Hey guys. It took awhile, but for this recap post we finally got ourselves our second guest for the podcast! We wanna give a huge shout-out to Shay Taree; one of our first Anime and Manga Youtuber/Content Creator guests for Nerdz of the Decade, for stopping by and chatting with us about everything nerdy. You can see the full interview down below, as well as a Studios Extras episode if you happen to like Danmachi. Until next post, stay safe and stay nerdy! 😉
Month: February 2022
Let’s Talk About It: The Visual Beauty Of Anime Openings!
Anime. What more can be said about it that hasn’t already been said before. It went from being an underground niche medium (and still is in some parts) to a mainstream stay that has seen the light of Hollywood and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Everyone has their favorite titles, genres, waifus, husbandos, best boys and best girls, but if there’s one thing that anime fans love more that anime itself…its anime openings.
What is it about these ‘openings’ that draw in crowds of otaku from all around the nation and even overseas? From its panning cameras to its vivid and vibrant colors anime openings have always given fans a taste of what the atmospheric mood of the show that they’re watching, will be about.
If there’s one thing we’ve learned over the many, MANY years of watching anime, its that the music to the opening of an anime title is the first thing that jumps out at us. If the opening gives us a visual of what the anime series is going to be about, then the music will give us what type of emotion that show will carry along with it. If we had to give an example right now, the best one that everyone’s familiar with is Soul Eater. As soon as you hear the first kick drum you guys lose it; not because its one of the most recognized opening anime songs in the anime community, but also the fact that anybody that is a fan of Soul Eater (or knows someone who is) is already familiar with the opening sequence. Hell, we have T.M. Revolution as one of our top tracks on our Spotify playlist.
When it comes to anime openings it makes fans feel a special type of way; most of the time they’ll sing along to the song or even just do a crazy dance because the rush of endorphins just hits you. The music as we’ve said before is the emotional piece of the opening; which lets the viewer know what the mood and the feeling of the show will be about, while the opening sequence introduces you to the cast of characters that interact with one another, and give you a glimpse of what the story of the series will be about – depending on the genre. Supernatural Fantasy Harem titles like High School DxD will have music and visuals that make you feel a sense of action, excitement, danger, and yes…boobies. High School Rom-Coms and Slice-of-Life Comedy anime openings give you more of a silly, zany, entertaining mood with its music and opening sequences; while psychological thrillers and horror anime openings give you more of a chilling, uneasy, and anxiety-induced mood.
Anime openings are always associated with the overall mood of the anime title itself. There are various alternative versions that change from season to season to reflect the mood of the show during that season; like when the second opening to a funny rom-com title becomes more series and drama-filled during its second season (or half). For some fans the opening may actually be the best part of the anime series even though the rest of it onwards may be, well…trash. (We’re not judging you.) At the end of the day; we love anime openings because they make us feel a sense of excitement and joy when watching the showcase of vivid colors, high quality sequences, and impeccable attention to detail. In fact, there are some anime-inspired shows that have taken a page out of the anime opening playbook to pay homage to anime openings as a whole. To put it simply; there is something visually beautiful about anime openings, and to end this post, here’s one opening that we all know and love! 😉
D&A Studios Recap (02/22/2022)!
Hey gang! So we haven’t posted or produced any new episodes of our podcast this week because we’re taking a break due to burnout, but we do have a couple of D&A Studios Extras episodes for your viewing pleasure. We shot these a couple of months ago and had them stockpiled just in case there’s a week that we might need to take off – this being one of those instances. There will be new podcast episodes and content coming at the end of the month (or starting in March), so until next post, stay nerdy! 😉
It’s Been One Of Those Weeks…
As the title says; it’s been one of ‘those’ weeks. If you guys haven’t gotten the chance to check out our Instagram post last Friday, we’ve been taking a bit of a break in uploading new podcast episodes due to content creator overload (a.k.a. Burnout). If there’s one thing we’ve learned, its that the Youtube algorithm of today is NOT the same as it was ten years ago. Anybody that’s a Youtuber can attest to this; as we rookies of the game found out first hand. Despite this we’re not ones to throw in the towel so hastily, it just means we’ll be changing up our strategy in how we create our content while making sure we don’t burn ourselves out in the process.
There will still be content uploaded every Wednesday and Friday, but we’ll be splitting our workload between the two days so that will give us more time to create high quality content. (Although it’s not like we haven’t been doing that already.) So if you haven’t heard from us in about a week, its just that; we’ve been taking a break from posting new content on our Youtube channel to clear our thoughts so we’ll have fresh new ideas when we return. We can tell you that we’ve got a few new guests that will be on the podcast as well as brand new D&A Studios Extras content coming in the beginning of March.
We thank all of our friends and fans that have stuck by us even before we became an official blog, as well as all of the awesome voice actors we’ve met along the way. There will be a Studios Recap post coming later tomorrow featuring some Studios Extras content that we shot several months ago.
Until next post, stay safe and take care of yourself. 🙂
Let’s Talk About It: The Unpopular Opinion(s) of Anime!
Remember when you were a kid and you watched one of your favorite Saturday Morning Cartoons, and then Monday morning you’d talk about said cartoon with your friends at school? If the answer to that question is ‘yes’ then you’re one step closer to what we’re talking about on this post. That one thing we’re talking about…is opinions. Everybody has them, everybody is entitled to them, and everybody isn’t afraid to voice them.
When it comes to opinions, they’re always unpopular. They can be as simple as pineapple on pizza, or as confusing as who’s the best Spiderman (*cough* Tom Holland). The most common places to find them would be from the fans of the sports and entertainment industry; ESPECIALLY the anime and gaming industry! Before social media invaded the internet anime fans only knew about what new shows were coming by television advertisements or Toonami (cuz’ we’re products of the 90’s and that’s how we found anime). Back then we just enjoyed it; and wasn’t even focused on character or plot development, or why Team Rocket wanted to capture Pikachu so badly, or even how Sailor Moon was the pinnacle of the Magical Girl genre of anime; as it opened the door for so many other titles that came in afterwards.
To us; anime was fun, and we had fun watching it. Sure, we got bulled for watching it and gushing about it every single time, but during those days it was all we had growing up. Jump ahead to the 2000’s and now we’re introduced to the era of social media (i.e. MySpace). Now we’re able to take our love for anime to our online chat rooms which helped create small little communities. At this point you’re probably asking where do these ‘unpopular opinions’ you’re talking about come in? Hang in there, cuz’ it wasn’t until 2010 that everything changed.
When anime started getting mainstream attention during the start of the next decade, that’s when we knew there was a shift coming. Now that social media sites like Twitter and Facebook gave a platform to people to voice their opinions, people now have a platform to voice their opinions. Youtube gave rise to aspiring content creators to share their content with the world, of course they all brought their opinions along for the ride. Anime has become so subjective these days; now instead of enjoying titles like Dragon Ball Z, Gundam Wing, Pokemon, Cowboy Bebop or Sailor Moon just because they were fun to watch, we find ourselves on the receiving end of heated debates like how Vegeta is actually stronger than Goku, and why Gen Z anime fans like Boruto over Naruto. (Don’t ask us why.)
We’re not saying that you shouldn’t have an opinion, but at the same time it feels like anime fans have overanalyzed anime to the point where it has to be either good, or bad. Take the first season of SAO for example; while the creator may not have had any experience in what MMORPGs are or how they function (cuz’ yeah, the series DID have its flaws, and we saw how bad it was getting bashed online), to some fans it was still entertaining to watch. There are even opinions out there that state if you haven’t seen the ‘Big 3’ or ‘Big 4’ (if you count Sailor Moon) that you’re not a ‘real fan’; and that’s where things get toxic and ugly.
That’s probably what we’re forgetting; that anime’s original purpose was to entertain us. It was something different from what we were used to watching, and it had such compelling and complex stories that were beyond anything our minds could fathom. When it comes to anime reviewers (including ourselves), they love breaking things down and seeing how things work; from the story to the characters and everything in between. When we try to fit anime titles into one of two categories, good or bad, or tier lists (and we’re all guilty of that), it takes the fun our of enjoying what it was trying to do in the first place – entertain you.
At the end of the day its about enjoying the shows you like. You like AoT (Attack on Titan)? go for it! You think Rias Gremory is best girl? Have at it! You think Demon Slayer is the best show ever made? Cool! No title out there is without its flaws, but if you love your favorite anime (flaws and all) then it has value to you regardless of what other people’s opinion of it is. You never want to base or shape your opinion off of someone else’s opinion (even if you admire them), because when their opinion matters more than your own opinion; it makes you forfeit the entitlement of your OWN opinion.
No matter how you slice it; anime fans will always have an opinion about anime – and there’s nothing wrong with that. Unpopular opinions only become problematic when boundaries are crossed (especially when it comes to voice actors), and there have been several moments where that’s happened (the Darling in the FRANXX Ichigo situation comes to mind). When it’s all said and done; if you’re getting the entertainment value from the anime titles that you’re watching, then that’s all that really matters. You’re free to acknowledge and accept other people’s opinions of shows that you like, but don’t let their opinions shape your opinions. On that note that will do it for this post.
Until next time, stay nerdy! 😉
D&A Anime Blog: VIZ Media Spotlight! (2/8/2022)
What’s up guys! Last month we made a teaser post that we were going to be bringing in a new segment for the month of February known as Viz Media Spotlight; where we highlight all of the new and current anime and manga titles Viz has to offer. When it comes to anime and manga, we do our best to keep up with all of the current trends that are happening among the industry as well as in the community. So for this Viz Media Spotlight we’ll be doing some overviews of series and manga titles that are currently available for streaming and reading, and maybe a trailer or two!
Bleach: The Thousand-Year Blood War
Every Bleach fan (including us) has been wondering if the series was going to continue after the battle between Ichigo and Aizen. Well, after a 9-year wait we’ve finally got an answer; in the form of a brand new arc entitled The Thousand-Year Blood War. We have no idea what’s gonna go down in this arc, but if you wanna know why old school Bleach fans (and by that we mean Millennial fans) are so excited over this new story, just watch the trailer for yourself! 😉
Tower Of God: The Complete Series
Although we watch a lot of anime, there are some titles that stand out among the crowd in terms of plot and character development. This title being one of them; recommended by D&A’s Aaron M. Goldman, Tower Of God is a series that you definitely wanna check out! It tells the story of the main character named Twenty-Fifth Bam (as in ’25th Bam’, don’t ask cuz’ we don’t know either) as he and his friend Rachael have been trapped beneath a vast and mysterious tower. Suddenly Rachael decides to enter the tower; which devastates Bam, and leads him on a mission to go into the tower himself to find her and get her back with the help of some allies he meets along the way. The manga is also available to so be sure to watch and read both if you’re a fan of this series (or is interested in becoming one).
This Viz Media Spotlight is just a small taste of what we’re trying to make this segment out to be; although this one’s just a temporary one for the month, we’ll be working and researching hard to bring you updates on what anime and manga you can find on Viz Media’s website. (As we’re just highlighting new trailers and also what our recommendations are based on seeing the titles for ourselves, but we WON’T be spoiling any of the them.)
That will do it for this post, and as always we thank you guys from the bottom of our hearts for all of the love and support that you’ve given us for the blog; and D&A Studios. Until next post, stay nerdy! 😉
D&A Studios Recap! (2/7/2022)
Yo, anime fam! It’s Monday again, and for most of us its just another manic Monday. As for us at D&A, its high time for another D&A Studios recap of what you’ve missed last week! We’ve shot another episode of our Youtube podcast Nerdz of the Decade; our 21st episode to be exact. On that one we talk about why most anime fans drop certain shows after the first handful of episodes. We’ve also got our first D&A Studios Extras episode on the Top 10 Zones from the classic Sonic the Hedgehog games. If you don’t wanna miss a moment of the action be sure to like and subscribe to our Youtube page. Until next post, stay nerdy my friends! 😉
A Founder’s Thoughts with D.J. Lewis (2/1/2022)
The first month of 2022 is officially in the history books as we enter into February; with visions on our boards, and seeking just a little more compassion for others who are going through a lot. What else can you even say about how the last two years have been for America; from the height of the pandemic to vaccines being politicized, to getting others to understand why Black Lives Matter. It’s been a roller-coaster ride for a lot of us and in the mist of it all, many have decided that this year would be the year that they take that road into becoming better people. Which brings me to this question: how hard is it to be nice?
Although I keep hearing the phrase ‘Nice guys finish last!’ it sounds like something that men with little to no social etiquette; who happen to be sexist towards woman, would say. Also on that same token, I’ve even heard the phrase ‘Men start wars, women finish them!’. Its moments like this where I wish I was a kid in the 90’s again; where the only thing I had to worry about was making sure I got straight A’s in my class and did all my chores so I’d get a raise in my allowance. Sure, America did have issues but in a world where there was no social media, things seemed a little saner.
These days we’re constantly bombarded with information from social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook, and most of the time, we find ourselves being drawn to the negative aspects of the platform – like ‘fat-shaming’ and hate speech. Yes, others counter that with positive things like break-dancing cat videos and that’s always a breath of fresh air, but sometimes I wonder…would we as a society be better off if we didn’t have social media? What would our lives be like if we didn’t have a platform that gave cyberbullies, trolls, bigots, and other bastards an outlet to spread their venom, and cause others who they deem weak all kinds of mental, emotional, and psychological damage…? As an Afro-American male living in the U.S. and everything that has transpired since George Floyd’s murder, that’s a question that I ask myself everyday. Not just that question, but also…why would you feel threatened by my existence?
It never made any sense to me why people feel the need to be racist, sexist, hateful, or just plain nasty. Most of the time people are like that because their parents are like that, and other times they feel so wounded by the world that they want others to feel just as miserable as they do. Hopefully the next generation will do much better in this department at being nice and more accepting than past generations before them, and that we can one day live in a world were we celebrate acceptance and diversity as what makes us unique; not what makes us different. (Which I’m already noticing.)
I’ll end this post with this; take time out of your day to brighten someone else’s.
Until next post, later.
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