Episode 108: Your Mother Works At Applebees, or: Dissecting Batman V Superman

If you’ve listened to this show for any length of time, you know that Rob has long been a defender of Man of Steel as potentially an excellent Superman movie, provided that we would eventually discover in subsequent sequels that Superman learned from the events of that movie to become more of the hero that we all know from the comics.

Well, the first sequel, Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, was released last week, finally answering the question as to whether Rob’s faith in Man of Steel was justified. And I think we all know the answer to that question.

But it’s still a question worth probing. So this week, we’re joined by longtime friends of the show, comedians Ross Garmil and Benari Poulten, not to praise Batman V Superman, but to bury it. And while we all agree that there were some positive aspects to the movie (hi, Wonder Woman!), it is far outweighed by plot problems, a Lex Luthor who wants to be The Joker when he grows up, and a Superman who will do anything to defend Justice provided “Justice” is Lois Lane’s stripper name. If nothing else, it made us nostalgic for Christopher Reeve’s version of Superman, or at least Joe Kelly’s version in What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice and The American Way?

And, as usual, the disclaimers:

• Benari was unexpectedly trapped in an area with terrible Internet access, requiring him to join us by telephone. While the call quality was clear and never drops out in the episode, it will sound like one of us is, well, calling in on the phone.
• This show contains huge spoilers. So if you don’t want to find out why we suspect that the ship Superman rode to Earth was called the USS Joe Chill, see the movie before listening.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. If you don’t want your employer to learn the terms, “Bat Christ” or “Batman: The Gay Blade,” get yourself some headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:46:18 — 100.3MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 103: Nicolas Cage Is… Ambush Bug

The cold snap in Boston broke enough for us to not only enter our studio without dying of hypothermia or being drowned out by the roar of our furnace, but to head out into the countryside to our local movie theater to see Deadpool.

Deadpool is a movie that shouldn’t exist. It’s based on a character with a lower Q Score than Irving Forbush, who debuted in arguably the worst superhero movie not starring Dolph Lundgren and Louis Gossett, Jr, starring a man who normally spells the end of comic book franchises. It’s a movie produced and rated for adults, featuring at least three decapitations, two unfortunate prolapses, and one naked Morena Baccarin. And yet: 150 million American dollars in one weekend can’t be wrong, so we break the movie down from the comic fan’s perspective: what worked, what didn’t, why Deadpool doesn’t need an origin story, and why Rob desperately wants DC Films to put Ambush Bug on their schedule.

We also discuss:

• Public Relations #5, written by Matthew Sturges and Dave Justus, with art by David Hahn and Jose Marzan, and:
• Batman #49, written by Scott Snyder with art by Yanick Paquette!

And, some disclaimers:

• This show contains spoilers. While we try to shout out warnings ahead of time, be aware that you might discover that Deadpool is a knockoff of Deathstroke The Terminator.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. You think your boss would be more impressed with your performance if he heard about Amanda’s first exposure to George Michael’s I Want Your Sex? Then get some headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:42:36 — 96.1MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 93: Cinematic Elephantiasis

Yes, we are late this week, and for that we apologize. Here at the All-New, All-Different Crisis On Infinite Midlives Home Office, renovations continue… and continue… and continue, meaning that our recording studio was covered in painters’ tarp and plastic up until this morning.

But we are back in business, and wanted to make sure that we talked about the new trailer and teaser for Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice that dropped last week. After all, we are among the few defenders of director Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel, so we wanted to talk about how the new footage affected our enthusiasm for the movie, which drops in March.

As it turns out, the answer to that is: “badly.”

We also discuss:

• Daredevil #1, written by Charles Soule with art by Ron Garney,
• The Totally Awesome Hulk #1, written by Grek Pak with art by Frank Cho, and,
• Robin War #1, written by Tom King with various artists!

And, as always, the disclaimers:

• We record this show live to tape with minimal editing. While this might mean a looser comics podcast than you are used to, it also means that anything can happen. Like the domestication of the wily Pseudo-Winklevoss.
• This show contains spoilers. While we try to shout out warnings ahead of time, just assume we will ruin everything you love and care about.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. While I think we present a compelling case as to why Armie Hammer would be an ideal choice to front a Frank Miller-ish reboot of Home Alone, do you think your employer cares? Of course not. Get some ear buds.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:26:57 — 78.5MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 79: Wattle Throttle

Marvel Studios’s Ant-Man opened in the United States this weekend, marking the first Marvel movie in years where non-geeks said, “Who?”

So we decided to mark the occasion by bringing in comedians Tim McIntire and Benari Poulten (who guested on our Avengers: Age of Ultron episode), as well as comedian Ross Garmil, to talk about the movie. Spoiler alert: we liked it because of the characters, and in spite of the fact that Edgar Wright didn’t direct it, and that it had more holes than a Guadalupe Yambiter ant hill.

But being geeks, the conversation meandered a bit, to also include some Batman V Superman and Star Wars: The Force Awakens talk. With a few unexpected detours and interruptions. This is a wild one, but a fun one, kids…

And now, the disclaimers:

• While we normally record this show live to tape, this week our guests called in remote from their homes, where two of them also store children. This means that we had to do more editing than usual, but nothing was added or moved.
• This show contains spoilers. If you were hoping to learn that Ant-Man’s power involves ants at the theater, maybe save this episode for later.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. If you think your boss would be creeped out by Rob asking a child to check a video feed for possible infections, it means that your boss is a well-adjusted human being, and that you should listen with headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:14:27 — 72.1MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 78: Hotboxing Hall H

San Diego Comic-Con was this week, and for the first time in nine years, we were not there. And not being at SDCC is a weird experience for us, so we spend a little time talking about how technology like Twitter and YouTube have made it possible to learn most of the big, important news from the show floor, while not in any way reproducing the little experiences that you can only get straight from the scene. Like being accosted by evangelicals, or getting intoxicated on local beers. Sometimes at the same time.

However, we did have our own personal lifeline to the show floor: Los Angeles comedian Gariana Abeyta, who guested on our favorite SDCC 2014 episode, and who managed to snag four-day passes to this year’s convention. Gariana was good enough to call into the show this morning, and it is a short glimpse not only into some hard news about some Hall H events, but into how the mind starts to go after four days of non-stop spectacle.

One of the big items to come from Comic-Con was the first full Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice trailer, which was officially released just hours after the Warner Bros. panel. And Amanda and I spend some time breaking it down, discussing the implied backstory of Batman (including the fate of at least one Robin), Superman’s questionable upbringing, and Lex Luthor’s terrible, terrible Kip Winger-pelt toupee.

We also discuss: Civil War #1, written by Charles Soule, with art by Leinil Francis Yu!

And, as usual, the disclaimers:

• We record this show live to tape, with minimal editing (although this episode, we cut Gariana’s call in from an earlier recording). While this might mean a looser comics podcast than you are used to, it also means that anything can happen. Like figuring out where Superman likes to whip out his Codex.
• This show contains spoilers. While we try to shout out warnings ahead of time, you should assume that we will ruin the fact that in Civil War, what we’ve got here is a failure to communicate.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. Unless you want your employer to learn the word that we’ve decided will keep us from mainstream fame and fortune, you should get some headphones.

And, in case you missed it, here’s that SDCC 2015 Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice trailer:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:04:01 — 113.0MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 64: My Safe Word Is Phantom Menace

The big genre news this week came in the form of about four minutes of film assembled by marketing departments: the second trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (which debuted at a panel at Star Wars Celebration last week), and the first for Superman V. Batman: Dawn of Justice. So, like everyone else in fandom, we discuss them: the content, how they play with expectations by showing us glimpses of long-loved characters and / or story beats from classic comics, and how they really tell us nothing while promising us everything… and how that can drive one mad with useless speculation based on roughly 45 seconds of footage, combined with slightly more dialogue than a Vine video and some kickass music.

We also talk about our plans to cover next weekend’s C2E2 convention in Chicago, including our planned schedule for this show during and after the convention:

• We will release a recap of Friday at the convention sometime on Saturday, 4/25,
• We’ll release a recap of Saturday’s programming at our show’s normal time on Sunday, 4/26, and:
• We’ll release a full recap, including panel audio, on either Monday, 4/27 or Tuesday 4/28.

We also discuss:

• Convergence: Supergirl Matrix #1, written by Keith Giffen with art by Timothy Green II,
• The Tithe #1, written by Matt Hawkins with art by Rahsan Ekedal, and:
• Archie Vs. Predator #1, written by Alex De Campi with art by Fernando Ruiz!

And, the usual disclaimers:

• We record this show live to tape. While this might mean a looser comics podcast than you are used to, it also means that anything can happen. Like arguing over whether Chewbacca has had plastic surgery done, and where he gets his hair colored and highlighted.
• This show contains spoilers. While we try to shout out warnings ahead of time, assume that you will discover which members of the Riverdale Gang have had their spines removed.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. You want your employer to hear which sexually transmitted diseases are most reminiscent of Midichlorians? Get some headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:52:08 — 101.2MB)

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Enjoy the show, suckers!

Episode 20: Ally McBealing Around The City

In this week’s episode, Amanda and I discuss:

• DC Entertainment’s / Warner Bros.’s rumored slate of movie released, from Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2016 to a rumored new Batman movie in 2019, whether DC is overextending, which ones we’re most looking forward to, how Sandman could work as a movie, and who should play Shazam,
• The recently announced Quentin Tarantino / Matt Wagner crossover of Django Unchained and Zorro, why we’re not as excited as we might have been 15 years ago, and what Django crossovers we’d rather see,
• Sex Criminals #6, written by Matt Fraction with art by Chip Zdarsky,
• Thunderbolts #27, written by Ben Acker and Ben Blacker, with art by Carlo Barberi, and:
• How World Cup soccer is enough to put an American – even a baseball-loving American – right to sleep.

But some disclaimers:

• This show is recorded live to tape, like a live radio show. While this might mean some dead air and dead ends, it also means that anything can happen.
• This show contains spoilers. We try to drop a warning ahead of time, but tread lightly.
• This show contains profanity and adult language, and is not safe for work. If it was translated into sign language, it would be only a middle finger. Wear headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:26:33 — 79.3MB)

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Enjoy the show, suckers!

With One Magic Word: DC Movie Schedule Possibly Leaked

We don’t have a lot of time this evening – we are preparing to, for the first time, take the podcast out of the studio and on the road to have a couple of guest hosts, which requires the testing of a bunch of new portable equipment and packing it up – but this seemed like a thing we should mention, even if it turns out to be a rumor.

Apparently Hollywood gossip reporter Niki Finke is claiming to have obtained the release schedule for the next several years of DC live action superhero movies, including and beyond Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. This schedule was reportedly meant to be announced at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con in about five weeks – and we might hear something different from DC / Warner Bros. then – but supposedly, here is the schedule of DC Universe movies coming out between now and 2018… and there are one hell of a lot of them.

Crisis On Infinite Midlives Podcast Episode 16: Crystal Blue Mess

It’s Sunday, and even though it’s the long Memorial Day weekend here in the States, it’s still time for another episode of the Crisis On Infinite Midlives Show!

In this week’s episode we talk about:

• X-Men: Days of Future Past! We discuss how much we enjoyed the movie, some of the cooler moments in the flick, but most importantly: we try and take apart where the film fits into the X-Men movie franchise continuity, and whether or not any of the other movies can even exist with this one stuck at the end!
• The recently announced title Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice! We talk about why the title makes sense, how a desire to make The Dark Knight Returns might have led to decisions director Zack Snyder made in Man of Steel, and how this title could have come directly from the name of one of our earlier podcasts!
• Forever Evil #7, by Geoff Johns and David Finch
• MPH #1, by Mark Millar and Duncan Fegredo
• Original Sin #2, by Jason Aaron and Mike Deodato, and:
• Why if 3D movies are bad, falling asleep during an IMAX 3D showing of Godzilla is worse (spoiler alert: it involves waking up to Godzilla shrieking at you through 100 subwoofers.

And now the legalese:

• This podcast uses adult, vulgar language, and is not safe for work. This week’s hook joke is about penis tinting, and things really go downhill from there. Wear headphones. You are warned.
• This show was recorded live to tape, and may contain awkward pauses, the use of the word “f**k” as a comma, and truly vile humor that any reasonable show would edit out.
• This show is chock-full of spoilers. We try to warn you ahead of time, but there’s no getting around it: we are ruiners.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:09:02 — 63.2MB)

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Enjoy the show, suckers!

It’s Always Darkest: Batman Vs. Superman Gets Proper Title, Which Could Be Worse

We’re a little late to the party with this one, what with our day jobs and commitments and congenital drinking problems, but Batman Vs. Superman has an official title and promo image. The promo image is at the top left. The title is Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice.

And then the Internet blew up.

Seriously: people I have known for years and respect have taken to Twitter to complain about almost every aspect of the title. One guy complained that Superman didn’t have top billing. Another guy bitched that they were using a “v” instead of a “vs.” or a full-on “versus.” I’ve seen gags revolving around “Tony Orlando of Justice.” Chris Hardwick’s Comedy Central show @Midnight started a hashtag, #BetterBatmanSuperman, implying that Joe Blow from Falmouth could come up with a better title.

And maybe they could. Because honestly, it’s not that great a title. But it’s not the worst title in the world, either.