This week, it's all about Phantom Blood movie merchandise.
But first, our current leads for this week:
Still no word from Sakura Con. Given the fact that it starts on April 7th and they have never gotten back with me, I'd say it's time to simply leave my trust to our contact within the Archive and see how things go from there.
Still no word from any American anime distributors or international film archives that I managed to find. More follow-ups have been sent.
I was recently referred to a website/business by the name of Japan P.I. They're a private investigation company, and depending on how well-versed they are in handling intellectual properties/the film industry, they may or may not be able to lend me their aid in getting in contact with the companies involved with the film. As of recording this episode, I haven't heard anything, but I'll keep you all posted.
Prior to the film's release, there was quite a bit of merchandise and promotional material created to not only promote the film, but also to commemorate the 20th anniversary of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure as a whole. These included keychain straps, statues, and even bookmarks, among others.
I mean, even thinking about the Stone Mask strap... this thing was everywhere.
The Stone Mask Strap was advertised in Seventeen Magazine, showing it as a potential fashion piece.
Speaking of the Stone Mask Strap, doing research on the strap itself was how I found out that the film was initially supposed to come out in the Fall of 2006 - but for unknown reasons (likely being behind schedule, as hinted at during my interviews with Tom Myers and Marco D'Ambrosio), was pushed back to February of 2007. Curious how things work out like that, huh?
The announcement of Phantom Blood's release date on the Stardust Crusaders OVA website: "JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 1 Animated Movie!! Releasing Fall 2006!"
This week we're taking a dive into the major pieces of merchandise that have been documented, including the Stone Mask Strap, and detailing some history about them.
SOURCES/CITATIONS:
Details regarding the Stardust Crusaders OVA Pinball Contest (via the Wayback Machine)
The Stardust Crusaders OVA Pinball Game (via the Wayback Machine, requires Flash Player or equivalent)
The Stardust Crusaders OVA website, detailing Phantom Blood's initial release date (via the Wayback Machine)
As you said, it is amazing we have all this merchandise yet no film. Hopefully this will change. I also find it interesting there was a Stardust Crusaders OVA pinball. That is just oddly funny to me.