Shows
Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 60 - Potential / The Killer in Me / First Date (feat. James Rocha)“It’s almost like this sort of metaphor for womanhood, isn’t it? This sort of flowering that happens when a girl realizes that she’s part of a fertile heritage stretching back to Eve…”
Author and philosophy professor James Rocha is back in the graveyard with me again to discuss three more episodes of this, the final season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In “Potential,” Buffy (the character and maybe the show?) get the details of Slayer ascension wrong yet again, and Xander shows us how Speechifying(™) is supposed to work. “The Killer in Me” gives us a sadly...
2020-08-281h 59Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 59 - Bring On the Night / Showtime (feat. Vickie Navarra)‘Verse-y author/editor Vickie Willis Navarra returns at long last (my bad, sorry) to try and help me over my growing Season 7 apathy as we begin our slow, tortured crawl to the finish line. Episode 710, “Bring On the Night” is the first appearance of Kennedy and the final appearance of Joyce. So yeah. It’s also the beginning of the interminable Buffy Speechifying(™). Sooo...yeeeeeeeah. And in 711, “Showtime,” Buffy welcomes Potential Slayer Rona to the Hellmouth, we get some charmingly awful rubber monster practical effects, and I defend the cool (and previously established) Willow-telepathically-links-the-Scoobies trick.
BONUS: I begin...
2020-08-171h 44Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 58 - Sleeper / Never Leave Me (feat. Tami Anderson)I have no idea what Anya is talking about. For me, Souled Spike IS Happyland! But whatever. This week I’m joined by fan and amateur Buffyologist Tami Anderson to discuss the Pavlov’s Bell-ness of episode 708, “Sleeper,” and how I will never forgive episode 709, “Never Leave Me” for turning the death of my beloved Jonathan into nothing more than a lame (and medically specious) punchline.
Next: Author Vickie Navarra returns to the cemetery to converse on episodes 710, “Bring On The Night” and 711, “Showtime.”
THE BREAKDOWN
Run Time: 01:21:30
0...
2020-07-291h 21Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 57 - Conversations with Dead People (feat. Eric Sipple)“Do the words ‘superiority complex’ mean anything to you?”
This week I’m joined by Broken Magic author and my very frequent collaborator Eric Sipple, here to discuss arguably the most important episode of the series (being the namesake of this clearly revolutionary podcast) episode 707, “Conversations with Dead People.” We break down the four (five?) titular conversations; wax rhapsodic about Jonathan Woodward; condemn the pointless death of Jonathan Levinson; lament the horribly wasted potential of the First Evil; and ask whether the episode is better in isolation or if the shocks and twists of this episode actuall...
2020-07-231h 21Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 56 - Help / Selfless / Him (feat. Michael Adams)Michael Adams, author of Slayer Slang: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer Lexicon, joins me as I continue my march to the end here in Season 7 with the next three episodes. “Help” introduces us, for a tragically brief time, to the delightful Azura Skye as Cassie, doomed teenage poet and seer. “Selfless” features a fun flashback and a “lost” musical number from “Once More, With Feeling.” (It is also the point at which my uncharacteristic love for Buffy Summers I’ve been feeling for the first part of this season finally wears off.) And “Him” provides a mildly troubling Buffy-channeling-Darla seduction scene, and a...
2020-07-061h 46Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 55 - Lessons / Beneath You / Same Time, Same Place (feat. Theresa Fortier)“Can we rest now? Buffy...can we rest?”
The seventh and final season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer starts much stronger out of the gate than I had remembered. 701, “Lessons” takes us back to the beginning (not the Bang, not the Word, but the true beginning) as a beautiful little parade of every Big Bad from seasons past welcomes us to the brand new Sunnydale High. In 702, “Beneath You,” James Marsters gives what is arguably his greatest single scene performance of the entire series, getting all smoldering and confessional with Buffy about what he did over Summer v...
2020-06-291h 35Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 54 - Two to Go / Grave (feat. Elizabeth Rambo)“She's a truck-driving Magic Mama! And we've got maybe seconds before Darth Rosenberg grinds everybody into Jawa-burgers, and not one of you bunch has the midichlorians to stop her.” - Andrew Wells
Never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee, Season Six. We’ve come to the yellow crayon end of the darkest Buffy the Vampire Slayer timeline, and Mistress of the Dark herself, Elizabeth Rambo is back again to help us all get through it. In 621, “Two to Go,” we talk about the Dark Phoenix of it all, Doritos taste tests...
2020-05-271h 48Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 53 - Seeing Red / Villains (feat. Elizabeth Rambo)“What have I done? Why didn’t I do it?”
Fan-favorite Elizabeth Rambo sticks with me for another light-hearted discussion about Season Six. This time around we get misogyny and magic balls and whether the [CW: sexual assault] scene was really a necessary part of Spike’s journey or if it was a metaphor too far in episode 619, “Seeing Red,” also known as “The One That Broke the Fandom.” And leaving all that darkness behind us, we talk about 620, “Villains,” and Joss Whedon’s pathological inability to portray lasting happiness in his shows. Also, was Amber Benson finally ma...
2020-05-052h 03Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 52 - Normal Again / Entropy (feat. Elizabeth Rambo)“I know the world feels like a hard place sometimes, but you’ve got people who love you.”
We live in interesting times, my friends. So returning guest Elizabeth Rambo and I first talk about how we’re both surviving the latest apocalypse, before diving into the uplifting palate cleanser that is Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Six. To lighten the mood we discuss the divisive and possibly controversial(?) episodes 617, “Normal Again” and 618, “Entropy.” In the former, there’s discussion of Didgeridoo Demons, metacommentary, and how literally to interpret the “Asylumverse.” And in the latter, scary, re-Vengeance Demo...
2020-04-271h 32Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 51 - Older and Far Away / As You Were / Hell’s Bells (feat. Jessica Hautsch)Look, my ability to establish and maintain a reliable podcasting schedule has degraded, to say the least, as this process has gone on. I know it. YOU know it. I’m sorry. But this past year of March and April has seriously thrown me off my groove, and not in the fun Disney way with llama faces and maniacal kitten laughter. It’s difficult I think for any of us to bring the fun in at the moment. But I will persevere! WE will persevere! We will get through this thing called Season Six if it’s the last thing...
2020-04-081h 53Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 50 - Gone / Doublemeat Palace / Dead Things (feat. Eric Sipple)For my 50th birthday (ugh), my gift to you is the 50th episode (egads) of this podcast, which will focus on the 50th worst episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. (I made that last part up...it’s probably higher on most “Worst Of” lists. It’s a meat process.) Joining me this time is my good friend and frequent collaborator, first-time guest Eric Sipple. Together we share the DoubleMeat Medley that is the forgettable patty of 611, “Gone” above the mid-bun, and the processed trauma of 613, “Dead Things” below the mid-bun. But it’s really that bland, stale mid-bun of 612, “Doublemea...
2020-02-131h 23Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 49 - Tabula Rasa / Smashed / Wrecked (feat. James Rocha)James Rocha, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Fresno State and co-author, along with his wife Dr. Mona Rocha, of Joss Whedon, Anarchist? A Unified Theory of the Films and Television Series, returns to help ease us into the poor decision making of the Scooby Gang, and the heavy-handed “metaphor” application of the writers headed into the darker half of the darkest season. In episode 608, “Tabula Rasa,” James does his best to get into the philosophy of it all, while I just question if Buffy has jumped the shark. In 609, “Smashed,” we talk about Willow’s reasons for finally de-ratting Amy; the debat...
2020-01-211h 54Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 48 - Once More, With Feeling (feat. Arlo Wiley)So you know how time flows differently from one dimension to the next? Yeah, I was sucked into a hell dimension where it felt like only a week went by, but here in the real world you guys have suffered through three Conversations with Dead People-free months! Or maybe I was in Heaven...I think I was in Heaven. YOU guys were stuck here in THIS hell dimension without me. But anyways, I apologize for the unsolicited hiatus. The good news is I’m back! The better news is I’m back with Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode 607, “Once More...
2020-01-121h 40Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 47 - Life Serial / All the Way (feat. Stephanie Graves)“Mist...cemetery...Halloween. Should end well.”
Stephanie Graves is back with me to discuss two more episodes of the Happy Funtime Show, otherwise known as Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 6. In episode 605, “Life Serial,” we get some genuine laughs as the show finds the humor in young adults struggling to find their way in the grown up world. There’s ANOTHER damn numbered shirt; Jonathan has a magic bone; and the second most important character in the entire series (after Spike) finally shows up: CLEM! And then, in 606, “All the Way,” Tara’s not much into timber; Gile...
2019-10-191h 21Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 46 - After Life / Flooded (feat. Faith Currant)“Every night I save you.”
Clearly I’ve set my listener expectations in terms of my Season 6 feelings. So to keep myself honest, it seems I have decided to frontload those discussions of Depression: The Series with avowed superfans of said season. Following on the heels of last week’s talk with Season 6 expert Elizabeth Rambo, this week I’m joined by possibly the most passionate Sixer I’ve ever met, former Hollywood script doctor and Buffy scholar Faith Currant. After I get over the shock of her methods for introducing new fans to the world of Buff...
2019-10-121h 38Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 45 - Bargaining, Part1 / Bargaining, Part 2 (feat. Elizabeth Rambo)“Is this hell?”
We begin our 22 Stages of Season 6 Grief with the two-part season premiere “Bargaining.” Professor, author, and undeniable Season 6 expert Elizabeth Rambo makes her triumphant return to the Conversations graveyard to help us all get through these difficult times. We talk about the new Giles-less title credits, the amazing performance (again!) of Sarah Michelle Gellar, the clear difference in broadcast standards and practices between the WB and UPN, and how 9/11 may have played a role in the response some fans have had to this season.
Also, I wave the flag and l...
2019-10-011h 21Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 44 - The Gift (feat. Michael Holland)“But...you’re just a girl.”
“That’s what I keep saying.”
We’ve come at last to the end. Well, *AN* end. We’ve reached what could have (and maybe should have?) been the end of all things Buffy the Vampire Slayer with the Season 5 finale “The Gift.” Michael Holland returns, with a shiny new job title, to help me wish a fond farewell to the WB era as our beloved hero takes the plunge (literally) into a darker, more confusing adulthood. We talk about a lot of things, as you might expect, including Gil...
2019-09-231h 21Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 43 - Spiral / The Weight of the World (feat. Margaret Ann Robbins)“Do we suspect that there may be some kind of connection between Ben and Glory?”
Great question, Giles. First time guest Margaret Ann Robbins joins me to answer that and other ponderables. For example, in “Spiral,” is Buffy the Vampire Slayer really just a retelling of Milton’s Paradise Lost? Are the ren faire reject Knights of Byzantium a tonal bridge too far? If killing humans is a no-no, but killing Knights of Byzantium goes unmentioned from now to the end of time, does that kind of answer my previous question? And in “The Weight of the World...
2019-09-111h 28Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 42 - Forever / Intervention / Tough Love (feat. Melanie Scala)Stage and screen legend Joel Grey joins the series, and so from this point on Conversations with Dead People is a Joel Grey fan podcast. Sorry Buffy fans.
Okay, seriously, we’re into the darkness of the near-end of Season 5 now, which of course is also a LOT of foreshadowing of the darkness awaiting us in Season 6. To help me get through the pain of these episodes Melane Scala is back, bringing with her a refreshing appreciation for the character of Dawn. In 517, “Forever,” the Summers girls, with Spike’s help, just barely manage to stay out...
2019-08-311h 35Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 41 - The Body (feat. Arlo Wiley)“But I don't understand! I don't understand how this all happens. How we go through this. I knew her, and then she's—there's just a body, and I don't understand why she just can't get back in it and not be dead ... anymore! It's stupid! It's mortal and stupid! And ... and Xander's crying and not talking, and ... and I was having fruit punch, and I thought, well, Joyce will never have any more fruit punch, ever, and she'll never have eggs, or yawn, or brush her hair, not ever, and no one will explain to me why!”
N...
2019-08-171h 44Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 40 - Crush / I Was Made to Love You (feat. Jessica Hautsch)Jessica Hautsch is back in the cemetery to discuss two more episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Being massive Spike fans, episode 514, “Crush” gives us both a lot to talk about. Episode 515, “I Was Made to Love You” gives us...less. We have plenty to say about the performative nature of Spike, the arc of his moral continuum, and how wisely (or not) vampires are able to love. We go on and on about how problematic he can be, how much we love him in spite of all that, and how intensely, annoyingly metatextual and condescending Quasimodo comparisons are.
2019-08-101h 42Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 39 - Checkpoint / Blood Ties (feat. Johny Ho)Wait, Ben is Glory?!
THE BREAKDOWN
Run Time: 01:11:53
00:00:55 - Intro / Guest / R.I.P. Rutger Hauer
00:06:24 - Main Topic
01:06:33 - Outro / Next
THE LIBRARY
Library Closed For Filing - Please Come Back Tomorrow
THE MUSIC
“Conversations (feat. Wesley Mead)” by Azura (2017)
“What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?” by R.E.M., Monster (1994)
THE SCHOLARS
Whedon Studies Association is a non-profit academic organization devoted to the study of the works of Joss...
2019-07-271h 11Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 38 - Into the Woods / Triangle (feat. Jessica Hautsch)Jessica Hautsch is back and prepared to face off with me about the Buffy / Riley breakup. In 510, “Into the Woods,” I finally come to the presumed end of my Quixotic mission to defend Riley Finn...because the writers FINALLY dump him unceremoniously. Did Captain Cornfed get a fair shake, from the writers or the audience? Was Xander unfair to Buffy? Was Buffy’s slaying of the Junkie Vampire Girl problematic? There might not be any easy answers. In 511, “Triangle” however, there ARE some easy answers. Is Anya’s talk with Xander about wanting a ticking bomb clock for any future break...
2019-07-131h 41Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 37 - Shadow / Listening to Fear (feat. Michael Holland)No good deed goes unpunished, and so Michael Holland pays for being such a great guest last week, where we got to discuss one (maybe two?) of the best episodes in the entire series. His penance? He’s back with me again, which is perhaps punishment enough, but in fact he’s here to talk about Buffy the Vampire Slayer episodes 508, “Shadow” and 509, “Listening to Fear.” In the former he’s forced to endure the worst CGI snake demon the show ever conjures up, and in the latter he struggles to survive the show’s embarrassing X-Files envy.
(That...
2019-06-281h 25Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 36 - Family / Fool for Love (feat. Michael Holland)I’m a bad podcaster, but I’m a good man. I’m just so into this Buffy the Vampire Slayer rewatch lately that I decided to get really sick just as we start getting into the episodes that deal with Joyce getting really sick. Fortunately I SEEM to have rounded a corner, and with luck (and maybe a little bit of magic?) this silly little podcast will now get back on some kind of regular track.
That track begins with the triumphant return of Michael Holland, Manager of Television for Warner Bros. Post Production Creativ...
2019-06-221h 32Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 35 - Out of My Mind / No Place Like Home (feat. Stephanie Graves)Plague demons worked their worst to keep this episode out of your earbuds, faithful listeners. But I have valiantly fought my way free of the mucous-based hell dimension to finally bring you my discussion with the inimitable Stephanie Graves about 504, “Out of My Mind” and 505, “No Place Like Home.” People still hate Dawn; Spike gets arguably the greatest five-word quote in the entire damn series; and there’s something about that boy Ben...I can’t quite put my finger on it...
Next: I, and presumably a guest, who shall remain a mystery for now since I can’t...
2019-06-151h 26Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 34 - Buffy vs. Dracula / Real Me / The Replacement (feat. Dax Stokes)Are season openers the weakest link in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer chain? Is Rudolf Martin an interesting Prince of Darkness? Are Xander’s days of being everybody’s butt-monkey finally over? Dax Stokes, host of the podcast The Vampire Historian, makes his Conversations debut to discuss these and other very, very important questions. In the Season 5 premiere, “Buffy vs. Dracula,” that poncy bugger turns up to feed Xander bugs and smolder ineffectually as he blathers on about the Slayer’s darkness. In “Real Me,” Buffy’s little sister finally gets an episode of her own, only 79 episodes into the series, and...
2019-05-251h 47Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 33 - Primeval / Restless (feat. Mary Ellen Iatropoulos)Multi-Mr. Pointy Award-winning author Mary Ellen Iatropoulos returns to discuss Franken-Forrest, Cabin in the Woods, and Joss’ obsession with concepts of hybridization in 421, “Primeval.” And then Season Four comes to it’s oh-so-welcome end with 422, “Restless,” which features some very unsubtle lesbian metaphors, Spike swinging really high, Mayor Meat, and the debate and confusion around the name of the First Slayer.
Oh, and we share our perhaps problematic love of the film Ghostbusters.
Next: I’m joined by Dax Stokes, host of the award-winning podcast The Vampire Historian to discuss the first three epis...
2019-05-172h 01Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 32 - New Moon Rising / The Yoko Factor (feat. Nikki Stafford)Nikki Stafford, author of Bite Me!: The Unofficial Guide to Buffy the Vampire Slayer (AND Once Bitten: An Unofficial Guide to the World of Angel, but we’ll get there) returns! Stepping briefly away from her watch on the Wall (the final season of Game of Thrones is a demanding master), she joins me to discuss great werewolf actors, bad werewolf makeup, and uncomfortable contemporary readings of previously endearing moments in 419, “New Moon Rising.” And then in 420, “The Yoko Factor” we talk about the perceptiveness of evil, the unnecessary apologies of Angel, the comedic stylings of drunk Giles, and our respec...
2019-04-231h 22Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 31 - Superstar / Where the Wild Things Are (feat. Kenn Edwards)Superstar Kenn Edwards returns, as Conversations with Dead People transitions into what it was always meant to be...Conversations about Jonathan Levinson! While discussing episode 417, “Superstar,” Paul indulges in many of his worst tendencies to go off on tangents, pondering the nature of magic as “the language of outcasts,” learning to be more accepting of Buffy Summers, and how Danny Strong has cast his own augmentation spell to become the Jonathan Levinson of the real world. And in 418, “Where the Wild Things Are,” we talk about the baffling absence of Oz, orgasm walls and other unsubtle metaphors, and Paul takes anothe...
2019-04-141h 37Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 30 - This Year’s Girl / Who Are You (feat. Arlo Wiley)There’s clearly been some body swapping shenanigans going on, because somehow infamous prodigal Conversational-ist Arlo Wiley makes his first appearance in the Dead People mausoleum. (I mean at least there wasn’t any hyena possession going on.) We talk around the awkward, metaphorically demonic history between us regarding the origins of this podcast before at last renewing our Faith in each other to discuss this week’s impressive double bill of episodes. In 415, “This Year’s Girl” we see the very welcome return of some long lost fan favorite characters as Faith wakes up from her coma, learns of the fate...
2019-03-301h 42Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 29 - The I in Team / Goodbye Iowa (feat. Michael Holland)Michael Holland returns to the Conversations with Dead People mausoleum to discuss the agelessness of Ian McShane. (Coming soon: Conversations with Deadwood.) We also talk a little about Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Episode 413, “The I in Team” covers a LOT of territory, including a dramatically silly but thematically significant trap, the very perfunctory end of Maggie Walsh’s story, and the high watermark (so far) of the patented Buffyverse “slo-mo sex-equals-violence” montage. And episode 414 makes some implied promises with the title “Goodbye Iowa” that maybe don’t pay off the way some viewers expected. Adam studies anatomy, Riley’s off his meds, a ce...
2019-03-161h 19Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 28 - Doomed / A New Man (feat. Johny Ho)We’re back! For justice, and the safety of puppies! Brazilian fan community organizer extraordinaire Johny Ho joins me to talk about the maybe possibly sloggy mid-point of Season Four. In 411, “Doomed,” the kids LITERALLY go back to high school in what Paul rather grumpily refers to as a clumsy attempt to demonstrate maturation. While in 412, “A New Man,” the annual Buffy Birthday Crisis eschews the usual zombies and problematic issues of power and consent in favor of...a mid-life crisis.
Also we lament all those stories and spinoffs that could have been: the more sophisticat...
2019-02-231h 16Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 27 - Hush (feat. Kenn Edwards)I guess we have to talk...
I know, I know, it’s been a while. You thought this podcast was dead and buried. But as so many before you have learned, in Sunnydale...dead don’t take! I’m back, I have more to say, and I’ve brought the most relevant rock musician in the world Kenn Edwards back with me. This time we’re discussing one of the big mile markers of the series, “Hush.” We talk about the debut of so-shy-she’s-almost-speechless Tara; Riley Finn and other classic Greco-Roman Heroes; the subversion of princess and t...
2019-01-261h 15Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 26 - The Initiative / Pangs / Something Blue (feat. Jessica Hautsch)PhD student, Slayage contributor, and shadowy, mysterious Spuffy fanfic author Jessica Hautsch makes her Conversations with Dead People debut! Together we find the titular troublemakers in 407, “The Initiative” to be non-mixy things, possibly even a little bit world-breaky? In 408, “Pangs,” as is usually the case with Thanksgiving gatherings there are things we really love and things we really don’t. And finally, Spike pops the question to Buffy and is welcomed into the family with open arms in 409, “Something Blue.”
What is up with the creepy TA/student power dynamics? Did the show just blatantly foreshadow an i...
2018-11-221h 54Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 25 - Fear, Itself / Beer Bad / Wild at Heart (feat. Melanie Scala)Melanie Scala is back and we’re gettin’ all Clan of the Cave Beer in the cemetery this week. It’s a big overture, little show in 404, “Fear, Itself.” Nothing can defeat the penis in 405, “Beer Bad.” And 406, “Wild at Heart” should be considered an emotional hate crime. Somehow neither one of us were drunk during this recording.
Also, hashtag Beeranderthals!
Next: I’m joined by Slayage contributor and Spuffy fanfic author Jessica Hautsch to discuss 407, “The Initiative,” 408, “Pangs,” and 409, “Something Blue.” Things are about to get weird.
THE BREAKDOWN
Intro / Gues...
2018-11-171h 55Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 24 - The Freshman / Living Conditions / The Harsh Light of Day (feat. Stephanie Graves)PhD student, author, and Mr. Pointy Award winner Stephanie Graves makes her debut on the podcast with a discussion of Buffy’s transition from the innocent days of high school to the bleak promise years of college. In 401, “The Freshman,” Willow opens herself to the thrusting, spurty knowledge of UC Sunnydale while Buffy makes what will prove to be one of the darkest, most brutal quips of foreshadowing possibly in the history of the series. 402, “Living Conditions” gives us...not a whole lot, actually. And in 402, “The Harsh Light of Day,” Giles has a TV! He’s shallow like us!
2018-11-101h 45Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 23 - Graduation Day (Part 1 & Part 2) (feat. Vickie Navarra)The lovely and delightful Vickie Navarra joins me to discuss the rhetorical proficiency of evil, that dream sequence, and all the various graduations and ascensions that take place in the final episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s third season. Buffy is done with the Watchers Council; Oz panics with Willow; Anya feels barfy with Xander; Angel and Cordelia graduate to their own series; and the Mutant Enemy wears a mortarboard.
Also sex scenes, amirite?
Next: I’m joined by...a guest...to discuss episodes 401, “The Freshman,” 402, “Living Conditions,” and 403, “The Harsh Light of D...
2018-11-031h 46
GobbledygeekEpisode 357, "Gobbledygeek 2: The New Batch"Everybody loves reboots, preboots, remakes, prequels, sequels, midquels, all the different -quels and -boots. The latest long-running franchise to get the reboot treatment is none other than your friendly neighborhood Gobbledygeek, as Paul and Arlo attempt to take the show in a new, looser, more banter-y direction. Fittingly, they talk about a couple of other high-profile remakes: The Haunting of Hill House and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, both available on Netflix. Speaking of, Netflix has become a cultural behemoth crushing the little guys like FilmStruck and leading to a new streaming boom that looks a lot like the old...
2018-11-031h 43Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 22 - Choices / The Prom (feat. Melanie Scala)Melanie Scala is back for the penultimate discussion of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 3, and this podcast continues to come dangerously close to just being an open therapy session to work through my own personal issues. Sorry ‘bout that. But it’s not all about me...we also talk about episode 319, “Choices” and the cost-benefit analysis of trading the Box of Gavrok for Willow, and episode 320, “The Prom” where we see WAAAAAY more persons of color than we have ever seen before or will ever see again on the show.
Also the show very clearly sets the stag...
2018-10-201h 44Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 21 - Doppelgangland / Enemies / Earshot (feat. Matthieu Cravatte)“It’s really nice that you guys miss me. Say, y’all didn’t happen to do a bunch of drugs, didja?”
This week I remind everyone how awful I am by utterly and completely blanking on the name of that one amazing series where Tatiana Maslany gets to play a bunch of clones of herself. I’m sorry, I’m the worst. Joining me in spite of my awfulness is fabulous French philosopher (and soon-to-be-published author) Matthieu Cravatte. We discuss the mirroring and doubling of characters in 316, “Doppelgangland,” real vs. performative trauma in Faith’s arc through 317, “E...
2018-10-131h 44Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 20 - Bad Girls / Consequences (feat. James Rocha)My beloved, incomparable Wesley Wyndam-Price finally arrives just as Faith succumbs to the pull of the Dark Side, and Philosophy Professor James Rocha returns to the podcast to help me explore all the existentialism surrounding both events. The double whammy of episodes 314, “Bad Girls” and 315, “Consequences” forces us to ask some uncomfortable questions... Are to-do lists evil? Why do you need to have sex with all of your friends? And is Faith to Buffy the Vampire Slayer as P.J. is to Family Circus?
Next: first time guest Matthieu Cravatte joins me all the way from Fran...
2018-10-061h 30Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 19 - Helpless / The Zeppo (feat. Jennifer Walsh)We’re back and we’re brief! Yes cats and kittens, this week we manage to keep the show down to under 14 hours. You’re welcome. Joining me this time around is writer, producer, Buffy scholar, and, most importantly, Twitter manager for Star Talk Radio, Jennifer Walsh. In episode 312, “Helpless” we talk about Buffy’s daddy issues, how well the premise of Giles’ betrayal has aged since its original airdate, and what kind of weirdo vamp ‘roids Kralik must be on to do the things he does. And in 313, “The Zeppo” I finally ease up just a little bit on poor ol’ Xander H...
2018-09-081h 33Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 18 - The Wish / Amends / Gingerbread (feat. Mary Ellen Iatropoulos)Podcasting is hard and it’s painful and it’s everyday. Except when it isn’t. Turns out there’s this thing rather unimaginatively called “real life” that sometimes pounces on people, and I guess my number was up. Soooo...sorry guys. But hey, to make up for it I’m giving you a really, really long episode this week! So that’s something. Right?
This time around I’m joined by the delightful Mary Ellen Iatropoulos, Director of Education and Experience for The Art Effect, a nonprofit arts and media education organization, editor on Joss Whedon and Rac...
2018-09-032h 38Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 17 - Revelations / Lovers Walk (feat. Michael Holland)“You're not friends. You'll never be friends. You'll be in love till it kills you both. You'll fight and you'll shag and you'll hate each other till it makes you quiver, but you'll never be friends. Love isn't brains, children, it's blood. Blood screaming inside you to work its will. I may be love's bitch, but at least I'm man enough to admit it.”
Spike’s dropping knowledge and everyone else is dropping shoes. First time guest Michael Holland, Manager of Television for Warner Bros. Post Production Creative Services, joins me to discuss 307, “Revelations” and 308, “Lovers Walk.”...
2018-08-041h 30Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 16 - Beauty and the Beasts / Homecoming / Band Candy (feat. Nikki Stafford)All men are beasts. Always keep your campaign promises. Our parents were obnoxious teenagers once too. All this and more is revealed to us in these episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Three. Nikki Stafford is back again, this time to answer the call of the wild in 304, “Beauty and the Beasts,” to flip through our own non-existent high school yearbooks as we watch 305, “Homecoming,” and wax rhapsodic over Jane Espenson in 306, “Band Candy.” We rejoice at the introduction of Mayor Richard Wilkins III! We cringe at all the grown-up kissage! And I pump my fist in agreement with Giles’...
2018-07-281h 39Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 15 - Anne / Dead Man’s Party / Faith, Hope & Trick (feat. Nikki Stafford)It’s been a minute since I’ve sat in the ol’ cemetery and knocked back a few with some dead folk (they prefer “life challenged”), so fan-scholar/scholar-fan wunderkind Nikki Stafford joins me once again to discuss the first three episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 3. Episode 301 introduces us to “Anne,” who bears a striking resemblance to Buffy Summers, but that’s probably just my imagination. In episode 302 Joyce and the Scoobies throw a “Dead Man’s Party” to welcome Buffy home. And 303, “Faith, Hope and Trick” introduces us to Hope, Trick, and Faith. In that order. For some reason. We talk a...
2018-07-141h 47Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 14 - Becoming (Part 1) / Becoming (Part 2) (feat. Alexander Lester)Fan favorite Alexander Lester returns to our modest little graveyard to join the magical mystery flashback tour that is Angelus’ sordid history in 221, “Becoming (Part 1)” and rejoice at the very first Buffy/Spike team-up in 222, “Becoming (Part 2).” Is David Boreanaz’s Irish accent more or less abysmal than Bianca Lawson’s whatever-it-is accent? Mr. Pointy makes his inauspicious-but-important debut in the series; Spike likes Happy Meals; Joyce finally gets a clue; and Buffy shares her sword.
Next: after the feel good cabaret that was the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Two finale I’m taking an oh-so-brief hi...
2018-06-161h 45Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 13 - Killed by Death / I Only Have Eyes For You / Go Fish (feat. Karen Viars)If you’ve made it this far into the podcast I have to assume you’ve just accepted that my audio quality is NEVER going to be worth a damn, so I apologize again and bless you for your forbearance. As for the episode you’re listening to today I’m joined by author and Georgia Tech Humanities and Science Fiction Librarian Karen Viars as we try to push through the static to discuss the complicity of Sunnydale’s adults, the pop culture acumen of Xander Harris, and how computers from the ‘90s worked.
Episode 218, “Killed by Death”...
2018-06-101h 32Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 12 - Phases / Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered / Passion (feat. Johny Ho)This week I’m joined by Johny Ho, friend to basically every show I’ve produced over the past several years and very active fan and organizer in the Brazilian Buffy fan community in the early 2000’s. Episode 215, “Phases” pushes my nitpicky werewolf fan buttons, does an admirable job of examining issues of what we now know as toxic masculinity, and a very questionable job of examining issues of queer sexual identity. In 216, “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered” Spike and Angel discuss the poetry of lung removal and Xander’s got the love. And finally in 217, “Passion” we say hello to Angelus for reall...
2018-06-021h 39Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 11 - Surprise / Innocence (feat. James Rocha)“I slept with my boyfriend and he doesn’t call me anymore, and now he’s killing hookers in alleys.” Listen Buffy, if I had a nickel for every time I went through the exact same thing…
This week I’m joined by James Rocha, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Fresno State to commiserate over the Shakespearean tragedies that are episodes 213, “Surprise” and 214, “Innocence.” We talk about the pros and cons of the “Monster of the Week” format of storytelling; the confusing and inconsistent dichotomy of Angel/Angelus; the efficacy of gypsy curses; how Evil throws much better partie...
2018-05-191h 40Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 10 - Ted / Bad Eggs (feat. Kenn Edwards)Renaissance Man Kenn Edwards jumps on the mic with me to discuss the possibly(?) underappreciated episodes “Ted” and “Bad Eggs.” He brings with him his unique sense of...let’s call it whimsy, and his particular gift for finding a metatextual angle to every pop culture conversation. For example we talk about how Ted Buchanan represents the “programming” of entitled white males; how Buffy the Vampire Slayer knows we hate how clueless Joyce is and keeps on beating that dead horse intentionally to make us all feel as frustrated as her daughter does; we ask what’s up with all those upside...
2018-05-121h 51Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 9 - What’s My Line? (Part 1) / What’s My Line? (Part 2) (feat. Melanie Scala)Watcher-in-Training Melanie Scala joins me in the cemetery this week to discuss the first two parter of Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s second season, “What’s My Line? (Part One)” and “What’s My Line? (Part Two).” These episodes mark a significant turning point in the arc of the series. By introducing the concept of a second Slayer being activated, and fleshing out some further details on how the Slayer/Watcher dynamic works outside of the Buffy/Giles paradigm, the world of the Buffyverse expands dramatically. But what in the name of all the hell dimensions is up with that accent?!
2018-05-051h 23Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 8 - Halloween / Lie to Me / The Dark Age (feat. David Bushman & Arthur Smith)For this week’s conversation David Bushman and Arthur Smith, TV curators at the Paley Center for Media in New York and authors of Buffy the Vampire Slayer FAQ: All That's Left to Know About Sunnydale's Slayer of Vampires, Demons, and Other Forces of Darkness join me to discuss rumors of “Golden Circle” behavior in the Mutant Enemy writers room and how that compares to the growing insularity of the Scooby Gang over the course of the series. We touch very briefly on Xander’s role as the Joss proxy; early hints of #Gamergate mentality; and how story, theme, and emot...
2018-04-281h 32Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 7 - School Hard / Inca Mummy Girl / Reptile Boy (feat. Theresa Fortier)So my excuse for the crappy audio this time will be that it’s punk to not care about sound quality, and with Spike’s glorious debut I’m trying to make the show more punk. Yeah, that’s it. *sigh*
Anyway, as unprofessional as I may be Theresa Fortier, founder of supportspike.com and producer at VidiotsOnline.com still agreed to join me this week to discuss the most important episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Episode 203, “School Hard,” and how it dramatically shakes up the vampire status quo of the series with the introduction...
2018-04-211h 56Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 6 - When She Was Bad / Some Assembly Required (feat. Michael Adams)When the Audio Was Bad! That’s right, in the ‘90s two high school kids with low-end lab equipment could resurrect the dead, but here in the 21st century two adult professionals can’t make a podcast that doesn’t sound like it’s broadcast from the bottom of an empty grave. Skype is a bitca! I apologize for the inconvenience, but the conversation is still good, so please grab your tin can on a string and listen in as Michael Adams, author of Slayer Slang: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer Lexicon joins me to ring in Season Two with episo...
2018-04-141h 27Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 5 - Out of Mind, Out of Sight / Prophecy Girl (feat. James South)We close out the conversation about Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season One with guest scholar James South, editor of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy: Fear and Trembling in Sunnydale and the upcoming Westworld and Philosophy: If You Go Looking for the Truth, Get the Whole Thing. Together we discuss the hidden chalkboard messages of 111, “Out of Mind, Out of Sight,” and the intentional fallacy of Merrie Melodies in 112, “Prophecy Girl.” Cordy finally goes to the library; Xander is a bully; and Buffy’s only 16.
Also, what did the Beatles know about invisible assassin school and when di...
2018-04-071h 26Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 4 - The Puppet Show / Nightmares (feat. Alexander Lester)Alexander Lester, Graduate Student and Teaching Associate in the Department of Popular Culture at Bowling Green State University, joins me this week for the penultimate conversation of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season One. Together we discuss the Sid the Demon-Hunting Puppet series that could have (and maybe should have) spun out of 109, “The Puppet Show,” as well as just how perfectly sinister the introduction of Principal Snyder is. And 110, “Nightmares,” gives us some serious wiggins, but it’s not the killer clowns or forcible Chess Club recruitment practices that get to us — it’s the casual child abuse.
And...
2018-03-311h 17Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 3 - The Pack / Angel / I Robot, You Jane (feat. Elizabeth Rambo)She had so much fun talking with me last time, Elizabeth Rambo is back for more! This time around the Professor and I discuss the uncomfortable implications of Xander’s memory after 106, “The Pack,” Angel and Darla finally becoming themselves (perhaps a moment too late in Darla’s case) in 107, “Angel,” and how 108, “I Robot, You Jane” manages to overcome its terribly dated techno-props to be a much better episode than its reputation suggests.
Also, what exactly is the Sunnydale High School counseling protocol on cannibalism?
Next: Alexander Lester, Teaching Associate in the Department...
2018-03-241h 11Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 2 - The Witch / Teacher’s Pet / Never Kill a Boy on the First Date (feat. Elizabeth Rambo)Welcome back, everyone! This week, with the hard work of setting the stage and introducing the characters and concepts handled by last week’s premiere, we head into the more workmanlike episodes as they begin to lay out what Buffy the Vampire Slayer would look like on a weekly basis. I’m joined by professor and author Elizabeth Rambo to discuss 103, “The Witch,” where Willow may or may not dabble with her first cauldron, the slightly clumsy metaphors (and extremely clumsy papier-mâché) of 104, “Teacher’s Pet,” and whether Owen from 105, “Never Kill a Boy on the First Date” is actually just Ril...
2018-03-171h 13Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 1 - Welcome to the Hellmouth / The Harvest (feat. Nikki Stafford)Pull up a headstone and make yourself comfortable, because we have a lot to talk about over the next 100+ episodes! Joining me to get the conversation started is author, blogger, and fan-scholar (or is that scholar-fan) Nikki Stafford! Taking it from the top with Buffy the Vampire Slayer 101, “Welcome to the Hellmouth” and 102, “The Harvest” we discuss the show’s origins as a film, it’s unaired-but-very-available pilot, and trying to sell people on the goofy (but brilliant) series title. How well do these early episodes realize the potential of the characters and ideas that will be explored for years to com...
2018-03-101h 15Conversations with Dead PeopleEpisode 0 - "I'm Buffy. I'm new.""In every generation, there is a Chosen Podcast. It alone will analyze the subtext, the allegory, and the clever Whedonesque dialogue. It is CONVERSATIONS WITH DEAD PEOPLE."
Or rather it WILL be. Welcome to the "welcome to" episodes of Conversations with Dead People: A Buffy & Angel Podcast. This is just me setting up the premise and announcing that someday soon(ish) there will be a real podcast here. Consider this sort of my "Unaired Pilot."
2018-02-0207 minGobbledygeek300, "'This is Therapy?' 'No, This is Gobbledygeek!' (feat. Dr. Kenn Edwards)"After nearly seven years of fruitless podcasting, Gobbledygeek has reached its 300th episode. For some time now, Paul and Arlo have semi-jokingly referred to episode 300 as the "therapy episode"...so, what the hell, here's three hours of the boys discussing the skeletons in their closest. Acting as guest host and amateur therapist, friend of the show and So Let's Get to the Point host Kenn Edwards grills the guys about their childhoods, their families, their romances, and what they really think of each other. You'll learn more about Paul and Arlo than you ever hoped to, and then some...
2017-02-083h 25
The Avatar ReturnsEpisode 1 - The Boy in the Iceberg / The Avatar Returns / The Southern Air Temple
Welcome to the pilot episode of THE AVATAR RETURNS. It seems as though a hundred years have passed since we first committed to do this, but at last…we’re here to save the world! Or at least watch and discuss every chapter of the award-winning Nickelodeon series Avatar: The Last Airbender and its sequel The Legend of Korra. Each week (or so), your humble hosts Paul Smith and Arlo J. Wiley (of the Gobbledygeek podcast) and Eric Sipple (of the Making the Scene podcast) wax rhapsodic about 2-4 chapters, working their way from the epic’s humble beginnings in the...
2015-10-031h 06GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 212, "Justice Will Be Read"
To kick off Gobbledygeek season 6, we have for you what we promised at the end of last season: a (nearly) full audio recording of The Deli Counter of Justice reading at Rickert & Beagle Books in Pittsburgh, PA on December 13, 2014. Paul, AJ, and Eric Sipple round out the Deli brain trust, with contributors Thomas Dorton and Alyssa Herron also on hand to read from their stories. In addition, there a few Qs & As before the audio cuts out. We hope you enjoy listening as much as we did reading. Plus, Paul and AJ tease some highlights from the forth...
2015-01-151h 04GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 208, "Hiro's Journey or, To Interstellar and Beyond"Whether you prefer your heroes fluffy and cuddly or coated with a layer of Depression-era dust--not that we're suggesting those things have to be mutually exclusive, of course--you'll find what you're looking for on the new episode of Gobbledygeek. Paul and AJ set their sights on two of the biggest movies of the fall: Big Hero 6, the Disney/Marvel animated film about a boy, his huggable robot, and five of their pals; and Christopher Nolan's Interstellar, starring Matthew McConaughey as a spacefaring daddy. What do these movies have in common? They're both pro-science, they're both pro-love, and AJ and...
2014-11-221h 57GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 206, "What're You Gonna Do With Those Pies, Boys? (feat. Greg Sahadachny)"Some call it All Hallows' Eve. Others, All Saints' Eve. Most know it as Halloween. Here at Gobbledygeek, October 31 always has been and always will be observed as Gobbledyween. Fan favorite Greg Sahadachny, of The Debatable Podcast and All the Pieces Matter, joins Paul and AJ to round out this year's celebration of all things horror with a discussion of the 1988 cult (?) classic (?) Killer Klowns from Outer Space. Armed with popcorn guns and living balloon dogs, these klowns descend from the stars just like the Blob to wreak havoc on small town America and--that's really all the movie is, j...
2014-10-311h 23GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 198, "Show Me Your Predator Face"After their discussion of Alien for the epic Alien/Predator podcrawl (see information on participating podcasts in the show notes), Paul and AJ now turn to John McTiernan's 1987 sci-fi actioner Predator. Arnold Schwarzenegger stalks the jungle, joined by the likes of tough guys Carl Weathers, Jesse Ventura, and...uh...Shane Black? Sure. They in turn are stalked by a nasty dreadlock-wearing mofo with one ugly mug. Is there anything to this movie? Not really. Does there need to be? The boys are a little divided, with Paul enjoying its macho silliness and AJ doing the opposite of that. One...
2014-09-031h 08GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 190, "Keep the Nightlight On (feat. Kurtiss Hare)"We here at Gobbledygeek are avowed fans of big-budget epics, be they superheroic or Tolkienesque. But independent film is an important part of any moviegoer's diet, one many don't have access to. Which is why Paul and AJ are thrilled to speak with Kurtiss Hare of the Nightlight Cinema, the new arthouse theater bringing indie film to Akron, OH. Kurtiss talks about the Nightlight's origin, the incredible response to the project's Kickstarter, and how he hopes the theater will grow. Plus, Paul gets an education from some Masters of Sex and AJ revisits the classics. Next: we sto...
2014-07-161h 22GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 185: "Live from Alabama Phoenix Festival 2014"Hello, Birmingham! Live from the Alabama Phoenix Festival, it’s Gobbledygeek! Paul and AJ returned to APF 2014 to host a series of panels about everything from summer movies to Orphan Black, and while they were there, they thought it’d be neat to record a live podcast. Joining them in the hot seat is Gobbledy-stalwart Kenn Edwards; in the audience, frequent guests/loved ones/freaks of nature Eric Sipple, Joseph Lewis, and Pam Smith. The gang talks to the crowd—including a man dressed as Casey Jones and two teenaged Bronies—about how the con’s going, why they enjoy the...
2014-06-0353 minGobbledygeekGobbledygeek 184, "Of Meth and Men (feat. K. Dale Koontz und Ensley F. Guffey)"Friend of the show and long-ago guest K. Dale Koontz makes her triumphant return to Gobbledygeek, and this time, she's brought along her lovely husband Ensley F. Guffey. Together, they've written Wanna Cook? The Complete, Unofficial Companion to Breaking Bad, which is pretty much what it says. Dale and Ensley geek out about Breaking Bad, discuss Michael Slovis' stunning visuals, and talk about what goes into writing a book with your spouse. They do not, however, tell you how to cook 99.9% pure crystal blue meth. Disappointing, I know. Plus, the gang bemoans Zack Snyder's grip on DC's movie world...
2014-05-161h 49GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 179, "On Your Left (feat. Eric Sipple)"He's pretty spry for an old guy: Steve Rogers charges back onto the big screen with Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and we're here to tell you if it's a worthy outing for the star-spangled boy scout. Joining Paul and AJ to disuss the film is friend/lover/ultimate Brony forever Eric Sipple (he also wrote a really cool book called Broken Magic, check it out). The gang talks about Winter Soldier's brutal hand-to-hand, whether or not the movie's political commentary works, the merits of Scarlett Johansson's badassery, and that Sundance Kid. Spoiler alert: this episode might contain the most...
2014-04-111h 30GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 176, "A Fetid, Pestilent Marshland (feat. Jason Tabrys)"Koko the Showfucker is back and he's prepared to fuck the show right into--well, okay, a little of that happens, but for the most part, Jason Tabrys' return to Gobbledygeek is a little more focused than normal. Among the topics discussed are the Veronica Mars movie and its abundance of fan-service, the Cosmos controversy, and the fact that Captain America 3 and Batman & Superman: Friendship Is Magic opening on the same day is going to keep the idiotic flames of the Marvel/DC fan war raging long into the night. Then there's the big one: When you hate something--say, oh, The B...
2014-03-221h 43GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 169, "That Awkward Wezzo (feat. Wesley Mead)"The exceedingly British Wesley "Wezzo" Mead makes his triumphant return to Gobbledygeek, where he regales Paul and AJ with the triumphant story of his triumphantly watching five terrible movies (well, one of them wasn't bad) in one triumphant day. It's all very triumphal. Paul also recounts how Alabama went post-apocalyptic wasteland after a few inches of snow, there's a far too thorough discussion of the leaked Ninja Turtles designs, and to cap it all off, there's some Breaking British News.
Next: our first-ever Gobbledy-Book Club begins! We'll be having a month-long discussion of...
2014-02-061h 28GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 167, "2013 in Review: SpaghettiOs, Batfleck, and Book-Readers"It's all come down to this. A year of rambling, raging, and running off at the mouth has led to this one final episode of 2013. And, you know, finales are difficult things. How do you encapsulate the year that come's before, to pay homage and tribute to everyone and everything that has made this such a good year of the show? Well, you do two things: you disrespect the American flag and you pray for Kanye West to be whisked off to another dimension. Those are only two of the many things Paul and AJ do in the season 4...
2013-12-171h 34GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 164, "Spinning Patellas"This week, Paul and AJ lack a plan. As always, when they lack a plan, they tend to just talk a whole bunch. Like, a whole bunch. First up, AJ gives the audience what he knows they want: an update on his health. (Here at Gobbledygeek, we want to make you feel like you're part of the family.) Then there's talk of music, with the 50th anniversary of The Beatles' second album coinciding with the release of On Air: Live at the BBC - Vol. 2, along with Paul McCartney's New. On the movie front, Paul falls in love with...
2013-11-221h 42GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 162, "Gobbledygeek Versus The BastardCast Versus Gobbledygeek (feat. Jason Tabrys and Jeremy R! Hudson)"It has long been foretold by mad prophets clinging to their tattered robes, wild eyes staring at the heavens: "HE WILL RETURN!" As blood-red clouds gather on the horizon and lightning cracks the sky in two, he descends on his rainbow death unicorn. Jason Tabrys licks a lollipop made of skulls, dragging behind him Jeremy R! Hudson, who claws at the earth in a futile attempt to avoid his fate. That's right: the BastardCast duo lays siege to Gobbledygeek this week, gods of mischief exploding chaos all over what is normally such a tight, well-ordered show. Ahem. Jason and...
2013-11-091h 26GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 157, "This Podcast Is Clean (feat. Valerie Clark)"It's late. Your dad's asleep in his chair. The national anthem plays. Static blares from your TV set. You place your hands on the screen, lean in close, and are confronted with the most nightmarish vision possible...the new episode of Gobbledygeek! Scary, I know. Paul and AJ kick off the month of horror that is known as Gobbledyween with a look back at Tobe Hooper's 1982 classic Poltergeist, joined by long-time friend of the show Valerie Clark in her first (1st!) appearance. Does the movie hold up? Did Hooper really direct it, or was it all writer/executive producer...
2013-10-091h 19GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 154, "Aeolian Cadences (feat. Anna Williams)"It’s an even-numbered episode, which theoretically puts Paul in the drivers seat for this week, but he completely phones it in, so AJ Wiley takes the reins and redeems himself, more or less, for many of his prior podcast failures. He welcomes foul-mouthed fiddle player Anna Williams to the show to school the boys on how to talk about music. Also pet gender, cast announcements for Fifty Shades of Grey, and Gobbledygeek being so bad it’s driven Hayao Miyazaki into retirement. Meanwhile, Paul’s only contribution is the pitch for League of Extraordinarily Awkward Auteur Directors.
2013-09-081h 43GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 153, "Heavy Book Petting (feat. Mere Smith and Eric Sipple)"Esteemed writer of words Mere Smith and goddess of pain Eric Sipple have returned to Gobbledygeek! They discuss pitching their wares at the forthcoming Word on the Street Festival in Toronto, the crazy logistics that go into planning an event of that magnitude, the books they'll be hawking there, and the level of collaboration made possible by the Internet. Plus, Paul and AJ have a sane and measured response to the casting of Ben Affleck as Batman, and AJ lavishes praise upon The World's End.
Next: who knows!
2013-08-301h 42GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 124, "2012 In Review"Another year coming to an end. Another season of Gobbledygeek over. Before you begin your mourning process, Paul and AJ have a lot--and we do mean a LOT--to say in this super-sized finale, gabbing about their favorite movies (superheroes and tigers get a nod), music (they really don't have the same taste at all), books (haha, they're illiterate), and much more. It's been a great year for the show; we salute you. See you in 2013!
2012-12-192h 27GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 121, "Be Thankful That You've Never Seen These Movies"It's time for another Gobbledygeek Thanksgiving! This year, in lieu of
being sociable and actually talking to other human beings, Paul and AJ
decided to watch the Bat-Turkey-approved ThanksKilling and ThanksKilling
3, all about a murderous turkey being all murder-y. While they find the
first ThanksKilling awful but sort of funny, they have not a single nice
thing to say about ThanksKilling 3. This episode is mostly just them
consoling each other. Maybe they'll talk to people again next year. Plus,
the boys discuss the closing of...
2012-11-181h 22GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 120, "This Much is True-True"Gobbledygeek is no stranger to generations-spanning epics; the whole show has been an experimental piece showing how different pop culture artifacts complement and dovetail with one another, and of how the love of two co-hosts will endure for the rest of history. Haha, just kidding, we're just a dumb podcast, but this week we are talking about something that is certainly not dumb and is most definitely ambitious: Tom Tykwer and Andy & Lana Wachowski's Cloud Atlas. Paul and AJ are both fans of the film and describe why it works for them and how emotional it made them, while...
2012-11-111h 43GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 110, "#12"It's been one year--and exactly half the show ago--since DC rebooted their
entire line, dubbing this bold creative decision/shameless marketing ploy
the "New 52." Paul and AJ check back in on the New 52, pointing out what's
working (Animal Man, Swamp Thing) and what's not (Justice League,
Detective Comics). Has this whole thing been worth it? Has it made a
difference for the company? And what are we to make of the editorial
troubles that have been messily dragged out into the public? We can't
promise...
2012-09-051h 44GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 108, "Grave of the Rabbits"We know that every episode of Gobbledygeek makes you cry, but this one might especially depress you. It's Geek Challenge time once more, so Paul has tasked AJ with watching the 1978 animated adaptation of Watership Down; in turn, AJ has challenged Paul to watch the 1988 anime Grave of the Fireflies. One is about the brutal escape of a group of rabbits from their soon-to-be-demolished warren. The other is about the brutal attempts at survival made by a very young brother and sister after their home is demolished in WWII-era Japan. Both are very sad. To lighten the mood, AJ...
2012-08-181h 30GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 99, "Mars, the Bringer of War"It had to happen sooner or later: the boys discuss John Carter. Do you, like Paul, feel that the film has been unfairly derided and that the media has latched onto its financial failure with too much glee? Or, like AJ, do you feel the film is terrible, filled with dead air, and populated with cardboard characters? Unless you're looking for someone to be in the rational middle, you'll find someone in your corner! Why does Paul like it and why does AJ hate it? The boys try to get to the center of the problem, and may or...
2012-06-091h 15GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 97, "War! Huh! Good God, Y'all!"Memorial Day is next weekend, so to get in the spirit, the boys have come up with a list of the Official Gobbledygeek Top 5 War Movies. Without giving too much away, we'll say there are a couple Spielbergs in there along with a couple others that are alternately meditative, pulpy, and batshit insane. Which, you know, war. Plus, Paul and AJ spout off about The Avengers some more, as both are baffled by a simple point that numerous critics have failed to grasp; and Paul mentions the Alabama Phoenix Festival, at which he'll be appearing on a few panels...
2012-05-191h 13GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 93: "Titanic: Episode I - The Phantom Iceberg...in 3D!"There's been a disturbance in the Force...and that's only the tip of the iceberg! Well, after that peach of a sentence, we're about to be dragged offstage, so really quickly: AJ likes Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace; Paul likes Titanic. Paul hates Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace; AJ hates Titanic. FIGHT! Well, it's actually a lot more civil than that, but yes, arguments are had, rants are ranted, bile is spewed. Plus, they also have a fundamental disagreement over the new HBO series Girls, so, you know, more fighting and...
2012-04-211h 19GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 86: "Was That As Good for You As It Was for Me?"Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy, or are you gonna bite...and/or listen to us babble about Reservoir Dogs for the first entry of Tarantino Month here at Gobbledygeek? In covering Quentin Tarantino's first feature, we discuss the film's ingenious construction; Michael Madsen's disturbing performance as Mr. Blonde; why AJ thought he might go to hell after watching it for the first time; how it inspired a multitude of copycats; and why none of its imitators have ever been able to rival the real thing. Plus, the boys geek out over the Avengers trailer, Paul brags...
2012-03-031h 34GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 83, "Mawwiage"
It's almost Valentine's Day, so grab your best guy/gal and settle down for the latest episode of Gobbledygeek, in which the boys discuss how marriage is presented in pop culture. It's really hard to find a pop marriage that isn't fundamentally fucked-up in one way or another, but Paul and AJ do their best. You've got everyone from Firefly's Wash and Zoe to The Honeymooners' Ralph and Alice, and then going to the dark side, even Breaking Bad's Walt and Skyler. Plus...Paul and AJ get engaged????
Next: the boys tackle Neeson v. Wolves, a...
2012-02-111h 35GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 80, "The Young Adult With The Dragon Tattoo"Your worst nightmares have been realized: Paul and AJ are back with another season of Gobbledygeek! To kick things off, the boys discuss two films released late last year. Though they are both very different, they're both about damaged women: Young Adult, the very un-Juno-like reteaming of Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody, starring Charlize Theron as a self-obsessed YA author; and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, David Fincher's adaptation of the first book in Stieg Larsson's blockbuster Millennium series, starring Rooney Mara as fierce hacker/investigator Lisbeth Salander. They clash over Young Adult's polarizing conclusion, and come together...
2012-01-211h 23GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 79, "2011 Year-End Review"Holy chafing podcasts, Gobblers! The boys wrap up their second season by (what else?) talking. A lot. It’s the Gobbledygeek 2011 Year-End Review, which basically means Paul and AJ go on and on about the stuff that they loved (and hated) in geeky pop culture for the past twelve months. And they bicker a little bit. And there may be name calling at one point. But no formal charges have been filed, so all-in-all a great way to end our sophomore year. No blood, no foul.
Next: Some well-deserved time off. For you guys, that is...
2011-12-192h 03GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 78, "Twisted Christmas: Just Add Water"For this holiday season, the boys rewind to their respective childhoods and visit a cherished classic: Joe Dante's Gremlins. It's not your usual holiday fare, unless your usual holiday fare involves murder, isanity, and chaos. They discuss whether or not the film actually holds up to the harsh light of adulthood, whether those damn rules make any sense, and just how high the author of the film's novelization was. AJ reviews We Need to Talk About Kevin, Paul gripes about The Defenders #1, and then we get around to Nathan's snarky Formspring question of the week.
N...
2011-12-101h 33GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 77, "Buy, Buy, Buy"If there's anything we learned from A Charlie Brown Christmas, it's that
Christmas has become far too commercialized and that the true spirit of
Christmas isn't in the gifts that you receive. So, going entirely against
that lesson from our childhoods, we've concocted the second annual
Gobbledygeek Gift Guide! We'll clue you into everything you should buy for
that nerd in your life, be they into movies (The Tree of Life! Hanna!),
music (Nirvana! Pink Floyd!), games (Arkham City! Skyrim!), or more. We
also leaven...
2011-12-041h 58GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 76, "Gobbledygeek Thanksgiving II"
Leaves changing color? Check. Days getting shorter? Check. The bitter taste of your college sports team getting its butt kicked? Double check. So what else could you possibly need? How about the second annual Gobbledygeek Thanksgiving Special?! Much more restrained this year than in our freshman effort, but we still managed to blackmail a couple of guests into stopping by to help us be all thankful and shit. Nathan and Kevin make their long-awaited returns to the Gobblecave to say nice things about the stuff they're thankful for...and to mock us, your beloved Gobbledyhosts. It's a holiday tradition!
2011-11-191h 25GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 75: "GobbleCon 2011: Of Records, Ribs, and Rock Band"Turkey Day's early this year! Universes collide, worlds explode, and galaxies collapse as Paul and AJ actually meet face-to-face for the first time ever for GobbleCon 2011! As such, this is the one for the faithful: the boys don't take on any outside topics, just report from the front lines about all the places they've visited, all the food they've eaten, and all the Rock Band they've played. To be fair, there's also a joint review of Andrew Niccol's In Time. It's mostly about food, though.
Next: the second annual Gobbledygeek Thanksgiving, which may or may not include...
2011-11-121h 12GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 70, "Join Us"This week, we get sad AND silly. First, the boys say goodbye to Apple founder and tech visionary Steve Jobs. Then, to keep anyone from taking them too seriously they kick off this year’s Gobbledygeek Halloween (Gobbledy’ween?) Film Festival with a ribald discussion of the Sam Raimi classic The Evil Dead. Also: AJ reviews the Wasikowska/Fassbender interpretation of Jane Eyre; Paul hints at what you can probably expect from the review of the Ethan Gilsdorf book Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks he’s bound to do someday; and a slew of Formspring questions.
Next...
2011-10-081h 44GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 68, "Stop Rapping, Son, or Little Stipe and the Big Boobs"It’s a veritable cornucopia of conversation as Paul and AJ let it roll with another fast-and-loose episode. Netflix’s questionable new business strategy is discussed (tweets are read aloud!), some of the new/returning fall TV shows are subject to the boys’ discerning gaze (planking is dissed!), R.E.M.’s break-up is mourned (Michael Stipe’s penis!), and more. Paul offers up his review of Drive, while AJ raves about Girls’ new album Father, Son, Holy Ghost. If you like your Gobbledygeek served raw and rambly, this one’s for you! Whatever that means. Forget I said anything.
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2011-09-241h 47GobbledygeekGobbledygeek 53, "Kill Bill & Ted"Geek Challenge time! Paul has astonishingly never seen the KILL BILL films, so AJ challenges him to watch them; and in turn, Paul challenges AJ to watch the BILL & TED films. Because of course. Will Paul thrill to the killing of Bill? Will AJ have a most excellent time? Is that real Hattori Hanzo steel? These questions and more will be answered in this week's exciting installment of Gobbledygeek! Plus: news, Paul's thoughts on L.A. NOIRE, AJ shares his Disney Dream cruise experience, and Formspring questions.
Next: the boys, with an assist from Nathan, talk about...
2011-06-042h 08GobbledygeekThe Lost Gobbledygeek: True Swan/Black GritThe lost episode of Gobbledygeek, "True Swan/Black Grit," was recorded way back on January 8. Initially conceived as a test episode for the show's new format, we then thought, "Hey. Because we're lazy bastards, this might also make a really convenient filler episode." And now, ladies and gentleturkeys, the time has come: half of the Gobbledyteam is away (on business, we're told), so we're unearthing this oft-mentioned chestnut in which Paul and AJ review the then-current films True Grit (harmony!) and Black Swan (dischord!). And we thought last week's episode was about time travel! Plus: outdated news, AJ reviewing...
2011-05-202h 27