They say not to throw in the towel until the fight is officially over, and moments like now are why that saying exists. Chances are you’ve read several of my previous articles about the state of “Case Closed” in America and what fans could do if they wanted to save the show. For the most part it came down to buying the DVD’s to push some money in the franchise (and that’s still important by the way), but there has been one aspect to this whole thing that has been frustrating on the fans side because the results could tip the scales to our favor: Streamed episodes. As I pointed out in previous articles, Funimation does not stream “Case Closed.”
Even though there is obviously a large chunk of people who’ve become fans of the show through illegal streaming. For years this series has gained a strong cult following because of illegal streams. I’d feel sorry for Funimation except for the fact that they could have been doing this all along and made some money while doing it, which might have justified more episodes. We got two different answers for why this didn’t happen though. The first is that Funimation has a quality policy and didn’t want to stream stuff that wasn’t at least 720p quality. I have no idea if that’s true or not, but the second reason made more sense: They just simply didn’t have the rights to.
I’m more willing to be this second option than the first because even if streaming is pennies there’s still money to be made there. For a long time the fans have been begging Funimation for streaming because many “Case Closed” fans can’t…sorry, WON’T (not trying to judge but you know it’s true) buy the DVD’s! If YouTube and bit torrent is any indication though they’ve seen the numbers, and they must realize there is an audience out there that is streaming it that might be worth tapping into. And if they didn’t have the streaming rights, then obviously they had to pay for them. This means Funimation is not completely done with “Case Closed!!!”
If they were completely done with the property they wouldn’t bother doing this! It may sound minor to some, but this is probably the most newsworthy thing to come from the franchise in a few years! Even better is the fact that the show is being streamed both subbed and dubbed, and the episodes are coming out slowly (a few every week from what I understand). That could suggest something big is in the pipe or it could not, but the main point is that they are beginning to stream them. This means that we essentially have one last chance to show them that there is an audience for this show! Take notes boys and girls because I might not get to do this again.
1. Subscribe to Funimations Service
Alright, so I guess we need to address the elephant in the room that at the moment these streamed episodes can’t be watched by just anyone. Instead, you need to subscribe to Funimations streaming service to watch them. The service costs $7.95 a month and right now they are offering a free trial period. From what I understand this service can be watched on computers and devices. Not only would you be able to watch “Case Closed” online, but you will be able to watch many of the vast anime titles Funimation has online, so for some the $8 a month (which is less than a movie ticket I want to add) is a great deal.
However I don’t want to be a commercial for Funimations streaming service, so if you haven’t subscribed but want to now there is something key we must do: We MUST let them know that we are subscribing to their service because we want to watch “Case Closed!” If you feel passionately about it even say that once episodes stop being uploaded to the service you’ll cancel. That’ll let them know that you’re serious about getting more of the show. If you don’t want to subscribe though…
2. Funimation will open the episodes up to the general public
…then Funimation will eventually make the episodes available for general streaming. In this case the streaming works the same way; you’ll just have to watch some commercials during the show. Hey! Don’t cry there’s no such thing as a free lunch. They have to make their money somehow. From what I understand “Case Closed” episodes will initially be exclusive to subscribers, but after a couple weeks those episodes will be available to anyone to watch. And now comes our part.
3. WATCH THEM!!!
This should go without saying folks, but if we want more episodes we have to start streaming the show as much as we can. Streaming episodes and getting some of those YouTube stats on Funimations website will speak volumes that we want more episodes. Why, they even give you the option to watch subbed and dubbed so you can vote for which version you like watching. But we need to stream them guys. Even if we’re not watching them we need to stream them. Since I write a lot I’ll be streaming episode after episode in the background while I work on my writing. If you’ve wanted to watch the show legally you can do marathon weekends.
This also means that sites like allkidsouttathepool need to stop hosting episodes. Like, right away. Direct them towards the Funimation site. Give them the numbers. They’re the ones who are giving us a chance to show that we still love the show and want more of it. In short, this is what fans can do if they (for whatever reason) couldn’t support the show by:
• Buying the DVD’s
• Writing letters to Funimation
• Tweeting about the cause
• Buying the manga (yes, even though Viz owns the manga buying it still helps our cause)
• Writing e-mails to Netflix and Hulu asking if they would sponsor new episodes
This is the easiest things fans can do and (let’s face it) most of you are doing this already. So once those episodes are freed up put them on constant streaming to get numbers up. Subscribers do the same only make sure you let Funimation know you subscribed to the service for “Case Closed!” This could be our last chance folks. If we can’t do this then I won’t feel sorry for us if we don’t get more episodes.
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