Ask John: What Happened To Streamline’s Titles?

Question:
Is there any news on who will be picking up the anime titles that were previously released by Streamline/Orion video? (i.e.. Akira, Fist of the North Star, Vampire Hunter D, etc.)

Answer:
Many of these titles have been divided up among several companies while others are still in limbo. Urban Vision now owns the domestic rights to Wicked City and the original Vampire Hunter D. Urban Vision will be releasing their version of these titles very soon. Pioneer has picked up the distribution rights to Akira, and is kicking around the idea of re-releasing the film theatrically. AD Vision now owns the domestic distribution rights to The Secret of Blue Water. Manga Entertainment now owns the rights to Lupin III: Cagliostro’s Castle. Unfortunately, though, other Streamline titles like Robot Carnival, Manie Manie (Neo-Tokyo) and Silent Mobius are still in limbo.