1. January 2018

Episode 43: Re:Visited

John and CC wrap up 2017 by bringing you another whopper of an episode. First they reintroduce an old segment with a new name: Chop ‘n’ Drop. In this former sub section of the Trash Stash the gang talks about all the shows from Summer Season 2017 they stopped watching after a few episodes and why. Then John lifts the curtain on another Mystery Review that makes him re-evaluate his opinion on an old nemesis. Finally it’s time for the final Review of the Season with Re:Creators and the hosts list the many reasons why that shows was one of their favorites this year. Of course there is no way for them to wrap up the show without telling you about their pick for Best of Summer Season 2017.

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Chop ‘n’ Drop (1:56)

Mystery Review (14:41)

Review:

Re:Creators – No Spoilers (57:36)

Re:Creators – Spoilers (1:23:49)

Best of the Season (1:30:33)

ANN – This Week in Anime: How Meta Does Re:Creators Get?

ANN – This Week in Anime: The Best and Worst Moments of Re:Creators

Anime NOW! – Re:Creators Shows What Would Happen if Magical Girls Existed in the Real World

Anime NOW! – The Rules of Re:Creators Explained

Anime NOW! – All the Info on Re:Creators‘ Villain You Probably Missed

Anime NOW! – Some of Re:Creators’ Locations in the Real World

Anime NOW! – Re:Creators Shows That in Our World, Even Fictional Heroes Can Be Villains

Anime NOW! – The Titles of Those Re:Creators Songs You Can’t Get out of Your Head

Anime NOW! – A Closer Look at the Reality-twisting Powers of Re:Creators’ Wild Card Villain

Anime NOW! – The Cool Little Re:Creators Short Story You Probably Missed

Anime NOW! – Why Only Alicetelia from Re:CREATORS Can Save Her World

Anime NOW! – Don’t Skip Re:Creators’ Recap Episode

Anime NOW! – A Closer Look at Our Heroes’ Plan in Re:Creators (For Those of You Who Can’t Read Japanese)

Anime NOW! – Why Altair Is Both the Hero and Villain of Re:Creators

Anime NOW! – What Re:Creators is Really About

18. December 2017

Episode 42: Top Gear

Strap in and prepare for an epic ride, kids. In their longest show to date, John and CC take it upon themselves to review all currently existing seasons of the Magical Girl Action Hit Senki Zesshou Symphogear. After dishing out an introduction to the show’s plot setup, universe and main characters, they go through all four seasons to give you their spoiler-free and spoiler-heavy opinions on each of them. Lastly, both hosts discuss their favorite main cast member, piece of armor, villain and song from the entirety of the franchise.

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Review:

Symphogear – No Spoilers (1:41)

Symphogear – Spoilers (46:13)

Symphogear G – No Spoilers (1:01:13)

Symphogear G – Spoilers (1:14:06)

Symphogear GX – No Spoilers (1:29:29)

Symphogear GX – Spoilers (1:43:10)

Symphogear AXZ – No Spoilers (2:02:42)

Symphogear AXZ – Spoilers (2:22:22)

Best Girl (2:31:56)

Best Gear (2:38:10)

Best Villain (2:42:27)

Best Song (2:47:10)

Anime NOW! – What to Know before Starting Symphogear AXZ

Anime NOW! – The Meanings behind the Names in Symphogear

3. December 2017

Episode 41: Mysteries & Misunderstandings

On this episode CC digs into the Trash Stash once again, to talk about Vatican Miracle Examiner and explains why the show succeeds at being so bad that it’s good. Then John introduces the motley crew of Gamers and the gang discusses why the goofy rom-com ultimately didn’t live up to its potential.

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Trash Stash

Vatican Miracle Examiner (1:09)

Review:

Gamers (18:04)

Anime NOW! – A Talk with the Lead Voice Actor of Vatican Miracle Examiner

Anime NOW! – The Beautiful, Exotic Darkness of Vatican Miracle Examiner

Anime NOW! – The Vatican Miracle Examiner Mixes Religion and Scooby-Doo

Crunchyroll: Hobbies, Handles, and Hangups! The Labels that Define Gamers!

Crunchyroll: “GAMERS!” In-Game Locations Compared to Their Real World Counterparts! [Part 1]

Crunchyroll: “GAMERS!” In-Game Locations Compared to Their Real World Counterparts! [Part 2]

Anime NOW! – The Real and Fake Video Games of Gamers!

Anime NOW! – Gamers is True to Its Title, But Not in the Way You Might Think

Anime NOW! – In Gamers, Believing in Stereotypes is the Root of Everyone’s Problems

Anime NOW! – For Non-Gaming Viewers of Gamers, Aguri Represents the Rest of Us

12. November 2017

Episode 40: The Codswallop Conundrum

John opens up this episode by delivering a Mystery Review of a show unknown to listeners and CC alike. Then the gang tries to solve the puzzle of whether or not one of the two potential Trash Stash candidates, Knight’s & Magic and Princess Principal is actually worth a watch.

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Mystery Review (1:30)

Trash Stash

Knight’s & Magic (18:45)

Review:

Princess Principal (41:23)

Anime NOW! – In Knight’s & Magic, Building a Custom Robot is No Easy Feat

ANN: What Makes Princess Principal So Engrossing?

Anime Feminist Feature: Know When to Fold ‘Em: Princess Principal and the feel-good feminism of “Loudly Laundry”

Anime NOW! – Why the Stories in Princess Principal Are Told Out of Order

Anime NOW! – Solving the Riddle of When Exactly Princess Principal Takes Place

29. October 2017

Episode 39: Against all Odds

Dialing the episode length back a bit this time around, the hosts deliver Reviews of two somewhat small-scale, but nonetheless outstanding shows. First CC is talking about Made in Abyss and explains why this emotional gut punch of a fantasy tale is worth excavating. Then John wraps up the episode by dishing out his opinion on Sakura Quest and discusses how its many colorful characters bring life not only to the rural countryside of Japan, but also to the show itself.

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Reviews:

Made in Abyss (1:07)

Sakura Quest (26:51)

ANN – This Week in Anime: Made in Abyss Made Us Cry Like Little Babies

ANN Interview: Made in Abyss Composer Kevin Penkin

Super Eyepatch Wolf: Why You Should Watch Made in Abyss

ANN – Sakura Quest: How To Revive a Dying Town

Crunchyroll FEATURE: Why It Works: “Sakura Quest” Doesn’t Have the Answers

Crunchyroll: Life After Failure in “Sakura Quest”

Crunchyroll: My Own “Sakura Quest” – Exploring the Real Life Manoyama [Part 1]

Crunchyroll: My Own “Sakura Quest” – Exploring the Real Life Manoyama [Part 2]

Crunchyroll: My Own “Sakura Quest” – Exploring the Real Life Manoyama [Part 3]

15. October 2017

Episode 38: Heroes Unstained

The dynamic duo is back to appropriately kick off Fall Season with a supersized episode. First John delivers his Re:Con report of New York Comic Con 2017 and what caught his eye on the show floor. Then the hosts dive head first into the Sneak Peek to bring you there impressions of all the new series premieres they checked out. Last but not least they send of this episode with their Review of the second season of one of their favorite new shows: My Hero Academia.

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Re:Con – NYCC 2017 (1:31)

Sneak Peek:

Food Wars – Season 3 (20:28)

Blend S (23:40)

Dies Irae (26:26)

Two Car (30:16)

Black Clover (35:23)

Love Live! Sunshine! – Season 2 (40:15)

GARO -Vanishing Line- (46:29)

Just Because! (50:55)

Code:Realize -Guardian of Rebirth- (55:19)

Land of the Lustrous (57:48)

Kino’s Journey – the Beautiful World- the Animated Series (1:02:32)

Girls’ Last Tour (1:07:44)

Jūni Taisen: Zodiac War (1:09:23)

Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond (1:11:58)

Inuyashiki Last Hero (1:16:53)

The Ancient Magus’ Bride (1:22:29)

Review:

My Hero Academia – Season 2 (1:29:30)

ANN – Interview: My Hero Academia’s Yoshihiko Umakoshi and Chris Sabat

ANN – Why is Stain’s Capture Actually Good for the League of Villains?

ANN – Will Bakugo Become a Hero or a Villain?

Crunchyroll FEATURE: Found in Translation – The Death of Superman in “My Hero Academia”

Crunchyroll FEATURE: Why It Works: Shadows Over “My Hero Academia”

Crunchyroll FEATURE: Why It Works: My Hero Academia’s Tactical Tapestry

Crunchyroll: Translating Tension in My Hero Academia

17. September 2017

Episode 37: Humble Beginnings

As this season draws to a close, the gang discuss their last batch of shows from Spring 2017. First John dishes out his thoughts on the mobile game adaption Granblue Fantasy the Animation and then both hosts go back to the beginnings of one of Anime’s most well known icons Astro Boy, by talking about its new prequel series Atom: The Beginning.

Last but not least, it’s time to pick the Best of the Season, which is a much easier endeavor for Spring, than it will be for Summer.

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Reviews:

Granblue Fantasy the Animation (1:12)

Atom: The Beginning (24:33)

Best of the Season (53:00)

Anime NOW!: Granblue Fantasy Is Old-school Fantasy Anime Reborn

Anime NOW!: I Wish the Battles in the Granblue Fantasy Game Were Like the Anime

Anime NOW!: Here’s Who Lent a Hand in the Battle Against Leviathan in Granblue Fantasy

Anime NOW!: The Final Episode of Granblue Fantasy Shows a Reality Where the Protagonist Is Female

Sakuga Blog: Shedding Light on Granblue Fantasy’s Delay and A-1’s Struggles

Crunchyroll: Must-See “Atom The Beginning” Anime Opening Published

Anime NOW!: Atom The Beginning Isn’t the Robotic Blood Sport You’re Expecting and That’s the Point

Sakuga Blog: Interview With Bahi JD, Director Of ATOM: The Beginning’s Opening

3. September 2017

Episode 36: The Light Show

This episode is even more of a lightweight than usual, because our hosts tackle not only one, but two light novel adaptions. First CC talks about WorldEnd: What do you do at the end of the world? Are you busy? Will you save us? (Yes, that is its full title…) also known as SukaSuka and how the series couldn’t live up to the potential promised by its first episode. Then John elaborates on why Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend does a good job at detailing the many challenges of creating a visual novel.

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Reviews:

SukaSuka/WorldEnd: What do you do at the end of the world? Are you busy? Will you save us? (2:36)

Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend (23:17)

Crunchyroll FEATURE: The Hook – “WorldEnd” and “Tsukigakirei”

Crunchyroll FEATURE: Head Space – “WorldEnd” Framing a Tragedy

Anime News Network Reviews – Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend

Anime News Network Reviews – Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend Flat

20. August 2017

Episode 35: Witches Galore

In this magical episode the gang is once again returning to the world of sorcery and witchcraft. CC starts off the the show by talking about the light novel adaption Grimoire of Zero and its two unique main protagonists. Then, after drifting off into a conversation about Anime dubs for a while, John wraps things up by introducing us to the new Trigger hit-series Little Witch Academia and the hosts discuss how it stacks up against the other big popular shows from the same studio.

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Reviews:

Grimoire of Zero (1:31)

Little Witch Academia (18:12)

Anime News Network Interview: Masahiko Otsuka and Yoh Yoshinari of Studio Trigger

Crunchyroll FEATURE: Creative Spotlight: Yoh Yoshinari

Anime NOW: Why Rebooting Little Witch Academia Was a Great Idea

30. July 2017

Episode 34: Nicked Swords

Tortured by allergies, but nevertheless ready to get dangerous, the gang is going for a bit of a low-key episode this time, by discussing two shows that left the hosts underwhelmed for one reason or another. First, CC delivers a rant dripping with disappointment, about the ever evolving dumpster fire that is the second season of the current TV Anime adaption of Kentaro Miura’s Berserk. After that, John wraps up the show by talking about the Danmachi spin-off Sword Oratoria and why its more serious approach to the world and characters set up by its predecessor is kind of a lackluster experience.