Episode Notes

Welcome to Ghost Divers, a true crime podcast or something I guess.

We start by looking back a little at our long journey with Neon Genesis Evangelion and talk a little about how our personal experiences informed our readings of the show and, especially, the movie. We then answer questions about reading Eva through Anno’s life, our least favorite Eva spinoffs, dismemberment and abjection, Toji’s hair color in the show vs. the manga, what astrology signs image meme Eva characters would create, kissing the homies goodnight (redux), Asuka as a Twitch streamer, how Gendo should just fuck off actually, and experiencing media too young.

For our non-anime things, Niamh brings When the Pawn… by Fiona Apple and we talk a little about it, but honestly also talk a lot about critical approaches to media in general. We then move on to Connor’s pick of A Brighter Summer Day and talk a little about how the film constructs space in relation to history and politics.

You can write into future Question Buckets at [email protected] and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Content Warnings for this Discussion

Abusive relationships
Pain / blood kink
Dismemberment
Mention of rape / sexual abuse
Bipolar disorder
Violence & death

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Hold on to that dream
Tomorrow knows, where and when
It’s true, what you believe
Don’t let go, the podcast will never end…

Dive into Magic Knight Rayearth!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Release Schedule

[S1E1] Intro: July 23, 2021
[S1E2] Eps. 1–10: August 6, 2021
[S1E3] Eps. 11–20: August 20, 2021
[S1E4] Eps. 21–30: September 3, 2021
[S1E5] Eps. 31–39: September 17, 2021
[S1E6] Eps. 40–49: October 1, 2021
[S1E7] Question Bucket: October 15, 2021

Works Cited

"Deviant Male Identities in Japanese RPGs: Heterosexual Heroes, Gay Villains" by Juan F. Belmonte, presented at the 2016 Different Games Conference

Cruising Utopia: The Then and There of Queer Futurity by José Esteban Muñoz, especially chapter 6 "Stages: Queers, Punk, and the Utopian Performative"

Content Warnings for the Anime

Violence
Blood
Depression, self-harm, and suicide
Abusive relationships
Sexuality & partial nudity
Plurality
Homophobia / queerphobia
Racist caricatures
Flashing lights
Mind control / possession

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

This podcast is named after the Rolls-Royce Ghost Diver.

We start out with Niamh reading through this nice little document fae created before diving into the discussion of the episodes. We touch on topics including the comedic tone of the early episodes and its use of JRPG tropes; how the girls are gay; the triangulation of Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu onto class distinctions, forms of femininity, and also the three hosts of this very podcast; Hikaru’s need for unconditional love, Umi’s fraught relationship with her parents, and Fuu’s struggle with self-hatred; the nature of Cephiro as a world of will and how it relates to themes of wish fulfillment and destiny in magical girl anime; the transition of girlhood to womanhood as a core theme of Rayearth; stories about getting high; the construction of types of masculinity in Rayearth; images of motherhood; and the core conflicts being set up for the three girls.

Write into our Question Bucket at [email protected] and follow us on Twitter!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Works Cited

Autumn’s Happy Pride tweet

Niamh’s Ultimate Combination AMV

Content Warnings for this Discussion

Mind control / possession
Discussion of drug and alcohol use

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Connor, Niamh, and Honorary Third Ghost Diver Autumn are back again to discuss the second half of the first season of Magic Knight Rayearth. It’s a mech show now?

We get into the gradual tonal shift as the series progresses and grows darker; the color coding of characters around red, blue, green, white, and purple/black; Caldina’s character as another mode of femininity and as a person swayed by the love of the Magic Knights; Hikaru and blood and its thematic resonance for the show as a whole; the recurring themes around free will, possession, and mind control; the themes of love and the limits of love to protect you from harm; the queer-coding of Inouva; Connor’s attempt to stop being so mean to Niamh’s beloved dumb bishie, Ferio; the metaphorical usage of the Pillar system of Cephiro to talk about gendered expectations in patriarchal cisheteronormativity; and the tragedy of Princess Emeraude and Lord Zagato and how it ties together all the themes so far and also leaves open the door for far, far more in need of exploration in season 2.

Join us next time, for the first ten episodes of season 2 of Magic Knight Rayearth, episodes 21–30!

As a note, the post-ED backmatter for this podcast episode includes some Madoka Magica spoilers.

Anyway, here’s the Rayearth car names document for season 1 if you need it again.

Write into our Question Bucket at [email protected] and follow us on Twitter!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Content Warnings for this Discussion

Sexualization of women
Mind control / Possession
Illusions / Unreality
Mention of violence against a child
Blood
Queerphobia
Suicide
Abusive relationships
Discussion of beer and vomit in the post-ED section

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Niamh keeps saying fae’s Nova and we’ve all just been waiting for this stupid brat to finally show up. We’re discussing episodes 21–30 of Magic Knight Rayearth!

We start the conversation with Niamh reading through this document fae made on the origins of the new character’s names for season two, then dive into topics such as the uneasiness around the way the girls immediately take on the role of magic knights again; how Rayearth is finally really a mech show; the problem of straightness vs. queerness in season two and Hikaru as a polyamorous character; the pacing of season two; how the series is further developing the themes of the show around patriarchal systems and the inability of people to conceive of themselves outside of the systems in which they live; how the show is setting up themes of relationships, jealousy, guilt, and the impositions of heteronormative culture; and finally some stuff around Hikaru, Nova, and the Pillar System that has been signaled pretty heavily in these first 10 episdes but maybe some viewers would miss. Sorry if that last bit kind of feels like spoilers,episodes but it’s all in there and we ended up thinking it’s better if we can just acknowledge that these things are happening so we can talk about them more!

Anyway, write into our Question Bucket at [email protected] and follow us on Twitter!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Content Warnings for this Discussion

Possession & brainwashing
Abusive relationships
Blood
Sexuality
Beer & cocktail talk

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

We run a tight ship over here at Ghost, Divers, and Associates LLC. Nobody forgets to open the Google doc. No one accidentally uses their webcam’s mic to record half the episode. And definitely there is no bratty antagonizing of one of the hosts for misremembering a scene from the anime by another one of the hosts. We just focus right in on discussing episodes 31-39 of Magic Knight Rayearth.

We start our discussion with some of the character design elements and uhhh none of us had read the Rayearth 2 manga at this point so we say some wrong things about which characters appeared in the manga as well. We then dive into a lengthy discussion of the series’ bathhouse episode (it’s actually pretty interesting!) and how it relates to queerness and the impositions of straightness in Magic Knight Rayearth; the way Lantis problematizes Hikaru’s relationships with other characters she loves; queerbaiting; what’s going on with Presea and this short motherfucker Clef; the difference in the structure of these episodes compared to earlier in the series; Eagle and Geo and how Eagle clearly isn’t over his ex; the weird extended queerphobic joke around the Djinn Raccoon and Rasheen; the Clemi ship and the possibility that Clef is Umi’s beard; Umi & Chizeta; Fuu & Fahren; and Hikaru & Nova.

Also, here’s the Rayearth car names document for season 2 if you need it again.

Write into our Question Bucket at [email protected] and follow us on Twitter!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Works Cited in this Discussion

"Deviant Male Identities in Japanese RPGs: Heterosexual Heroes, Gay Villains" by Juan F. Belmonte, presented at the 2016 Different Games Conference

Content Warnings for this Discussion

Ethnic stereotypes
Sexuality and discussions around women’s bodies
Queerphobia
Self-hatred, self-harm, and suicidality

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

We are finishing out our discussion of Magic Knight Rayearth Season 2! These are some of Niamh’s favorite episodes of anime ever! Connor and Autumn think they are just good but it’s fine.

In between recording the last episode and this one, Niamh read all of the manga, and so we start with a little discussion about how the manga and anime differ. We also talk about the pacing of season 2 and how it might relate to the unwillingness of the Magic Knights to fight after the tragedy of season 1; why the show can’t really develop Hikaru x Lantis because what it’s more interested in is Hikaru having to confront her need for love from others so that she can ignore her own self-hatred; how Hikaru and Eagle just talking through the problem is actually a sign that both characters are at a place where they can talk openly and in opposition to the Pillar System; an actual discussion of the Asmi ship and why we keep mocking Connor about this; the historical ubiquity of straight readings of old anime and how canonically Hikaru wants to marry her entire polycule (it’s in the fucking manga); Niamh’s updates to the Rayearth car names document for season 2 and also this ad for the car that fake Presea is named after; Hikaru x Nova and how it ties in with the end of season 1; a brief history of modern concepts of sexuality and Niamh finally reading from Cruising Utopia; Cephiro as a “stage” for the imagining of a new queer polyamorous utopia for Hikaru; and “queerbaiting” old anime like Rayearth as a “stage” for the imagining of queer possibilities.

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 Sunday, October 10, 2021. You can write into ghostdiverspod@gmail and follow us on Twitter!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Works Cited in this Discussion

Connor’s tumblr post

exportaud.io/asmi

The NeoRayearth.net Fan Rants page that Niamh mocks

Cruising Utopia: The Then and There of Queer Futurity by José Esteban Muñoz (esp. chapter 6 "Stages: Queers, Punk, and the Utopian Performative")

Content Warnings for this Discussion

Mental health issues, self-hatred, and suicidality Homophobia / queerphobia Cigarettes Sex Alcohol Drugs

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Connor and Niamh are joined partway through by Autumn for the Question Bucket and we are basically just hanging out and having fun.

We start out with some updates! The Intro episodes for our next series is no long going to drop on the same day as Question Buckets just to give us all a little more time and breathing room. But if you’re sad about the potential loss of content, don’t worry, we also announce the first of what will be our annual New Year’s Day Special! Every January 1st, we’re going to release a bonus episode about whatever we want, and our very first one will be talking about the Icelandic literary classic Independent People by Halldór Laxness! If you want to read the book and write in, we’ll announce the actual recording date when we know it but it’ll be no earlier than mid-December.

Anyway, sorry that this is a mukbang podcast now but we’re reviewing some beer and food on this. We talk a little about the manga and then Niamh just yells for a while about the OVA and how bad it is before getting into the actual questions, including what car we would be named after if we were Rayearth characters and what our color and element would be, which Rayearth character kiss the homies goodnight and tuck the homies in goodnight, what fast food restaurants the Rayearth characters love, and the favorite vtubers of the three Magic Knights.

We then talk a little about Brandi Carlile’s new album In These Silent Days, which is maybe the most serious part of this otherwise goofy episode. We also take some shots at the new Kacey Musgraves album, sorry if you like it.

You can write into future Question Buckets at [email protected] and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Autumn: @Autumnal_Coffee
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Content Warnings for this Discussion

Alcohol, tobacco, and drug usage
Blood and nudity and other edgy 90s OVA stuff
Suicide (briefly)

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

Once upon a time, years and years ago, there was an awkward teenager pretending to be a boy, and they were very sad because they were bullied out of watching Magic Knight Rayearth. Before the teen appeared another magical girl anime on their girlfriend’s bookshelf. It had a regal bearing and a distinctive style. The anime wrapped the teen in a rose-scented embrace and wiped the tears from their eyes. _ “Closeted one,” it said, “who bears up alone in such deep sorrow. Never lose that softness or femininity. I give you this, to remember this day.” _ “We’ll meet again, won’t we?” _ “This DVD will lead you to me, one day.” _ Perhaps the DVD the anime gave them was just for entertainment. This was all well and good, but so impressed were they by the show that the teen vowed to become a trans girl podcaster faerself one day. But was that really such a good idea?

Dive into Revolutionary Girl Utena!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Release Schedule

[S1E1] Intro: October 29, 2021
[S1E2] Student Council Saga, pt. 1 (Eps. 1–7): November 12, 2021
[S1E3] Student Council Saga, pt. 2 (Eps. 8–13): November 26, 2021
[S1E4] Black Rose Saga (Eps. 14–23): December 10, 2021
[S1E5] Ohtori Akio Saga (Eps. 24–33): December 24, 2021
[S1E6] Apocalypse Saga (Eps. 34–39): January 7, 2022
[S1E7] Surprise Bonus Episode: Catching up on Utena with Special Guest Star Autumn Blake: January 14, 2022
[S1E8] Adolescence of Utena: January 21, 2022
[S1E9] Question Bucket: February 4, 2022

Works Cited

The Myth of the Eternal Return by Mircea Eliade, translated by Willard Trask

Cruising Utopia: The Then and There of Queer Futurity by José Esteban Muñoz

Content Warnings for the Anime

Sexuality
Abusive relationships (physical, emotional, sexual, etc.)
Manipulation
Grooming
Rape
Homophobia
Incest
Pedophilia
Physical violence (including slapping, sword fighting, swords to throats)
Racist caricature
Depression, suicidality, and depiction of suicide
Confessional / therapy in negative contexts
Arson and burning people
Stalking
Car crashes
Impalement
Torture
Unreality
Flashing lights

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co

This episode is dedicated to all the GL-loving long-haul truckers in the audience. We see you, we support you, we will always be here for you.

Anyway, we start our discussion of Revolutionary Girl Utena with a deep dive into the first half of the Student Council Saga spanning episodes 1 through 7! We try to untangle everything that is introduced early on in this series including cyclic time, fairytales, gender roles, the tension between reality and unreality in the show and the evocation of the artifice of theatre and animation, the series’ immediate engagement with patriarchal systems, portrayals of queerness, the interiority of Utena’s characters (especially Anthy), the difficulty of resisting a system from within it, how Utena must have influenced Cromartie High School, the overt lesbianism in the series, and Touga’s creepiness and what Connor as anticipating as the series continues.

Write into our Question Bucket at [email protected] and follow us on Twitter!

The Show: @ghostdiverspod
Niamh: @FoxmomNia
Connor: @rabbleais
Garfield Read Aloud: @GarfReadAloud

Export Audio Network: exportaud.io
Ghost Divers: exportaud.io/ghostdivers
Ornate Stairwells: exportaud.io/ornate stairwells

Content Warnings for this Discussion

Abusive relationships, especial physical abuse Sexism Incest / age difference / pedophilia Alcohol (post-ED)

Find out more at https://ghost-divers.pinecast.co