About

Otaku no Podcast is a podcast dedicated to all things Anime and Manga.  Here, you will find news on the latest releases and other goings-on in the industry; our “man-on-the-street” reports from anime conventions and Japanese cultural fairs; reviews of cool (and not-so-cool) titles, both new and old; and commentary on various otaku-worthy topics.  We’ll also occasionally venture forth into other territories of interest to many otaku, such as video games, music, travel, and Japanese food and culture.  So grab that box of Pocky and strap yourself into your giant robot cockpit, you’re in for one wild ride!

Dramatis Personae (or, Introducing the Lead Characters)

Donald Burr – Head Otaku, Grandmaster Editor

It all started one fateful day (he thinks it was a Thursday) in the spring of 1985 when a young Donald Burr, home from a grueling day of elementary school classes, turned on the television, and, completely by chance, stumbled upon something new, something completely unlike the typical afternoon cartoon fare that he was used to.  Larger-than-life protagonists, scary gigantic alien villains, enormous spaceships, and epic pyrotechnic space battles – he was instantly hooked!  (Later he realized that one feature he also loved, though he didn’t understand it at the time, was that the series as a whole had a large, overarching plot that tied everything together)  To this day, ROBOTECH (for that was the name of this series that he fell in love with) remains one of his all-time favorites, and he proudly displays his Protoculture Collection box set on his DVD shelf. (And yes, he knows full well that ROBOTECH is a derivative series.  He could really care less.)  Later, through the influence of his shady friends (yes Scott, he means you ), he learned that ROBOTECH was in fact related to this newfangled “anime” stuff, and rapidly consumed titles such as BUBBLEGUM CRISIS (another of his favorites to this very day) as well as many others, which sadly remain unlicensed to this day.  (This was back in the days when men were real men and watched anime on badly-degenerated 8th-generation VHS tape copies, often with NO subtitles!  You had to figure out what was going on through pure intuition alone!  You young whippersnappers these days with your Internets and your Crunchyroll, you’ve got it EASY!)  His tastes in anime are pretty much all over the map – everything from giant robot/mecha anime, to martial arts, to romance, to “slice of life” series – and even some yuri as well.  (but NO YAOI!)  Some of his favorites from the recent past include TENGEN TOPPA GURREN LAGANN, FATE/STAY NIGHT, LAST EXILE, LUCKY STAR, THE MELANCHOLY OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA, SOLTY REI, MAHOROMATIC, and BLEACH, in no particular order.  When he’s not working as a software engineer, he can be found sitting in front of the computer, either watching or reading about anime, much to the chagrin of his significant other; and when he’s not doing that, he’s off attending some anime convention, anime watching party, or Japanese cultural festival of some sort.

Danny Barer – The “other” Ace Attorney

Danny Barer has been a part of anime fandom longer than most attendees at anime cons have been alive.  He started off watching SPEED RACER in the late ’60’s; then, as a teenager, got hooked on Leiji Matsumoto’s work in UCHU SENKAN YAMATO (STAR BLAZERS in the U.S.) and the first GALAXY EXPRESS 999 movie.  In the early ’80’s, he joined the Cartoon/Fantasy Organization in California and was exposed to the cream of ’80’s TV anime.  He retains a disproportionate fondness for the 80’s caper  series CAT’S EYE and the preposterous mid-80’s movie DAGGER OF KAMUI.  He also likes that newfangled anime the kids these days are watching.  He is a lawyer who lives in Los Angeles.

Michelle “Ms. Geek” Klein-Hass – <Frequently Reoccuring Guest Role>

Michelle is a comic and anime fan, and can also be found at the Cartoon Geeks blog and podcast.  She is a great fan of the smaller, more independent anime conventions, especially Anime Los Angeles.

Pamela “Beep” Gross – The token non-otaku significant other

The token non-otaku, Pam (also known as “Beep”) is Donald’s significant other, and often suffers through loud anime viewing sessions full of explosions and screechy voices and the like.  For that, she really deserves a Purple Heart or something.  Besides the occasional contribution to Otaku no Podcast, she also blogs about life with a rheumatic disease, politics and economics, and random personal things.  She also maintains a website with additional articles and links.