Podcast – Maser Patrol

In this episode, Kevin, Josh, and Lux sit down to discuss Netflix’s 2023 adaptation of Yu Yu Hakusho. As three relatively hardcore fans of the source material, we get into a fair amount of minutia comparing the new incarnation to … Continue reading →

In this episode, Kevin is joined by Alex, Connor, and Jared as the gang look back on the decade since Ultraman Ginga debuted, recapping all of the mainline Ultraman shows and trying to decide exactly what “New Generation” means. This … Continue reading →

Jessica Tseang was due to interview the great Godzilla and Ultraman franchise actress Tomoko Ai at G-Fest this year, but wasn’t able to attend the convention due to a sudden emergency. Since Amanda was already on interpreter duty, Kevin stepped … Continue reading →

In this episode, Kevin sits down for an interview with the team behind Error 4444, an exciting new home video label that’s specializing in Asian genre film. We talk about the company’s origins, licensing philosophy, first few releases, and even … Continue reading →

On this episode, Kevin is joined by Alex (Control All Monsters, 13AM Games, Seismic Toys), Connor (Easter’s Kaiju Kompendium), and Mike (Vintage Henshin) to discuss the latest entry in the Ultraman franchise, Ultraman Trigger: New Generation Tiga. Does the show … Continue reading →

On this episode, Kevin is joined by artist John Bellotti Jr of Robo 7 to discuss recent developments of the convention scene from the Artist Alley perspective. Topics include what it was like to be on the ground floor for … Continue reading →

Grüß Gott! In this episode, I’m joined by Henning Strauß (not “Straub”!) to discuss the history of kaiju (and also of other tokusatsu, anime, and manga) in Germany, along with how the development of fandom there has in some ways … Continue reading →

After a long hiatus, it’s time for another episode of the Maser Patrol podcast. This time, we take a look at a show with a valuable life lesson: That’s right, this time around Josh and Kevin discuss the sweet Swan … Continue reading →

I was on Kaiju Transmissions last month for a post-Halloween show to talk about some of Ryuhei Kitamura’s early action/horror output, including: Down to Hell Versus Alive Aragami Longinus He’s a favorite director of mine, so it was great to … Continue reading →

Hi all, Kevin here. The blog has gone sadly neglected for the past few months, for which I apologize; the stressful current state of world events has certainly taken its toll. However, I have not been completely off the radar! … Continue reading →

While there hasn’t been a new Maser Patrol episode in a hot minute, Kevin (along with author John LeMay) had a chance to drop by the Kaiju Transmissions podcast this week to discuss Kinji Fukasaku’s 1980 disaster film Virus, AKA … Continue reading →

Looking for a last-minute Christmas present? Well, you’re in luck, because John LeMay has a varied bibliography on topics ranging from history, UFOlogy, horror films, cryptozoology, spaghetti westerns, and a whole smattering of kaiju/tokusatsu-related titles, with a special emphasis on … Continue reading →

On this episode of the podcast, Kevin, Justin, and Byrd sit down to discuss some of the exciting recent tokusatsu home video releases from Criterion, Mill Creek, Discotek, Section23, SRS, Shout Factory, Arrow, Kino Lorber, and Synapse. We also go … Continue reading →

On this episode of the podcast, Kevin’s in Japan, and with the help of local guide Amanda, we talk about all the neat pop-culturey stuff we got to see and do. Direct download Photos after the jump. Permanent attractions: Anata … Continue reading →

In this episode, Kevin, Andy, Josh, Justin, and Matt sit down to chat about Legendary’s new monster movie, co-produced with Toho, that hit theaters last month. The one with the British bad guy, environmental themes, an absentee dad, and Ken … Continue reading →

Late on posting this, but I was on a guest Kaiju Transmissions again last month; this time to talk about the under-discussed Toho superhero series Zone Fighter! Every Godzilla fan should check out that show for its unique brand of … Continue reading →

In this episode, Kevin, Benji, and Josh sit down for a spoiler-laden review of the long, long, long-awaited new Hollywood quasi-hit Alita: Battle Angel! We jump right into comparisons between the movie, OVA, and original manga, so if you haven’t … Continue reading →

Another guest spot on Kaiju Transmissions! This time I try to defend two very unpopular 1980s Koichi Kawakita special effects films from Toho, so it could be controversial! Direct download

The second part of our Gridman podcast episode gets into the main focus: reviewing the new series SSSS Gridman. Spoiler: we liked it. Also, spoilers for the rest of the show. Direct Download Show notes: They made a new suit … Continue reading →

In this episode, Kevin, Justin, Connor (earning our explicit tag), and Matt (of Kaiju Transmissions) sit down for a long round-table about the awesome recent anime series SSSS Gridman. We got carried away and went for a solid four hours, … Continue reading →

Here’s the other half to that Kaiju Transmissions guest spot, talking about End of Evangelion now! Direct download

Forgot to mirror this here before, but I was on Kaiju Transmissions again… sort of. This was actually the first time I was ever on the show, but they’ve had it in the bag for a while (hence the five … Continue reading →

In honor of Halloween, author John LeMay stops by the podcast to talk about the Wolf Guy werewolf franchise from Kazumasa Hirai. We discuss the novel, manga, Toho, Toei, and JC staff adaptations. It’s a howling good time. direct download Notes: … Continue reading →

Last month I showed up on Kaiju Transmissions for another guest spot, this time to talk about Godzilla the Series, which, as mentioned before, is just the best. Apologies for the delay in posting! Expect an actual Maser Patrol podcast shortly. Podcast Download … Continue reading →

Kaiju Transmissions just had their 100th episode! Not ones to do anything special for such a milestone, they instead decided to chat with me about the book and about obscure kaiju flicks in general. It’s cool for me to be … Continue reading →

Windows updates were the Zetton to my computer’s Ultraman this Sunday, so I didn’t have any of my slides for the Ultraman panel at Anime Central. Fortunately, the crowd was great, and we were able to improvise something audio-only, even … Continue reading →

Oh, wow! I was on the Kaiju Transmissions podcast again! Go listen to Byrd, Matt, and I chatting about kaiju video games. Find out what we think should get a movie adaptation next after Rampage! Download here

On my trip across the US, I stopped by Matt of Kaiju Transmissions‘ place, and we caught the new Pacific Rim: Uprising together. In lieu of an actual Maser Patrol podcast episode on the subject, I crashed their review, and … Continue reading →

On this episode, Kevin, Josh, Andy, and Justin completely sell out to a huge corporation as we discuss a handful of programs we’ve been following from the same behemoth, convention-defying content producer/distributor: the ever-popular Netflix. If you’re a Japanese media … Continue reading →

With the first of of Gou Tanabe’s HP Lovecraft manga adaptations, The Hound & Other Stories, fresh on US bookstore shelves, it seems like a good time to get a crash course on the impact of Lovecraft on Japanese genre fiction, … Continue reading →

With the first of of Gou Tanabe’s HP Lovecraft manga adaptations, The Hound & Other Stories, fresh on US bookstore shelves, it seems like a good time to get a crash course on the impact of Lovecraft on Japanese genre … Continue reading →

With the first of of Gou Tanabe’s HP Lovecraft manga adaptations, The Hound & Other Stories, fresh on US bookstore shelves, it seems like a good time to get a crash course on the impact of Lovecraft on Japanese genre … Continue reading →

With the first of of Gou Tanabe’s HP Lovecraft manga adaptations, The Hound & Other Stories, fresh on US bookstore shelves, it seems like a good time to get a crash course on the impact of Lovecraft on Japanese genre fiction, … Continue reading →

In this episode, Kevin and Benji have a chat about the wild genre filmography of the mad genius behind some iconic (yet under-represented stateside) Japanese fantasy flicks. If you read those A Space Godzilla translations (parts 1 & 2) and wondered … Continue reading →

After that extensive countdown earlier in the year, we got to go see the new King Kong movie, Kong: Skull Island. In this episode, Kevin, Josh, Andy and Justin talk for longer than the movie’s run time, and mostly on … Continue reading →

This episode is about goofy German movie posters, the ending of All Monsters Attack, rhinoceros sails, Charles Barkley doujinshi games, and the sexual dimorphism of Pokemon. Not that the likes of Kevin, Josh, Andy, and Justin could get distracted or off topic. But … Continue reading →

This weekend we recorded an epic 4-hour podcast to discuss the latest Godzilla flick, but then lost one of the audio tracks rendering the conversation incomprehensible. So, to tide everyone over, here’s a selection of choice (not-so-serious) moments from the … Continue reading →

With the next Godzilla flick being written by the most coveted screenwriting talent in the modern anime world, the Maser Patrol crew sat down this week to discuss Gen Urobuchi’s previous output…. along with interludes about Star Trek and Josh’s … Continue reading →

With the simultaneous home video re-release of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and the release of The Boy and the Beast, the Maser Patrol gang (Kevin, Josh, and Andy) sat down to discuss the work of director Mamoru Hosoda, and why he … Continue reading →

In this episode of the podcast, Kevin and Justin discuss the work of Japanese pop-culture artist Takashi Murakami, culminating in his 2013 feature film Jellyfish Eyes. The movie just got a release from Criterion, so fans of battle monsters, kaiju, … Continue reading →

In this episode of the podcast, Josh, Andy, Kevin & Amanda (sharing a lousy mic, apologies for that!) shoot the breeze about our favorite horror anime, since Halloween is right around the corner. Of course, there’s a lot of horror … Continue reading →

In this episode, our longest single recording so far: Kevin, Andy, and Alan shoot the breeze about the long-running Garo franchise, which turns 10 this year. We like this series a lot, so we talk in sort of broad strokes … Continue reading →

In this episode, Kevin, Andy, and Josh talk about the major prior works of Hideaki Anno, the director of the upcoming Toho Godzilla flick. He’s an eccentric weirdo, for sure, but he has also created some of the best animation of all … Continue reading →

In a not-particularly-structured episode, Andy, Josh, and Kevin shoot the breeze about what they’ve been watching lately… because according to Funimation, they should be watching, after all. If you wonder what we think about Parasyte the Maxim, Garo the Animation, … Continue reading →

Rounding out our 6-or-7-part Godzilla retrospective, Andy and Kevin chat for about two hours about the Millennium/Shinsei Godzilla film series (made between 1999-2004) then speculate wildly about the recently-announced 2016 movie. Apologies in advance for a generally poor memory of the … Continue reading →

After a long delay, we finally got around to recording the next installment in our Godzilla retrospective. And after another long delay, it was actually edited. Anyway, this time around, we take a fond look back at the Heisei Godzilla … Continue reading →

A sort of unusual episode here: Star Clipper in St. Louis runs a weekly seminar series in the summertime under the moniker Comics University. I was invited to give a presentation on the history of anime and manga, which, as you can … Continue reading →

As promised, here’s our four-person round-table review on Legendary Pictures’ new Godzilla. Short version: we liked it, but had some suggestions for improvements. Also it was sort of a Gamera movie. The rest of the Godzilla retrospective is coming soon, but … Continue reading →

For the second (maybe third) part of our Godzilla podcast retrospective, we look at Godzilla and Toho’s SF/fantasy/horror output in the 1970’s, or rather 1969 (All Monsters Attack) through 1979 (A Space Godzilla). This is a period that many Godzilla fans … Continue reading →

In honor of Legendary’s upcoming Godzilla movie, we marathoned the franchise. Now we’re doing a retrospective in (probably) four parts, starting with this overview of Toho Studios’ science fiction, fantasy, and horror special effects movies during the golden age of … Continue reading →

For this episode, Kevin and Josh chat about Kill La Kill, Samurai Flamenco (spoilers from 25:00-29:00), Space Dandy, Nobunagun, Noragami, and other stuff from the Winter 2013 TV season, mostly anime-based. Then we do the typical overview of the new … Continue reading →