star wars

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 473 – “Dick’s on the Brain”

Gobbledygeek episode 473, “Dick’s on the Brain,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

It’s a freestyle episode, boys and girls! You know what that means: the Dragon’s Milk is flowing, the tangents are plentiful, and Paul and Arlo just can’t get enough Dick’s. Now, now, get your mind out of the gutter–we’re talking Dick’s, the iconic Seattle burger chain. In addition to chowing down on their favorite regional burgers (Arlo shouts out Akron’s very own Swenson’s), the boys are very much on their bullshit throughout. Arlo recounts the entire A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, Paul experiences Stranger Things with a fella named Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Arlo gets progressively more inebriated.

NEXT: welcome, travelers of the night, to another MCUTV installment with Hollywood wonder boy Michael Holland. This time, we’re discussing Moon Knight.

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “Posse on Broadway” by Sir Mix-a-Lot, Swass (1988)
  • “Who Let the Dogs Out (As Made Famous by Baha Men)” by Karaoke DJ, Karaoke Hit Music the 00’s Vol. 2 – Instrumental Sing Alongs From the 2000’s (2010)
  • “Are You Ready for Freddy” by Fat Boys, Coming Back Hard Again (1988)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 421 – “Drop the Boom On This F#@%ed-Up World”

Britney wins!!!!!!!

Gobbledygeek episode 421, “Drop the Boom On This F#@%ed-Up World,” is available for listening or download right here and on Apple Podcasts here.

We’re still here. The world spins on, at least for a time. In the aftermath of Election Day 2020, there are many variables. Will that loser leave the White House? Will the GOP’s slow-rolling coup pay off? Will a Trumpian shadow militia form, leading to an actual Civil War II? As is the norm, Paul and Arlo have no answers, but they ponder these questions and many others. The boys recount their Election Night spirals; Arlo gets tested for COVID; Paul goes to the severe county of Sevier County; and they discuss some pop culture too, like why the kitchen-sink melodrama of This Is Us works, why Baby Yoda being a monster on The Mandalorian is cool and good, and why Paul hates The Simpsons.

NEXT: for the penultimate episode before our pregnancy-induced hiatus, Vickie Willis Navarra joins us for a Four-Color Flashback discussing Sandman Mystery Theatre: Book One by Matt Wagner, Guy Davis, John Watkiss, and R.G. Taylor.

MUSIC

  • “FDT (feat. Nipsey Hustle)” by YG, Still Brazy (2016)
  • “Three Little Birds” by Bob Marley & The Wailers, Exodus (1977)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to the Gobbledygeek Season 11 Premiere – “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (feat. Eric Sipple)”

Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver in J.J. Abrams’ ‘Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker.’

Gobbledygeek episode 394, “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (feat. Eric Sipple),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

The geeks speak! Gobbledygeek has been resurrected via cloning or Force magic or some shit, and to kick off season 11, Broken Magic author and The Deli Counter of Justice co-creator Eric Sipple has lightspeed-skipped on over to discuss Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker. After adoring The Last Jedi, the gang approached this supposed final film in the Skywalker Saga with heavy amounts of skepticism–well-earned, depending on who you ask. They discuss the mystical, magical malarkey behind Palpatine’s return; how director J.J. Abrams and writer Chris Terrio are uniquely suited to not deliver a satisfying conclusion; the oodles of fan service; what the film’s final scene means for the legacy of Star Wars; and more. Plus, they talk about The Baby Yoda Show AKA The Mandalorian.

Next: it is January 29, 2020. Paul and Arlo are discussing Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ Watchmen for a Four-Color Flashback. I am tired of this world; these people.

THE BREAKDOWN

Total Run Time: 02:35:50

  • 00:00:00  – Intro
  • 00:02:35  – The Mandalorian
  • 00:28:52  – Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
  • 02:31:20  – Outro / Next

THE MUSIC

  • “Fanfare and Prologue” by John Williams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2019)
  • “Finale” by John Williams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2019)

THE LINKS

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Listen to Episode 355, “Gobbledyween: The Witch (feat. Matthew Jackson)”

Gobbledygeek episode 355, “Gobbledyween: The Witch (feat. Matthew Jackson),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Leaves are on the ground, blood is on the silver screen. It’s time for Gobbledyween. Paul and Arlo’s beloved horror movie festival returns for the first time since 2015, and their opening selection debuted that same year: Robert Eggers’ new cult classic The Witch. Emerging from the wood to terrorize the boys is SyfyWire.com contributing editor Matthew Jackson. The gang discusses the rural dread Eggers exploits, if the film can be read as an empowerment tale, if anything on the screen actually happens, and more. Plus, Paul grooves to synthwave, Jon Favreau gears up for The Mandalorian, Arlo worships Nicolas Cage in Panos Cosmatos’ Mandy, and Spider-Ham makes his screen debut in the new Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse trailer.

Next: Gobbledyween continues as filmmaker Jess Byard joins us to take a bite out of Kathryn Bigelow’s Near Dark.

(Show notes for “Gobbledyween: The Witch.”)

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Listen to a Very Special ‘Gobbledygeek,’ “The Wiley Wedding Aural Experience (feat. Everyone)”

This bonus episode of Gobbledygeek, “The Wiley Wedding Aural Experience (feat. Everyone),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Everyone loves aural after a wedding. An aural document of said wedding, that is! That’s right, Arlo and Amber tied the knot, and Paul was on hand to witness the entire drunken event. So were Joseph Lewis, completing the Three Heathens reunion; Kenn Edwards, whose new EP rules; longtime friend of the show but first-time guest Darryl James, who challenges Arlo to a Buffy trivia quiz; and newbie Gabe Hochstetler, who finds himself the sole positive voice during a brief review of Solo: A Star Wars Story. Video game bars, shots, impolite tailors, shots, poorly choreographed “Gangnam Style” dances, shots, impromptu mowing, and oh yeah, shots. It was a wild ride, and you are formally invited.

Next: let your magical umbrella take you to Romania for a musical Geek Challenge featuring Mary Poppins and The Lure.

(Show notes for “The Wiley Wedding Aural Experience.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 336, “The Young Girls of Rochefort / The Pirate Movie: Killer Booboos and Cartoon Octopi”

Gobbledygeek episode 336, “The Young Girls of Rochefort / The Pirate Movie: Killer Booboos and Cartoon Octopi,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Ahoy and salut! Kicking off a series of occasional musical episodes–as in episodes about musicals; nobody wants to hear our boys sing–inspired by Paul’s love of The Greatest Showman, he and Arlo gear up for a tuneful Geek Challenge. They are both intensely on brand: Arlo challenges Paul to Jacques Demy’s deceptively candy-colored 1967 classic The Young Girls of Rochefort, while Paul forces Arlo to endure Ken Annakin’s inexplicable 1982 swashbuckler The Pirate Movie. They’re surprised to discover that these incredibly different films, besides both being musicals, have some connective tissue: the use of fantasy to escape cruel reality, metatextual references to themselves and other movies, and…well, okay, after that, they’re almost completely different, but come on! Wouldn’t it be cool if Catherine Deneuve danced with a cartoon octopus? Plus, Paul has thoughts on the Star Wars Rebels finale and Arlo has been taking a trip through classic Disney.

Next: Kronos must have forgotten to fold his sheets, because there is now A Wrinkle in Time. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.

(Show notes for “Killer Booboos and Cartoon Octopi.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 327, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi – Saving What We Love (feat. Eric Sipple)”

Gobbledygeek episode 327, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi – Saving What We Love (feat. Eric Sipple),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

This is not going to go the way you think. Indeed, in a rare occurrence, the stars (and their wars) have aligned to allow Paul, Arlo, and their Avatar Returns co-host Eric Sipple to agree that Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi is one of the best blockbusters in years. The gang discusses why that is, including the surprising directions in which writer-director Rian Johnson takes the story, its iconic imagery, another rousing John Williams score, how it strengthens the weaknesses of past Star Wars films, and one hell of a performance from Mark Hamill. And, yes, they tackle the fandom’s baffling response to the film.

Next: Gobbledygeek returns in 2018 with a continuation of Paul and Arlo’s Four-Color Flashback discussion of Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra’s Y: The Last Man. This time, they’ll tackle the penultimate collection, Vol. 9: The Motherland.

(Show notes for “Saving What We Love.”)

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Listen to ‘The Avatar Returns’ Episode 44

The Avatar Returns episode 44 is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

It’s the ante-penultimate episode of The Avatar Returns and the boys are a little punch drunk. Paul shares a Star Wars/The Legend of Korra mashup that goes over like a lead balloon; Arlo makes a Thelma Schoonmaker joke that gets crickets for a response; and Eric makes a Step Up All In reference that goes completely over Arlo’s head. Oh, and there are chapters to discuss, too. In 410, “Operation Beifong,” it gets all Paul Simony with a genuine mother and child reunion between Toph and Lin, while Opal introduces us to Juicy (yeah, Juicy), and Bolin eats noodles like a boss. And in chapter 411, “Kuvira’s Gambit,” the Great Uniter has herself a Megazord, and Meelo has gas. (Hashtag Defend the Fart.)

As a particularly sad bonus, this episode features the very last time Arlo will get to make predictions based on upcoming chapter titles. The end of an era.

Next: all good things must come to an end as chapters 412, “Day of the Colossus” and 413, “The Last Stand” put a punctation mark on The Legend of Korra. But will it be a question mark or an exclamation point? Tune in and find out.

(Show notes for The Avatar Returns episode 44.)

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Listen to ‘The Avatar Returns’ Episode 41

The Avatar Returns episode 41 is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Book Four: Balance begins as we move into the final season of The Legend of Korra. Time jumps in fiction tend to be something of a mixed bag, but as our story picks up three years after the end of Book Three it quickly becomes apparent the device works like a charm here, in what Arlo dubs the strongest start to any season in the entire Avatar Universe. In chapter 401, “After All These Years,” Korra is missing and former Zaofu Captain of the Guard Kuvira has become “The Great Uniter,” using military force to bring order to the chaos in the Earth Kingdom in the wake of the Queen’s death. Chapter 402, “Korra Alone” answers where exactly the Avatar has disappeared to, and why. (Hint: it involved Nega-Korra.) And finally it’s Toph love in chapter 403, “The Coronation” as the O.B. Original Beifong returns to go all Yoda on Korra’s ass.

Paul introduces the podcast’s version of Cousin Oliver. He and Eric both wax rhapsodic about Star Wars Rebels. And Arlo compares Mako to Vin Diesel. Not in a good way. (IS there a good way?)

Next: the next three chapters of Book Four; 404, “The Calling,” 405, “Enemy at the Gates,” and 406, “The Battle of Zaofu.”

(Show notes for The Avatar Returns episode 41.)

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Listen to the ‘Gobbledygeek’ Season 8 Premiere, “Why Is the Door Stuck? (feat. Kenn Edwards & Eric Sipple)”

jyn

The Gobbledygeek season 8 premiere, “Why Is the Door Shut? (feat. Kenn Edwards & Eric Sipple),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

A band of dirty rebels go to extreme lengths to send a transmission that will change the fate of the galaxy…yes, that’s right, Paul and Arlo are risking everything to get the Gobbledygeek season 8 premiere out there. After a months-long hiatus, the boys make their triumphant return to discuss Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, joined by So Let’s Get to the Point and Welcome to Paradise‘s Kenn Edwards and The Deli Counter of Justice co-editor Eric Sipple. Gareth Edwards’ prequel (ooh, there’s the p-word) could be taken as a proof of concept for Disney’s slate of standalone Star Wars films. The gang debates its merits as a Star Wars movie and a movie on its own terms; wonders why the characters don’t stick out more; and asks the question that will unlock Rogue One‘s many secrets…why is the door stuck?

Next: to the delight of almost no one, Paul and Arlo clean house following last year’s abbreviated season by finishing their Four-Color Flashback analysis of Matt Wagner’s Grendel with “Devil’s Reign,” collected in Grendel Omnibus: Vol. 3.

(Show notes for “Why Is the Door Stuck?”)