Episode 35 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. Have you felt like something strange and terrible has been hanging over your head for four years, maybe more? Does today seem like it could be the moment when it all comes crashing down? Does it seem at the same time like it could stay up there forever, a sword of Damocles under which you'll be forced to live your life just out of the universal indignity of being born? Will today be the day you make a change, something proactive for once, and avert the disaster that you can't help but see in your future? Will you listen to us talk at last about the works of Inio Asano, the brains behind the recent movie duology and ONA series Dead Dead Demon's DeDeDeDe Destruction? It's not likely to help with all of the above, but it might make you feel like someone else gets it.
Episode 34 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. What do you do when your podcast spotlights something that no one particularly liked? Well, maybe you should listen to this episode and find out! In honor of a second season being announced, after an interval of a decade and a half, Ben, Andy, and Duncan all watched Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt, an anime that aspires to the transgressive heights of turn-of-the-millennium Western cartoons by the likes of Genndy Tartakovsky and Craig McCracken. Is it a successful pastiche of all things American? Well, things are said, some of them even nice. To tell you more would be against the rrrrrules!
Episode 33 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. One does not care to acknowledge the mistakes in one's podcast, but know this: each host has their own sense of fandom inside of themselves, and they fight desperately to protect their credibility from naysayers! Even when you understand most of the references, even when you realize that it's just people quoting Char Aznable from Mobile Suit Gundam, you keep watching more... That is how true fans operate. Right now, Ben, Duncan, and Jeff are discussing Aoi Honoo, also known as Blue Blazes, as well as its almost-but-not-quite companion piece Otaku no Video, and you're free to listen in... if you can handle them giving Toshio Okada the side-eye. Podcast quality isn't determined by differences in audience numbers, we'll teach you that!
Episode 32 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. It's time to rock out with Masaaki Yuasa's latest movie, Inu-Oh! Not to spoil, but everyone loves it. What all do they like? Is it the real-life talent behind this medieval Japanese rock opera? Is it the wonderful celebration of difference? Is it the opportunity to bring up Heike Monogatari as much as humanly possible? Listen and you're certain to find out.
Episode 31 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. It is we who plowed the prairies, built the cities where they trade / Dug the mines and built the workshops, endless miles of railroad laid / Now we stand outcast and starving midst the wonders we have made / But the union makes us strong! Come listen to Ben, Andy, and Duncan express their solidarity with a red panda and a hyena as they muse on the end of Netflix's Aggretsuko.
Episode 30 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. Revue Starlight is a story of podcast hosts guided by the sureness of their opinions. They agree and disagree. They make good points even as they miss the overall picture. However, eventually the episode ends, never to be revisited again. It is a somber experience... but the story of those nine girls hopelessly captivates Ben and Duncan. Knowing all that they face, the tragedy that shall someday come, will you still choose to join them on stage? I understand.
Episode 29 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. We just did a tween on Mobile Suit Gundam, one of the defining franchises of anime, so why not another? Jeff and Duncan drink deeply of the original Ghost in the Shell movie, which they praise for asking questions more than giving answers, and they ponder how it pointed the way forward (and, in a handful of cases, backward) for cyberpunk as a genre, anime as a medium, and cyborgs as a lens through which to view alienation from one's own body and society. It's not quite what it could be, since Ben couldn't be there, but maybe he'll be back in the next episode to give everyone what for.
Episode 28 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. The creeping obsession with Mobile Suit Gundam shared by Ben, Duncan, and Jeff gains another toehold in the podcast with this tween on the celebrated 1989 OVA written by none other than Hiroyuki Yamaga of Studio GAINAX fame. Hear our hosts talk about being anti-war in an anime designed first and foremost to sell toys, about the beauty and demise of hand-painted cel animation, and their evolving relationship with this, the nonpareil of mecha anime! And don't worry, complaints about how annoying Al is and how dumb Lt. Col. Killing's name is are kept to a minimum.
Episode 27 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. It's time for a rematch on whether Violet Evergarden is profoundly moving or manipulatively sappy! Duncan, Andy, and Jeff square up over the sequel movie that was released two years ago in Japan and last year worldwide, but don't worry, it's not Violet-loving Andy vs. the world this time. Jeff and even Duncan join him at times in praising the movie, in between analyzing it as a meditation on discomfort with modernity and the instantaneous communication that underpins it. Should you watch Violet Evergarden: The Movie, even if you haven't seen the show first? Well... maybe you should listen and find out!
Episode 26 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. Six years and a hundred and twenty-three episodes ago, in an earlier era of the podcast, Ben pitched an episode spotlighting the film adaptation of Clamp's apocalyptic manga. Instead, everyone picked Natsuyuki Rendezvous, an anime that Ben hated. Now he'll have his revenge! Duncan and Jeff join him to wonder in bafflement at the attempt to cram a half-dozen volumes of material into an hour and a half of screen time... and maybe find something to love? Not Andy, though. Andy calls in at the end to say that it's pants.
Episode 25 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. It's finally here, the moment where we get to talk about tanks as much as we want—as opposed to every other episode of this podcast, where Ben just talks about tanks until everyone else makes him stop! Duncan and Jeff join him now to chat about Girls und Panzer, a 2012 anime by Tsutomu Mizushima that's somehow spawned a massive franchise. Tune in to hear them discuss everything from the ethics of a show that gamifies war to the best tanks and their teams!
Episode 24 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. What even is a metaphor? Is it meant to be a comparison between every aspect of two objects, or just one between their most salient features? Is there value in unsuited metaphors, ones mischaracterizing the nature or intent of one object (or both), or is there an intellectual and even ethical responsibility for metaphor to reveal a deeper truth? Is wanting to eat someone the same as wanting to have sex with them? All this (and more) will probably not be answered as Andy, Duncan, and Jeff explore the latest season of Beastars!
Episode 23 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. We were going to call this episode "Two Guys, a Girl, and a Transforming Robot," but Duncan and Jeff prevailed upon Ben... somehow. Anyway! You've spent a year hearing the hosts of this podcast gush about Escaflowne, so now you get to hear it for another hundred-odd minutes. They go into the craft of the show's plot and characters, its historical and cultural context, and the mediocre feature-length remake that came out in 2000. Check it out!
Episode 22 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. There... Can you hear it? If your soul has not truly given up on Ben, Duncan, and Jeff finishing their Revolutionary Girl Utena rewatch, then you can hear the sound that races through the last fifteen episodes of that series. Come! Come with us and our guest, friend and Utena expert Katie! Follow us to the podcast episode you seek!
Episode 21 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. There's a new anime on Netflix and everyone is talking about it! Join Andy, Duncan, Jeff, and Jon as they talk about the thematic and artistic value of Beastars and struggle not to mention Zootopia too much. How many times is too many? Four? Five? Listen and decide for yourself!
Episode 20 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. You want to hear Ben, Duncan, and Jeff talk about the "Black Rose" arc of Revolutionary Girl Utena? Deeper. Go deeper. You want to hear them talk about nostalgia, toxicity, deviance, and intimacy? You want crackpot theories and genuine insights in equal measure? I understand. Your only choice is to listen to this episode. The file you must download has been linked for you.
Episode 19 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. Once upon a time, there were podcast hosts who were very sad, for they had finished a rewatch of the Monogatari Series. Before Ben, Duncan, and Jeff appeared a celebrated anime called Revolutionary Girl Utena, which said, "Little podcast, bearing up alone in such deep sorrow, lose not thy obsessive nitpicking and theorizing, even if thou gets famous. As a token of this day, take this Blu-ray remaster, which should guide thee to me." Was the Blu-ray the anime gave them for review? That was all good, but the podcast hosts were so impressed by Revolutionary Girl Utena that they decided to do a rewatch of it next! But was that such a good idea?
Episode 18 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. Make a joyful noise! Even though it's the holidays and they're all off celebrating, the hosts of this podcast have managed to put together a ranked list of their favorite anime about music. Why not hear Ben defend Eureka 7 as a "music anime" or Duncan give his thoughts on Andy's beloved Love Live!? There's even a coda to the endless Carole & Tuesday talk at the beginning, as the pun in the title promises. Have a wonderful year, everyone, and we'll see you in 2020!
Episode 17 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. I shouldn't have wasted my butchering of Frank Sinatra's "My Way" on the description of episode 51 because this really is the end of an era. Ben and Jeff discuss the final arc of the Monogatari Series franchise and look back on six episodes of navel-gazing speculation about one of the most intellectual and perverted shows out there. Lots of important questions are asked and answered, like whether Ben is more into eyebrows or feet. Thanks for listening, and we hope you enjoyed it!
Episode 16 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. What, puppets? Don't worry, Jeff and Jon are here to guide you through the confusing world of Thunderbolt Fantasy, a Taiwanese show set in fantasy China with Japanese voice acting. What are everyone's names? Do they all die at the end? How is "wuxia" pronounced? All this and more may or may not be answered!
Episode 15 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. What rhymes with "summer"? That's right, "bummer"! After catching up with Jon's list of shows that he's watching for the summer 2019 anime season, Ben chats with him about their experiences with hype and disappointment as anime fans. What shows let them down? How did they let them down? Is the internet to blame? The internet's probably to blame.
Episode 14 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. As Von Clausewitz said, mahjong is the continuation of politics by other means. Join Jeff and Jon as Andy schools them on the centuries-old game of tiles and hands, learning a little bit about right-wing Japanese politics and Olympic skeet-shooting along the way. Is The Legend of Koizumi funny in spite of its extremely niche appeal? Is it funny because of it? Listen and find out!
Episode 13 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. The boys (that is, Ben and Jeff) are back in town, and that means that it's time for another round of navel-gazing about the Monogatari Series franchise! This time, it's the long-delayed movie trilogy that tells the story of Araragi's first encounter with a hot girl... and with a vampire! There's so much to cover that they miss a bunch, though. For instance, there's not a word about Kiss-Shot Acerola-Orion Heart-Under-Blade jogging her memory by digging through her literal brains, or about the recurring motif of a vampire hunter's head laughing in front of bad CGI flames. Still, they talk a lot! Maybe too much. Listen, if you dare...
Episode 12 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. Happy holidays! We got you a Christmas episode. What, are we too late? Well, if Honey and Clover can have its Christmas episode in May, we can certainly have ours in January. Snuggle in with Ben, Andy, and Duncan as they talk about Christmas traditions in Japan, iconic Christmas episodes from anime, and what terrible shows they would give each other as part of a white elephant gift exchange.
Episode 11 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. What is the relationship between words and reality? Do words describe a reality that exists independently of their use and meaning, or are words actually the medium through which reality is perceived and understood? For instance, if Aniplex decides to brand Hanamonogatari as a finale movie for Monogatari Series Second Season instead of an OVA epilogue for the entire franchise, does that make it so? If Ben and Jeff discuss it alongside Koyomimonogatari and Tsukimonogatari, does that make the podcast a work of media criticism? Listen to find out!
Episode 10 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. What happens when an unstoppable spear meets an unbreakable shield? No, we're not talking about your favorite sports anime, we're talking about Jeff and Jon talking about the controversial Hanebado! that aired this summer. One hates it, but loves it a little, and the other loves it, but hates it a little! Who will triumph?
Episode 09 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. When does an error become a mistake? When you watch another installment of the Monogatari Series franchise. That's how the saying goes, right? As they discuss Monogatari Series Second Season, Ben and Jeff even develop a lot of affection for the characters that other fans hate to love, like Tsubasa Hanekawa and Nadeko Sengoku. Listen and maybe you will, too!
Episode 08 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. Ben and Jeff compound their error by discussing the next two installments in the Monogatari Series franchise, Nisemonogatari and Nekomonogatari Black. Can they extract something profound from a conversation about thousand-year-old lolis, abusive families, and erotic tooth-brushing sequences? Where there's a will, there's a way.
Episode 07 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. It is fitting that Bakemonogatari, an anime that is about the self-conscious construction of identity, gets almost an hour of discussion out of Ben and Jeff. Come for the philosophy, stay for the fan service! Be prepared to stay awhile, there's a lot of fan service...
Episode 06 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. People are lining up to hear Andy and Midori talk about their experience at Comiket 93! Mids is full of facts about the world's largest doujinshi market! Andy is unsure whether or not to eat a bag of poop for which he paid ¥3,000! They play a recording of a drunken conversation with Andy's friend Hiroto, a Comiket veteran! Hurry, before we run out of exclamation points!
Episode 05 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. Ben and Jeff are rockin' the suburbs! This one's the mecha podcast to end all mecha podcasts. Okay, that's probably not true: Jeff is going to watch Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, and Ben may even talk himself into watching Reconguista in G. But hey, there's some good stuff here about the breakout hits of Yoshiyuki Tomino's early career.
Episode 04 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. The holidays have Ben, Andy, and Jon hungry for anime and thirsty for manga! After sampling Food Wars! and then tearing into Osake wa Fuufu ni Natte Kara, they chew through all the other food and drink anime that they can find. Andy has another terrible game to play, too!
Episode 03 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. The current state of anime podcasts is unsustainable. On the one hand are podcasts that cater to the fandom by obsessing over references, moe, and fan service without truly engaging in the artistic and thematic content of the medium. On the other are podcasts that cater to the industry with production figures and pedigree, informative to other insiders but inaccessible to the average listener. What is necessary, now more than ever in this new age of internet content, is a podcast that provides a disruptive median that realigns the praxis of anime discourse online into an uncompromised synthesis of critical superego and enthusiast id. That podcast will be our discussion of Patlabor 2: the Movie. Join the revolution with Ben, Andy, Duncan, and Jeff!
Episode 02 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. A show about girls working at a software company. Is that Non Non Biyori? A show about the discrimination that monster girls face. Is that Non Non Biyori? A show about a high school gaming club. Is THAT Non Non Biyori? Andy and Mids roam far and wide before arriving at their destination: the remake of Mahoujin Guru Guru, an anime from Mids' childhood. It's not Non Non Biyori, but it's close.
Episode 01 of Key Frames: Inbetweens, a mini-podcast about anime. Distressed by our missing editor, we wander the library of podcast future and podcast past. Dusty volumes left, dusty volumes right... but what's this? An ancient episode, lost to the ages, about an anime that's been running for ages? Why, brush it off and throw it onto the feed, we say! Join Andy and Jon for a surprisingly joyous discussion of anime and manga phenomenon One Piece.
