Best Seat on the Couch

Earlier this year, the gang discussed Tim Miller's Secret Level on Amazon Prime, an anthology series designed to highlight various animation studios' chops as they created short films centered around a variety of video games. But before Secret Level, Tim Miller fought through 11 years of development hell to create Love, Death & Robots ❤️❌

Though not technically a Miyazaki film, the gang believes that 2010's Arrietty belongs in his pantheon of works with Studio Ghibli nestled in between Ponyo and The Wind Rises, with thematic and artistic similarities to Miyazaki's more carefree films like My Neighbor Totoro. It's a film that leans heavily on Ghibli's masterful work with scenery, colors, and the whimsy of Arrietty's mini-world, but falters somewhat without a strong main (human) character in Shō (or Shawn) or a particularly strong emotional throughline. If you're like Marcus and enjoy a movie paced like a relaxed afternoon walk, then look no further than this magical Secret World. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Alex, tapping into his memories of the future, assembles the gang one final time and masterfully MC's our discussion on this legendary anime series, Hajime Isayama's Attack on Titan. While a couple of us had some doubts coming out of Season 4, Part 1 given its lack of Titan-on-Titan action, more slow-paced and methodical storytelling, and animation studio change, the show sticks its landing and has a couple of moments that feel powerful to the point of being genre-defining. Join us as Iris spearheads an interesting discussion about the show's message and whether the hope for humanity comes through in the series finale, Marcus loses his mind over wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff, and Michael gets C O O K I N with his discussion on the final scene between Armin and Eren. To conclude our 2.5 hour marathon of an episode, Alex tallies up the gang's individual correct and incorrect theories through each of the previous episodes' Theory Walls with a scoring system that ensures a suspenseful finish regardless of who's crowned the winner. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Hot off the heels of our discussion on Kung Fu Panda 2, the gang comes to you with the final film in what may be Dreamworks Studios' finest animated trilogy...if you simply pretend 2024's Kung Fu Panda 4 doesn't exist. It's got multiple dads, several more pandas, another villain voiced by another banger voice actor (hi J.K. Simmons!), and yet another really solid character arc for Po which continues to blow us away considering that the name of this film is literally Kung Fu Panda. And while Marcus dunks on Kai a bit like Michael dunked on Lord Shen in our previous episode, the gang unanimously agrees that the film most certainly earned its "Everybody was kung fu fighting" moment at the end. Will we move on to our review on Kung Fu Panda 4 next? No, we don't think we will. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

In a film that crosses two very distinct fandoms in a manner like oil and water, Kenji Kamiyama's War of the Rohirrim is the world's first Lord of the Rings content since Amazon's The Rings of Power and perhaps the only LotR media that truly puts a woman at the forefront of the action! That's nice. It also reimagines a story out of J.R.R. Tolkien's own work and feels like it fits very well—maybe too well, considering the callbacks to The Two Towers—in the existing live-action LotR universe as well as the overall vibe of the series. All that said, it was a box office bomb at the end of the day, and there's a couple of aspects of the film's writing and unique animation style that feel like swings and misses. Stick around to hear the gang's opinions on the man who can kill another man in one punch, or fanservice, or 9/11. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Once the highest-grossing animated film of all time and certainly a cultural phenomenon that revived Disney with a hefty almost "re-renaissance" as Michael puts it, 2013's Frozen is a trope-subverting musical-movie that had the entire world belting "LET IT GOOOOOOOO" in both appropriate and inappropriate social settings...so why did it take us 185 episodes to finally bring it to the couch? The movie is good, and has a pretty wild twist that was novel for its time, but it isn't a perfect movie either, and experiences some missteps in its villian, consistency, and narrative that newer musical-movie entries like Moana and Encanto deftly avoid. Does this film stand the test of time? Should the gang see Disney on Ice? Does Olaf get worse or better in Frozen 2? Guess you'll have to listen to our discussion to find out. Content warning: strong language.

Fear not, dear listeners—we are almost at the finish line. Hajime Isayama's Attack on Titan endures a little bit of a shakeup for Season 4, Part 1, with studio MAPPA replacing studio Wit on the animation front while a brand new cast of Marleyan characters take center stage as opposed to the familiar Eren, Armin, and Mikasa. This final season has impressively lofty thematic goals that are powerful and gripping, but definitely changes the vibe from the absolute PEAK high-action scouts-vs-titans combat scenes from the return to Shiganshina in Season 3 in favor of more cerebral, slow-paced, human-vs-human conflicts, for better or for worst. One more Theory Wall rounds out this week's episode; one final chance to call our shots before all is revealed in Attack on Titan: The Final Part Specials 1 & 2. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

It's been a very long time since the gang discussed the original Kung Fu Panda, a film that we universally praised for its completeness, excellent performances from Dustin Hoffman and Jack Black, and impressive animation. And somewhat surprisingly, not since Shrek 2 have we seen such an impressive sequel! The animation is fresh with 2D animated storytelling interspersed with the impressive 3D fight scenes and set pieces, Po's personal journey is emotionally rich for a kids' movie, and we get an absolute banger voice performance from Gary Oldman as main antagonist Shen. Tune in to find out if the gang can achieve I N N E R P E A C E. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

With the season finale having premiered just a few weeks ago, the gang's discussion on Season 3 of Amazon Prime's Invincible is hot off the presses, and we're pleased to announce that we enjoyed it quite a bit more than Season 2. Mark's got a rapidly aging alien little brother, an increasingly strained relationship with Cecil, a hot new superhero gf, and like 18 other alternate selves who really hate his guts to deal with this season, and it feels like the emotional center of this show has finally found balance with the high-octane action and fight scenes that keep our butts glued to our seats. On the other hand, has Invincible lost a little bit of that magic that made Season 1 such a gut-punch to comic book animated media? Guess you're gonna have to give it a listen to find out! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

This week's episode presents a chance for Michael, Trekkie of the Couch, to show his quality. Star Trek: Lower Decks is an animated 5-season series from Mike McMahan and heavily channels the vibe of McMahan's previous work on Rick and Morty, while also crafting a narrative about Star Trek's lesser known non-bridge crew that's funny, whimsical, and chock full of nerdy references for Trekkies far and wide. Alex and Marcus learn about the intricacies of Star Trek lore (and how crazy it really gets) and Michael and Iris call back to plenty of traditional Star Trek television of old during our discussions on favorite moments, favorite characters, and Michael's Star Trek-themed Trivia Corner. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Hajime Isayama's Attack on Titan has, through the previous two seasons, provided broadly more questions than answers. But fear not, dear listeners! If you've stuck with us thus far, then you'll be proud to hear that Season 3 is the undeniably euphoric catharsis the gang has been waiting for. The pieces of the puzzle are coming together! Flashbacks galore! A return to Shiganshina! MANIFEST DESTINY! The development team, Studio Wit, and my boy Hiroyuki Sawano have come together and delivered an absolute masterclass in Season 3, expanding the story around Eren, Armin, and Mikasa to build the world like never before, with key focus on Eren's father, the Ackerman bloodline, the true history of the world and the ramifications of that history on the current royal family. Come for all of that, and stay for our end-of-episode Theory Wall Sina, where all three of Iris, Marcus, and Michael get some previous theories validated as we look forward to Season 4. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Iris takes a page out of Alex's playbook and proves that sequel episodes here on the Couch aren't just reserved for award-winning animes: following our previous episode on 2001's Justice League, today the gang presents to you 2004's Justice League Unlimited, the eighth and final series of the DC Animated Universe and cherished childhood Saturday morning cartoon for everyone here not named Michael. We can confidently say that this is the best superhero cartoon out there, with immense narrative range, superb voice acting, fun fight scenes, and great messages for children and adults alike. Plus, there's more heroes, more villains, more interpersonal banter, and even some Batman Beyond baby! It's so impressive for a show to have aged so gracefully and proved that not only did it improve upon every series that preceded it, but it became so much more than just a sendoff for the DCAU. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

After almost 3 years, special guest Andrew returns to bring his keen insight and top-class banter to the Couch as we collectively discuss a childhood darling, Xiaolin Showdown. Some parts of this show have aged...poorly...(guys, Omi is such a racist caricature) but it brings a Teen Titan-esque unity of classical Saturday morning American cartoons with anime styling and mythos with creative Shen Gong Wu, hilarious visual animation and dialogue, and memorable villains across its three seasons. For a show that gives the monks Shen Gong Wu that range from allowing them to flip to a full undersea vehicle, it's also got no shortage of blatant power creep and hilarious this-could-only-be-funny-to-an-8-year-old moments. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

It's anthology szn again! Today the gang discusses Tim Miller's Secret Level, with 15 animated short stories from video games ranging from Armored Core to Warhammer, to complement our extensive history with video games of yesterday and today. While some of these "levels" feel more like glorified trailers than actual worthwhile media, we come away with the impression that what's really worth taking away is how each episode made us feel—was it cool? fun to watch? got us into the game, or pushed us away from it? Even if you're not into some of the games showcased here, or video games at all, there's some really good (and maybe some really bad) television worth discussing here. So join us! Content warning: strong language.

You ever hear of this movie? Pixar's anticipated follow-up to Inside Out? Their first EVER box office failure? Marcus certainly hadn't. We all generally agree that Pixar's standard of quality for their movies prevents them from being truly hot garbage—which is a good thing, mind you—but The Good Dinosaur lacks a fair bit of expected Pixar magic, and ends up being fairly uninteresting. Elements of its construction, like the symbolism of the River and the Storm as antagonists and the T-Rexes appearing in Act 2, are worth discussing and praising, whereas other aspects like pterodactyls and Spot leave us wanting more. Tune in when we eventually get to pandemic victim Onward sometime! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

The gang returns for Season 2 of Hajime Isayama's Attack on Titan, and boy has it gotten spicier! Alex recounts that this season was released 4 years after Season 1's final release and only has 12 episodes, so hype might have died down a bit for Alex and countless other fans eagerly looking forward to the answers to S1's many questions—but that doesn't mean S2 didn't live up to the hype. With answers given and even more questions posed, S2 gives us more Titans, more Titan shifters, and plenty of hints to the true nature of Titans, all while diverting most of the spotlight from Eren, Mikasa, and Armin onto newer characters we've only briefly touched on in S1. Plus, the gang discusses the results of our first Theory Wall (and rightfully showers Marcus in praise for his correctly called shot on Reiner) while bringing a new set of theories to bring us into Season 3. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

It's a certified Best Seat Tradition now to have Alex's group of straw hat buddies join him over the holidays to talk about Eiichiro Oda's legendary anime series ONE PIECE, at 1123 episodes released at the time of recording with still more content on the way. We've got Katy, Lony, Owen, and newcomer Ayana joining Alex today, and even though the series is on a minor hiatus mid-Egghead arc, the gang is chomping at the bit to see Luffy and co. enter Elbaph, home of the giants, starting April 2025. Ayana introduces their own personal One Piece lore with their favorite characters and moments, and then the gang jumps into a discussion about the Five Elders, expected hype on Elbaph (introduced all the way back in the Little Garden arc!), and we even get a psuedo-Theory Wall to close out the episode—are people gonna die? why are we talking about Loki? Loki's in ONE PIECE? As the nameless author of these blurbs it's mighty confusing. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Long before the Avengers released in theaters and Zack Snyder produced something several notches lower than absolute cinema (twice!), the DC-flavored Earth's mightiest heroes made their animated debut in Bruce Timm's Justice League, allowing kids across the world to learn about Superman and Batman's friends like Wonder Woman, the Flash, Green Lantern, and Martian Manhunter! And also Hawkgirl is there. This show is close to many of our childhoods, and we appreciate that this show still holds a lot of that Saturday morning cartoon magic while still providing some killer arcs that are so integral to DC Universe media today. Clancy Brown's Lex Luthor and Mark Hamill's Joker add that villainous flair to an already excellent TV show, and we can't wait to tackle Justice League Unlimited very soon here on the Couch. Content warning: strong language.

A film that released on 09/09/2009 with an absolutely kick-ass trailer and tantalizing action sequences checked all of the boxes for the gang's tweenage selves, but 15 years later our discussion unearths a movie that's honestly just barely okay. We on the Couch take it upon ourselves to literally re-write Shane Acker's passion project/short film and expertly fix the film's confusing and somewhat dull story, stagnant characters (which are all 1/9 of a single character?), magical talisman, and...interesting...ending, completely free of charge. Plus, stick around for our discussion on the expertly designed and animated machines, the concept of death, and what it means when two parts of your soul have the hots for each other. Content warning: strong language.

In a first EVER on the Couch, the gang is together! in person! in the same room! coming together literally minutes after watching the finale! of Arcane's second and final season! This season is awesome, and while we don't have the benefit of extra time before recording to let the season marinate in our minds, we can still make valuable commentary while riding the high of a phenomenal Act 3. It seems that Studio Fortiche has received even more freedom to flex their artistic muscles in this season, with no shortage of indie music, slow-mo scenes, watercolors, pastels, charcoal rubbings, flip-book style animation, and mic-drop moments. And while it's clear that the team had a lot to cover in just 9 episodes (perhaps too much, in some instances) it feels like they were able to stick the landing with the finale and complete the main narrative throughlines surrounding Vi, Jinx, Cait, Viktor, and Jayce. Stick around as we close the loop on our original Theory Wall from Episode 68 | Arcane! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

While Halloween has come and gone by the time this episode releases, the gang is in full Spooky Season spirit with 2009's Coraline, a Henry Selick stop-motion animated film that follows in the footsteps of The Nightmare Before Christmas. There's an awesome pairing of traditional stop-motion with CGI bells and whistles, and while this film definitely qualifies as a children's movie, the horror element makes a strong argument towards giving those same children some pretty chilling nightmares. Stick around to hear us sing praises for Coraline and the Beldam as characters, the film's excellent score, and the journey the audience gets to go on from this film's start to its end credits. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Widely considered to be one of the best anime series of all time (especially to Western audiences), Hajime Isayama's Attack on Titan has action, gore, giant organic mecha, bureaucracy, and subterfuge all packed into a TV journey bolstered with great animation from Studio Wit and a baller soundtrack from my boy Hiroyuki Sawano. Given that resident weeb Alex has already watched the entire series, the rest of the gang gets to experience Season 1 at face value: it introduces characters, provides lore and information on Titans in little bite-sized nuggets, and has some really cool fight scenes...but what more is hidden behind the scenes? Stick around for a slightly different Theory Wall segment at the end of the episode, where Iris, Marcus, and Michael call their shots on how things might shake out in Season 2. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Iris steers the gang back onto the anime track with 2018's Violet Evergarden, a story about a girl who makes the ridiculous character journey from overpowered shōnen-esque child soldier to emotionally stunted post-war ghostwriter, all while tugging on our heartstrings through each individual episode. While Marcus and Iris drop the ball on watching the complementary film, we all get to delve deeply into the anime's vignette-style structure, the importance of written language and how its meaning translates, and the interesting post-war setting of a fictional faux-Germany that has palpable influence on the story's progression. Plus, what the hell does "Iron Giant-pilled" mean?! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

The list of Disney/Pixar films we haven't yet touched upon here on the Couch is getting pretty slim, but 1998's A Bug's Life simply demands discussion, mostly because child Alex's love of insects cannot be denied. Hot off the heels of Toy Story, this film actually holds up quite well; its animation is solid, its characters are honestly quite impressive (with special mention to the villain Hopper and actual convincing child Dot), and its pro-union and Marxist-leaning messages are excellent reminders that it's our right as workers to eat the rich in 2024. Hope y'all enjoy our discussion, because we all know rival film Antz will be making an appearance on the Couch very soon... Content warning: strong language.

Ignoring that this movie is owned by furries, Disney's Zootopia is an impressively rich world teeming with the kind of social commentary that Disney just barely makes enough of to be thought-provoking without necessarily stating too much. The gang has an exciting discussion about nature vs. nurture, racism, fascism, fantasy worlds, and the role of the police both when this movie came out in 2016 and in our current day—that is, after all, what y'all are here for, right? We've also got our favorite moments, characters, and animal-related puns too. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

The gang breaks the 4-week anime streak to bring one of the most incredible animated TV series of 2023, Scavenger's Reign, a show that got canceled by HBO Max after its premier season but got picked up by Netflix within the last few months. It isn't hyperbole to say that this show moved us; the worldbuilding is phenomenal, the characters and their stories are rich and emotional, and the way the showrunners are able to have the audience connect to planet Vesta, at the same time naturally rich yet so wildly alien, is something we genuinely have never seen before. Even Marcus' and Michael's minor nitpicks evolve into rich discussions about how masterfully this show is written and how complex its characters are, and we really don't have to say much more than what Iris said in the first 3 minutes: go watch this show. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

It has taken the gang 165 episodes to bring an Isekai anime to the Couch, and while they may not be to resident weeb Alex's discriminating palate, Iris brings us a wild first installment all the same with 2023's I'm in Love with the Villainess. It's got drama, it's got magic, and it's exceedingly gay, but as the show goes there are a few characters and moments that really do make it a show worth sticking around for; plus the English dub slaps. Stick around as Marcus gets a little too existential on the Isekai genre and Alex pitches a mini-Trivia Corner to wrap up the episode. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Now that the gang has completed our reviews on legendary anime film director Makoto Shinkai's Your Name, Weathering with You, & Suzume, we dive into four of Shinkai's films-before-the-fame so to speak, created in the years before Your Name became an international hit—2002's Voices of a Distant Star, 2004's Places Promised in Our Early Days, 2007's 5 Centimeters Per Second, and 2013's The Garden of Words. Stick around for our 4-film tier list, reflections on Shinkai's growth as a director and filmmaker, and recognition of Shinkai's formula and his union of sci-fi/sci-fantasy and love stories. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Hayao Miyazaki deserves a shrine here on Best Seat on the Couch, and The Boy and the Heron is his final masterpiece and bookend to an illustrious career—or would be, if he actually confirmed his retirement. There's like 5 different metaphorical through lines and yet another stacked English voice cast in this Ghibli film, but perhaps the strongest message that comes through is an allegory for Miyazaki himself, and how a couple of characters in this film could be representative of how Miyazaki feels about his career, his art, and his legacy, now that it's coming to an end. It's a beautiful, emotional, thought-provoking film that is a must-watch for a Miyazaki-Ghibli film. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Better known as Dungeon Meshi in weeb, Delicious in Dungeon is a show that brings anime, cooking, humor, Dungeons & Dragons, studio Trigger animation, and character-driven narratives together like the Avengers to put together one of our favorite anime shows of all time. Longtime listeners know from our episodes on The Legend of Vox Machina that D&D is held near and dear to our hearts, and we're blown away by this series's worldbuilding, character backstories, combat encounters, and even those small twists from the classic D&D formula that freshen up the genre. Perhaps our only complaint is that Season 2 can't come fast enough, and only Alex knows what the show has in store for us when it arrives - though that doesn't stop us from having a Theory Wall anyway. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Disney's put out quite a few bangers, and even some underrated sleeper hits, but then, what does that make Treasure Planet? A bonafide box office bomb and a top 3 expensive animated theatrical failure of all time, the film does join Atlantis: The Lost Empire as a "cult classic" in the Disney pantheon—can the gang find redeeming qualities and give this movie a thumbs-up? Overall, yes we can! With some exceptions. There's an excellent relationship between Jim and John Silver, truly gorgeous animation for its time, and some deep worldbuilding just begging for a sequel that'll never come to light. But can its Hero's Journey story hold up to Marcus's critical eye? Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

The gang finally completes the Makoto Shinkai trilogy, closing the book on our previous discussions on Your Name (Episode 7) and Weathering With You (Episode 12) after many years with 2022's Suzume. There's a lot to like about this movie (it's just as beautiful as its predecessors, if not even more gorgeous) but it's definitely not as good as Your Name and arguably may not even be better than Weathering With You, which does lend itself to a pretty great discussion about the main characters, the keystones (how do they work?!?), and the weird way the "romance" develops as the movie goes on. And in its small moments there's a wonderful story about the kindness of strangers Suzume meets on her journey, and it does elicit the emotions we're used to feeling in a Shinkai film. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

In regards to Pixar's latest slump at the box office, Coco is perhaps the studio's last exceptional movie before the downturn, with its dazzling display of el Día de los Muertos, exceptional score, powerful emotional impact, and emphasis on family. Join us as we gush over the beautiful lights and usage of color in this movie, praise its rich storyline and clever writing, and joke about Marcus's interesting comparison to Encanto (check out Episode 77!) and its similar Hispanic roots. And who doesn't love a lengthy philosophical discussion about DEATH? Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Your fight-or-flight response might have already triggered upon reading the title of this anime series, but our resident anime expert Alex assures the gang that this show is not, in fact, fan service brain rot. To be honest, it's actually quite introspective - plus it has its emotional moments - and sheds a light on the issues and social pressures impacting teenagers as they learn to navigate their way to young adulthood. It's strange to contextualize serious issues like body image or even the loss of a loved one with weird pseudo-scientific quantum theoretical explanations, and the gang has varied opinions on this show's choices, but it's clear that all of us enjoyed experiencing this series for the first time. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Along with like half of the gang on the Couch, you may be surprised to know that this isn't actually a Disney movie; as 20th Century Fox Animation's first feature film, it's technically a competitor - so how does it stack up? Well, when you come at the king, you best not miss. The music is actually quite good, and it's an affable take on the Bolshevik revolution (as Alex phrases it), but the animation comes across as a bit...rough around the edges. Some moments feel well directed while others feel a bit discordant, some characters feel very Disney-esque (Ra Ra Rasputin!) while others are kind of...there...what we're saying is, this movie does its best, and we can commend it for that. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

The first season of Amazon Prime's Invincible was pretty groundbreaking stuff; subverting the superhero genre with deep emotional human elements and excellently written morally gray characters was delightfully refreshing in the face of pandemic-era MCU content. It's been nearly 3 years since our 52nd episode was recorded, and though it was marred by a 4-month mid-season hiatus, season 2 of Invincible continues to show us that Mark and Debbie (and a little bit of Nolan!) steal every scene they're in while also tossing a ton of new plotlines and developments around the core story. The gang is unanimous in its praise of its cast of characters, fight scenes, and comic book adaptation, and we can't wait for season 3! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

It's another throwback today on the Couch, and we complete the trifecta of The Magic School Bus & VeggieTales with David McCall's Schoolhouse Rock!, a Saturday morning children cartoon's interstitial designed to provide educational content with the power of catchy songs. Our experiences with the show range from it being critical to Michael's childhood upbringing to Marcus nearly confusing it for Jack Black's live action School of Rock, but we can all agree that the songs are indeed catchy, and we can even see our younger selves really gleaning some valuable knowledge on grammar, American history, the laws of physics, and even the stock market! After the gang discusses our favorite songs and how effective the show was 50(!) years ago, Michael wraps up the episode with an absolute BANGER of a Trivia Corner, one that'll have you on the edge of your seat with every question on the board. Content warning: strong language.

Perhaps the single greatest animated film at the turn of the century, Chicken Run is legendary claymation studio Aardman's first feature-length film, and our previous discussions on Wallace and Gromit on this podcast should clue you in to just how awesome we think these folks across the pond are. The voice acting is superb (hi Mel Gibson!), the animation exceeds even our high standard, the classic British humor blends well with a boisterous American-coded character, and the story is charming while maintaining a more serious tone than A Close Shave or The Wrong Trousers - technically this is a WWII movie, in a way. Come join us as we reminisce on simpler times, and also test our combined chicken knowledge in another of Alex's patented biology Trivia Corners! Content warning: strong language.

Blue Eye Samurai is Netflix's latest blockbuster adult animated series, joining the likes of Arcane and Nimona (which we've already discussed on this podcast - check 'em!) as proof that extremely high quality animated television exists, and it's not just for kids. Mizu is an incredibly well-designed protagonist, with so much to unpack on her biracial background and the way she navigates her gender identity; there's a powerful supporting cast with characters like Akemi, Madame Kaji, Fowler, and animated George Takei; the animation and worldbuilding is impressively expansive; and season 1 concludes with definitely one of the endings of all time. Also: why is Iris convinced that Mikio f@#ked a horse? Come join us to find out! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

It's been a little while since we've had some Star Wars content on the Couch, but the gang is hungry for Filoni's latest Clone Wars-era project, The Bad Batch. It's four clone dads voiced by the same guy, and also Omega, as they learn to navigate the dark times in between the fall of the Republic and rise of the Empire, and while a lot of it is more of the same, we're graced with some pretty excellent television as the series finds its footing in season 2. Tune in as Marcus is so excited for season 3 that he can't stop himself from repeatedly spoiling it. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

It's a return to form for the gang, featuring Alex's unbridled dad energy, Michael's brain damage, Marcus's corporate depression, and Iris's in-depth analysis of the ramifications of this universe's makeup, and with Monsters, Inc. on the docket today, we have plenty of good things to say. Headlined by Billy Crystal and John Goodman as Mike and Sully, it's got an exceptionally lovable pre-vocal child protagonist, a humorously exaggerated corporate environment, and Steve Buscemi as the villain! Wow! Also, Michael constructs an entirely new physical model based around emotional energy. Content warning: strong language.

Best Seat on the Couch celebrates another milestone as we reach Episode 150, and like our 50th episode on Space Jam almost two and a half years ago, we're choosing another live action + animated mish-mash masterpiece, but this one is perhaps the most important of all! Who Framed Roger Rabbit, released in 1988, was an engineering and filmmaking marvel of its time, joining a classical LA Noire murder mystery film with every single cartoon you could think of - this film is still, to this day, the only film that's ever shown Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny on the screen at the same time, and that's awesome. Join us as we experience this movie, highlight our favorite moments and characters, and have a riveting conversation about pineapple on pizza. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

On this episode, the Gang gets biblical (again!) with a refresher on each member's religious (or non-religious) childhood upbringing as we discuss 1993 hit animated series VeggieTales, featuring Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber - certainly a stark contrast to The Prince of Egypt's Moses and Ramses from that discussion nearly a year ago. This show occupies a weird headspace: is it terrible, or is it actually really good? is it hilarious, or is it a complete dumpster fire? It's simultaneously super religious but also so child-oriented that it's not very religious. What even are "Christian morals?" Tune in to find the answers to all of these questions as well as answers to questions you didn't even know you had, thanks to a classic Trivia Corner from Alex's twisted mind. Content warning: strong language. What, you need spoilers for the bible?

The gang activates the Couch's time machine to go waaaayyy back, to a show that first aired before we were even born: the original 1994 run of The Magic School Bus. The theme song goes hard, the video game is iconic, and Ms. Frizzle belongs on the Mt. Rushmore of the Coolest Adults to Ever Grace Our Childhoods - to say we all have fond memories of the show understates just how important (and educational) it was to our preschool minds. We can also give this show its flowers for being responsible and scientifically sound, and it really is so much better for being genuine in the way it tries to get kids into all of these cool disciplines. Can we really put a spoiler on elementary school science? Content warning: strong language.

Y'all remember the original Puss in Boots spinoff from 2011? The CGI in that film has...not aged well. But over a decade later, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish has arrived to soft reboot the Shrekiverse and tell a more compelling story about the titular side character - well, compelling to most of us on the Couch, at least. The animation and visuals are leaps and bounds over anything else from this series before, the characters that surround Puss in Boots are genuine, deep, and entertaining presences, and Marcus believes the villain is one of the best of any animated movie he's ever seen. Come for the movie, stay for the hot takes! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Nestled in between juggernauts The Incredibles and Ratatouille, Cars is often regarded as being somewhat lesser than its fellow Disney/Pixar entries, which Marcus angrily argues is absolutely unreasonable and that anyone who subscribes to that is trash. The gang does make sure that Cars 2 receives whatever the opposite of flowers is, but the original Cars is a pretty solid movie! Strong voice acting, a cool premise and interesting animation, a genuine American™ theme, and some believable character growth give this movie all of the ingredients to make a top tier Pixar film. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Have you ever felt social anxiety? Have you ever wanted to join a band? Are you a Japanese teenage girl? If so, you'll love Bocchi the Rock! for many reasons, chief among them the honestly surrealist portrayal of main character Bocchi's internal monologues as she navigates high school and band life with extreme social anxiety. The animation feels almost Into the Spider-Verse levels of genre defying, putting a hilarious twist on a slice-of-life story about a group of girls trying to make it big in the indie rock band scene, but it's not all goofy all the time - it's respectful in its portrayal of social anxiety, knows how to navigate its humor, and has a pretty cool portrayal of the band's musical performances too. The gang highly recommends! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Did you know that the gang is ohana, and ohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind? Maybe Michael's childhood memories got left behind due to brain damage, but those probably weren't important anyway. Still, Lilo & Stitch is an excellent movie that everyone agrees is better than we remember, with particular praise for its portrayal of Lilo, her family issues and genuinely rocky relationship with Nani, Stitch's character development, and Jumba's accent. You can't help but cheer for practically everyone in this movie, and it's wonderful to see them achieve their happy ending! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

There was definitely something magical about reading about this series in development in March 2023 and learning that the entire original cast of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World had signed on to join a new anime series called Scott Pilgrim Takes Off coming to Netflix. The 2010 film is a fan favorite at the Couch, of course, but we were all pleasantly surprised with how much more this series developed the world of Scott Pilgrim; the Evil Exes become characters as opposed to video game bosses, Ramona learns how 2 relationship properly, and Scott - yes, all 3 of them - feels like a better person at the end of this series than at the end of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, and that's awesome. We all recommend you watch the movie first, though - it's a classic! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Happy New Year and welcome back to the Couch! This week we're talking about Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, a classic early-2000's Cartoon Network smash hit that's received 5 Annies and 7 Emmys - making it even more baffling that Marcus had never seen a single episode until this recording. Foster's has a couple of really excellent episodes in a sea of quality television, tackling the common topics like dealing with annoying siblings or the fear of moving away from friends with a cast of great characters (Wilt, Coco, Eduardo, Bloo, and best girl Frankie!) and some great punchline payoffs. And of course, no kids' show discussion on the Couch would be complete without deep discourse on the horrifying ramifications on this universe's treatment of sentient life! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

The holidays are upon us and that means Alex brings back his other best friends for another edition of Best Seat on the Couch - ONE PIECE edition! Katy, Lony, and Owen return to the couch as they dive headfirst into the Egghead arc and discuss big lore implications, hypothetical pirate-vs-pirate 1v1 results, and validated called shots. We even get some deep Katy lore with the story of how her dad got into ONE PIECE thanks to the Netflix live-action series, which came out last year and made a big splash in bringing the manga and anime to a larger audience. The episode ends with a discussion on a NEW ONE PIECE anime coming out late 2024, Fullmetal Alchemist style, and the gang's thoughts on what to expect, what's gonna be different, and whether it'll help or hurt the current series. Someday, maybe Michael, Iris, and Marcus will join in on the fun... Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.