Shojo & Tell: A Manga Podcast
122 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 2 months ago - ★★★★★ - 48 ratingsA manga discussion podcast focusing on shojo (and josei!) series that make your heart go doki-doki. Covering classics like CLAMP’s “Cardcaptor Sakura” and Yuu Watase’s “Fushigi Yuugi” to newer favorites like Kazune Kawahara’s “My Love Story!!” and Hiro Fujiwara’s “Maid Sama!”
Shojo & Tell host Ashley McDonnell discusses one series per episode with a rotating shojo superfan. We're recreating all those impassioned rants you'd have with your friends about your favorite series, just in podcast form.
Shojo [or shoujo] manga: Japanese comics made for young women. A breath of fresh air after reading over 100 volumes of “One Piece.” The underappreciated sibling of all those same-y never-ending shonen titles.
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Episodes
Princess Jellyfish Part 2
July 25, 2018 07:00 - 1 hour - 75.4 MBCovers volumes 9 to 17 of Princess Jellyfish by Akiko Higashimura Don your armor (read: your prettiest, frilliest dress) and get ready to defend Tsukimi and all the residents of Amamizukan from corporate kidnapper Kai Fish. Guest Carrie McClain (an editor at Black Nerd Problems) and host Ashley list off the moments that made them cry in the second half, what clothes come to mean for the Amars, who has agency (and who doesn’t), and have one of the most epic Shipping Corners on the podcast ye...
Princess Jellyfish Part 1 (with Carrie McClain)
July 11, 2018 07:18 - 1 hour - 90.6 MBCovers volumes 1 to 8 of Princess Jellyfish by Akiko Higashimura Chances are you’ve heard heaps and heaps of praise bestowed upon this manga about a jellyfish otaku whose life is changed forever by a crossdresser. That praise is HELLA ACCURATE. Carrie McClain (an editor at Black Nerd Problems) and host Ashley reveal how much they’ve become Princess Jellyfish otaku by fangirling all over the Amars and Kuranosuke, dissecting how Higashimura explores identity politics through the narrative and...
The Full-Time Wife Escapist (with Megan DeYarman)
June 27, 2018 07:00 - 1 hour - 42.5 MBCovers all 9 volumes of The Full-Time Wife Escapist by Tsunami Umino What would it be like to get married as a job? Megan DeYarman (of The Manga Test Drive) and host Ashley dive into The Full-Time Wife Escapist’s (very good) takes on alternatives to traditional marriage, family generally, and employment in particular (scheduling out twice-monthly hug dates may not be as weird and emotionless as it seems!). Plus, there’s plenty of gushing about the respectful representation of older virgins,...
Fushigi Yugi Part 2
June 13, 2018 07:48 - 1 hour - 62.6 MBCovers volumes 10-18 of Fushigi Yugi by Yu Watase We’re back to talk about the strange saga of Fushigi Yugi’s ending and how Tamahome became Taka, or Taka was always Taka but he allowed Tamahome to exist, one’s a shadow, something like that. Just trust us on this one. Ashley, Caitlin, and Jess also discuss how Miaka and Yui have matured after one of them was consumed by a dragon god (oh, they also graduated middle school), how a young Yu Watase may have been underestimating the power of sho...
Fushigi Yugi Part 1 (with Caitlin Moore and Jess Tan)
May 30, 2018 08:28 - 1 hour - 90 MBCovers volumes 1-9 of Fushigi Yugi by Yu Watase Watase’s classic stirs up a lot of feelings in this first Shojo & Tell episode to have three people voicing their opinions. The nostalgia goggles are definitely on for Ashley, Caitlin, and Jessica as they debate who the best celestial warrior is (NURIKO IS THE GREATEST! NO! TASUKI!), ponder the strange choice to have the Seiryu warriors be evil, and discuss how the isekai genre has evolved over the years since Fushigi Yugi (ugh, Sword Art Onli...
Strobe Edge (with Alyssa from Anime Intensity)
May 16, 2018 08:01 - 1 hour - 83.6 MBCovers all ten volumes of Strobe Edge by Io Sakisaka First: Strobe Edge is an amazing title, and we take many opportunities to remind you of this throughout the episode. How do you not want to read a manga called Strobe Edge? If you need more convincing about how great this work from Io Sakisaka is, Alyssa (who runs the YouTube channel Anime Intensity) and Shojo & Tell host Ashley do a character conflicts rundown, discuss the merits (or lack thereof) of love triangles as a trope (also: Team...
We Were There Part 2 (with Nancy from Shojo Beat)
May 02, 2018 08:06 - 1 hour - 62.4 MBCovers volumes 9-16 of We Were There by Yuki Obata Ultra super special guest Nancy Thistlethwaite, a senior editor for Viz Media’s Shojo Beat line, returns to do an in-depth character analysis of Nanami, Yano, Takeuchi, Yuri, and the rest of the crew in We Were There (Bokura ga Ita). (Host Ashley and Nancy may talk a little too much about Take, against their better judgment. Stop it, Take! Get out of here! Team Yano forever!) Memories, dreams, and metaphors like the internal compass are ana...
We Were There Part 1 (with Nancy from Shojo Beat)
April 18, 2018 07:23 - 1 hour - 55.7 MBCovers volumes 1-8 of We Were There by Yuki Obata Super special guest Nancy Thistlethwaite, a senior editor for Viz Media’s Shojo Beat line, discusses the first half of the beautiful and devastating series We Were There with host Ashley. Nancy and Ashley get into why Obata’s work didn’t take off in America, which scenes punched them in the gut the most, why people who don’t ship Yano and Nanami just don’t get it, and find out which Disneyland Land Nanami is. Plus, you find out that Ashley r...
Japan Trip 2018 Special
April 05, 2018 09:48 - 52 minutes - 47.8 MBWe’re going on a Japan trip! Ashley’s been on vacation in Japan for the past two weeks, and has gone on some manga-related adventures (and many non-manga-related adventures). She and her romantic partner/Viz Media employee/travel companion Jeff Ruberg discuss the Kimi ni Todoke exhibit at Tokyo Anime Center, how it compares to the ongoing Shonen Jump exhibit, what it’s like seeing the spring cherry blossoms and going to themed cafes, and generally what their favorite activity on this trip ha...
QQ Sweeper (with Laura from Heart of Manga)
March 21, 2018 08:07 - 1 hour - 57.3 MBCovers all three volumes of QQ Sweeper by Kyousuke Motomi Spring is finally here! So Ashley and Laura prepare to start spring cleaning by first reading QQ Sweeper. Which is legit about sweeping. Like, with a broom. A plain old broom. Sure, it's also about exorcisms and supernatural stuff and punching giant centipedes, but mostly, it's about sweeping. And it is SO GOOD. Ashley and Laura get to the heart of what a Cinderella story even is, why this series has a sequel called Queen's Quality,...
Arina Tanemura One-Shots (with Loyola Rankin)
March 07, 2018 16:32 - 1 hour - 72.4 MBCovers: I.O.N., Short-Tempered Melancholic and Other Stories, and Mistress Fortune, all by Arina Tanemura Put on your frilliest dress and lace up as Loyola and Ashley discuss a bunch of one-volume manga from the author of Full Moon O Sagashite. Which of these six short stories was the best? Why exactly did Tanemura think having a lecherous 14-year-old character would be fun? Should you forget your umbrella every time it rains so your crush will be forced to share theirs with you? All that a...
The Key to the Kingdom (with Megan DeYarman)
February 21, 2018 08:13 - 1 hour - 64.2 MBCovers all 6 volumes of THE KEY TO THE KINGDOM by Kyoko Shitou Megan and Ashley discuss a very underappreciated title published by the now-defunct CMX. Many comparisons to The Vision of Escaflowne are made as discussions about dragons and fate ensue. Are the dragons a metaphor for nuclear weapons? Do Gaius and Badd have a thing for each other? Just what kind of leader is Asta, anyway? Why the heck did you never hear about this gorgeous manga?! All your pressing questions about just what the...
Valentine’s Day Special
February 14, 2018 09:08 - 34 minutes - 31.5 MBRoses are red Violets are blue Shojo is sweet Here are strange ships Happy Valentine’s Day! Here’s a bonus episode where we asked various people to answer this question: If you could ship any characters across shojo series, who would you ship and why? The answers may surprise you. Especially since Ashley cheats and takes protagonists from a shonen manga instead. SOCIAL Follow Loyola on Twitter Follow Laura on Twitter Follow Asher on Tumblr Follow Shojo & Tell on Twitter @shojoandtel...
Tokyo Tarareba Girls (with Amelia Cook)
February 07, 2018 08:24 - 1 hour - 93.1 MBCovers all 9 volumes of TOKYO TARAREBA GIRLS by Akiko Higashimura This episode, Ashley and Amelia discuss a josei series for the first time on the podcast. What if, what if, we told you “Tokyo Tarareba Girls” is one of the best manga of the decade? What if, what if, you’ve never read a more relatable manga than this in your life? What if, what if, we told you to stop lollygagging around and read this manga right now? As you’ll find out from our heartfelt and earnest discussion, this story a...
Millennium Snow (with Caitlin Moore)
January 24, 2018 08:55 - 1 hour - 77.1 MBCovers all of MILLENNIUM SNOW by Bisco Hatori In the 10 years between the publication of the second and third volume of “Millennium Snow,” Bisco Hatori went off and wrote this little-known manga called “Ouran High School Host Club.” How did that affect this short and sweet four-volume manga? How does this vampire and werewolf love triangle compare to the infamous Twilight Saga? (Hint: It's much better.) How does it handle the themes of morality and time? Ashley and Caitlin discuss all that,...
MeruPuri (with Loyola Rankin)
January 10, 2018 08:48 - 1 hour - 101 MBAll four volumes of MERUPURI are discussed. Ashley and Loyola discuss a short manga from Matsuri Hino, the creator of Vampire Knight. It’s the first manga covered on the podcast that doesn’t have an anime adaptation, and given its strange mashup of Japanese, German, English, and random symbols, neither Ashley nor Loyola ever figures out how to pronounce ANYTHING! (as-tale? UH-stale? Who knows? Do you know?) There’s talk of tattoos and taboos, mirrors reflecting the past and the present, and...
Maid-sama! Part 2
December 27, 2017 08:15 - 1 hour - 90.5 MBVol 10-18 of Maid-sama! (end of the series) Asher and Ashley are back to discuss the second half of Hiro Fujiwara’s modern masterpiece about Maid Latte. As promised, the Ashes discuss Maid-sama!’s portrayal of social class and the tension between the aristocracy and the meritocracy, lament that some characters end up in problematic pairings, and gush about how cute Misaki and Usui were during the hot springs trip (and later, when they exchange scarves — too freakin’ cute!). LINKS Get Maid...
Maid-sama! Part 1 (with Asher Sofman)
December 13, 2017 07:24 - 1 hour - 77.8 MBCovers: MAID-SAMA! Vol. 1-9 After doing two classic shojo series, we’re finally covering Ashley’s favorite manga of all time: Maid-sama! Yes, Ashley’s favorite manga is about working in a maid cafe. Asher and Ashley discuss how liking a manga about maids is okay (also discussed: whether this manga is actually about maids), what this battle of the sexes story has to say about gender roles, and whether Misaki Ayuzawa and Usui Takumi make a good couple. Mostly, Ashley just rants about how Misa...
Cardcaptor Sakura Part 2
November 29, 2017 07:53 - 2 hours - 114 MBJess and Ashley discuss Cardcaptor Sakura vol. 7-12, plus the first volume of the new CCS: Clear Card manga! There's a debate about the merits of passive versus active heroism, Ashley likes Ruby Moon while Jess crushes on Yue, they take a very definitive Teen Vogue quiz to assess if Sakura and Syaoran are ready for their long-distance relationship, and — wait a second, there are like four student/teacher romances in this manga?! Oh, CLAMP. LINKS Get Cardcaptor Sakura from Dark Horse Get C...
Cardcaptor Sakura Part 1 (with Jess Tan)
November 15, 2017 15:56 - 1 hour - 68.1 MBKyahhhh! It’s time to release the first episode about one of the most iconic shojo series ever! Ashley and Jess cover volumes 1-6 of Cardcaptor Sakura and discuss who is the best character (hint: Toya, but also maybe all of them?), how CCS represents every type of love you could think of (for better or worse), and come up with an excellent marketing plan to help CLAMP’s iconic series take advantage of the collectible card genre. LINKS Buy Cardcaptor Sakura from Dark Horse Cardcaptor Sakur...
Revolutionary Girl Utena (with Rose Bridges)
November 01, 2017 15:24 - 1 hour - 73.8 MBAshley and Rose discuss how divergent the manga and anime of Revolutionary Girl Utena are, debate whether the manga is still a deconstruction of the shoujo genre, figure out which Disney prince Utena is, and ponder whether Kill la Kill is an homage to Utena. Somehow, even though Ashley’s middle name is Rose and she was talking to someone named Rose, jokes about being the Rose Bride don’t happen. Oops? Click here for a transcript of this episode LINKS Buy Utena from Viz! Cited interviews ...
Intro & Teaser
October 26, 2017 03:45 - 4 minutes - 6.86 MBA teaser of the Revolutionary Girl Utena and Cardcaptor Sakura episodes, plus some info on the format and vision of the podcast.