Battle of the Planets
The UK company Mollin produced some Battle of the Planets videos and one DVD. Unfortunately Mollin is out of business so they won't produce more than this.
But now there's a new Battle of the Planets video and DVD release for
region 2 (Europe and Japan) and 4 (Australia) by Universal site. The advantage of this one is they put a lot more episodes on one video or DVD than the other companies do or did. And now you can even get a mega boxset with all 85 episodes (also by Universal). That is probably much more than most Dutch fans have ever seen because only 26 episodes have been dubbed and aired as Strijd der Planeten.
Battle of the Planets videos and DVD's are also being released in the United States by Rhino. The first DVD's also have English subbed (!) episodes of Gatchaman and one episode of G-Force, as bonus material.
Please note: The United States have other standards for video and DVD than Europe. The DVD's will be region 1 DVD's. If you don't live in the United States you will need a region free DVD machine to play them. You can only watch the videos if your VCR can play NTSC.
Gatchaman
For a long time you could only get Gatchaman on Japanese DVD's. Since the summer of 2005 Gatchaman is finally available both subbed and dubbed on DVD. ADV Films is releasing the series. For these first 12 eps you can choose from 2 boxes with 6 eps each (Collectors Edition 1 en 2) or a Collectors Editions Box Set with all 12 episodes and a bonus disc.
Please note: These are region 1 DVD's. If you don't live in the United States you will need a region free DVD machine to play them. The Japanse Gatchaman DVD's can be watched with a European machine. But knowing Japanese helps if you want to watch them...
Gatchaman OAV
In the mid-nineties a new version of Gatchaman was released on video: Gatchaman OAV. The team members have their original Gatchaman names in this version, or names that sound alike in English. They look different than in the original Gatchaman. To understand the story you have to know the original Gatchaman story. The videos are available in a subbed or in a dubbed version. Subbed seems to be the best choice. The OAV's are available on video and DVD.
Please note: This is a region 1 DVD. If you don't live in the United States you will need a region free DVD machine to play it. You can only watch the videos if your VCR can play NTSC.
Gatchaman The Movie
Gatchaman The Movie is a compilation of the the first series. It was first released in 1978 and in 2007 a DVD of it has has been released with an option for Dutch subtitles (region 2).
Two versions are available, a standard single disk release with just the movie, and a deluxe edition with a second disc that has the collection of interviews with the Japanese staffand cast that were done for the Japanese DVD release last year, as well as a short "Making of the French Version" film.
Be aware, though, that the Dutch subtitles are available only with the movie itself. None of the bonus material includes this feature, though the interviews with the Japanese staff and cast do include optional French subtitles. The French "Making of..." film has no subtitles in any language.
(Tatsunokofan, thanks for the information!)
Where to find them?
Sendit.com (this store was named Blackstar before) and Amazon in the United Kingdom sell the Universal videos and DVD's. The Dutch store Sorry! No Subtitles stocks them too.
I have also seen the DVD's once at Tracks Multitronics at Schiphol Airport (tel. 020-4053008, close to the NS station).
Go to Amazon to order the US videos and DVD's. Or buy them at the Belgian webstore
You can order Gatchaman DVD's at the OCS Bookshop in Amsterdam. This store is located in the Okura Hotel, Ferdinand Bolstraat 333 (tel +31 (0)20-6799238, tram 12). Tey do need the ordering numbers. You find these number at the Japanese webstore Cdjapan. You can also order the DVD's directly via Cdjapan. Wherever you buy them they will always be expensive: the first two DVD's have an introduction price that's about 41 euro per DVD and you will pay about 64 euro for every other DVD.
The subbed and dubbed ADV DVD's are available through the American web store Amazon or the Belgian webstore Archonia.
A way to get the OAV's is to order them via the American department of Amazon. But the Belgium webstore Archonia sells the DVD. Under merchandise links you find pages with more internet stores that sell these items.
Gatchaman The Movie can be ordered at the Belgian on line store Archonia or at the website ofAniWay magazine.