Fandom Post Radio Episode 155: Character Designers: They Build Character

None of us can escape the grim specter of our times. Consolidation, Tech Bros, and the coming apocalypse to finish us all off. Not even our beloved anime can avoid all this bullshit. Can art and anime survive corporate greed, audience apathy, and cynicism? Don't worry, it isn't all doom and gloom in this episode. We just need to get the latest news out of the way before we all slip into Holiday hibernation. At least we too can participate in the time honored tradition of commercialism with some recommendations! Stay safe, see you at the New Years Eve round-up.

The air is crisp, lights are going up, and your obnoxious coworkers won't stop playing Mariah Carey. Yes, it is the most wonderful time of the year to be an anime fan who likes to spend money. Nevermind the consumerism though, we are gonna talk about the weirdness of the anime Christmas episode! From the humorous to the romantic and everything in between! What happens when a foreign religious Holiday is stripped of the last of its religious value? FRIED CHICKEN BABY! Plus we have news and recommendations. OH HO HO HO HO HO HO!

Things do be falling around anime land. The usual crew arrives ready to discuss the fall 2025 season of anime. Final seasons of My Hero Academia and To Your Eternity, a new season of Ranma 1/2, spinoffs in Ginpachi, and against everyone's better judgement another season of One Punch Man. We have a few new shows too, so as always when one thing ends something else begins. Will those new things have any staying power or are they bound to slide into obscurity? Plus news and recommendations, you know the drill.

The air is crisp, the season is getting spooky, and we have pile of show finales to cover! The usual crew is joined by Mark again to chat about how all the summer shows shook out. We talk about the summer's hidden gems, many featuring college students, nudity, drinking, and hopefully happily ever afters. Ruri Rocks, Grand Blue Dreaming, Anne Shirley, To Be Hero X, and more! Plus news and recommendations! Did you know there are too many video games? 

Reviewer Mark T jumps into the discussion this week as we dive into friendship, effort, and victory. Yup, we're talking about Weekly Shonen Jump, the long running manga publication which has brought the world the juggernauts of shonen manga! From Dragonball to Jojo's to One Piece, Jump has been a hit maker for decades. Yet with the end of One Piece somewhere on the horizon, is there anything that could possibly carry that torch? Does the magazine need series that seemingly never end, or has that age passed? We talk about the past, present, and future of Jump. Plus some news (mostly Discotek licenses...) and recommendations! 

Nobody expected summer to be this stacked! Seriously, there may just be too many shows. The usual gang is here to talk over the 2025 anime summer season which features new and returning favs. We talk about The Summer Hikaru Died, Dandadan, City, Takopi's Original Sin, Ruri Rocks, Silent Witch, and more! Plus recommendations and news! (Please try to ignore my cat's opinions on the season, she is not qualified to offer opinions on shows she didn't watch.)

Kestrel  has survived yet another massive Anime Expo. He has returned to tell the tale and share the sights, the sounds, the smells of the expo! (Well, okay, hopefully not the smells.) We have announcements, impressions, good news, bad news, and just... all the things! Plus some recommendations. 

Time to check in on the Spring season as it approaches its penultimate episodes. Cain, Kestrel, Brandon, and Kate talk about all the shows they are watching, or should be watching. Certainly a lot of death in this batch of episodes, isn't there? We discuss Apothecary Diaries, Anne Shirley, To Be Hero X, Gundam GQuuuuuux, and a few other shows. So many shows, so little time! Plus we have a Chopper, ladies and gentlefolks! Also, recommendations! What are you watching?

It's been awhile since we did a really good list episode! Today's topic is Anime Character Designers. What are character designers, what do they do, and why is it so important? Who are our favorites? Who are YOUR favorites? Perhaps Akio Sugino, or Masashi Ando? Maybe even... *gasp* CLAMP? We have answers for all that and more in this episode!

Shakedown, 1979?  Nope, 2025! Everything old is new again this spring, and the usual crew of Kestrel, Cain, Kate, and Brandon take in a stacked season of new old shows! We've got a Gundam that quacks, we've got Anne Shirley being a red-head, parkour Lazarus, To Be Hero X, and so much more! Truly a season with something for everyone no matter what your tastes might be. Plus one highly anticipated bit of news and recommendations. What are you watching this season?