Zannen, Canada

Randy and I look back on all of the major theatrical anime releases in Canada from this past year including your name., In This Corner of the World, Sailor Moon R and Love Live! delayed live shows. We also talk about Studio Ghibli screenings moving to Cineplex and whether or not we should just embrace our monopolistic overlords.

Geoff Thew from Mother's Basement and Dave Merrill of Stupid Comics and Anime Hell fame join me to scrounge for morsels of media goodness in the year that was 2017. Hear us talk about Riverdale, Twin Peaks, Re:Creators and the extremely weird Neddeaus of Duqesne Island, among many other things.

Pan, Ian and I continue our retrospective on Gundam Wing, this time focusing a little more on the series and its themes, including philosophy on war.

Gundam Wing was a pivotal title for audiences in Canada, and may have marked a point of division with anime fandom in the US that could never be undone. Ian and Pan join me for a retrospective on this series, and had so much to say that I had to cut it in half!

Netflix has committed to investing $500 million into a Canadian production studio over the next five years, but will this be enough to save Canadian media? Will it even be worth it if they can't recreate the lightining-in-a-bottle that is Neo Yokio on anyone's dime? Karl joins me to talk about this, as well as Viceland and that anime Canadian tourism ad.

G4, G4TechTV, ZDTV... no matter what you call it, it had one of the most interesting evolutionary path of any channel on Canadian TV, and some of the most interesting anime selections. Does Anime Current stand the test of time? Jarvis and I try to get to the bottom of that.

Amanda joins me to talk about this year's Anime Revolution: the only anime convention sponsored by Church's Chicken. The Vancouver con is far from the best out there, but I'll be damned if it isn't one of the most interesting to talk about. Hear about all of the highs and lows of the 2017 event.

Jose Argumedo from the One Piece Podcast joins me to share his thoughts on the streaming economy and why we can't quite escape from the bundling tactics that have stigmatized cable for many. We also chat a bit about Discotek releases and Adult Swim.

In another retrospective on anime that have had a unique cultural impact in Canada, Dave Merrill joins me to gush about the legendary space pirate Captain Harlock. Under the localized title "Albator," the 1978 series was once a massive social phenomenon in French-speaking Canada. What made this show resonate so strongly with people? Is it worth checking out today? And... why is Harlock always rocking that Hugo Boss look? Give a listen to find out.

Jarvis Gray joins me to chat about the good times had at Sakura-Con 2017, the shut down of Nyaa and the unexpected impact this might have on people who need clips or can't stream anime, the lost Anne of Green Gables dub and just how blown away we've been by Persona 5.

Remember when Power Rangers was banned in Canada by the CBSC? Pan and I sure do! In this episode we recount the somewhat rocky history of Super Sentai in Canada. Also: the Conservative Party of Canada is holding their leadership conference at the same time and place as Anime North! What could this mean? Episode breakdown: 3:30 - Pan shares her thoughts on Saban's Power Rangers movie 22:00 - How the CBSC ban affected Power Rangers over many years 1:01:00 - The Conservative Party Toronto Leadership Conference will be at the same venue as Anime North... what can we expect?

Crunchyroll recently released a new dub for the third season of Gintama, one of the few recently produced in Vancouver, BC. Michael Daingerfield, the voice of Gintoki, stops by to talk about his work. Patrick also joins me to dig into the new dub.

Karl and Corey join me to talk about the sad demise of HMV, how the increasingly restrictive US border under 45 may impact Canadian anime fans, and what you might be missing if you don't have an over-the-air antenna. Also, more musing about anime on CBC. Episode breakdown: 00:00 - HMV closure 24:00 - The implications of the recent US travel ban 35:00 - Karl becomes enamoured once again with over-the-air local television 57:00 - It's time to demand anime on CBC 1:04:00 - A few words on the new Samurai Jack

Has Beyblade had a unique cultural impact in Canada? I'm still a little on the fence, but Ashley and Noah join me to make a pretty solid argument.

Try to find some kind of complacency in this tumultuous 2016 holiday season as Jesse, Eryn, Ian and Randy recount our favourite movies, TV shows, comics and video games from the past year. If you weren’t paying attention to DC’s new Hannah-Barbera comics already, you might want to reconsider now. Episode Breakdown 2:00 - A look back at anime in Canada over the past year, whether streaming, broadcast or theatrical 26:30 - We share our favourite media from the past year 1:50:00 - What we’re looking forward to in 2017

Lissa Pattillo from Seven Seas Entertainment talks about how the manga market has changed over the years, how important it is for the industry to have stuff on TV and the perils of bringing manga (smutty or otherwise) over the US border. Episode breakdown: 2:15 - Looking back on Kuriousity and changes in the manga market since then 14:00 - Comparing our market to Europe 21:00 - Overcoming the digital serialization gap 35:46 - Problems with Customs and importing manga in Canada

Crunchyroll recently released electoral-style maps breaking down the most popular new anime in each Canadian province and US state, and man were there some notable differences. Canadian map: http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-feature/2016/10/30-1/feature-crunchyrolls-most-popular-fall-anime-by-provinceterritory US map: http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2016/10/27/feature-crunchyrolls-most-popular-fall-anime-by-state Also, in the off chance that you don't know what a fujoshi is, you might want to do some reading, because this term describes Canadian fandom pretty well: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaoi_fandom#Fujoshi Episode breakdown: 0:30 - Corey talks a bit about his work on "Lucas Bros. Moving Company" and "Major Lazer" 7:30 - We compare the Canadian, US and Australian maps and discuss new shows this season including "Kiss Him, Not Me," "Yuri!!! On Ice," "Drifters" and "Keijo!!!!!!!!"

You must watch "The Secret Path." Directed by Gord Downie of The Tragically Hip, this animated feature recently broadcast on CBC tells the story of Chanie Wenjack who escaped from a residential school in 1966 in a way that no other medium could. Ian Whitcombe joins me to explain why. "The Secret Path" can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGd764YU9yc We also take a little time to discuss different subjects, including the end of shomi and the new Escaflowne release from FUNimation. 0:00 - Quick update on the show 2:35 - The Secret Path 25:45 - The death of Shomi 34:50 - New Escaflowne release

Jesse and Karl share their thoughts on Crunchyroll and Funimation's recent partnership announcement - hands down the second-most important anime news of the week.

Cameron Archer from Gloryosky (sweetposer.com) joins me to talk about industry presence at Canadian anime cons, the new fall TV line-up and... could anime work on the CBC?