2Sep/109
Review: Highschool of the Dead 9
Posted by The Austin Critic
This is a guest post written by The Austin Critic. Check out his blog here!
I don't get Highschool of the Dead. There are times when it's trying to be a gritty zombie show, and other times when it's a completely over-the-top, fanservice filled action show. For example, the previous episodes had scenes which featured realistic weapon handling and a few uses of strategy, giving me the impression that this was a realistic portrayal of the zombie apocalypse. The next minute however, the main characters suddenly gain the abilities of Schwarzenegger and start dodging bullets, using weaponry, driving CG military vehicles into hordes of zombies and plowing through countless undead with melee weapons. It also doesn't help that the fanservice just stops any chance that anyone could take this show seriously. This episode was further proof that this series is having an identity crisis, as one minute it decides to show the mental conflicts that Saeko has gone through before and during this zombie apocalypse, only to completely discard this serious subject matter with fanservice.
Read more after the break.
31Aug/105
Bakacast Briefs – Chupacabra Attack!
Posted by Stilts
iTunes | Direct Download | RSS
On this episode of Bakacast Briefs, we take an trip to Bizarro World, where the only show that manages to impress us is Highschool of the Dead. Of course, it doesn't impress for any good reasons, but still. Weird, huh?
Anyway, in addition to the reviews, we briefly discuss a minor controversy concerning an ad for an Arizona sushi bar and answer some very strange Twitter questions from our faithful listeners.
The shows we talk about, as usual, are:
- Highschool of the Dead #8 (sadly, the infamous supersonic boob scene video was taken down off YouTube)
- Occult Academy #8
- K-ON!! #21
[Music used in this episode is "S U P E R S C A R Y" by The Kiffness.]
27Aug/104
Bakacast Briefs – Revenge of the Bookworms
Posted by Ritsu
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We've got a new co-host this week! We call him Glen, but you might better know him as Nagato, a long-lost friend and one of the original founding members of Project Haruhi. With him by our side, we start off by discussing Oxford's hilarious and misdirected attempts to understand anime culture. After that, Chris gets all nostalgic about his very first manga, Love Hina. Finally, we move on to this week's anime reviews.
- Highschool of the Dead #7
- Occult Academy #7
- K-ON!! #20
WARNING! If you are the kind of fan who blindly worships any anime he enjoys, you might want to go elsewhere. We don't hesitate to criticize these shows in the snarkiest fashion possible, which means a certain degree of intelligent and critical thought is required to fully appreciate our reviews. If you're going to accuse us of being haters or trolls merely because we didn't like one of your favorite shows, just don't bother. I'm sure a site like Sankaku Complex or 4chan would be more amicable to your tastes.
[Music used in this episode is "Let's Go to Tokyo" by J. Arthur Keenes.]
18Aug/1026
Review: Highschool of the Dead 7
Posted by Stilts
lol BOOBIES!!!!!!
Let me tell you something about myself that you may not know: I don't like living in a bubble. I tend to browse other anime forums and blogs, because I like seeing what other critics have to say about the shows I'm watching. Often times I'll find at least one intelligently-stated point that I didn't think of, which is always a fun experience for me. However, as I was looking over comments about Highschool of the Dead, I noticed that there tends to be a pattern in the backlash toward negative reviews. Some fans believe reviewers like me aren't being fair to the show.
"Why are you judging it so harshly?" they ask. "It's not supposed to be deep or meaningful or smart. It's trying to be silly, flashy fun!"
And you know what? Maybe they have a point. Maybe I'm approaching the show all wrong. I mean, if its goal is to be shallow, pandering, inconsistent and misogynistic, then why should I criticize it for hitting the mark?
Truly, I have seen the light; and to celebrate my epiphany, I'm making this review an extra-special one. I've decided to put as much effort into it as the writers of Highschool of the Dead put into their show.
*ahem*
It's stupid, it sucks, and I hate it.
...
What? You want to know why I don't like HotD #7? You think what I wrote is far too brief and vague to be of any use at all as a review?
Well of course my review is shallow, boring and worthless. It's supposed to be! Since I've clearly met my goals perfectly, it wouldn't be fair to post negative opinions about it.
Suck it, critics!
17Aug/103
Bakacast Briefs – Bang Bang! Boobies!
Posted by Stilts
iTunes | Direct Download | RSS
Have we mentioned breasts yet? We have? Okay, just making sure. It seems like a pretty good way to get a bunch of listeners.
Anyway, we start of this week's podcast by talking about the most popular anime and video game names Japanese parents give their kids. Though we each had different favorites, we all agreed that it would be super awkward to name your daughter after a character you own a wallscroll of.
After that, we take on:
There's no Sengoku Basara 2 review today, because I'm an idiot and forgot to watch the most recent episode. GO ME!
[The music used in this episode is "TV Games" by The Kiffness.]
11Aug/1024
Review: Highschool of the Dead 6
Posted by Stilts
"Hold on, Takashi. I think I see a quarter."
So, remember when I said last week's episode of Highschool of the Dead was the worst one yet? Allow me to amend that statement.
Episode 6 is even worse, by a large margin. It's misogynistic, insulting, stupid, and some of it doesn't even make sense. In was a complete and utter waste of my time, and I probably lost a few hundred brain cells just watching it. I kid you not, it's quite possibly one of the worst episodes of any anime I've ever seen. And that's counting Angel Cop.
So if you really want to know why HotD has inspired such rage in me, click the jump.
11Aug/106
Bakacast Briefs – Put Ya Guns On!
Posted by Stilts
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Now that I'm back from my vacation, I can finally inject some much-needed silliness (and bromance) into the podcast with Sengoku Basara 2. There's no news for this week, so you might notice that all that pent up discussion energy causes us to GET SERIOUS about...well...every show we talk about. So if you decide to listen, I hope you like arguments about world-building theory. Otherwise, you'll need LOTS OF LUCK to make it through.
We take on:
- Highschool of the Dead #5
- Occult Academy #5
- Sengoku Basara 2 #1-4
- K-ON!! #18
You may notice I'm more forgiving of HotD #5 in the podcast than I am in my review. Funny how time makes the heart hate stronger, isn't it?
Anyway, we like hearing from you, so feel free to leave a comment or two. Just don't get SO CRAZY that the mods have to BREAK IT UP.
...okay, I'm done now.
[The opening and ending music is "Boy Walks Girl to Work and is Followed by a Ghost" by .hnz]
8Aug/108
Review: Highschool of the Dead 5
Posted by Stilts
DRAMATIC TEAM POSE!
The fifth episode of Highschool of the Dead is a perfect example of how to kill your momentum. Even though I may not have liked all of the previous episodes, I think they did a good job of slowly building the tension and scope of the zombie epidemic. By contrast, this week's episode meanders toward the resolutions of problems that were brought up last week. It doesn't help that the writing is a mixed bag of good, mediocre and terrible characterizations. These problems combine to create what is arguably the worst episode of the series so far.
I'll explain why after the jump.
6Aug/100
Bakacast Briefs: The Death of Anime
Posted by Ritsu
iTunes | Direct Download | RSS
Will moe be the death of anime?
Last week, Dai Sato claimed that anime will disappear within the next thirty years, due to a lack of creativity in the industry. On this week's Bakacast, we address that controversial issue. Is the over-saturation of moe to blame for the anime studios' financial woes? Or is this just another genre craze that has overstayed its welcome? Does too much focus on merchandising limit quality storytelling? We debate these difficult questions and more.
After that serious business, we move on to lighter fare with this week's anime reviews.
- Black Rock Shooter OVA
- Highschool of the Dead #4
- Occult Academy #4
- Seitokai Yakuindomo #4 (officially dropped after this episode)
- K-ON!! #17
That's it for this week. We'd love to hear your feedback, so let us know what you think in the comments below! [Opening music is "Invaders Must Die" by ChipDudeRoss]
29Jul/101
Bakacast Briefs – OneManga’s Doom
Posted by Ritsu
First off, sorry for the lateness of this Bakacast episode. Since Dustin is on vacation this week, I got to try my hand at editing the podcast, and it took friggin' FOREVER. On the plus side, I did get to pick the theme music this time around...
Anyways, this episode features a greatly expanded cast. Although Dustin is absent, I brought in Konata (aka Jeagle) and Shamisen (aka Larry) to fill his place. That means you're getting twice as many bakas for the same low price!
As always, you can download it directly, subscribe to our RSS feed, or let iTunes do all the work for you.
We start off with a discussion about the demise of One Manga, as well as the new Seven Seas licenses. Then, after drooling over recently-announced sequel series to Avatar: The Last Airbender, we get into reviewing this week's new anime.
- Highschool of the Dead #3
- Occult Academy #3
- Seitokai Yakuindomo #3
- K-ON!! #16
And that's pretty much it. See y'all next week!
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