I hate double-dips. I hate triple-dips even more. This is why I really didn’t pay any attention to the 25th Anniversary release of the classic Manga Akira, which has been an animated classic since 1988.

Those of you who grew up watching this epic piece of cinematic history on VHS knows that all of the digital releases carry new English dubs, which is like putting a new voice over Michael Keaton in Batman. I haven’t watched Akira in years, and have sworn it off until the original VHS release found its way to digital media.

Well, the wait is over, as of YESTERDAY!

Now on Blu-ray from Funimation, the 25th Anniversary Blu-ray release of Akira is jam-packed with extras, including the original English dubs!!!!

Also included are: Interview with the Japanese Director, Akira Sound Clip, Storyboard Collection, The Writing on the Wall, Original Japanese Trailers, Original Japanese Commercials, Restoring Akira, Glossary, U.S. Trailer (2013), and Trailers.

“Neo-Tokyo is about to E X P L O D E!

Akira isn’t just a movie – it’s the genesis of a genre. Katsuhiro Otomo’s landmark cyberpunk classic obliterated the boundaries of Japanese animation and forced the world to look into the future. Akira’s arrival shattered traditional thinking, creating space for movies like the The Matrix to be dreamed into brutal reality. Without Kaneda and Tetsuo, without espers and psionic assassins, without that badass motorcycle – our world would be a far less exciting place to exist. But the manga became the movie and the movie became a phenomenon and the world took notice. Now, Akira is everywhere. If you can’t see it in the streets – if you can’t feel it crawling around inside your brain – then you have yet to be initiated. What. Are. You. Waiting. For? ”