Featured Anime Podcast

Season one spent a whole run building out the Ten Master Clans and a genuinely interesting magic system, so what happens when season two seems to forget almost all of it? Genres: Action, Magic, Romance, School, Sci-Fi, Supernatural Studio: 8-bit Source: Light Novel Jack's Score: 2/10 Rick's Score: 3/10 Verdict: A strong premise gets buried under harem tropes, convoluted lore dumps, and que...

Magic got rewired into hard science, a class system sorts kids by test scores, and one supposedly underpowered "weed" might be hiding more strength than the entire school combined. Jack and Rick dig into whether season one earns all the world-building it piles on. This episode is sponsored by TokyoTreat. Treat yourself or a loved one! TokyoTreat makes the perfect gift for any occasion. Use code "F...

Rooster Fighter Review - FAP-392 A backyard rooster channels the spirit of a wandering samurai and somehow turns into one of the most entertaining kaiju shows we've watched all year. Genres: Action, Comedy, Parody Studio: Sanzigen Source: Manga Jack's Score: 9/10 Rick's Score: 9/10 Verdict: Ridiculous on the surface, genuinely well written underneath, and worth the full 12-episode run....

Bartender: Glass of God Worth Watching - FAP-391 Ryu's hunting the perfect drink in a hidden Tokyo bar, but whether Glass of God is worth your time depends entirely on how much you love a slow burn. Genres: Drama, Slice of Life, Seinen Studio: Liber Source: Manga Jack's Score: 6/10 Rick's Score: 8/10 Verdict: Rick poured a weak eight and Jack left a six on the bar, slow by design and e...

Is Bartender Worth Watching? Jack and Rick step behind the bar at Eden Hall to see if this slow, episodic drink of the week anime pours something worth sticking around for. Genres: Drama, Slice of Life, Seinen Studio: Palm Studio Source: Manga Jack's Score: 4/10 Rick's Score: 4/10 Verdict: A decent, low stakes show that's easy to half watch in the background, but it never really grabs...

Is Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon Season 2 Worth Watching? FAP-389 Season 2 cranks up the action and raises the stakes, but can a vending machine really carry a dungeon full of cracks in the story? Genres: Comedy, Fantasy, Isekai Studio: Studio Gokumi / AXsiZ Source: Light Novel Jack's Score: 5/10 Rick's Score: 3/10 Verdict: More budget, flashier fights, same problem...

Is Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon Worth Watching? FAP-388 A guy dies saving a vending machine from falling off a truck and wakes up in a fantasy dungeon as one. Yeah, we watched it so you can decide if you want to. Genres: Comedy, Fantasy, Isekai Studio: Studio Gokumi and AXsiZ Source: Light Novel Jack's Score: 5/10 Rick's Score: 5/10 Verdict: The most unique isekai...

Is The Brilliant Healer's New Life in the Shadows Worth Watching? - FAP-387 A self-taught healer gets dumped by his party with nothing but a gold coin, sets up a hidden underground clinic in the slums, and ends up becoming the most important guy in the city without even trying. Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Harem Studio: Makaria Source: Light Novel Jack's Score: 5/10 Rick's Score...

Is Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc Worth Watching? FAP-386 The Chainsaw Man movie just dropped and we're breaking down whether the Reze Arc actually delivers on everything Season 1 built, or if it's all flash and no follow-through. Genres: Action, Adventure, Dark Fantasy, Horror, Supernatural Studio: MAPPA Source: Manga Jack's Score: 5/10 Rick's Score: 6/10 Verdict: The action sequences are...

Is Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Season 2 Worth Watching? - FAP-385 Season 2 packs more demons, more action, and more emotional gut-punches into 10 episodes than most shows manage in a full season, and it still somehow leaves you wanting way more. Genres: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Slice of Life, Action Studio: Madhouse Source: Manga Jack's Score: 9/10 Rick's Score: 10/10 Verdict: A sh...

Is Frieren Beyond Journey's End Worth Watching? The Demon King is already dead before the first episode even starts, and somehow that's just the beginning of one of the best anime to come out in years. Genres: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Slice of Life Studio: Madhouse Source: Manga Jack's Score: 10/10 Rick's Score: 10/10 Verdict: It's the rare show where every single piece, the...

Is Etotama Worth Watching? FAP-383 Jack and Rick sat through all 12 episodes of Etotama so you don't have to, and honestly it might go down as one of the worst anime either of them has ever covered. Genres: Action, Comedy, Ecchi, FantasyStudio: Encourage Films, Shirogumi Source: Original Jack's Score: 1/10 Rick's Score: 1/10 Verdict: A directionless, nonsensical mess with no real story...

Is Sentenced to Be a Hero Worth Watching? FAP-382 A disgraced holy knight gets framed, convicted, and sentenced to immortal military service on the front lines as a penal hero. No retirement, no escape, and dying your way out is not an option. Genres: Action, Dark Fantasy, Military, Supernatural Studio: Studio Kai Source: Light Novel Jack's Score: 9/10 Rick's Score: 9/10 Verdict: A dark, o...

Is Apothecary Diaries Season 2 Worth Watching? - FAP 381 Season 2 takes everything that made the first season great and goes deeper into the conspiracies, the court politics, and the answers you have been waiting for since episode one. Genres: Drama, Mystery, Romance, Suspense, Historical Studio: Toho and OLM Source: Light Novel Jack's Score: 9/10 Rick's Score: 8/10 Verdict: A stronger, da...

Is Seventh Time Loop Villainess Worth Watching? FAP-380 If you're burned out on the same tired romance anime formula, this one comes loaded with six lifetimes of earned skill, a genuinely layered male lead, and a slow-burn dynamic that actually sticks the landing. Genres: Romance, Fantasy Studio: Studio Kai / Hornets Source: Light Novel Jack's Score: 9/10 Verdict: A mature, well-built romance that...

Is From Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman Worth Watching? - FAP-379 A dojo master gets dragged out of the countryside and into the capital, and the whole kingdom has no idea what just walked through its gates. Genres: Action, Adventure, Fantasy Studio: Passion / Hibiusa Film Source: Light Novel Jack's Score: 8/10 Rick's Score: 8/10 Verdict: A clean, easy watch that actually earns its tro...

Rick's pick of “I Parry Everything" this week ended up being a good one, and honestly he was done with it two days after they agreed to watch it. He came into it on guard, and had admitted he'd been burned out from a stretch of shows where the main character is secretly unstoppable but too humble to notice, and half-expected more of the same. But what ended up winning him over is that the humility...

This week we talk about The Eminence in Shadow Season 2. We start off by discussing our views on the pacing as well as the main character's ridiculous luck. Jack breaks down the rapid-fire arcs, from the Lawless City to a literal corporate war, arguing that the 12-episode run felt rushed and entirely predictable. He saw the protagonist, Cid, as an idiot with blinders on who just stumbles into succ...

This week we are tackling “Reign of the Seven Spellblades” now this isn't your typical cozy magic school and we spend a fair amount of time talking about the "might makes right" philosophy of Kimberly Academy. Not only that we also point out some things where it just didn’t sit right with us like where the teachers wait a full eight days before checking on missing students. Rick finds the whole se...

This week we talk about Moonrise, and it immediately turned into a heated debate. We start by tearing into the show for its confusing plot, and nonsensical world-building. And Rick tore into the terrible dubbed voice acting. We both clash heavily over the anime's mechanics, with Rick frustrated by the logic of weapon cards transforming into grenades out of thin air, and Jack reluctantly playing de...

This week we tackle Failure Frame, a show that Rick had initially rolled his eyes at  because when he looked at it it seemed like it would be another Arifureta clone. Rick admitted though that he quickly got hooked on the ruthless protagonist as well as the sheer effectiveness of the "useless" status ailments magic like sleep, paralyze, and poison, even if he spent half the season frustrated that...

This week we talk about Momentary Lily! Jack poked fun at the “twist” about the main characters almost immediately, thanks to some weird-looking digital tears he noticed, while Rick didn't catch on until way later in episode seven. Both of us were annoyed by how the show forced emotional moments, killing off characters you barely knew and then spending way too much time trying to make you feel bad...

This week we talk about Burst Angel, as recommended from CJ, and it’s safe to say neither of us walked away too happy. The conversation was just a long roast of the show’s nonsensical mechanics, from the "impossible" tight outfits to the fact that characters apparently never need to reload their pistols until the plot demands it. Jack was annoyed that the side character Kyohei was getting far too...

This week we are talking about The Great Cleric, an Isekai that trades the typical overpowered hero trope for a salaryman just trying not to die a second time. We largely spend some time debating the show's unique mechanics, specifically the protagonist’s grueling training regimen and his constant consumption of the mysterious "Substance X." Rick got hung up on some details  but overall he felt th...

This week we talked about “My Tiny Senpai” and the discussion was a bit of a ride because we spent the first half totally talking past each other. Jack was trying to give the Manager credit as well shed light on what he was doing, while Rick was convinced he was talking about the main couple's lack of progress. Once we cleared that up, we both agreed that for an office romance, these characters an...