shojoandtell

[shojoandtell]

i just finished reading chobits and a friend recommended your episode on it - delighted to hear more people find it as baffling, underdeveloped, and compelling as i did lol. i haven't listened yet to your angelic layer episode but the cognitive dissonance of reading that title immediately after reading chobits is truly incredible - going from the ethereal (so ethereal it can't connect any of its themes to any meaningful conclusion) and problematically horny chobits to the breakneck but also incredibly lightweight competition series angelic layer with really only this bizarre inventor to connect the two created even more questions for me than i suspect clamp envisioned.

(p.s. have i been obsessed with dita and zima for days??? do i go around telling all my friends that i personally found chobits worth reading for dita and zima alone??? haha. ha.)

Glad you enjoyed the episode! Usually people don't like the Chobits episode of this podcast because they think it's all inflammatory.... But like most CLAMP things, there's a lot of compelling, mind-altering ideas and characters there, just happens to come with a lot of "?????? ew no why" as well.

Anyway, yay Dita and Zima, haha.

[shojoandtell]

New episode! We discuss the first 10 volumes of Snow White with the Red Hair on the podcast. Ashley professes her undying love for Prince Izana, and Asher tells everyone about why Obi is his favorite boy. Of course, the stars of the show are Shirayuki and Zen and their excessively cute relationship.

Heads up we’re doing a giveaway for this episode with MangaMart, a family-run online manga shop. The giveaway will start on Bluesky tomorrow (Wednesday). Be sure to follow us over there!

You can listen to the episode on your favorite podcast app, on Spotify and YouTube, or on our website. Be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode!

[shojoandtell]

We’re recording about Josee, the Tiger and the Fish tomorrow, and we’d love to know if you have any questions or comments about the story that you’d like us to discuss on the podcast! If so, please send them our way! We’re recording around 6pm ET Feb 13, so please submit questions and comments before then!

[shojoandtell]

Our episode about My Love Mix-Up! is out now!

My Love Mix-Up! (not to be mixed up with Aruko's other work, My Love Story!! .... deep sigh) tells the story of Sota Aoki, a seemingly happy-go-lucky boy who has a crush on a female classmate, Mio Hashimoto, but winds up in a relationship with male classmate Kōsuke Ida. It sure is all mixed up, and it's a pure delight. Romance novelist Megan Frampton joins Shojo & Tell host Ashley to discuss what makes the series so funny, how that does or does not translate to the Japanese live-action screen adaptation, and the surprising amount of character growth the main cast goes through. Jump into the fluff and feels with us!

Pictured: volume 8 featuring Ida, and Ashley’s husband Asher recreating Ida’s pose

Listen in your favorite podcast app, or find us on:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/546w835Gk7b3RmPtuEpe7K?si=Sub0Ns0DTQiEy05KLzasJA

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84m-I2joKSE

[shojoandtell]

This episode discusses MARS volumes 9-15 and the prequel story, "Horse with No Name"

How many suicide attempts can happen close to Kira and Rei? How many car crashes and motorcycle accidents? Shojo & Tell host Ashley and CLAMPcast in Wonderland co-host Lucy are back to discuss the second half of the melodrama MARS by Fuyumi Soryo, and their biggest question is about whether the series accurately portrays the way trauma stacks (both Ashley and Lucy lean toward no). Ashley and Lucy share their thoughts about Kira seeming to give up her dreams to be with Rei, and so Rei can pursue his, what they wish "Horse with No Name" had been about instead, how they're glad Tatsuya made it out unscathed, and more.

Subscribe to the podcast in your favorite podcast app, or listen here:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7wVCizkWPdNfb2JxwzdDGi?si=5CEpCRmMRiawgPlbtjX1-g

YouTube: https://youtu.be/QrTbvbGyLHI

[shojoandtell]

Our newest episode discussing the first half of MARS with @lucyinbookland of @clampcastpod is out now!

We continue our melodrama mood with the late 1990s/early 2000s series, MARS. Kira Aso is a quiet girl who loves to paint. Rei is a bad boy who loves to race motorcycles. Naturally they fall in love, and all the dark secrets come out about them both. Shojo & Tell host Ashley and Clampcast in Wonderland co-host Lucy discuss what makes this series so gripping despite it being over the top, how iconic the art is, the portrayal of America, how cute Rei and Kira are, and much more.

Find us in your favorite podcast app as Shojo & Tell.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3ChPN2QxOGeZuMzVpcqo31?si=6YProfuIRFm6fa8SQhW9iw

YouTube: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hjfbVQleEaE&t=4s&pp=ygUOU2hvam8gYW5kIHRlbGw%3D

[shojoandtell]

Remember Hot Gimmick? Yeah. We have not one but TWO podcast discussions about this..... iconic? Infamous? ... early 2000s series.

@blerdyotome joins to discuss the.... Love? Harassment?... story of Hatsumi Narita being blackmailed by Ryoki Tachibana. Somehow, constant blackmail, emotional abuse, and repeated disrespect of physical boundaries is not the worst the series has to offer!

Hear our hot takes in your favorite podcast app! Or you can also find the episodes here:

[shojoandtell]

Ninjas + shojo manga = yes please give now

New podcast episode out now!

This episode discusses all volumes (1-5) of JULINE by Narumi Kakinouchi.

When you think "shojo manga," you typically don't think "ninjas." But that's just a stereotype, and we're here to defy stereotypes. Shojo & Tell host Ashley and Megan DeYarman, of the sites Manga Test Drive and Renaissance Josei, talk about JULINE, a manga series from animator Narumi Kakinouchi (of VAMPIRE PRINCESS MIYU fame). The titular Juline, along with other young female ninjas Bakuya and Seika (and inevitable male love interest Kio), are looking for male relatives and lovers who have disappeared. They encounter a mysterious foe in Black Pearl (also known as Tamayo, also known as Mei). Is Tamayo a woman or a man? Can Juline, Bakuya, and Seika undo the spell that's been put on their loved ones? Ashley and Megan dive into the art style, the gender representation, and the overall ~vibes~ of this strange little series.

Listen on YouTube

Listen on Spotify

Subscribe on your favorite podcast app!

[shojoandtell]

Did you know Cowboy Bebop is shojo?

Well, at least the 2 manga adaptations are!

In our latest episode, we discuss the two shojo manga versions of Cowboy Bebop: Cowboy Bebop by Hajime Yatate [Sunrise staff] and Cowboy Bebop: Shooting Star by Cain Kuga

Ask an anime fan above the age of 30 what their favorite anime is, and chances are high they'll say Cowboy Bebop. The music, the animation, the mood — it's iconic. And then there are the two shojo manga iterations of Cowboy Bebop, which have largely been lost to the sands of time (and then, there's the Netflix live action version...). Shojo and Tell host Ashley and her husband, Asher, read both of these severely out of print manga adaptations, and discuss here. Topics of discussion include: Ed and gender, why the heck is Shooting Star the way it is, and why was it decided that this seinen anime needs not one, but two shojo manga adaptations?

Listen and subscribe on your favorite podcast app, or:

YouTube: https://youtu.be/M26WRUuRZwo

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3gUxNechqCjRmcox7TPwGR?si=h2XVktJWRrq8IFILwMqpkQ

[shojoandtell]

Alright! We’re BACK!

And it’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for: The episode where we talk about the not-very-good shonen manga adaptation of The Vision of Escaflowne.

THE VISION OF ESCAFLOWNE is the anime that got Shojo and Tell host Ashley into anime. It sparked one of only a handful of great obsessions in Ashley's life. It's probably the reason this podcast exists at all.

Katsu Aki's shonen manga version of the story is..... not like the anime you know and love.

It's explicitly billed as a shonen series, and it's all downhill from there.

Listen on your favorite podcast app, or:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1Cl2BNsW6q38VPfCVeeMPW?si=ylBSHq5ISYCrczlXo9IeBA

YouTube: https://youtu.be/3m9zhn7wcQk?si=iaZ610RZiLFez2d_

Our website: https://www.shojoandtell.com/episodes/the-vision-of-escaflowne-shonen-exception-5

[shojoandtell]

Gonna be recording about a deep cut tomorrow (Sunday Oct 1) with Megan of Manga Test Drive! We’re going to discuss Juline, a manga about ninjas that runs on ~vibes~ by Narumi Kakinouchi.

Have questions or comments about the series you’d like us to discuss on the podcast? Send them our way!

[shojoandtell]

Podcast schedule update (September 2023)

I want to try a new workflow to see if it helps me release this podcast more regularly again. To do this, I will have to pause episode releases for the next 2-3 months. So as of right now, expect no new episodes until at least November. The goal is to do each podcast task in batches. So instead of the cycle being read/record --> edit --> release, then repeat each episode, I want to be in "read/record" mode for 5 episodes, then switch to "edit mode" for those 5 eps/queue them up for release. Repeat with next 5. I'm hoping that baking in less context switching and building up a backlog again will speed up the process. And will hopefully also allow me more room to work on visuals and musical production, which I struggle with. Continue to watch this space over the next few months, as I will keep announcing what series we're recording about and solicit questions/comments! (Among other things...) I only have one episode recorded right now (the shonen Escaflowne one), so we've got 4 more to go. Preview: The next recording should be about shojo Cowboy Bebop manga series I've released 104 main episodes of this podcast, and I'm confident I can keep going for another 100+, but I have to shake things up. Please stick with me! Thank you for your continued support

[shojoandtell]

This episode discusses volumes 8–15 of SACRIFICIAL PRINCESS AND THE KING OF BEASTS by Yu Tomofuji. Sariphi has gone from ritual sacrifice to acting queen, but she's still working to gain the respect of members of beastkind. In this episode about the back half of Tomofuji's series, Mackenzie from @maclovesmanga and Shojo and Tell host Ashley break down the highlights. We get to talk more about our favorite hyena boy, Lante, and his heartwarming worldviews; crotchety Anubis and the amazing journey he went on (where he got stabbed at least twice); the power of Sariphi, particularly in the arc with Fenrir; plus, we finally find out why the king is partially human, and meet some of the best side characters who should definitely have their own series. Listen on Spotify Listen on YouTube

Subscribe to the podcast

[shojoandtell]

New episode alert! Our first episode about Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts is out now! @maclovesmanga joins to discuss the political machinations, the lovable tsundere characters, and of course, make some comparisons to Beastars.

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6GGMu53eVfXQn7dRX4qiQR?si=RFNzDIXIQOebiTf9L7qJ5w

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/shojo-tell-a-manga-podcast/id1301069333

[shojoandtell]

Less than 24 hours left to submit questions or comments about Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts before our second (and final) episode recording about the series!

We’re recording about the second half of Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts this Sunday (July 16) with @maclovesmanga!

Have a question or comment about the series you’d like us to discuss? Send them our way!

[shojoandtell]

We’re recording about the second half of Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts this Sunday (July 16) with @maclovesmanga!

Have a question or comment about the series you’d like us to discuss? Send them our way!

[shojoandtell]

We’re recording about Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts vol 1-7 tomorrow night!

Got any comments or questions about the series you’d like us to discuss on the podcast? Send them our way before 6pm ET Saturday, June 10.