Zannen, Canada

Corus is set to premiere an adult-targeted anime on one of their broadcast stations for the first time in over a decade on November 13, 2021 - Blade Runner: Black Lotus on Adult Swim Canada. Excited? Well, Warner and their awkwardly synergized partners sure hope you are! But wait, does this mean we're getting Toonami? And shouldn't they have run that other Adult Swim co-production, Fena: Pirate Princess, by now? Well, I sure hope you didn't set your expectations that high! Karl Olson joins me to take a look at that whole situation, as well as the upcoming Vancouver-produced dub of Future Boy Conan, the current streaming situation with Crave and those anime titles set to debut on Disney+ Star. I also relinquish my credibility as I reveal that I had forgotten to mention one rather interesting Canadian-dubbed Osamu Tezuka anime back in episode 79.

The success of Star Wars drove children's entertainment to do a lot of dumb things in the late 70s and early 80s, but throwing the characters and basic concept of HOMER'S Odyssey into space in the 31st century was definitely not one of them. While Ulysses 31 is cherished almost entirely by a small segment of GenXers who managed to catch it on TV during its very short run in the 1980s, this co-production between DiC and TMS packs a surprising psychedelic punch, and was a staple of French language Radio-Canada programming. Mike Toole and Dez join me to share their memories of this underrated classic.

While many tend to associate franchises like Dragon Ball and Gundam with their historical ties to Canadian dubbing, the works of the godfather of anime, Osamu Tezuka, have a surprising hidden history within that designation as well. From the first anime ever aired on television in France, to the OTHER 80s Astro Boy dub, to a Kimba the White Lion dub produced under extremely unscrupulous circumstances, to more recent productions funded by the Japan Foundation, we've seen a number of work produced by Canadian studios. Mike Toole joins me to chronicle these largely obscure dubs in a way that will hopefully make you angry the next time a Tezuka property is sent to a dubbing studio in Miami instead of Vancouver.

Cathy Weseluck is widely known as a prolific character actor who has provided the voices of Shampoo from Ranma 1/2, Spike in My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Yuma in World Trigger and Cybersix, to list only a scant few. However, there's a very good chance that you've heard her in commercials, documentaries or other narration without even realizing it. Cathy joins me to talk about her background in voice acting, as well as her methods.

To say that opinions are divided on Cardcaptors would be an understatement. To those who were more attuned to anime fandom in 2000, Nelvana's incredibly loose adaptation of Cardcaptor Sakura was living evidence of why Canadian companies should not be allowed to wholly license and distribute anime. To the kids who didn't listen to weird adults on the internet, however, Teletoon's extended run of the show was a childhood landmark. Eryn and Rin-taichou (Rin-senpai at the time of this recording) join me to discuss the highs, the lows and the mysterious Europop connections of Cardcaptors, because I don't think anyone else will!

From currently unlicensed Bandai Entertainment dubs from the mid-2000s, to My Little Pony to Dragon Prince and Zoids WILD, Cole Howard has spent years mastering the intricate art behind voice acting wide-eyed teenage protagonists. Evidently, it's worked out rather well for him. Cole joins us to talk about his work on titles like Mai-HiME and Law of Ueki in Alberta, what brought him to Vancouver, and the psychological (if not logistical) challenges that COVID-19 has brought to the voice acting field.

Karl and I cautiously enter the unpredictable realm of 2021 by lamenting the lack of a theatrical review episode this year (sorry Randy!), but celebrate the two big nominations for Vancouver animator and former Zannen, Canada guest Genice Chan in Crunchyroll's Anime Awards - a distinction that probably holds more weight than the actual award winners. We do a bit of a deep dive into the currently tabled (but little discussed) proposed streaming regulations and whether or not Sony's upcoming amalgamation of Funimation of Crunchyroll may be big enough to get the attention of Canadian watchdogs. We also talk about that infernal No Frills "Haulerverse" ad and how terrible Loblaws actually is and give a brief overview of what new shows we've been watching this season.

The boys at The Anime Roundtable podcast finally put aside their differences and join me to wrap up this terrible, terrible year. After recognizing the recent (and shocking) passing of Kirby Morrow as well as the unsurprising news of Funimation's purchase of Crunchyroll, we all kind of struggle to pin down media that brought us some degree of joy in 2020, but ultimately come up with some unique choices including Terrace House, Great Pretender, Arte, Act-Age, Close Enough and Extra Olympia Kyklos.

If you haven't experienced a version of Sherlock Holmes where he drives around in steampunk vehicles, repairs bi-planes mid-air and is also a dog, then chances are you have experienced significantly more faithful versions of the character. However, that doesn't mean you should skip Sherlock Hound! Known simply as "Sherlock Holmes" in French, this Italian-Japanese co-production was the final television series directed by Hayao Miyazaki, and was likely the first exposure to his work for all those watching on Radio-Canada back in the 1980s. What this series lacks in actual mystery it makes up for in spades with elaborate animated set pieces and unnecessary animation flexes... for the six episodes that Miyazaki directed, anyway! Mike Toole and Kurotsuki join me to reflect on the series, and also listen to me completely mispronounce Kyosuke Mikuriya's name at every effort!

For years it's felt like we've been asking the rest of the world to take our word for it that Sailor Moon was a Canadian cultural phenomenon, but at long last we have seen a distinct example of that in practice with Sailor Moon's launch on Crave last month. Karl and Kyle join me to talk about why this launch led to an explosion on social media, despite the fact that the show has been available on Tubi for years! We also discuss some other recent news stories such as Viz's new partnership with Funimation and AT&T's apparent desire to sell off Crunchyroll. We also take a look at the outrageous prices of Sentai Filmworks titles on Amazon.ca to underline what a terrible decision Crunchyroll made by choosing them to handle their home video distribution. What was your reaction to Sailor Moon appearing on Crave? If they get more anime, is there anything specific you think they should grab next? If so, I'd love to hear from you! Share your thoughts at zannencanada@gmail.com.

Michelle Clough served as a Script Adapter for multiple Ocean Studios projects including Death Note, Pretty Cure, My Otome and The Story of Saiunkoku. She joins me to talk about working for Ocean during what was possibly both their heyday and the beginning of their slump in the realm of anime dubbing in the late 2000s. We also talk about the exciting world of closed captioning and reveal a few details about the upcoming streaming debut of the Sailor Moon uncut dub on Crave!

The Calgary-produced dub of the original Futari wa Pretty Cure hit the airwaves on YTV right as anime was reaching its decline on the station. Many had hoped the series would be a hit and bring about a second wind, but few were surprised that this didn't happened. Even fewer were surprised that this dub hasn't seen the light of day since. But should we really write it off as a failure? Mahou Shoujo experts Eryn and Pike, as well as Will Wood, the voice of Ferguson/FujiP from the series, bring a wild array of perspectives on this great dub, its impact as well as the Pretty Cure franchise as a whole. Did YTV's airing of Pretty Cure have a big impact for you? If so, I'd love to hear from you! Share your story at zannencanada@gmail.com.

Raj Ramayya joins me from quarantine in Saskatchewan to talk about his work and what he's been up to since his last appearance on the podcast. Best known as a vocalist for Cowboy Bebop, Wolf's Rain and Made in Abyss, Raj is a frequent collaborator with Yoko Kanno and Kevin Penkin. He talks about his recent work on Tower of God, the strengths of the Canadian music industry, the ways in which the Japanese music industry has (and hasn't) changed over the past 20 years and the ever prevalent specter of Tommy Lee Jones in Japanese advertising.

Genice Chan is an illustrator and animator from Vancouver, BC who recently provided concept art and directed the ending credit sequence for the Netflix anime BNA (Brand New Animal) from Studio Trigger. She joins me to talk about the process of working with Trigger, how she enlisted Giant Ant Studios for animating the ED as well as her thoughts on localizing tanukis into raccoons.

Ashley joins me to complete our exploration of late night anime on Teletoon in the late nineties with a laid back chat about Macross Plus. We talk about its accessibility, connections to Cowboy Bebop, alternate Bryan Cranston-free dubs and the legal nightmare that has now consumed this classic OVA series.

Minifée, the Montreal-produced dub of the original Sally the Witch, may not at first seem terribly notable. However, it doesn't take a lot of digging to find out that it one of the most crucial, overlooked productions in the history of anime in North America. Not only was it the first anime dub ever produced in Canada, it was the first anime ever produced in the French language. With Bernadette Morin, mother of notable Francophone singer Amélie Morin, at the helm, it is... possibly the first anime dub ever produced by a woman? It's a little hard to nail that one down, but mahou shoujo expert Eryn Dearden joins me to explore the series a little deeper. Special thanks to Vincent Bergeron for his assistance in researching for this episode!

March 18, 2020 marks the 5th anniversary of the Zannen, Canada podcast. Ko-Fi: ko-fi.com/zannencanada Twitter: @jbetteridge Podcast Twitter: @zannencanada Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zannencanada/ E-mail: zannencanada@gmail.com

Will Studio Ghibli films ever become available to stream in Canada? You might not want to put your money on that one. Will Crunchyroll have to produce Canadian Content to comply with possible future regulations? Probably not a good bet. Karl and I tend to be really bad at predicting things, so we discuss some current news items that will likely have an impact this coming year and try to put every possibility we can think of out on the table.

UK theatre chain Cineworld (owners of Regal Cinemas in the US) has purchased Cineplex, meaning that our movie media monopoly is no longer even Canadian! What does this mean for anime? Almost certainly nothing, but it's crucial to know what's at work behind the scenes! Randy and I share our thoughts on all of the anime films released in Canada in 2019, evaluate the improvements over the previous year and speculate on what we can expect in 2021.

Forty years ago, the entire non-English speaking world was captivated by Candy Candy, the chronicles of the endless tragedies befalling an spunky and adorable freckled orphan. This shoujo classic was a staple of Radio-Canada's anime line-up throughout the 70s and 80s, but was scrubbed off the face of the earth in the 90s amid legal turmoil. Join Dave, Shaindle, Chris and myself to find out why so many people continue to spread the good word of Candy despite the ongoing effort to erase her from public consciousness! Big thanks to Vincent Bergeron for his help compiling information for this episode!