When I think back on my favorite anime memories of the year, the most significant one isn’t even an anime: it’s the first episode of Bakacast, which has become a constant fixture of my life for the past few months. Anyone who cares about reading past that first sentence probably heard me talk about the history of Bakacast on the episode where we got that Twitter question about it, but maybe some of you haven’t listened to it yet. And maybe I can present a better explanation now that I can actually plan out my thoughts.

I had wanted to start my own podcast since 2007. In 2006, my parents had given me an iPod as a high school graduation present. After loading it up with all my music, I noticed a “Podcast” option in the iTunes store. One of the first I tried was the Anime World Order, and before long I subscribed to around a dozen podcasts. Unfortunately, none of my friends even listened to to podcasts, much less wanted to start their own. And I certainly wasn’t going to be the only host. I don’t think I’m very interesting unless I have someone to play off of. So I decided to set my idea aside indefinitely.

Then, in 2010, Jon joined the rest of the Japanator crew (he was an intern for them at the time) on their new podcast*. I’ll admit, I was a little jealous.

…

Okay, maybe really jealous.

After he finished recording with them, I asked, “Hey, I had wanted to do an anime podcast and you turned me down. What’s up with this?”

And Jon, being far less moody than me, replied, “Well, do you want to do a podcast right now?”

I agreed and, dumbfounded, almost immediately began talking about whales and FLCL on the very first episode of Bakacast. I was even more surprised when it was met with really positive comments. Mandril and Setre: if you two are reading this, your comments on the first and subsequent podcasts were pretty big motivators for me to keep this experiment going. And keep going it did…sort of. The first few episodes weren’t exactly timely, which I find hilarious in hindsight. Why? Because at the time, I blamed the increasing length of the podcasts for how late I got them out. Of course, our current Bakacasts (formerly known as “Briefs”) now routinely reach–and in rare occasions exceed–the run times of those “long” podcasts.

So I guess my work ethic was the real problem after all, huh? Whoops.

Honestly, I never envisioned Bakacast evolving into its current state. I was thinking we’d be similar to the Anime World Order, and that definitely shows in the first Bakacasts. That said, I think it’s a good thing that we moved away from that format in favor of reviewing currently airing series. Oh, and answering Twitter questions. That was Jon’s idea, and it was a fantastic one. We’re finally developing a unique podcast personality instead of just aping the pioneers. It’s a lot of work and can sometimes be frustrating (don’t even get me started on that one time iTunes saw but refused to download our podcast from the feed), but it’s also been very rewarding.

As for the future of Bakacast, we’ll probably keep the same basic format. One thing I’d like to add is the occasional side-review, since we had fun sharing our thoughts on My Little Pony. I’d also like to start producing bonus episodes of Bakacast that cover things the normal episodes don’t (such as video games). These would be infrequent, though, because I’d want them to be much more focused. That, of course, would require significantly more prep time than our podcasts currently have.

Other than that, I just want to make sure everyone still has fun with this thing. To all of you who listen: thank you. And to all of you who take the time to comment (regardless of whether it’s praise or criticism): you guys are awesome. I admitted my narcissistic tendencies long ago, so I’m not ashamed to say I love seeing that number in the top-left corner of my Bakacast posts go up.

Now let’s see if we can get to 50 episodes.

———-

Since I’m on the topic–and I’ve been asked about my podcast library a few times now–I’d like to give textual shout-outs to all the podcasts I enjoy and give me inspiration. And maybe this list will help you guys find some new listening material. I’ll try to order them by subject.

• Anime World Order (duh)
• The Ninja Consultants (they update very rarely, but I always love it when they do)
• Fast Karate for the Gentlemen (their reviews are even more brutal ours; but it’s okay, because I still think they’re really funny)
• Giant Bombcast (one of the best video game podcasts out there)
• Active Time Babble (a great RPG-focused podcast that happens to feature two of my favorite 1Up editors)
• Retronauts (it ended on episode 99, but you won’t regret going through their backlog if you like old and classic games)
• A Life Well Wasted (it has only updated eight times over nearly two years, but every episode is fantastic; it’s like if NPR focused on video games)
• State of the Game (because I love StarCraft 2)
• Top 8 Magic (I also love Magic: the Gathering, even though I don’t play it any more)
• Awesomed By Comics (one day I hope to give Bakacast production values as good as the ones on this podcast about American comics)
• War Rocket Ajax (this comics podcast has some of the funniest moments I’ve ever heard; and I’m not just saying that because I asked a Twitter question that inspired an episode title)
• The Greatest Movie EVER! (I don’t always agree with Paul Chapman’s opinions–Buckaroo Bonzai is NOT good–but he and his host(s) are always entertaining)

*ED: Japanator AM, originally hosted by Karen Gellender. New episodes are released intermittently. Although not listed on iTunes, it can be found on Japanator’s website here, or via their RSS feed.