Ultra Podcast Z - A-to-J Connections

Ultra Podcast Z 180 (Mahjong Madness w/ Janette) Mahjong Soul, Riichi Mahjong, Anime Cons, More!

8/12/2022

Live Broadcast:
August 9, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
Manuel
Janette

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z took a week off for random nonsense and came back with a special episode that was supposed to feature Pleiades hosting and Janette on as a guest. As you can probably see from the finished product, only half of that equation came to pass. Thankfully JD was still available to host and this somewhat last minute episode went forward. We were originally going to do a trifecta of con discussion as the three hosts had all been to recent conventions in different parts of the country, but that wasn't to be so most of this show was about mahjong. What started as a thought about how Manuel had got a new mahjong set for his birthday turned into a discussion about the differences between Chinese, Japanese, and American Mahjong, and lots more. What was definitely decided was that we have a lot of strong views on mahjong and probably will be going forward with our mahjong gaming nights that we've been toying around with for the past couple months. When we do, will it be riichi though? Anyway, if anyone has any suggestions on easy ways to play Chinese mahjong online, please let us know in the comments below as that is something we are very interested in. Oh, and we talked a BIT about other stuff, but you can all just consider this the "Mahjong Episode". As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!

Ultra Podcast Z 179 (SDCC News w/ Badman) The Rings of Power, MCU Phase 6, Eighth Anniversary, More!

7/29/2022

Live Broadcast:
July 26, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
Manuel
Badman

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z returns from its recent one week break (where we actually had NO streams) and we were joined by Badman again as Nyaru sat this one out for reasons we teased live but we definitely aren't going to get into in-depth. We were supposed to talk all sorts of news and stuff that came out at SDCC and this basically became a "Rings of Power" and MCU discussion as that is what we spent most of the show talking about. We talked about recent stuff we've watched on streaming, and briefly covered A-to-J's eighth anniversary towards the end, but that was the big (accidental) focus of the show. It was fun stopping everything to check how long it took Frodo to get to Mount Doom and to rant almost non-stop about how MCU is missing opportunities left and right to bring Warlock into things, but maybe we're in a minority there. This was a bit of a hastily put together show as it was originally going to be ALL anniversary talk with Nyaru and guest, so maybe we'll just have to save that episode for November when we have our REAL anniversary. Yeah, we have two anniversaries because nothing at A-to-J can ever be simple. As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!

Ultra Podcast Z 178 (Anime Expo Recap) AX 2022, Summer Conventions, Elon Musk, Ken Akamatsu, More!

7/15/2022

Live Broadcast:
July 12, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
Manuel
Badman

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z returns from its AX break with an episode that doesn't feature Nyaru as she unfortunately got the big C over at AX and has been taking it easy following the con. Warren joined and we all recapped the con a bit with some news and nonsense sprinkled in. The opening segment took a bit longer than we intended as we ended up talking a lot about shows we've been watching recently from Stranger Things 4, Marco Polo, The Boys, and Man In The High Castle just to name a few. We then talked a LOT about AX without really covering stuff that HAPPENED at AX. Weird when you think about it, but we are also a lot about the hanging out, the partying, and just experiences overall. Will you be going to AX Ontario and other summer conventions since everything seems in full swing again? Let us know below! We then moved on and talked about some other news topics briefly, like Elon Musk's Twitter deal falling through, the Shinzo Abe incident, and Kem Akamatsu (of Love Hina fame) now becoming a politician? There was a lot there even if we didn't give everything as much time as we probably should have. We're just warming up to a regular stream schedule though as we've had about six weeks of messiness so just keep an eye on us until next week! As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!

Ultra Podcast Z 177 (Anime Expo Pre-Roll) Reunion Recap, Anime Expo Prep & Convention Plans, More!

6/30/2022

Live Broadcast:
June 28, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
Manuel
Nyaru

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z returns with its original cast just in time for a pre-AX episode! Nyaru and Manuel are both back and talked about what they're looking forward to at Anime Expo since it is days away, as of this episode's YouTube posting everyone should already be on site! Nyaru had a lot of event plans while Manuel was just looking forward to the parties, but is any of that really surprising? There was a lot of discussion here, food plans, past AX recollections, and even dipping our toes a bit into an Anime Expo bingo thing (that didn't really pan out the way we intended). We normally don't do episodes this close to a big convention but seeing as we didn't have a lot of personal projects at AX that we had to prep for, and seeing as we had to cancel a bunch of "normal" episodes recently, we decided to go through with this one, so keep that in mind while we are all fairly tired. That said, it was a pretty on night and we are all excited in our own way for Anime Expo. If you're going to be going to AX this weekend then have fun and be sure to stay safe and hydrated! We'll see everyone in two weeks as we are already sure that the next episode will be skipped as it's so close to the end of AX, but we will be back! As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!

Ultra Podcast Z 176 (Running A Con w/ Donald) Gaming & Anime News, Tora-Con Info & Stories, More!

6/24/2022

Live Broadcast:
June 21, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
JD
Donald

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z had another weird week. The end of the no-host period is wrapping up now, but it's been interesting to see how UPZ can continue on. This week JD actually contacted a friend of his, Donald, the chair of Tora-Con, to be his co-host. Tora-Con is a local anime convention held at the Rochester Institute of Technology (link below) in Rochester, New York and, while that was a the main topic here, there was a lot covered. It's definitely interesting to get someone behind the scenes when it comes to running a convention as we've (surprisingly) have not really tried this kind of topic before even though we all have more than our share of convention runner friends. Besides Tora-Con talk there was news, anime, and video game talk all throughout and there was a lot of storytime and event talk when it came to Tora-Con itself. It's a little weird watching UPZ with such a different cast but it's been an unique ride that's for sure! Anyhow, be sure to check out this episode, check out Tora-Con if you can, and keep watching UPZ! Maybe we'll have Donald on again in the future as both him and Photaku, not to mention JD himself, did a good job making up for some unforeseen circumstances. Next week both Manuel and Nyaru should be back talking about some pre-Anime Expo stuff so let's see if things jump back to normal after that! As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!

Ultra Podcast Z 175 (No Manuel, No Cry w/ Photaku) Video Game Updates, Netflix, Conventions, More!

6/16/2022

Live Broadcast:
June 14, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
JD
Photaku

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z had a really weird week. Manuel was indisposed because of a lot of personal irl nonsense and Nyaru was going to take the week off. Normally, either of these things (especially Manuel not being able to make it), would mean that the episode would be cancelled but JD, our mod who has been on every episode for about year now as our mod, decided that he could get a show together on his own and got Photaku, who himself has replaced Nyaru many times recently, to join him as co-host. We had some ideas of what we were going to talk about this summer but JD decided to focus on a more topical idea: E3 game news since there won't be any sort of E3 this year at all. There was a lot of game talk, a lot of random talk and then things moved to Netflix news and the old standby: anime conventions. More talk about updates and a lot about JD's recent trip to Anime Boston closed what was a very unique show. It's unknown if this kinda format will ever happen again, but it's interesting that the show can indeed go on without either of its hosts. Also, if you look at the chat, Manuel was in the show a lot actually but only in spirit! Anyway, hopefully next week will see Manuel and Nyaru return, and if not, we know that the should CAN still go on! As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!

Ultra Podcast Z 174 (Con Foods) Bacon-Wrapped Hot Dogs, Denny's, Alcohol, Snacks, Pizza, More!

6/10/2022

Live Broadcast:
June 7, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
Manuel
Nyaru

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z took a break after Ani-May (mainly due to Fanime) but we're back and swinging with a topic close to our hearts: Convention Foods! Nyaru was back and while she wasn't at any recent conventions we're in full swing for the summer season. After the obvious "Top Gun: Maverick" dialogue was done, we talked about the most obvious of con foods: bacon wrapped hot dogs. We then talked pizza, Denny's, and basically any other standard con meal. Along the way we described some "extra" meals like taking time out of a busy weekend for a long (comparatively speaking) break at a sit-down restaurant. Of course we also talked snacks, alcohol, and all sorts of memes while sharing some anecdotes and taking some topic changes from the chat. It was a fun topic but we were a little off due to the break and we'll be well more in the swing of things as the month continues. What will the summer hold? Who knows but UPZ is about to come to it's FIFTH anniversary and that is a really wild thought. Maybe give us some topic ideas below... As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!

Ultra Podcast Z 173 (Ani-May: Hot Takes) Conventions & Autographs, Dub vs. Sub, Western Anime, More!

5/31/2022

Live Broadcast:
May 24, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
Manuel
Photaku

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z closed out Ani-May with a look back on some of our controversial hot takes we've had in other focused episodes. That would've been the main focus of this episode if not for the fact that Nyaru bounced earlier on (to be fair we'd kind of forgotten) due to her having to check out the new Top Gun movie. We continued on with Photaku but our intro topic, upcoming and recent anime conventions, kind of got away from us. Also, the audio at the start of the episode is a bit shaky but it gets better and we plan to make sure it works out all better next time. ALSO, this episode was going to come out last week, before/during Fanime, but we decided to hold onto it since we weren't going to have many (if any) streams when we came back, so disregard all the parts about coming to Fanime. Anyway, there were a lot of hot takes here... We discussed Vic a lot, probably to the dismay of JD, Manuel discovered that voice actor autographs have gotten fairly expensive in recent years, and we covered all the hot topics like dub vs. sub and whether something has to be Japanese to be considered anime. So check it out and be sure to let us know your opinions on these topics in the comments below. We're skipping the last Tuesday in May (the 31st) but we will be back, with Nyaru, for the first Tuesday in June with a grasp on UPZ nonsense! As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!

Ultra Podcast Z 172 (Ani-May: Anime Ships) Sonic The Hedgehog Pairings, Fav Anime Openings, More!

5/22/2022

Live Broadcast:
May 17, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
Manuel
Nyaru

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z had an interesting episode this time around complete with all sorts of sound issues. We actually lost the first five minutes or so of this show due to our sound not being on and not noticing it until we'd wrapped up some of our warm up topics AND when our audio was turned on we had more issues as Manuel was using the wrong mic and it wasn't caught until the next night's stream, so we apologize for all the audio nonsense in this one. Elsewhere we talked about some of the biggest, and our favorite, anime ships or pairings and went through a couple lists as well as noting some off the top of our head and from the chat. It was a bit of a narrow topic but it offered the chance to spin off into other things like Sonic The Hedgehog ship nonsense and accidentally discovering the "Shipping Wiki". We didn't really have a lot more to say after like thirty minutes and moved onto our other topic, some of our favorite anime openings which was a topic that took a few minutes to get going but when we DID we were rapid firing song titles and even singing along to the Cardcaptor Sakura theme so good time! Ani-May has been a little all over the place but that might be because there are a lot of anime conventions surrounding these shows and we're all a little frazzled. We plan to close out the month with a bang though so be sure to keep checking in! As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!

Ultra Podcast Z 171 (Ani-May: Idol Anime) Offkai Recap 2.0, Love Live Invasion, Idol Anime, More!

5/15/2022

Live Broadcast:
May 10, 2022 6:00 PM PDT

Hosts:
Manuel
Nyaru

Description:
Ultra Podcast Z never really left but we've been without JD and Nyaru for a few weeks now. They were both back for this one which is the second episode of "Ani-May" and we tackled the topic of Idol Anime, which is something we'd actually talked about covering before Offkai Expo but it somehow got away from us in the scheduling. There's the usual nonsense at the beginning and we got into a Nyaru-specific version of Offkai Recap which was actually quite interesting in a behind-the-scenes way and we even talked a bit about Maid Day (which it was when we had this episode) before going into the topic proper. We talked about a lot of our favorites like Zombieland Saga, Kirarin Revolution, and AKB0048. We then talked about some of the big idol anime franchises like PriPara, IDOLM@STER, Love Live, and why no one like Aikatsu even though it's one of the best. We then covered a topic we hadn't visited in a while: What Love Live did to the idol scene at large in the US, especially when it comes to anime conventions. An interesting topic that we all had something to get off our chests and we circled back around to more idol anime recs (check out Wake Up Girls!) and more before we closed this one out. A nice continuation into Ani-May so be sure to watch the next two episodes in this special month! Also, Nyaru is stinky, that is all. As always, take care of yourselves and each other in these trying times and stay healthy and safe! If you want to watch Ultra Podcast Z live then check out our twitch channel: twitch.tv/atojplays We are live every Tuesday at 6 PM PST!