Danica Davidson
July 10, 2024 
AnimEigo is bringing the Riding Bean OVA to TVOD platforms (such as Google Play, YouTube, and Amazon) and giving it a home release on Blu-ray. Pre-orders have begun, and the street date is September 10. If you get it here through the MediaOCD store, they’re offering a bonus exclusive slipcover. The slipcover is free with purchase, but they have limited supplies. So when the slipcovers are gone, they’re gone.
The iconic OVA is 45 minutes long, and rated 16+. It came out in 1989, which is coincidentally the same year that AnimEigo was founded. You can check out this trailer for Riding Bean.
The special features on the Blu-ray are an image gallery, original trailers, a brand-new interview with Kenichi Sonoda, and a Blu-ray trailer.
Here’s an official description for the Blu-ray:
Visiting the Chicagoland area and in need of a getaway driver? Well, there’s no better wheelman than Bean Bandit–the infamous Roadbuster! Provided you’ve got the scratch, Bean and his blonde bombshell of a partner, Rally Vincent, will get you where you need to go. Not long after finishing up a sketchy job, the Roadbuster is tasked with returning a young member of Chicago’s elite to her family’s estate. But what starts out as a simple taxi gig quickly becomes way more than Bean and Rally had bargained for…
From the high-octane imagination of Kenichi Sonoda (Gunsmith Cats, Otaku no Video) and the animation gearheads of AIC (Bubblegum Crisis, Tenchi Muyo) comes a classic tale of trouble in the windy city! This action-packed can of beautiful Bean Bandit footage rolls onto Blu-ray in stunning high definition! Featuring the original Japanese language with English subtitles alongside the English Dub!
AnimEigo gave this description for itself:
Established in 1989, AnimEigo, Inc. is not only one of the first companies to release Anime in the United States and Canada, but also one of the first companies to release significant numbers of high-quality Japanese live-action films. Over the last 35 years AnimEigo consistently broadened the market for Japanese films by finding audiences for entire new genres of films.
Source: Press release
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Danica Davidson is the author of the bestselling Manga Art for Beginners with artist Melanie Westin, plus its sequel, Manga Art for Everyone, and the first-of-its-kind manga chalk book Chalk Art Manga, both illustrated by professional Japanese mangaka Rena Saiya. Check out her other comics and books at www.danicadavidson.com.
