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Only the web site is revealed.

http://patlabor-nextgeneration.com/

Source: Kotaku Japan

http://www.kotaku.jp/2013/03/patlabor_live_action_movie.html

Edited by antibiotictab
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I'm told Patlabor has a smaller following than Votoms so where's the VOTOMS movie?

Hell no. Patlabor was WAY more mainstream that Votoms due to its slice of life setup (tv series) and police drama elements.

Either way, this project looks interesting!

English:

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-03-20/mobile-police-patlabor-gets-live-action-project-in-2014

Edited by Tochiro
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I'm told Patlabor has a smaller following than Votoms so where's the VOTOMS movie?

OMG... *facepalm* This IS the divide between Japan and the other countries...

Everybody said Patlabor the 2nd movie was a masterpiece 20 years ago in Japan. You know many fans admire Ghost in the Shell the movie, but seems some of them don't know how great that Patlabor movie also was. Can't believe it.

I checked the Wikipedia page of the 2nd movie. Its mecha designers were like a "Dream Team," wow... Izubuchi, Kawamori, Katoki Hajime, and Kousuke Fujishima. And in the article, there are some very interesting things. Oshii, Katsuhiro Otomo, and James Cameron had a dinner together? And Cameron pointed out Rainbow Bridge saying "the bridge!" and got exited? Wow.

Edited by antibiotictab
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My comment comes from the merchandise = popularity school of thought. Seems to me like Votoms > Patlabor. That's not a national commentary... both franchises were supported entirely by Japanese companies. Maybe I'm wrong... but it seems to me like Patlabor merchandise is a fraction of Votoms merchandise.

EDIT - I don't mean to derail this into a Votoms conversation though, it's cool news on its own.

EDIT II - Seriously though, didn't Votoms have more episodes, more series, a spin off, 4 OVAs, and a mini series (maybe two mini series)? I mean, I'm not saying people don't like their Patlabor but acting like it was WAY more popular than Votoms makes it seem like Sunrise must do a REALLY good job marketing Votoms.

Edited by jenius
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My comment comes from the merchandise = popularity school of thought. Seems to me like Votoms > Patlabor. That's not a national commentary... both franchises were supported entirely by Japanese companies. Maybe I'm wrong... but it seems to me like Patlabor merchandise is a fraction of Votoms merchandise.

My experience is that the exact reverse is true. Ive seen Patlabor plushies, sweets and snacks, puzzles, trading cards, live concert DVDs, albums, artbooks. Votoms? Not so much. I even remember an article from Protoculture addicts back in the 90s that had a double page spread of some of the merchandise available at the series peak. IMO Votoms is more hardcore while Patlabor was humorous/slice of life enough to get more of mainstream viewership when it aired. (Having said that, few people who arent hardcore mecha/anime fans seem to remember either anymore). This is reflected in the years after each series finished too - Votoms got more high end merchandise because of a hardcore, dedicated fanbase, whereas Patlabor stepped out of the spotlight once the next 'big thing' hit.

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That's totally plausible, it might just be that Votoms has more merchandise in my wheel house so it seems to me to be a better supported franchise while Patlabor has a bunch of other merchandise (not toys) so overall it is the more licensed franchise. I did a quick eBay search and it looked like there was about 800 Votoms items for sale and about 1000 Patlabor (that's about as unscientific as it gets, I know).

Similarly though, I asked a friend in the Japanese toy industry "Hey, are there any plans for Votoms' 30th anniversary or Patlabor's 25th." He responded with something that sounds very similar to the last thought in your post, something like "It's doubtful, neither franchise has much of a fan base in Japan any more, although the few Votoms fans are more vocal."

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The new styling of the Ingram kind of makes me lose interest already. That design looks more like a Chinese knock-off.

I remember thinking Gyver was awesome as a kid, then I saw the live action film. Spawn was pretty cool too, then it went live action. Then there was Spiderman, X-men, Transformers, etc. I'm afraid to see what Pacific Rim has done to Evangelion, let alone what this will do to Patlabor.

<--hopes for the best

Edited by LOW_ALT
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That's totally plausible, it might just be that Votoms has more merchandise in my wheel house so it seems to me to be a better supported franchise while Patlabor has a bunch of other merchandise (not toys) so overall it is the more licensed franchise. I did a quick eBay search and it looked like there was about 800 Votoms items for sale and about 1000 Patlabor (that's about as unscientific as it gets, I know).

Similarly though, I asked a friend in the Japanese toy industry "Hey, are there any plans for Votoms' 30th anniversary or Patlabor's 25th." He responded with something that sounds very similar to the last thought in your post, something like "It's doubtful, neither franchise has much of a fan base in Japan any more, although the few Votoms fans are more vocal."

Votoms will eventually be made into Live Action....seems to be the trend.

In regards to this new design.....

I think I like this one better:

PT1.jpg

Edited by peter
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Patlabor's one of those things I always meant to watch and never did. I mean, somewhere around here I have the movies on DVD, but I've never watched them. My only experience with Patlabor is the first episode of the TV series (which I'm given to understand is much lighter in tone).

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At least the Ingram looks more authentic than in this old trailer.

That's it! That's the weird looking "Ingram" I saw long ago.

While I'm not really stoked over the re-design (maybe it's a prototype for the iconic Ingram), I'm hoping it will spur on more merchandise. Like a Yamato (ahem) Arcadia 1/24 Griffon. I want one sooo bad.

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  • 3 months later...

Awesome. Do you think he's going to direct it? Or will he be more of an executive producer type?

I want him to be the latter. I have just talked about it with a member here yesterday. Our thought is that his anime often becomes preachy.

As an animator, he is great. I liked Urusei Yatsura TV so much. I also liked the first GitS movie, even though it was preachy. But "Innocence" was hmmmm for me.

IMO, he is just like an old Yamakan..

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^

His latest films have been a tad verbose so I agree with you. Love all his Patlabor stuff and Urusei Yatsura (specially Beautiful Dreamer). His live action Avalon was pretty good too I thought.

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He's matured as a director - something he made clear about with Innocence: it's a film for fans of his style of film making. Part of me is cheered by that, as he's making films about stuff that he cares about, not about making a lot of money.

Edited by sketchley
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He's matured as a director - something he made clear about with Innocence: it's a film for fans of his style of film making. Part of me is cheered by that, as he's making films about stuff that he cares about, not about making a lot of money.

I hope he is directing, can't think anyone who can do a better job with Patlabor. :)

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