Do you miss the amazing box art of anime VHS tapes, laser discs, and DVDs? Here’s a way to get it back while expanding your wardrobe.
The other day, our Japanese-language reporter Ahiru Neko was the only one at SoraNews24 headquarters, everyone else having gone out for field work or found some excuse to skip work entirely. Over the clacking of the keys of his keyboard, though, he heard a loud THUMP from out in the hall.
He stood up and walked to the door, and when he opened it, he found…
…a large box, with “4 video tapes” written across the top.
This was pretty weird, because not only had no one on our staff ordered any VHS tapes, we don’t even have a VCR in the office on which to play the video medium of yesteryear. But when Ahiru Neko opened the box up, he found what appeared to be four VHS cassettes, with their cover art identifying them as volumes from landmark science fiction anime series Cowboy Bebop and Ghost in the Shell.
But there was something strange. The cases weren’t the typical clamshell design that was synonymous with premium VHS packaging. Instead, they had zippers running along their tops.
▼ The case we received in the mail (left) and the actual case for the corresponding VHS tape (right).
His curiosity piqued, Ahiru Neko unzipped one of the Cowboy Bebop cases and discovered…
…it contained a T-shirt, with the artwork matching the illustration on the case it came in!
It turned out the package we got in the mail had come from Videsta, a new fashion label that takes its inspiration from anime packaging in the golden age of physical media.
It’s not just VHS that Videsta fondly remembers, either. They also offer shirts based on the cover illustrations for anime laser discs, DVDs, and Blu-rays.
▼ Things get even more meta when you factor in that the Cowboy Bebop LD jackets also look like vinyl record covers.
In addition to Bebop and Ghost, Videsta also has shirts for fans of Devilman…
…and the Hayao Miyazaki-directed 1970s TV series Future Boy Conan, a.k.a. Conan: The Boy in Future.
The double-dose of awesome illustrations means that not only can you adorn yourself with it, you can also use the packaging to create an anime art gallery in your home.
▼ Even the backsides are faithful recreations of the associated video packages.
Of course, if he was going to set up all the packages, Ahiru Neko was going to try on all the shirts in the box, with the remainder consisting of giant robot throwback Shin Getter Robo…
…director Mamoru Oshii’s live-action StrayDog: Kerberos Panzer Cops…
…Dallos, the first-ever direct-to-video anime…
…and the British-made Thunderbirds, the only non-Japanese series in the Videsta lineup.
Prices for Videsta’s shirt/art case combos vary by exact design, but hover around 5,000 yen (US$45). They also have smartphone and commuter pass cases, and if you don’t want to go as retro as Ahiru Neko’s new wardrobe, there are shirts for newer series, such as Code Geass and Eureka Seven, all of which can be ordered online though Bandai Namco (here) or Cospa (here).
Related: Videsta
Images: SoraNews24
(c)士郎正宗・Production I.G/講談社・攻殻機動隊製作委員会 (c)SUNRISE (c)NIPPON ANIMATION CO.,LTD. (c)1990押井守／バンダイビジュアル・フジテレビ (C)1990バンダイビジュアル (c)1998 永井豪・石川賢／ダイナミック企画・「真ゲッターロボ」製作委員会 (c)永井豪/ダイナミック企画 (c)1987 ダイナミック企画・講談社・キングレコード Thunderbirds（TM） and (C)ITC Entertainment Group Limited 1964, 1999 and 2018. Licensed by ITV Ventures Limited. All rights reserved”
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