Robots – Page 8 – Anime World Order Podcast

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:46:22 — 48.9MB)

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In this episode, Clarissa reviews one of the signature titles from manga supergroup CLAMP: the 1994 anime series Magic Knight Rayearth. Fair warning: in addition to the TV series, we also talk about…Rayearth. You know, that OVA we all try to pretend doesn’t exist. Which Clarissa and Gerald had actually never seen or really heard about until just now.

Introduction (0:00 – 30:07)
Now that we’re about a month into the season, we give updates on the titles we’ve been watching from not only the current season but also the backlog. Why, several of these are fansub-only titles to this day! But more and more of the “we’ll never see an official US release” titles are becoming available, and it’s not just limited to anime/manga. Perhaps it’s all just fuel for the content mill, which reminds us of some certain questionable Netflix adaptations that we dare not watch legally, lest the algorithm decide “we need to make more of this based on the number of views it’s gotten!”

Promo: Right Stuf Anime (30:07 – 33:05)
Thanks no doubt specifically to listeners of this podcast, all of the Dirty Pair Kickstarter stretch goals were met and exceeded, so look forward to that Blu-Ray set sometime next year, barring any further catastrophic disruptions to the global manufacturing supply chain. For now, there are some big sales underway; while the Discotek sale ends in a few hours, the Black Friday and winter holiday sales are just around the corner. Note that if you order items that are out of stock but not out of print, the sale price will be honored. Which is relevant considering what we’re reviewing this episode, since the Discotek sale has it temporarily out of stock.

Review: Magic Knight Rayearth (33:05 – 1:46:22)
Clarissa reviews one of the perennial fan favorites of the 1990s that is remembered as one of the definitive series from the group collectively known as “CLAMP”: Magic Knight Rayearth, a precursor to the contemporary JRPG world isekai from an era before we were deluged with such material. However, unlike all that stuff today, Magic Knight Rayearth is shojo AND it has giant robots in it eventually, making it something of a novelty even after nearly 30 years. The manga has been re-released in very fancy large hardcover editions for the 25th anniversary. Here’s the first series box set and the sequel series box set. More affordable standard editions are also available, and the manga is digitally available on ComiXology. It’s a somewhat quick read, since CLAMP was all about those gorgeous splash pages:

The anime directed by Toshihiro Hirano–yes, the man who directs Baki for Netflix these days–is one of those rare instances in which it differs significantly from the manga and yet remains worthwhile. Well, the TV series at least.

Although Magic Knight Rayearth was a staple of our youths, it’s now old enough to be included in Super Robot Wars, and luckily those games are available in English. Super Robot Wars T for PS4 (there’s also a Switch version which sold extremely well though you can’t customize the music) was the first to include our heroines. They also appear in the recently-released Super Robot Wars 30 (also on Switch and for the first time without being region-locked out of the US, on Steam for PC). Note that you don’t need to have played T before playing 30, as the storylines are completely separate. We can only assume their presence and character interactions in these games is what is driving the trend of drawing our heroic trio as though they’re the Getter Robo team:

There is also…another anime that is just titled Rayearth which…remember earlier when we were talking about questionable Netflix adaptations? Yeah, about that…

Podcast: Download (Duration: 2:20:04 — 64.2MB)

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In this episode, Daryl reviews one of his favorite titles from the 2010s which is finally readily available for viewing in English: the two-part theatrical film adaptation of the formative shojo classic Haikara-san: Here Comes Miss Modern! (Spoilers: Gerald thought it absolutely sucked and is of appeal to nobody who is watching anime in the 21st century.)

Introduction (0:00 – 57:40)
Despite repeatedly missing months this year, our number of Patreon supporters is steadily approaching the 200 mark. Remember: at 250 total patrons we will be reviewing Hand Shakers, which Gerald purchased on Blu-Ray (because obviously one buys what one cherishes most). We also haven’t read emails in a while, so this time around we’ll read two! With the new Harmony Gold arrangement in place regarding the international rights to Macross and Robotech being distinct entities, is a US release of Macross 7 on the foreseeable horizon? Why is Eternal Wind so memorable when most of Gundam FORMULA NINETY WAN is so not? Who is more petty, Yoshiyuki Tomino for not letting us Americans see the infamous Cucuruz Doan’s Island episode of the original Mobile Suit Gundam television series, or Yoshikazu Yasuhiko for directing a theatrical-length film adaptation of it due for release next year? And why does the AWO continue to LIE AND EXPOSE THEIR SHALLOW IGNORANCE~! regarding the “death” of 2D animation? None of these questions and more will be adequately answered in this approximate hour of chatterbox noise.

Promo: Right Stuf Anime (57:40 – 1:03:27)
In the time between us recording the promo and getting around to posting this writeup, the Dub Dirty Pair TV Into English and Release It On Blu-Ray Kickstarter has been 100% funded. But the campaign lasts until the end of October, and it is the beginning of October, so YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS: stretch goals! Much like what was basically done with the Irresponsible Captain Tylor Blu-Ray set as well as the various Animeigo Kickstarter projects (Otaku no Video, Riding Bean, Gunsmith Cats, Megazone 23), the stretch goals will determine not only how nice the physical extras are for the fancy Collector’s Editions that are exclusive to the Kickstarter, but also the general release! For now, aside from a new interview with Haruka Takachiho, what the stretch goals will be are shrouded in mystery. More will be revealed…within the next 24 hours! Be sure to keep tabs on https://twitter.com/NozomiEnt for details, but given how these things have turned out in the past, we’re pretty certain that you’ll want to back this project. All of us did, anyway.

Review: Haikara-san: Here Comes Miss Modern Parts 1 & 2 (1:03:27 – 2:20:04)
Daryl reviews this 2017-2018 theatrical film adaptation of one of the formative 1970s shojo manga classics that he didn’t even know existed until after having seen these movies. This period comedy/melodrama/romance/liquor adventure from Waki Yamato is one of the most beloved and fondly remembered shojo titles the world over–the non-English speaking world over, anyway–having remained in print and adapted into multiple other media including live-action and Takarazuka plays right up until the COVID-19 pandemic shut everything down. Set in the socially turbulent Taisho era of Japanese history, it’s a tale of modern Western ideals clashing with conservative Japanese traditions wrapped around a Days of Our Lives-caliber soap opera romance.

Opinions are, as they always seem to be for literally everything Daryl recommends, sharply divided as to the qualities of this cartoon. For now, you can watch both parts streaming free of charge via the oft-forgotten streaming platform Tubi: here’s Part 1 and here’s Part 2. You can buy the Blu-Ray of Part 1 from the film’s distributor, which is–oh, right–our sponsor Right Stuf. But part 2 to date has never been released on physical media in the US, presumably because so much money was lost on dubbing the first part into English and releasing it into theaters that (as far as we can tell/recall) no English dub was produced for the second part.