Hey! Did cha miss us? Well not to worry, cuz’ we’re back with something special this time around. Normally for our Anime REvisited segment we would review anime titles that have been around for five or more years, but we’ve decided to do a special edition where we review a title that’s been released just recently – like this past Winter (2020-2021). If you’re familiar with Danmachi, then this anime title might give you a little taste of that. For our Anime REvisited special, we’ll be reviewing The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter.

Well, the introduction starts off with the narrator telling the story of various hidden dungeons all across the land. Many of which contain labyrinths, monsters, the usual when it comes to dungeon crawlers. It is then that we’re introduced to Noir Stardia; the son of a Baronet which happens to be on the bottom of the social hierarchy. In other words, Noir and his family are peasants in the eyes of nobles and other higher ranking individuals. It’s also the reason why he wasn’t able to secure a job at the library because of his status – talk about brutal. Later on he runs into his childhood friend Emma Brightness (which is actually a cool name for an anime girl) and tells her what happened; causing her to be shocked that he was turned down as she wanted to work with him at the library.

It was then Noir had another idea; become an adventurer (hero) in hopes of boosting his social ranking and becoming set for life. To do so he would require the help of the Great Sage; a skill that he gained that will tell him any and everything about life he wants to know, but gives him severe headaches as a result of said skill. In order to null this Noir was told by Emma that he would have to kiss her, and after finding a better spot away from onlookers, they did…passionately. Afterwards Noir went to the hidden dungeon and made it to the second floor where he found a door. On the other side of the door was a tall blue-haired woman bound by glowing black chains named Olivia. Noir explained the situation to Olivia and why he was in the dungeon to begin with, before she told him that he needed skills in order to pursue the quest that he was on.

After receiving her skills Olivia told Noir that his skills would cost him LP (Life Points) to use, so he checked to see how many he had; and that number was 550. Once he got the hang of his new skills Noir went to the Hero Academy to take the entrance exam, but due to his status as a Baronet, no one wanted to work with him – except Emma (and Lenore, but even she didn’t want to work with him due to his status so she suggested they split up in order to pass the exam). Noir went back to the dungeon and encountered a (Lv. 99) Death Reaper and found himself fighting it. He thought he could use his ‘Edit’ skill to remove its ‘Insta-Kill’ attack, but it would cost 4000 LP to use – which Noir doesn’t have.

Eventually he got a little creative and used his ‘Stone Bullet’ skill and managed to defeat the reaper and boost his level at the same time. By the end of the episode Noir and his team passed with flying colors thanks to a lie that Olivia told him about the power of the reaper. Despite the financial cost of entry, Noir was on his way to becoming an adventurer (Hero).

Much like Danmachi, the main character of this series (Noir) finds himself working to becoming an adventurer and finds himself going through a dungeon to do so. The concept of LP does give the series an action-RPG feel in real-time; much like Cautious Hero and Log Horizon. Even though it’s only the first episode Noir feels like an underdog in the eyes of others above him, but everyone knows that underdogs turn into top dogs after some hard work and dedication. As the series goes on we may see more of that coming from Noir.

That will do it for our first episode review on this special edition segment of Anime REvisited. Until next post, stay nerdy! 😉

What’s goin’ on guys! We know its been awhile since our last post (as we’ve been working on our upcoming episode for Nerdz of the Decade), but we’re back with a special anime review from our Anime REvisited segment! While working on new and nerdy content we watch a LOT of anime, and this title in particular stuck out at us almost the same way Danmachi did – in fact you might even get some ‘Danmachi‘ feels from this anime title. So starting next week we’ll be doing an Anime REvisited Special Review on the series The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter.

Right off the bat you already know it has something to do with a dungeon, as well as that RPG video game-like element that you might have seen in the first season of SAO and Log Horizon. Since this title still has that ‘New Car Smell’ we won’t spoil the details too much, but we will of course tell you what you’ll be in for in each episode; as well as its overall tone, plot, and character development. That’s all we’ve got for now, but stay tuned for our next Nerdz of the Decade podcast dropping this weekend; along with other awesome content! Until next post, stay nerdy! 😉

What’s good, guys n’ gals! Although this one is bittersweet we have reached our final review for our Anime REvisited pick; And You Thought There Is Never A Girl Online. When we started this series we kept our expectations to a minimum. This isn’t to say that we assumed that the series would be terrible in any way, but with the amount of anime that we watch that deal with the concept of MMO’s and net game culture, we wanted to reserve our judgment until after the last episode of the series.

For the final episode of this title; Rusian and the rest of Guild Alleycats joined forces with Nekohime’s guild to form the ultimate guild, as they stormed Fort Cantor in order to take it back from the previous guild that had it. Eventually they won but soon they had to defend it against Bats’ guild – who had returned to finish what they started before. Nekohime’s Elite Guard managed to take out most of Bats’ guild, until only the leader of the guild himself was left alive. Sadly 90% of Nekohime’s guild (including Nekohime herself) was defeated by Bats as he approached the throne room where Kyo stood tall. To her this was all about payback as Bats went to work and thought he had defeated her in one shot. Instead she used premium items to keep herself alive long enough for her fused guild to hold Fort Cantor for a week; thus causing Bats to lose.

With their mission accomplished (at least for now) Rusian and the rest of Guild Alleycats celebrated with Nekohime’s guild as they gather together and took a screen cap of their victory. Back in the real world it was time for the school festival as Ako and a few other girls completed their assignment as they were working on a maid café. Ako relapsed for a moment saying that she couldn’t handle the social stress that came with being a maid for the maid café, until Hideki reminded her not to run away from her problems like she usually does. This of course shows that she’s growing and socially maturing, and by the end of the episode (after the end credits) Hideki told Ako that she can have anything she wanted – in the game of course.

Normally she’d be head-over-heels upon hearing that, but what she really wanted to do is kiss him; in real life. Just as their lips were about to touch the other members of Guild Alleycats showed up. Hideki told everyone that Ako can have anything she wanted in the game; insisting that the game and real life were separate, but Ako was the one who wanted a REAL relationship with Hideki, and NOT the one in the game!

Although it’s considered to be an underrated title based on popularity alone, we actually had fun reviewing this series. The overall plot may not be a ‘mind-blower’ right away (considering that it’s focused on the affairs of net-game life and school life), but the concept of the plot was pretty much exactly what we thought it was going to be. Again; whenever we review a series for this segment, we never go into it with high expectations. Instead we review each episode and do a thorough analysis before coming to a final conclusion. One thing that we did like about this series was the growth factor. In the very first episode we see Ako having difficulty distinguishing reality and fantasy from one another, and by the end it’s like she finally figures it out and even gains real friends along the way.

School life can be cruel at times as well as awkward for the socially challenged, but at one point and time many of us were Ako; a social reject who loved nothing more than playing net-games and making online friends, while keeping an invisible wall around her to protect herself from ‘normies’. If you’re gonna jump into an anime title that deals with social anxiety and growth, net games, and real friends, then this title just might be right up your alley! After the first episode it seems like an intervention and a therapy session due to the fact that Ako is addicted to online gaming; which is a real thing in the United States and several other countries. The main character wants to help Ako tell the difference between the game and reality, while the other friends she meets help her with her academic issues to keep her from falling behind in school. The balance between school life and the game is pretty much even, and the fanservice is not overblown nor in your face. (But it’s there.)

Should the series get a second season we’d probably see the relationship between Ako and Hideki mature and one day lead to a real-life marriage down the road. So to wrap it up; this anime title is pretty much what you’d expect to be. There’s school life, dealing with social anxiety, net games, and social maturity. If you’re looking for a title that can give you the elements of what otaku deal with in real life, then you’re gonna wanna check this series out!

That will do it for Anime REvisited, but like we said before, there is more content to come! Until next post, stay nerdy my friends! 😉

Welcome back guys! It’s time for another episode review from our Anime REvisited pick that you know as; And You Thought There Is Never A Girl Online! One episode remains after this review as it’s down to the wire in L.A.

Rusian and the rest of Guild Alleycats meet up with the other guild known as Guild Vallenstein; the top-tier guild who happens to be the most powerful guild in the whole game! Between their maxed out stats and high-grade siege weapons, they pretty much treat Rusian and the rest of their guild like…noobs. While allied with them for the time being, the group makes their way to Fort Cantor in hopes of taking it over. The leader of the other guild known as Bats tells Ako and Seti to chase off the other guards in order for them to go in and take care of business. They do so much to the others dismay (most of which being Akane and Kyo), but despite their plan of attack not going the way they’d hoped, Bats told the guild to capture Fort Cantor. They did, but afterwards Bats and his guild dissolved their alliance as he returned to Fort Cantor and pretty much wasted Rusian and his guild. Talk about a dick move!

With that revelation Kyo and the others left Fort Cantor to strategize on how they were going to get back at Bats for what he did. Back in the real world Ako starts to show real growth in asking for help on her assignment for the school festival; via Maid Café thanks to Hideki. With one more week remaining until the start of the festival Rusian and the others ask Nekohime’s guild for help in taking down Bats and his guild. He of course also asks an old friend for help on this very thing as well. Near the end of the episode both guilds train for the upcoming siege in hopes of recapturing Fort Cantor while taking a picture to remember their adventure (Guild Alleycats of course).

Sorry this one’s a little short, but that will do it for our review for now. The final episode is next as well as our overall review on the whole series! Until next post, stay nerdy! 😉

It’s coming down to the wire as we bring you another episode review from our Anime REvisited pick; And You Thought There Is Never A Girl Online! Summer vacation may be over, but the real fun is just beginning! With that in mind let’s kick off the review!

With Summer vacation finally over Hideki and the others return to school just in time for the school festival. As far as school life goes; everything appears to be right where everyone left it, except Ako tried to skip school again in order to play Legendary Age…ugh! Once classes were over Hideki met up with Ako and the others to come up with a concept of what they’ll be presenting at the school festival. It was also at this time that a new update for L.A. had just dropped known as Siege Warfare; a weekly guild-vs-guild brawl where the winning guild takes over one of the forts held by the previous guild, should they defeat them. Kyo thought that the winner should be able to present that as their concept for the school festival, except with Guild Alleycats having only four members, the odds of them winning are kinda slim to none.

So to compensate for that Hideki and the others decided to do some ‘PvP’ training in order to get good at this type of combat. The results of their training were subpar, as Rusian stated that the guild was pretty much a rag-tag group with no chance of even coming close to winning a siege event. Despite that the guild decided to try their hand at an occupied fort held by a guild called the Cleaning Crew, but the results of that bout ended up with multiple party wipes. This would be the case until Nekohime’s guild came in and took out the other guild; allowing them to occupy the fort – for a short time. Near the end of the episode Kyo got two additional computers because if Hideki and the rest of the guild want to win, they would need more hands on deck. Lord and behold they got it in the form of another guild who happened to be top tier; and who Rusian is quite familiar with…

As far as we can tell you, the overall plot to this series pretty much deals with a mixed bag of things; nerdy romance, net gaming, and distinguishing the game world from reality. That’s all we’ve got for now, but there’s more to come on the blog! Until next time, stay nerdy my friends! 😉

Well guys, we’re back with another episode review from our Anime REvisited pick that you already know as; And You Thought There Is Never A Girl Online! This particular episode is pretty much a girl’s trip episode, so this review won’t be too long.

As the episode opens up Kyo, Ako, Akane, and Nanako are at Kyo’s mansion as Summer break finishes up with them having to work on their homework while at the mansion. One of Kyo’s maids gives the other girls a tour of her home before Nanako discovers a hidden room – which happens to be Kyo’s room (with multiple computer monitors). While the other girls continue their studies Ako tells them that she has to use the lil’ girl’s room, even though Ako and Akane don’t trust her any farther than they can throw her. Nanako (Seti) accompanies Ako to make sure she doesn’t take off as the two of them end up in the hallway. Ako being Ako (of course) wanders into a hidden room and discovers a treasure chest; however what was inside of it wasn’t treasure, but in fact a photo album of Kyo’s childhood – which caught the attention of Kyo’s maids.

After Ako’s shenanigans followed be a couple more from her at the dinner table, the girls head off to a private bath for the evening. From there the usual conversations take place; such as what type of girl Hideki likes and so on. This of course causes Ako to take it one step further and call Hideki (Rusian) via Face Time; which was NOT a good idea according to Kyo and Akane. After a game of phone tag Ako threw the phone to Seti as the ended the call – which never really happened cuz’ Hideki didn’t pick up.

Later that night Kyo and the others were in a bed made for four people as she was happy that the other three girls were the first guests to be over for a sleep over. Nanako asked Ako what her relationship is like with Rusian (Hideki) but after a little ‘explaining’ the other three were (for lack of a better word)…shocked…?! To Ako; if Rusian cheated on her in the game, it would be like cheating on her in real life. (How the hell does that make any sense?!)

By the end of the episode; all four girls end up rushing over to Rusian in order to ask for his advice on how to deal with the bomb Ako just dropped on them, about her and Rusian’s in-game marriage. That is how the episode ends…

So that will do it for this episode review, but as always there is much more to come! Until next post, stay nerdy! 😉

Long time no see guys! Welcome back to another episode review from our Anime REvisited pick that we’re pretty sure you know as; And You Thought There Is Never A Girl Online! If you’ve ever played an MMO, then you’re aware that this happens from time to time when it comes to browser-based games. For more info on that, let’s jump into the episode!

Picking up where the last episode left off, Hideki and the gang were at an L.A. special cross-promotional event at a hotel. Things seemed to be going well…that is until it was discovered that Hideki’s account got hacked, and the guy playing Rusian is not him – which Ako eventually discovers. Heartbroken that the hacked “took” Rusian away from her, Hideki jumped into Ako’s laptop to see what went down; it wasn’t pretty. Hookup trolls and other nasty excuses for human beings lurk all through online games and certain chat sites, and if you’re a part of the anime/gaming community, then you already know.

After inspection of the damage Hideki and the others devise a plan to help get Hideki’s character (and Ako’s Rusian) back; first Ms. Sato informed the staff and the admins about the situation, then Hideki consulted with an old friend while the others did the very same. This episode is pretty much a ‘payback’ thing; as Hideki and the others went through a whole lot just to get one guy – who he wanted to get hardcore nerd vengeance on for making Ako cry. For the first time throughout the series, Hideki genuinely cares for Ako and doesn’t want anything to happen to her on or offline.

Even though she’s still having trouble telling the difference between the game and reality, there is some growth coming from her end. By the end of the episode Hideki finally got vengeance on the hacker as he was banished from L.A. and charged for his crimes; thus making an example out of him should anyone else try the same thing. Rusian was restored by the Game Master Nyack, and remarried Ako after finding the original in-game wedding ring. So that’s pretty much the episode in a nutshell.

In-game hacks happen in MMOs and other browser-based games more often than you think which is why you gotta be extra careful and make sure you log off when using public computers. Having a private VPN can also help in these situations cuz’ getting your account hacked is NO fun! So that will complete our anime review for now, but there’s more reviews and content to come on the blog! Until next post, stay nerdy and safe online! 😉

We have returned with yet another anime episode review from our Anime REvisited pick; And You Thought There Is Never A Girl Online! When it comes to rom-com anime there’s always the infamous “Beach Episode”, so let’s suit up and Jump in!

Now that school is over, Hideki and the others are on their way to the net game’s version of summer camp; however for 24 hours none of the club members are allowed anywhere near a laptop or a computer as part of a special curbing exercise from net gaming. This was all a part of Kyo’s plan to help Ako realize that real life can be just as fun as net game life, and that she needs to have a chance to enjoy real-life experiences like a regular teenage girl – a normie girl. With this episode being a beach episode, be prepared to expect the following if you watch it; swimsuits (one-piece and two-piece) with a sprinkle of fanservice, the legendary Konami Cheat Code as a reference, and another chance of Hideki asking Ako to be his girlfriend…which backfires again.

After the 24-hour net game ban was lifted, Hideki and the rest of the club members made their way to a hotel that’s doing a cross-promotional event. Hotel guests can log in at the computer room in the lobby and get special bonuses in the game, by making purchases on real-life items. Hideki logged in at first but it looks like his password didn’t take, so he tried it again and it worked. Near the end of the episode while everyone else went to their rooms (in the game we assume) Rusian and Ako stood out in the hallway; as she asked him if he wanted to come into her room for…couples’ things. As they both sat on the bed something strange happened; Rusian disappeared for a moment, then reappeared after that. Any gamer or net gamer out there has had this happen to them at least once in their life, and Hideki is about to find out the hard way…

Yeah, this review is kinda short, but other than it being mostly a beach episode followed by another rejection of real-life love, there’s not a whole lot that happens here. On that note that will do it for this episode review, and as always until our next post, stay nerdy my friends! 😉

Greetings nerds n’ nerdettes! We have returned once again to bring you another episode review of our Anime REvisited pick that you already know by now; as And You Thought There Is Never A Girl Online! So without further delay, let’s go get it!

Before the episode starts we find Rusian (Hideki) telling the story of what happened after he was rejected by Nekohime via marriage proposal. While talking with one of his other friends in the game, Rusian discovered that his friend had his proposal rejected by the love of his life as well. Somehow it led up to him telling Rusian why Nekohime rejected him in the first place – as if you rewind back to the first episode the answer is pretty obvious.

Once the school day was over, Hideki and the others met up at the net game club to do some more grinding in L.A. along with Seti (a.k.a. Hanako in real-life). After helping her to complete the side quest Seti gained the Summoner skill; and summoned a small little dog that looked like hers at home. While at the tavern where they usually meet up Kyo mentions that final exams are coming up and that now would be a good time to study for them. Sooo…with that being the case, the class prez decided to put the net gaming club on hiatus until exam week is over. While walking home alongside Ako and talking about studying for the exams, Ako suddenly has the look of a teenager who totaled his/her parents’ car. We’re not ones to judge (cuz’ we’ve been in this situation ourselves), but when 90% of your priorities revolve around MMOs and video games, it’s time to get some help.

In Ako’s case; Rusian and the others helped her study for the finals while inside the game. Once the finals were over, Kyo announced that the net game club will be having a special camp where they’ll be focusing on their physical health while moderating their net gameplay. By the end of the episode (and after talking with Kyo and Akane) Hideki decided that it was time for him to declare his love for Ako; and ask her to be his girlfriend. Well…it backfired hard. During a post credits scene, Ako talked to Akane about why she told Hideki that she said “no” on being his girlfriend; that since she was already his “wife” she thought being a girlfriend in her mind was a demotion, or even that they might get divorced. It’s safe to say that Ako is in love with and married to Hideki’s character in the game and not him in real life; and THAT’S what he’s heartbroken about! Ouch!

Well guys, that will do it for this anime episode review. No worries though; cuz’ there’s more content on the way! Until next post, stay nerdy! 😉

Hiyo! Guess what? We’re back with another episode review from our Anime REvisited pick; And You Thought There Is Never A Girl Online! I guess what happens now is the review itself, so let’s get to it!

Back in L.A. Ako is unsure just how faithful Rusian is to her, or how much he truly cares for her. This led to her wanting to play a different game at the gaming club at school due to Seti being close with Rusian. That game ended up being a first-person shooter crawling with ‘normies’; the very thing Ako hates. Upon playing the game she was actually really good at it, as she took down a lot of other players who were probably veterans. Sometime later Akane’s friend asked Hideki why she wasn’t able to find him in the game, as it was suddenly revealed that she was Seti in the game; tarnishing Akane’s reputation of being popular, and causing Ako to dash off in shock.

A little bit later after school Hideki and the others met at the gaming club, but Ako was nowhere to be seen. In fact no one in the club was able to get in touch with her because she wouldn’t answer her own phone. If no one can reach her in the real world, there was only one other option – jump into L.A. and try and talk to Ako there. The one to do so was Rusian, but Ako stated that she’s “quitting” real life and would rather play Legendary Age for the rest of her life; doing away with school and anything else that reminds her of the real world. Ako also states that she’ll max out her level so that she’ll be reincarnated and stay in L.A. for good, but Rusian doesn’t want that for her. She disappears before Rusian can stop her; leaving Hideki frustrated, and thinking that the net game club that was supposed to help Ako separate between fantasy and reality backfired.

The situation looked bleak but in fact Ms. Saito stated that Ako only cut herself off from the world, and not her friends. Hideki knew that the only person who could get through to Ako was him, so he made a trip to her house. After chatting with her mom about Ako quitting school and gaming for the rest of her life, she gave Hideki the keys to her daughter’s room. (If her dad was around this wouldn’t be happening, but it’s anime after all.) Hideki heads to Ako’s room and tells her that he wants to talk to her, but he ends up walking in on her changing (or at the very least getting naked). He slams the door shut and asks her to “PUT SOME CLOTHES ON!!” and after she says it’s safe to come in…she’s still naked. It’s more funny if you watch the scene then us tell it to you.

Inside Ako’s room Hideki tells her that he’s going to drop out of school and play L.A. with her since that’s what she wants to do. Ako didn’t like the idea because if Hideki dropped out, then the others would miss him. Hideki then stated that Ako would be doing the very same; to which she agreed. To Ako; real life is rather tough, and it was hard for her to make friends because all she wanted to do was play net games. Rusian (Hideki) was the same way, but he told Ako and if she tried just a little bit to accept the real world into her life, he would be right there by her side like a real husband to his wife. By the end of the episode it looks like Ako has some newfound confidence for the real world, thanks to Akane’s friend (Seti) telling the other girls how awesome her ‘boyfriend’ is.

Now that we’re close to the halfway mark of the series it looks like Ako is experiencing what it’s like to have real friends that love and care about her. This one’s kind of a touching episode to an extent, as Ako appears to be having a real breakthrough – in her own way. On that note that will do it for this episode review, but if you know us by now (and we’re pretty sure you do), we’ll be back with more awesome content for the blog!

Until next post, stay nerdy! 😉