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I have been an anime fan for a long time, long enough that CrunchyRoll would have been beyond my understanding 20+ years ago.

To illustrate this let me describe how fan subtitles made it to JAFWA then:

  • Someone would tape the original off Japanese TV;
  • The tape, or possibly a copy, would get mailed to the US;
  • Some truly dedicated fans would translate and subtitle a copy of the tape they received;
  • Copies of that tape would then start getting physically distributed.

Now, Western Australia was at the wrong end of that chain. So fansubs took at least 6 months, and usually closer to a year, to get to JAFWA.  There were occasions when they didn’t arrive at all and we used synopses instead.

So being able to stream standard definition to my main TV/Sound System via the iPad within about 2 – 3 weeks of broadcast is almost unbelievable.  I haven’t subscribed as I’m wary of the automatic deductions, so the SD is good enough for me.

I’ll be watching the last episode of Bodacious Space Pirates tomorrow, it is how I watched Hanasaku Iroha, and that alone is enough to make me glad I’m living in the future.

That said however I was flicking through some random shows earlier.

Oh dear.

Can anyone say Sturgeon’s Law? If not, repeat after me: “90% of science fiction, of anything, is crap.”

Fortunately I’m willing to drop a show like a boiling kettle if the first instance of fan service occurs before the first instance of story.  I think two of the shows I watched tonight lasted maybe 30 seconds beyond the opening credits, if that long.

And even this is a small complaint: having such prompt access to quality subtitles is just wonderful.

I love living in the future.

But I still want my jetpack (so long as no one else has one, not stupid here). 🙂

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