You are listening to The After Hours Arc, your
new anime podcast. My name is Antai, I'll be
your host, and welcome to a different type of
episode. I am not necessarily breaking down series,
more or less giving some brief takes on it. I
really just felt bad that my Jujutsu Kaisen Season
3 recap for episode eight was so short. I think
it was like 17 minutes. So I figured I would
give something else to add to this week. So this
episode is going to be all about Shonen. I think
I have four very different titles. So that's
fun. And, you know, again, usually when I review
a series, I do them one at a time. Chances are
I'm not going to go super deep into the characters
and their designs and the multiple plots and
arcs. I'm pretty much just going to get to the
nitty gritty and what I liked about it and what
I didn't like. So today I do want to talk about
Hunter x Hunter, Togen Anki, Mashill, Magic,
and Muscle, and of course, Gachi Akuda. You know,
before we start, I will be saving any housekeeping
that I have for the end of this episode. So,
you know, that includes what I'm watching and
what I'm working on for this podcast. So if you
care to find out more, then stay for the end.
And if not, we're just going to jump right into
it. So let's start with Hunter Hunter. Hunter
x Hunter is just one of those classics. And this
is an anime where I absolutely hate the main
character, Gon. A lot of the animes that I enjoy,
I don't usually like the main cast. It's always
the side characters or, you know, like with Demon
Slayer, it was the Hashira arc and, you know,
stuff like that. hunter hunter definitely did
that for me uh two of the four people in his
group i'm a fan of so basically this show revolves
around a power system that's called nen and i
mean it gets really technical and honestly they
lost me when they started creating like sub genres
of nen There was like 10 different types under
the same one. It was really complicated. I don't
think it needed to be that intense. But basically,
Nen is interesting because, you know, in a sense,
you could be weaker. and still absolutely destroy
someone stronger than you if your ability is
smarter. So, you know, I mean, I think that could
change everything. So I really did enjoy the
concept of Nen. Again, they just overcomplicated
it. But getting into some of the characters,
because again, I am not going to deep dive and
give you their whole backstories, but, you know,
the main character is Gon, and again, he is my
least favorite. And, you know, the whole reason
that he is going to become a hunter is to find
his deadbeat dad. And, you know, this is a spoiler,
but like you don't find out until the end of
the season, really like the series. And I just
couldn't believe how much of a man child his
dad was. He literally just skirted his responsibilities.
But moving on from the deadbeat, the journey
that we see going on. You know, in the beginning
of the series, he is very bright and optimistic
during any trial and tribulation he faces, whether
it is the Hunter exam or the New York City or,
you know, Green Island. I mean, literally every
arc that he's been through, he has still remained
a cheery and upbeat character. Till the end.
And, you know, as the series goes on and the
arcs get darker, as much as he still has this
personality, I think that they did a really good
job in making Gon's morality seem a bit obsessive
rather than heroic, you know? We also have Killua,
who becomes his best friend. And I love Killua.
I love the voice actor. She does darkness in
Konosuba. And I forget who she was in Kakigure,
but she's one of the student council members.
And I love her voice so much. I think it's so
funny because I watched this whole series without
even realizing. It wasn't until I watched Konosuba
that it clicked for me. that this character is
this person. And then when I Googled that person,
I found out that they were also in Kakegure.
So moving on from the voice actor, though, because
I do get a little hung up on them. Killua becomes
his best friend, and they meet during the hunter
exam arc, the beginning of the show. And, you
know, his family is a long line of assassins.
They are the Zoldycks. You know, Kilo's backstory
is very intense and dark and it is... Oh my god,
I could have just watched a whole show on him.
But I think his entire arc is about learning
how to exist outside of expectation. You know,
he is constantly at war with himself and... You
really can't help but feel bad for the dude.
Especially when you realized that he has been
conditioned this way. He has been trained to
be this emotionless, blank, killing machine.
This tool, you know? So, there is so much room
for his growth within the series. And, you know,
Killua is my main character. But, you know, moving
on from him, we also have Leorio, who I will
not be talking about. He's fucking useless. I
cannot stand him. He is so not worth talking
about. But we will talk about Kurapika, who is
the fourth person in his like group and crew.
And Kurapika was very annoying to me in the beginning,
but again, has another one of those really intense,
dark backstories. You know, Kurapika comes from
a small village that was massacred. And it was
massacred because the people, and I won't get
into it yet, that were after their eyes. These
people, their eyes turn a scarlet hue, which
is like one of the most beautiful colors in the
world. And it's a sought after exotic item. And
we'll be getting into the Phantom Troop a little
bit. But the Phantom Troop are the ones that
essentially massacred Kurapika's village when
he was out to town. So Kurapika is set on, like,
revenge, you know, and his comeuppance and closure.
So, you know, Kurapika has a lot of drive with
his character. And again, with his backstory,
it's all tied in so well that it just, it works
so good. Same thing with Killua. That's probably
why I am not the biggest fan of Gon, because
his backstory is very light. You know, again,
we find bits and pieces of it, but when we get
to the end resolve and we, you know, meet his
dad, it's just, it was a huge letdown for me.
It really solidified my hatred for this character,
even though it's not necessarily his fault. But,
you know, Karapika, again, is the whole reason
that we get the Phantom Troop. And the Phantom
Troop arc is literally what made me fall in love
with this series. They are completely badass.
And they give off a really twisted family vibe.
But, you know, the Phantom Troop arc really brings
a dark, heavy tone to an already like darkening
series. Because again, you know, as it continued,
it just got more and more intense. So I'm probably
not going to get into all of the Phantom Troop
members. yet i am like i said going to most likely
do a deep dive on this but i didn't care too
much for the greed island arc and i don't really
enjoy shows about cards and that's pretty much
what it was it was like a trading card game it
was really a testing facility like you know we
find out that greed island isn't actually inside
of a game like we thought but It just felt like
a filler arc. I wasn't here for it. But the Chimera
Ant arc, as much as I felt like it went on a
bit long, it was really intense. And I found
that very enjoyable to watch. You know, as a
whole, it doesn't really do it for me. And again,
I'm probably going to deep dive this one at some
point. That way I can get into all of the Phantom
Troop members. There's just so much to get into
with that one. And I don't feel like doing that
on this. So moving on to Mashal, Magic, and Muscle.
This one had me laughing so hard. When I first
watched it, I had no idea that it was going to
be so funny. I kept skipping by it because I
didn't think the animation looked like interesting.
It's basically a Harry Potter anime spoof is
how I take it. It's so funny. The basic gist
of the series is the main character, Mash, he
is born into a magical world and he has zero
magic. So that's really bad if people find out,
you know, I guess he could be like killed. Like
they literally exterminate. the people who do
not possess magic. So this dude lives in the
woods. His adopted father found him as a baby.
And you know they all have magic because they
have a specific mark on their face. They have
a single line or a double line or sometimes triple
line. Well, Mash has none. So, you know, this
man takes him in and, you know, since he doesn't
have magic, what he does instead... is he just
pumps iron. And it's just so funny. I think I
like the most, you know, about his character
is he's basically a walking punchline. So he
has deadpan delivery. He has no emotional speeches.
He's not overthinking. He's just cream puff daydreaming.
And I love when him and all the guys are baking
and they have their little aprons and their little
chef hats on. It's a really funny show. And you
know, I watch a lot of shows that are very heavy
and very much full of trauma. But this one, it's
kind of like a breath of fresh air. And, you
know, I know it's ridiculous, but like underneath
all the comedy, there is actually, I think, a
message behind it. And like, basically, I think
it's saying like strength doesn't define your
worth. Your character does. And, you know, that's
probably as deep as the show goes. And that's
probably pushing it. I'm not going to lie. But,
you know, there's no insane plots. You know,
it is very simple, but again, it is so easy to
digest. And, you know, I didn't find it emotional
where a lot of the shounens I've gotten into,
they have a little bit of emotional depth to
them. You know, this one, it just feels like
a feel good anime to watch. You know, it breaks
up my cycle. I 10 out of 10 recommend this one.
You know, and the character designs, again, I
am somebody who is sold immediately based on
a good character design. And Mash's isn't the
coolest, but in his group, you know, there's
like three of them that I enjoy. I love the rivals.
I think the character concepts are very fun and
definitely keep my attention. Again, I totally
recommend that one. If you want a good, stupid
laugh, that would be the one. Let's just get
really dark and go with Toginaki. And, you know,
this one felt like pure aggression. And, you
know, the premise of this one is pulled from,
I believe, like Japanese folklore. You know,
it's basically Oni versus Momotaro bloodlines.
It is a show that seems mostly violent and very
dark, but it does have a little bit of comedy
mixed into it. But, you know, I would consider
this a very gritty anime. These Oni are these,
like, demonic bloodlines, and they use their
blood as weapons. And it's pretty insane to watch,
you know, like the main character can make like
a gun while another character is making saw blades,
you know. It's definitely not necessarily an
original concept, but I did like how they executed
it. They all felt a little bit different, even
though it was the same concept, this blood manipulation.
But... I accidentally watched it while it was
airing. And, you know, I didn't know this until
I got to the end and I had to wait for the last
three episodes. And it was a show that I was
completely ready to binge three more seasons
of, like right then and there. I will say this
feels more emotional when they start fighting
versus it being more strategic. The show starts
to spin this into a survival mode type of scenario
for these characters. And, you know, these kids
are literally dragged into this generational
war. And again, I thoroughly enjoyed the Oni
versus Momotaro lineup. I think it gave off this
raw energy. You know, the centering theme is
mostly identity, so it was really cool to watch
these younger people thrown into this mix versus
these agents of destruction who have only one
goal, which is to completely wipe out the Oni.
So your blood decides how the world sees you,
and that creates such a tension. Between individuality
and destiny. And I was just so happy with this
series. And I'm very much looking forward to
a season two. You know, if this is one that you
enjoyed and you want me to review as a whole,
let me know. I'm not prepared to talk about any
of the characters. Like, again, it was one season.
I watched it once. But, you know. This is just
my takeaway from it. I definitely can't wait
to get back into it when it comes back. And then
speaking of a first season that I watched that
I fell in love with, I guess it's time to talk
about the literal trash anime, Gachi Akuda. And,
you know, immediately this anime felt different
from a lot of what I was watching. You know,
it does have this dystopian vibe and it reminded
me of, um almost a little bit of the inhabitable
world from Trigon you know but in Gachikuta we
learn right away that the world just throws away
like unwanted people criminals um you name it
and they just literally drop them off the edge
of the world which I mean I guess this is a good
anime for the flat earthers out there but you
know my first impression of this anime was that
it was dirty, it was gritty, it was graffiti
-inspired chaos, it's rebellious. I enjoyed this
series so much. You know, and it does do a really
good job showcasing, like, class divisions, you
know? worthlessness imposed by society. And,
you know, it's about reclaiming your identity
through what others reject. You know, a lot of
the shows that I watch have a lot to do with
one's identity and finding it and being true
to it. So, you know, this is a show that definitely
falls in line with the shows that touch me. And...
Getting into Rudo, who is our main character,
he isn't trying to be the strongest per se, which
again, I also appreciate. He is trying to prove
that he has value. Again, he is one of these
people who gets dropped off the edge of the world,
and it's amazing that he survives, but it throws
him into this really intense battle and fight
for his life you know and again this is where
people throw all their trash so you know this
is a toxic wasteland and you know it is a little
heartbreaking but I also found it to be really
powerful like it was such a strong story you
know or they at least told it in a really powerful
way you know and I found the whole concept The
power systems. All of it. To be very satisfying
to watch. Like the jinkies. I can't wait to see
what everybody's vital instrument is. Like this
is an anime where almost all of the characters
I fucking love. And I feel like that does not
happen often. You know I am here for all of them.
The good guys. The bad guys. The in between.
There is a lot of mystery behind these characters.
And, you know, their backstories come up in bits
and pieces throughout the show. But that's where,
you know, they did a really good job in tying
certain storylines together, you know, without
giving away anything. As the series goes on,
you know, it really made me question, like, everybody's
motives. You know, the show is so good at keeping
my focus and making me not want to wait for another
episode. You know, this is one of the animes
that I had started dubbed, but, you know, it
was still airing. And after binging most of it,
when I got to the end of the line and had to
wait, you know, I wasn't trying to wait for the
dub as much as I wanted to. TikTok kept ruining
the, um... the Rio and Nord fight. So I sucked
it up and I watched it subtitled and oh my god
I prefer it over the original. The only character's
voice that I had a problem with subtitled was
Rudo's but again everybody else's was so on point
and perfect that I got over his pretty quick.
So yeah. Those are the four shounens that I'm
probably going to be deep diving soon. I wanted
to bring up some different animes within the
genre, so that's why I'm all over the place with
those titles. Like I said, if there's any animes
that you want me to review or you think I should
check out, let me know. I am always down for
recommendations, or maybe I already have. I mean,
I've only watched... like 90 something titles
so I'm still I'm still under three digits so
you know there's plenty of titles that I have
to get into and I guess getting into a little
bit more housekeeping I am still working on the
Fate series review so and I'm also looking into
what's coming in the spring so I can start getting
amped up and kind of have a what to expect, you
know, because I'm most likely not going to be
watching everything. Just like this winter season,
there's four animes of everything that they've
dropped that I am watching. So I'm excited to
see what we have in store there. And again, I
upload new episodes recapping the Thursday night
episodes of Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 every Friday
following the new episode. And this episode is
literally because episode 8's recap was so short.
I mean, it was an important episode, but there
really wasn't a lot for me to break down. I think
Higurama is going to be a personal dissection
for people. I think he's going to be a very intense
and insane character, and I'm very much looking
forward to seeing him. But from what I had seen,
I didn't have too much else to add to him. So
that is what I have. Thank you for tuning in.
Until next time, I'll see you then.