Lather's Blather Episode #08: Sorayama Bikini Robots Couldn't Make This More '80s

Gcast accepted the upload successfully this morning ,so everyone who subscribes via iTunes or other similar software ought to be receiving the file today.

The podcast's episodes will be moving to a new, generously offered hosting space. I will fix the show titles and ID3 tags so that they're all consistent, and it ought to be a more reliable way to upload new episodes than Gcast.

I'm pretty sure that I'll have to set up a new feed, meaning the current one for iTunes will be broken. But in the meantime I'll use Gcast for this one.

What I also need to do is listen to this entire beast myself to make sure I didn't screw something up in Audacity during the arduous editing process.

Episode 8 is here. Huzzah.



Show notes begin hither.

My Steam nickname is [LLJK] RichLather, because I am after all a loyal SomethingAwful forums goon, and almost invariably goon-related gaming activities are a good thing.

Carnage and chaos ensue...

...while the band plays on.


Franken's Gears
The eccentric Dr. Franken...

...and his dark, dark lab. I think I'll need to treat this and a couple others in Photoshop.

Deprive
Gaze upon the awesomeness of Space Hard Gay.

"Am I not...the shit?"

Burning justice knows no boundaries of animal, vegetable or mineral.


Presence
If you've never seen soccer before, this is not what is known as a "header".

Like a virgin... touched for the very first time...

A glimpse of the curiously disposable high technology in this story.

1980s fashion is where it's at.

I know I promised you pathetic perverts that magazine link, so here you go:
I-doloid
(It's in Japanese, of course)

Now imagine every tiny fragment and droplet...and more...fully animated.


Starlight Angel
Our erstwhile robot and the lost necklace he tries to return.

And our nameless heroine, who lost the necklace.

You can see why I called this guy Char Aznable.

Spot the reference #1: Tetsuooooooo!

Spot the reference #2: "Men, we're going to the Olympics!"

"It's a small world after aaaaaaaaiiieee!"


Cloud
This would be a pretty awesome poster, if you ask me.

As would this.

And so would--you know what? Cloud as a whole is equally pretty.


Strange Tale of Meiji Machines
(aka A Tale of Two Robots)
The always hysterical John Jack Volkerson III

Introducing first, the challenger...

...and his opponent!

This is a perfect visualization of "starting off on the wrong foot".

"Inconceivable!"

Our heroes, steadfast in the face of danger.

And the crowd goes wild!
It's this kind of character design that endears me to this story.

This is why they fight: for the glory of the rising sun.

Even if it's really the setting sun.


Chicken Man and Red Neck (aka Nightmare)
I should probably lighten these up in Photoshop.

No really, I need to lighten these up a tad.

When the humans are away, the machines come out to play.

That's good old-fashioned nightmare fuel.

The salaryman Ichabod Crane.

And his adversary, the robot demon lord's herald.
This is where bricked Xbox 360s go when they die.

The Robot Carnival in happier days.

Another of the missing pictures that Streamline
unceremoniously dumped from the US release of Robot Carnival.

The drumbeats mean it's coming

Why on Earth has it taken so long for Episode 8 to come out? Did I fall victim to the lumbering menace of the Robot Carnival itself? Find out soon--post-production is underway!

Lather's Blather Episode #07: Voice of A Ferret

I'm back!

This podcast is horribly late--both in terms of production time and when it's getting published. So enjoy the goods while I get some show notes cranked out later.

Get it from the Gcast streaming widget on the right-hand side of the screen or direct download that bad boy.



I've got a good handle on a possible hosting solution which I hope to try very soon... until then, enjoy this look at The Venture Brothers.

Lather's Blather Episode #06: The Galaxy's Greatest Piece of Robot Bling

I'm aware that direct downloads don't work as smoothly as I'd like them to be--that it's necessary to rename the file as an MP3. Admittedly, I'm kinda kludging it from Gcast's URLs because I think they're really meant to stream and nothing else. I'll begin looking into alternate places to host the MP3s in hopes of having true direct downloads.

Anyway, I'll do it again for now. Direct download here, and streaming from the Gcast box on the right hand side, further down the page. Full show notes to follow, but I took advantage of the extra time it took to produce the show and already did some of the work.





Transformers meets Saint Seiya.



And by way of comparison, the original opening for Saint Seiya.



Here's the "customized" version of Guitar Hero 2 with Lion's "Transformers Theme". Three-finger chords? That's insane!


And keeping on the subject of the theme song I'd just like to say that while I think the official version done by Mutemath and the fake Linkin Park-ish virally marketed version are just plain terrible, there is a potential heir to the throne. It's pretty faithful to the one by Lion, and it's performed by Black Lab.


Of course, if you're feeling like a total masochist, feel free to try out the fake Linkin Park or Mutemath versions for yourself.

Prime, you said the Matrix will light our darkest hour!

I haven't forgotten all of you--I promise. Yes, this podcast is now over a week late but believe me when I say it will be released before too much longer.

Time has not on my side this last week, and I find myself sandwiched between last week's Civil War reenactment and next week's trip to Canton, Ohio for the Pro Football Hall of Fame inductions.

That said, the show is nearing completion. I think I've got a nice review of 1986's Transformers: The Movie written up, tinged equally with teenage nostalgia and near-middle-aged cynicism.

So chins up, lads. Your wait will be over before long.

Lather's Blather Episode #05: Bless Her Curvaceous Heart

Better late than never, right? Right? Well, at any rate here you go, you animals.

In this episode I'll chow down on a spicy little meatball called Starcrash, a 1979 low-budget Italian ripoff of Star Wars. If you enjoyed listening to me suffer through some bad Korean anime, you'll love this one!

Available in streaming format to the right, on your favorite podcatcher, or by direct download.

Click it, you know you want to.



From the news segment: Studio Ghibli and JAL (those links are in Japanese, knock yourselves out) announce loads of fun stuff to coincide with the 15th anniversary of Porco Rosso (profiled in episode 2 of this very show).

Stella Starr, cosmic hottie

Akton, cosmic know-it-all. Just look at that smirk lurking below the surface!

Thor, Chief of the Imperial Police. It's not easy bein' green.

Police Robot Elle, or L. El maybe? Who cares.
Robot by birth, Texan by the grace of God.

Christopher Plummer earns a paycheck as the Emperor of the Galaxy.

Joe Spinnell as his counterpart, Count Zarth Arn.
This is perhaps the least melodramatic look he has in the whole movie.

David Hasselhoff as Simon. Aw yeah. How much you wanna bet he remembers this?

And there's OH DEAR GOD WHERE DID THAT COME FROM AAAAAAGH

Red lava lamp blobs attacking the crew...

...of the Murray Leinster!

Space helmet, water jug, or piss pot? YOU MAKE THE CALL!

Hyperspace. Yeah.


The Honorable William F. Squidface.

Emperor Ming's soldiers want their outfits back when you're done, okay guys?

What this movie had too much of: Akton's smugness.

What this movie didn't have enough of: leather bikinis.

Even though there was quite a bit of it...

You could always use more, right? Right?

The Amazon queen activates the craptacular statue with OPTIC BLASTS.

Worst. Stop motion. EVER.

"This is an energy shield mask. But the energy is limited."

"Duck season!" "Wobot season! Fire!"

Again, not nearly as thrilling as it would appear.

Don't hassle the Hoff about his makeup.

Polite fighter pilots always fly in single file.

"He's got the whole world in his hands..."

This is what plastic model sprues and a can of gold spray paint can get you.

"Say, is that a torpedo?" "Why yes it is!" "Is there a breeze?" "Must be your imagination."

Of all the myriad forms of life in the universe, none suck more than space marines.

Count Zarth Arn is just not a threatening guy.

No, really, he isn't.

Oh come on, now you're just being silly.

"Can I interest you in a doughnut? Some cake, perhaps?"

Count Zarth Arn experiences the Quickening.