Best Seat on the Couch

In a film that crosses two very distinct fandoms in a manner like oil and water, Kenji Kamiyama's War of the Rohirrim is the world's first Lord of the Rings content since Amazon's The Rings of Power and perhaps the only LotR media that truly puts a woman at the forefront of the action! That's nice. It also reimagines a story out of J.R.R. Tolkien's own work and feels like it fits very well—maybe too well, considering the callbacks to The Two Towers—in the existing live-action LotR universe as well as the overall vibe of the series. All that said, it was a box office bomb at the end of the day, and there's a couple of aspects of the film's writing and unique animation style that feel like swings and misses. Stick around to hear the gang's opinions on the man who can kill another man in one punch, or fanservice, or 9/11. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Once the highest-grossing animated film of all time and certainly a cultural phenomenon that revived Disney with a hefty almost "re-renaissance" as Michael puts it, 2013's Frozen is a trope-subverting musical-movie that had the entire world belting "LET IT GOOOOOOOO" in both appropriate and inappropriate social settings...so why did it take us 185 episodes to finally bring it to the couch? The movie is good, and has a pretty wild twist that was novel for its time, but it isn't a perfect movie either, and experiences some missteps in its villian, consistency, and narrative that newer musical-movie entries like Moana and Encanto deftly avoid. Does this film stand the test of time? Should the gang see Disney on Ice? Does Olaf get worse or better in Frozen 2? Guess you'll have to listen to our discussion to find out. Content warning: strong language.

Fear not, dear listeners—we are almost at the finish line. Hajime Isayama's Attack on Titan endures a little bit of a shakeup for Season 4, Part 1, with studio MAPPA replacing studio Wit on the animation front while a brand new cast of Marleyan characters take center stage as opposed to the familiar Eren, Armin, and Mikasa. This final season has impressively lofty thematic goals that are powerful and gripping, but definitely changes the vibe from the absolute PEAK high-action scouts-vs-titans combat scenes from the return to Shiganshina in Season 3 in favor of more cerebral, slow-paced, human-vs-human conflicts, for better or for worst. One more Theory Wall rounds out this week's episode; one final chance to call our shots before all is revealed in Attack on Titan: The Final Part Specials 1 & 2. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

It's been a very long time since the gang discussed the original Kung Fu Panda, a film that we universally praised for its completeness, excellent performances from Dustin Hoffman and Jack Black, and impressive animation. And somewhat surprisingly, not since Shrek 2 have we seen such an impressive sequel! The animation is fresh with 2D animated storytelling interspersed with the impressive 3D fight scenes and set pieces, Po's personal journey is emotionally rich for a kids' movie, and we get an absolute banger voice performance from Gary Oldman as main antagonist Shen. Tune in to find out if the gang can achieve I N N E R P E A C E. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

With the season finale having premiered just a few weeks ago, the gang's discussion on Season 3 of Amazon Prime's Invincible is hot off the presses, and we're pleased to announce that we enjoyed it quite a bit more than Season 2. Mark's got a rapidly aging alien little brother, an increasingly strained relationship with Cecil, a hot new superhero gf, and like 18 other alternate selves who really hate his guts to deal with this season, and it feels like the emotional center of this show has finally found balance with the high-octane action and fight scenes that keep our butts glued to our seats. On the other hand, has Invincible lost a little bit of that magic that made Season 1 such a gut-punch to comic book animated media? Guess you're gonna have to give it a listen to find out! Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

This week's episode presents a chance for Michael, Trekkie of the Couch, to show his quality. Star Trek: Lower Decks is an animated 5-season series from Mike McMahan and heavily channels the vibe of McMahan's previous work on Rick and Morty, while also crafting a narrative about Star Trek's lesser known non-bridge crew that's funny, whimsical, and chock full of nerdy references for Trekkies far and wide. Alex and Marcus learn about the intricacies of Star Trek lore (and how crazy it really gets) and Michael and Iris call back to plenty of traditional Star Trek television of old during our discussions on favorite moments, favorite characters, and Michael's Star Trek-themed Trivia Corner. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Hajime Isayama's Attack on Titan has, through the previous two seasons, provided broadly more questions than answers. But fear not, dear listeners! If you've stuck with us thus far, then you'll be proud to hear that Season 3 is the undeniably euphoric catharsis the gang has been waiting for. The pieces of the puzzle are coming together! Flashbacks galore! A return to Shiganshina! MANIFEST DESTINY! The development team, Studio Wit, and my boy Hiroyuki Sawano have come together and delivered an absolute masterclass in Season 3, expanding the story around Eren, Armin, and Mikasa to build the world like never before, with key focus on Eren's father, the Ackerman bloodline, the true history of the world and the ramifications of that history on the current royal family. Come for all of that, and stay for our end-of-episode Theory Wall Sina, where all three of Iris, Marcus, and Michael get some previous theories validated as we look forward to Season 4. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

Iris takes a page out of Alex's playbook and proves that sequel episodes here on the Couch aren't just reserved for award-winning animes: following our previous episode on 2001's Justice League, today the gang presents to you 2004's Justice League Unlimited, the eighth and final series of the DC Animated Universe and cherished childhood Saturday morning cartoon for everyone here not named Michael. We can confidently say that this is the best superhero cartoon out there, with immense narrative range, superb voice acting, fun fight scenes, and great messages for children and adults alike. Plus, there's more heroes, more villains, more interpersonal banter, and even some Batman Beyond baby! It's so impressive for a show to have aged so gracefully and proved that not only did it improve upon every series that preceded it, but it became so much more than just a sendoff for the DCAU. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

After almost 3 years, special guest Andrew returns to bring his keen insight and top-class banter to the Couch as we collectively discuss a childhood darling, Xiaolin Showdown. Some parts of this show have aged...poorly...(guys, Omi is such a racist caricature) but it brings a Teen Titan-esque unity of classical Saturday morning American cartoons with anime styling and mythos with creative Shen Gong Wu, hilarious visual animation and dialogue, and memorable villains across its three seasons. For a show that gives the monks Shen Gong Wu that range from allowing them to flip to a full undersea vehicle, it's also got no shortage of blatant power creep and hilarious this-could-only-be-funny-to-an-8-year-old moments. Content warning: SPOILERS, strong language.

It's anthology szn again! Today the gang discusses Tim Miller's Secret Level, with 15 animated short stories from video games ranging from Armored Core to Warhammer, to complement our extensive history with video games of yesterday and today. While some of these "levels" feel more like glorified trailers than actual worthwhile media, we come away with the impression that what's really worth taking away is how each episode made us feel—was it cool? fun to watch? got us into the game, or pushed us away from it? Even if you're not into some of the games showcased here, or video games at all, there's some really good (and maybe some really bad) television worth discussing here. So join us! Content warning: strong language.