Brian T

Now that I think of it, they did a Blu-only set for DRAGONS FOREVER as well, so it would make sense to do it with these two as well, and then standard editions later (in trying to find info on the PROJECT A sets, which is scarce, I noticed the 4K and Blu standard editions of SUPERCOP are up for preorder at Amazon now). And then, with all the money they make I’ll assume they’ll be able to pursue lots of titles that haven’t been released before outside of Hong Kong.

dex14

They announced a standalone Blu set will be available too.

Brian T

Had a feeling – good to know.

I’ll still hold out hope that we’ll see more movement, from some label, somewhere, on Jackie Chan movies that have been semi-MIA in their HK versions on HD formats (like PS4, THUNDERBOLT, WHO AM I, ISLAND ON FIRE, NAUGHTY BOYS, RUMBLE IN THE BRONX), as well as the plethora of non-JC, non-Shaw action movies that have still barely been tapped over here. Of course, I also won’t be surprised if we work our way up (down?) to a 4K box set of FEARLESS HYENA movies before then.

dex14

Frank Djeng: "Ever since Vinegar Syndrome announced their Black Cat Double Feature set, I’ve been inundated with inquiries by UK fans as to whether 88 Films will release Black Cat 2.
With 88’s blessings, I can confirm that, yes, Black Cat 2 is coming this year and I will be helping out with the release. In fact, I actually gave a hint for it on my IG 2 months ago with the post below. Expect a commentary and a brand new interview with Jade…and hopefully someone else as well."

Brian T

Well of course that was inevitable! They couldn’t just do a double feature in the first place, or wait until they could access/make better scans for one. Almost shouldn’t say this because I admire his work, but Frank undoubtedly gets to double-bill for a lot of this stuff, as do most other ‘supplementarians’ in general these days.

And just knowing that I have to slog through noise of social media for all the “hints” and “clues” and other details of stuff like this keeps me off social media for the most part, so kudos for doing the work, Dex!

milo bloom

Which Black Cat is that?

I've realized I want the Black Cats box set from Arrow, is it the same?

Brian T

It’s the Hong Kong action films. Vinegar Syndrome just put up a preorder for a two-film set, whereas 88 released only the first film a few years back, much to the chagrin of HK malcontents like myself.

I think the Arrow BLACK CATS set might be out of print, though?

rocket1312

So wait, are you implying that Frank Djeng convinced 88 films to release the two Black Cat films separately so that he could get paid twice?

dex14

A lot of those guys don't even get paid. If anything, they get a free copy of the finished Blu.

Brian T

I’ve heard that, but I’ve also heard that some of the more prolific ones are some coin. I’m sure they’ll never get rich, and everyone seems to want to get paid for spreading their fandom these days. Could be worse, I suppose. Like all the YouTube movie and pop culture junkies who want viewers to pay them to make videos.

dex14

Definitely not getting rich. Frank still works at his public library. Dude never sleeps.

Most of the ones who were involved over the last few years were doing it solely because they wanted these HK films to receive the proper treatment they deserve.

Brian T

Fair enough to Frank. I knew he still had the day job (and would be silly to give up something that steady). My comment about the supplement folks making money was more of a blanket statement beyond just those who do the HK stuff, and about the ‘industry’ in general. I remember reading some FB posts a few years back from a fairly prominent commentator arguing how little they got paid, trying to make ends meet, etc., as in, not doing it for free but also not getting a ton of money, but also obviously angling to make it a full time thing. Since that time, though, this person and quite a few others have become so ubiquitous as go-to authorities (even on films outside their scope historically speaking) that it’s hard not to imagine at least some of them having a nice sideline. And hey, it is work after all, even if most of us with access to good reference libraries could do it. I’m sure a lot of contributors, especially those who are essentially repurposing work from their blogs or websites into essays for insert booklets, are probably happy to be ‘reimbursed’ in additional traffic to their sites or social media, even better if they can do the same work twice for UK and US editions.

Adam Tyner

I don’t remember seeing this mentioned here, but Jasper Sharp left Arrow to oversee a new Japanese-centric line from 88, so that could be pretty exciting.

dex14

Looks like they are teasing Fist of Legend on their site. And it will apparently be in 4K as well.



Masters of the Universe as well...

rocket1312

Psyched for Fist of Legend. Less psyched that I bought the Ronin Flix version last year even though I knew this was probably going to happen sooner or later.

dex14

You could probably unload them on eBay if you do it now.

With how low the price got on all of their Jet Li releases, I was VERY tempted to grab them.... but I knew the license was limited and they seemed like total cash grabs. I had a strong suspicion that one of the UK labels would be doing more Li in the future, and it sounds like 88 has a few lined up.

PhantomStranger

The recent Fist of Legend BD didn't lead me to believe it justified a 4K release. Can't imagine it being a massive upgrade in 4K.

Brian T

I resisted the temptation on FIST because, like Dex says, something smelled fishy about the Ronin releases. They were basically the old Dragon Dynasty versions without the logo or the Bey Logan stuff (more or less; although why they kept the Brett Ratner stuff is beyond me). I did find the FONG SAI YUK double-feature fairly cheaply (at Hamilton, I think?), but I suspect those will be on the horizon as well . . . again. It's cool that Li's filmography might finally get the same kind of attention that Jackie Chan's has, though. Mind you, it would also be nice if they move beyond FIST and FONG relatively quickly and get into reissuing some of his other fun titles, like HIGH RISK (aka the edited MELTDOWN in the US).

Noticed the edit above to include MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE. Just updated the Umbrella thread with April releases, which include that one.

dex14

It was the same 10+ year old transfer. 88's will not be that.

Brian T

I'm sure a lot of us would be perfectly fine with a Blu-ray edition made from the 4K scan, too. I'm glad there will be a 4K option available, but I fear a lot of these companies are starting to move into '4K + Blu combo only' territory (without separate standard editions down the road), essentially forcing us into the higher price point with discs (either one, really) that many buyers won't need. I'm not assuming 88 will do this, and for something like FIST OF LEGEND I can grin and bear it (though not quietly, obviously ), but hopefully some of his 'lesser' titles might be well served by Blu alone.

dex14

Here's some footage from the 4K restoration... and I'm sure 88 will put their polish on it too.

L Everett Scott

I guess it's too soon to tell if 88's Fist of Legend will be the unadulterated version with the

• original opening and closing credits
• epilogue text
• post-epilogue bit with the Jingwu Mun students jogging
• the post-credits shot of the production crew

Brian T

Generally speaking, I’m more confident in these newer boutiques and the people they employ to get those things right than I was in most of the labels releasing — and bastardizing — Hong Kong movies for pretty much the entire duration of the DVD era and a good chunk of the Blu-ray era. Still, fingers crossed.

rocket1312

It's technically too soon to know for sure, but I am 99.9% confident that this will be the complete HK version. I assume we'll get the extended Taiwanese version as well.

dex14

Q2 titles. These are up on Amazon UK now.

The Inspector Wears Skirts 3 UK BLU-RAY
The Inspector Wears Skirts 4 UK BLU-RAY
Beast in the Cellar UK BLU-RAY
Beast in the Cellar UK DVD
Gator - 88 Vault #11 UK BLU-RAY
Gator UK DVD
Vertical Limit UK BLU-RAY
Evolution UK BLU-RAY
Evolution UK DVD
Fearless Hyena 2 UK BLU-RAY
Shock Waves - 88 Vault #12 UK BLU-RAY
Shock Waves UK DVD
The Inspector Wears Skirts 3 USA BLU-RAY
The Inspector Wears Skirts 4 USA BLU-RAY
The Project A Collection - 4 Disc Deluxe Limited Edition [4K Ultra HD+Blu-ray]
The Project A Collection - 2 Disc Special Edition [Blu-ray]