The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 10

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 10

On this edition of the Nerd Fortress Podcast, we have more of the same as the last episode in terms of news, but not without a live audio demo/review of the legacy Dragon Dagger. Then, Devin and myself talk about Austin St. John returning to the Power Rangers fandom,  go over the character information for the upcoming Power Rangers Dino Charge including Judd Lynn's return to the franchise, the news about a Chinese tokusatsu posting episodes in English on it's official Youtube channel, then move onto anime news featuring the digital remaster of Lupin the 3rd: The Castle of Cagliostro, the latest updates for Sailor Moon Crystal, a new acquisition by Sentai Filmworks, and so much more on this newest episode of the Nerd Fortress Podcast.

Editor's note: This episode was originally recorded on March 12th, so a lot of what you guys will hear news wise will be pretty much outdated. It took me almost 3 months to edit this episode which was also very unexpected as well as unprofessional so I do apologize for that. There's reasons behind it which I have explained in an announcement/update that I mention in the beginning of the episode so if you haven't listened to it, please do so to get a better understanding of what happened.

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 9

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 9

On this late edition of the Nerd Fortress podcast, we tackle a whole lot of news including the botch or free promotion for TV Nihon at the New York City Toy Fair, new information regarding the Kikaider reboot, news about another premium Bandai ranger key set featuring the villains of Kyoryuger, then talk about the announcement of the Dragon Ball Kai version of the Buu Saga, talk about the newest acquisitions for the Toonami block, Black Lagoon and Blue Exorcist, talk about a new anime based on model kits other than Gundam, have another edition of the "Douchebag of the Week" involving a Japanese police Sargent in his 50s throwing away his career for a $20 Kamen Rider figure, the latest news regarding a remake of Final Fantasy 7, as well as the release date for Shinji Mikami's latest game, "The Evil Within and much more in this episode of the Nerd Fortress Podcast!

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 8

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 8

NOTE: It took much longer than usual to edit this episode yet again! Chalk it up to laziness as well as procrastinating this time around! Also, please disregard the minor talk about the Winter Olympics since those are now over. Please be aware that because of Devin's unnecessary stuttering issues which do cause a bit of frustration when editing episodes. Will try to have episode 9 up when it's finished editing. Thanks for your patience and understanding!

On this edition of the Nerd Fortress podcast, we go over the latest power Rangers news with Saban's decision to skip Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters and head for a Kyoryuger adaptation instead for next year, talk about the fan poll for the upcoming Heisei Rider Vs. Showa Rider: Kamen Rider Taisen featuring Super Sentai, then switch to anime news by talking about the announcement of Soul Eater Not spin off which has absolutely nothing to do with Soul Eater, and then talk about the announcement of a anime and manga adaptation of Seiken Tsukai no World Break, as well as an anime adaptation of the visual novel game, Kamigami no Asobi, and then the return of the "Douchebag of the Week" feature involving a 47 year old unemployed man being arrested for uploading manga, and also discuss the news of Neon Alley shifting to a free "Video On Demand" service, and so much more on this latest edition of the Nerd Fortress podcast!

Please send us you're comments, criticisms, feedback, etc. by emailing us at OfficialNerdFortressPodcast@Gmail.com or send them to our Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr pages!

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 7

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 7

NOTE: This episode of the podcast took longer than usual to edit because I was grieving over the loss of Justin Carmical a.k.a. JewWario and I also had to work around my co-host's constant stumbling and stuttering issues again so please forgive me for how much longer than usual it took to edit this episode!

On this edition of the Nerd Fortress podcast, we start the episode off with some very sad news with the death of Justin Carmical, better known as JewWario, then talk about the latest news with Nintendo as well as have some exclusive news from the Nintendo financial results meeting, then find out that the Assassin's Creed series doesn't have an actual ending after all, go back to Nintendo for a little bit by explaining the situation with the Wii U's gamepad, as well as go over Nintendo's lifetime hardware and software sales from the Famicom/NES up to now excluding the Wii U, and I vent out my anger and rage with the recent news about a live action Ghost in the Shell movie that's just gotten off the ground and much more on this edition of the Nerd Fortress podcast!

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 5

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 5

After a long holiday break, as well as an unforseen event with my co-host Devin The Cool, the first episode of the Nerd Fortress podcast for the year of 2014 is finally here! On this first episode of 2014, we go over the Youtube content ID fiasco which is threatening some well known Youtubers livelihoods, as well as give our thoughts on the recent premiere of the English dub of Space Dandy airing on Toonami and the impact that it could have on the anime industry in the future, and then we talk about the very sad and untimely passing of JEFusion founder Geki Dan and talk about the impact that he left on everybody that knew him in the underground tokusatsu fandom as well as much more on this first episode of the Nerd Fortress podcast for the year of 2014!

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 4

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 4

After an unexpected hiatus, the Nerd Fortress podcast is back with another new episode!

On this final episode for the year of 2013, we talk about the last generation of consoles since the PS4 and the Xbox One have been released to the general public. We talk about the good, the bad, and the somewhat ridiculous stupidity from Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo!

We then talk about the latest news such as the latest with Metal Gear Solid 5, Shigeru Miyamoto's continued withdrawal from the Mario franchise, new info on the Xbox One, the most recent firmware update for the PlayStation Vita, the latest editions to the roster for the new Super Smash Bros. game for the 3DS and the Wii U, some news about Steam Machines and Steam OS, and much more on this last episode of the Nerd Fortress podcast of 2013.

NOTE: Just found out that the Power Rangers Legacy Collection has been delayed because of an unexpected production delay with the Red Ranger helmet, so please disregard what I say about the December 3rd release!

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 1

The Nerd Fortress Podcast: Episode 1

After a year long hiatus, the Nerd Fortress podcast is back!

On this very first of many episodes of the Nerd Fortress podcast, we talk about our memories of the Metal Gear franchise and then talk about news from PAX Prime including the release date for AVGN Adventures, and Mighty No. 9 as well as mention the release of Cowboy Bebop on blu-ray from Funimation, share our thoughts on Suda 51 and his games, and much more!

Crunchyroll adds season 1 of AKB0048 to anime catalog

A little bit of an update to the previous story for anybody who is a fan of the AKB0048 anime which is based on the real life very successful idol group AKB48. The anime and J-drama streaming site Crunchyroll has now obtained the licensing rights to legally stream season 1 of AKB0048 and has launched the first season yesterday at 7:30am PST which is also the same time that new episodes of the 2nd season, AKB0048: Next Stage are launched and 2 to 3 'new' episodes will be made available each week for both free and premium users of the legal streaming site!

So if you haven't seen the first season of AKB0048 or have only watched it through illegal fan sub sites and want to watch it again through legal means, then this is you're chance to do so and also watch the legal fan subs of the 2nd season at the same time, so it's a "win win" situation for everybody.

Sentai Filmworks licenses "AKB0048"

This has come as a bit of a surprise, but thanks to my former co-host Mike Maverick, I have recently learned that Sentai Filmworks, a successor to ADV Films which was a company responsible for dubbing anime into English for anime fans here in North America has licensed the rights to "AKB0048", the anime based on the hugely successful real life idol group AKB48!

It has also come to my attention that Crunchyroll has started legally streaming the 2nd season called "AKB0048 Next Stage". Why Crunchyroll didn't get the rights to stream the first season is unknown at this time, and it's currently unknown if  the first season will be dubbed into English with an English voice cast. If an English voice cast is announced, I'll let you know! But this is a step in the right direction for those of us who want to watch this anime legally without having to resort to fan-subs.

While I regularly don't condone downloading fan subs with tokusatsu being the only exception to that rule, you should go to http://evetaku.com/ and watch the first half of "AKB0048" there and then sign up for an account at crunchyroll.com and start a free trial for their premium membership service.

Here's the official press release!

HOUSTON, January 16, 2013 — Get ready to rock in the New Year with Sentai Filmworks’ newest acquisition: AKB0048!  This epic 26 episode series is directed by Yoshimasa Hiraike (Kaleido Star, Amagami SS) and features series composition by Mari Okada (Vampire Knight, Canaan), character designs by Risa Ebata (Macross Frontier), sound director by Jin Aketagawa (Samurai Girls, Canaan) and music by Hiroshi Takaki (Tytania).

The year is 0048, and in the wake of the great wars, all forms of entertainment have been banned by the dystopian and iron-gloved rule of the anti-music DES.  To combat this threat to intergalactic harmony, a group of bold young women have resurrected the legendary J-Pop band AKB48 and formed an all new Band of Sisters – AKB0048!  But these rocking rebels aren’t simply singers!  Trained in combat as well as choreography, these striking strike team members are equally at home in concert halls and in the trenches.  Under the leadership of the mysterious Sensei Sensei, they’re ready to lay down their lives in order to make the universe a safe place for getting your groove on!  And as a fresh new team of singer-soldiers join the cause and enter basic training, the batons and battle gear are about to be passed to a new generation of daring divas!  Get ready to polish your dancing boots and dive into danger with the latest hard hitting hits as the new recruits take the staging ground and the veterans provide the musical soundtrack to their own action epic in AKB0048!

AKB0048 will be available soon on select digital outlets and later this year on home video.

AKB0048 season 2 has begun!

Time sure has snuck up on all of us fans of AKB0048, the anime inspired by the hugely successful real life idol group AKB48 because season 2 of the anime entitled "AKB0048: Next Stage" has recently aired in Japan!

And to be very honest, I haven't been keeping up and have to watch the entire first season to get caught up because of the fact that the remainder of Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters and Kamen Rider Wizard as well as Choujuu Sentai Liveman and Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger have been keeping me busy among other things. (Sorry AKB0048 fans :(

What I will say based on the information that I have learned though is that I'm very glad that they worked Atsuko Maeda's departure from AKB48 back on August 27th of last year into the story which has also set up what I think to be a very good premise and story for season 2!

For all of us that don't understand Japanese and are fans of this anime and have been keeping up, you can download the premiere episode of season 2 here: http://evetaku.com/blog/2013/01/akb0048-episode-14-next-stage-01-released/

The long awaited and triumphant return of Toonami!

Since there's unfortunately some people out there on the internet who don't have a good understanding of what's going on behind the scenes or weren't paying attention, I decided to make this video which will hopefully make things more clear for everyone! Lets help out everybody at Adult Swim by watching the new Toonami so they can get the funding for more new anime like the Funimation dub of One Piece. Lets make it happen Toonami faithful!

My thoughts on the premiere of "AKB0048"

I just recently got finished watching the debut of the anime based on the very popular J-Pop idol group AKB48 called "AKB0048"! And to be quite honest, it is very different from your usual anime that you find watching nowadays. Like I said on the last episode of The Nerd Fortress Podcast before the hiatus, I have no idea what is is about stories with a post apocalyptic future with an oppressive government that feels like that they have to have control of everything or vice versa, but it just absolutely fascinates me!

AKB0048 tells the story of 4 teens who decide to audition to become members of the fictional group AKB0048 that are the successors to the real life popular Japanese Pop idol group AKB48  in a dystopian future where music is deemed illegal after an interplanetary war broke out where the Earth's ecosystem was damaged, and humanity was forced to flee the planet.

Not only does AKB0048 perform free concerts, they also take up arms to defend not only their careers, but their fans as well from the illegal ban on art and entertainment which also labels the idols as terrorists! And did I forget to mention that there are giant mechas in this anime also? 

Unfortunately, the only way for you to experience the anime for yourself is to download the first episode at http://evetaku.com/blog/2012/04/akb0048-episode-01-released/ since the Youtube video I previously had posted has been taken down because of a copyright claim!

Also, some of the members of AKB48 like Sumire Sato, Mayu Watanabe, and Amina Sato voice the 77th generation trainees of AKB0048 while popular voice actresses such as Mamiko Noto known for her work on the Japanese versions of Gunslinger Girl, Hell Girl, Witchblade, Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple, and many others voicing the real life AKB48 member Haruna Kojima, Yukari Tamura, known for her works on the Japanese versions of games like Soul Calibur II, III, and IV, NIGHTS: Journey into Dreams, and Star Ocean: First Departure, as well as animes like Ouran High School Host Club, Fullmetal Panic!: The Second Raid, and S-CRY-ed, as well as the voice of Navi on the 35th anniversary season of Toei's Super Sentai Series, Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger as real life AKB48 member Mayu Watanabe among others!

If your a fan of AKB48 or are a fan of action and sci-fi anime like the Gundam series, then this anime is definitely worth checking out! Sadly, I don't think this anime will be dubbed into English and given a North American release since AKB48 is mostly considered either underground or unknown in the American music market that is vastly different to the Japanese music market in Japan!

So don't feel bad about downloading fan-subs of this American AKB48 fans!