Our resident seasonal anime watchers, Sarah and Bill, are back once again for their review of the recently-wrapped winter 2024 anime season! With continuing smash hits like The Apothecary Diaries, popular adaptations like Delicious in Dungeon and Solo Leveling, and total surprises out of nowhere like Bravern, there is a LOT to cover in this one, an…

On that day, this podcast feed received a grim reminder. Humanity lives in fear of yet another episode of the Third Impact Anime Podcast. Not only is this our first proper episode of 2024, it's the beginning of a retrospective looking back at the one and only Attack on Titan, a series that defined the 2010s and finally wrapped up last year. How wel…

Happy New Year, everyone! We hope your 2023 ended on a high note and your 2024 has begun with the same. Much like last year, Tobias presents a few segments from TIA members reflecting on a few of the anime, manga, video games, books, movies, TV series, concerts, experiences, or life events that we found meaningful this past year. We hope you enjoy …

And if youuuuu caaaaannnn believe it, it's Christmas once again! We're happy to present (ha) our 2023 Anime Secret Santa Special! If you're not familiar with this project, the kind folks over at the Taiiku Podcast (formerly the All Geeks Considered Podcast, formerly more-so the Reverse Thieves Podcast) organize an annual Secret Santa swap between v…

After a years-long absence, we one again returned to the hallowed halls of the Renaissance Waverly/Cobb Galleria in Atlanta, Georgia for the final year of Anime Weekend Atlanta... in that venue, at least. Austin, Tori, and Tobias reflect on being back after a while, the convention moving on to a bigger and (hopefully) better location next year, and…

Bill is still finishing up the 3.x Heavensward patches, but Tobias is encountering interparty conflict in Water 7, so we wanted to go ahead and get this one out as soon as possible. What did we think about the Davy Back Fight? Will Bill ever pronounce Aokiji's name correctly? These questions and more answered on the latest episode of A Grand Line R…

Bill drops by to give you a rare solo episode where he gives a brief overview of his thoughts on the current Fall 2023 anime season. Titles he talks about include (in no particular order) Frieren: Beyond Journey's End, Spy X Family Season 2, The IDOLM@STER Million Live!, I'm in Love with the Villainess, and more! What anime are you enjoying, or not…

How many times can Bill be recommended to watch Chihayafuru in a single podcast episode? Find out in this incredible new INTERVIEW episode with TikTok star, YouTube video essayist, and shojo/josei expert, COLLEEN from Colleen's Manga Recs! If you're tuned in to anime content on YouTube even slightly, you've probably ran into Colleen's excellent vid…

See, we really are a regular podcast! Tobias went to FanFest in Las Vegas! Bill’s been putting off the Heavensward patches to play Final Fantasy XVI! We talk about Skypeia and how it compares to the previous two One Piece sagas! Timestamps: 00:00:30 Intro 00:09:41 Fan Fest 00:22:45 Bill's progress in HW 00:30:05 Skypeia Recap 00:50:18 Music Break 0…

We’re back in our, uh, first episode of 2023, with a double feature at the movies! Tobias got his first taste of the One Piece anime adaptation with Episode of East Blue, while Bill watched the Noclip documentary on the 1.0 release and subsequent rebirth of Final Fantasy XIV. Then, we play catch-up as Tobias recounts his experience with the latter …

We hope you love this podcast episode as much as Noa loves Alphonse, but that's pretty unlikely. On this episode, we're reviewing 1988's Mobile Police Patlabor (OVA), our first Patreon request episode. Bill, Tobias, and Austin helm this review coming to you courtesy of our NERV Commander level patron, Drew H.! We want to thank Drew for pushing us t…

Here's something a little different from us; a bonus episode! We haven't had a proper bonus episode since 2020, but we're back with another one. This time, Ryan sits down with three developers from Something Classic games, an indie game studio, to talk about their upcoming JRPG-inspired game Quartet! They chatted about how the team came to be, thei…

Another Animazement is successfully behind us (a whole month ago, if you can believe it) and here's our breakdown of all the great fun we had across those four shockingly chilly days in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina. Hosted this time by Bill and joined by Sully, Austin, and Tobias. We talk about our panels followed by all the other cool stuff we…

This movie kept us all on the edge of our three-legged seat. On this episode of the Third Impact Anime Podcast, we're reviewing the latest film from acclaimed anime director Makoto Shinkai, Suzume! How does it hold up against his previous works? Is Shinkai still trying to tell the same story or has he broken away from his traditional format? And wh…

Put your glasses on, nothing will be wrong! On this episode of the Third Impact Anime Podcast, we're reviewing the classic dark-fantasy anime series BERSERK, specifically the original 1997 adaptation by OLM covering the Golden Age Arc of the late Kentaro Miura's classic manga. Tobias, Austin, and Ryan are joined by frequent buddy and BERSERK super-…

OHAIYO GOZAIMASU! Watch out for passing trucks because we're reviewing the greatest zombie idol anime that takes place in Saga prefecture ever made, ZOMBIE LAND SAGA and its sequel season ZOMBIE LAND SAGA REVENGE. Austin and Bill take center stage on this one but they aren't alone! We welcome a very special guest to our idol troupe who you may know…

Hoist your wine glasses towards the infinite sea of stars! On this episode, we are reviewing the 1982 space opera based on the iconic manga from Leiji Matsumoto, Space Pirate Captain Harlock: Arcadia of My Youth. The primary reason we're reviewing this is because back on February 13th, 2023, Leiji Matsumoto passed away at age 85. His manga are some…

After a multi-year-long delay from our coverage of season 1, we're back to talk about the second season of BEASTARS. The adventures of Legoshi, Haru, Louis, and the rest of the Cherryton Academy animal teens continue as the mysteries of Tem's death and devouring are finally revealed. This episode is NOT spoiler free. We hope you enjoy it! 00:00:00 …

As the incredible Fall 2022 anime season wrapped up a few weeks ago, Tobias and Bill chat about the shows they enjoyed and kept up with. Between returning sequels, anticipated manga adaptations, and totally unexpected gems, there's a LOT to cover! Also they answer an audience comment from our Secret Santa episode. What did you think of the Fall 202…

Apologies for the delay in publishing this episode–Bill got invited to a dinner party in Ul’dah and had a hell of time getting out of there! After reviewing the end of the A Realm Reborn patches, we switch over to the first half of the Alabasta saga, as the Straw Hat gang enters the Grand Line and picks up two new crewmembers. No reindeer games awa…

2022 has come to a close and we're doing our final Kotatsu Corner a little different than usual. First off, we're doing one at all (we promise they will be more regular in the coming year), but second off, we've adapted an old idea into a new format! If you've followed us for a while, you may remember that we used to do blog posts cataloging and ce…

Ho-ho-hold on to your butts, it's time for Anime Secret Santa 2022, an annual event hosted by the holiday hosts over at the AGC Podcast. Every year they organize an anime swap for folks in the anitwitter sphere with various outlets (podcasts, blogs, etc.) and a jolly good time is had by all. This year, Austin, Tobias, and Bill gather around the coz…

An episode in which Bill finally gets to gush about his undying love for The IDOLM@STER (2011), a show a bit ahead of its time for the mid 2010s idol anime boom kicked off by shows like Love Live! School Idol Project. Kory from the Taiiku Podcast & the Manga in Your Ears Podcast comes as a first-time guest and resident Love Live! fan to dip his toe…

Are you Chopin around for a good podcast? Well you found one! Bill and Austin finally return to the monkey-faced thief for this first time in a while to review a fairly recent TV special, 2019's Lupin the Third: Goodbye Partner, but this time we're not going in alone. We asked two special guests to join us, Drew and Emma of Sideburns & Cigarettes: …

Pray return to Arlong Park, as we wrap up the first leg of our journey into One Piece and Final Fantasy XIV. We answer our first listener email. Tobias wonders who these Seven Warlords could be. Bill solves mysteries with a gentleman inspector. 00:03:15 Our First Email 00:14:14 Arlong Park Review 01:02:57 Seventh Umbral Era (2.0) 01:21:50 Bill star…

You're walking home on a dark night and your neck bristles. You adjust your eyes, peering down the street. You see it coming. It's on roller skates, carrying a golden bat. It's speeding towards you. Is it Little Slugger? Nope! It's the 2022 Third Impact Anime Halloween Special! This year we're talking about the 2004 modern classic thriller Paranoia…

The dog king rises! We're reviewing the latest and last (but hopefully not really) film from genius anime director Masaaki Yuasa and studio Science Saru, INU-OH! Our new favorite anime movie and yours, if you have taste. Listen to us chat about the production of the film, major themes, the incredible music, our favorite characters and moments, and …

Introductions out of the way, let's get into our first full-length discussion of our challenge. Bill joins a guild learns that spinning is a neat trick. Tobias takes a job at a restaurant, but his coworkers are extremely weird. Just who are these Garlean people anyway? Timestamps: 00:00:00 Intro 00:04:52 Initial Thoughts: FF XIV 00:20:04 Initial Th…

Introducing a new podcast series by Third Impact Anime! Join Bill and Tobias as they embark on a new challenge: to read all of One Piece and play all of Final Fantasy XIV Online. In this Episode 0, they'll talk a little about why they're focusing on these two stories for the challenge and what you can expect out of this series. Timestamps: 00:01:22…

KC is back for the first time since January. We really should do this more often. Kotatsu Corner is our side-show where we talk about non-anime related crap that we just have to get out of our system. On this one, con-certs, con-ventions, and the con-fluence of other topics. Topics include Cuphead, My Chemical Romance, Raleigh Gamer and Geek Expo, …

Do your mice even lift, bro? The next chapter in the Demon Slayer saga has arrived! Austin, Tori, and Sarah chat about the latest entry, The Entertainment District Arc, where Tanjiro and the gang team up with a duel-wielding hashira and his kunoichi polycule to fight against their most terrifying foes yet. We cover what we liked, didn't like, major…

As the Summer season trucks on, we're here to be late as usual and cover the absolutely STACKED spring 2022 anime season! By our rough and unscientific analysis, spring tends to be the season each year that goes all-out and 2022 is no different with the likes of SPY X Family, Ya Boi Kongming, and RPG Real Estate knocking people's socks off.... or n…

Macross Frontier finally came to the states officially for the first time! Fathom Events and Big West brought us the two theatrical films The False Songstress and The Wings of Farewell in June, 2022. Long-time Frontier fan Sarah takes newbie Austin on a musical journey into our review of both films. This is another long one since we're covering bot…

Entering stage left is the Third Impact Anime podcast! Tobias and Bill are joined by Mr. Pain Train himself–Basil of the OSMcast! The boys catch up with what they’ve been up to lately before reviewing the classic anime series Glass Mask (1984)! For better or for worse, Nicolas Cage is mentioned. Hosted by Tobias (@reverend_tobias), Bill (@wbforeman…

An anime convention happened, and we happened to be there. Here us chat about the good, the great, the so-so, and the unexpected of Animazement 2022! Topics include the panels we did, popular cosplays, the great tornado evacuation, and other choice reflections. Huge thanks to the convention for bringing us out as Featured Panelists for a second tim…

Put on your otter-skin coats for a journey into some classic Japanese children's literature. On this episode, Austin and Bill are talking about the 1985 classic anime movie Night on the Galactic Railroad based on the influential children's novel by Kenji Miyazawa. We're also talking about some adjacent anime including 1997's Spring and Chaos and 20…

Here it is! Our Definitive Top 15 ranking of the best anime movies of the 2010s. We said we were going to do this all the way back in episode 89 where we talked about our favorite TV series' of the decade, but shortly after that a little global pandemic came along and garbled our brains. Two years and 20+ episodes later, we finally came through! Pl…

It's almost April, and you know what that means... we're only 6 months away from Halloween! Why not get the party started early with another episode covering a Junji Ito work, this time his anthology piece Fragments of Horror. Published between 2013 and 2014, this is one of Junji Ito's more recent works and many of the stories therein were adapted …

To continue our recent seasonal theme of reviewing anime with snow in them (see: Fate/Zero), we're back with a review of the post-apocalyptic iyashikei (meaning healing) series, 2017's Girls' Last Tour! But wait, is it possible for an anime to be post-apocalyptic and an iyashikei series at the same time? Excellent question. Listen to the episode an…

We watched a LOT of anime in 2021, and not all of it was released then. So instead of doing a "Best of 2021" list, we just had a casual conversation about some of the shows we watched including Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Hinamatsuri, My Life as a Villainess, Wave! Listen to Me, Sound of the Sky, and Giant Robo; and of course some actual 2021 release…

Almost a year to the date we released our last Kotatsu Corner episode, but here's another one! Kotatsu Corner is our side-show where we talk about non-anime related crap that we just have to get out of our system. On this one, we talk about our holiday season, what we've been enjoying lately, some highlights of 2021, and what we're looking forward …

We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and/or Saturday with your friends and loved ones! To celebrate the holiday season, we're covering an entry in the long running Fate franchise for the first time, 2011's Fate/Zero, based on the light novel written by Gen Urobuchi, created by TYPE-MOON and animated by ufotable. Our reasons for making this our…

One truth prevails, and that truth is that Bill is a huge Detective Conan fan. Yet, he's never had a chance to gush about it on the podcast. That changes today with our first podcast on the long-running mystery series, Detective Conan a.k.a. Case Closed! Bill introduces the franchise with a historical breakdown and explanation of what the essence o…

We're back this week with a story that will make your head spin, around and around, like a.... well, you know. We're talking about the 1998 horror manga by Junji Ito, Uzumaki. The works of Junji Ito have grown in popularity significantly over the last few years with the re-releases of many of his major works in the United States. To celebrate the 2…

10 years ago, a sweet pastel-pink magical girl and her saccharine adventures took the anime world by storm, and then promptly threw us all into a spiral of despair and Love(paper)craftian horror. On this episode, we're talking about the 2011 modern anime classic, Puella Magi Madoka Magica and it's divisive 2013 sequel film Rebellion. Produced by St…

Would you believe that this episode was recorded AN ENTIRE YEAR AGO?! Because of production schedules, editing issues, school, work, an international pandemic, and generalize malaise, it took us forever to release this. Fear not true believer, the tales of Otaku Unite! are timeless. Actually, no, that's a lie. Join us in our second Otaku-mentaries …

Woah, woah, what's this? Third Impact Anime doing a seasonal anime review!? That's (almost) unheard of! Yet here we are, talking about some of the shows that made an impression on us this past season, for better and worse. We're talking Megalobox: Nomad, Zombie Land Saga: Revenge, Odd Taxi, Those Snow White Notes, and more! What were some of your f…

Hey everyone! Look, another interview! For the third entry in our Leiji Matsumoto interview series, Sully chats with Jonathan Tarbox about Matsumoto’s WWII comic The Cockpit and how it relates to Ivan Morris’s analysis of Japanese literature and the “nobility of failure.” Jonathan also talks about his experiences in the anime convention scene, work…

Happy Pride Month, everyone! For our 2021 Pride podcast, Tori and Sully have a chat with yuri researcher and Yuricon founder Erica Friedman! Erica goes into the development of her upcoming book, By Your Side: The First 100 Years of Yuri Manga & Anime, what it took to trace the history of yuri as a genre across a whole century of material, what exci…

All aboard, it's demon-slaying time! On this episode of the Third Impact Anime Podcast, we're reviewing the recent big-screen anime hit, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Movie: Mugen Train! Hosts Austin, Tori, Ryan, and Edwin break down the next chapter in the Demon Slayer saga by discussing the film's development, its instant popularity and bo…