Category Archives: 2011 Spring Season

Bakacast – The B-Team

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BEHOLD! I, the mighty Jon, have returned from my hiatus and taken command of Bakacast once again! And just in time to review all the exciting new summer season anime!

Because of the sheer number of new anime we had to review, we skipped our usual introductory segments and went straight for the sweet stuff. Next week should be a lot less hectic though, since we’ve already dropped over half these shows.

We review the new anime in roughly the same order they appear on Random Curiosity’s summer preview guide, in case you want to follow along.

  • 2:05 – Gosick #24 (END)
  • 8:48 – Steins;Gate #14
  • 13:02 – Double-J #1
  • 16:32 – Blade #1
  • 20:10 – Ro-Kyu-Bu! #1 (DROPPED HARD)
  • 22:55 – God’s Notepad #1
  • 29:34 – Uta no Prince-sama #1 (DROPPED)
  • 31:41 – Sacred Seven #1
  • 36:44 – Ikoku Meiro no Croisee #1
  • 43:40 – Kaitou Tenshi Twin Angel #1 (DROPPED)
  • 45:23 – Yuru Yuri #1 (DROPPED WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE)
  • 50:01 – Kamisama Dolls #1 (SNORE… I MEAN, DROPPED)
  • 54:33 – Nyanpire #1
  • 55:16 – Bunny Drop #1
  • 1:02:30 – No.6 #1
  • 1:07:29 – Idolmaster #1 (DROPPED)
  • 1:13:30 – Blood-C #1 (I PITY THE FOO WHO DON’T DROP THIS)
  • 1:19:15 – Mawaru Penguindrum #1
  • 1:28:07 – Morita-san wa Mukuchi #1 (DROPPED)
  • 1:28:32 – My Little Pony #7 & 8
  • 1:36:35 – Listener questions

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.

Bakacast – Melodrama Meltdown

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The end of the spring season is finally here, and Karen and Larry join me to give it a swift kick out the door. Sadly, Glen could not be with us because he overslept was busy fighting alien invaders.

In any case, we were quite happy knowing we’d never have to watch X-Men, AnoHana, and Hanasku Iroha ever again. And yes, I know HanaIro didn’t technically end. A season finale is good enough for me. Steins;Gate is fantastic as always (if rather cruel), but [C] tragically fumbles its finale. Oh well. Maybe the two noitaminA shows coming out this summer will make up for the past four that have been on that block. And no matter what happens, we’ll at least have My Little Pony.

In the news segment, we briefly touch on the Thundercats remake and Warren Ellis’ involvement with the crummy Marvel adaptations. Then we answer a couple of listener questions and close out the episode discussing what summer shows we’ll be watching. Try and guess which one we’re checking out just to mock. It shouldn’t be too hard.

We cover:

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.

Bakacast – Hate-chan’s Counterattack

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This week, we bring in Bakacast power-listener and Universal Century super-fan Hate-chan to help us discuss the Mobile Suit Gundam remake. Continuing the mecha theme, we then wonder how many people will actually be crazy enough to buy the phenomenally overpriced Evangelion wine.

Then, in the “Whatcha Been Doing?” segment, I talk for far too long about video games, as is customary. It’s about The Witcher 2, though, so at least it’s a game I enjoy this time.

In the reviews segment, we have our first “proper” review of Soft Tennis courtesy of Karen, Larry and Glen; Gosick makes us scratch our heads even more than it usually does; Steins;Gate ends with a literal bang; and [C] goes all Madoka Magica on us. Also, we begin our retroactive review of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic season one. Our conclusion? It really sucks to be an Earth Pony, and Princess Celestia is a troll.

We cover:

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.

Bakacast – Daddy;Issues

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Karen got hit by a nasty cold and wasn’t feeling well enough to come on the podcast (how dare she prioritize her health over talking to some jerks about anime), so we asked frequent-guest Thomas to be our fourth host so we wouldn’t feel so lonely.

As usual, I use our “Whatcha Been Doin'” segment to talk about videogames, specifically Duke Nukem Forever and how terrible it is. Spoiler: it’s pretty terrible. We also bring back the news segment to discuss Zac Bertschy’s High School of the Dead review. Turns out it’s one of those rare gems that can actually be improved by the Manga Entertainment method of dubbing.

Speaking of things that are hilariously stupid, Glen, Thomas and I give our impressions on the episodes of Soft Tennis we managed to watch, pick apart X-Men, wonder how much more dumb Ohana of Hanasaku Iroha can possibly get, and console ourselves with the fact that AnoHana is almost over.

Also, we tackle the (not-so-anymore-)controversial question of what is anime, really?

We cover:

  • 2:53 – Whatcha Been Doin’
  • 11:21 – News stories
  • 16:33 – Soft Tennis general impressions
  • 23:56 – Gosick #21
  • 30:46 – X-Men #10
  • 35:44 – Hanasaku Iroha #11
  • 44:01 – Steins;Gate #11
  • 52:48 – AnoHana #9
  • 59:14 – [C] #9
  • 1:06:05 – Listener questions

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.

Bakacast – Suddenly, Plot Appears!

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Sadly, Karen could not be with us for the entire podcast, because she has actual work to accomplish. To mitigate that issue, we rearranged our reviewing schedule a bit. Don’t be afraid! It’s only temporary! We’ll return to normalcy next week.

This week, we have the pleasure of reviewing the fifth Break Blade OVA, which makes a return to greatness after the lackluster fourth episode. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for X-Men, as the final half of episode 9 brings it back to the levels of terrible we expect from the show. Oh well. At least X-Men: First Class is decent.

We cover:

  • 2:08 – What we’ve been doin’
  • 12:35 – X-Men #9
  • 20:50 – Steins;Gate #10
  • 29:40 – Hanasaku Iroha #10
  • 38:14 – Break Blade #5
  • 47:23 – Gosick #20
  • 51:29 – AnoHana #8
  • 59:12 – [C] #8
  • 1:07:17 – Listener questions

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.

Or if, like Hate-Chan, you want to write the occasional article for Project Haruhi, you can e-mail a writing sample to Jon at  ryoko[at]projectharuhi.net.

Bakacast – K-ON! with Credit Cards

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Karen of the Otakusphere joins us once again as we struggle through another frustrating week.

This time, though, she and Larry surprise us with their positive impressions of Soft Tennis. Expect Glen and I to at least try and catch up, if only to witness the bear fight. In other news, the final episode of OreImo leaves a sour taste in our mouths, Gosick goes back to its regularly scheduled incompetence, Tiger & Bunny fails us for the last time, X-Men is decent for a change, Steins;Gate has its first misstep, and Glen makes a startling realization about [C].

All this and more embarrassing stories prompted by listener questions!

We cover:

  • 2:20 – What we’ve been doing
  • 12:46 – Soft Tennis
  • 22:30 – OreImo #15
  • 33:07 – Gosick #19
  • 41:17 – Tiger & Bunny #9 (dropped)
  • 47:39 – X-Men #8
  • 54:33 – Hanasaku Iroha #9
  • 1:02:03 – Steins;Gate #9
  • 1:15:58 – AnoHana #7
  • 1:22:07 – [C] #7
  • 1:31:13 – Listener questions

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.

Bakacast – Ne, Victorique!

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Karen of The Otakusphere joins us again for this week’s episode and gives us what’s probably the only recap of Astarotte’s Toy we’ll ever hear (or pay attention to).

Since we’ve executed several shows over the last couple episodes, we bring back the “What have you been playing/reading/watching?” segment that I really should find a more clever and concise name for. Then we get right to our review segment, which includes one of the most miraculous events ever witnessed. No, it’s not the Rapture; you couldn’t download this podcast if that had actually happened. It was something even more unexpected: we give Gosick a perfect score.

Did I just blow your mind? No?

Well, then it’ll probably later get blown away when we discuss how bad Tiger & Bunny and AnoHana managed to be. I feel like you really have to work to come up with dialogue and plotlines that terrible.

We cover:

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.

Bakacast – The Dark Side of Yuri

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We go back to basics on this episode of Bakacast with just Glen, Larry and me on hosting duties. We even bring back the poor, neglected news segment to look deep within ourselves and wonder if we would pay upwards of $150 to find a wife. The answer is a definitive “Probably not, but I won’t rule it out.”

Of course, we review some anime, too, finally freeing ourselves from the bondage of Battle Girls (it wasn’t even the fun, “let’s experiment” kind of bondage). Plus, Gosick proves it doesn’t even know how light works, Tiger & Bunny could be more accurately titled Bunny, Deadman Wonderland shows similar problems to Highschool of the Dead (but without any of the “entertaining” parts), and Steins;Gate once again saves the week.

We cover:

  • 2:06 – OtaRen, the otaku dating service
  • 11:33 – Gosick #17
  • 21:52 – Tiger & Bunny #7 (the comic was actually from PvP, not Shortpacked; sorry, Scott Kurtz!)
  • 30:26 – Hanasaku Iroha #7
  • 37:28 – Battle Girls #7 (dropped)
  • 44:42 – Steins;Gate #7
  • 52:20 – AnoHana #5
  • 57:21 – Deadman Wonderland #5 (dropped)
  • 1:02:56 – [C] #5
  • 1:14:49 – Listener questions

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.

Bakacast – Three Angry Men

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This week’s episode marks the first time in a while that Bakacast has actually made it under an hour and a half. Frankly, I’m stunned and kind of hope this trend continues. It helps that we’ve trimmed down our list so it only includes three shows that we’re watching purely for masochistic purposes. The others are either genuinely good or showed early promise and are now suffering from an acute case of Occult Academy syndrome.

I’m looking at you Tiger & Bunny.

Frequent guest-host Thomas fills in Jon’s vacant fourth slot this week and, in a daring move, gives Battle Girls the highest score its gotten since the first episode. As stunned as I was (and still am), I admit it’s hard to argue with an episode that gives me 100% more Nobunaga (aka the only good thing about the show). But Glen, Larry and I being who we are, we find plenty of ways to argue about it anyway. Because we’re mean like that.

We cover:

  • 2:09 – Gosick #16
  • 11:27 – Tiger & Bunny #6
  • 19:33 – Hanasaku Iroha #6
  • 25:56 – Battle Girls #6
  • 34:43 – Steins;Gate #6 (it seems appropriate that this show gets a palindrome for its time stamp)
  • 43:46 – Dat Flower–er…AnoHana #4
  • 52:17 – Deadman Wonderland #4
  • 1:00:30 – [C] #4
  • 1:10:06 – Listener question

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.

Bakacast – Worst Birthday Present Ever

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On our very special 50th episode of Bakacast, we bring on The Otakusphere’s Karen–formerly of Japanator–to talk about Amazon taking some yaoi titles off their Kindle store, how terrible the recent Parasite Eve game, The 3rd Birthday, is (pretty terrible), and if she’s watched My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Besides checking out her blog, which I highly recommend, you can also follow her on Twitter. And if you’d like a little history lesson, you can check out the last podcast Karen and I were on right here [WARNING: Unlike this podcast, Japanator AM lets F-bombs run free].

I guess we review some anime too. Gosick gives us a plot dump, Hanasaku Iroha continues to confound us, Steins;Gate continues to entertain us, Deadman Wonderland can’t figure out what tone it wants, and Blue Exorcist is just sorta there. Meanwhile, Glen starts exercising his psychic powers to properly use the new mind-reading cat ears.

We cover:

  • 04:28 – Amazon removes some yaoi titles from Kindle
  • 08:19 – The 3rd Birthday
  • 22:51 – Gosick #15
  • 29:59 – Tiger & Bunny #5
  • 33:52 – Hanasaku Iroha #5
  • 42:57 – Battle Girls #5
  • 51:16 – Steins;Gate #5
  • 59:11 – Blue Exorcist #3 (dropped)
  • 1:05:21 – AnoHana #3
  • 1:13:24 – Deadman Wonderland #3
  • 1:17:49 – [C] #3
  • 1:25:02 – Listener questions

If you would like to submit listener questions for a future episode, you can email them to bakacast[at]projectharuhi.net, @reply them to Project Haruhi’s Twitter account using the hashtag #bakacast, or leave them in the comments below.