In our latest mini-episode, Mike and Casey unveil our brand new segment, Radio vs. the Mailbag! We’re tossing open questions to our listeners, and we want to hear from you!
This month: “Are drivers legally obligated to pull their cars over to the shoulder of the road for the Ghostbusters’ Ecto-1?”
Also, we answer some listener feedback, look at the legacy of Arnold’s the Last Action Hero, and hope to prove that Lando Calrissian was the real victim of betrayal in the Empire Strikes Back!
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Hey guys,
I really enjoyed the latest micro episode.
My thoughts concerning the Ecto-1 are that, as the Ghostbusters are not a municipal emergency service, they will not have the recognition of the state needed for other motorists to have to pull over to let them pass. However, in the rear view mirror, I imagine the Ecto-1 looks enough like an ambulance that most motorists would pull over anyway, if the lights and sirens are blaring the way they do. I imagine that could land them in a lot of trouble with the authorities, however, because surely you need some kind of authorisation to use lights and sirens that way?
Anyways, moving onto ‘Star Wars’. I’ve already addressed my disagreement with you guys vis-a-vis the prequel trilogy, but not specifically concerning the ‘Duel of the Fates’ light-sabre fight in the Theed power plant. I’m mostly on board with the other listener (whom I apologise to, but I’ve quite forgotten his name) in thinking that that particular fight is pretty cool — with or without the music. But the music is a big part of it, and I think the music used is integral to a lot of dramatic moments in film. For example, my absolute favourite action sequence in any film to date is the charge of the Rohirrim in the Battle of Pelennor Fields in ‘The Return of the King’. That scene, unlike any other scene in film, has a serious emotional resonance with me, and I do believe that Howard Shore’s score is a big part of it. If you took the music out of any film that has an original score, like ‘The Lord of the Rings’, like ‘Star Wars’, like ‘Indiana Jones’, I really do think that it would diminish the film substantially — and not just beautifully choreographed fight scenes like ‘Duel of the Fates’. The music matters. Although, my favourite light-sabre battle of the prequels (and possibly of the entire ‘Star Wars’ saga to date) is Obi-Wan vs. Anakin in ‘Revenge of the Sith’.
Finally, I really appreciated the conversation about Lando. I’ve always sympathised with him and his situation. Although a lot of people like to point to the original ‘Star Wars’ trilogy as a time when right and wrong, good and evil were clear black and white, I think your discussion reveals just how grey it could actually be — albeit more subtly than in the prequels, perhaps. Lando is responsible for the lives and well-being of thousands (possibly millions) of people in Cloud City, and a group of wanted terrorists showing up on his doorstep expecting his help jeopardises everything he has built there. While we, the audience, can see what is right and wrong and we fully (and rightly) expect Vader to betray him, Lando can’t see that. To law-abiding citizens who’ve never got on the wrong side of the authorities, a despotic regime can often seem perfectly benign, or at least not as evil as the people fighting it would like you to believe — indeed, the rebels fighting the regime can often seem just as bad, if not worse than the regime itself. For all Lando could see, Mon Mothma may have simply wanted Palpatine’s throne for herself, not a free and democratic galaxy. Of course, Lando redeems himself once he sees just how bad the Empire truly is and he goes on to play a crucial role in the Rebel victory over Endor — all while retaining an awesome fashion sense.
I do have a minor nitpick though… The Executor was not just any star destroyer — which on its own would have been enough to invade and occupy a small planet with relative ease — it was a super star destroyer, or “star dreadnought”, which is several times the size (14 km long, as opposed to just under 2 km) and presumably has several times the firepower and fighter support of a regular Imperial class star destroyer. While a single Imperial class would probably have been enough to make even the most stoic gas mine administrator quake a little in his space cape, we are talking about the largest and most powerful battleship in the galaxy floating above your city. There’d only ever need to be one.
Anyways, loved the show as usual! Looking forward to the D&D episode. I’ve never played D&D, but I’ve always wanted to.
All the best
~ Bethany
Thanks for the great feedback, Bethany!
(Also, all synch issues have been repaired on this episode. So, feel free to re-download if they drove you crazy, everyone!)
Hi guys. Being from the Netherlands, I couldn’t help commenting on the topic of Starship Troopers from Paul Verhoeven. I remember that the Dutch reviews at that time already mentioned the over-the-top setting of the movie. Exactly as you said: it was a warning for a total controlling regime. Funny thing is that i remember someone saying that (and i don’t know whether this came from Verhoeven himself) this over-the-top was necessary otherwise the viewers in the US wouldn’t get it and think that this was a movie promoting fascism.
Keep on the good work! Love your show
Greetz
Coen
The Netherlands