FLAVOR TEXT: Metal Gear Solid

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Kept you waiting, huh? It's been nearly four years since we first talked about Vulcan Raven and his magical spirit ravens, and so we're finally bringing you the full context and delivering on what may be one of the most complicated and insane video game stories of all time...Metal Gear Solid!

Our deep dive into the history and lore of this PS1 classic will leave you wondering if love can, in fact, bloom on the battlefield. Maybe even after it's over, you'll leave a comment saying...you're pretty good. La-Li-Lu-Le-Lo. OK, that's enough this game is silly.

Link to the Imgur library: https://imgur.com/a/plqBFN9

Recommended Reading

Have you seen our Twitter? twitter.com/debatethiscast

Have you seen our Instagram? instagram.com/debatethiscast

Want to send us an email? debatethiscast@gmail.

Music for Debate This! is provided by composer Ozzed under a Creative Commons license. Check out more of their 8-bit bops at ozzed.net!

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FLAVOR TEXT: Pokémania

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In September 1998, the U.S. was introduced to the franchise that would soon become a worldwide phenomenon: Pokémon. After only 18 months, Pokémon was everywhere--on TV, in car CD players, in school cafeterias, and on kids' backpacks and bedsheets. You couldn't walk 5 feet inside a Kmart and not see something with Pikachu's likeness on it. How did this come about? Why, all of a sudden, was every child aged 7-14 suddenly screaming for their parents in to buy them booster pack upon booster pack of Pokémon cards in the summer of 1999? And, why oh God why is there a Pokémon Christmas album? Find out the answers to all these questions and more on our deep dive into the late 90s cultural phenomenon that was Pokémania.

Special thanks to our first-generational Pokémon Master, "@mgrum54" for commissioning today's episode. If you're interested in comissioning your own FLAVOR TEXT, come check out our patreon at patreon.com/debatethiscast.

Spooktacular Review-a-thon:

  • Step 1: Review the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Podchaser, Goodpods, or anywhere else you can write reviews!

  • Step 2: Take a screenshot of your review, post it to social media, and tag us @debatethiscast

  • Step 3: We'll read your review in a spooky voice during the October ad breaks!

  • Step 4: If we get 20 new reviews this month, we'll make Todd play Doki Doki Literature Club live on Twitch!

Spooktacular Patreon Bonus:

Have you seen our Twitter? twitter.com/debatethiscast

Have you seen our Instagram? instagram.com/debatethiscast

Want to send us an email? debatethiscast@gmail.com

Music for Debate This! is provided by composer Ozzed under a Creative Commons license. Check out more of their 8-bit bops at www.ozzed.net!

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FLAVOR TEXT: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

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Cowabunga dude! Join us today as we stuff you full of 90's nostalgia and New York style pizza as we do a deep dive into the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on todays FLAVOR TEXT! Come along as we have answer the questions like "were the 90's turtles the best?" and "why were the 90's turtles the best?" Stick around long enough and you'll get to hear all about the major misstep taken in introducing the first new turtle, Venus de Milo.

Special thanks to a budding hero of #buttthwompnation, "BaconBitBehemoth" for commissioning today's episode! You would have been our first choice in casting a true to form Casey Jones if they had asked our opinion.

Go check out our fledgling Redbubble shop where you can find your favorite debater as a pixelated fantasy hero: https://rdbl.co/3PWMs5j

Music for Debate This! is provided by composer Ozzed under a Creative Commons license. Check out more of their 8-bit bops at www.ozzed.net!

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FLAVOR TEXT: Gender in Comics

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CONTENT WARNING: at 1 hour 38 minutes we discuss sexual assault in comic books.

Last year we discussed Social Justice in Comics (Season 4, Episode 21) which covered an entire spectrum of social justice issues that comics sometimes handled alright, but often times missed the mark. This week, thanks to continued support of Patrons like Sharkbait, we're dialing in to focus on Gender in Comics. Join us today as we talk demographics, representation, and the artists behind the characters. If you hadn't become familiarized with the terrible history of "fridging" then you will be after today.

We did our homework:
"The Golden Age of Comic Books" - Mark Kelley, Marquette University - https://bit.ly/3brN2JH
"Punch a Nazi: 15 Times Superheroes Fought Fascism" - https://bit.ly/3bvNZAP
"The History Behind Captain America Punching Hitler" - https://bit.ly/3HWNhbU
"NYCC Insider Sessions Powered by ICV2: A Demographic Snapshot of Comics Buyers" - https://bit.ly/3uamIud
"Women in Refrigerators" - https://bit.ly/3Otnafj
"Pink Kryptonite" - https://bit.ly/3OLxorc

Music for Debate This! is provided by composer Ozzed under a Creative Commons license. Check out more of their 8-bit bops at www.ozzed.net!

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FLAVOR TEXT: Fire Emblem

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The Fire Emblem: two words that have been a shield, a group of weapons, and a song. Legendary heroes, dragons being revived to start and/or end a war? This series has it all. And before you ask, yes there are child soldiers. Feast your eyes on this full album of uniquely named characters that aren't just our favorite Smash Bros characters: https://imgur.com/a/kvMK0XT.

Special thanks to Dr GarlicButter, who would certainly never start a war with a neighboring country in search of the spirit of a dead dragon. If what YOU want is to commission your own FLAVOR TEXT, check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/debatethiscast.

Have you seen our Twitter? twitter.com/debatethiscast
Have you seen our Instagram? instagram.com/debatethiscast
Want to send us an email? debatethiscast@gmail.com

Do you like it when we talk about comics? Do you like it when we say comic words into your earholes? Would you like more content that includes us saying comic words into your lil ears? If you begrudgingly answered yes to any of those questions, check out our sister show, Avenge This! (formally known as The Ploose is Loose) where ever you get your podcasts!

Music for Debate This! is provided by composer Ozzed under a creative commons license. Check out more of their 8-bit bops at www.ozzed.net!

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FLAVOR TEXT: Flavor Text Wrap Up

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Deep lore, little known facts, and other nuggets of knowledge. For years DT! has been doing deep dives into your favorite properties through our FLAVOR TEXT episodes. To celebrate the start of our 5th(!) season and 30th(!) FLAVOR TEXT, we are bringing you a comprehensive ranking of the lore from those properties!

Which property's lore did we rank the highest? The lowest? Does the fact that there are a billion Bomberman games still blow our minds? Do we mix up the plotlines of Ys and NieR regularly? Does Andrew owe us an apology for the Kingdom Hearts episide? These answers and more in our FLAVOR TEXT of all FLAVOR TEXTS today!

Special thanks to you, our beloved members of #buttthwompnation, for commissioning all the episodes that helped make today's show special! If you want to commission your own FLAVOR TEXT, check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/debatethiscast.

Music for Debate This! is provided by composer Ozzed under a creative commons license. Check out more of their 8-bit bops at www.ozzed.net!

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FLAVOR TEXT: Halo

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Buckle yourself in for the Great Journey as we talk about Spartan IIs, Forerunners, Sticky Grenades, the Flood, Prometheans, SPNKRS, a brief stint experimenting with dual wielding mechanics, and punching the Prophet of Regret in his stupid alien face. That's right, today we're doing our deep dive into the Halo series in our latest FLAVOR TEXT.

With Halo: Infinite just released, it's time to brush up on 7 games worth of deep, intergalactic space lore following the origins of life in the Halo universe, the creation of Spartan IIs, details of what the Halos actually are (and are not!) and ending with some guesses as to the plot of Halo: Infinite. Spoiler: Todd was only partially correct.

Link to "I read every Halo novel and became the Master Chief of loneliness”: https://youtu.be/WEWEdIcx1DI

Special thanks to "mgrum54," aspiring bearer of the Mantle of Responsibility and member of #buttthwompnation for commissioning today's episode! If you want to commission your own FLAVOR TEXT, check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/debatethiscast.

Music for Debate This! is provided by composer Ozzed under a creative commons license. Check out more of their 8-bit bops at www.ozzed.net!

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FLAVOR TEXT: Avatar: The Last Airbender

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Naruto. One Piece. Dragonball. My grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days, a time of peace when The Big Three kept shounen anime fans together in harmony. But all of that changed when Nickelodeon attacked.

Avatar: The Last Airbender mastered all the elements: A collection of juvenile misfits forming a found-family, a journey of growth and self-discovery across the globe, and a mischievous but lovable boy saving the world with the power of friendship and cool ninja powers. AND, this was all being created by a Western studio. Only Avatar: The Last Airbender could save the world from the ruthless otaku claiming Western animation was not real anime. But when the world needed Avatar: The Last Airbender the most, it vanished.

Thirteen years have passed, and the boys at Debate This! have re-discovered Avatar: The Last Airbender. And although the world and its characters are great, it still has a lot to learn before it's ready to save a sub-standard premium streaming service. But we believe Avatar: The Last Airbender can save the world.

Link to image gallery for this episode: https://bit.ly/2YPyE8a

Special thanks to "Dr. Harmacist," resident Blood Bender of #buttthwompnation for commissioning today's episode! If you want to commission your own FLAVOR TEXT, check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/debatethiscast.

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FLAVOR TEXT: Social Justice in Comics

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Art imitates life. That is the same with comic books. Over the last few decades of storylines featuring our favorite comic book heroes, there have been plenty of problematic storylines, events, and characters that mirror the same cultural issues we have faced in America. The Comics Code Authority, culturally insensitive propaganda, and the fact that white comic book writers have likely unwittingly ruined a whole bunch of storylines featuring underrepresented populations are just a few entries in the bird's nest that is social justice issues in comics.

Since we know these themes can be problematic, we wanted to point out the following timestamps for specific trigger warnings:
- Violence against Japanese people - 7:40-7:50
- Sexual Assault - 36:55-38:30
- The Ku Klux Klan - 1:10:00-1:12:40
- Chemical Warfare Against a Minority - 1:17:30-1:19:00

Today's educational, informative, and culturally self-reflective lore dump is brought to you by Tommy, AKA "Whomstrodamus" in our Discord! Check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/debatethiscast if you want to commission your own FLAVOR TEXT for the one-time price of $50!

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FLAVOR TEXT: NieR

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A good, good anime boy finds a magic talking book, and embarks on a journey to save his sister with the help of a lovable pair of colorful outcasts. Now, this might sound like your typical JRPG fare on the surface, but Yoko Taro's NieR franchise is anything but typical. Coming off the heels of three playthroughs of NieR: Replicant ver.1.22474487139, Andrew takes us on our own coming-of-age journey to learn the story and lore behind NieR.

Link to the Imgur album referenced in the episode: https://imgur.com/a/bvYi8wh.

You can listen to the entire soundtrack here on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3opnkIi.

Also, here's a link to listen to the full version of Kaine's theme remastered for the new Final Fantasy XIV NieR raid collaboration: https://bit.ly/3eUDBSw. Download a free trial today and play unrestricted up through level 60, including the award-winning expansion, Heavensward!

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