politics

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 301, “The X-Files: Season 4 (feat. Wesley Mead)”

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Gobbledygeek episode 301, “The X-Files: Season 4 (feat. Wesley Mead),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Just in time for everyone’s distrust in government to be at an all-time high, Wesley “Wezzo” Mead joins Paul and Arlo once again to discuss Chris Carter’s seminal sci-fi series The X-Files. This time, the gang sets their sights on season 4, and opinion seems to be divided on just how well the season holds together. Is this where the mythology stuff starts to really go off the rails? Does Scully’s cancer make for a compelling dramatic throughline? And most importantly of all, is there an obvious heir to Darin Morgan’s throne (a couple suggestions are thrown out)? Plus, Wezzo laments the progression of Brexit, while Paul and Arlo sift through the Trump Administration’s mounting atrocities; and on a happier, sillier note, the gang has a blast with The Lego Batman Movie.

Next: this year’s Four-Color Flashback exploration of Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra’s Y: The Last Man continues. Jeff Bridges poet Donora Rihn joins Paul and Arlo to discuss Vol. 2: Cycles.

(Show notes for “The X-Files: Season 4.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 299, “Y: The Last Man – Vol. 1: Unmanned”

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Gobbledygeek episode 299, “Y: The Last Man – Vol. 1: Unmanned,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

FIVE SECONDS AGO: Arlo cracks open the first volume of Y: The Last Man. FOUR SECONDS AGO: Paul berates Arlo for not turning on his mic. THREE SECONDS AGO: Arlo rolls his eyes, turns on mic. TWO SECONDS AGO: Arlo loudly eats into the microphone. ONE SECOND AGO: Paul presses record.

NOW: Gobbledygeek‘s 2017 Four-Color Flashback series is here. This year, the boys will be discussing all ten volumes of Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra’s acclaimed Vertigo series Y: The Last Man, in which every male mammal on the planet drops dead at the same time…save one young escape artist cum layabout and his pet monkey. With Vol. 1: Unmanned, the boys dive into the adventures of Yorick Brown, the laconic Agent 355, and the many varied women they come across during their adventures. Under discussion are the series’ politics, its place in Vaughan’s career, and what makes Guerra’s simple and clean artwork so effective. Plus, Arlo was on a boat, Paul sang along to Moana, and they both struggle to find the joy in discussing pop culture during this incredibly despairing time in American history.

Next: the mythical episode 300 is upon us. Dr. Kenn Edwards, PhD will plumb the tender, fragile psyches of Paul and Arlo. The show will never be the same. They will never be the same. You will never be the same.

(Show notes for “Y: The Last Man – Vol. 1: Unmanned.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 298, “Grendel: Part 8 – Devil’s Reign”

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Gobbledygeek episode 298, “Grendel: Part 8 – Devil’s Reign,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Wait, what’s that? Not only did someone listen to our Grendel episodes…but they decided to join us on air?! Wonders never cease. Joining Paul and Arlo to finish last year’s Four-Color Flashback series on Matt Wagner’s Grendel is Chance Mazzia, who actually discovered the show thanks to Wagner’s whacked-out opus. The gang discusses “Devil’s Reign,” collected in Grendel Omnibus: Vol. 3, which is not technically the end of the sprawling series but marks a fine endpoint for their analysis. Orion Assante seeks to unite the world, but at what cost? Among this week’s subjects are vampirism and Elvis, Trump and Obama, and the subtle art of dick jokes.

Next: a new Four-Color Flashback is upon us. This time the boys will be discussing the presumably much more popular series Y: The Last Man by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra. Up first is Vol. 1: Unmanned.

(Show notes for “Grendel: Part 8 – Devil’s Reign.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 292, “The X-Files: Season 3 (feat. Wesley Mead)”

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Gobbledygeek episode 292, “The X-Files: Season 3 (feat. Wesley Mead),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

The truth is out there: season 3 of The X-Files is the show’s strongest season. That is, if you can trust Paul, Arlo, and the inimitable Wesley “Wezzo” Mead as they have another of their periodic discussions of Chris Carter’s ’90s masterwork. What makes season 3 work so well? It might have something to do with the series’ expanded tonal range–a tense thriller in “Pusher,” Satanic panic meets Heathers in “Syzygy”–and the confidence with which it tackles both the monster-of-the-week hours and the increasingly complex (or is that convoluted?) mytharc installments. Then there are the Darin Morgan episodes (“Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose,” “War of the Coprophages,” and “Jose Chung’s From Outer Space”), which are something else entirely. Plus, holy cow, UK politics have gotten super depressing since the last time Wezzo stopped by.

Next: Paul and Arlo return to Boneville, site of last year’s Four-Color Flashback, for a look at the newly published Bone: Coda.

(Show notes for “The X-Files: Season 3.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 282, “The X-Files: Season 2 (feat. Wesley Mead)”

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Gobbledygeek episode 282, “The X-Files: Season 2 (feat. Wesley Mead),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Proving their first X-Files episode with renowned British person Wesley “Wezzo” Mead was no fluke, man, Paul and Arlo continue their sporadic discussion of Chris Carter’s ’90s phenom with a look at season 2. The gang casts their ominous flashlight beams on the season’s highs and lows, Scully’s abduction, the coming of Darin Morgan, and whether or not the mythology already shows signs of wear. Also, first-time viewer Arlo trusts no one’s opinion. Plus, as usual, a conversation with Wezzo about the UK’s dire political climate.

Next: our year-long Four-Color Flashback exploration of Matt Wagner’s Grendel continues with “The Devil Inside” and “Devil Tales,” collected in Grendel Omnibus: Vol. 2, pp. 371-542.

(Show notes for “The X-Files: Season 2.)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 263, “Wezzo of Tomorrow (feat. Wesley Mead)”

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Gobbledygeek episode 263 is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

As 2016 begins, it is more apparent than ever that Americans are badly in need of enlightenment. Paul and AJ have chosen the form of the Enlightener, and he is none other than everyone’s favorite wacky British neighbor, Wesley “Wezzo” Mead. Wezzo enlightens the boys’ American ears with talk of how his own country has fallen apart following last summer’s Labour election, the documentary series I’ll Have What Phil’s Having, how he simply could not endure The Revenant, and Don Hertzfeldt’s short film World of Tomorrow. Plus, AJ’s dying!

Next: Hitchcock Month begins with The Daily Dot writer Aja Romano joining the boys to discuss 1943’s Shadow of a Doubt and 1951’s Strangers on a Train.

(Show notes for “Wezzo of Tomorrow.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 244, “The Shadow Anachronism (feat. Wesley ‘Wezzo’ Mead)”

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Gobbledygeek episode 244, “The Shadow Anarchist (feat. Wesley “Wezzo” Mead),” is available for listening or download right here, and on iTunes here.

Our favorite Britisher, Wesley “Wezzo” Mead, makes his return to Gobbledygeek, appearing twice in one year for the first time. What does he have to say in his alluring hick accent? Lots about politics (they have elections over there too!), the cinema (he watched four whole movies the day we recorded this, including Paper Towns and Vacation!), and the sorry state of TV on DVD (it is ceasing to exist!). Paul and AJ once again have their knickers charmed off by everyone’s favorite Trowbridge-ian, even if he is telling them about something called Pinky Malinky.

Next: Greg Sahadachny is back for more of Jeff Smith’s Bone, this time discussing Vol. VI: Old Man’s Cave.

(Show notes for “The Shadow Anachronism.”)