Hey, I just got back from Otakon, and I've got a lot of news regarding Maison Ikkoku that I thought everyone would like to hear. While I was at Otakon this year, I attended the Viz Panel, where you get to ask questions of Viz employees. This year Animerica writer Kit Fox was there and Maison Ikkoku executive producer Toshifuma Yoshida answered questions via cellular phone. Anyway, I'm very happy to say that after I asked a few MI questions the entire room followed suit and Maison was definetely the -most- talked about viz product for the remainder of the meeting. Here are some of the questions that were asked along with some really wonderful answers, that I was thrilled to hear. Q: Is there any chance of the MI dub being brought back? A: No, due to "sales, for lack of a better term" the Maison Ikkoku dubs will not be brought back. Q: Will Maison Ikkoku be released on DVD? A: Viz hopes to release all their titles on DVD. But Viz would like to see how the subtitled VHS tapes sale. Q: If Maison Ikkoku IS released on DVD, will it be subtitled only, or will you haved dubbed episodes all the way up to episode 36 (the last of the dubbed eps.) and then stop? A: If Maison Ikkoku is released on DVD there is no way that Viz would only release it as a subtitled disc. Viz wants it to have as many "bells and whistles" as possible, so if/when the DVD's start the dubbed version will in fact be brought back! Q: Will Viz start a Maison Ikkoku DVD subscription service if the DVD's did not initially sell well? A: Maybe. Q: If the fans buy the subtitled VHS tapes now, can we trade them in to Viz for the Maison Ikkoku DVD's when they are released? A: No. (By the way, everyone really liked this question and laughed when the guy asked.) Thats about it! So basically if the fans really let Viz know that we want Maison Ikkoku on DVD then all the fans will be able to get what they want, dubs, subs, raw japanese, etc. It'll be great! I really hope this helps. Oh, and they did mention the petitions and said they were a good idea, but an even better idea is to buy the VHS tapes...