Alarm bells rang off this week when it appeared that the final TBA spot for Crunchyroll's Spring 2012 lineup had filled, with no second season of Vanguard in sight. This was after nearly a week's silence on the part of Bushiroad, and the airing of ride 67, the second episode of Vanguard's second season. With the license for Asia Circuit seemingly up in the air, fans have continued to petition Bushiroad for more information.
Today, the company published a statement on their official English blog, that due to conditions having changed since the first season, problems have surfaced between the involved parties. No further updates on the matter can be posted until the issues between companies have been resolved, however Bushiroad is clearly still working to make Asia Circuit available through Crunchyroll. Exactly which company is the source of the disagreement is unknown--the prime suspect forum outcry is arising against is Crunchyroll itself.
In the interim, many fans both individual and in groups are working to release their own subtitles for Asia Circuit. Fansubs, while widely known as being profitable in the long term as free advertisement for both the company and viewers, are associated with the same problems of any uncontrolled method of distribution. While it would be impossible to obscure authorship of Vanguard without the deliberate intent to do so, the short-term profits gained from ad cross-promotion tend to suffer the most where fansubs are concerned. It has been demonstrated in the past however, that unless an official alternative is provided fans will continue to create their own methods of distribution.
