I was looking on the Disney Rewards site to print out a coupon for the new Bambi blu-ray release coming out this week and was very surprised to also see an offer for Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind as well. So the deal is this: If you own ANY Studio Ghibli film (I assume only those put out by Disney), you can enter the UPC code on the Disney site and get a coupon good for $10 off the March 8 release of the Nausicaa blu-ray/dvd combo.

You have to register with Disney Rewards, which is free. I bet Disney ends up doing this with all upcoming Miyazaki blu-ray releases since it's called an "upgrade" offer. You can only print out one coupon. The added bonus is that Disney usually gives you a $10 off coupon for almost every new release of their films if you are a member.  

Here's the link to the offer:

http://www.disneymovierewards.go.com/promotions/special-offers/nausicaa-upgrade

Podcast manga review of Lives Volume 1 by Masayuki Taguchi (Battle Royale) Translated by Monica Seya Chin. Adapted by Bryce P. Coleman. Originally published in Japan by Akita Publishing. Published in US by Tokyopop, $13.99, Rated Mature 18+.

From the back cover:

"A freak meteor shower devestates the Kanto region of Japan. Those caught in the blast find themselves mysteriously transported to a strange world where humans transform into cannibalistic beasts who must fight to survive! In this new, violent world, martial arts student Shinman Shingo must resist the urge to kill, and instead forge a path of peace to protect his friends--- and his own humanity."

My Grade: A

Podcast Episode 232: In this episode I comment on the price increases of Tokyopop and Yen Press and the apathy among the manga community about the price hikes.

Among the topics covered: The schizophrenia of Yen Press prices, Tokyopop's rip-off $12.99 books, incest among publishers and bloggers, the lotus eaters of the Anime News Network forum, the current American way of charging more for less, the incompetence of Manga publisher CEOS, overpricing licenses, limited edition anime shoved down our throats.