Reuniting for the annual Anime Secret Santa project, Jared and Ink stuff your stocking with opinions about 2004’s Planetes via a special episode of Oldtaku no Radio. Thank you, Santa!!! The choices originally presented to Ink were Stars Align, Planetes, Godzilla Singular Point, and Project Blue Earth SOS. When Ink told Jared Planetes was gifted, the stars aligned, and both hosts, who previously only read the manga, decided they needed to watch and talk about the anime, which had been on their radar for years.

Since Planetes takes place in space, we’ve formatted our review in line with our other Oldtaku in Space episodes (available to $5/month Ani-Gamers Patreon subscribers here). See the show notes below if you don’t care to hear about the real world and just want to get to the anime hot takes.

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Runtime: 1 hours, 39 min

Show Notes

• Opening Song: “Jupiter Bringer of Jollity,” Bernard Haitink conducts the LPO – Philips LP 1970 recording
• 00:01:27 – Space News!
  • 25-year olds are too mature for NASA employees (Goodbye, ISS.)
  • In space, no-one can hear you scream, but on Earth, we can hear space junk collide.
  • Tracking “unknown observables” in Earth’s orbit
  • Missing tomato … FOUND!
• 00:13:14 – Planetes discussion
• 01:18:30 – Questions
• 01:30:00 – What the hell have Jared and Ink been doing besides not podcasting?
• Ending Song: “Jupiter Bringer of Jollity,” Bernard Haitink conducts the LPO – Philips LP 1970 recording

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OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle

Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Ink, Jared

Blue Sky: Ink, Jared Nelson

Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.

Jared has a new website and previously written for The Electrum Edition and Wave Motion Cannon.

Jared, Ink, and Phillip continue their dive into Satoshi Kon’s anime career with Millennium Actress. Joined by the movie’s number one superfan, Evan “Vampt Vo” Minto, the hosts discuss this movie of movies about movies and memory: those who make them, those who love them, and how both nations and individuals are changed by them.

Stream Millennium Actress via tubi, YouTube, or Amazon Prime.
Purchase Millennium Actress via Right Stuff or Amazon.

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Runtime: 2 hours, 43 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 00:00 – Millennium Actress 1:27:00 – Questions Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU

• Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing.
• OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle
• Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Phillip, Evan, Ink, Jared
• Evan also contributes to ANN and Otaku USA.
• Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.
• Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.

In Primal, a caveman and dinosaur travel alongside one another through the unrelenting nature of prehistory. Director Genndy Tartakovsky (Samurai Jack), in a true return to form, ups his minimal dialog ante by almost completely eliminating it and leverages his visual storytelling expertise to evolve the bonds between the travel companions as they face omnipresent threats both natural and supernatural. Along with Genndy Tartakovsky Correspondent Kate from the Reverse Thieves, Jared and Ink discuss the highs and lows of this Emmy Award-winning series and speculate about where Season 2 might lead.

Stream Primal via HBO Max or [Adult Swim].

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Runtime: 1 hour, 45 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 0:00:00 – Primal

Indiewire piece on Primal.
SYFY Wire interview with Genndy
Polygon interview with Gennedy

1:15:30 – The Good Place spoilers 1:15:56 – Question 1:25:05 – Season 5 wrap party 1:31:55 – Hiatus notice 1:40:00 – Inadvertant Azuki advertisement Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU

• Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing.
• OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle
• Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Reverse Thieves, Ink, Jared
• Kate co-hosts The Speakeasy podcast over at the Reverse Thieves blog.
• Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.
• Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.

Oldtaku no Radio’s celebrating Halloween a little early this year with Lily C.A.T. Gather around a campfire or shine a flashlight up towards your chin as Jared and Ink pick apart this 1987 OVA from Hisayuki Toriumi and Studio Pierrot about impostors, aliens, and rot.

Stream the Sub and Dub of Lily C.A.T. via Retro Crush, IMDb, or Amazon Prime.

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Runtime: 1 hour, 1 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 00:00 – Lily C.A.T. 43:13 – Questions Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU

• Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing.
• OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle
• Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Ink, Jared
• Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.
• Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.

For this episode, Jared and Ink talk about Kaiji – the anime about a hapless loser with a heart of gold (and a gambling problem). This anime from 2007, which adapts part of Nobuyuki Fukumoto’s original manga, is competitive gaming like you’ve never seen before and still stands out visually and thematically among its peers. So listen in and find out all that’s to love about the first season of Kaiji!

Stream Kaiji via Crunchyroll.
Purchase Kaiji on BD via Rightstuf, Sentai, or Amazon.
Purchase Kaiji manga via Denpa LLC or Rightstuf.

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Runtime: 40 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 00:00 – Yamato questions 08:10 – Kaiji 35:00 – Kaiji BD giveaway contest winner entry! Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU

• Read about the importance and allure of folktales from Ink.
• Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing.
• OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle
• Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Ink, Jared
• Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.
• Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.

Inspired and made possible by the magic of Pili’s glove puppetry as well as the bloodthirsty mind of Gen Urobuchi, Thunderbolt Fantasy is a wuxia tale about sword keepers, wandering swordsmen, tricksters, assassins, demons, and just about everything else you could ever want as a fantasy fanatic. Listen in as Jared, Ink, and special guest Grant Jones (of Blade Licking Thieves infamy) discuss what may just be the bloodiest and most elegant puppet theater we have reviewed to date.

Stream Thunderbolt Fantasy on Crunchyroll.

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Runtime: 1 hour, 45 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 00:00 – Intros 06:35 – A little background on wuxia 20:54 – Thunderbolt Fantasy! 51:50 – Spoilers 1:15:55 – Non-OnR host questions Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU

• Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing.
• OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle
• Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Grant, Ink, Jared
• Grant appears on the Blade Licking Thieves podcast and writes for ANN.
• Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.
• Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.

We’re going way, way, way back to live in the present by talking about something set in the future: Space Battleship Yamato 2199. Leading us on this journey of appreciation and learning regarding all things Star Blazers are experts Tim Eldred and Dave Merrill. Strap in for a ton of knowledge and quite possibly the fastest “Actually…” ever recorded on this episode about a reboot of a classic show, where it came from, how it’s changed, and why it’s worth watching. And when you’re done listening to all of us gab, take a gander over at CosmoDNA (ourstarblazers.com) for an endless and constantly updated gravity well of Yamato articles, interviews, and more.

Star Blazers Space Battleship Yamato 2199 is streaming on FUNimation.
Purchase Yamato 2199 via Rightstuf, FUNimation, or Amazon.

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Runtime: 1 hour, 53 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 00:00 – Star Blazers: a History 32:15 – Space Battleship Yamato 2199 01:08:15 – Questions Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU

• Note: Yamato 2199 is no longer streaming via Crunchyroll (if we said it was). See streaming options above.
• Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing.
• Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Tim Eldred, Dave Merrill, Ink, Jared
• Tim Eldred does way too many things with every second of the day. Find out more here.
• Cartooning maniac Dave Merrill offers up hours and hours of entertainment at misterkitty.org and letsanimate.blogspot.com.
• Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.
• Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.
• OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle

What better to follow our episode about a formative sitcom than a genre satire? This month, Jared and Ink focus on Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun, which adapts some of the 4-koma by Izumi Tsubaki. Comedy runs high, and romance can’t seem to find a foothold in these tales about a high school mangaka, the girl who adores him, and the loons that surround them.

Stream Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun on Crunchyroll (JP), HIDIVE (JP + EN), and Netflix (JP + EN).
Purchase Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun via Sentai Filmworks, Rightstuf, or Amazon.

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Runtime: 59 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 00:00 – Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun 49:10 – Questions Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU

• Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing.
• OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle
• Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Ink, Jared
• Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.
• Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.

Oldtaku’s digging into an ’80s classic with the Kimagure Orange Road TV series, which stars an incredible array of talent across the board. Jared and Ink are pleased as punch to welcome back Dawn of the Anime Nostalgia Podcast for some class, in-depth insight, and a whole lot of giggles. Listen in and hear for yourself why this anime, based off of the original manga by Izumi Matsumoto, has been so influential. We mainly talk about the TV series, but there is some discussion of the OVAs and movie as well.

Stream Kimagure Orange Road via RetroCrush and Crunchyroll.
Purchase Kimagure Orange Road via Rightstuf (TV, OVAs and Movie), or Amazon (TV, OVAs + Movie).

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Runtime: 2 hours, 32 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 00:00 – Kimagure Orange Road (TV) Read Dawn’s 30 Years of Kimagure Orange Road feature on Anime News Network. 01:06:10 – Spoilers! 01:44:00 – Questions Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU

• Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing.
• OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle
• Twitter: Dawn, Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Ink, Jared
• Dawn runs the Anime Nostalgia Podcast and blog and writes for Anime News Network.
• Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post. He also sporadically talks about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.
• Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.

Eight years and a ton of effort went into this re-telling of an ancient tale about a bamboo cutter who finds a thumb-sized princess inside a bamboo stalk one day. Join Jared and Ink as they discuss The Tale of Princess Kaguya, the final movie directed by the late Isao Takahata of Studio Ghibli, and why this monogatari is still so powerful.

Stream The Tale of Princess Kaguya via HBO Max.
Purchase The Tale of Princess Kaguya via GKids, Rightstuf, or Amazon.

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Runtime: 1 hour, 5 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 00:00 – The Tale of Princess Kaguya (Stream Folktales from Japan) 44:55 – Questions Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU

• Read about the importance and allure of folktales from Ink.
• Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing.
• OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle
• Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Ink, Jared
• Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast.
• Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.

After an economic bubble burst in Japan, the Tennouzu Group buys a city and a nation by catering to its leaders’ perversions. The underground (literally) club that serves the basest desires of the rich and powerful is only open to those willing and able to pay lifelong yearly dues to the tune of ¥24,000,000 … ¥120,000,000 if they want to see others of the same tier face death or monstrous transformation by kissing a mesmerized “goddess.” But everything starts to crumble when a celebrated war photographer with a heart of gold disrupts the ritual and runs off with its centerpiece. Listen in on a vaguely spoiler-ish discussion hashing out the road buddy monster movie that is Speed Grapher.

Stream Speed Grapher via FUNimation.

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Runtime: 1 hr, 17 min

Show Notes

Opening Song: “Ruff” by eddy 00:00 – Say cheese! (Speed Grapher discussion) Original OP with “Girls on Film” by Duran Duran 59:25 – Questions Ending Song: “Beast but not Least” by XTAKERU 2009 Otakudemia column entry by by Ink (Ani-Gamers) Speed Grapher – 10 Years Later by Ink (Fandom Post) Contribute to the Ani-Gamers Patreon to get exclusive content and help us keep doing what you love us doing. OnR Sticker logo by AJ Martinson (@ajmartinsson) of Black Market Eagle Twitter: Ani-Gamers, Oldtaku no Radio, Ink, Jared Ink has also written for Otaku USA Magazine and The Fandom Post as well as talked about bad (and good) sports anime over at the Taiiku Podcast. Jared also writes for The Electrum Edition and has written for Wave Motion Cannon.