English Dub Review: Pop Team Epic “The 30th Cyber War”

Popuko is a complete newbie at go, but she makes to challenge the top four shogi champions. However, she is accompanied by a spirit named, Pipimi. The match is being commented on by a very indifferent news staff. She goes through the second and third of the big four with ease. She goes to the top of the tower, where she discovers the true boss: Mother AI PP1000. PP1000 challenges her to a shogi match, and they have the match of the century. Their final moves blow up the building, and in the rubble, Popuko finds the last remnants of Pipimi– her bow.

Mother AI PP1000 is reminiscent of Hal 9000 and Sai at the same time, and her metallic finish seems oddly like these strange statues. Master Quadrillion looks very similar to Heihachi, and the finishing move that Popuko uses to defeat him is very like the exploding finishing move from The Killing Pawn. Popuko and Pipmi both end their match with a Kamehameha while yelling out the iconic phrase from Your Name. Pipimi only leaving her ribbon behind feels a lot like Kemono Friends, doesn’t it? That sure is a lot for just a short segment!

Overall, it’s very much a sports anime parody, where the main character has to go through increasingly harder opponents and defeat them in a game, and they pulled that off pretty well. The two commentators are also something we’ve seen in sports, where one announcer knows what they’re talking about, and the other is completely clueless.

Score

10/10

Bob Epic Team (1)

Popuko and Pipimi visit the countryside, and to celebrate, Popuko tries to do some regional activities. They’re too outlandish for Pipimi, and she finds herself being sent away before she can realize what’s happening.

The purposeful bad animation of Bob Epic Team aside, this works really well in how outlandish it is. It’s supposed to be weird, so the animation looking incredibly off supports that feeling.

Score

7/10

Pipi-beau:

On TV, Popuko watches a girl call her boyfriend “Pipi-beau”. Popuko scoffs, calling the cutesy name ridiculous. Pipimi pops up and says that she likes it. Flustered, Popuko starts stuttering her name.

If you still doubted that Pipimi and Popuko had a thing for each other, well. Look no further.

Score

9/10

Pop Team Cooking

With Valentine’s Day coming up, Popuko and Pipimi host a cooking show where they make chocolates. Pipimi tells Popuko to tell her to stop when she’s added enough sugar. Even after Popuko says stop, Pipimi keeps going.

The Pop Team Cooking segments are all parodies of NHK’s Today’s Cooking. I’m sure we’ve all dealt with dealing with people who just do their own thing, and this is no exception.

Score

9/10

Watch and Subscribe:

Popuko thanks her viewers for watching her channel, and reminds them to subscribe. She’s cheery at first, but then reminds the people who haven’t subscribed yet– specifically the viewer, that for not following her orders, she’s coming for them. The screen cuts to black, and the sound of a doorbell persistently ringing is heard.

I’ve said before that Popuko would be the one to easily survive a horror movie, but she’d also be a great horror movie monster. She’s unstoppable, and definitely not the type of person you’d want as an enemy.

Score

10/10

Other Skits:

Popuko are at a concert, where her lightstick suddenly begins talking. In a reprise of the mattress skit, Popuko’s other furniture comes to life and coaxes her to stay home for the day.

Worst Sketch: Bob Epic Team (2)

Best Sketch: The 30th Cyber War