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Japanimation Station

Japanimation Station

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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Top 10 Japanimation Station Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Japanimation Station episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Japanimation Station for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Japanimation Station episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Part 6 of our Kyoto Vacation is titled ‘Yamada Naoko Strikes Back; or, I Have no Voice and I Must Sound! Euphonium,’ and in this week’s episode, both halves of that title meet, and then some. We are discussing the 2018 film Liz and the Blue Bird, a spin-off/side story to the main Sound! Euphonium narrative, focusing on the oboe and flute players Mizore and Nozomi as they navigate their unusual, fraught friendship while rehearsing a major solo for the Kansai competition. With an entirely different visual aesthetic and Yamada Naoko’s unmistakable voice shining through in every frame, Liz and the Blue Bird stands tall all on its own as a singular masterpiece, and to fully break down just how great the film is, we’ve brought in Jonathan’s concert-band-veteran brother, Thomas – also Japanimation Station’s in-house composer – as a guest on today’s episode.

Enjoy, and come back next week as we dive into Kumiko’s second year at Kitauji High with the awkwardly titled 2019 film Sound! Euphonium: The Movie – Our Promise: A Brand New Day.

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:30

Intro & History: 0:01:30 – 0:47:16

Eyecatch Break: 0:47:16– 0:47:52

Liz and the Blue Bird Review: 0:47:52 – 3:06:29

End Theme: 3:06:29 – 3:07:59

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://www.jonathanlack.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 “ice” – Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku & Megurine Luka. https://www.thomaslack.com

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“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.

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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

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“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

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

https://weeklystuff.substack.com

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

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“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/

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

“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

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Japanimation Station - S4E22 - A SILENT VOICE (Koe no Katachi) 2016 Movie Review
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06/10/24 • 206 min

Welcome back for Part 6 of our Kyoto Vacation, entitled ‘Yamada Naoko Strikes Back; or, I Have no Voice and I Must Sound! Euphonium.’ And while most of this part will deal with the second half of that title, today’s subject is all about the aforementioned Yamada Naoko, the Kyoto Animation wunderkind behind K-On! and Tamako Market, and the director of what might well be the best thing we’ve watched all season: The 2016 movie A Silent Voice – aka The Shape of Voice – based on the manga by Ōima Yoshitoki. It’s an absolute masterpiece, a stunningly animated story tackling some very intense subject matter – including bullying and suicidal ideation – with incredible amounts of empathy, sensitivity, humor, and humanity.

Enjoy, and come back next week for our review of the first season of Sound! Euphonium.

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:30

Intro & History: 0:01:30 – 0:54:31

Eyecatch Break: 0:54:31 – 0:55:09

A Silent Voice Review: 0:55:09 – 3:24:29

End Theme: 3:24:29 – 3:25:59

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://www.jonathanlack.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 “ice” – Original Music & Lyrics by Thomas Lack, featuring Hatsune Miku & Megurine Luka. https://www.thomaslack.com

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“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

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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

bookmark
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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

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We are back for Part 5 of our Kyoto Vacation, entitled “Kyoto Animation’s Splendid Isolation,” where we will be looking at the period in the 2010s when KyoAni took complete control of their source material and began creating anime based on light novels they themselves published! That effort began with 2012’s Love, Chuunibyo & Other Delusions!, a series that starts out as a very funny, very silly odd-couple comedy between a boy trying to leave his youthful obsessions behind and a girl still embroiled in playing pretend, before gradually becoming a startlingly rich, incredibly touching story about how fiction and fantasy help us process grief. It’s another Kyoto Animation home run, one that sneaks up on the viewer but lands its punches with startling power. We discuss the 12-episode first season from 2012 in today’s episode, but will be back later in Part 5 to discuss the show’s second season and movie sequel.

Enjoy, and come back next week for our review of Tamako Market and its feature film follow-up, Tamako Love Story!

Time Chart:

Theme Song: 0:00:00 – 0:01:30

Intro and History: 0:01:30 – 0:45:52

Eyecatch Break: 0:45:52 – 0:46:29

Chuunibyo Season 1 Review: 0:46:29 – 2:40:53

End Theme: 2:40:53 – 2:41:55

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://www.jonathanlack.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

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FAQ

How many episodes does Japanimation Station have?

Japanimation Station currently has 143 episodes available.

What topics does Japanimation Station cover?

The podcast is about Leisure, Podcasts, Animation & Manga, Tv Reviews and Tv & Film.

What is the most popular episode on Japanimation Station?

The episode title 'Weekly Suit Gundam #20 – One-Year Anniversary Celebration and Rankings' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Japanimation Station?

The average episode length on Japanimation Station is 156 minutes.

How often are episodes of Japanimation Station released?

Episodes of Japanimation Station are typically released every 7 days.

When was the first episode of Japanimation Station?

The first episode of Japanimation Station was released on Aug 6, 2019.

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