JesuOtaku
Jacob Hope Chapman (formerly Hope Chapman), aka JesuOtaku, is by far the most successful and analytical of the former Desu Des Brigade, formerly a member of That Guy With The Glasses.
He produced a review segment simply entitled "The JesuOtaku Anime Review". His review approach is very analytical, using a four-star rating system. He tries to be as objective as possible and may give high scores to shows that he doesn't personally like. He also produced his "summer project" (now on hiatus), an audio drama adaptation of Fruits Basket, from 2011 to 2013 (which can be found here and here). He is notable for his large amount of shows:
- JO Anime Reviews
- In-Betweens
- New Lyrics
- Various Lets Plays.
His videos used to be found on That Guy With The Glasses, but since the domain change to channelawesome.com and his departure, his videos and his links have been removed. The only signs of his existence on the network are the role he played in To Boldly Flee and two videos where he guest starred, one by Nash on What The Fuck Is Wrong With You? and one by Bennett the Sage.
Since joining That Guy With The Glasses, he gained a great degree of success previously unseen. Despite efforts to keep the Desu Des Brigade alive, he made the decision to officially leave the Brigade, which then disbanded. Jacob then quit the TGWTG network in October 2014 due to payment issues with blip.tv and to focus on his writing job on Anime News Network.
His videos used to be found here
on Blip.tv before they shut down. They can also be found on his YouTube channel. He had a live stream, here
on Justin.tv, which also shut down. Additionally, he has also appeared often on Nash's long running Radio Dead Air internet radio show, which can be found here. His website is archived here.
In 2013, Jacob was cast as Rin Tezuka for a voiced adaptation of Katawa Shoujo, named Katawa Seiyu, which was cancelled in 2015.
In 2016, he came out as transgender, announcing that he was changing his name to Jacob and planning to begin hormone therapy.
- Actor Allusion: In his review of Princess Tutu, he says, "I see a host club in someone's future..." on a clip of Femio.
- Adorkable
- Alternate Character Interpretation: In his in-universe LP of Super Mario 64, he does a first-person, diary-like monologue if Mario was actually an Italian plumber from...well..Italy, felt like he was hallucinating, and eventually became a thrill-seeking, sociopathic, evil-overlord-to-be with a god complex who never "gets some" from Peach.
- Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: A common thread in his written introductions for each of the villains in his Top 20 Deliciously Evil Villains.
- Attention Deficit Creator Disorder: Let's see, he reviews anime, is making a retrospective on all the Digimon anime, dubs Anime Theme Songs, is analyzing the Trigun anime, has another job reviewing even more anime on Anime News Network and oh yeah, is currently working on a Radio Drama adaptation on the ENTIRE Fruits Basket manga (also, he works at a theater).
- He is no longer writing reviews for ANN. However, in 2012 he decided to see every wide-release movie that came out, and in spring started doing video blogs about several of them.
- Author Filibuster: He used his FLCL review as an opportunity to go on a rant about how Studio Gainax are complete HACKS when it comes to making Psychological Dramas and that they should stick to over-the-top goofiness and simple morals. He addressed this fact on his Twitter, and stated that the reason he did this was because FLCL was just way too simple for even him to talk about at length.
- Berserk Button: In-Universe, Moe, and now also an ecchi comedy about Brother-Sister Incest called Oniichan No Koto Na... ah, screw it. He found it painful just to get through the first minute of the first episode.
- He also seems to have a real and legitimate hatred of people questioning him on why he doesn't care for Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. To be fair, this is because people did this INCESSANTLY after he made his lukewarm feelings towards it clear.
- And don't tell him to read the Berserk manga either. People have been telling him to do this too.
- And now we can add the episode "Boogie Woogie Feng Shui" from Cowboy Bebop.
- Also, don't get him started on any recent work done by ADR Director/Scriptwriter Steven Foster.
- He also seems to have a real and legitimate hatred of people questioning him on why he doesn't care for Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. To be fair, this is because people did this INCESSANTLY after he made his lukewarm feelings towards it clear.
- Brain Bleach: Probably needed it after Ikki Tousen, and even more after Eiken, never mind Master of Martial Hearts...
- Subverted in his Master of Martial Hearts review, surprisingly. Sage got a Pyrrhic Victory there.
- Break the Cutie: Usually calm and collected, JO was reduced to a fit of hysterical rage by the final fight of the Yu Yu Hakusho: Dark Tournament video game.
- Bennett the Sage 's goal for him. So far he's failed all three times.
- Breakup Breakout: Not quite. Rather than leaving the Brigade after joining up with That Guy With The Glasses, he still tried to be a loyal brigadier, and his new-found popularity did in fact bring in more viewers to the Brigade's site; however, his indecisiveness coupled with his Attention Deficit Creator Disorder caused him to grow increasingly distant from the Brigade, unofficially breaking off from it about a year from its official disbandment.
- Brief Accent Imitation: Takes on a self-admittedly goofy Brooklyn gangster accent for his Baccano! review.
- Broke the Rating Scale: JO gave KissXSis a -5/5 and Oniichan no Koto Nanka Zenzen Suki Ja Nai N Dakara Ne a GTFO.
- Catch Phrase: "Sayonara, bye bye!"
- Cats Are Mean: One of JO's cats (the calico) isn't very friendly, as seen in the review for Fruits Basket.
- Cheshire Cat Grin / Slasher Smile: Sage looks terrifying at the end of the Koi Kaze review. Seriously, he looks like the cat out of American McGee's Alice.
- Cloudcuckoolander: It's not as apparent in his reviews, but if you watch his Let's Plays, especially the Star Fox 64 and Super Mario 64 ones, it becomes clear that JO is something of one.
- His Twitter is also a good source, especially after he's had 5 cans of coke.
- He also mentions in his Azumanga Daioh review that among his friends, he's known as the Osaka of the group.
- Companion Cube: His snarktitles. Until they have a brief falling out about their use in the Now and Then, Here and There review, making up afterward.
- The titles were not happy when Nash subbed in to review Transformers Animated.
- Cool Big Bro: He lets his little sister make cameos in the live-action intros (Beck and Princess Tutu being notable examples), and off-screen shares some of the more child-friendly anime with her.
- Covert Pervert: JO may be very academic and studious, but he might have a dirtier mind then Vix, as seen in Pocky Spot 22:
"Kyoya, you're not quite dressed for the occasion; you have to take your pants off too!"
"The correct response to this situation would be to grab his shoulders, throw him on the bed and ride him like a stallion!"
- Crossover: The number has been steadily rising since he joined TGWTG. Notable examples include a review of Sucker Punch alongside Film Brain, his status as a regular on his ex-boyfriend Nash's WTFIWWY and Radio Dead Air (he returns the favor by appearing on his streams on a regular basis, and also appeared in his review of Transformers Animated). Also, he appears in the 4th Anniversary Special.
- Crowning Music of Awesome: His Top 15 Dub Themes, invoked in-universe. Topping the list was, but of course, Pokémon. Nothing specific, just Pokémon.
- Deadpan Snarker: His "snarktitles" in all of his reviews but Now and Then, Here and There.
- Dear Negative Reader: Released a full-length one over his Twitter sometime around mid/late-2011 in response to the frequent complaints about his aforementioned ADCD.
- Despair Event Horizon: Bennett the Sage keeps trying to "break" Jesu by showing him horrible, sick anime. It eventually backfired when he got over it, but he got depressed.
- Double Standard Abuse (Female on Male): His crossover review of Sucker Punch with Film Brain was a pretty severe example of this.
- Erotic Eating: Invoked then averted in the end credits for the Eiken review.
- Evil Is Cool: Invoked as the main criteria for his Top 20 Deliciously Evil Villains list.
- Fake Brit: He makes fun of this trope at the beginning of his Hellsing review.
Hello, and welcome to the JesuOtaku Anime Review. Your mission today is to sit right where you are and listen to me talk about vampires in a very baloney British accent. May God and Her Majesty be with you. Amen.
- Fan Service: He dresses in a bikini top and shorts for his Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann review intro, most likely to emulate Yoko.
- When reviewing the Witchblade anime--after eviscerating Ikki Tousen, Eiken, and Master of Martial Hearts--he points out he doesn't hate Fan Service, but is sick of it being used in an incompetent or misogynistic fashion.
- Farm Boy
- Fingore: His review of Baccano!! got a rating of "three and a half de-fingerings out of four".
- Fun with Subtitles: While introducing the review for Now and Then, Here and There, JO gets into a fight with the Red Snark Titles.
- Gag Boobs: To make fun of the large breasts of one of the main characters in the anime Grenadier, JO stuffed soccer balls up the top of his T-shirt, and as part of the joke, even balanced a plate of food on them and ate from it.
- Gag Nose: In his Phoenix review, he points out a recurring character's bulbous and almost tumorous nose. He even plays the Inception music while zooming the camera in on it to point out how bizarre it is.
- Heroes Love Dogs: He's been shown playing with a roommate's dog and his love for wolves is part of why he loves Wolf's Rain.
- Hey, It's That Voice!: JO plays this game a few times, more notably in his review of Jyu Oh Sei.
- Hurricane of Euphemisms: While summarizing Ikki Tousen, JO went through just about every synonym for underwear (and a few breast mentions as well). It underscores that this review is going to be rough.
- It Is Pronounced "Tro-PAY": YAY-zoo? JEH-soo? He's pronounced it both ways...
- Kindhearted Cat Lover: He enjoys letting cats show up (i.e. his roommates' cats) in his videos.
- Let's Play: Star Fox 64, The Legend of Zelda Majoras Mask, and Super Mario 64 on the Nintendo64.
- Mood Whiplash: Directly after reviewing Fruits Basket, JO reviewed Now and Then, Here and There, an anime he considered too depressing to even make fun of.
- Multicolored Hair: Recently sporting black hair with red highlights.
- Naked People Are Funny: In the Witchblade review:
JesuOtaku: By God, if I can't make a good impression, I might as well make a lasting one!
- "Not Making This Up" Disclaimer: The line "That's not a metaphor" is something of a Running Gag.
- A particularly unbelievable bit in Master of Martial Hearts gets a "THIS IS A THING THAT HAPPENS" caption.
- Pet Peeve Trope: Forced drama, Moe pandering, Ecchi, "Exactly like the Japanese version" dubs, shoddy endings, Gorn, and flat-out wasting the potential of your premise.
- Pink Product Ploy: Hee bought a computer case which was part of a PC Nash came out to build for him because of its unique pink color.
- Pokémon-Speak: Points out Nyu's tendency to do this in Elfen Lied.
- Pretty Fly for a White Guy: In the opening to Samurai Champloo review and his first line of the Digimon retrospective. The snarktitles are not impressed.
Aow! It's August!
- Readings Blew Up the Scale: JO's "Metafiction meter" blows up at least twice during his review of Digimon Tamers.
- Real Women Never Wear Dresses: The Mahoromatic review starts with him playing a maid, before he gives it up and complains "I'm in a dress. I'm wearing make-up. I hate all of you."
- Running Gag: His gripes about GONZO and their varying production values.
- From his live stream, Boyd being blamed when something crashes or doesn't work properly on the stream.
- From his playthrough of Path of Radiance, the silly voices he uses for characters.
- Also from his stream, the people in the chat shouting "NAIL!" whenever Soren, who has the voice of Super Kami Guru, appears. It has gotten to the point where JO tells them early on to get it out of their system.
- Say My Name: JO at the end of the Koi Kaze review, upon realizing who sent him Master of Martial Hearts.
JO: SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGE!!!!
- Schedule Slip: JO's "Digimon Month", a month of reviews of the first five seasons of Digimon was intended to encompass August 2010. The Digimon Adventure review finally came out on August 20th (with part 2 only half-done until about a week later). It then took until November 6th for the first part of Digimon Adventure 02 to be released, followed by parts 2 and 3 on the 23rd (and part 2 half-done until the 28th). Following 02, his weekly anime review continued for the first time since July, with the fate of rest of the Digimon reviews left uncertain.
- He recently stated on his new Formspring account that they will continue, but they'll come as they're done, like Linkara's History of Power Rangers.
- His "Month of Mayazaki" didn't quite fit in just one month, probably because he was moving IRL at the time.
- Shoo Out the Clowns: JO forwent his usual "Snark Text" subtitles during his Now and Then, Here and There review for fear of damning his eternal soul by making fun of something so depressing.
- Except in one short instance: Lampshading the intentional Mood Whiplash (From the director of Fruits Basket, everybody!).
- The Smart Guy: For the Desu Des Brigade.
- Something Else Also Rises: In JO's review for Chobits, he gave it X "Good Mornings" with appropriate gestures.
- Squee: Not himself, but his snarktitles don't pass the chance in the Ouran High School Host Club review.
- Stupid Sexy Flanders:
"Seriously I'm straight but that girl is dead sexy."
"Wow. It's times like this I wish I could whistle. You could stop traffic with a body like that." (in addressing Elizabeth from Trigun)
- Top Ten List: Top X Lists, mostly. Top 20 Villains, Top 15 Dubbed Anime Themes, Top 15 Stupidest Izzyisms, Top 15 Nerd Jokes in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Top 10 Cowboy Bebop episodes, Top 20 openings of 2010, and his top 25 favorite anime.
- The Top 20 openings is intended to be an annual project. He did one for 2011 as well.
- Transsexualism: Came out as transgender in 2016, going under the name "Jacob Hope Chapman".
- Turn the Other Cheek: He actually did this at the end of his review of Eiken, much to Bennett the Sage 's disappointment.
- Wall Bang: Does this before reviewing Eiken.
- What Do You Mean It's for Kids?: Invoked: When commenting on the scenes that didn't get edited out of the Toonami showing of Outlaw Star, he snarks "Toonami: Women abuse...for kids! :D"
- Who Names Their Kid "Dude"?: Asked this via snarktitles in regards to Jacuzzi Splot ("No really, WHAT were his parents on?")
- Your Mom: In the snark text captions of his Outlaw Star review, when comparing the plot structure to a round robin story-telling game:
"I went to the store and saw..."
"Your mom! OOH!"
"Come on, Brad, can we get through ONE ROUND!?"
"That's what your MOM said last night! OOH!"