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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 465 – “FCF: Six-Gun Gorilla”

Art from Six-Gun Gorilla (2013) by Jeff Stokely & Andre May

Gobbledygeek episode 465, “FCF: Six-Gun Gorilla,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

Sometimes a gorilla is just a gorilla. Sometimes, though, that gorilla–righteously bearing arms though he may be–is a gateway to a story about the power and fluidity of narrative. For this month’s Four-Color Flashback, Paul and Arlo go ape for Si Spurrier and Jeff Stokely’s Six-Gun Gorilla, a sci-fi Western published by BOOM! Studios in 2013. The boys discuss Stokely’s glorious, hyper-exaggerated art; how the book’s entertainment conglomerate dystopia feels like a logical extension of our present; the way Spurrier weaves various pulp genres throughout his story; and more. Plus, Paul got sick in Gatlinburg again and Arlo admits he was wrong about Dune.

NEXT: Gobbledygeek will return.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:55  –  Intro / Banter
  • 00:21:30  –  Six-Gun Gorilla
  • 01:25:50  –  Outro / Next

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “Clint Eastwood” by Gorillaz, Gorillaz (2001)
  • “Wayfaring Stranger” by Johnny Cash, American III: Solitary Man (2000)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 464 – “West Side Story (2021)”

Ariana DeBose and David Alvarez in West Side Story (2021), directed by Steven Spielberg

Gobbledygeek episode 464, “West Side Story (2021),” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

Somethin’s comin’, somethin’ good: this week, Paul and Arlo pirouette through a discussion of Steven Spielberg’s new take on West Side Story, nominated for Best Picture at this year’s Oscars. Is it a spoiler to say they love it? The boys discuss how Spielberg and screenwriter Tony Kushner’s changes enrich the text, why choreographer Justin Peck’s bold choice to discard Jerome Robbins’ iconic choreography was the right move, what it means for the Sharks to be played by Latinx actors, and the joy of watching Spielberg treat every musical number like his and Janusz Kaminski’s playground. Plus, Taco Bell sends Arlo spiraling into an existential crisis, and the boys chat about this year’s other Best Picture nominees.

NEXT: Si Spurrier and Jeff Stokely’s Six-Gun Gorilla is locked and loaded for this month’s Four-Color Flashback.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:53  –  Intro
  • 00:06:39  –  Interminable Oscars Discussion
  • 00:37:43  –  A Look Back to Episode 402
  • 00:47:04  –  West Side Story (2021)
  • 02:14:52  –  Outro / Next

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “Something’s Coming” by Ansel Elgort, West Side Story (2021 Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2021)
  • “Somewhere” by Rita Moreno, West Side Story (2021 Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2021)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 430 – “FCF: American Vampire”

Art from American Vampire: Vol. 1 (2010) by Rafael Albuquerque and Dave McCaig

Gobbledygeek episode 429, “Geek Challenge: Wolf vs. The Insider,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

What’s more American than ruthless bastards sucking dry the poor, hardworking souls that make this country what it is–all in the name of progress? We’re not just talking about capitalism here, we’re also talking about the bloodthirsty monsters at the heart of Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque’s American Vampire. For this month’s Four-Color Flashback, Paul and Arlo sink their fangs into the first two volumes of Snyder and Albuquerque’s (with an assist from Stephen King) decades-spanning Vertigo series. The boys discuss how Snyder charts the path of American history through three distinct time periods; the seriously cool vampire taxonomy; Albuquerque’s ghastly, gorgeous art; the way King cusses; and, yes, what the book says about capitalist conquest. Plus, Paul chills with three very different Netflix projects: Moxie, Ginny & Georgia, and Behind Her Eyes.

NEXT: Michael Holland, post-production supervisor on American Horror Story and ABC’s For Life, joins us to discuss Disney+’s first MCU series, WandaVision.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:50  –  Intro
  • 00:07:14  –  American Vampire
  • 01:34:36  –  Outro / Next

MUSIC

  • “American Girl” by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1977)
  • “Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina and the Waves, Walking on Sunshine (1985) 

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to the Gobbledygeek Season 11 Finale – “Geek Challenge: Thunderheart vs. Dead Man”

Top: Graham Greene and Val Kilmer in Thunderheart (1992), directed by Michael Apted / Bottom: Johnny Depp and Gary Farmer in Dead Man (1995), directed by Jim Jarmusch

Gobbledygeek episode 423, “Geek Challenge: Thunderheart vs. Dead Man,” is available for listening or download right here and on Apple Podcasts here.

Because our mascot is a turkey, and because we generally frown upon genocide, Paul and Arlo are spending Thanksgiving weekend discussing films with ties to Native American culture. For this Geek Challenge, Paul urges Arlo to watch Michael Apted’s 1992 conspiracy thriller Thunderheart, starring Val Kilmer as an FBI agent who grows to embrace his Sioux heritage. In turn, Arlo makes Paul watch Jim Jarmusch’s 1995 psychedelic Western Dead Man, wherein Johnny Depp’s iteration of William Blake takes an offbeat journey to the next life. The boys address the major caveat of both films starring white men, as well as their own lily whiteness; determine that Graham Greene and Gary Farmer walk away with their respective movies; and discuss how both films explore spiritual death and rebirth. With a bonus discussion of Apted’s documentary Incident at Oglala!

NEXT: Arlo’s having a baby. We’re going on hiatus with hopes of returning in mid-to-late January. We wish everyone a happy and, more importantly, safe holiday season. We love you.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:01:00  –  Intro / Guest
  • 00:07:15  –  Thunderheart
  • 01:08:16  –  Dead Man
  • 02:09:36  –  Outro / Next

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “Grafitti Man” by John Trudell, A.K.A. Grafitti Man (1986)
  • “NDN Kars” by Keith Secola, Circle (1992)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 415 – “A Butter Tree Grows in Utero”

Avocado Uterus would be a great name for a noise rock band.

Gobbledygeek episode 415, “A Butter Tree Grows in Utero,” is available for listening or download right here and on Apple Podcasts here.

For all you kids at home with a copy of Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary Deluxe Second Edition taking pride of place on your bookshelf–boy, do we have a treat for you! Paul and Arlo are back on their bullshit, running at the mouth about anything they damn well please. This week’s subjects include: the extreme metal-ness of childbirth, Spider-Man: Miles Morales swinging onto the brand spankin’ new PS5, covert earbuds, Infinity Train heading to the station on HBO Max, a treatise on The Searchers and Apocalypse Now, and so much more.

NEXT: Zorro, the Gay Blade spends a day in The Double Life of Veronique for a doppelganger-centric Geek Challenge.

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “Doin’ It” by LL Cool J, Mr. Smith (1995)
  • “Piece of Me” by Britney Spears, Blackout (2007)

GOBBLEDYCARES

 

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 387 – “Gobbledyween: Near Dark (feat. Joseph Lewis)”

Bill Paxton in Kathryn Bigelow’s ‘Near Dark’ (1987).

Gobbledygeek episode 387, “Gobbledyween: Near Dark (feat. Joseph Lewis),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

It finally happened. After three long years of behind-the-scenes turmoil, Near Dark has made its way to Gobbledyween. A/V writer-director Joseph Lewis joins Paul and Arlo to discuss Kathryn Bigelow’s 1987 vampiric Western, which reimagined the creatures of the night as filthy, lowdown rednecks. The gang discusses the influence Near Dark has had on vampire fiction, the late great Bill Paxton’s immortal performance as Severen, the film’s surprisingly conservative stance on biological family, and how surprisingly difficult it is to get ahold of the movie these days.

Next: Gobbledyween lives in a society. Greg Sahadachny joins us to talk Brian Yuzna’s 1989 satire Society.

THE BREAKDOWN

Total Run Time: 01:33:05

  • 00:00:45  – Intro
  • 00:03:44  – Near Dark
  • 01:24:22  – Outro / Next

THE MUSIC

  • “Fever” by The Cramps, Songs the Lord Taught Us (1980)
  • “The Cowboy Rides Away” by George Strait, Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind (1984)

THE LINKS

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 358, “The Brunette Wore Mauve”

Gobbledygeek episode 358, “The Brunette Wore Mauve,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Jazz hands, everyone! It’s time for a new episode of the new era of Gobbledygeek, which is either painfully self-indulgent or–well, there is no other option, BUT. Paul and Arlo freestyle about why they’re freestyling, discuss how perspectives on art change, extoll the complicated virtues of Miles Davis and Queen, and become flummoxed at the hyper-realistic minutiae of Red Dead Redemption 2.

Next: back to your regularly scheduled podcast with a Four-Color Flashback discussion of Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters.

(Show notes for “The Brunette Wore Mauve.”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 315, “The Assassination of Jesse James: Don’t That Podcast Look Dusty?”

Gobbledygeek episode 315, “The Assassination of Jesse James: Don’t That Podcast Look Dusty?”, is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

135 years ago, Robert Ford put a bullet in the back of Jesse James’ head. 34 years ago, Ron Hansen put pen to paper for a literary retelling of this slaying, calling it The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. 10 years ago, Australian writer-director Andrew Dominik put to film his version of this novel. What gets lost over time and through multiple translations? What aspects of the legend become amplified, and what diminished? These are appropriately heady questions, as Dominik’s film tackles the very concepts of celebrity, idolatry, memory, and myth. The movie, met with decent reviews and zero fanfare upon release, seems like a classic in 2017. Paul and Arlo rave about the film, including Roger Deakins’ once-in-a-lifetime stellar cinematography, the spellbinding score by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, and the haunting performances from Casey Affleck and Brad Pitt. They also discuss who’s the real coward, who really killed whom, and what the film has to say about masculinity and the Old West. Plus, that new Spider-Man game for the PS4 looks baller.

Next: the boys’ year-long Four-Color Flashback exploration of Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra’s Y: The Last Man continues with Vol. 6: Girl on Girl.

(Show notes for “The Assassination of Jesse James: Don’t That Podcast Look Dusty?”)

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Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 303, “Don’t Be What They Made You”

Gobbledygeek episode 303, “Don’t Be What They Made You,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

People get old. Claws get rusty. Movie franchises get tired. After 17 years of real-world time and 150+ fictional years, the time has come for James “Logan” Howlett AKA Wolverine to take a bow. In Logan, the final film featuring Hugh Jackman in his iconic star-making role, we’re introduced to a near-future bereft of mutants and full of sorrow. Logan’s mind is a potent cocktail of regret, pain, and futility. When a young girl named Laura throws him back into action, he takes the nonagenarian Professor X on the road for one last adventure. Though “adventure” is not a word one would use to describe this brutal, melancholy film, about as far in tone as you could get from any of the nine previous installments in the X-Men series. Paul and Arlo discuss the film’s worthiness as a swan song for Canada’s most violent, how it fits perfectly alongside Cop Land in director James Mangold’s canon, whether or not the very R-rated violence is gratuitous, and if in a perfect world this should be the end of the X-Men’s silver screen career.

Next: Paul and Arlo will be subjecting each other to yet another Geek Challenge. Paul must finally watch Tommy Wiseau’s infamous 2003 cult classic The Room, while Arlo is tasked with Sidney Lumet’s 1982 crime comedy Deathtrap.

(Show notes for “Don’t Be What They Made You.”)

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Listen to the ‘Gobbledygeek’ Season 7 Premiere, “The Somewhat Disgruntled Four (feat. Ensley F. Guffey & Joseph Lewis)”

hatefuleight

Gobbledygeek episode 262, “The Somewhat Disgruntled Four (feat. Ensley F. Guffey & Joseph Lewis),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Don your dead general’s coat and strap on those snowshoes; for the Gobbledygeek season 7 premiere, we’re taking the last stage to Red Rock for a discussion of Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight. Bringing Paul and AJ up to a Somewhat Disgruntled Four are Wanna Cook? author Ensley F. Guffey and A/V writer-director Joseph Lewis. Ensley, a bonafide historian, teaches us how Tarantino plays with historical symbolism; while Joe, a die-hard Tarantino fan, tells us of the religiosity of his Hateful Eight 70mm experience. The gang also discusses the film’s handling of race and misogyny, how Tarantino borrows from The Thing, whether or not the film is a convincing mystery, and more. Plus, the boys pay tribute to the icons 2016 has already stolen from us.

Next: break out your scones, guv’nor. It’s time once more for the delightfully British Wesley “Wezzo” Mead to make his journey across the pond.

(Show notes for “The Somewhat Disgruntled Four.”)