Anime World Order Show # 227 – Not Much Ion Fury but Very Much an Ion Maiden, Featuring Shoujo Sundae

For our first episode of 2024 we are joined by the two cohosts of the Shoujo Sundae podcast (@ShoujoSundae), Giana Luna and Chika Supreme, as we review the manga ION, by Arina Tanemura. Apologies are in order, for despite the episode number, this podcast does not contain Jackée.

Introduction (0:00 – 27:23)
We talk to Chika and Giana about how they first saw anime, how they learned more about it in a pre high-speed Internet era, what brought them to podcasting, and how big of a bullet one dodges when you go to Blockbuster Video as a kid in search of “stuff that looks like Sailor Moon” and end up renting a copy of Perfect Blue. Hashtag relatable.

Otaku In Memoriam: Erik Reiss (27:23 – 32:24)
This year, we’d like to hear more stories about noteworthy anime fans who are no longer around, ideally by people who knew or had interactions with them. If you knew someone and wish to share some memories, record a short memoriam (2-4 minutes) and email them to us so we can put them into later episodes. Or, if you’re like us and aren’t especially comfortable with the sound of your own voice–yeah, that’s us even after all this time–write it up so we can read it on your behalf.

Erik Reiss was one of our earliest guests that we interviewed, and about two months ago he passed away at the age of 54. Along with his also deceased wife Karen Trudeau, Erik was an influential figure in Florida anime fandom so we figured we’d spend a few minutes talking about him. We’re pretty certain that we have listeners who knew him way better, so perhaps this haphazard memoriam will spur activity. As a correction: Anime Festival Orlando was not the first “Florida” anime convention, as the now-defunct Anime Express started three years prior in 1997 over at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and many future Florida anime convention staffers attended. AFO was the first “Central Florida” anime convention.

Review: ION (32:24 – 1:22:09)
Last episode we talked a little bit about Arina Tanemura, and so it’s fitting that we review her professional serial debut: ION, from 1997. It’s a cute, lighthearted sci-fi rom=com that is self-contained in a single volume…well, aside from the single chapter follow-up written 13 years later which is included as a bonus with Volume 8 of Sakura Hime: The Legend of Princess Sakura.

Always attempt to bend the spoon. It’s possible. There is a spoon.
Tanemura keeps things cute and moving along. [Guy who has only read Kodocha] Getting a lot of Kodocha vibes from this…
Ion is rife with tons of silly gags like this fourth wall-breaking one, from the follow-up bonus chapter included with Sakura Hime.

Anime World Order Show # 223 – Some Might Consider This Moto Hagiography

This is perhaps our most tragic episode ever, for not only have we lost our sole sponsor Right Stuf due to Crunchyroll shutting it down, but Clarissa is reviewing The Poe Clan, one of the great shojo manga masterworks by Moto Hagio.

Introduction (0:00 – 25:45)
Well, they did the thing. It’s not like it’s a surprise. A year ago, we said it’d happen “a year from now.” But Crunchyroll has now shut down Right Stuf. After October 10th, it will instead redirect to the CR Store, and once again uncertainty abounds. Will the service be as good as Right Stuf’s? (That certainly isn’t the case right now!) Will they continue to carry all products? Discotek stated “we don’t anticipate any change in the availability or sales practices when it comes to our products” in their latest newsletter, but will that last? Best case scenario: maybe they’re just changing the sign in front of the building. We’ll wait and see what people say, and give things a shot ourselves, and if we like it–and they extend the offer–then maybe we’ll be sponsored by the CR Store moving forward instead. But until October 10th, you can use promo code “THANKYOU” to save an additional 15% off your Right Stuf orders, and if you do plan on doing so please consider using our affiliate link one last time before it’s gone.

Saturday, 09/30/2023, join us on the Anime World Order Discord at 3 PM EST for the Fall 2023 Trailer Watch Party! We’re once again watching trailers for all the stuff coming out next season…wait, it’s not really 75+ titles, is it? Viewable to all, but if you back us on our Patreon at any tier, then you’ll be able to chat and post with us as well.

Review: The Poe Clan (25:45 – 1:07:42)
It’s been quite some time since we’ve actually reviewed manga, and at the risk of invoking the ire of the greater evolved manga gods in the English-speaking world Clarissa weighs in on Moto “Actually Born In Showa 24 Unlike The Rest Of Youse Mugs” Hagio’s foundational shojo manga, The Poe Clan. This centuries-spanning tale of beautiful ageless adolescent vampires–er, “vampirnellas”–was a breakout hit in the early 1970s, and while we understand that after a decades-long hiatus it resumed a few years ago, all we currently have access to is the Fantagraphics hardcover editions of the original series. Somewhere, Gerald schemes in retaliation, either in the form of the annual trivia episode or perhaps a special guest appearance.