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Japanimation Station's Kyoto Vacation

Japanimation Station's Kyoto Vacation

By Jonathan Lack & Sean Chapman

Japanimation Station is an anime podcast where hosts Jonathan Lack and Sean Chapman, creators of Weekly Suit Gundam, create deep dive conversations not just on individual shows, but on complete bodies of work, approaching these shows not just as fans, but with a fresh pair of critical eyes. We get deep into the stories, characters, and aesthetics, but also place the series and their creators into the proper contexts of history, backstory, and behind the scenes details that make these works so special. And, hopefully, we’ll have some fun along the way. Welcome to Japanimation Station.
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S1E01 - Welcome to Japanimation Station! Our Anime History & Desert Island Shows

Japanimation Station's Kyoto Vacation Aug 02, 2022

00:00
02:54:51
S4E10 - THE DISAPPEARANCE OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA Movie Review (2010)

S4E10 - THE DISAPPEARANCE OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA Movie Review (2010)

It’s December 25th, and Christmas has finally come to Otaku Town – and with it, the final episode of Part 2 of our Kyoto Vacation. For today’s very special episode, we are finishing our journey through the world of Haruhi Suzumiya with the 2010 film The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, the nearly-three-hour climactic story in Kyoto Animation’s beloved adaptation of Nagaru Tanigawa’s light novels. It’s an absolute masterpiece of a film, telling its story of Kyon waking up in a world without the SOS Brigade patiently and tenderly, and building to a series of incredibly powerful emotional climaxes. It is also a truly beautiful Christmas movie in the vein of A Christmas Carol or It’s a Wonderful Life, and one of the very best of its kind, making it the perfect film to celebrate the holiday and ring out what has been a very big 2023 for Japanimation Station

Have a Happy New Year, and we will see all of you in 2024 for Part 3 of our Kyoto Vacation, “Moe Money, Moe Problems: After School Tea Time with the Girls of K-On!”  

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:31

Intro and History: 0:01:31 – 0:38:17

Eyecatch Break: 0:38:17 – 0:38:54

The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya Review: 0:38:54 – 3:12:20

End Theme: 3:12:20 – 3:13:22

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

「コイノMIKUルデンセツ」- Music by Satoru Kosaki, Lyrics by Yutaka Yamamoto, Arranged by Thomas Lack feat. Hatsune Miku 

“Happily Ever After” – Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Dec 25, 202303:13:34
S4E09 - THE MELANCHOLY OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA Season 2 Review (2009 Chronological Order)

S4E09 - THE MELANCHOLY OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA Season 2 Review (2009 Chronological Order)

Part 2 of our Kyoto Vacation chronicles ‘When Christmas Came to Otaku Town,’ and that holiday is drawing ever nearer with Season 2 of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. Aired in 2009, this season collected the 14 episodes originally produced in 2006, re-arranges them in the story’s chronological order, and then intersperses 14 new episodes amidst them, to make for a new 28-episode version of the series. We already talked about 8 of those episodes in last week’s in-depth, extra-long breakdown of the infamous ‘Endless Eight’ arc, and in this episode, we look at the one-off episode “Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody,” the 5-part “Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya,” and discuss how this series plays viewed in chronological order in this specific 28-episode package. One thing’s for sure: When it comes to Haruhi Suzumiya, nothing happens exactly as expected, and there are surprises around every corner. 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the final chapter of the Haruhi saga, the 2010 film The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya! 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:31

Intro, History, and Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody: 0:01:31 – 0:47:37

Eyecatch Break: 0:47:37 – 0:48:12

The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya Review: 0:48:12 – 2:02:40

End Theme: 2:02:40 – 2:03:42 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

Dec 20, 202302:03:50
S4E08 - The Endless Eight Diaries: THE MELANCHOLY OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA Season 2

S4E08 - The Endless Eight Diaries: THE MELANCHOLY OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA Season 2

Part 2 of our Kyoto Vacation chronicles ‘When Christmas Came to Otaku Town,’ and in this episode, we do an extremely deep-dive into the single craziest experiment ever attempted in commercial anime: The infamous ‘Endless Eight’ arc from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Season 2. We will be talking about the rest of that show’s second season from 2009 in next week’s episode, but as we worked our way through these episodes, we realized the Endless Eight were something special, and needed a different approach. Often dismissed as “the same episode repeated eight times,” the Endless Eight is actually a collection of Kyoto Animation’s best directors independently tackling the same basic story, but with completely different animation, voice acting, and music, with a constantly varying tonal and thematic approach, and it makes for a fascinating, perspective-altering work of avant-garde art. To do it justice, we recorded once a day for eight days, watching each of the eight episodes individually and then discussing each at length before moving on to the next one. The result is one of the longest episodes we’ve ever recorded, but also one of the best – and if you haven’t dived into the full ‘Endless Eight’ experience before, we hope this episode makes for the perfect viewing companion. 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the rest of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Season 2, in the story’s chronological order!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:31

Intro: 0:01:31 – 0:07:29

Endless Eight I: 0:07:29 – 0:23:17

Endless Eight II: 0:23:17 – 0:43:29 

Endless Eight III: 0:43:29 – 1:19:20 

Eyecatch Break: 1:19:20 – 1:19:57

Endless Eight IV: 1:19:57 – 2:01:10

Endless Eight V: 2:01:10 – 2:41:24

Endless Eight VI: 2:41:24 – 3:10:09

Endless Eight VII: 3:10:09 – 3:40:42

Endless Eight VIII: 3:40:42 – 4:37:14

End Theme: 4:37:14 – 4:38:16 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

Dec 13, 202304:38:33
S4E07 - LUCKY STAR Review (2007 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

S4E07 - LUCKY STAR Review (2007 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

Part 2 of our Kyoto Vacation chronicles ‘When Christmas Came to Otaku Town,’ and following the wild success of Haruhi Suzumiya, Kyoto Animation moved on to one of the defining slice-of-life anime comedies, 2007’s Lucky Star! Simultaneously a very dry, down-to-earth ‘atmospheric’ show and an absolutely absurd slice of post-modern anime surrealism, Lucky Star is a singularly entertaining show. Based on the 4-panel manga by Kagami Yoshimizu, Lucky Star in anime form quickly takes on a life of its own as the artists at Kyoto Animation find themselves reacting to the Haruhi Suzumiya phenomenon and the changing shape of anime fandom within the text of the show, and also saw some behind-the-scenes turmoil as original director Yamamoto Yutaka was fired after just 4 episodes. We dive into all of that history, discuss our favorite jokes and characters, and celebrate the delirious insanity that is Lucky Channel on this jam-packed episode! 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the infamous ‘Endless Eight’ episodes from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Season 2!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:30 

Intro and History: 0:01:30 – 0:38:59

Get F’d Yamamoto Yutaka: 0:38:59 – 1:08:20

Eyecatch Break: 1:08:20 – 1:08:55

Lucky Star Review: 1:08:55 – 3:16:12

End Theme: 3:16:12 – 3:17:14 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

“re:CAPTURE” and “Happily Ever After” – Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Dec 06, 202303:17:26
S4E06 - THE MELANCHOLY OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA Season 1 Review (2006 Shuffle Order)

S4E06 - THE MELANCHOLY OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA Season 1 Review (2006 Shuffle Order)

Part 2 of our Kyoto Vacation chronicles ‘When Christmas Came to Otaku Town,’ beginning with a look at the first season of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. Based on the light novels by Nagaru Tanigawa, Haruhi is a seminal work of 21st century anime, with the first 14 episodes from 2006 creating an absolute sensation with major impacts on the future of the industry. It’s also an incredible set of episodes, presented in an out-of-chronology ‘shuffle order’ mixing stories from all over the Haruhi timeline in with a 6-part adaptation of the eponymous first light novel. It’s a structure that throws the viewer in the deep end, but also leads to a deeply compelling engagement with these off-beat characters and their very strange world, one that pays emotional dividends by the end. We talk about all of that, the history of the series, and the idea behind ‘moe’ on this very exciting episode! 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the 2007 ‘slice of life’ comedy Lucky Star!  

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:31

Intro and History: 0:01:31 – 1:05:34

Eyecatch Break: 1:05:34 – 1:06:12

Haruhi Season 1 Review: 1:06:12 – 3:15:44

End Theme: 3:15:44 – 3:16:46

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

Nov 29, 202303:16:58
BONUS! Persona 3 The Movie #4 – Winter of Rebirth 10th Anniversary Review

BONUS! Persona 3 The Movie #4 – Winter of Rebirth 10th Anniversary Review

This week marks the 10th anniversary of the first movie based on Persona 3, a game that is one of our all-time favorites here at Japanimation Station. We reviewed each of those films as they released over on The Weekly Stuff Podcast, and hold them in extremely high regard as some of the greatest video game adaptations of all time, in any medium – and an undeniably great work of anime. So this week, as a special Thanksgiving bonus, we’re bringing back our original Persona 3 movie reviews, re-edited and remastered, for Japanimation Station. 

That continues today with the fourth and final film, Winter of Rebirth! This conversation was originally recorded on August 21st, 2016. We dive in great depth not only into this final film itself, but also to the series as a whole, and how vastly it has surpassed whatever expectations we initially had. Persona 3 was, is, and shall always be a great game – but this four-part film series has, miraculously, earned a place on the shelf alongside it, something that is a welcome surprise indeed.

Enjoy, happy thanksgiving, and we will be back next week to resume our Kyoto Vacation with our review of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya!  

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:06:04

Eyecatch Break: 0:06:04 – 0:06:40

Persona 3 Movie 4: 0:06:40 – 1:38:22

End Theme: 1:38:22 – 1:39:25

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

“Welcome to Japanimation Station” Original Music by Thomas Lack, Lyrics by Sean Chapman, featuring Hatsune Miku.

“Happily Ever After” Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Nov 23, 202301:39:25
BONUS! Persona 3 The Movie #3 – Falling Down 10th Anniversary Review

BONUS! Persona 3 The Movie #3 – Falling Down 10th Anniversary Review

This week marks the 10th anniversary of the first movie based on Persona 3, a game that is one of our all-time favorites here at Japanimation Station. We reviewed each of those films as they released over on The Weekly Stuff Podcast, and hold them in extremely high regard as some of the greatest video game adaptations of all time, in any medium – and an undeniably great work of anime. So this week, as a special Thanksgiving bonus, we’re bringing back our original Persona 3 movie reviews, re-edited and remastered, for Japanimation Station. 

That continues today with the third film, Falling Down! This conversation was originally recorded on February 16th, 2016, and it finds our investment in these films only growing deeper, as Falling Down tackles one of the trickier stretches of the game to adapt, and finds an incredibly effective lens through which to view the story via the character of Ryoji. If anything, these movies just keep getting better. 

Enjoy, and come back tomorrow for our review of the fourth and final Persona 3 movie, Winter of Rebirth! 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:04:04

Eyecatch Break: 0:04:04 – 0:04:38

Persona 3 Movie 3: 0:04:38 – 0:52:56

End Theme: 0:52:56 – 0:53:58

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

“Welcome to Japanimation Station” Original Music by Thomas Lack, Lyrics by Sean Chapman, featuring Hatsune Miku.

“Happily Ever After” Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Nov 22, 202353:59
BONUS! Persona 3 The Movie #2 – A Midsummer Knight’s Dream 10th Anniversary Review

BONUS! Persona 3 The Movie #2 – A Midsummer Knight’s Dream 10th Anniversary Review

This week marks the 10th anniversary of the first movie based on Persona 3, a game that is one of our all-time favorites here at Japanimation Station. We reviewed each of those films as they released over on The Weekly Stuff Podcast, and hold them in extremely high regard as some of the greatest video game adaptations of all time, in any medium – and an undeniably great work of anime. So this week, as a special Thanksgiving bonus, we’re bringing back our original Persona 3 movie reviews, re-edited and remastered, for Japanimation Station. 

That continues today with the second film, A Midsummer Knight’s Dream! This conversation was originally recorded on April 11th, 2015, and the movie left us absolutely shaken, both by its pitch-perfect delivery of one of the most devastating moments from the original game, and by the incredible animation and direction throughout. If the first film was surprisingly great, this is where the Persona 3 film series starts to play its hand as a true anime masterpiece.  

Enjoy, and come back tomorrow for our review of the third Persona 3 movie, Falling Down! 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:03:32

Eyecatch Break: 0:03:32 – 0:04:07

Persona 3 Movie 2: 0:04:07 – 1:06:12

End Theme: 1:06:12 – 1:07:14

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

“Welcome to Japanimation Station” Original Music by Thomas Lack, Lyrics by Sean Chapman, featuring Hatsune Miku.

“Happily Ever After” Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Nov 21, 202301:07:15
BONUS! Persona 3 The Movie #1 – Spring of Birth 10th Anniversary Review

BONUS! Persona 3 The Movie #1 – Spring of Birth 10th Anniversary Review

This week marks the 10th anniversary of the first movie based on Persona 3, a game that is one of our all-time favorites here at Japanimation Station. We reviewed each of those films as they released over on The Weekly Stuff Podcast, and hold them in extremely high regard as some of the greatest video game adaptations of all time, in any medium – and an undeniably great work of anime. So this week, as a special Thanksgiving bonus, we’re bringing back our original Persona 3 movie reviews, re-edited and remastered, for Japanimation Station. 

That begins today with the first film, Spring of Birth, originally released this week 10 years ago! This conversation was originally recorded on May 22nd, 2014, and as you’ll hear, the movie took both of us by surprise for just how strong its adaptational choices, animation, and direction were across the board, setting the stage for a 4-part film series that punches far above its weight. 

Enjoy, and come back tomorrow for our review of the second Persona 3 movie, A Midsummer Knight’s Dream! 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:07:15 

Eyecatch Break: 0:07:15 – 0:07:49 

Persona 3 Movie 1: 0:07:49 – 1:02:38

End Theme: 1:02:38 – 1:03:40 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

“Welcome to Japanimation Station” Original Music by Thomas Lack, Lyrics by Sean Chapman, featuring Hatsune Miku.

“Happily Ever After” Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Nov 20, 202301:03:40
S4E05 - CLANNAD AFTER STORY Review (2008 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

S4E05 - CLANNAD AFTER STORY Review (2008 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

Part 1 of our Kyoto Vacation, Crying is the Key to Happiness,’ comes to a close with Clannad After Story, the second and final season based on the legendary visual novel by Key VisualArts. And after speaking for 3.5 hours about the first season, we somehow go even longer on the second, which follows Tomoya and Nagisa progressing into adulthood and becomes an ever-deeper, richer, and more emotionally impactful experience as it goes along. These are, simply put, some of the finest episodes of anime ever made, from storytelling through all aspects of the production, and it takes a full four-hour podcast to really start sinking our teeth into all of it.  

Enjoy! We will be off next week for Thanksgiving, and returning on November 28th for Part 2 of our Kyoto Vacation with our review of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Season 1 in its original ‘shuffle’ broadcast order! 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:30 

Intro and Review Part 1: 0:01:30 – 1:09:16

Eyecatch Break: 1:09:16 – 1:09:52

Review Continued: 1:09:52 – 3:48:02

End Theme: 3:48:02 – 3:49:04 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

“re:CAPTURE” and “Happily Ever After” – Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku https://www.thomaslack.com

Nov 15, 202303:49:18
S4E04 - CLANNAD Review (2007 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

S4E04 - CLANNAD Review (2007 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

Part 1 of our Kyoto Vacation, Crying is the Key to Happiness,’ continues with 2007’s Clannad, the first entry in a two-series journey adapting the legendary visual novel by Key VisualArts. And it is, immediately, a major artistic leap for Kyoto Animation, a stunningly animated, beautifully written, alternatingly hilarious and poignant portrait of high school friendship and romance. Before we even arrive at the darker, bolder narrative turns of the second season, Clannad After Story, the series’ first half has us wondering if we’re watching one of the greatest anime ever made. This one is the complete package, and we break it all down in detail, sharing the history behind the visual novel and the team at Kyoto Animation behind the anime, breaking down the story, characters, and animation, and generally gushing about a truly incredible work of art. 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the second half of the Clannad saga with Clannad After Story! 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:30 

Intro and History: 0:01:30 – 0:50:11

Eyecatch Break: 0:50:11 – 0:50:48

Clannad Review: 0:50:48 – 3:33:36

End Theme: 3:33:36 – 3:34:38

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

“re:CAPTURE” and “Happily Ever After” – Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Nov 08, 202303:34:51
S4E03 - KANON Review (2006 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

S4E03 - KANON Review (2006 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

Part 1 of our Kyoto Vacation, Crying is the Key to Happiness,’ continues with our review of Kanon, a fascinating snapshot of two groups of storytellers finding their way: The team at Key VisualArts, for whom Kanon was their first original visual novel, and the artists at Kyoto Animation, who had already made Air the year before, and were now working with double the episode order and an even more confident sense of style. Sean and Jonathan disagree on exactly how effectively it all comes together, but there’s no doubt there’s a lot of artistry and passion on display, and that Kanon is – pardon the pun – a key stepping stone in the Kyoto Animation legend. 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the first season of Clannad, one of the most beloved anime of all time! 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:30

Intro and History: 0:01:30 – 0:52:13

Eyecatch Break: 0:52:13 – 0:52:47

Kanon Review: 0:52:47 – 3:14:09

End Theme: 3:14:09 – 3:15:11 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

“re:CAPTURE” and “Happily Ever After” – Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Nov 01, 202303:15:24
S4E02 - AIR Review (2005 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

S4E02 - AIR Review (2005 Kyoto Animation TV Series)

Part 1 of our Kyoto Vacation kicks off with ‘Crying is the Key to Happiness,’ a series of episodes on Kyoto Animation’s adaptations of the acclaimed visual novels by Key VisualArts. We begin with 2005’s Air, the strange, sad, and surprising tale of a wandering boy, a girl obsessed with dinosaurs, an empathetic crow, and a winged girl in the sky. Air is a hard show to describe, but it’s a powerful watch, adapting the hit visual novel into 12 episodes (and 2 OVAs) that put Kyoto Animation firmly on the map. We discuss the history of Key VisualArts leading up to the creation of Air and tell you all about the KyoAni staff that created the show before diving deep into one of the weirdest, most beautiful, and most devastating shows we’ve ever reviewed. 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review Kanon, the 24-episode series based on Key’s first visual novel!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:30

Intro and History: 0:01:30 – 

Eyecatch Break: 0:56:43 – 0:57:19 

Air Review: 0:57:19 – 3:08:40 

End Theme: 3:08:40 – 3:09:42 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! https://weeklystuff.substack.com

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“re:CAPTURE” and “Happily Ever After” – Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Oct 25, 202303:09:54
S4E01 - The History of Kyoto Animation & Intro to Season 4

S4E01 - The History of Kyoto Animation & Intro to Season 4

Welcome to Japanimation Station’s Kyoto Vacation, the fourth season of our podcast and our biggest adventure yet! We are taking a journey through the works of Kyoto Animation, one of the most respected and beloved anime studios in Japan, reviewing shows like Clannad, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, K-On!, Nichijou, Sound! Euphonium, Violet Evergarden, and much more. But before we talk about any specific works, we wanted to take a step back and discuss the history of Kyoto Animation itself, because it’s a fascinating story stretching back to the earliest days of anime, and one that explains a lot about how the studio came to have the style and structure it is known and respected for. Even if you’ve never watched one of these shows before, this is a story you’ll definitely want to hear, and a great way to kick off our Kyoto Vacation. 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review Kyoto Animation’s first original, solo production, 2005’s Air! 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:29

Intro and Preview to Season: 0:01:29 – 0:37:35

Eyecatch Break: 0:37:35 – 0:38:11

The History of Kyoto Animation: 0:38:11 – 1:54:12

End Theme: 1:54:12 – 1:55:15

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

Read the book 200 Reviews by Jonathan R. Lack in Paperback or on Kindle – https://a.co/d/bLx53vK

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! https://weeklystuff.substack.com

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

“re:CAPTURE” and “Happily Ever After” – Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Oct 18, 202301:55:22
S3E8 - Lupin III In Live-Action! Strange Psychokinetic Strategy & Jonathan’s Guide to Lupin Music

S3E8 - Lupin III In Live-Action! Strange Psychokinetic Strategy & Jonathan’s Guide to Lupin Music

“Leave it to my psychokinesis.” 

 

The third season of Japanimation Station comes to a close with the jam-packed final installment of The Classic Adventures of Lupin the 3rd! We start by taking a look at Lupin’s first live-action adventure, 1974’s Strange Psychokinetic Strategy. This is one of the earliest Lupin adaptations period, created between the first and second anime before the franchise had become enduringly popular, and it’s a surprisingly creative, if narratively scattershot, madcap comedy, putting Lupin in a white jacket and throwing him into a series of increasingly ludicrous scenarios. Then, Jonathan gives us an exhaustive (maybe even obsessive) guide to the best Lupin the 3rd soundtrack albums and the wide world of Yuji Ohno’s Lupin the 3rd Jazz releases. And finally, Sean and Jonathan play a game drafting all our favorite Lupin characters for a hypothetical heist! 

 

Thanks so much for listening to Season 3 of Japanimation Station. We’ll see you later this fall for the debut of Season 4, Japanimation Station’s Kyoto Vacation, where we’ll be looking at the output of one of anime’s greatest studios, Kyoto Animation! 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:20

Strange Psychokinetic Strategy: 0:01:20 – 1:09:05

Eyecatch Break 1: 1:09:05 – 1:09:38

Jonathan’s Guide to Lupin Music: 1:09:38 – 1:50:51 

Eyecatch Break 2: 1:50:51 – 1:51:22

Season 3 Wrap-up: 1:51:22 – 2:12:21

Eyecatch Break 3: 2:12:21 – 2:12:49

Lupin Family Draft: 2:12:49 – 2:35:17

Season 4 Preview: 2:35:17 – 2:39:49 

End Theme: 2:39:49 – 2:41:04 

 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

 

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

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Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Aug 23, 202302:41:05
S3E7 - Lupin III Before the Millennium: Reviewing Films & Specials 1996-2002

S3E7 - Lupin III Before the Millennium: Reviewing Films & Specials 1996-2002

“I guess we do battle tonight, Pops!”

 

For the penultimate episode of Japanimation Station Season 3, we’re looking at a selection of Lupin the 3rdfilms and specials from the brink of the new millennium! Starting with 1996’s Dead or Alive, a theatrical feature directed by Lupin creator Monkey Punch himself, which sees our favorite thief embroiled in a narratively messy but visually stunning adventure on a very strange island. 1997’s Island of Assassins is a lesser Lupin special, weirdly violent but without any particular bite, while 1998’s Tokyo Crisis is one of our absolute favorites, a Zenigata-led, uproariously funny comedy with fantastic guest performances by Megumi Hayashibara and Kōichi Yamadera. And finally, we end our examination of Lupin the 3rd anime with 2002’s Episode 0: The First Contact, an origin story caper for the entire Lupin gang that sees the franchise taking its early steps into digital animation, with mixed results.   

 

Enjoy, and come back next week for our season 3 finale, where we’ll be reviewing the 1974 live-action Lupin adaptation, Strange Psychokinetic Strategy, and celebrating all this season’s Lupintic adventures!  

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:20

Intro: 0:01:20 – 0:15:04

Dead or Alive: 0:15:04 – 1:15:59 

Eyecatch Break 1: 1:15:59 – 1:16:33 

Island of Assassins: 1:16:33 – 1:45:56

Eyecatch Break 2: 1:45:56 – 1:46:18 

Tokyo Crisis: 1:46:18 – 2:32:12 

Eyecatch Break 3: 2:32:12 – 2:32:37

Episode 0 First Contact: 2:32:37 – 3:08:44

End Theme: 3:08:44 – 3:09:59 

 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

 

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

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Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Aug 16, 202303:09:59
S3E6 - Lupin III in Transition: Reviewing Films & Specials 1987-1995

S3E6 - Lupin III in Transition: Reviewing Films & Specials 1987-1995

“I can’t just ignore a lovely lady with a big Diamond.”

 

As Lupin the 3rd rounded the corner of the 1980s into the 1990s, the character and the series was in a period of transition. The 1987 OVA film The Fuma Conspiracy featured some of the franchise’s greatest animation, but also had a completely different voice cast than Japanese fans had come to know and love. The series went back to the tone and style of Part II for the 1989 Osamu Dezaki-directed TV special Bye Bye Lady Liberty, with Yasuo Yamada, the original voice cast, and the red jacket in tow, and it was a huge success, creatively and commercially, kicking off an annual string of feature-length TV specials that continued through 2013, including 1993’s Voyage to Danger, which saw the one-time-only return of Part I director Masaaki Osumi to the franchise. Sadly, Yasuo Yamada grew ill and passed away in 1995, just before the release of the first theatrical film in 10 years, Farewell to Nostradamus, with Kanichi Kurita stepping into those impossibly large shoes as his replacement, and doing such an amazing job that he continues to voice Lupin to this day! We cover all 4 of these feature-length Lupin experiences in today’s episode, analyzing a period where everything is in flux for Lupin III, and the possibilities are endless! 

 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we look at Lupin’s adventures on the brink of the new millennium with a selection of films and specials from 1996 to 2002 – Dead or Alive, Island of Assassins, Tokyo Crisis and Episode 0: First Contact! 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:20

Intro: 0:01:20 – 0:06:57 

The Fuma Conspiracy: 0:06:57 – 0:49:06

Eyecatch Break 1: 0:49:06 – 0:49:38

Bye Bye Lady Liberty: 0:49:38 – 1:51:46

Eyecatch Break 2: 1:51:46 – 1:52:10

Voyage to Danger: 1:52:10 – 2:35:28

Eyecatch Break 3: 2:35:28 – 2:35:54

Farewell to Nostradamus: 2:35:54 – 3:27:49 

End Theme: 3:27:49 – 3:29:04 

 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

 

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

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Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Aug 09, 202303:29:04
S3E5 - The Pink Jacket Adventures: Lupin the 3rd Part III Review & Analysis

S3E5 - The Pink Jacket Adventures: Lupin the 3rd Part III Review & Analysis

“Nobody said I’m not in. We’re just out of cognac.” 

 

With Lupin the 3rd Part III, Lupin officially the enters the 1980s and he’s got a new attitude, a new look, and a new jacket – a pink one! The Pink Jacket Adventures, as this series has come to be known, is one of the weirder and wilder chapters in Lupin history, with Yuzo Aoki leading a talented team of animators to create a take on Lupin that’s both uniquely stylish and highly varied, with character designs shifting from episode to episode and sometimes scene to scene, and the series’ second half employing a particularly cartoon-y, Looney Tunes-esque approach to motion and mayhem. Meanwhile, iconic Japanese New Wave director Seijun Suzuki wrote one of the boldest and most bonkers Lupin episodes of all time, and co-directed The Legend of the Gold of Babylon, the Part III film released in 1985, which we also discuss on today’s show alongside 20 episodes from Part III (see the full list below). It’s one of the most memorable periods for Lupin the 3rd, and also one of the most rewarding. 

 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we look at a transitionary period in the history of Lupin with a selection of films and specials from 1987 to 1995 – The Fuma Conspiracy, Bye-Bye Lady Liberty, Voyage to Danger, and Farewell to Nostradamus!  

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:20

Intro & History: 0:01:20 – 0:10:44

Lupin VIII: 0:10:44 – 0:22:46

History Continued: 0:22:46 – 0:50:06

Eyecatch Break 1: 0:50:06 – 0:50:38 

Episode-by-episode Review: 0:50:38 – 3:01:47

Eyecatch Break 2: 3:01:47 – 3:02:14

The Legend of the Gold of Babylon: 3:02:14 – 3:52:09 

End Credits: 3:52:09 – 3:53:24

 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

 

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

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Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

 

“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

 

Full list of episodes watched: 

 

1 - "The Gold Is Beckoning Lupin"

3 - Greetings to Hell’s Angel 

7 - The Man Called Death Gurve 

11 - The Ruby Sheds Bloody Tears

13 - Variations on Getting Carried Away

18 - Showtime Reeks of Death 

23 - Operation: Beirut Mobile Bank Robbery

24 - Sleep Peacefully, Friend

27 - Codename: Star of Alaska

28 - The Star of Alaska is a One-way Ticket to Hell

30 - A Cocktail Named Revenge

31 - A Turnabout, a Comeback, and a Reversal

34 - "Manhattan Crisis"

37 - "Pops Boils over with Rage"

38 - Leticia who Loved Lupin

40 - A Lotto Ticket to Riot

44 - "Our Papa’s a Thief"

46 - Soaring on Scrap Wings

49 - The Day Pops Got Adopted 

50 - "Orders to Destroy the Atomic Sub Ivanov"

Aug 02, 202303:53:25
S3E4 - When Lupin III met Hayao Miyazaki: The Castle of Cagliostro & Greatest Capers Review

S3E4 - When Lupin III met Hayao Miyazaki: The Castle of Cagliostro & Greatest Capers Review

“Believe in the power of the thief.” 

 

Before he left the world of Lupin behind and went off to change the course of anime history forever with Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, Hayao Miyazaki returned to TMS for a final set of Lupin the 3rd projects that have become iconic anime classics: The 1979 feature film The Castle of Cagliostro, and episodes 145 and 155 of Part II, “Albatross – Wings of Death” and “Farewell, O Dearest Lupin!”, distributed in the US in the 1990s as Lupin III’s Greatest Capers. These were the first pieces of Lupin media commercially available in America, and Cagliostro in particular is the most frequent entry point for Lupin newcomers. While Miyazaki’s more heroic, chivalric vision of the character is a bit of an outlier, there’s a reason Cagliostro has such magnetic appeal, as it’s one of the single greatest animated films ever made, a perfectly paced action adventure fueled by some of the most virtuosic animation to ever grace the silver screen. An influence for all sorts of movies all around the world, it’s a true classic, and so are Miyazaki’s two episodes of Part II, with “Albatross” in particular taking the director’s love of airplanes to astonishing new heights, and setting an impossibly high bar for how good TV animation can be. 

 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we enter the Pink Jacket era and review Lupin the 3rd Part III and the 1985 film The Legend of the Gold of Babylon! 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:20

Intro: 0:01:20 – 0:11:32

Eyecatch Break 1: 0:11:32 – 0:12:03

The Castle of Cagliostro: 0:12:03 – 2:27:07

Eyecatch Break 2: 2:27:07 – 2:27:39

Greatest Capers Episodes: 2:27:39 – 3:16:35

End Theme: 3:16:35 – 3:17:50 

 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

 

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

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Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

 

“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Jul 26, 202303:17:50
S3E3 - The Red Jacket Adventures: Lupin the 3rd Part II Review & Analysis

S3E3 - The Red Jacket Adventures: Lupin the 3rd Part II Review & Analysis

“Lupin, our manly drama ends today!” 

 

Airing from 1977 to 1980, the second Lupin the 3rd TV anime – retroactively titled “Part II” – produced a whopping 155 episodes, and with the iconic red jacket and the entire five-person crew (Lupin, Jigen, Fujiko, Goemon, and Zenigata) in tow for every adventure, this is the series that firmly cemented Lupin III as an enduring anime icon, and set the tone for many of his future capers. For today’s episode, we watched a selection of 27 episodes – see the full list below – and experienced a wide range of adventures, from Lupin and company stealing a vintage bottle of wine on Christmas, to Jigen helping a ballerina defect to the West, to ‘Pops’ Zenigata springing a daring trap for Lupin on the highway, to Goemon surviving a shockingly violent bout of torture, to two whole episodes devoted to an extremely surprising (and very funny) alternate history of Jesus Christ himself! Part II is truly a wild ride, with some absolute masterpiece episodes displaying some of the greatest animation in TV history, and almost always providing a big dose of fun. 

 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review Lupin’s most famous adventure with Hayao Miyazaki’s 1979 classic The Castle of Cagliostro, and look at the two episodes Miyazaki directed for Part II, Albatross – Wings of Death and Farewell, O Dearest Lupin! 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:20

Intro, History, and Part II Overview: 0:01:20 – 0:57:57 

Eyecatch Break 1: 0:57:57 – 0:58:30 

Episode-by-episode review, part 1: 0:58:30 – 2:22:00 

Eyecatch Break 2: 2:22:00 – 2:22:29 

Episode-by-episode review, part 2: 2:22:29 – 3:45:25

End Theme: 3:45:25 – 3:46:40 

 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

 

Full list of episodes watched (Japanese title/English title) 

 

1 - "Lupin the Third's Gallant Appearance" / "The Return of Lupin the 3rd"

12 - "A Gift for the President" / "The Sleight Before Christmas"

13 - "The Great Chase in San Francisco" / "I Left My Mind in San Francisco"

20 - "Cornered Lupin" / "Hell Toupee"

21 - "Goemon's Revenge" / "The Last Mastery"

25 - "Encounter With the Deadly Iron Lizard" / "The Lair of the Land-Shark"

26 - "A Rose and a Pistol" / "Shot Through the Heart"

27 - "Where Did the Cinderella Stamp Go?" / "The Little Princess of Darkness"

30 - "The Wind in Morocco is Hot" / "Morocco Horror Picture Show"

32 - "Lupin Dies Twice" / "Lupin the Interred"

34 - "Lupin Who Turned Into a Vampire" / "But your Brother was Such a Nice Guy"

36 - "Uncover the Secret of Tsukikage Castle" / "The Riddle of Tsukikage Castle"

38 - "The Sweet Trap of ICPO" / "Happy Betrayals to You"

48 - "Lupin Laughs at the Alarm Bell" / "Vault Assault"

57 - "Computer or Lupin?" / "Alter-Ego Maniac"

58 - "The Face of Goodbye at the National Border" / "Gettin' Jigen with It"

66 - "Order: Shoot to Kill!!" / "Beauty and the Deceased"

69 - "The Woman Pops Fell in Love With" / "Zenigata Getcha into My Life"

85 - "The ICPO's Secret Plan" / "The Secret Order of ICPO"

94 - "Lupin vs. Superman" / "Lupin Vs. Superman"

97 - "Find Lupin the First's Treasure" / "Searching for Lupin I's Treasure"

99 - "The Scattered Magnum" / "Fighting Jigen"

112 - "Goemon's Close Call" / "Danger! Goemon"

114 - "The Secret of the First Supper" / "The Secret of the First Supper"

129 - "In Jigen, I Saw the Gentleness of a Man's Soul" / "The Kindness Of Jigen is Seen"

148 - "The Target Is 555 Meters" / "The Target is Five Hundred and Fifty Five Meters Away"

151 - "The Arrest Lupin Highway Operation" / "To Arrest Lupin, the Mission at Highway"

Jul 19, 202303:46:40
S3E2 - Lupin III Takes the Big Screen: The Mystery of Mamo Review & Analysis

S3E2 - Lupin III Takes the Big Screen: The Mystery of Mamo Review & Analysis

“Wherever he goes, he’ll be chased. That is his destiny.” 

 

In 1978, Lupin the 3rd made the leap to the big screen with his first animated feature film, and while the second Lupin movie, 1979’s Hayao Miyazaki-directed The Castle of Cagliostro, is the more famous film, The Mystery of Mamo is arguably the single piece of Lupin animation that cuts closest to the heart of the character and the tone, humor, and storytelling style that makes Lupin the 3rd so enduring. It’s a globetrotting adventure that takes the audience all around the world, makes fantastic use of all five regular characters, has a wonderfully anarchic sense of humor, and is spectacularly animated from start-to-finish, a virtuosic feat from franchise stalwarts like Yuzo Aoki and Yasuo Otsuka. And it even has a thoughtful thematic core saying something surprisingly profound about Lupin as a character and the way he moves through the world, making for a movie that isn’t just uproariously funny and consistently surprising, but actually kind of poignant. It’s an absolute classic, and one that’s a delight to discuss on today’s episode. 

 

Enjoy, and come back next week as we dive into Lupin’s longest-running and most successful anime, Lupin the 3rd Part II. 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:20

Intro, History, and Review Part 1: 0:01:20 – 0:57:23 

Eyecatch Break: 0:57:23 – 0:58:08

Review Part 2: 0:58:08 – 2:26:58 

End Theme: 2:26:58 – 2:28:13

 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

 

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

https://weeklystuff.substack.com

 

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

 

“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Jul 12, 202302:28:13
Weekly Suit Gundam #61 – Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Season 2 Review & Analysis

Weekly Suit Gundam #61 – Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Season 2 Review & Analysis

“I’m a greedy person. There’s so much I want to do with Mom and all of you.” 

 

Weekly Suit Gundam is back to review the second and final season of Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury, which brings the story to a close with a rousing, jam-packed set of episodes that’s darker, richer, and more action-filled than the first season. This is the first mainline Gundam series besides Reconguista in G to tell its story in just 2 cours, but that doesn’t mean it’s a thinner or less complicated show, as our super-sized conversation in today’s episode attests to. With so many amazing characters, stellar animation and music, and a story that revisits classic Gundam scenarios and iconography while also challenging and moving beyond them, Witch From Mercury is a show with a lot on its mind, and a lot to break down.  

 

Enjoy, and be sure to tune in for Japanimation Station Season 3, “The Classic Adventures of Lupin the 3rd,” airing Tuesday nights at 7pm CT on YouTube! 

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

 

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/


Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com


Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

https://weeklystuff.substack.com


“Tobe! Gundam” performed by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Band in Shinjuku, Tokyo, February 2016. Originally composed by Takeo Watanabe with lyrics by Rin Iogi and performed by Koh Ikeda. 

“Gundam Stands its Ground” originally composed by Takeo Watanabe & Yushi Matsuyama. “Mobile Suit Gundam” Arcade (1993) arrangement composed by Nadya Doi.

 

Jul 11, 202302:59:16
S3E1 - The Green Jacket Adventures: Lupin the 3rd Part I Review & Analysis

S3E1 - The Green Jacket Adventures: Lupin the 3rd Part I Review & Analysis

“Lupin. He’s a nice man. But he’s cool.” 

Welcome to Season 3 of Japanimation Station: The Classic Adventures of Lupin the 3rd! This season, we will be exploring the countless capers of one of the most enduring icons of anime from his very first animated appearance in 1969 up through the dawn of the 21st century. In today’s season premiere, we go through the history of Monkey Punch’s original Lupin the 3rd manga, the creation of the 1969 pilot film, and finally do a deep dive on Lupin’s first anime TV series, 1971’s Lupin the 3rd, retroactively referred to as Part I. It is one of the most fascinating, unique, and compelling shows we’ve ever seen, a series essentially divided in half between early episodes helmed by Masaaki Osumi, which are more adult and irreverent a la Monkey Punch’s manga, and the later caper-centric episodes directed by the men who would go on to found Studio Ghibli, Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki! Both visions of the series are equally accomplished, and the series sees a wide range of animation giants pass through its doors – including Yasuo Otsuka and Osamu Dezaki – and by the end, Lupin the 3rd has started to settle on a template that will serve it well for decades to come. 


Enjoy, and come back next week as we review Lupin’s first animated theatrical film, the 1978 classic The Mystery of Mamo! 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:20

Intro to Season and History of Lupin: 0:01:20 – 0:42:14

Lupin the 3rd Part 1 History and Review: 0:42:14 – 2:06:15 

Eyecatch Break: 2:06:15 – 2:07:03 

Episode-by-episode Review: 2:07:03 – 3:22:59 

End Theme: 3:22:59 – 3:24:14 

 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Jul 05, 202303:24:15
S2.5E4 - Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Season 3: Swordsmith Village Arc Review

S2.5E4 - Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Season 3: Swordsmith Village Arc Review

“For the sake of someone other than yourself, you can exert infinite strength.”

 

The third season of the hit anime Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba recently wrapped up its hotly anticipated third season, adapting the “Swordsmith Village Arc” of Koyoharu Gotouge’s manga, and as big fans of the series who have reviewed all the prior arcs, we’re here for a deep dive with another amazing season. This set of episodes introduces us to a cast of largely new (or previously briefly seen) characters, including two Hashira with Tokito Muichiro and Mitsuri Kanroji, a mysterious demon slayer named Genya, and two ferocious upper rank demons; it’s also where the story fully starts to lay out some of its biggest themes and ideas, before arriving at a pivotal turning point leading to the start of the series’ endgame. It’s a great season of television, and it produces what is easily our most in-depth, interesting conversation about this series so far. 

 

Enjoy, and we’ll see you again soon for Japanimation Station Season 3: The Classic Adventures of Lupin the 3rd, premiering July 4th! 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Swordsmith Village Review Part 1: 0:01:14 – 0:43:34 

Eyecatch Break: 0:43:34 – 0:44:03

Swordsmith Village Review Part 2: 0:44:03 – 2:37:18

End Theme: 2:37:18 – 2:38:33

 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Jun 27, 202302:38:33
PREVIEW - The Classic Adventures of Lupin the 3rd | Japanimation Station Season 3 Premieres July 4th!

PREVIEW - The Classic Adventures of Lupin the 3rd | Japanimation Station Season 3 Premieres July 4th!

Hosts Sean Chapman and Jonathan Lack give you a special look at Season 3 of Japanimation Station, THE CLASSIC ADVENTURES OF LUPIN THE 3RD, premiering July 4th, 2023! In this 8-episode season, we will be surveying 30 years of anime history through the exploits of the infamous thief Lupin III and his friends Daisuke Jigen, Fujiko Mine, Goemon Ishikawa, and Inspector Zenigata! From the original anime in 1971 to the “Episode 0” origin-story special in 2002, we’re looking at many of Lupin’s biggest, best, weirdest, and most memorable heists, learning and laughing a lot along the way. In this preview, we give you the details on everything we’re watching and where exactly you can find it! Season 3 premieres July 4th, 2023, and will air Tuesday nights at 7pm CT for 8 uninterrupted weeks. 

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Season 3 Viewing Guide: 

  • Lupin the 3rd Part I (1971) – All 23 episodes – Available on Blu-ray from Discotek, streaming on HiDive (better quality) and Crunchyroll 
  • The Mystery of Mamo (1978) – Film – Available on Blu-ray from Discotek 
  • Lupin the 3rd Part II (1977) – Episodes 1, 12, 13, 20, 21, 25, 26, 27, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 48, 57, 58, 66, 69, 85, 94, 97, 99, 112, 114, 129, 145, 148, 151, 155 – Available on DVD from Discotek, streaming on HiDive (better quality) and Crunchyroll 
  • The Castle of Cagliostro (1979) – Film – Available on Blu-ray from Discotek, and to rent/buy on digital platforms like Amazon, Apple, YouTube, Vudu, etc. 
  • Lupin the 3rd Part III (1984) – Episodes 1, 3, 7, 11, 13, 18, 23, 24, 27, 28, 30, 31, 34, 37, 38, 40, 44, 46, 49, 50 - Available on Blu-ray from Discotek, streaming on HiDive (better quality) and Crunchyroll 
  • The Legend of the Gold of Babylon (1985) – Film – Available on Blu-ray from Discotek, streaming free (English dub only) on Amazon’s Freevee, Tubi, and the Roku Channel
  • The Fuma Conspiracy (1987) – Film – Out of print. See Carvioso + Jet Force torrent release for best available version 
  • Bye Bye Lady Liberty (1989) – TV Special - Available on Blu-ray from Discotek, streaming free (Japanese with subtitles) on Amazon’s Freevee 
  • Voyage to Danger (aka Orders to Assassinate Lupin, 1993) – TV Special – Available on Blu-ray from Discotek,streaming free (Japanese with subtitles) on Amazon’s Freevee, Tubi, and Pluto TV
  • Farewell to Nostradamus (1995) – Film – Available on Blu-ray from Discotek
  • Dead or Alive (1996) – Film – Available on Blu-ray from Discotek
  • Island of Assassins (aka Walther P-38, 1997) – TV Special – Blu-ray out-of-print, streaming free (English dub only) on Tubi; available to rent or buy (English dub only) on Amazon Prime Video
  • Tokyo Crisis (1998) – TV Special – Available on Blu-ray from Discotek, streaming free (English dub only) on Tubi; available to rent or buy (English dub only) on Amazon Prime Video
  • Episode 0: First Contact (2002) – TV Special – Available on Blu-ray from Discotek, streaming free (Japanese with subtitles) on Tubi 
  • Strange Psychokinetic Strategy (1974) – Live-action movie – Sail the high seas for this one…

 

 

Jun 07, 202321:08
S2E13 - Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family & Witch on the Holy Night Reviews

S2E13 - Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family & Witch on the Holy Night Reviews

“Getting to know someone is all about little moments like that, wouldn’t you agree?”

In this super-sized season finale of Japanimation Station, we close out ufotable/Moon Works with two reviews: First, we discuss Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family, the 2018 original net animation spin-off of Fate/stay night that sees Shirou and all his friends making food and enjoying each other’s company. Animated by Ufotable and based on the manga by TAa, it’s a delightful and remarkably well-produced slice-of-life alternative to the action of Fate/stay night, but one that sacrifices none of the sharp characterization that makes this cast so wonderful.

Second, we dive deep with Witch on the Holy Night (aka Mahoutsukai no Yoru), the visual novel based on Kinoko Nasu’s first unpublished novel, originally released in Japan in 2012 and released worldwide in a 2022 remake. The remake landed right as we started recording ufotable/Moon Works, and we wound up making references to the visual novel throughout the season, as Witch on the Holy Night is something of a ‘Rosetta Stone’ for the Nasu-verse, featuring all of his character types and major themes in a single, smaller-scale story, and we felt we had to devote some extra time to it here at the end of the season. And since ufotable will in fact be animating the story for an upcoming feature film, it will soon be another ufotable/Moon work!

Thanks for listening to Season 2 of Japanimation Station, and be sure to listen through to the end of the episode to hear first details about the next two seasons, both premiering in 2023!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:03:36

Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family Review: 0:03:36 – 1:18:46

Eyecatch 1: 1:18:46 – 1:18:56

Witch on the Holy Night Review: 1:18:56 – 3:00:02

Eyecatch 2: 3:00:02 – 3:00:16

Closing Thoughts: 3:00:16 – 3:07:16

Season 3 and 4 Reveal: 3:07:16 – 3:14:49

End Credits: 3:14:49 – 3:16:04

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

May 10, 202303:16:04
S2E12 - Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel III. Spring Song Review & Analysis

S2E12 - Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel III. Spring Song Review & Analysis

“I’ll show you a miracle.”

The journey of Fate/stay night comes to a close with the third and final chapter of the Heaven’s Feel trilogy, Spring Song, and Sean and Jonathan are both in absolute awe at what this film achieves. Bringing the stories of Shirou, Sakura, Rin, Ilya, and the other surviving characters to a surprising, incredibly emotional conclusion, this final film is a true tour-de-force, with the full weight of ufotable’s animation abilities brought to bear on some of Kinoko Nasu’s best storytelling. Few stories close with as immense a sense of pay-off as Heaven’s Feel, bringing us circling back not only to prior Fate/Zero and Fate/stay night discussions, but also The Garden of Sinners – all of it was leading to this point. Add in some jaw-dropping fight scenes, more incredible music by Yuki Kajiura and Aimer, and a heaping helping of everybody’s favorite evil priest, Kirei Kotomine, and you’ve got an animated masterpiece for the ages.

Enjoy, and come back next week for our Season 2 finale, as we dive deep with the recently re-released visual novel Witch on the Holy Night, aka Mahoutsukai no Yoru, and head on over to Shirou’s house for a tasty meal with the anime mini-series Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Heaven’s Feel III Review: 0:01:14 – 1:13:23

Eyecatch: 1:13:23 – 1:13:37

Heaven’s Feel III Review (Cont.): 1:13:37 – 3:02:14

End Credits: 3:02:14 – 3:03:30

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

May 03, 202303:03:30
S2E11 - Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel II. Lost Butterfly Review & Analysis

S2E11 - Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel II. Lost Butterfly Review & Analysis

“She’s all I want to protect.”

The dark saga that is Heaven’s Feel enters its especially dark middle chapter with Lost Butterfly, the second film in the trilogy, and one that delivers an enormous, eventful, complicated slice of movie for us to break down. Filled to the brim with surprising revelations, major plot turns, and huge character moments, the film sees Shirou and Sakura becoming more and more entwined in each others’ lives, and presents the viewer with a bracing, challenging depiction of abuse and the cycles of violence and pain it creates. It also sees ufotable at the top of their production game, with some of the most stunning animation ever committed to film, not just in the bravura action sequences, but in intense character moments that are rendered here so beautifully and powerfully that it’s hard to imagine anyone making it through this film without a tear or two. It’s another outstanding movie, and one that leaves us on the edge of our seats to finish the entire Fate/stay night project next week.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the third and final film in the Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel trilogy, Spring Song!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Heaven’s Feel II Review: 0:01:14 – 1:23:40

Eyecatch: 1:23:40 – 1:23:50

Heaven’s Feel II Review (Cont.): 1:23:50 – 2:32:19

End Credits: 2:32:19 – 2:33:34

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Apr 26, 202302:33:34
S2E10 - Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel I. Presage Flower Review & Analysis

S2E10 - Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel I. Presage Flower Review & Analysis

“If I ever did something bad, would you forgive me?”

We enter the final phase of ufotable/Moon Works with the first part of the Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel trilogy, Presage Flower, the first of three films adapting the third and final route of the original Fate/stay night visual novel. And whether you’re experiencing the story in its original visual novel setting or coming to it through ufotable’s anime adaptations, Heaven’s Feel is meticulously designed to throw you off balance, with a Holy Grail War that quickly becomes corrupted by dark forces unlike anything we’ve seen before, and a violent, horror-tinged tone more reminiscent of The Garden of Sinners than Fate/Zero or Unlimited Blade Works. This time around, the story focuses on Shirou Emiya’s relationship with Sakura Matou, an extremely different character than Rin Tohsaka, and one whose mysterious, trauma-filled past brings out new shadings in our would-be hero. It’s a terrific film, boasting ufotable’s finest production values thus far and a tremendous score by Yuki Kajiura, and it’s only the tip of the iceberg, as we still have two films to go.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the second film in the Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel trilogy, Lost Butterfly!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Heaven’s Feel I Review: 0:01:14 – 1:12:25

Eyecatch: 1:12:25 – 1:12:42

Heaven's Feel I Review (Cont.): 1:12:42 – 2:16:11

End Credits: 2:16:11 – 2:17:26

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Apr 19, 202302:17:27
S2E09 - Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works Season 2 Review & Analysis

S2E09 - Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works Season 2 Review & Analysis

“That’s Hell you’re walking into.”

Where the first season of Unlimited Blade Works provided a lot of essential character work, the second season – episodes 13 through 25 – is where the plot kicks into high gear, and there’s a lot to break down on this episode, as the show doles out revelations about Archer and Shirou, brings Gilgamesh and his monstrous narcissism into the fray, and delivers twists, betrayals, and surprise alliances aplenty. It’s a terrific, instant-classic stretch of anime that’s left a major impact on pop culture, and offers us plenty to discuss as we cut to the heart of Fate/stay night and what Kinoko Nasu’s story is doing with the many intertwined themes and characters. And as always, it’s a magnificent production from ufotable, as the studio continues to hone its craft and forge its identity as one of Japan’s most accomplished and cutting-edge anime studios.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the first film in the Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel trilogy, Presage Flower!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:52

Unlimited Blade Works Season 2 Review: 0:01:54 – 1:41:59

Eyecatch: 1:41:59 – 1:42:12

Unlimited Blade Works Season 2 Review (Cont.): 1:42:12 – 2:41:36

End Credits: 2:41:36 – 2:42:51

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Additional music by Thomas Lack, from the album Foundations.https://music.apple.com/us/album/foundations-a-journey-original-score-ep/1652362921

Apr 12, 202302:42:51
S2.5E3 - Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Season 2 – Entertainment District Arc Review

S2.5E3 - Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Season 2 – Entertainment District Arc Review

“Starting now, things are gonna get real flashy!”  

 

The premiere of the Swordsmith Village Arc is just two days away – on April 9th – and we’re finishing out our reviews of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, ufotable’s extraordinary anime adaptation of Kyoharu Gotouge’s hit manga, with a look at the show’s singular second season. Fresh off the unprecedented success of the Mugen Train film, Season 2 is shaped unlike just about any other anime season out there: An original episode with fan favorite Kyojuro Rengoku, then a 6-episode TV edit of Mugen Train complete with a new theme song and end credits, and finally an all new 11-episode adaptation of the manga’s Entertainment District Arc, featuring a double-length premiere and a 1.5x length finale. It’s all fantastic, of course, particularly the new material of the Entertainment District Arc, the point in the manga where Gotouge’s sense of staging action really comes into focus, giving ufotable more than enough to craft some of the most incredible images ever aired on television. With sound hashira Tengen Uzui, his three wives, and an upper-rank demon split across two separate bodies along for the ride, the Entertainment District Arc is an edge-of-your-seat adventure, and more than worthy of another look ahead of Season 3. 

 

We will be back to review the entire Swordsmith Village arc when it finishes airing this summer, and be sure to continue listening to Japanimation Station Season 2 – ufotable/Moon Works – premiering every Tuesday night at 7pm CT on YouTube! 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:03:48

Eyecatch 1: 0:03:48 – 0:03:56

Mugen Train Arc: 0:03:56 – 0:23:45

Eyecatch 2: 0:23:45 – 0:23:55

Entertainment District Arc: 0:23:55 – 2:28:30 

End Credits: 2:28:30 – 2:29:45 

 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

 

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Apr 07, 202302:29:46
S2E08 - Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works Season 1 Review & Analysis

S2E08 - Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works Season 1 Review & Analysis

“I am the bone of my sword.”

After the breakout success of Fate/Zero, ufotable returned in 2014 with an adaptation of the second route in the Fate/stay night visual novel: Unlimited Blade Works. And it’s a big series, released in two seasons, with the first including three hour-long episodes, and the entire production showcasing some of the highest-quality animation ever featured on television. It’s a spectacular show, and while ufotable did not adapt the first route of the visual novel, we find that Unlimited Blade Works operates surprisingly perfectly as a direct sequel to Fate/Zero. Today’s podcast discusses the first season, from the ‘0th’ episode on through episode 12, as we break down all the major characters like Shirou Emiya and Rin Tohsaka, the featured Servants including Archer, Saber, Caster, and Lancer, and the incredible direction and production values on display throughout.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the second season of Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works, episodes 13 through 25!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:54

Unlimited Blade Works Season 1 Review: 0:01:54 – 1:28:37

Eyecatch: 1:28:37 – 1:28:50

Unlimited Blade Works Season 1 Review (Cont.): 1:28:50 – 2:45:54

End Credits: 2:45:54 – 2:47:10

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Additional music by Thomas Lack, from the album Foundations.https://music.apple.com/us/album/foundations-a-journey-original-score-ep/1652362921

Apr 05, 202302:47:10
S2.5E2 - Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba The Movie – Mugen Train Review & Analysis

S2.5E2 - Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba The Movie – Mugen Train Review & Analysis

“Set your heart ablaze.” 

 

Ahead of the premiere of the Swordsmith Village Arc on April 9th, we’re revisiting a series of reviews of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, ufotable’s extraordinary anime adaptation of Kyoharu Gotouge’s hit manga. This time, we’re talking all about the 2020 feature film sensation Mugen Train, which set historic box-office records in Japan and around the world – and is just an utterly stupendous film all around. Taking one of the shorter arcs of the manga and crafting it into a well-rounded, hard-hitting, tragic film adventure, Mugen Train features some of ufotable’s finest animation to date, boasts a killer score by Yuki Kajiura and Go Shiina, and turned Kyujuro Rengoku into a worldwide anime icon. This is just about as good as it gets. 

 

Come back next Friday for our last Demon Slayer review before Season 3, with our thoughts on Season 2’s Entertainment District Arc! And be sure to continue listening to Japanimation Station Season 2 – ufotable/Moon Works – premiering every Tuesday night at 7pm CT on YouTube! 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:03:39 

Eyecatch: 0:03:39 – 0:03:48 

Mugen Train Review: 0:03:48 – 2:05:00

End Credits: 2:05:00 – 2:06:15 

 

Support the show at Ko-fi ☕️ https://ko-fi.com/weeklystuff

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

 

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

 

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content! 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Mar 31, 202302:06:16
S2E07 - Fate/Zero Review Part 2 – Full Series Review & Analysis

S2E07 - Fate/Zero Review Part 2 – Full Series Review & Analysis

“Glory lies beyond the horizon.”

After covering just the double-length first episode last week, we’re back to discuss the full run of Fate/Zero, the Fate/stay night prequel that became a breakout anime hit all over the world, and given the run-time of today’s podcast, you can probably guess our thoughts on it. This is a tremendous show, whether you’re seeing it for the first time (like Jonathan) or the fifth time (like Sean), working equally well as either a prequel or the first chapter of the larger Fate story, with a giant ensemble of rich, compelling characters, a ridiculously deep bench of vocal talent, some stellar music and animation, and a tragic storyline that barrels towards its wrenching conclusion with unstoppable momentum. There is an almost endless well of amazing material to talk about here, and it leaves us more excited than ever to get into Fate/stay night itself in the weeks to come.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the first season of Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works, episodes 0 through 12.

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Fate/Zero Review: 0:01:14 – 1:40:18

Eyecatch: 1:40:18 – 1:40:29

Fate/Zero Review (Cont.): 1:40:29 – 3:20:12

End Credits: 3:20:12 – 3:21:27

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Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Mar 29, 202303:21:28
S2.5E1 - Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Season 1 – Unwavering Resolve Arc Review

S2.5E1 - Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Season 1 – Unwavering Resolve Arc Review

“The bond between Nezuko and me can’t be severed by anyone.” 


With Season 3’s Swordsmith Village Arc of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba right around the corner – it premieres April 9th – we are re-releasing a series of episodes from our sister series, The Weekly Stuff Podcast, in which Sean and Jonathan review all of ufotable’s extraordinary anime adaptation of Kyoharu Gotouge’s hit manga up to now. In this first episode, we break down the first season of Demon Slayer, episodes 1 through 26, now known as the Unwavering Resolve Arc. From Tanjiro discovering his family slain and sister Nezuko turned into a demon, to training with Urokadaki and taking on the Final Selection, to the adventures in Asakusa and at the Tsuzumi Mansion, to the incredible, instant-classic battle with Rui on Mount Natagumo, this is the season that started at all, and cemented ufotable’s status as one of the most popular and beloved anime studios all around the world. 


Come back next Friday for our review of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba The Movie: Mugen Train, and continue listening to Season 2 – ufotable/Moon Works – premiering every Tuesday night at 7pm CT on YouTube! 

 

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:04:23

Eyecatch: 0:04:23 – 0:04:32

Season 1 Review: 0:04:32 – 3:04:43

End Credits: 3:04:43 – 3:05:58 

 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Mar 24, 202303:05:59
S2E06 - Fate/Zero Review Part 1 – Episode 1 & Intro to Fate/stay night

S2E06 - Fate/Zero Review Part 1 – Episode 1 & Intro to Fate/stay night

“The Holy Grail will save you.”

After finishing up The Garden of Sinners last week, we are taking our first steps into the larger world of Fate/stay night, the most iconic of Kinoko Nasu and Type-Moon’s creations, with Fate/Zero, the prequel anime based on the light novel series by Gen Urobuchi. On today’s episode, Sean gives us an in-depth introduction to the original Fate/stay night visual novel, all the ways it’s been adapted over the years, and tells us how Fate/Zero came about and where it fits into things. Then we discuss the first, double-length episode of the anime, and find that it’s not just a great hour of TV, but an excellent stand-alone introduction for anyone (like Jonathan!) who hasn’t previously experienced Fate/stay night.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the rest of Fate/Zero, episodes 2 through 25!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro to Fate/stay night: 0:01:14 – 0:27:17

Eyecatch: 0:27:17 – 0:27:26

Fate/Zero Episode 1 Review: 0:27:26 – 1:16:12

End Credits: 1:16:12 – 1:17:27

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Mar 22, 202301:17:28
S2E05 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Epilogue and Part 8 Review & Analysis

S2E05 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Epilogue and Part 8 Review & Analysis

“Your dream will live on.”

After adapting the original seven chapters of Kara no Kyoukai, ufotable returned in 2011 to animate the novel’s Epilogue chapter as a half-hour short, and in 2013 for Future Gospel (also known as Recalled Out Summer), based on an additional chapter Kinoko Nasu wrote in 2008, 10 years after the original serialization. Both turn out to be essential parts of the experience, with the Epilogue complicating and adding depth to the major themes of the series – alongside the most stunning imagery in the entire production – and Future Gospel offering a nostalgic, thought-provoking set of stories that works both as a Garden of Sinners reunion and a pitch-perfect coda. We also discuss the OVA released alongside Future Gospel – Extra Chorus – which adapts three manga chapters telling small one-off stories, and look back on the entire experience of watching and reviewing this incredible magnum opus.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we dive into the world of Fate/stay night and review the first episode of Fate/Zero!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:07:20

Epilogue: 0:07:20 – 1:02:26

Eyecatch: 1:02:26 – 1:02:40

Part 8 – Future Gospel: 1:02:40 – 1:50:14

Extra Chorus: 1:50:14 – 2:03:32

End Credits: 2:03:32 – 2:04:47

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Mar 15, 202302:04:48
S2E04 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Parts 6 - 7 Review & Analysis

S2E04 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Parts 6 - 7 Review & Analysis

“I won’t let you go, as long as I live.”

The original 7-part run of The Garden of Sinners comes to an end with these last two installments, Oblivion Recording and A Study in Murder: Part 2, the former providing a lighter, more comical one-off case where Shiki teams up with Touko’s apprentice (and Kokutou’s little sister) Azaka, while the decidedly-not-light latter chapter returns us to the mystery of the serial killings that first brought Shiki and Kokutou together. Oblivion Recording is a joy in its own way, and a welcome eye-in-the-storm between the series’ two longest, densest installments, but A Study in Murder II is the star here, as we learn the truth about Shiki, cut to the heart of who Kokutou is underneath his still exterior, and find out what these two characters mean to one another, and what choices they will make in the face of death.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the final pieces of The Garden of Sinners – the Epilogue short film, the eighth film, Future Gospel (aka Recalled Out Summer) and the Extra Chorus OVA.

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:06:34

Part 6 – Oblivion Recording: 0:06:34 – 1:06:05

Eyecatch: 1:06:05 – 1:06:19

Part 7 – A Study in Murder II: 1:06:19 – 2:47:21

End Credits: 2:47:21 – 2:48:36

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Mar 08, 202302:48:37
S2E03 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Part 5 Review & Analysis

S2E03 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Part 5 Review & Analysis

“You know, high rises are strange.”

We are only reviewing one installment of The Garden of Sinners this week, but since that installment is Paradox Spiral, we basically have no choice, and it’s not even because this is one of the only Kara no Kyoukai films that runs a full two hours. It’s because Paradox Spiral is one of the best and most artistically audacious things we’ve ever reviewed in our many years of podcasting, a dense and complicated story told in even more dense and intricate fashion by Ufotable, with stunning animation, disturbing and provocative imagery, and maybe the most complex editorial schema we’ve ever seen in a commercial feature, animated or live-action. And it’s all in service of an incredibly powerful story arranged around themes of duality, of division and reflection, that builds to one of the single most impactful endings in the history of the medium.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the end of the original Kara no Kyoukai story with Parts 6 and 7– Oblivion Recording and A Study in Murder: Part 2.

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Part 5 – Paradox Spiral: 0:01:14 – 1:19:44

Eyecatch: 1:19:44 – 1:20:04

Part 5 – Paradox Spiral (Cont.): 1:20:04 – 2:32:48

End Credits: 2:32:48 – 2:34:03

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Mar 01, 202302:34:04
S2E02 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Parts 3 - 4 Review & Analysis

S2E02 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Parts 3 - 4 Review & Analysis

“My eyes allow me to see death.”

Our journey through The Garden of Sinners continues with the third and fourth installments – Remaining Sense of Pain and The Hollow Shrine – as we learn (most of) the story behind Shiki, their powers, and how they, Kokutou, and Touko all came together. Remaining Sense of Pain sees the trio tackle one of the darkest cases in the series with the abused Fujino Asagami – and a content warning is definitely in order for this one, given the episode’s depiction of sexual assault – while The Hollow Shrine gives us a full tour through Shiki’s recovery and their mastery of the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception. It’s a striking, challenging set of films that ultimately leave us with a firmer understanding of this universe and its stakes, as we head into the series’ home stretch in the weeks ahead.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review the landmark 5th part of The Garden of Sinners – Paradox Spiral.

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro: 0:01:14 – 0:05:09

Part 3 – Remaining Sense of Pain: 0:05:09 – 0:53:44

Eyecatch: 0:53:44 – 0:54:00

Part 4 – The Hollow Shrine: 0:54:00 – 1:33:22

End Credits: 1:33:22 – 1:34:37

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

Follow The Weekly Stuff Wordcast newsletter for regular updates and extra content!

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Feb 22, 202301:34:38
S2E01 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Parts 1 - 2 Review & Analysis

S2E01 - The Garden of Sinners (Kara no Kyoukai) Parts 1 - 2 Review & Analysis

“The overlooking view is a breathtaking sight.”

For Season 2 of Japanimation Station – ufotable/Moon Works – we will be discussing all of the animated adaptations of Type-Moon’s books and visual novels produced by renowned studio ufotable. The best-known of these are related to Kinoko Nasu’s groundbreaking visual novel Fate/stay night, but the story of ufotable and Type-Moon’s creative partnership actually starts with an earlier work: Kara no Kyoukai, known in English as The Garden of Sinners, a light novel written by Nasu in 1998, and adapted into a series of films by Ufotable starting in 2007. We’ll be spending the first five episodes of this season working through these films, starting today with the first two installments: Overlooking View and A Study in Murder: Part 1. It’s a dense, intentionally confusing, and immediately gripping introduction to the world of Kara no Kyoukai and the Nasu-verse in general, with Sean coming in as a long-standing Type-Moon veteran and Jonathan as a newcomer to all of this. As we quickly learn, The Garden of Sinners is nothing if not a powerful conversation starter, and there is an almost endless well of things to talk about, both here and in the weeks to come.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we review parts 3 and 4 of The Garden of Sinners – Remaining Sense of Pain and The Hollow Shrine!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:14

Intro to Season and Nasu-Verse: 0:01:14 – 0:42:31

Eyecatch: 0:42:31 – 0:42:41

Part 1 – Overlooking View: 0:42:41 – 1:47:30

Part 2 – A Study in Murder I: 1:47:30 – 2:26:46

End Credits: 2:26:46 – 2:28:01

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Feb 15, 202302:28:02
Japanimation Station Season 2 - ufotable/Moon Works - Preview! Coming February 14th!

Japanimation Station Season 2 - ufotable/Moon Works - Preview! Coming February 14th!

Hosts Sean Chapman and Jonathan Lack give you a special look at Season 2 of Japanimation Station, premiering Valentine's Day 2023. This season is called UFOTABLE/MOON WORKS, and we'll be reviewing all of anime studio extraordinaire Ufotable's adaptations of Type-Moon stories, including Fate/Stay Night and The Garden of Sinners (and in this preview, we tell you where you can watch everything we're reviewing!). The new season, which will run 13 episodes uninterrupted, begins February 14th, 2023. 

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/ 

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast 

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“Welcome to Japanimation Station!” Lyrics by Sean Chapman, Music by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku. https://www.thomaslack.com

Feb 01, 202304:03
Weekly Suit Gundam #60 – Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Season 1 Review & Analysis

Weekly Suit Gundam #60 – Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Season 1 Review & Analysis

“Nice to meet you, my groom.”

Weekly Suit Gundam makes its triumphant return as Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury has wrapped up its fantastic 12-episode 1st season, and we’re here to dive deep on every facet of this so-far wonderful show: from our first female Gundam protagonist in Suletta Mercury, to the complex and seemingly sinister motivations of her mother/resident Char-clone Lady Prospera, to Suletta’s surprise fiancée Miorine Rembran and all the characters she meets at the Asticassia School of Technology, to the big questions like how in the world Chuatury Panlunch – aka ChuChu – fits those crazy hair globes in her pilot’s helmet. Even with just these first 12 episodes to work with, The Witch From Mercury delivers a huge amount of plot, big ideas, and stand-out moments, giving us more than enough to work with as we wait for Season 2, starting in April.

Enjoy, and be sure to tune in for Japanimation Station Season 2 – ufotable/Moon Works – premiering February 14th, Valentine’s Day!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:58:13

Intro & Spoiler-Free Thoughts: 0:58:13 – 0:20:55

Eyecatch 1: 0:20:55 – 0:21:03

Spoiler Review Part 1: 0:21:03 – 1:48:44

Eyecatch 2: 1:48:44 – 1:48:50

Spoielr Review Part 2: 1:48:50 – 3:06:49

Will You Be Able to Survive? 3:06:49 – 3:07:11

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWeeklyStuffPodcast

Visit our website and subscribe to Japanimation Station on all podcast platforms: http://japanimationstation.com/

Subscribe to The Weekly Stuff Podcast on all podcast platforms: http://www.weeklystuffpodcast.com

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“Tobe! Gundam” performed by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Band in Shinjuku, Tokyo, February 2016. Originally composed by Takeo Watanabe with lyrics by Rin Iogi and performed by Koh Ikeda.

“Gundam Stands its Ground” originally composed by Takeo Watanabe & Yushi Matsuyama. “Mobile Suit Gundam” Arcade (1993) arrangement composed by Nadya Doi.

Jan 24, 202303:07:23
S1E10 – Fullmetal Alchemist Movie Round-up! The Sacred Star of Milos & Live-Action Trilogy

S1E10 – Fullmetal Alchemist Movie Round-up! The Sacred Star of Milos & Live-Action Trilogy

In our 1st-season finale, we conclude our series of Fullmetal Alchemist reviews by rounding up the remaining theatrical feature films. First, there’s 2011’s The Sacred Star of Milos, an animated spin-off of Brotherhood made by the same crew, but with entirely different creative leadership, leading to a radically different aesthetic and the best animation Fullmetal Alchemist has ever seen. It’s a bit narratively messy in integrating Hiromu Arakawa’s characters into an otherwise original and unrelated story, but it’s also an entertaining and memorably weird experience that’s an essential watch. The live-action Fullmetal Alchemist trilogy is entertaining in its own way, but far less essential. With three films – 2017’s Fullmetal Alchemist and this year’s The Revenge of Scar and The Final Alchemy, all streaming worldwide on Netflix – this series, directed by Fumihiko Sori and starring Ryosuke Yamada as Ed, is a surprisingly faithful recreation of the manga (maybe too much so at times). Bouncing between hilarious B-movie oddity, boring recitation of the original story, and a few genuinely affecting performances and scenes, these movies are uneven but extremely interesting, and more than worth taking the time to discuss here.

Enjoy, and come back next year for Season 2 of Japanimation Station, where we will be reviewing Ufotable’s Type-Moon adaptations, including their Garden of Sinners and Fate/stay Night series!

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel!

Follow us on Twitter @JapanimationPod

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JapanimationStation.Com

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WeeklyStuffPodcast.Com

Oct 25, 202202:32:06
S1E09 – FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: BROTHERHOOD – Part 2 (Episodes 33-64) Review & Discussion
Oct 11, 202203:37:30
S1E08 – FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: BROTHERHOOD – Part 1 (Episodes 01-32) Review & Discussion

S1E08 – FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: BROTHERHOOD – Part 1 (Episodes 01-32) Review & Discussion

Sep 13, 202202:55:36
Weekly Suit Gundam #59 – Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Prologue Review & Discussion

Weekly Suit Gundam #59 – Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Prologue Review & Discussion

The Witch From Mercury, the first mainline Gundam show since Iron-Blooded Orphans ended in 2017 is premiering this October, but Sunrise has given us all quite the treat with a full episode-length Prologue special, now available worldwide on YouTube. Sean & Jonathan dust off the Weekly Suit Gundam mobile to discuss this outstanding first look at the new series, which introduces some fascinating and unique world-building combining certain elements from prior Gundamclassics and introducing many new ones, while simultaneously telling a tragic character-driven story culminating in an instant-classic Gundam death. With gorgeous animation and impressive voice acting, this Prologue has us more excited for The Witch From Mercury than ever – it looks like Gundam is in very good hands, and we look forward to reviewing the full show when the time comes!

Enjoy!

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Sep 06, 202239:41
S1E07 – Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero Movie Review
Aug 23, 202202:24:28
S1E06 – Dragon Ball Super: Broly Movie Review
Aug 19, 202202:21:09
S1E05 - Dragon Ball Z Broly Trilogy Retrospective (Movies 8, 10, 11)
Aug 18, 202202:20:36