Fri, 29 December 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Both Andrew and D. Bethel saw Star Wars: The Last Jedi so–– THE LAST HOT TAKE: They bring in original Star Wars fan and friend of the show, Jason Tudor, to talk about Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the talk around the movie, and what it means for the franchise SPOILER ALERT––SIGNIFICANT PLOT POINTS ARE DISCUSSED; BE SURE TO WATCH THE MOVIE BEFORE LISTENING. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Disco Medusae" by Kevin McLeod (incompetech.com)*
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Fri, 22 December 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: To ring in the holidays, Andrew and D. Bethel take the time to bring you another Week in Geek Shortcast. This week, Andrew plays Greenheart Games' Game Dev Tycoon on iOS (after having previously played it on Steam), while D. talks about the interesting time-travel, existential narrative of the Jean Grey limited series from Marvel. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"District Four" by Kevin McLeod (incompetech.com)*
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Fri, 15 December 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew returns to a previous WiG by booting up a since heavily patched River City Ransom Underground. while D. was impressed with the pragmatism and instructional value of Brandon Dayton's Sketchbook Summer artbook. NERD LAW: When legal stuff happens in the nerd world, Andrew is on the case (though not dispensing any legal advice). This time around, he talks about Epic Games suing players who use cheats in Fortnite and Comic Con International winning its copyright battle against Salt Lake Comic Con over the term "Comic Con." RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Disco Medusae" by Kevin McLeod (incompetech.com)*
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Fri, 8 December 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: A Week In Geek extravaganza as both Andrew and D. discuss their respective forays in to Justice League-adjacent ventures as Andrew watches all four episodes of the CW's Crisis on Earth X while Dan watches Justice League and they discuss––at length––what each interpretation does well and what could be done better. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 1 December 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: While still playing Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Andrew tries to participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) while D. gets excited by the Lovecraftian undertones found in Get Out. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 24 November 2017
THE FORCE IS...EXPENSIVE?: With the hotly anticipated Star Wars: Battlefront II released recently, with it came a lot of controversy. It stands at the apex of a recent trend toward big-budget titles adopting monetizing tactics more commonly found in free-to-play mobile games, this time in the form of blind boxes aka loot boxes. Andrew and D. dive into this controversy and try to find the middle ground. LINKS:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 17 November 2017
THE STATE OF SUPERHERO CINEMA (AND TV): With so much superheroic media out there right now, and with Marvel, DC, and Fox swinging wildly on both the large and small screens, Andrew and D. Bethel take a look at how things are sorting out, how they've changed over the last year or so, and where things might go. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 10 November 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew gets through the first episode of season 2 of Netflix's Stranger Things and has LOTS of opinions––not about the show, but about streaming in general. Dan succumbs to weakness and plays the Deadpool video game (while simultaneously playing the much better––but much more intense––Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus). RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 3 November 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: D. Bethel looks at DC Comics' retrospective of Jim Lee's Wildstorm Studios, Wildstorm: A Celebration of 25 Years, and is completely underwhelmed by their effort while Andrew ponders the considerate world-building of Bethesda games as he dives back into The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 27 October 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew talks about the premier of the new (and final) season of Star Wars: Rebels while D. Bethel talks about Netflix's new based-on-a-true-story-kind-of David Fincher-led crime drama, Mindhunter. SPOOKYTOBER: In celebration of the scariest month of the year, Andrew and D. discuss a movie each that really, truly gave them the scaries. Andrew discusses the cult classic, Jacob's Ladder, while D. discusses the forgotten gothic horror of The Others. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 20 October 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew plays the expansive new Star Trek board game by Gale Force Nine Games, Star Trek: Ascendancy, while D. gets knee-deep into the sequel to the short-lived, but beloved, comic book series, Battle Chasers. However, the sequel is a video game, not a comic, in Battle Chasers: NightWar by Airship Syndicate. (Full Disclosure: D. was a backer on the Battle Chasers: NightWar Kickstarter campaign.) RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 13 October 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew attends Seattle's BrickCon and is intrigued by not only the affordable prices of hard-to-get sets, but also the creativity of independent LEGO builders, while Dan gives his impressions on the pilot episode of Fox's new tv show based, ostensibly, on their cinematic X-verse, The Gifted. WHAT A THRILL: Andrew, inspired its free status for PS Plus subscribers this month, re-downloads Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain and gets poisoned by Venom Snake all over again, two years on. NOT MY AMERICA: Swedish developer, MachineGames, and their parent company, Bethesda, are ramping up the marketing for their upcoming, hotly anticipated sequel, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, and their tact has made a certain demographic very displeased. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 6 October 2017
STRIKE WHILE THE IRON'S HOT: After almost an entire year on strike, SAG AFTRA and the studios it named in its grievance have come to a tentative deal, thusly ending the video game voice actors' strike. But what was agreed to? What does this mean for the future of voice actors and game development going forward? Andrew and D. Bethel talk it out. RELATED EPISODES & Links:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 29 September 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: D. Bethel doubles up this time to talk about a personally exciting moment he experienced meeting X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills artists, Brent Eric Anderson, while at this year's Alternative Press Expo in San Jose, CA, as well as seeing the new cinematic version of (half of) the Stephen King classic, It, while Andrew discusses playing SteamWorld Heist. RELEVANT LINKS: D. Bethel's comprehensive video recap of his time at APE 2017. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 22 September 2017
BAD WORDS: After the most recent faux pas by popular YouTube gaming personality, Felix Kjellberg a.k.a. PewDiePie, in which he uttered one of the most contemptible words in American English seemingly as a synonym for "asshole", the internet exploded for a second to either defend Kjellberg or condemn him on a variety of fronts. Firewatch developer, Campo Santo, went so far as to file a DMCA complaint on YouTube, causing the website to take down Kjellberg's Let's Play of it from his channel. Video games and the internet are a mess right now, and Andrew and D. Bethel do there best to untangle the knot while slightly ranting along the way. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 15 September 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: It's a Week in Geek Shortcast this week with a little twist to the formula as Andrew brings TWO items to the table. First, Andrew goes back to the Star Trek well by seeing Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan in theaters in celebration of the film's 35th anniversary and muses on the slightly strange interview with William Shatner that preceded it. D. Bethel talks about watching a friend start watching Doctor Who, observing a person wade into the fandom while trying not to gatekeep or guide the experience. Then, Andrew shares his venture into the world of costuming as he and his team prepare for an upcoming megagame event, "Colossus of Atlantis," which will be held September 24th in Seattle by Seattle Megagames. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 8 September 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew pauses his walk down the Star Trek Nostalgia Trail and attended a day of PAX West (starts at 2:14) while Dan dips into the history of his favorite comic book franchise by reading Marvel Epic Collection Vol. 5: X-Men - Second Genesis which collects the early issues of the great X-Men reboot from 1975 when the "All-New, All-Different" X-men were added to the team (Wolverine, Colossus, Storm, Nightcrawler) and started the 16-year run of writer Chris Claremont (18:17). FINAL FANTASY VII AGAIN: (28:23) September 7th marked the 20th anniversary of Squaresoft's (at the time, now Square Enix) breakthrough hit, Final Fantasy VII. Dan and Andrew talk less about the game itself and instead talk about the impact the game had on gaming and nerd culture. NOTE: Sacramento's Crocker Con | Art Mix is happening September 14th at the Crocker Art Museum at which D. Bethel will be exhibiting with his wares. Come by and say hi! RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 1 September 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew is still riding his Star Trek high and talks about his further adventures playing inside Star Trek Online (starts at 02:43). D. Bethel, plays with the beautiful but kind of simple Miracle Merchant, and finds it an interesting contrast to another phone game, the complex Knights of Pen and Paper II (18:25). THE LONG CON: (26:47) Dan and Andrew riff on the fairly simple question: are there too many cons? RELATED LINKS:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 25 August 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew dives into Paizo's newest RPG, Starfinder, while D. Bethel checks out the premier episode of Disney XD's reboot of DuckTales. REAL MONSTERS: Dan and Andrew just hang back and have a conversation rather than a guided discourse about Nazis in popular culture. They go all over the place, but hover around the topic of how (and why) they're used in fiction. RELATED LINKS:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 18 August 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew (starts at 1:38) hesitantly re-approaches (though actually, basically for the first time) Star Trek: Enterprise, while D. Bethel (16:13) has fun sacrificing folks in Kitfox Games' The Shrouded Isle. LUDIC CROSS-POLLINATION: (27:34) Gen Con, the long-running tabletop-focused convention, rolls out this weekend and leading up to it were a few announcements about new board games in an attempt to ride that wave of publicity. One of them is a brand new adventure board game based on the Fallout video game franchise. Lots of things like tv shows and movies are licensed for use within board games, but the kind of translation that can occur when adapting a game from one medium into a game in another proved a fascinating topic of conversation this week. RELATED LINKS:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 11 August 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew played Punch Club by Lazy Bear Games while D. talks about his time with Thunder Lotus Games' newest release, Sundered. RELATED LINKS:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 4 August 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew saw Spider-Man: Homecoming so now they can talk about it while D. gets upset that Vice Media fired gaming journalist, Mike Diver, who co-created Vice's video game wing, Waypoint. NAME THAT CHIPTUNE: After going deep into an YouTube hole watching marching bands playing video game music, Andrew brings to the table the question: When the hell did video game music become so popular? Is it that good or are we just getting old? RELATED LINKS:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 28 July 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: In a fit of nostalgia, Andrew picks up The Sims 3 again (starts at 1:49) while Dan can't get past a nit-pick to enjoy anything Netflix's Castlevania has to offer (20:46). SDCC 2017: (34:04) It was a big weekend for nerd culture as the San Diego Comic Con dropped a bunch of new trailers on the world. Dan and Andrew look at three trailers and how they seem to be pointing out the creative direction of their respective studios with Marvel's Thor: Ragnarok, DC/Warner Bros.' Justice League, and Steven Spielberg's Ready Player One. RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 21 July 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: The guys are again on the cutting edge of entertainment as Andrew begins playing Skyrim (albeit the Special Edition that was released for current platforms last year) while D goes all the way back to 2006 and plays Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age (albeit the recently released HD remastered version). DOCTOR NEW: After speculation accruing since Peter Capaldi announced he would be leaving the lead role of Doctor Who earlier this year, the BBC announced his replacement, Jodie Whittaker. And the internet went wild. (Time Stamp - 38:38) RELATED EPISODES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 14 July 2017
Since they had so much to discuss, an entire "Shortcast" (despite it being basically the length of an entire episode) was dedicated to talking about the finale of the latest season of Doctor Who. SPOILERS BEWARE. NON-DOCTOR WHO FANS BEWARE (come back next week). Much talk is made about Stephen Moffat's tenure as showrunner, the themes of the finale, and what Andrew and D. want out of the teased Christmas special. NOTICE: D. Bethel will be exhibiting at the inaugural Sac Indie Expo in Sacramento this weekend. He's looking forward to it not only because he gets to chat and hang out with fans and other local creators, but also due to the fact that the event is being held a phenomenal local brewery, Big Sexy Brewing Company. SIE will be on Saturday, July 15 from 12-5pm. It's free to get in, so if you're in the area, you have no excuse to not go. LINKS:
For all intents and purposes, that was a Shortcast recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 7 July 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew spends some time with the Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite Story Demo while Dan gets conflicted watching Transformers: The Last Knight. WORKS CITED:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 30 June 2017
Summer break is back with a vengeance, so the Shortcast run returns! After a slight tangent discussing The Transformers and nostalgia, Dan and Andrew share their weeks in geek. WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew plays Bioshock from the Bioshock: The Collection released to PC and consoles last year. Dan actually finishes a book before discussing it. This time, it's the Kickstartered Wild Times: An Oral History of Wildstorm Studios by Joseph Hedges. WORKS REFERENCED:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio *audio clip sourced from The Transformers: The Movie
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Fri, 23 June 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew watches through the first season of the hit Starz show, Ash vs. Evil Dead while Dan plays through the 2014 Bethesda game, Wolfenstein: The New Order, the reboot of the classic first-person shooter Id franchise. KEEPING SCORES: It was announced this week that Danny Elfman has been hired to compose music for the upcoming DCEU movie, Justice League, after the original composer, Tom Holkenborg (aka Junkie XL), amicably left the project. Dan and Andrew discuss the expectations for an Elfman score in a modern superhero cinema context, and discuss their thoughts on film and televisions scores in general. LINKS:
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 16 June 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew starts rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generation on Bluray while Dan finally opens up about Mass Effect: Andromeda now that he has finished the game. THE LAST GRIPE: The video game expo, E3, always has its share of stories, reveals, and, most recently, at least, controversy. Tim Soret, founder of the studio Odd Tales, scored a coup by getting to go onstage during Microsoft's pre-E3 press conference and talk about his game, The Last Night, and how it would be an exclusive to the company and its new powerhouse console, the XBox One X. However, Soret has a dicey history with gamers, and his pro-GamerGate and anti-feminist tweets were brought to light despite happening years ago. He has even said that The Last Light was created as a statement on feminist ideology. However, at E3, he apologized on stage for his stances. Should he be forgiven? Should he be held accountable? Should we play his game? Dan and Andrew discuss this static caused between art and artist. LINKS:
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 9 June 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Both Andrew and Dan saw Wonder Woman this week and decided to bring in a third voice to discuss the movie, Mary Traverse (from our friendly rivals, The Nerdhole), and they go pretty deep into this excellent, excellent movie. THE GREAT WAR: Noting the novel decision to set Wonder Woman during World War I, Dan and Andrew discuss that war's place in popular culture. WORKS CITED:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 2 June 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew starts a Starbound server and learns about the administrative side of online multiplayer gaming while D. helps to make a game better by playing the PS4 beta release of Marvel Heroes Omega. FAR CRYING: The trailer and promotional artwork for Ubisoft's Far Cry 5 has inflamed a certain demographic of gamers, or has it? Our humble hosts investigate this conundrum. WORKS CITED:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 26 May 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Fueled by the emotions generated by the recently released trailer for Star Trek: Discovery, Andrew slipped back into the Star Trek pool by spinning up Star Trek Online and Star Trek Timelines while D. reads the first trade collection of Eric Powell's (formerly of The Goon) newest comic series, Hillbilly, from Albatross Funnybooks. EXHAUSTED DESPAIR: D. Bethel saw the newest entry into the venerated Alien/Aliens franchise, Ridley Scott's Alien: Covenant, and definitely had feelings about it. Fueled by an online discussion generated by The Hollywood Reporter article, "'Why Alien: Covenant' Is Actually a 'Blade Runner' Sequel in Disguise" by Josh Spiegel (and because Andrew hasn't seen the new movie yet), it seemed only right to bring on friend of the show and Alien enthusiast, Taylor Katcher, to talk what worked and what didn't work in this new movie. WORKS CITED: Spiegel, Josh. "Why 'Alien: Covenant' Is Actually a 'Blade Runner' Sequel in Disguise." The Hollywood Reporter. 20 May 2017. WORKS CONSULTED: Couch, Aaron. "'Alien: Covenant' Screenwriter on the Michael Fassbender Scene That 'Easily Could Have Gone Wrong.'" The Hollywood Reporter. 21 May 2017. LINKS:
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 19 May 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew learns about the seedy underbelly of LEGO knock-offs while Dan preps for the upcoming Wonder Woman movie by watching the 2009 animated film. DOCTOR WHO KNEW?: Dan and Andrew discuss their skeptical praise for the current series of Doctor Who. Five episodes in and all episodes have been undeniably good so far. Should they be waiting with baited breath for the show to stumble as it has done for the last five series? Or should they let their freak flag fly once again? WAKING LIFE: Remedy Entertainment's 2010 sleeper hit, Alan Wake, was summarily pulled from all digital storefronts last weekend due to the lapsing of the licenses paid for music featured in the game. It's a strange situation considering exactly how many games––even those released before Alan Wake––use licensed music and are still available for purchase. LINKS:
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 12 May 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: With Andrew sick this week, the Shortcast ends up being a bit more organic than normal with both Andrew and D. sharing stories about this year's Free Comic Book Day festivities. Specifically, Andrew got his hardback copy of Ms. Marvel, volume 1 signed by the creator herself, G. Willow Wilson, while Dan discusses the Hulu Original documentary, Batman & Bill. LINKS:.
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 5 May 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew takes another dip into the Humble Bundle and comes out playing Renowned Explorers: International Society while Dan gets nostalgic (again) playing Disney Afternoon Collection. LUDO-NARRATIVE DISSONANCE: Noted video game critic, Ian Bogost, got blood boiling when he wrote the salaciously titled, "Video Games Are Better Without Stories," for The Atlantic. D. and Andrew investigate the argument Bogost is making––its good points and its flaws––while also talking about why people play games in the first place. Dan talked about Ian Bogost's book, How to Talk About Video Games, back in "Episode 76 - Beepop." NOTES:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 28 April 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew puts his manual dexterity and patience to the test while assembling the LEGO Creator Expert Parisian Restaurant set, while Dan can't stop playing Double Fine's recent release of Full Throttle Remastered. LAPSING SUBSCRIPTIONS: DC Comics announced that the third season of the fan-beloved Young Justice animated series, which will be called Young Justice: Outsiders, will be an exclusive release on DC's as-of-yet unreleased subscription streaming service. It marks yet another step in content providers eschewing more popular platforms like Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime in favor of doing something similar but centralizing around their specific content. Is this where streaming is heading, to a diversified subscription market? Or is it a swing at extra revenue that will ultimately be futile? D. Bethel and Andrew discuss. WORKS REFERENCED:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 21 April 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew plays super sentai producer in Chroma Squad while D. Bethel gets introspective while drawing old high school characters for his "Sketch Fridays" series at LongJohnComic.com. THE BEGINNING OF THE END: The final Doctor Who series to feature current Doctor, Peter Capaldi, and current showrunner, Steven Moffat, began last weekend with "The Pilot," which also introduced the new companion, Bill Potts. Dan and Andrew discuss their reactions to the episode. NERD LAW - YOUTUBE EDITION: Andrew dusts off his non-advisory expertise to talk about a recent situation that occurred during Dan's livestream of God of War III. They talk copyright, YouTube's priorities, and Chinese variety shows. LINKS:
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 14 April 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew watched the live action remake of the Disney animated feature, Beauty and the Beast and D. Bethel discusses his experience at this year's Sacramento Indie Arcade Expo. REGRESSIVE RESURRXION: First, the comic book news cycle went nuts because the first post-Inhumans vs. X-Men book was released, X-Men Gold, which was then subsumed by the fact that people seemed to like it, which was then subsumed by the likelihood that X-Men Gold artist, Ardian Syaf, may have placed possibly intolerant symbology in not-so-hidden places throughout the book. Then it turned out that he definitely did that. It has been a roller coaster of news and insight into Indonesian politics (where Syaf resides) that has been mostly very sad and upsetting for X-Men fans. THE TWO MASTERS: On the threshold of the debut of Doctor Who's Series 10, it was revealed that actor John Simm would be returning to the show in his former role as The Master, the longtime foe of the show's titular hero. Last seen at David Tennant's departure from the lead role, he returns during the tenure of his successor, Michelle Gomez as Missy. What this means for the episode(s) in which they appear together (the last one or two of the season), we can't yet say, but both Dan and Andrew are pretty excited about it. WORKS CITED:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 7 April 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew muses on cinematic magic of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them while Dan can't shut up about the podcast, S-Town. INAPPROPRIATE APPROPRIATION: Dan and Andrew can't ignore the strange vortex created by the controversies surrounding the cultural tone-deafness of Netflix/Marvel's Iron Fist, the backlash to the live-action adaptation of Ghost in the Shell, and the recent shifty comments of Marvel's VP of Sales, David Gabriel, regarding sales and the recent surge of diversity in the Marvel Universe. What the hell is going on? WORKS REFERENCED:
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For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 31 March 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew plays catch-up after the Guestcast by letting us know about his time with the indie game, Turmoil, as well as discussing his experience with Alton Brown's live show, Eat Your Science, while Dan talks about reboots and his hesitancy going into the first two issues of DC Comics' new series, The Wild Storm. MASS REJECTS: As Andrew reported, the new Bioware game, Mass Effect Andromeda, has met with a lot of criticism. However, said criticism is all over the map. Dan and Andrew get deep talking about expectations, Mass Effect, fandoms, and video games as cultural expressions. WARNING: the hosts get a little worked up.
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 24 March 2017
With D. Bethel suddenly on a Spring Break excursion, Andrew recruits friend of the show, Taylor Katcher to fill in the blanks. THE ONLY WIZARD IN THE PHONE BOOK: Andrew and Taylor talk about the Dresden Files Cooperative Card Game, the upcoming card game release from Evil Hat Games. Taylor expresses his fondness for Harry Dresden while Andrew admits his fondness for Paul Blackthorne. TAYLOR BREATHES IN THE WILD: After last week's discussion of The Legend of Zelda series, Taylor shares his experiences with the newest title in the series, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 17 March 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew does his best to navigate menus and complex relationships playing Crusader Kings II while D. Bethel gets horribly disappointed while playing Samurai Shodown VI. A TWISTED LEGEND: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has been released to universal acclaim as a launch title for Nintendo's new console (and as a tombstone for their previous console) but how much is pure nostalgia, how much is hype, and how much is it actually a good game. Well, neither Dan nor Andrew have played it, but with the conversation surrounding the game they do ask a pertinent question, "What is as Zelda game and does this new game meet it?"
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 10 March 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: In what should be a Shortcast ended up being an entire episode, this week Dan and Andrew have a lot to say about their respective Weeks in Geek. Andrew attended Emerald City Comic Con and attended some panels and people-watched while also playing a bit of the officially licensed sequel to the NES cult hit, River City Ransom, Conatus Creative Inc.'s River City Ransom Underground while Dan saw Logan and has a lot to say about it and superhero movies.
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 3 March 2017
D. Bethel has been hit with a bad case of the sicks, so a Shortcast is in order. It's a busy week! Emerald City Comic Con is happening this weekend and Andrew will be there, no doubt wandering around. If you see him, say hello [ , ] for all intents and purposes. If you attend, let us know what you thought of the event in the comments! WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew attended an event celebrating the launch of the Kickstarter for the first tabletop game by friends of the site, Luke and Nicole (from AcrossTheBoardGames.net), Food Truck Champion while D. Bethel decided to deepen his knowledge of Wolverine lore by reading the first fifteen-or-so issues of the long-running Wolverine comic book series by Chris Claremont and John Buscema.
For all intents and purposes, that was a shortcast recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Bustin'" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 24 February 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew plays Project Highrise after receiving it as part of this month's Humble Bundle subscription service, while Dan reads a book about the history of the Japanese game industry in Chris Kohler's Power-Up: How Japanese Video Games Gave the World an Extra Life. THINK INSIDE THE BOX: With Andrew's sojourn into the world of subscription grab-bag services, he and Dan discuss the growing phenomenon and where they think the trajectory may end up. ACCELERATED EVOLUTION: When a YouTube star gets the spotlight from a major industry publication, his world starts to crumble a little bit despite his denial of it. Swedish YouTube sensation, PewDiePie, encountered some issues after an exposé by the Wall Street Journal causes him to lose valuable contracts and allies and seemingly sends him into a strange spiral of denial and self-pity––without losing any subscribers. Andrew and Dan look at this very strange situation and how it connects to the larger cultural issues the news media and celebrity are dealing with while trying to figure out a solution. WORKS REFERENCED
WORKS CITED
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 17 February 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: As promised, Andrew watches (and loves) The LEGO Batman Movie while Dan can't stop playing Righteous Hammer Games. EPISODIC SERIALIZATION: With Channel Zero: Candle Cove last week and both Dan and Andrew engrossed in The People vs. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story, Andrew and Dan look at what seems to be a rising tide of season-long anthology television shows. Moving away from episodic anthology shows to a single story told across an entire season and changing stories and cast in the following season, shows like American Horror Story and True Detective brought this format to the forefront of popular culture. AMERICAN CRIME STORY AND THE FICTIONALIZATION OF LIVING MEMORY: As mentioned above both Dan and Andrew are oddly obsessed with The People vs. OJ Simpson and, frankly, they take some time to wonder why. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 10 February 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew messes with controller schematics for X-Com 2 while Dan freaks himself out as he delves into Syfy's Channel Zero and the HBO documentary, Beware the Slenderman. THE DOCTOR NO MORE: As Peter Capaldi announces his departure from the role of The Doctor in Doctor Who, speculation begins as to who will take his place in Series 11 which brings with it a new showrunner, Chris Chibnall. EVEN STRANGER: With the only time we'll mention the Super Bowl on the podcast, Netflix's Stranger Things debuted its second season teaser trailer during the big game and Andrew and Dan dive into their expectations. Click here for the season 2 trailer.
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. WORKS CITED
FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio *audio clip sourced from Doctor Who, "The Day of the Doctor."
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Fri, 3 February 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew finds zen in the indie hit, Starbound, while D. Bethel finds zen watching the Syfy procedural, Haven. DANCING WITH THE DEVIL: For a variety of reasons, Andrew had Dan watch an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine of some renown, from season 6, in which Benjamin Sisko struggle with making huge decisions throughout "In the Pale Moonlight." In parts a war story and a character study, it is an episode that showcases not only the narrative depths DS9 hit but also how we can use television and movies and other narratives as talking points for what we're dealing with in the world around us. UNPLUGGED BUT UNBOWED: The Penny Arcade webcomic/nerd moguls announced a new convention to add to their already impressive PAX roster: PAX Unplugged, a tabletop-focused exposition to be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in November. Dan and Andrew discuss the implications of this announcement.
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 27 January 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew watches Netflix's Travelers while Dan watches Warner Bros.' Suicide Squad. GAME OVER ALL OVER AGAIN: This week, Dan and Andrew discuss not only the built-in replayability of games but also examine why we replay games. Simply among the two hosts, the reasons for replaying games differs vastly, which caused us to ask the following: Why do you replay games and what games (or kinds of games) those would be (tell us in the comments)? SPOTLIGHT - RESIDENT EVIL: With the release this week of Resident Evil VII: Biohazard (or for those in Japan, Biohazard VII: Resident Evil), Andrew and Dan look back at the game that spurred a genre and kicked off a franchise that is now over twenty years old.
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 20 January 2017
Despite suddenly getting sick this week, Andrew and Dan are bringing you quality audio content to help you usher in end of January. WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew branches out to watch the first season of Syfy's The Magicians, based on the series of novels by Lev Grossman, while D. Bethel focuses up and gets emotional playing the latest game (and last game for Sony, at least) from Fumito Ueda, The Last Guardian.
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Thunder Busters" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 13 January 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew continues to reap the benefits of this winter's Steam sale with the arrival of a Steam controller while Dan watches the new crowd-funded documentaries by video game journalist/personality, Danny O'Dwyer, called Noclip. Here is O'Dwyer's "statement of purpose" regarding what he wants Noclip to be. STAR WARS GAIDEN: [SPOILER ALERT] With enough time gone by since its release (and now that both have seen it), Dan and Andrew discuss Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and why it's connecting with audiences, what it's doing for the Star Wars universe and how it's really doing what Marvel has been trying to do for almost a decade now. Again, we discuss SPOILERS in this discussion, so steer clear if you have not yet seen the movie (and come back and listen once you do).
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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Fri, 6 January 2017
WEEK IN GEEK: Andrew plays Overcooked! with Taylor Katcher while Dan watches Crazyhead on Netflix. PHOENIX FALLING?: The Phoenix Comicon has come under scrutiny recently as it became public that, essentially, people would have to pay to be volunteers at the show by paying dues to become members of the Blue Ribbon Army Social Club. Dan and Andrew discuss the issues surrounding this controversy, such as "Why is this a controversy at all?" Sources:
UPDATE: Square Egg CEO and Phoenix Comicon director, Matthew Solberg, has resigned his position on the board of the Blue Ribbon Army. MINDING THE NUMBERS: In a Bleeding Cool article covering December's comic book sales numbers, Andrew and Dan dive deep into 2016 sales by Marvel and DC and compare their respective performances and draw some interesting (if very not scientific) conclusions from the data.
For all intents and purposes, that was an episode recap. FEATURED MUSIC: -"Stayin' in Black" by Wax Audio
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