Ghost Divers

Episode Notes Hello and welcome to Ghost Divers, an anime podcast with Connor and Niamh. In this introduction to the podcast, we go over the general format and idea for the show, and we also take a moment to talk a little bit about ourselves and what we hope we can offer! Special thanks to theimpliedbear for the use of their song "First" off of their album With Us?. Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes "It is a time when, even if nets were to guide all consciousness that had been converted to photons and electrons toward coalescing, standalone individuals have not yet been converted into data to the extent that they can form unique components of a larger complex." Dive into Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex! Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais Release Schedule [S1E1] Intro: November 27, 2020 [S1E2] Eps. 1–6: December 11, 2020 [S1E3] Eps. 7–13: December 25, 2020 [S1E4] Eps. 14–19: January 8, 2021 [S1E5] Eps. 20-26: January 22, 2021 [S1E6] Question Bucket: February 5, 2021 Works Cited “Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) “The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin “Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife “Entomology of the Pinup Girl” from What is Cinema?, vol. 2 by André Bazin “The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin The Ghost in the Machine by Arthur Koestler Kino-Eye by Dziga Vertov The Political Unconscious by Fredric Jameson Content Warnings for the Anime Gore / Head Trauma Violence / State Violence Suicide (esp. Eps. 3 & 22) Torture / Violence Against Women / Snuff Films / Terrorism (esp. Ep. 10) Sexual Harassment / Abuse / Rape in a Medical Context (esp. Ep. 22) Dyadism / Sexism Sexuality / Partial Nudity Cloning Ableism (esp. Ep. 11) Rapid Flashing / Loud Noises / Rapid Gunfire Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes Connor and Niamh discuss episodes 1 through 6 of the first season of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. We get into some of the core themes of the show, including the dyadic separation of mind and body, the development of AI sapience, gender and the trans resonance of Major Kusanagi, the dystopia underlying the sheen of GitS:SAC's Japan, a peak at the bleakness of the series overall, its thoughts about the possibility for revolution suggested in the world of the show, and an introduction to Niamh’s film theory bullshit. We also forget to do literally any sort of episode recaps, but as apology, Niamh left in all the times faer cats tried to join the podcast from outside faer closet door. So you’re welcome for that, I guess. Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais Works Cited in this Discussion “Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) “The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin “Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife Content Warnings for this Discussion Police Brutality Head Trauma Dyadism Suicide (esp. 00:35:11-37:50) Sexuality Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes This week, we get deep into episodes 7 through 13 of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. We try a little harder this time at doing some recaps but Niamh gets distracted getting right into faer bullshit from the beginning. Connor makes his case for episode 10, but if you are trying to avoid this one, which has some of the roughest content of the series, just know we discuss it from approximately 1:24:54 to 1:32:27. We talk about the sexualization of Major Kusanagi, the aura of the ghost in the age of its technological reproducibility, how the reproduced object can be reconstructed to produce a new aura with a purpose that can be revelatory just as easily as it can be fascistic, reality and unreality, the societal view of binary gender as “Default Male” and “Other”, choosing to be queer and trans, capitalism’s ability to co-opt that which opposes it, cycles of nationalized violence, the development of AI sapience and individuality, escapism and utopia, and our first big reminder in a few episodes that Section 9 is just a bunch of shitty cops. Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais Works Cited in this Discussion “Entomology of the Pinup Girl” from What is Cinema?, vol. 2 by André Bazin “The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin “Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife “The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin “Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) Content Warnings for this Discussion Sexuality Reference to Alcohol Gore / Organ Transplants / Organ Theft Dyadism / Sexism Violence Against Women / Torture / Snuff Films / Terrorism (esp. 1:24:54 to 1:32:27) Ableism in an Institutional Context Cloning Police Violence Brief Mentions of Suicide Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes We decide that this is just going to be podcast with some long ass episodes and really dig into episodes 14 through 19 of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Before we even get into the episodes, we already have a lot to say about the series and how it relates to the current political reality of when we recorded this episode—which was the day news outlets declared Biden the winner of the 2020 American Presidential election. Okay, look, I cut out a lot of our election discussion, so just like… know it could’ve been worse, okay? Anyway, after front-loading this conversation with some political talk, we used it to jump into Major Kusanagi’s need for Section 9 to maintain her body, the capitalist view of the economy as a game you can win, Section 9’s complicity in upholding the injustice of capitalism, the Tachikomas awakening to class consciousness, Batou’s relationship to gender (Gender: It’s Not Just For The Major) and toxic masculinity, the patriarchal hegemony on the gendered expression of emotions, Aramaki’s relationship with the Major, Japanese nationalism and nationalist violence, cycles of revenge and the inscription of revenge narratives into a national identity, the potential value and danger of the merging of consciousnesses and creation of new identities, and the tension between efficacy and righteousness in Section 9’s fulfilling of their role as government agents. Also, apologies for some of the weird audio on this one. It turns out Discord was really laggy (and variably so) for us and Niamh’s mic volume got fucked up at one point. Fae had a hell of time trying to get things sounding okay. ‧º·(˚ ˃̣̣̥⌓˂̣̣̥ )‧º·˚ Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais Works Cited in this Discussion “Ghost in the Shell: the Major’s Body (3)” by Claire Napier (full series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) “The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin “Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife “Entomology of the Pinup Girl” from What is Cinema?, vol. 2 by André Bazin “The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin Content Warnings for this Discussion Racism Classism Deformation and Weaponization of the Body Alcohol Ableism War Crimes Nationalist Violence Kidnapping & Organ Harvesting Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes It’s time to finish out our episode discussions with our breakdown of episodes 20 through 26. We get right into this with high energy because we recorded [S0E1] Welcome to Ghost Divers immediately prior to this recording, so Niamh is already fully on one. Thankfully Connor is here to rein fem in. We start the discussion by trying to put a bow on Niamh’s theory bullshit with Benjamin and Bazin while Connor gets on his own theory bullshit train with Koestler’s The Ghost in the Machine. Throughout the episode, we cover the tension between individual and society, Aoi the individual as distinct from the Laughing Man, Aoi’s reverence to the original and the truth, the Major’s rage as she fights for her body and her need for control, demedicalization and bodily autonomy as part of trans liberationism, the value of the individual vs. the value of the team, the theoretical origins of the ghost in the shell, the similarities and distinctions between Aoi and the Major, the culpability of individuals in institutions and the need for individuals to break with the institutional imperative in order to create change, the tension between individualism and collectivism, the conversations between Batou and the Major relating to her body and why she chose it, the final act of self sacrifice by the Tachikomas, Batou’s own struggles with gender and oppressive systems, and ultimate finish by teasing out some of the quotes provided by the Major and Aoi in the show’s own version of a Works Cited. Also sorry, we had a few audio issues again but Niamh thinks fae figured out the main issues so it should be better going forward. Lastly, don't forget that we will be recording the Question Bucket soon. The deadline to write into our Question Bucket for this series is January 30, 2020. You can write into ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais Works Cited in this Discussion “The Ontology of the Photographic Image” from What is Cinema?, vol. 1 by André Bazin “Beyond the Image in Benjamin and Bazin: The Aura of the Event” by Monica Dall’Asta, published in Opening Bazin: Postwar Film Theory and Its Afterlife “The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility” by Walter Benjamin The Ghost in the Machine by Arthur Koestler Kino-Eye by Dziga Vertov The Political Unconscious by Fredric Jameson Content Warnings for this Discussion Sexism Intense Violence / Gore / Head Trauma / Suffocation Drugs Sexual Harassment / Abuse / Rape in a Medical Context (40:36-41:38) Threats to Autonomy Transphobia / Having Conversation With Cis People As A Trans Person Self Sacrifice Alcohol Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes Hello and welcome to this very focused and concise Question Bucket episode. We only got two emails, so we definitely didn’t somehow record for four hours straight in a delirious frenzy of topics. Anyway, we start with an attempt to encapsulate our read on Major Kusanagi and how it relates to our political worldview, bringing in and diverging toward other topics like Iceland’s Nobel Laureate Halldór Laxness, the way public policies funnel those suffering from poverty into the military, the anarchist utopianism of Zhuangzi, reparative justice, Major Kusanagi’s ideological attachment to Section 9 and the power it provides her, and finally an answer to a question about micro machines. We then answer a question about foundational media for us (Chrono Cross and Icelandic music for Niamh, Prince and James Joyce’s Ulysses for Connor) before diving headfirst into the “non-anime” topics we brought. Niamh is talking about Persona 3 Portable and how its portrayal of self-harm, savior complexes, and kink are deeply hurtful and honestly just fucked. As Niamh says in the cold opening disclaimer for this episode, this part of our discussion in particular gets pretty heavy, so please be careful around the Content Warnings for this episode if you may be triggered or affected by discussions of things like self-harm, abusive relationships, biting and blood kinks, etc. Connor tries as best he can to follow that up with a look back at The Knife’s Shaking the Habitual and its position as an abrasive album that engages with the music that came before it and also might point towards some of the queer music that came after. We finish out answering a question about how to survive grad school, and how maybe our perspective on grad school is uniquely bleak because of the particular cruelty of the program we both attended. Sorry for being a downer. Works Cited in this Discussion “If you want to understand me better as a person, play Chrono Cross” by our very own Niamh “A Better Lover” also by our very own Niamh, published by ZEAL Content Warnings for this Discussion Brief Mentions of Online Harassment Discussion of Abusers in Queer Communities and Breaking Cycles of Abuse In-Depth Discussion of Self-Harm, Trauma, Abuse, and Savior Complexes (2:12:44 to 2:23:20) In-Depth Discussion of Kink, Teeth, Biting, Bloodplay, Painplay, the Erotics of Negotiation, and Consent (2:23:20 to 2:42:46) Discussion of the Pressures of Grad School Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes Dear Listeners Booting Up This Episode On Their Podcast App of Choice: The guys that appear in this anime are delinquents. So, please do not, under any circumstances, imitate what you see in this anime. Dive into Sakigake!! Cromartie High School! Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais Release Schedule [S2E1] Intro: February 5, 2021 [S2E2] Eps. 1–13: February 19, 2021 [S2E3] Eps. 14–26: March 5, 2021 [S2E4] Question Bucket: March 19, 2021 Works Cited Gabriel Gundaker talking about the Coinstar not working “The Yakuza Film: An Introduction” by Keiko Iwai McDonald, published in Reframing Japanese Cinema: Authorship, Genre, History “On Ninkyo” by Sato Tadao, Shisō no kagaku Content Warnings for the Anime Ableist and Sexist Language (Note: The dub is worse in this regard, including use of the f-slur) Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes Connor and Niamh can’t remember the name of a song that’s stuck in their heads, so they try to distract themselves by discussing episodes 1 through 13 of the first season of Sakigake!! Cromartie High School. We start out with the first and really only bit of theory bullshit by talking about the yakuza and yankii genre convention of the giri-ninjo conflict and how it relates to the comedy of Cro High, which we then use to launch into how much Cro High actually operates as a genre parody vs. absurdism, Kamiyama as a protagonist, the process of adaptation from manga to anime, the character of Yamaguchi as the comedian who tries to metatextually analyze the comedy of the show in which he himself is a character, the all-encompassing scope of the comedy of the show, the show within a show that is Pootan, the way Cro High continues to develop expectations in order to subvert them, and more. Niamh also has an (at this point no longer secret) announcement that faer comedy video art series Today’s Garfield Read Aloud has returned as a Twitter account, @GarfReadAloud. Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @FoxmomNia @rabbleais @GarfReadAloud Works Cited in this Discussion “The Yakuza Film: An Introduction” by Keiko Iwai McDonald, published in Reframing Japanese Cinema: Authorship, Genre, History “On Ninkyo” by Sato Tadao, published in the journal Shisō no kagaku (Science of Thought) Content Warnings for this Discussion Mention of Alcohol (After the outro when Niamh and Connor are joking around) Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes Niamh and Niamh’s Cohost discuss episodes 14 through 26 of the first season of Sakigake!! Cromartie High School. We take a slightly more synopsis-laden approach this time to try to ground ourselves in the rapidly escalating and (d)evolving world of Cro High, bounding off of topics like Cro High’s use of manzai forms, the literalization of the punchline, the stretching and decontextualization of recurring jokes, Yamaguchi’s failure to fully understand the humor of the show in which he is a character, and our conclusion that the show is ultimately mocking us personally as a podcast that is trying to analyze it. Niamh also thinks fae's really fuckin funny with the editing on this one. Also, don't forget that we will be recording the Question Bucket soon. The deadline to write into our Question Bucket for this series is March 13. You can write into ghostdiverspod[at]gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais @GarfReadAloud Content Warnings for this Discussion Brief Discussion of Shock Violence (Regarding Adult Swim) Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes In what is most certainly the rowdiest, most chaotic episode yet, the Ghost Divers are joined by special guest and person who is hosting this podcast on their network in the first place so how is Niamh ever going to say no to them, Autumn Blake! But before Autumn hops on the call, Niamh and Connor start out with just the regular amount of rowdiness and chaos and get right into the Cro High questions. We start out talking about some of our favorite bits from the show, get waylaid by Niamh’s laundry tips, and then dive into the gender happening in Cro High, vibes you get as a trans person about whether or not a creator would hate you, Takashi Miike’s Dead or Alive trilogy, Cro High’s potential debt to Utena, our favorite cuss word, finding a shared sense of humor with others, etc. Then Autumn joins for our discussion of Final Fantasy 8 and things immediately escalate into a rollicking discussion touching on NORG, which Gundam characters would kiss the homies goodnight, which FF8 characters would kiss the homies goodnight, which Eva characters would kiss the homies goodnight, Niamh’s FF7 OTP, the era of PS1 JRPGs and why they could be weirder back then, how you used to be able to just make bad games and movies, memories of watching friends play Final Fantasy games, the overwhelming adolescence of FF8, more of Niamh’s OTPs, the merciless systems of FF8, breaking JRPGs, the era of guidebooks, etc. We eventually move on to talking about Gaylord Phoenix, 100 Crushes, and queer alt comics in general, especially around themes like the inadequacy of language to talk about queerness and different approaches to trying to talk about this inadequacy anyway, revisiting queer books from the year you came out, Connor’s ongoing role as Niamh’s token cis straight white dude friend, the value of libraries, how to try to get into queer comics, etc. Anyway, go buy the unofficial official shirt of Ghost Divers: https://shop.grapevine.is/products/milf-short-sleeve-unisex-t-shirt You can write into future Question Buckets at ghostdiverspod@gmail.com and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter! The Show: @ghostdiverspod Niamh: @FoxmomNia Connor: @rabbleais Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud Works Cited in this Discussion I don’t read theory not even Marx I have never even heard of Hegelian dialectics. Content Warnings for this Discussion Brief mentions of self-harm Mention of bedbugs Discussions vaguely around transphobia Just lots and lots of swearing in this one Including Niamh saying the f-slur a bunch because fae reclaims it Sexual references Mention of bodies being destroyed Alcohol Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes “I’m gonna live! And I’ll marry Aina!” Dive into Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team! Follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais @GarfReadAloud Release Schedule [S2E1] Intro: March 19, 2021 [S2E2] Eps. 1–6: April 2, 2021 [S2E3] Eps. 7–12 + Miller’s Report: April 16, 2021 [S2E4] Question Bucket: April 30, 2021 Works Cited We didn’t really cite any works for this series! Content Warnings for the Anime F-slur in the subs for episode 1 (dub says “pansies”) Sexualization of young girls Nudity and sexualization of women in general Sexism Issues around disability Implied intent to rape (episode 8) Violence and death Depiction of war crimes, including gas attack massacre (episode 7), missile strikes, etc. Abusive relationships Claustrophobia, machines of war as coffins Alcoholism Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes Connor and Niamh break the Shinigami curse that killed their first attempt at recording this episode and successfully scribe a podcast episode using the new Record Press technology. We start off by talking about how really we’re just talking about Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team in order to let Connor rant about the first Mobile Suit Gundam and then get into what is probably the most we are probably ever going to do synopses on this podcast. Connor gives a lot of context from older Gundam and like… kinda spoilers I guess? We do get very out of scope quickly as we talk about Gundam broadly but eventually, Connor does rein us in to talk about how The 08th MS Team is specifically pulling on and immediately developing existing tropes in the franchise, our initial impressions on Shiro and Aina’s relationship and how it relates to Newtypes as a concept, Niamh’s rewrite where Shiro is replaced as the main character by Karen who is explicitly trans and dating Aina, the sexualization of Kiki (and young girls in general in anime and beyond), how combat is handled and depicted in The 08th MS Team and how it points to thematic readings of the instrumentalization of human bodies and lives, different types of mecha, if the series is actually doing anything meaningful with sexuality, the canon ages of different characters, the gender happening, and more! Niamh also had to try very hard to not just spoil things throughout this conversation. Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod@gmail.com and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @FoxmomNia @rabbleais @GarfReadAloud Works Cited in this Discussion We didn’t really cite any works for this series! Content Warnings for this Discussion Discussion around the sexualization of young girls Brief discussion of sexual assault and abuse Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes Connor and Niamh are under new direction (maybe this joke will land in the description?) but are back to discuss the final half of Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team. We start with a discussion of the show’s hot springs episode, how the change in director may have changed the handling of various aspects of the series, the relationship between Shiro and Aina, Aina’s attempts to assert herself against her abusive brother, the potential discrepancies between Shiro and Aina’s political positions and worldviews that never really get explored, how the series tests Shiro’s idealism, our feelings about our first look at ground soldiers on the Zeon side, the incredible new content of Miller’s Report, mechs, Niamh’s rewrite of The 08th MS Team, the failure of Shiro to enacted his pacifism in the face of his own death, how the Apsalus runs on Windows, how Aina and Shiro fail to break from their existing frameworks of understanding war as being fought and won by individuals, the two different endings of the series, how the series deals with new types, the bleak reality of the final episode, but also potentially the sliver of hope within it, and more. Also, don't forget that we will be recording the Question Bucket soon. The deadline to write into our Question Bucket for this series is April 24. You can write into ghostdiverspod@gmail and follow us on Twitter! @ghostdiverspod @foxmomnia @rabbleais @GarfReadAloud Works Cited in this Discussion We didn’t really cite any works for this series! Content Warnings for this Discussion Brief mention of a gas attack massacre Sexualization of female characters Abusive relationships Self-harm (especially in the post-ED section) Brief mention of rape Mechs as coffins Drugs & Alcohol Abusive Drug Administration & Alcoholism Murder & Poisoning Self-sacrifice Medical trauma Trauma around names Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

It’s Question Bucket Time! As always, we start out by wrapping up our series discussion, including some discussion of The 08th MS Team’s reference to the Vietnam War and whether we think there’s anything even there or if US viewers just jump to Vietnam because it is our jungle war but not necessarily Japan’s jungle war, why we chose The 08th MS Team despite knowing a lot of people are down on it, the value of talking about things you have mixed feelings about and debating with someone else about different reads, more homie kissing, what kind of albums each member of the 08th MS Team would press. Also, Niamh manages to talk about Icelandic sagas for a bit because fae is extremely that bitch. We then talk about Connor’s non-anime thing, The Commercial Album by the Residents. We talk a bit about trying to engage with music even when it doesn’t come to you quickly, the history of the Residents as a band and art collective, the racist ethnography of Nanook of the North, the tension between conceptual foundation for an album and the actual experiential quality of listening to an album, Niamh being a bit of an asshole, and the possible influence that the Residents might have had on music that came after. After that, we discuss Niamh’s non-anime thing, Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale, but then kinda just be bummers about how neither of us can identify with this sweet and idyllic portrayal of childhood, but also the ways this game still rings true to some of our experiences with media and card games as kids. We also talk about the differences between sugar-coated, gritty, and bittersweet. We also quickly answer a few questions about tokusatsu (we hate it), magical realism (we love it), and what recent anime we would send through a wormhole to the ‘90s to change anime discourse forever. You can write into future Question Buckets at ghostdiverspod@gmail.com and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter! The Show: @ghostdiverspod Niamh: @FoxmomNia Connor: @rabbleais Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud Works Cited in this Discussion Brennu-Njál’s saga (a.k.a. Njála) Hrafnkels saga Freysgoða Nanook of the North Suicide by Suicide “Monster Mash” by Bobby "Boris" Pickett & the Crypt-Kickers “Come On Feet” by Quasimoto Silent Shout by the Knife My Father’s Arms are a Boat by Stein Erik Lunde and Øyvind Torseter Moonstone: The Boy Who Never Was by Sjón Danzig Trilogy: The Tin Drum, Cat and Mouse, and Dog Years by Günter Grass Content Warnings for this Discussion Mention of abusive relationships and child abuse Discussion of the difficulties of childhood, neglect, and trauma Mention of alcohol in the post-ED section Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Do you want to become one with us? To be of one mind and body? It’s a very, very comforting feeling. Email us anytime. Come dive with us into Neon Genesis Evangelion. Just relax and release your soul. Release Schedule [S1E1] Intro: April 30, 2020 [S1E2] Eps. 1–6 + manga chs. 1–19 (vols. 1–3): May 14, 2021 [S1E3] Eps. 7–13 + manga chs. 20–26 (vol. 4): May 28, 2021 [S1E4] Eps. 14–20 + manga chs. 27–51 (vols. 5–8): June 11, 2021 [S1E5] Eps. 21–26 + manga chs. 52–74 (vols. 8–11): June 25, 2021 [S1E6] End of Evangelion & manga chs. 75–End (vols. 11-14): July 9, 2021 [S1E7] Question Bucket: July 23, 2021 Works Cited “Misora Hibari and the Girl Star in Postwar Japanese Cinema” by Deborah Shamoon, published in Signs vol. 35 no. 1 “Kanashiki Kuchibue” performance by Misora Hibari Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection by Julia Kristeva Chapter 1 of Mimesis: The Representation of Reality in Western Literature by Erich Auerbach Content Warnings for the Anime and Manga Violence, blood, death, and gore Body horror mechs Abusive parents / abusive relationships / emotional, physical, and sexual abuse Nudity and sexuality, including the sexualization of young girls Alcohol and alcoholism Mental invasion / rape Sexism Toxic gender roles Unreality Mental breakdowns Suicide Decapitation Strangulation Animal death (manga especially) Flashing images Content Warnings for the End of Evangelion Most of above but more intense. Specific scenarios to call out: A character masturbating over the unconscious body of a girl An older man grabbing a young woman’s breast and then his hand entering her body, evocative of sexual abuse Flashing images Gore and violence is overall turned up a little from the show, although there are also intense scenes in the show Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes Welp, here we go... I hope you aren’t interested in hearing two people talk a bunch about the lore of Neon Genesis Evangelion because that’s not at all what we’re interested in. But if you’re here for people talking about trauma, the indoctrination of toxic masculinity, and the nature of the fractured self, Connor and Niamh have got you covered. We start out with Niamh describing the time fae went to pick up Shinji in faer car and use it to launch into discussion of mechs as bodies, how Evangelion draws extensively from the groundwork and themes laid out by Gundam and other earlier mecha anime, the overapplication of death of the author, the complicity of the US in the way that young girls are sexualized in Japan, Niamh trying to remember a galaxy brain meme, the difficulty of critically dealing with harmful tropes or topics like the sexualization of young girls in a work of media without falling into the problem of having to replicate it in the process, the conditioning of toxic masculinity, an actual breakdown of our read on Misato in general, how the animation of Evangelion contributes to the feeling of isolation, the significance of the codified cultural ritual of “tadaima” and “okaeri” for the meaning of Shinji and Misato’s relationship, how the series employs humor to continue to further its darker thematic elements, the employment of male nudity in the series (especially regarding Toji’s butt), the horror of combat in Evangelion, the fumbling missteps of Evangelion trying to discuss teenage sexual desire, the mingling of sexual desire with greater questions of identity and self, the textual effeminacy of Shinji’s design and tragedy of Rei's design, and Connor putting off really getting into his psychoanalytic theory bullshit and narrative theory bullshit. Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod@gmail.com and follow us on Twitter! The Show: @ghostdiverspod Niamh: @FoxmomNia Connor: @rabbleais Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud Works Cited in this Discussion “Misora Hibari and the Girl Star in Postwar Japanese Cinema” by Deborah Shamoon Content Warnings for this Discussion Captive bolt pistols used in animal slaughter Intense violence Child soldiers Sexualization of young women Rape Sex work Racism Suicide Sexism / cissexism / the conditioning of toxic masculinity Child abuse Sexual abuse F-slur Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes We are back once again with our discussion of episodes 7 through 13 of Neon Genesis Evangelion. These may be what are generally considered the lightest, most slice-of-life/monster-of-the-week episodes of the show, but Niamh and Connor know what this show is and is going to be, so this episode is still plenty dark. Niamh being her most messy Misato when fae recorded this probably didn’t help. We start our discussion with the revelation that Connor is also a Misato x Ritsuko shipper, then get into the way the comparative cheeriness of these episodes feels intentionally hollow and like the illusion of happiness you create when you’re depressed, Eva’s deployment of tropes from “lighter” genres like romantic comedies, the duality of Misato and the ways in which she is actually not like Niamh, the subordination of all characters to Shinji as the self-obsessed depressed protagonist of the series and how this starts Connor and Niamh’s one true fight on Eva that we will never fully resolve, the forced feminization of Shinji, bringing in Misora Hibari as a point of reference for Asuka as an impersonator of Misato, the psychoanalytic theory of abjection as put forth by Julia Kristeva and its relation to Eva, the possibility of communication and connection between individuals, the developing characterization of Rei, Gendo’s position as the antagonist of the series, the divided subject of the MAGI system, more on the divided opinion of Connor and Niamh on whether or not Anno is a hateful little shit man, trying to talk around the end of the show and The End of Evangelion, and putting off some theory bullshit for next time. Also we kinda end up talking more about Asuka and Misora Hibari after we finished recording the podcast proper and that all made it into the post-ED outtakes section so uh… it’s a little more than just goofs this time, you might want to stick around for at least some of it even if you usually skip the outtakes. Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod@gmail.com and follow us on Twitter! The Show: @ghostdiverspod Niamh: @FoxmomNia Connor: @rabbleais Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud Works Cited in this Discussion “Misora Hibari and the Girl Star in Postwar Japanese Cinema” by Deborah Shamoon, published in Signs vol. 35 no. 1 Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection by Julia Kristeva “Kanashiki Kuchibue” performance by Misora Hibari Content Warnings for this Discussion Alcohol / Alcoholism Abusive relationships Mental illness Misogyny Sex work Rape Sexualization of young girls Pedophilia Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes We are back again and ready to dive into the back half of Neon Genesis Evangelion with episodes 14 through 20. We start by looking at what actually turned out to be a fairly interesting clip show episode and use it to spring into a discussion of the shift towards greater interiority and the developing undercurrents in the second half of the series; the growing characterization of Rei; Misato and Kaji as a (not always well handled) brat4brat relationship and how it factors into our read of Misato as well as Asuka as a “female impersonator” of Misato; our read on Kaji as an interesting but often creepy character; Eva’s ongoing construction of divided subjects; the psychoanalytic elements of the series and Connor’s theory bullshit about Kristeva’s ideas about abjection; the abjection of queerness; the role of ego in sync rate and pilot performance; the solidification of the show’s thematic elements in order to develop further in the finale; the misdirected desire for comfort that must be resisted to reassert selfhood and allow the potential for further life; our continuing kicking of the Mimesis can down the Ghost Divers road; and an extended discussion of one of our favorite sparsely animated scenes. Next time we will be joined by guest Brad Nelson to talk about episodes 21 through 26! Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod@gmail.com and follow us on Twitter! The Show: @ghostdiverspod Niamh: @FoxmomNia Connor: @rabbleais Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud Also as a fun note: About a week before this episode was released, Connor finally subscribed to the Patreon in order to listen to Niamh’s new movie podcast with Autumn called Ornate Stairwells! You can check out the public feed for Ornate Stairwells at exportaud.io/ornatestairwells or listen to the episodes early by becoming a patron yourself at exportaud.io. I mean, not episodes of Ghost Divers early, just episodes of Ornate Stairwells early. I’m not putting any more pressure on myself to edit stuff early, and I think this podcast works best if you know exactly when to expect new episodes. Works Cited in this Discussion Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection by Julia Kristeva Content Warnings for this Discussion Discussion of grooming and sexual abuse Sexism & misogyny Blood, gore, dismemberment, strangulation, & death The trauma of childbirth Ego destruction or death Bodily fluids & kink Bodily corruption & invasion Cannibalism Sex and sexuality Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Episode Notes We are joined by our first-ever guest on Ghost Divers, Brad Nelson, to discuss episodes 21 through 26 of Neon Genesis Evangelion! They are the person who first got Niamh into anime, so it’s very poignant and meaningful that they are definitely the first-ever guest on the podcast and didn’t at all get usurped by some brat who just decided to join to talk about Final Fantasy VIII on a complete whim. We also get the most into the manga so far around our discussion of Kaworu, so buckle up for a deeper dive into manga chapters 52–74 We start our discussion with a look at the way the series often employs lore dumps to create more questions than answers, how incredibly gay Ritsuko is for Misato, the discrepancies in how various characters perceive and understand each other and how the narrative itself becomes unreliably tied to specific perspectives, suffering in Evangelion and the tensions between Buddhism and daoism and how Niamh’s worldview has changed since fae first watched the show, Asuka as an unwilling school idol, the elevator scene and how it draws out the tensions between Asuka and Rei and their inability to connect over their shared struggles, how Misato continues to offer physical touch as comfort because it’s what she herself needs when she is hurting, Gendo’s grooming of Rei and her attempts to break from his abuse, the romantic and sexual connection between Shinji and Kaworu, the differences between Kaworu’s depiction in the show vs. the manga, our varying reads on the differing depictions of Kaworu’s death and what it means for Shinji, the stylistic presentation of the final two episode of Evangelion, the misogyny of Anno and his potential gendered trauma, and of course Connor and Niamh continuing to duke it out over End of Evangelion. Speaking of, just is next time for our discussion of End of Evangelion and the conclusion of the manga! As a note, the audio bleed on Connor’s headphones was really bad this episode and Niamh had to do a lot to try to eliminate it, so sorry for the dip in audio quality on this one. At least you don’t have to endure it for nearly 5 hours… Write into our Question Bucket at ghostdiverspod@gmail.com and follow us on Twitter! The Show: @ghostdiverspod Niamh: @FoxmomNia Connor: @rabbleais Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud You can also check out Brad’s newsletter at http://hologramofthesenses.substack.com Works Cited in this Discussion “Misora Hibari and the Girl Star in Postwar Japanese Cinema” by Deborah Shamoon, published in Signs vol. 35 no. 1 Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection by Julia Kristeva Content Warnings for this Discussion Death of a child Sex & sexuality Sexual abuse & rape Depression, suicide, & self-harm Mental invasion Pedophilia & grooming Assisted suicide Slut shaming Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co