Discotek Media thankfully rescued all of the Project A-Ko films a few years back but the original is still by the far the best of the bunch – the kind of film that you can revisit over the years and discover more about the more anime you watch. Originally released in 1986, it’s one of the most fascinating projects out there in my opinion.
With the process moving forward in bringing these properties to Blu-ray, Discotek Media last October turned its attention to the fourth and final one of the series with Project A-ko 4: Final. Planned for an early 2023 release, it’ll be in 1080p and include the Japanese and English languages with it. In terms of extras, they’ve got a trailer, some liner notes, and a small art gallery, but even the people behind this are feeling tapped out in trying to find more than that after the past few editions.
While we would have expected it to be a part of the April lineup based on other pickups, this one is being pushed back a bit with no firm date still as they work to ensure its quality. In the meantime, they’ve released a work-in-progress look at the cover artwork that is being put together for it below.
The film was written and directed by Katsuhiko Nishijima based on an original story he wrote with Kazumi Shirasaka. Yuji Moriyama worked on the character designs while APPP handled the animation production.
The Japanese cast includes Emi Shinohara as Biko “B-Ko” Daitokuji, Michie Tomizawa as Shiko “C-Ko” Kotobuki, and Miki Itō as Eiko “A-Ko” Magami. The English dub was directed by Michael Bakewell and the cast includes Denica Fairman as Biko “B-Ko” Daitokuji, Julia Brahms as Shiko “C-Ko” Kotobuki, and Stacey Gregg as Eiko “A-Ko” Magami.
Plot Concept: It’s the not-too-distant future, and a metropolis flourishes in the crash site of an alien spacecraft. A-ko, a teenager growing up in this city, enjoys the life of an ordinary schoolgirl… along with incredible superhuman strength! But her carefree days are numbered. Her school rival, B-ko, is not content to live in the shadows any longer. A-ko’s superpowers and good fashion sense may not be a match for B-ko’s evil genius and Mega-Powered Fighting Robots of Doom!
Project A-ko update!
Project A-ko 4: Final is almost here, so a preview of the new cover!
The original cover will be on the reverse side of the insert. pic.twitter.com/OGzgzTCiDZ
— 💿Discotek Media (@discotekmedia) January 31, 2023
Project A-ko 4!
Fully remastered like the first 3.
Newly polished subs & the classic dub.
We have a remastered trailer & we will see what else we can dig up, but we are running out of A-ko extras!
There will be notes & a gallery, no promises on the size though! pic.twitter.com/B5E20K4m0k
— 💿Discotek Media (@discotekmedia) October 25, 2022
