After bringing out Haibane Renmei on Blu-ray in Japan back in 2010, NBC Universal Japan is now sliding out a new priced down version. The new release, coming five years after the previous release, will land on October 23rd, 2015 and will be priced at 13,000 yen. The previous release in 2010 was priced at 22,000 yen. The release will largely be identical to what came before with the full thirteen episode run that will come with a special booklet and the original Japanese language in PCM only.
The series was originally released in the US by Geneon/Pioneer and was eventually picked up again after the Universal Geneon merger by FUNimation and was released on DVD in their Anime Classics line in the fall of 2012.
Plot concept: A dream of falling from the sky… and then birth. Rakka is born from a large cocoon into the Old Home, greeted by a group of females with small wings on their backs and shining halos above their heads. Soon Rakka’s own wings grow, a halo is placed on her head and she is told that she must work in the nearby town of Grie. She soon realizes that the town and the entire world they live in are confined behind the Wall, a tall, impenetrable wall that none except the mysterious Toga are allowed to exit.
[Source: Haibane Renmei]
I heard this upscale wasn’t all that stellar, but still would be awesome to see Funimation release this over here. The original DVD release did get onto the Classics line so there’s at least a small chance there I guess.
Maybe they will do a Lain and re-release it on up-scaled Blu-ray.