal.com - they're doing things they said they would never do. So please forgive my caution. I've never heard of mania.com.

I come to this site almost every day and I have fun here, so I hope it can stick around for years to come.

I was thinking exactly of LiveJournal when I was reading this as well. Things there have gone to hell in an absolute handbasket.

Well, we are a pretty tight-knit community, and the community is a strong binding force to any site's success. Really, I think I've know some of the people around here for over 8 years... even the really crazy ones. :sdsmiley:

[Caesar]

With all the joy and happiness your sight has brought me over the years, I'm glad for anything that can help make your life a little easier and happier. I really wish you and your family the best. You deserve it.

-Mike

[LordGeo]

I'm not quite sure what to say. I'm confident you gave it a lot of thought, and I really wish I could feel more optimistic. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any succesful takeovers where the party taken over managed to retain its culture and identity. Original creators/owners are sadly shoved to the side all to often, as retaining an existent culture might be a hindrance to bigger and better profits.
I always thought the takeover of gamefaqs by CNet was handled pretty well. I wouldn't be surprised if most users of that site never even really noticed.

Aside from the GameSpot logo on the main page and maybe one or two other things, the GameFAQs side doesn't have much of a difference.

Though you do hear complaints about the GameSpot users being idiots on the GameFAQs boards...

[Chris Beveridge]

Hey Chris -
Congrats!
(on everything)

Thanks for everything you've
done for the anally-picky fans +
the anally-stingy industry both,
with this not too bad of a site all
these years.
;)
Wishing you, Melanie and the girls,
+ the staff continued success + health.
Peace, bro
-Shin

Thank you! And thanks for nearly killing yourself on Macross all those years ago! I'm getting close to being able to share that with the kids so Miria can finally see her namesake!

[Immortal1982]

For the few that were asking about the anime/manga forums, they had just launched a few weeks ago, and are currently all topics from other forums on mania.

But from what I'm seeing, and i'll probably be corrected, It will still be 2 different sites on one network. Plus it's funny, i thought i saw a TRSI ad on Mania a few weeks back.

As for the animefever ad? thats all Gorilla Nation and the Highest parts of the site.

[Suwako Moriya]

I spend 99% of my AOD time on them anyway.

Same here, but then again this ideal is not true just of AOD, but other sites with linked forums as well sometimes. Although 99% might be stretching it. Regardless in terms of the "future" be it good or bad, I think I'll wait until it actually happens first.

[Suwako Moriya]

I always thought the takeover of gamefaqs by CNet was handled pretty well. I wouldn't be surprised if most users of that site never even really noticed.

Well there were more vocal people that griped about it and didn't like seeing posts by gamespot users.... Although I can't say I really noticed much change, but then again I mainly just skimmed a few select forums there.

[Shiroi Hane]

Thats pretty much me right now. I'm cynical yet catious about this. For me it's a big "wait and see" and hoping, as I mentioned earlier, that they don't "fuck it up". The biggest asset to AOD aside from the reviews are these forums, and it would shameful if we got integrated into the main Maniac site with topics of "KEKEKE WHICH CAHRACTER DO YOU LOOK LIKE?" and "WHY DOESN'T MAH PSP TURN ONORZ!"

I remember when I was a member of the #lexx IRC channel hosted by lexx.com they were talking about moving the channel to scifi.com's IRC server. I visited their main channel, #dominion, once and never went back - it was like stepping into #teenchat. Thankfully the move never happened and I hope likewise that these forums continue to exist seperately and are managed and moderated in the same way they always have been.

[Njr Scrawl]

I think I speak for everybody here when I say we're glad to be along for the ride. Congratulations on your successes up to this point Chris. :)

Ten years is an eternity in internet time!

I don't usually go into the personal history/gallery forum threads. It was brave of you to give up being a financial wizard to become a full time anime guru :bowsmiley:

Was your life-threatening condition due to stress from that big step, or was leaving your job your first act to save your health? Ten hours of anime journalism for so many days a week is enough to blow anyones mind, let alone body! :eek:

So far Mania's anime forum are these threads AFAICS http://www.mania.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=60

I hope you & AoD stay independent minded & are not subjected to any type of corporate pressure, now AoD has become integrated. How much breakaway/buy-out/independence has AoD got? What if Mania.com is itself bought by a bigger concern. Etc.? "Different wrapper" is ominous to me.

Still, your health, & your wife & daughters keeping husband & dad are the most important thing. Less stress is always good. :noodle:

[Kellory]

The biggest asset to AOD aside from the reviews are these forums, and it would shameful if we got integrated into the main Maniac site with topics of "KEKEKE WHICH CAHRACTER DO YOU LOOK LIKE?" and "WHY DOESN'T MAH PSP TURN ONORZ!"

As Chris has said, Mania.com is fully aware of what the forums here bring. And really, how important they are to this site. One thing you should note is that the site staff has stayed where they are. There have been no changes to either the Reviewers or the Moderator Team here. And remember, we're not paid. We're all volunteers. Well, the Reviewers do get free stuff, but the Moderator Team is in it for the abuse. We're all here still because things have stayed the same.

Although I'm sure there will be links to us at the other Mania.com forums, we are remaining separate here. The same Forum Rules you've all come to know, love, and hate will be the same. The day those change is the day I step down.

There will be, no doubt, some changes. But I dont think any of them are going to be as massive as what some people may think. And while no one can predict the future, it's not like we have to stay here either. If some massive changes happen in the future, we can always leave then. There really is no need to make hasty calls or predictions now. We all know the dangers, the issue is whether or not we'll be positive about it and work things out or just create a self fulfilling prophecy.

Chris says he'll be staying and things will largely stay the same. After coming here for 10 years I believe him and trust what he says. There will always be those who will look to the negative or come up with some weird possibility just so later on they can say they were "right". I prefer to focus on the positive which is that we're still here, we're still independent, and Chris is still on top.

Given the option of this or the site shutting down I know which one I'd take in a heartbeat without even bothering to think about it. It's not like the site staff is mindlessly behind this. We all, for the most part, have our own reservations because change is often scary. But part of growing up is dealing with change and knowing when to be patient and to wait and see.

AoD is still the same. The Moderators you know and love (and hate in some cases) are still here enforcing the same rules, making the same silly comments in Retail and GA threads, posting to the Thread Drift thread, and kicking the same spammers and occasional melt down poster to the curb. Nothing really has changed. If Chris hadnt posted anything, no one would still know. So while I think being cautious is a normal thing, I dont think there's any need to be hasty either.

Hmm, well I seem to have posted more than I thought. It's time to go out and shovel the walk. Damn, snowing in April. I so need to move...

[Peter Ahlstrom]

This is unexpected news. It will be interesting to see how the site develops from here.

[Andre]

As Chris has said, Mania.com is fully aware of what the forums here bring. And really, how important they are to this site. One thing you should note is that the site staff has stayed where they are. There have been no changes to either the Reviewers or the Moderator Team here. And remember, we're not paid. We're all volunteers. Well, the Reviewers do get free stuff, but the Moderator Team is in it for the abuse. We're all here still because things have stayed the same.......Hmm, well I seem to have posted more than I thought. It's time to go out and shovel the walk. Damn, snowing in April. I so need to move...

I've been with other sites that have changed hands before [such as toymania.com], and most of the time, they manage quite well, especially if old staff stay on. It's hard to keep websites going, and many great sites have gone away over the years, so I'd rather have a Mania run AoDVD then no AoDVD..... I'm glad you guys are all sticking around. I'd been reading the sites reviews for ages before I ever joined the forums, and it's the kind of website fandom needs.

[Lego]

The biggest asset to AOD aside from the reviews are these forums, and it would shameful if we got integrated into the main Maniac site with topics of "KEKEKE WHICH CAHRACTER DO YOU LOOK LIKE?" and "WHY DOESN'T MAH PSP TURN ONORZ!"

As Chris has said, Mania.com is fully aware of what the forums here bring. And really, how important they are to this site. One thing you should note is that the site staff has stayed where they are. There have been no changes to either the Reviewers or the Moderator Team here. And remember, we're not paid. We're all volunteers. Well, the Reviewers do get free stuff, but the Moderator Team is in it for the abuse. We're all here still because things have stayed the same.

Although I'm sure there will be links to us at the other Mania.com forums, we are remaining separate here. The same Forum Rules you've all come to know, love, and hate will be the same. The day those change is the day I step down.

There will be, no doubt, some changes. But I dont think any of them are going to be as massive as what some people may think. And while no one can predict the future, it's not like we have to stay here either. If some massive changes happen in the future, we can always leave then. There really is no need to make hasty calls or predictions now. We all know the dangers, the issue is whether or not we'll be positive about it and work things out or just create a self fulfilling prophecy.

Chris says he'll be staying and things will largely stay the same. After coming here for 10 years I believe him and trust what he says. There will always be those who will look to the negative or come up with some weird possibility just so later on they can say they were "right". I prefer to focus on the positive which is that we're still here, we're still independent, and Chris is still on top.

Given the option of this or the site shutting down I know which one I'd take in a heartbeat without even bothering to think about it. It's not like the site staff is mindlessly behind this. We all, for the most part, have our own reservations because change is often scary. But part of growing up is dealing with change and knowing when to be patient and to wait and see.

AoD is still the same. The Moderators you know and love (and hate in some cases) are still here enforcing the same rules, making the same silly comments in Retail and GA threads, posting to the Thread Drift thread, and kicking the same spammers and occasional melt down poster to the curb. Nothing really has changed. If Chris hadnt posted anything, no one would still know. So while I think being cautious is a normal thing, I dont think there's any need to be hasty either.

Hmm, well I seem to have posted more than I thought. It's time to go out and shovel the walk. Damn, snowing in April. I so need to move...

By probing a little I got some good explanation, thanks Kellory. I'm all for it as like yourself I take Chris at his word after these years of forum and site browsing but I guess it all comes down to your "change is scary" line. But with you stating that the forums will remain the same, perhaps with the influx of a few new people I'm happy. Now whats this I hear about free stuff :bigsmile:?

[chirpie]

I got a little scared when I read the words "sold", but so long as Chris comes with the package, it's all good.

I know how important the community is to the site, but damn-it, Chris is the rock.

[tstidm1]

It is nice to see that this website will have a strong future. Integrating Anime on DVD into IGN's family of companies will be interesting. I can't wait to see what IGN offers to the readers of the website.

[Njr Scrawl]

Thanks for your shot of (at?) optimism Kellory. :)

Over the last few years I remember Chris has pondered in postings, usually when aggravated by some extreme fan opinion, whether he wants to continue with anime at the webmaster level.
So an overlord might be his compromise - hopefully Mania will be "Good King Richard" & not the "Sheriff of Nottingham".

Will "Anime on DVD" still be called that, or metamorphosise into a wider spanning, more contemporary titled site in name & coverage to embrace how anime is & will be brought to the masses. Heh.. "Animescape" :devil:

I hope all the AoD forums, including the slow traffic ones, stay as they are. That includes the non-anime/manga ones too.

[bctaris]

It is nice to see that this website will have a strong future. Integrating Anime on DVD into IGN's family of companies will be interesting. I can't wait to see what IGN offers to the readers of the website.

Mania.com is not part of IGN (which itself is part of Fox Interactive).

It does however seem (after skimming though its terms of use (http://www.mania.com/term-of-service.html#copyright)) that it is owned by Richard Rosenblatt's domain acquisition company Demand Media (http://www.demandmedia.com/). (Some business spectators might recall Rosenblatt as brokering the $580 million sale of MySpace to News Corp.)

It actually means little to nothing on the content side--DM is about making money on domains, especially by how they are networked together (it's possible to find employees of Mania, for instance, creating articles on DM owned eHow (http://www.ehow.com/members/tjanson-articles.html)). How the domains link off and network together users is what's important--similar to how something like advertising ideally works.

There are a number of interesting articles (for instance (http://www.dailydomainer.com/200733-200733-death-of-domain-parking.html)) to be found talking about the kind of venture DM is, for those curious. As for what it means for AoD down the road, which is now but a cog in the wheel of a larger cog, that's up to the individual. I'm not worried, but it's interesting.

[something]

I can't wait to see what IGN offers to the readers of the website.Mania.com is not part of IGN (which itself is part of Fox Interactive).
Yeah, what? IGN? I was wondering why they were coming up. If AOD got sold to IGN, then it really WOULD have been the end of all things worthwhile at this site.

[AstroNerdBoy]

Well, at least you were nicer to Chris B. about this than GATSU was on the ANN forum. But then again, GATSU hates Chris B. for some reason.

I can't speak to this GATSU person specifically (not knowing the person or the comments made), but at least he's public about his comments. He could have been a no-life coward who has nothing better to do but troll boards and cyber stalk people (thank God for automated tools to protect me from the rantings of such losers so that all I see is report that the comments were archived for law enforcement).

Anyway, there's no cause for me to be rude to Chris. It doesn't matter if I think this was a bad or a good idea and I'm not going to attack him if I disagree with him. That would make me as much a loser as a troll or cyber stalker who feels threatened by a person so much, they can't stop obsessing over them. Chris did what he felt was right and I could easily be in the wrong here. Its been known to happen from time-to-time. ;)

Chris has indicated that the forums will remain largely separate, and that he's still at the helm, so to speak. I'm not familiar with Cinescape but we can't really assume it'll be the same thing.

While it'd be nice if everything stayed the same, I'll be fine if only the forums stay as they are. I spend 99% of my AOD time on them anyway.

If the forums stay the same, no biggie I guess. Certainly I can keep boring people with my pontifications. ;)

In all seriousness, I do wish Chris well in this venture. I'm all for people getting paid, y'all. If I'm wrong about what happens, I'll happily admit it (^_^) and if not, well I'm sure I won't be the only one to go.

[hermione]

I’m incredibly excited about this and what it will bring to the table as we ramp things up and move forward in the coming weeks and months. While there will be changes to be sure, such as our move to the Vbulletin software last week, the main important point that I want to stress is that it’ll be business as usual just with a different look and a lot more support and infrastructure behind it.


[rolls eyes]

That's what Matt Brady said the first time Newsarama was sold, and nowadays he's been reduced to doing gladhanding interviews for DC and Marvel editorial where they try to justify their awful storylines (Countdown, Brand New Day, The Death of Captain America, etc.) and Matt has basically become a corporate cheerleader.

I'm looking forward to Chris doing an interview with a PR hack from Disney and Chris raves about how much he loved Spirited Away and urges us to rush out and buy the blu-ray Collector's Edition

[hermione]

I got a little scared when I read the words "sold", but so long as Chris comes with the package, it's all good.
.

Chris now serves at the pleasure of the new owners, he can be removed at any time if he says/does something that displeases them.

Hopefully the new owners are firm believers in using message boards for free-wheeling political and religious discussions, and allowing embedding of Youtube clips, and posting art in sigs/animated gif avatars.

[LordGeo]

I'm looking forward to Chris doing an interview with a PR hack from Disney and Chris raves about how much he loved Spirited Away and urges us to rush out and buy the blu-ray Collector's Edition

You must have missed the old quote where Chris calls Howls Moving Castle better than Spirited Away only because of the fact that Howls didn't put him to sleep like Spirited Away did.

I think Chris would rather be tortured than praise Sprited Away... He does love the Blu-Ray though...

[something]

You must have missed the old quote where Chris calls Howls Moving Castle better than Spirited Away only because of the fact that Howls didn't put him to sleep like Spirited Away did.
I think that was his point. That Chris will now sell out and praise whatever his new corporate overlords tell him to even if he hates it.

Well, whatever, I don't see the point in being so cynical as hermione. If things go in the shitter, they will. I don't really expect it, but there's certainly no point worrying about it already either way.

[bctaris]

Hopefully the new owners are firm believers in using message boards for free-wheeling political and religious discussions, and allowing embedding of Youtube clips, and posting art in sigs/animated gif avatars.

Excuse me for finding it amusing that you seem to worry about the site changing for the worse but don't see the irony in requesting the list of things above. ... But of course you don't. That's why it's so amusing.

[AmusedObserver]

Hopefully the new owners are firm believers in using message boards for free-wheeling political and religious discussions, and allowing embedding of Youtube clips, and posting art in sigs/animated gif avatars.

Excuse me for finding it amusing that you seem to worry about the site changing for the worse but don't see the irony in requesting the list of things above. ... But of course you don't. That's why it's so amusing.

Amusing indeed.

My take on the sale is that Chris should take a nice, relaxing vacation and let someone from Mania take charge (we're assuming the Bev-man hasn't done that already!). When I read the announcement, I was surprised to see a mention re: health issues. If maintaining his health means cutting back on AoD, etc., more power to him!

[Quarkboy]

On a related note, will you be using this opportunity to change the site's name?

It seems that it won't be too long until "Anime on DVD" is an unfortunate anachronism. Perhaps now is the chance (during this period of change) to rebrand into something more forward looking like...

"Anime on Stuff" or
"Anime I can Buy" or
"Anime@Home" (hmm, might get sued for that one) or
"Anime ADD" (well, it sounds similar so I thought it might work)... Edit: crap, this one is taken too... well it's just some blog, you could buy 'em out :)

or you could take the first step towards bowing down before your corporate masters and just call yourself "Animania.com" except that domain seems to already be taken...

[Chris Beveridge]

Hopefully the new owners are firm believers in using message boards for free-wheeling political and religious discussions, and allowing embedding of Youtube clips, and posting art in sigs/animated gif avatars.

Excuse me for finding it amusing that you seem to worry about the site changing for the worse but don't see the irony in requesting the list of things above. ... But of course you don't. That's why it's so amusing.

Amusing indeed.

My take on the sale is that Chris should take a nice, relaxing vacation and let someone from Mania take charge (we're assuming the Bev-man hasn't done that already!). When I read the announcement, I was surprised to see a mention re: health issues. If maintaining his health means cutting back on AoD, etc., more power to him!

No vacation's planned at the moment. Just more work, lots of shows to watch and write about. I love my job and have for the last several years where it's been my primary job as well.

The health issues were more just a sort of guiding piece to talk about how I've changed my life in the last few years and the way I approach things. I used to be highly stressed and worrying - something that comes natural to anyone that worked at Fidelity Investments - and it ended up carrying over after I left. I had simply let myself get too far gone. People have the ability to blind themselves to their issues very easily and I had done just that. How else could I have let myself get to be over 430lbs? But in sixteen months with a lot of determination that has really re-shaped my life and how I want to live it, I lost over 160lbs and continue to lose (albeit slower at this rate unfortunately).

At the end of the day, I love writing about and talking about anime (and entertainment in general as people who read my livejournal know). But I'll never praise Spirited Away. At least until I have a Blu-ray edition in hand! :D

[The Great Bear]

But I'll never praise Spirited Away. At least until I have a Blu-ray edition in hand! :D

It's comforting to know that you can still be bribed with pretty pictures.

:noodle:

[Draneor]

I don't know. I really don't see the anime industry threating to pull all advertisements because of one bad review like how it sometimes unfolds in the game industry. Now, I admit I have no basis for my feeling, but I suspect they just don't have the power/financial might or, honestly, the desire to care. Not that I know what goes on behind the scenes, of course.

Of course, next year Chris will probably give Ouran Host Club a bad review, Funimation will get mad, and the entire site staff will be fired, just to prove me wrong. :) Actually, they'd need to start advertising first so I think we're safe.

[LordGeo]

Of course, next year Chris will probably give Ouran Host Club a bad review, Viz will get mad, and the entire site staff will be fired, just to prove me wrong. :) Actually, they'd need to start advertising first so I think we're safe.

That would be amazing... Viz caring about what Chris thinks of a FUNimation release...

[Vicserr]

No vacation's planned at the moment. Just more work, lots of shows to watch and write about. I love my job and have for the last several years where it's been my primary job as well.

The health issues were more just a sort of guiding piece to talk about how I've changed my life in the last few years and the way I approach things. I used to be highly stressed and worrying - something that comes natural to anyone that worked at Fidelity Investments - and it ended up carrying over after I left. I had simply let myself get too far gone. People have the ability to blind themselves to their issues very easily and I had done just that. How else could I have let myself get to be over 430lbs? But in sixteen months with a lot of determination that has really re-shaped my life and how I want to live it, I lost over 160lbs and continue to lose (albeit slower at this rate unfortunately).

At the end of the day, I love writing about and talking about anime (and entertainment in general as people who read my livejournal know). But I'll never praise Spirited Away. At least until I have a Blu-ray edition in hand! :D

Nice too see that you continue doing better health-wise and that you haven't lost your love for anime, hopefully Mania.com will have a hands off approach to how the staff runs AOD in the future. :laugh:

[Draneor]

That would be amazing... Viz caring about what Chris thinks of a FUNimation release...

My memory sucks. Viz licensed H&C, I think.

[Chris Beveridge]

That would be amazing... Viz caring about what Chris thinks of a FUNimation release...

My memory sucks. Viz licensed H&C, I think.

Odds are Viz will cancel a release before I can really lash into it...

[Ty]

I’m incredibly excited about this and what it will bring to the table as we ramp things up and move forward in the coming weeks and months. While there will be changes to be sure, such as our move to the Vbulletin software last week, the main important point that I want to stress is that it’ll be business as usual just with a different look and a lot more support and infrastructure behind it.


[rolls eyes]

That's what Matt Brady said the first time Newsarama was sold, and nowadays he's been reduced to doing gladhanding interviews for DC and Marvel editorial where they try to justify their awful storylines (Countdown, Brand New Day, The Death of Captain America, etc.) and Matt has basically become a corporate cheerleader.

I'm looking forward to Chris doing an interview with a PR hack from Disney and Chris raves about how much he loved Spirited Away and urges us to rush out and buy the blu-ray Collector's Edition

Don't you think that's a little bit insulting? After doing this for 10 years I think he has some idea of what he's doing.

[Steve_the_Talking_Pie]

I would also like to extend my thanks, and praise of this site, especially Chris's hard work. I am not a large presence in the forum, however I have been visiting this site in upwards of the past 6 years. The reviews are really top notch, and though I have stopped watching as much anime (partially due to a new found interest in live action cinema as well as college), I always visit the site even briefly to get most of my anime news delivered to me in seconds. The forums here are extremely helpful and have allowed me to track down all of Maison Ikkoku, which is by far the biggest accomplishment, as I had no idea it was going OOP. I had the chance to cast aside my VHS tapes, where they can now sit on my shelf in honor. Thanks you Chris and everyone here for making this place an incredible anime source.

[Kikaroo]

Congrats Chris on both the sale and the health goals! You certainly deserve it.

I'm in the "cautiously optimistic" ; I've seen too many of the bad buyouts happen to be blindly happy about things, but I trust Chris to do what's best for both himself and the site. I'll keep visiting unless things really go downhill. I certainly hope it doesn't come to that though as I really enjoy my time here. :)

Have never heard of mania.com before, though it doesn't look like a site I'd visit after a brief stop. I hope AoD's main page doesn't end up like their'sl it's too busy for my tastes.

[Suwako Moriya]

Odds are Viz will cancel a release before I can really lash into it...

Perhaps, but right now I'm wondering if they'll ever actually start on a certain release that contains the words Clover and Honey in it.

[The Great Bear]

Odds are Viz will cancel a release before I can really lash into it...

Perhaps, but right now I'm wondering if they'll ever actually start on a certain release that contains the words Clover and Honey in it.

I'm waiting for that myself.

[LOUiE]

At the end of the day, I love writing about and talking about anime (and entertainment in general as people who read my livejournal know). But I'll never praise Spirited Away. At least until I have a Blu-ray edition in hand! :D
Hence why I know BD will be the future. If it can get you to like SA, then it can do anything. I wonder if it could get you to like the first two seasons of Slayers.

[presicion25]

Ive only been on this site a few months and everyone is very courteous as compared to the Delorean Forum I belong to, where there have been many a fight, and some people have even been banned in the past few years, not that dmctalk.com is all bad but some people cant handle others opinions,you get my point.
(No, I dont have a Flux Capacitor as of yet, although ebay does sell them,lol)

PS This site is awesome I hope it stays around forever. Thank You to the creator of this site as well.......

[karen0586]

You kind of snuck the Mania.com announcement into the message, but aside from that it's cool to see that AnimeOnDVD.com will only become larger and larger.

Yeah, that was kind of unexpected, but it sure explains why we don't have any site sponsors and are getting some crazy (non-anime) banner ads lately. :catgirl:

I had been wondering about that! Oh well, I definitely missed the buzz and announcement since I was focused on other things. Well, as long as you guys still remain, then I don't think I would have even noticed. Well, I hope it works out.

[megane]

I started lurking here when I was trying to figure out if DVD was a worthy successor to anime on Laserdisc. Since then I've acquired a Wall of Anime DVDs, mostly through this site. I've always been able to rely on AoD for info and opinions about all the releases over the years. Actually, I think this is the only site that's been in my bookmarks for a full decade. And now that the industry seems to be shifting to new formats again (whether blu-ray or online distribution) I'll continue coming here to try to cut through the confusion.

Anyway I just wanted to de-lurk and say congratulations Chris, and thanks!
-greg

[wanfu2k1]

You kind of snuck the Mania.com announcement into the message, but aside from that it's cool to see that AnimeOnDVD.com will only become larger and larger.

Yeah, that was kind of unexpected, but it sure explains why we don't have any site sponsors and are getting some crazy (non-anime) banner ads lately. :catgirl:

No kidding I was wondering what happened to the Rightstuf link that I always used to use to check out the weekly deals on thursdays with. I'll still be around got nowhere else to go :P

[JINROH]

I'm glad you're so sure this is how it will turn out. When you're done with it I wouldn't mind borrowing your time machine and confirming for myself.[/quote]

Hey, I call 'em like I see 'em. Then again, maybe you didn't read the part about what happened to Cinescape.com after it became "Mania.com." Maybe things will be fine, but I belong to the school that (1) looks at what has happened in the past and (2) fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.[/QUOTE]

Well, at least you were nicer to Chris B. about this than GATSU was on the ANN forum. But then again, GATSU hates Chris B. for some reason.[/QUOTE]

He seems to hate a lot of things....

What is mania.com?


Looks like a online only version of PiQ (R.I.P Newtype.....).


Its been a bit since the announcment,and so far everything seems fine.Looking at the posts on this other sister site,it really reminds of
Gamespy forums for some odd reason ?

[Chief Wahoo]

I had to do three updates to my anti-virus software today to block all of the types of popups that Mania tries to launch on your computer.

For the love of God I wish Casale Media would go bankrupt.

[Njr Scrawl]

I had to do three updates to my anti-virus software today to block all of the types of popups that Mania tries to launch on your computer.

For the love of God I wish Casale Media would go bankrupt.

But Chris would not have AoD back. He sold ownership for a reason (read his post!). Mania might not be the 100% ideal owner, but at least AoD has kept its own image & the forums are more or less the same as when Chris owned AoD & vBB is overall better than FBB.

[Chief Wahoo]

I had to do three updates to my anti-virus software today to block all of the types of popups that Mania tries to launch on your computer.

For the love of God I wish Casale Media would go bankrupt.

But Chris would not have AoD back. He sold ownership for a reason (read his post!). Mania might not be the 100% ideal owner, but at least AoD has kept its own image & the forums are more or less the same as when Chris owned AoD & vBB is overall better than FBB.

Casale Media's a pop-up company, not the owners of Mania.com (as far as I know).

Let's go ahead and add Yahoo Hot Jobs to the list of pop-ups that have earned my hatred by appearing whenever I access the AOD "main page."

[bci110]

Let's go ahead and add Yahoo Hot Jobs to the list of pop-ups that have earned my hatred by appearing whenever I access the AOD "main page."

Why don't you do what I did - bookmark the forum page. That way you don't have to keep going to the main page in order to access the forum.

[Suwako Moriya]

Why don't you do what I did - bookmark the forum page. That way you don't have to keep going to the main page in order to access the forum.

Good idea. Although for me, it's less a case of having the forum page bookmarked and more a case of remembering the address. Which thankfully is a rather simple one.

[ooga]

Or just use Firefox or Chrome. I get zero popups without any special configuring.

[Njr Scrawl]

I get rid of Casale by running Spybot.

[Lego]

Best of luck to you Chris Beverage(:P). Continued success in whatever you do.

[Elfen Noir]

All the very best to you in the future, Chris.

Your announcement was a shock, I have enjoyed the site for years and now I wonder and hope that it will continue seamlessly without your direction.

On a side note, I read somewhere that December, 2012, was being pushed up to actually start in May of 2011 ... I certainly hope that this is not the first sign (though it feels like it).

[Glamrgrl104]

I am glad that you are staying here and that you quit your other job to follow your passion, money isn't everything at least that is what I think. I don't want to be stuck in a job I hate just because it will give high monetary gain. ANyways I am glad you are staying and expanding your business that you made here. I just kind of hope us users won't have to pay to post here in the future? Not saying I would not donate some to keep this forum running. I love your reviews and hope to read more in the future.

[Betenoire]

I am glad that you are staying here and that you quit your other job to follow your passion, money isn't everything at least that is what I think. I don't want to be stuck in a job I hate just because it will give high monetary gain. ANyways I am glad you are staying and expanding your business that you made here. I just kind of hope us users won't have to pay to post here in the future? Not saying I would not donate some to keep this forum running. I love your reviews and hope to read more in the future.

You are reading this wrong. The original post was from 3 years ago about Chris selling Anime on DVD.com to Mania.com. This thread was resurrected to wish Chris well as he is leaving Mania.com and this forum (http://www.mania.com/aodvb/showthread.php?t=107416).

Though one might find that his next project will show his passion is as strong as ever if one were to go to FandomPost.com (http://www.fandompost.com/).

It has a cool forum (http://www.fandompost.com/forums/forum.php) and everything.

[Glamrgrl104]

I am glad that you are staying here and that you quit your other job to follow your passion, money isn't everything at least that is what I think. I don't want to be stuck in a job I hate just because it will give high monetary gain. ANyways I am glad you are staying and expanding your business that you made here. I just kind of hope us users won't have to pay to post here in the future? Not saying I would not donate some to keep this forum running. I love your reviews and hope to read more in the future.

You are reading this wrong. The original post was from 3 years ago about Chris selling Anime on DVD.com to Mania.com. This thread was resurrected to wish Chris well as he is leaving Mania.com and this forum (http://www.mania.com/aodvb/showthread.php?t=107416).

Though one might find that his next project will show his passion is as strong as ever if one were to go to FandomPost.com (http://www.fandompost.com/).

It has a cool forum (http://www.fandompost.com/forums/forum.php) and everything.

ohhh Well I wish him well and thanks for the link.

[jlazar]

Very sad to see you go, although I haven't had the time to spend much time here either lately due to my own life issues (started a new job yesterday).

Good luck in your new venture and hope you stay healthy and happy.

[Damius]

(started a new job yesterday).

Congrats for your new job!

[Buster Blader 126]

Thanks for all you've done so far, Chris. The layout of AoD in the past was simple yet structured, and the community in the forums made me emerge from my lurker shell and participate.

Though I'll see you around at your new site, so this is not much of a farewell now, is it?

[RupanIII]

Hey there, I'm a looong-time lurker. I've been getting news and info on releases from AoD since the early 2000s, back when I was first getting into anime in my early adolescence. For some reason I never registered, then I went off to college and didn't follow things for the past few years, though I still watched anime. Anyway, I've been getting back into the fan scene again lately and I finally decided to register. I just wanted to say good luck with the new site (which I'll be checking out) and thanks for the great resource over the years! It's nice to see that even though the anime market imploded and so many sites have gone down over the years, the AoD forum is still going strong :D

[untoldsorrow]

Wow, I just finally got to read the memo. I've gotta thank Chris for making such an outstanding community and all the hard work he has done for it. I just got the link to his new forums and will frequent back and forth between the two.

Thank you and hope you enjoy your "new" passion.

[Njr Scrawl]

Chris, I have followed, & been infected by your enthusiasm for anime since Animeshowcase.com (remember Shiori-chan, Divi-chan's "cousin"?). I am very sad to see you leaving your anime spiritual home. Good luck for the future.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QGKlZLgz3w&feature=related

[mudduck454]

so now, the anime news and review section is pretty much gone, and nobody has stepped up to the plate. so basically I have to follow chris over to his new site, if I want reviews and news, well I have enjoyed mania.com, but if nobody else is going to give us news and reviews, I will have to move over to his site, even though it needs some organization..............

[CGLOVER]

so now, the anime news and review section is pretty much gone, and nobody has stepped up to the plate. so basically I have to follow chris over to his new site, if I want reviews and news, well I have enjoyed mania.com, but if nobody else is going to give us news and reviews, I will have to move over to his site, even though it needs some organization..............

Basically this.

[Njr Scrawl]

so now, the anime news and review section is pretty much gone, and nobody has stepped up to the plate. so basically I have to follow chris over to his new site, if I want reviews and news, well I have enjoyed mania.com, but if nobody else is going to give us news and reviews, I will have to move over to his site, even though it needs some organization..............

Basically this.

Elvis has changed label. Where is the Colonel?

Ever since AoD was sold to Mania, though Chris stayed on as a Mania employee, the writing was on the wall for Chris remaining with "his" old site.

[mudduck454]

so now, the anime news and review section is pretty much gone, and nobody has stepped up to the plate. so basically I have to follow chris over to his new site, if I want reviews and news, well I have enjoyed mania.com, but if nobody else is going to give us news and reviews, I will have to move over to his site, even though it needs some organization..............

Basically this.

Elvis has changed label. Where is the Colonel?

Ever since AoD was sold to Mania, though Chris stayed on as a Mania employee, the writing was on the wall for Chris remaining with "his" old site.

it would be nice if someone took over, I go to enough sites as it is, with always trying to keep up with tech news, local news, and anime news, this site made it easier to get multiple things, just because he left, that shouldn't mean the quality of things should go down........

unless the others that run this site, do not care about the anime section, and sadly it is starting to look that way, now personally I have only written one review, so I wouldn't say I am qualified for it, but someone should step up, but I will hold out a few more days, and if I have to keep getting my anime news elsewhere, then I wont need to come back here...

if I go to his site, then I wont have any need to come here, and I am sure mania.com doesn't want that, but unless the anime section starts giving us news articles, and reviews, I have no reason to be here,

[formerroadie]

Yeah. This is basically death to this forum. It's time to change over to the fandom post or anime collectors galore.

[hikaru004]

Even though I do agree that people come here for content, I do think that there are some forums that still exist without a steady stream of reviews, etc. In the end, it depends on why you come to this forum.

[Njr Scrawl]

I come here to ask & discuss, & for news. Even while Chris was here though, the forum had become mainly online, streaming shows discussions, with Funimation :( releases dominating R1. My interest & postings therefore were decreasing anyway.

AFA why Chris left...he sold AoD to decrease stress running his own site (& to make money). Perhaps Mania was becoming too stressful, & Chris wanted to be his own man again, but now more aware of what he wanted to do & could take.

WTK seems to be the main man here now. :)

[kamiikazeheart]

I do plan on continuing to visit these forums and it is a bit sad to read this. I did join the Fandom Post a few days ago however. I'm incredibly thankful to all the feedback I've gotten from people on these forums over the years and its thanks to them I've discovered some amazing shows and favorites. This forum is one of the few that I've ever been steadily active on.

[Speedy Boris]

As long as WTK stays here, I'm staying as well. He's been a timely source of cover art, release date delays, and special features info for quite some time now. And that's the majority of what I visit the forums for, so... yeah.

[Damius]

As long as WTK stays here, I'm staying as well. He's been a timely source of cover art, release date delays, and special features info for quite some time now. And that's the majority of what I visit the forums for, so... yeah.

Well, just FYI WTK do the same posts on both forums.

[WTK]

As long as WTK stays here, I'm staying as well. He's been a timely source of cover art, release date delays, and special features info for quite some time now. And that's the majority of what I visit the forums for, so... yeah.

Well, just FYI WTK do the same posts on both forums.
Just clarify...a good chunk of what I post do get cross-posted between the two sites, but it's not everything.

[markfly]

I'm only interested in one series from them, so perhaps I should consider myself lucky. On the other hand, it was one I especially liked.;)