Byrd, Matt, Kevin and Lux discuss the recent anime adaptation, Kaiju No. 8, based on the best selling manga by Naoya Matsumoto. The show is a co production between heavy hitters like Khara, Toho, and Production I.G., and directed by Shigeyuki Miya and Tomomi Kamiya. It tells the story of a world where giant monster attacks are a regular occurance. One evening a small creature flies into the mouth of a kaiju cleanup crew member named Kafka, giving him the ability to transform into the half human/half kaiju hero Kaiju No. 8! But while Kafka attempts to join the anti-kaiju Defence Force, he struggles to keep his secret as the threats get bigger and bigger. Join us as we talk about the show, but first, we give a brief recap of G-Fest 2024!

Byrd, Kevin and Justin interview author Zack Davisson (Yurei: The Japanese Ghost, Ultimate X-Men) about his new book The Ultimate Guide to Japanese Yokai. We get into his research method and fascination with Japanese folklore, as well as how the book came about. We also topics such as his translation work translating Japanese manga (most notably the work of Shigeru Mizuki), his work for Marvel Comics and Lucasfilm, and his previous books about Yurei and Kaibyo (supernatural Japanese cats), whether kaiju should be considered yokai, and more! Relax and join the conversation! The Ultimate Guide to Japanese Yokai will be available July 2, 2024 wherever books are sold.

Byrd, Matt, Kevin and Lux discuss the recent Netflix animated film, Ultraman Rising! The first American Ultraman production in nearly 30 years follows a baseball player named Kenji who moonlights as everyone's favorite silver giant Ultraman to defend the planet from giant monsters. One day he comes in possession of a baby monster and has to adjust his life to being the creature's parent, while the KDF science team try to hunt it down. In addition to our review, we discuss the film's early development as a non-Ultraman story and how it fared in being updated to be Ultraman, the problem with Netflix's approach to new releases, how it works as an entry point into the franchise, and more! So how did this entry in the long running series fare? Listen and find out!