Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Episode 3 Announcement

Hello everyone.  While we were (thankfully) able to get Episode 2 on schedule, outside commitments will prevent Burkion and I from producing the Five Point Podcast this week. We're shooting to have our Heat Guy J episode released sometime before the year is out.

However, just because we won't have a full podcast doesn't mean that you'll walk away empty handed.  If all goes well, we'll have a little Christmas gift posted for you.  Stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed.

Edit: Due to familial commitments tonight, I wasn't able to get my script done, much less my recording.  I'm shooting for a Boxing Day release.  Either way, you can definitely look forward to a new full podcast before the year is out.  

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Nanaka 6/17 Review

This time, Bobcat and Burkion review a cute anime based on a teenager who thinks she's six years old thanks to horrific brain damage. Does the concept work, or will you want to bludgeon yourself back to the first grade to forget it?

And a special thanks to Hika Yagami for giving us our first audience suggested review!




Five Point Podcast Episode 2: Nanaka 6/17 by fivepointpodcast Here are all of the places (that we found) where you can view it for free:

(This is the website of the current license holder, but you're still watching it through Hulu).


http://www.youtube.com/show?p=L7Grkkm34Pw&tracker=show_av The option of last resort; it's buggy, it likes to clip off the last minute of the episode and they put episode 9 at the end of the series inexplicably.

If you decide to buy it, please go through one of our Amazon.com ads; that way, we get a percentage of the sale, and it doesn't increase the price at all.

Finally, if you have any questions or comments, you can comment on the blog or e-mail us directly at fivepointpodcast@outlook.com.


Friday, December 16, 2011

Introductory Video

Are you confused about who we are and what we're about?  Then please check out this informative video.  If you've been keeping up with my blog posts, then you know all of this already; this is intended for people who stumble across the blip page directly without coming here first.  Why post it here then?  I'unno.  Maybe someone out there doesn't want to read, or maybe you just enjoy the dulcet sound of my voice.  If it's the latter, then... good for... you?

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Free Rice

This isn't Five Point related at all, but I (Bobcat, that is) decided that I'd post something that's sort of entertaining and also can help people.  After realizing that the ad I briefly posted on Wednesday night was a bust (it was a widget that would supposedly get ad money for the American Red Cross, but the link didn't work when I tried it), I remembered a little website I hadn't thought about for a while. 

Free Rice is a game that helps you build your vocabulary (or if you're already a smarty smart pants, show off) by finding the right synonym for each given word.  For every right answer, the site's sponsors donate 10 grains of rice to help alleviate world hunger.  Just ten minutes of play can feed several people. 

Here's the link!  Have fun!

http://freerice.com/#/english-vocabulary/2039

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Proposed Schedule

Hello, Bobcat here. I hope everyone's having a good holiday season.

It occurs to me that in the excitement of starting the blog and getting the various accounts set up, I've neglected to mention what our plans for the future are. While our original plan had been to review more than anime, the mix of what we've selected and what friends of the show have requested has been 100% made in Japan. Well... I'm sure all of them are available to us in dubbed form, which messes with the percents a bit... 70% made in Japan, at minimum. Whether we'll slip into being a full time anime podcast or branch out later will depend on what people want from us.

Whatever we wind up doing, our goal is to do our reviews on a weekly basis. I'm not sure whether we'll settle on Sunday or Monday for our release date. At the moment, our intent is to record on Saturdays, but with the holidays upon us, that will probably be disrupted... especially since two Saturdays from now is Christmas Eve, and the one after that is New Years Eve. If we can manage a recording on either of those days, I will eat my hat. And I have quite a selection of them at that. Whether this results in a delay of a few days in a double-post week, if we'll be able to record beforehand, or whether we'll just be outright delayed remains to be seen.

However, what I can post with confidence is the order of reviews. If everything goes well, we'll be through this by the start of February.

Episode 1: Baka and Test (Complete!)
Episode 2: Nanaka 6/17 (Requested by Hika Yagami)
Episode 3: Heat Guy J (Selected by Burkion)
Episode 4: Ponyo (Requested by Bree)
Episode 5: Hero Tales (Selected by Bobcat)

This is somewhat subject to change. As always, we take requests, and will gladly put them ahead of our own choices. So, say, we'll delay Hero Tales, but not Ponyo, since that was a request. If you have a request, please send that e-mail to darthbobcat@gmail.com, or put it in the comments below.

Good night and good luck.

Monday, December 12, 2011

Episode 2 Announcement

At the suggestion of my friend Hika Yagami, Burkion and I will be reviewing the anime Nanaka 6/17. Heat Guy J is still on the docket for later.

Just as a reminder, we do take suggestions. If you want us to look at your favorite show (or least favorite, if you hate us and want us to suffer for your amusement), e-mail us at darthbobcat@gmail.com.

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Baka and Test Review

WARNING: THIS REVIEW ISN'T AS POLISHED AS OUR LATER REVIEWS.  We've become much more sophisticated since then... for instance, I don't keep hitting the desk with my knee, making that weird mic sound every 10 seconds.  

In the last post, I said it might be a few weeks before we came out with the first episode of the Blog.  Well, Christmas came early this year, because the first episode is now posted and ready to go!

In the inaugural episode of our series, Bobcat and Burkion review the anime Baka and Test!  This is the tale of Yoshi, a young Japanese student at a school that's turned tests into a competitive video game!  Does it pass with flying colors, or does it need to see us after school?  You'd better take notes, there will be a short quiz afterwards!




EDIT: I'm aware of the strange repeated last word. I'm not sure where it came from in the video file; it wasn't there in any of the audio versions. I'll be more careful in the future.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

First Review Announcement

I'd like to announce that our first review will be of the first three episodes of the anime Baka and Test.  Why only the first three?  We decided that for any multi-part series, we'd review roughly a movie's worth of episodes, with the option to review the rest of it later if we felt that it warranted more attention. 

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

An Introduction

Hello, everyone out there in internet land.  My name is Bobcat.  While there is nothing here yet, I may as well explain what this show will be.

Like everyone and their mother on the internet, my friend Burkion and I are taking a stab at a review program.  Our format will be a podcast (a big surprise, given the title of this blog).  Now, what will we review?  Our targets will be varied and many; movies, tv shows, comic books, anime and manga, etc.   What ties this all together is our attitude in selecting media to review.  We will do our best to review things that we have no knowledge about prior to viewing them, so as to get as fresh an experience as we can.  What this probably means is that we'll mostly be reviewing fairly obscure titles. 


Now, does this mean we won't be reviewing any big names?  No, not at all.  This rule is very preliminary, and if we think it's too limiting, we'll expand our reach.  But to begin with, we're aiming for fresh experiences.


Once our targets are selected, we will each watch them on our own, then get together for the podcast with the following Five Point Review (hence the snazzy title, see?  It's all fitting together...)  This doesn't mean that we're reviewing everything on a five point scale; we won't be using a numerical rating at all.  Instead, there are five major items we will look at for any work of fiction we review.



1) First Impression: What did the work's reputation, DVD box and summary make us think?  What were we expecting going in?

2) Story: What is the work's premise?  Who is the main character (or characters) and what are they doing?  How effective is it?  What does or doesn't work?


3) Characters: What is the cast like?  Does the characterization work?  Are they compelling, funny, terrible, bland, etc? 


4) Presentation: If it's a comic book, how is the art?  If it's a movie, how are the direction, acting, music, special effects, fight choreography, etc?  If it's an animated program, what do we think of the animation, the voice acting, etc?  If it's a video game, is it fun, do the controls work, etc?


5) Final Thoughts: Taking a wider view, what do we think of the show?  Who do we think would like it?  Should you rush out and buy it, rent it, or wait for it to be available to stream on Netflix or a similar service? 


All of this is subject to change if we feel it's too restrictive.  However, that's our structure going forward.  If any potential viewers have any suggestions or requested reviews, please send them along to darthbobcat@gmail.com.  Thanks for stopping by, and here's hoping we have some real content soon!