So I went to E.K. on Sunday for my usual pick-up and noticed that there was a copy of the ADV Thinpak release of Prétear. It was only $40!! (Well, for me, anyway; for other customers it would be $50--the advantage of being a regular! ^_~)
I've been seeing Thinpaks advertised for quite a while but apart from the thinner packaging and substantially lower price, I didn't know if there was any difference between the Thinpak release and the original boxset version.
Well, now I know. The Thinpak release has all of the episodes, yes, but it doesn't have most of the extras that come with the initial disc/boxset releases. With a series like Prétear, I don't really mind the lack of extras since it was a series I was only sort of interested in anyway (I prefer the manga version), but for series like Kodocha or Angelic Layer, I'm glad that I went ahead and got the more expensive single disc release versions (first disc with artbox, of course). (I wish I'd waited for the Thinpak version of Wolf's Rain, though. ^^;;)
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the Prétear anime, but I didn't come away from it feeling as "attached" to the series as, say, Kodomo no Omocha, Fruits Basket, Angelic Layer, or Kenshin. I think Thinpak releases are great for series that you want to watch (and own, I suppose, rather than rent) but for really great series that are or have the potential to become favourites, I think the traditional disc+box/single disc or boxset releases are more satisfying.
