Sentai Filmworks announced a new Blu-ray set of the classic Shojo Beat series, Nana.
The beloved anime series about two women with the same name has been out of print of several years, with old DVDs of its original VIZ Media release now selling for several times their original price on the used market. Sentai has now licensed the series and will release all 47 episodes of show on Blu-ray with an all new HD transfer. The new release will also include 3 recap specials, as well as clean versions of all of the show's opening and ending animation sequences. The series will be contained on 6 discs, which will be packaged within a steelbook case featuring art of both Nanas. The new collection will be released on Feb. 22, 2022 and is currently available for preorder for $104.99.
Nana tells the story of two women in their twenties who are both named Nana: the first, Nana Komatsu, is a bright and cheerful girl who is into traditionally "girly" things, while Nana Osaki is a world-weary vocalist and songwriter in a punk-rock band. The two meet on a train as they are both moving to Tokyo: Komatsu is moving to the metropolis to seek romance, while Osaki wants to further her music career. Despite their differences, the two quickly become best friends and support each other as the harsh realities of big city life threaten to end both of their dreams.
The series was created by Ai Yazawa, who also created other popular shojo series such as Paradise Kiss and Princess Ai. The manga was serialized in Shueisha's Cookie magazine from 2000 - 2009, and was originally released in English by VIZ Media through the short-lived Shojo Beat magazine. The series is one of the best selling shojo manga of all time, with over 50 million copies in circulation as of 2019. Madhouse, the studio behind the anime adaptations of Death Note and Hunter X Hunter, animated all 47 episodes of the TV show in 2006. The anime starred Romi Park (Edward Elric in both Fullmetal Alchemist anime series,) as Nana Osaki and Kaori (Kaleido Star, Pokémon: Advance Generation) as Nana Komatsu. The show was directed by Morio Asaka, who would later go on to direct all three seasons of another shojo anime classic, Chihayafuru. In addition to the anime, the manga was also adapted into two Japanese live-action films, which were released in 2005 and 2006 and starred Jpop singer Mika Nakashima.
Similar to Yazawa's preceding work, Paradise Kiss, Nana received widespread critical acclaim for its stylish art and character designs, as well as its grounded, mature story and easily relatable characters. In 2002, Nana was awarded the prestigious Shogakukan Manga Award in the shojo category.
Source: Sentai Filmworks
