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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 367 – “Dentophobia”

Gobbledygeek episode 367, “Dentophobia,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

In which our daring duo defies devilish dentists. In all sincerity, here’s a big fat content warning: if, like Paul and Arlo, you are one of the 5-15% of adults with dentophobia, we talk about the dentist. A whole bunch. From childhood orthodontic nightmares to phantasmagoric periodontics of the present day, the boys discuss in (perhaps excruciating) detail their toothy troubles. Plus, if that doesn’t turn you off of the whole damn enterprise, there’s also talk of How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World in IMAX, Netflix’s take on The Umbrella Academy, and a belated discussion of seasons 2 and 3 of AMC’s Preacher adaptation.

Next: Higher. Further. Faster. Captain Marvel.

(Show notes for “Dentophobia.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 331, “The Shape of Water: Green Around the Gills (feat. Sarah Kosheff)”

Gobbledygeek episode 331, “The Shape of Water: Green Around the Gills (feat. Sarah Kosheff),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Come on in; the water’s fine. Sarah Kosheff joins Paul and Arlo to discuss Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water, freshly nominated for 13 Academy Awards. Del Toro’s girl-meets-fish romance is one of last year’s most ravishing, visually sumptuous films, and the gang discusses why exactly that is. (Spoiler: they don’t all quite agree.) Topics of discussion include Sally Hawkins’ and Doug Jones’ tremendous wordless performances; Alexandre Desplat’s beautiful score, and how music is an important mode of communication in the film; the importance of color, specifically green; and how the film is, in del Toro’s own words, about the “beauty of the other.” Plus, Paul has joined MoviePass just in time for it to come under intense scrutiny.

Next: Paul just wouldn’t shut up about The Greatest Showman, so first-time guest Nathan Curtiss will be joining the boys to discuss the Hugh Jackman-starring musical.

(Show notes for “Green Around the Gills.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 287, “Time of the Preacher”

Dominic Cooper as Jesse Custer, Joseph Gilgun as Cassidy - Preacher _ Season 1, Episode 1 - Photo Credit: Lewis Jacobs/Sony PIctures Televsion/AMC

Gobbledygeek episode 287, “Time of the Preacher,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Willie Nelson, John Wayne, preachers, bloodsuckers, angels, and arsefaces. Welcome to the world of Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon’s classic Vertigo comic book Preacher, which has now been adapted into a television series on AMC courtesy of Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, and Breaking Bad‘s Sam Catlin. Paul and Arlo previously analyzed the comic book on the blog back in 2012 and now set their sights on the show’s recently wrapped first season. The show takes an interesting route in exploring this tale of a small-town preacher cursed with the Word of God; namely, the ten hours that aired this year feel like a prologue to the series proper. The boys discuss the effectiveness of that approach; the spot-on casting of Dominic Cooper, Joseph Gilgun, and Ruth Negga as the unholy triumvirate of Jesse, Cassidy, and Tulip; how the series stays true to the spirit of Ennis and Dillon’s work, even without being able to drop an F-bomb; and what they hope they’ll see in the second season. Plus, Paul travels No Man’s Sky and Arlo becomes a beach bum.

Next: film buff Scott Stamper makes a pact with Paul and Arlo to discuss Suicide Squad.

(Show notes for “Time of the Preacher.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 278, “Grendel: Part 3 – Devil’s Legacy, Part 2”

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Gobbledygeek episode 278, “Grendel: Part 3 – Devil’s Legacy, Part 2,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Times are tough in Matt Wagner’s nightmarish neon near-future New York as Paul and Arlo continue their year-long Four-Color Flashback trip through Grendel. This time, the boys finish out “Devil’s Legacy” with chapters 8-12 of Grendel Omnibus: Vol. 2 (that’s pp. 247-370, if you need to know). What exactly is the devil’s legacy? How do Hunter Rose’s actions reverberate through the generations, as his “step-granddaughter” Christine Spar once more puts on the mask and picks up the fork? Paul and Arlo search for an answer while drawing a through-line between Grendel and fellow class of ’86-ers Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns, poring over the myriad bizarre details of the Pander Brothers’ artwork, and lauding the achievements of one McGruff the Crime Dog. Plus, a brief, spoiler-free discussion of the pilot episode of AMC’s Preacher adaptation.

Next: strap on your aprons and grab your spatulas! The Deli Counter of Justice authors man their own deli counters, each cooking two burgers apiece from The Bob’s Burgers Burger Book.

(Show notes for “Grendel: Part 3 – Devil’s Legacy, Part 2.”)

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Listen to the One Year Later ‘Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast’ Special

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The One Year Later Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast special is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

It has been one year since Don Draper offered to buy the world a Coke, one year since the end of Mad Men, and most importantly, one year since the end of Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast. What have Arlo (yeah, he goes by Arlo now), Kenn, and Joe been up to since last you heard from them? What do we think of Don’s final epiphany, a year removed from the hype surrounding it? How do the first and last episodes of the show compare? Plus, don’t miss a very special Hamm Watch!

(Show notes for Smoke Gets in Your Ears episode 43.)

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Listen to the Final Episode of ‘Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast’

Jon Hamm as Don Draper - Mad Men _ Season 7, Episode 14 - Photo Credit: Justina Mintz/AMC

The final episode of Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast is available for listening or download right here, and on iTunes here.

Grab your most cherished JC Penney bag, down a case of cheap beer, and try to be open to the final episode of Smoke Gets in Your Ears. For the last time, AJ, Kenn, and Joe set their sights on our favorite Madison Avenue advertising executives and all their assorted hopes and dreams. In discussing the Mad Men series finale “Person to Person,” the boys talk about everyone’s attempts to break the cycle, the ever-present theme of renewal, and whether or not Dick Whitman’s final epiphany is a cynical one. It’s been a long ride; hopefully, we found our waitress. Thank you for listening. Plus, don’t miss the series finale of Hamm Watch!

(Show notes for Smoke Gets in Your Ears episode 42.)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 229, “Nothing Beside Remains (feat. K. Dale Koontz & Ensley F. Guffey)”

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Gobbledygeek episode 229, “Nothing Beside Remains (feat. K. Dale Koontz & Ensley F. Guffey),” is available for listening or download right here, and on iTunes here.

Not much in this world is surprising. The irony of this statement is that in order to tell you about how Paul surprises AJ in this episode, we have to give away said surprise: this is the one where Paul finally watches Breaking Bad. AJ remained in the dark the whole time, misled by Paul to think some ominous present was on its way; turns out the present is a discussion of Vince Gilligan’s acclaimed morality tale, which long-time listeners will remember Paul refused to watch for years. What did he think of it? You’ll have to listen for yourself. Featuring surprise guests K. Dale Koontz and Ensley F. Guffey, authors of Wanna Cook? The Complete, Unofficial Companion to Breaking Bad!

Next: The Debatable Podcast host Greg Sahadachny joins Paul and AJ continue their Four-Color Flashback look at Jeff Smith’s Bone with Vol. III: Eyes of the Storm.

(Show notes for “Nothing Beside Remains.”)

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Listen to ‘Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast’ Episode 41

Jon Hamm as Don Draper - Mad Men _ Season 7, Episode 13 - Photo Credit: Courtesy of AMC

Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast episode 41 is available for listening or download right here, and on iTunes here.

For the penultimate installment of Smoke Gets in Your Ears, AJ, Kenn, and Joe take “The Milk and Honey Route,” on which our characters begin to find themselves. Pete takes a job interview and gets more than he expected. Betty goes to class and learns more than she bargained for. Don stops in Kansas and gets to teach a lesson. It’s as if, with only one episode left, the confused and frustrated citizens of Mad Men are inching nearer and nearer to something like self-acceptance. It’s about time. Plus, don’t miss another exciting installment of Hamm Watch!

(Show notes for Smoke Gets in Your Ears episode 41.)

 

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Listen to ‘Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast’ Episode 40

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Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast episode 40 is available for listening or download right here, and on iTunes here.

In the pre-penultimate (?) episode of Mad Men, “Lost Horizon,” Don takes a ride, Peggy rollerskates to Roger’s organ accompaniment, and Joan attempts to burn it all down. AJ, Kenn, and Joe discuss the SC&P gang’s anonymity at McCann, whether or not we’ve seen certain of our characters take their curtain calls, and just where the hell Don thinks he’s going. Plus, don’t miss another exciting installment of Hamm Watch!

(Show notes for Smoke Gets in Your Ears episode 40.)

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Listen to ‘Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast’ Episode 39

madmen39

Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast is available for listening or download right here, and on iTunes here.

Like “Shut the Door. Have a Seat” and “For Immediate Release” before it, “Time & Life” signals a time of great change in the lives of the Sterling Cooper gang. Can Don and the others pull off yet another gambit to save the agency? Why does this feel so familiar and yet so different? AJ, Kenn, and Joe explore these questions and what they mean at this point in the show’s life. Meanwhile, Peggy and Stan have a heart-to-heart, and Pete deals with a weird old money blood feud. Plus, don’t miss another exciting installment of Hamm Watch!

(Show notes for Smoke Gets in Your Ears episode 39.)