Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 445 – “Black Widow (feat. Tanya Cochran)”

Scarlett Johansson and Florence Pugh in Black Widow (2021), directed by Cate Shortland

Gobbledygeek episode 445, “Black Widow (feat. Tanya Cochran),” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

After a two-year absence–thanks, global pandemic!–the Marvel Cinematic Universe makes its return to the big screen with the long-awaited Black Widow. And we do mean long-awaited: it’s been 11 years since Scarlett Johansson made her debut as Natasha Romanoff, and only now, after we’ve seen Nat die in Avengers: Endgame, does Black Widow get a solo movie. Paul and Arlo are joined by pop culture fan and academic Tanya Cochran to discuss whether or not Cate Shortland’s film was worth the wait. There’s talk of trauma, family dramedy, falling debris, and how much Arlo absolutely loves David Harbour as Red Guardian.

NEXT: Sweet Tooth returns, again, in Sweet Tooth: The Return for our next Four-Color Flashback.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:50  –  Intro / Guest
  • 00:05:50  –  Black Widow
  • 00:26:48  –  SPOILERS
  • 02:04:47  –  Outro / Next

MUSIC

  • “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Think Up Anger (feat. Malia J) (2015)
  • “American Pie” by Don McLean, American Pie (1971)

GOBBLEDYCARES

Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 431 – “WandaVision (feat. Michael Holland)”

Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany in ‘WandaVision’ (2021), created by Jac Schaeffer

Gobbledygeek episode 431, “WandaVision (feat. Michael Holland),” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

And now back to our regularly scheduled programming. After two long years in the Marvel Cinematic Universe desert, since Avengers: Endgame and its postscript Spider-Man: Far from Home, Marvel’s mightiest are back on the air. For the first MCU series on Disney Plus, we have WandaVision, a TV show that is very much about TV shows and what the medium means to us. The comfy-cozy sitcom rhythm of the show, as Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch and Paul Bettany’s Vision make-believe they’re on the sets of The Dick Van Dyke Show or Family Ties, is interrupted by unsettling reminders of where we left these characters. Wanda was grieving–because Vision was dead. What’s going on here? Don’t change that channel, because Paul, Arlo, and special guest Michael Holland–currently post-production supervisor on The Afterparty–discuss how showrunner Jac Schaeffer and director Matt Shakman channel grief, capture the nostalgic spirit of old TV, weaponize fan expectations, and more.

NEXT: we’ll be back, same Bat-time, same Bat-channel.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:50  –  Intro / Guest
  • 00:05:53  –  WandaVision
  • 01:51:39  –  Outro / Next

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “A Newlywed Couple” by Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez, WandaVision (2021)
  • “Agatha All Along (feat. Kathryn Hahn)” by Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez, WandaVision (2021)

Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 372 – “Avengers: Endgame – It’s Been a Long, Long Time (feat. Eric Sipple)”

Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Karen Gillan, Rocket Raccoon, Paul Rudd, and Scarlett Johansson in ‘Avengers: Endgame.’

Gobbledygeek episode 372, “Avengers: Endgame – It’s Been a Long, Long Time (feat. Eric Sipple),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

All good things must come to an end. And while the Marvel Cinematic Universe is not one of those things–there’s another one of these bad boys coming out in a few months–Avengers: Endgame does represent the culmination of this first wave/cycle/saga of the MCU. Paul and Arlo are joined by their The Deli Counter of Justice co-creator Eric Sipple to discuss just how in the hell directors Anthony and Joe Russo, screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, and many many other talented filmmakers pulled off this marvelous feat. Because somehow, some way, Endgame is just about the most satisfying conclusion you could hope for.

Next: enter the void.

(Show notes for “Avengers: Endgame – It’s Been a Long, Long Time.”)

Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 369 – “Four-Color Flashback: Blankets”

Art from ‘Blankets’ by Craig Thompson.

Gobbledygeek episode 369, “Four-Color Flashback: Blankets,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Marks on paper, sheets of snow, first loves crowned with halos. These are some of the images that make up Craig Thompson’s 2003 illustrated novel Blankets, a modern classic if ever there was one. Paul and Arlo continue this year’s “nondenominational” Four-Color Flashback with a discussion of Thompson’s masterpiece, an autobiographical story of childhood, sexuality, first love, and the author’s struggle with faith. The boys discuss Thompson’s brave and uncomfortable truth, their experiences (or lack thereof) with organized religion, Craig’s idolatry of his beloved Raina, and Thompson’s stunning artwork. Plus, scraps of Marvel news that have no business being in this episode but which broke after we recorded the Captain Marvel one. Sorry. We’re professionals.

Next: after a week off, the boys are back and who knows what they’ll be talking about?

(Show notes for “Four-Color Flashback: Blankets.”)