Beneath the Tangles

For the second episode of season two, I had the pleasure of sitting down with voice actor and ADR assistant director, Ben Stegmair (Daemons of the Shadow Realm, Kaiju No. 8).

What immediately stood out to me about Ben’s story wasn’t just the work he’s doing today—it was how intentional his journey has been from the beginning. While many actors discover voice acting later in their careers, Ben set his sights on the medium early, pursuing theater and performance with a clear goal in mind.

In our conversation, we discuss the voice actors who inspired him, including Eric Vale, and the mentors who helped shape his career, particularly Caitlin Glass and Shawn Gann. Ben speaks candidly about the opportunities they’ve provided, the lessons they’ve taught him, and the importance of having people who believe in you along the way.

We also dive into his role as Yuru in Daemons of the Shadow Realm, his behind-the-scenes work as an ADR assistant director, as well as his growing desire not only to perform stories, but to create them. Whether discussing anime, manga, directing, or his hopes of developing original comics in the future, Ben’s passion for storytelling comes through clearly. I even got the chance to ask for his Mt. Rushmore of manga!

More than anything, though, this episode is about gratitude, perseverance, and the value of mentorship. None of us reaches our goals alone, and Ben’s willingness to acknowledge the people who helped him along the way made for a thoughtful and encouraging conversation.

“My goal is to create the American Shonen Jump.”

Honestly, that’s a pretty awesome dream, Ben!

Kaiju, apocalyptic aliens, cryptid witches, and loving couples fill the pages of the volumes we’re reviewing this week. Read on to see if we recommend the latest releases of Dandadan, It Takes More Than a Pretty Face to Fall in Love, and more!

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Happy Friday, otaku! Here I come again with another “old school” anime devo, but as Discotek Media says in all their sizzle reels, “Blu-rays are forever. So are the classics.”

Speaking of them, they released today’s subject on Blu-ray a few years ago: Iria: Zeiram the Animation (1994). This six-episode OVA (original video animation) from the mad mind of Keita Amemiya serves as a prequel to his live-action films Zeiram (1991) and Zeiram 2 (1994). It follows the titular heroine, an apprentice bounty hunter on a far-off planet, on her first mission with her brother, the veteran hunter Gren, to a wrecked starship called the Karma in deep space. There, they find that the ship’s cargo–the monstrous lifeform Zeiram–has slaughtered the crew. Gren, determined to kill Zeiram, stays on the ship to self-destruct it, and Iria barely survives in an escape pod. She crash-lands on a nearby resort planet—but Zeiram has survived. He stalks her like an animal on the prowl, seizing upon any opportunity to attack her. But is it to kill her or for some other reason? Iria spends the entire OVA unraveling that mystery.