Ask John: What Happened to the Just For Kids Anime Line?

Question:
I have a collection of “Celebrity’s Just for Kids” video cassettes from the late 1980s or so. Who was responsible for this publishing? Whatever happened to them? What is John’s opinion of the line?

Answer:
There are probably not that many contemporary American anime fans that remember the “Just For Kids” line of anime videotapes. In fact, there are probably only a small minority of today’s anime fans that even know that these tapes exist. My own recollection of them is vague, and even trying to research them online turns up rather little information. As far as I can tell, Celebrity Home Video began releasing numerous anime titles in America around 1987. These films were heavily edited to remove violence and other objectionable material, and shortened to appeal to child viewers’ shorter attention spans. In perhaps the most serious case, 37 minutes were trimmed from the running time of the Blade of Kamui movie for its “Just for Kids” release. As far as I can determine, the anime released under the “Just For Kids” banner consists of:

Back to the Forest (Nodoka Mori no Dobutsu Daisenso)
Battle for Moon Station Dallos (Dallos)
Bumpty Boo (Hey! Bumbuu)
Clash of the Bionoids (Superdimensional Fortress Macross movie)
Defenders of the Vortex (Cyborg 009)
Legend of Manxmouse (Tondemonezumi Dai Katsuyaku)
Locke: The Superpower (Locke the Superman)
Macron 1 (a combination of Srungle and Goshogun) – 5 volumes released
Magical Princess Gigi (Minky Momo)
Noozles (Fushigi na Koala Blinky) – 7 volumes released
Ox Tales Gera Gera Bus Monogatari) – 4 volumes released
Revenge of the Ninja Warrior (Dagger of Kamui)
Secret of the Seal (Tottoi)
Serendipity the Pink Dragon (Serendipity Monogatari yori, Pure Shima no Nakamatachi)
Sherlock Hound (Great Detective Holmes) – 7 volumes released
Space Firebird (Phoenix 2772)
Space Warriors: Battle for Earth Station S-1 (Space Warrior Baldios)
Story of 15 Boys (Jugo Shonen no Hyoryuki)
Techno Police 21C
Tom Sawyer (Tom Sawyer no Bouken)
Vengeance of the Space Pirate (My Youth in Arcadia)
Wee Wendy (Tongari Boushi no Memoru)

And Celebrity Home Video released “E.Y.E.S. of Mars” (the 1993 anime film “Mother: Saigo no Shojo Eve”), but not as part of the “Just For Kids” line.

Although these anime titles were poorly dubbed and were often heavily edited, including having 36 minutes cut from Dallos, 23 minutes cut from the Macross movie, 3 minutes cut from Technopolice 21C, and 28 minutes cut from Arcadia of my Youth, for many young anime fans of the time, myself included, these releases were better than nothing. Nearly all of these titles are now out of print on American home video, and now that the American anime fan community has matured, I can’t imagine that there would be very many, if any contemporary anime fans that would be interested in watching these heavily censored anime tapes. Likewise, because they’re now vintage VHS releases and not very well localized ones at that, I seriously doubt that these tapes have any significant monetary value. I suspect that they’re now worth far more as historical mementos than as collectables.

But it is interesting that among these releases are anime titles that have never been faithfully released in America. In fact, while researching this answer, I was surprised to discover official American releases of titles including Magical Princess Minky Momo and the 1982 motion picture Jugo Shonen no Hyoryuki. I didn’t know previously that these titles had ever been officially released in America. I think it’s interesting to discover that there’s been more anime released in America than most American fans realize. And I think it’s also interesting to view the “Just For Kids” line as a marker by which to judge the evolution of the American anime industry. The modern anime industry definitely treats anime a bit more respectfully now than was the case back in the 1980s, before there was an actual American anime industry. At the same time, I think it’s interesting to find that there’s very little demand, among contemporary anime fans, for these vintage titles that were once considered commercially viable in America. In the 1980s, Celebrity Home Video certainly didn’t know that it was distributing an anime by the director that would later helm Ghost in the Shell, or anime directed by Hayao Miyazaki, or anime that Gainax’s Otaku no Video labeled as one of the landmarks in the history of magical girl anime. But I find it somewhat discouraging to find that 20 years later, when the American anime industry and its fans are more educated and discriminating, we still don’t have uncut versions of Dallos or the Macross movie or Minky Momo or Locke the Superman on American home video.

Thanks to Tama83 and John C. Watson for assistance with this article.