Orphan at 15

Orphan Fansubs turned 15 in September. I missed it completely, just like I did its ten-year anniversary, but better late than never.

In that blog post, I recounted the impetus for the group's creation and its early history. It has morphed almost continuously since its founding, from an initial focus on finishing incomplete series to an expanded focus on shows trapped on the wrong side of the Digital Divide, as well as cats, the works of Tezuka Osamu, and anything else that catches the team's fancy. After more than 400 projects, the group is as active and productive as ever, thanks largely to an infusion of new blood from the kairetsu of back-catalog groups that hang out on Discord. 

When one of the team's current translators told me that he grew up watching Orphan's releases, I was touched - and astonished - but it also made me wonder: what makes an Orphan release? At the outset, that was easy. The subs and encodes came from other sources; I did the editing, the typesetting, sometimes the QC or timing, as well as the release checking. But over the years, that has mostly changed. Orphan's been blessed with many talented and productive translators. Experienced timers took that task away from my incompetent fingers early on. Encoders have allowed Orphan to use "primary sources" for its encodes. Multiple eagle-eyed QCs have checked the releases. Now, even some of the editing and typesetting is done by other team members. So what's the difference between, say, an Orphan release and a Discord-keiretsu release that uses exactly the same people for translation, timing, editing, typesetting, QC, and encoding?

The answer is final approval. It's not an Orphan release unless I sign off on it. If that makes me more like "Inspector 12" in the Hanes underwear commercials than anything else, so be it. "It doesn't say Orphan until I say it says Orphan." I want everyone who works on an Orphan release to be proud of it. That includes me as well.

I'm glad that Orphan is going strong, but, as Clint Eastwood presciently remarked, "A man's got to know his limitations." Ten years ago, Orphan could knock off a 50-episode series like Shirokuma Cafe. Even a couple of years ago, we could do a 26-episode series like Tezuka Osamu's Tales from the Old Testament. Nowadays, I'm much more cautious. I don't have the stamina for prolonged projects. One season - twelve or thirteen episodes - is the limit. Mostly, I prefer smaller projects, like movies and OVAs. Fortunately, there are still lots of those.

The last five years have included so many good releases that adding another "Top 5" or "Top 10" list to the original blog seems impossible. Instead, I'd point to themes: World War II movies and series like Kimu no Juujika, Hoshizora no Violin, Aoi Kioku, Chocchan Monogatari, Natsufuku no Shoujo-tachi, and the Sensou Douwa specials; the continuing work on Tezuka Osamu's oeuvre, including Tales from the Old Testament, Magma Taishi, and Kyoto Animation Works; the extended Sangokushi project of movies and TV specials; the Takahashi Rumiko OVAs; the works of Watase Seizou, including Heart Cocktail, its sequels, and other manganime; and the many Young Animator's Training Project OVAs. Other standouts have been Tistou Midori, Michite Kuru Toki no Mukou ni, Hameln no Violin Hiki, and MAPS. The team even finished a few orphans: Sanada 10 and Kingdom of Chaos: Born to Kill.

The last five years have included productive collaborations on joint projects, with Inka, DarkWispers, LonelyChaser, Saizen, and others. Orphan and the other back catalog teams have amorphous boundaries, which is just fine. The staff has evolved constantly; that's fine too. The current crew is as good as any I've worked with. Thank you all for joining and sticking with Orphan.

What does the future hold for the group? Mostly a focus on anime's past. We're redoing Animated Classics of Japanese Literature, from 1986, where sources are available. I'd like to do more of the early Toei Douga features, many of which now have remastered sources. There's the rest of Cat-Eyed Boy, hopefully from the remastered DVD box that comes out in 2026. Anything with actual cats. You know the drill. I dream of subbing Tezuka Osamu's first color anime series, 1969's Gokuu no Daibouken, but at 39 episodes, that's a bridge too far.

I'll close by acknowledging and thanking Orphan's audience. I know it's not large, but it has been both attentive and supportive. I'm glad that Orphan's releases help to lighten these dark times, at least for some. We'll try to keep it up for a while longer.