[// Pregenerate link to episode ahead of time: - clicktotweet.com- sharelinkgenerator.com]: # This week, there's no need to use a Phoenix Down because we are ALIVE, and talking about the fans of the Final Fantasy series! The iconic music, characters, stories, costumes... whatever it may be, it has left a lasting mark on the RPG and video game worlds for the decades since its introductions, and we get into all of that with some special guest friends of ours, Dan and Ari! Next week, just in time for [Anime North](http://animenorth.com/), we're talking about fans of Boys' Love with Sarah of the [Feminist Fujoshi](https://feministfujoshi.wordpress.com/)! ## Where can I learn more about Dan and Ari? You might remember Dan and Ari from our [super-cut of Super MAGFest 2018](https://youtu.be/DiJt-4m6qKE?t=4m8s) and his panel on [the music of Final Fantasy](https://youtu.be/sEPn75v-L3M). You can check out more of their work online: _Ari_ - Instagram: [@totallytoastyari](http://instagram.com/totallytoastyari) - Facebook: [facebook.com/totallytoasty](http://facebook.com/totallytoasty) - YouTube: [youtube.com/totallytoastyari](https://www.youtube.com/totallytoastyari) _Dan_ - Instagram: [@musiconthedlo](http://instagram.com/musiconthedlo) - Twitter: [@musiconthedlo](http://twitter.com/musiconthedlo) - YouTube: [youtube.com/musiconthedlo](https://www.youtube.com/musiconthedlo) ## Episode outline ### Fandom Facts **History and Origins:** Final Fantasy is a science fiction and fantasy media franchise owned by Square Enix. Despite having fifteen numbered games, 135 million copies of the various games sold, and well over 40 different sequels, spin-offs, and other properties, the game acquired its moniker in 1987 due to the game designers' belief that Square was going to go bankrupt ([according to Nobuo Uematsu](https://www.wired.com/2009/07/final-fantasy/), composer of many famous _Final Fantasy_ tracks). Though most of the numbered games are stand-alone stories in different settings with different characters, there are many recurring plot themes, game mechanics, and character names (e.g. Plots center on a group of heroes battling a great evil while exploring the characters' internal struggles and relationships). **Search Data:** The Final Fantasy series has had a ...
This week, this Nicks have a look at the hot new (3-year old) shounen anime that's sweeping the world - Boku no Hero Academia! They'll talk about the strengths and weaknesses of ensemble shows, what the superhero craze looks like reflected through and Japanese mirror and whether or not anyone axtually likes Mineta! [Click here](https://fundraise.cancerresearch.org/fundraiser/1947095) for more information on the Livestream for the Cure! ### Fandom Facts “My Hero Academia … follows Izuku Midoriya, a boy born without superpowers (called quirks) in a world where they have become commonplace, but who still dreams of becoming a hero himself. He is scouted by the world's greatest hero, who shares his quirk with Izuku after recognizing his potential, and later enrolls him in a high school for heroes in training.” * The BNHA subreddit is pretty popular: Within the first three months of the subreddit’s creation, it went from almost 300 000th to somewhere in the 15 000’s ([and is now ~1400th most popular subreddit)](http://redditmetrics.com/r/BokuNoHeroAcademia). * Someone did a fan survey with general interests in the anime [on the subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/BokuNoHeroAcademia/comments/6uqpvz/results_of_the_my_hero_academia_anime_demographic/) (circa 2018). Of the over 400 responses, here are some interesting bits: * Best aspect of BNHA: The characters (53%), the overall concept (28%) * 11% dislike generally shonen (the remainder are either indifferent or like shonen) * 47% have read the manga in its entirety * 7% dropped the show completely; 5.8% strongly disliked it or hated it * There was also this fan survey which was more about the characters [which had some demographics](https://www.reddit.com/r/BokuNoHeroAcademia/comments/6655jk/bnha_sub_survey_final_results_highly_indeep/) ...
[// Pregenerate link to episode ahead of time: - clicktotweet.com- sharelinkgenerator.com]: # This week, we're talking about the who, what, and why of Chiptunes! A few parts music theory, a few parts video games, and a lot of speculation! Next week, Nier, far, wherever you are, we know that your heart will be... drifting out in space, ready to take down aliens? We'll be talking about the Nier series! ## Episode outline ### Fandom Facts **History and Origins:** Chiptune (also known as chip music or 8-bit music) is a style of synthesized electronic music which is made for a programmable sound generator (PSG) though the term is also often used for music made in the _tracker_ format, which is intended to sound like PSG-created music. This music is often composed from 'simple' wave forms such as pulse waves, square waves, triangle waves, and sawtooth waves. Although real-time synthesized has been possible since as early as 1951, it wasn't until the golden age of video arcade games (late 70s and early 80s) that chiptune music began to appear in video games (and by extension, reach the masses). Of particular note, artists such as Yello Magic Orchestra had started sampling video game music in the late 70s which had a major influence on music that would later come in the 8- and 16-bit eras. Various advances in computing, such as frequency modulation synthesis (FM synthesis), MIDI, and sample-based sound synthesis furthered chiptune music up until the end of the 1980s where chiptune music declined in popularity until a resurgence in interest in the mid-2000s with mainstream music leveraging the artform again (for example, _Girl_ by Beck, or _On Top_ by the Killers). We could likely have a whole episode ...
