Category Archives: Anime

Bakacast – Breaking a Maiden’s Seal

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Hey, guess what? It’s Bakacast’s first birthday! To celebrate this momentous occasion, Glen and I break the record for most sex euphemisms in one episode. Yes, we’re rather proud of ourselves.

Other than that, though, it’s business as usual for our reviews. We gush about Level E and Star Driver, pick Gosick apart, wonder what the hell Fractale is trying to do and come up with new conspiracy theories about Kyubey. The Twitter questions, however, are not quite as predictable. What do I mean by that? Well, let’s just say I somehow managed to turn a fairly fluffy query into a long, detailed discussion of unfortunate trends in anime and the ideas that spawned them.

I apologize in advance, but I’m an English major. I can’t help it.

We cover:

  • Madoka Magica #5
  • Gosick #5
  • Level E #5
  • Fractale #4
  • Wandering Son #4
  • Star Driver #18
  • Macross Frontier #5 & 6

Bakacast – Galactic Pretty Girls

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That’s right, I finally put a Star Driver reference in the episode title. It only took me 17 episodes.

Anyway, Jon had to sit this one out and Larry was sick, so it falls on Glen, Thomas and me to pick apart the absurdities in Gosick, gush about Level E, try and figure out what the heck Fractale is trying to do, speculate on how one becomes a female pretty boy, and declare our undying love for Sheryl Nome.

Also, Ranka’s spirit of ambition inspires Glen to “sing” at the end of the podcast. Enjoy the results.

We cover:

  • Madoka Magica #4
  • Gosick #4
  • Level E #4
  • Fractale #3
  • Wandering Son #3
  • Star Driver #17
  • Macross Frontier #3 & 4

Bakacast – The Super Dimension Podcast

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For this week’s episode of Bakacast, we bring in Scott from Otaku in Review as a guest host to help us lament how stupid Funimation is to prosecute BitTorrent users. Oh, and I guess we talk about some anime, too. Prepare for Madoka speculation, more rants about Gosick, an in-depth look at how Level E sure got sexy, and the Star Driver Love Party™. Also, we begin our semi-retro-review of Macross Frontier.

We cover:

  • Madoka Magica #3
  • Yumekui Merry #3 (dropped)
  • Gosick #3
  • Level E #3
  • Fractale #2
  • Wandering Son #2
  • Star Driver #16
  • Macross Frontier #1 & 2

See you next deculture!

Weekly Anime Review: You Got Trolled [SPOILERS]

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Behold, the latest edition of Weekly Anime Review! Surprisingly, we’re actually managing to keep on a somewhat consistent schedule this time around. Now all we have to do is apply a bit of elbow grease, and you should have a new WAR post pop up in your RSS feed every Thursday evening! Hooray!

Since I reviewed two episodes of Madoka last week, there’s no recap for this week’s episode. Fear not, however, as it will return in the future. Any other show that’s absent has probably been dropped. For more detailed information on which shows we dropped and which we never bothered writing about in the first place (i.e. Rio Rainbow Gate), check out the last couple of episodes of Bakacast.

Spoilers lurk beyond the break, so tread carefully. And don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the comment section!

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It’s Never Too Early to Talk About Spring Anime!

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Even though the winter anime season has just begun, the intertubes are already ablaze with anticipation for the upcoming spring season, fueled largely by the charts released by The Cart Driver and Cowboy Bimbop. Since anticipation makes the heart grow fonder, I’ve decided to speculate on which shows will catch my fancy this spring. Of course, since all I have to go on is a thumbnail and plot summary, everything I say here is little more than an educated guess… so don’t take it TOO seriously. I’m sure I’ll be adding and dropping shows to this list once I see the actual trailers.

My picks are below the break. Tell me yours in the comment section!

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Second Hokago no Pleiades Trailer Released

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The second trailer for the new Gainax-Subaru magical girl astronomy anime has been posted on YouTube.

I have to say, this trailer has a bit more substance than the previous “OMG CUTE GIRLS” version. I had originally written Hokago off a a cynical, moe-pandering corporate tie-in, but this trailer has lit a small spark of hope that this will be something worth watching. Gainax, I’m counting on you!

Weekly Anime Review: Magical Girl Trap [SPOILERS]

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The second week of the winter 2010 anime season has concluded, and Weekly Anime Review has been resurrected! We’re still hashing out which shows we’ll be watching, but for the time being the strongest contenders are Level E, Madoka Magica, Fractale and Star Driver. Both Dream Eater Merry and Gosick are on thin ice… if they don’t show substantial improvement by episode three, they’ll be dropped. For our more in-depth coverage of each anime’s premiere episode, please check out the First Impressions posts under the Weekly Anime Review tag.

Legend has it that spoilers lurk beyond the break, so tread lightly. If ye be brave enough, leave us a comment with your own thoughts on these anime. We really do enjoy your feedback!

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Bakacast – Murder on the Gothic Express

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The bad news: Jon was captured by Doctor Wattsman and couldn’t be on this episode. The good news: that means it’s Glen’s turn in the spotlight, and he bombards the latest episode of Gosick with a rage-fueled rant of magnificent proportions. And though the Gosick discussion may be a little one-sided, Wolverine gives us a perfect opportunity to do what we love: tag-team mocking. If you happen to be nostalgic for the days when we reviewed Highschool of the Dead, this may be the episode  for you.

Also, Twitter questions make a triumphant and uncomfortable return, as we relate our first experiences with the adult side of Japanese entertainment and discover that my mind has been hopelessly corrupted by being Jon’s roommate for nearly four years.

We cover:

  • Fractale #1
  • Wandering Son #1
  • Kore Wa Zombie Desu Ka #1 (dropped)
  • Madoka Magica #2
  • Yumekui Merry #2 (on thin ice)
  • Wolverine #2 (dropped)
  • Gosick #2 (on thin ice)
  • Level E #2
  • Star Driver #15

First Impressions – Level E

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"How dare you look prettier than me!"

I had no idea what to expect from Level E. To be honest, the only reason I checked it out was because of how bizarre the promo art looked. A naked, androgynous man floating in space with galaxies covering his private parts? Okay, you’ve got my attention.  So I was completely unaware that it was originally a manga created in the late 90s by the same guy who did YuYu Hakusho. And I also didn’t know it was about an alien prince getting stranded on Earth and moving in with a high school freshman.

Which, of course, means I also didn’t know it would be hilarious.

Not only did Level E‘s content catch me off guard, but it also surprised me by being much more enjoyable than I dared hope.  Click the jump if you want to know why, exactly, you owe it to yourself to watch this show.

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