We chat a bit with Tobiah Panshin about that great intangible that gets people’s ire up: Fan Service!
What is it? Why is it used as a pejorative? Is it ever a welcome thing? Why does it both delight and frustrate? Amuse and Annoy? We delve into the wherefores and whyfores and try to figure it all out.
Note: This episode was recorded before our last Fun Size episode in October, and we hadn’t seen Joker yet.
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This isn’t the movies anymore.
We’re back. This time we’re traveling to the world behind the silver screen with artist Roz Townsend to dissect the meta-fictional cult action/comedy movie that many at the time considered Arnold’s first box office flop, Last Action Hero.
Teenager Danny Madigan is the world’s biggest fan of the Schwarzenegger-helmed Jack Slater series of action movies. When a magic ticket literally transports him into Slater’s cinematic universe, he finds himself in an over-the-top world where a combination of bad puns and giant explosions can always save the day. But when one of the movie’s villains steals the ticket and discovers his own nature as a fictional character, Danny and Jack must follow him back into the real world, a place where, suddenly, the bad guys can win.
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We continue our talk with Greg Hatcher and dive into the world of comic books and beyond!
We reminisce about Marvel’s 1970s misfit superhero team, the Defenders, and an absolutely batshit tale from writer Steve Gerber that includes stolen brains, absurd body horror, elves with guns, and the soul of an evil wizard trapped in the body of a baby deer!
Plus, we look at the strange turn that comic book scribe Mark Millar’s work has taken in his new series Huck, which is a radical departure from his regularly shocking, cynical and violent stories.
We talk about fan entitlement and the ups and downs of finite vs. ongoing storytelling.
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In our latest collections of panel outtakes and off-topic discussion, Mike and Casey are joined by Greg Hatcher and Ryan Chaddock for a chat about the Logan’s Run television show and the formulaic nature of 1970s science fiction.
We compare the various Bond actors on their ability to dispense post-murder puns, and the pros and cons of grit versus camp. We try to get to the bottom of why Roger Moore continued to play 007 into his senior years, why bleeding heart liberals like us enjoy violent right-leaning vigilante fiction, and why the hell the spinoff Baywatch Nights even existed.
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Read the Bantam Book!
This month, Mike and Casey look at the inevitable result of truly popular culture: that it can and will not be contained by it’s original medium. Star Wars, the Planet of the Apes, and even Murder She Wrote have escaped the confines of film and television to reward their fans with series of books, comics and video games that feed our appetites for more stories in the worlds we love.
We’re joined by veteran panelist Roslyn Townsend and game designer Ryan Chaddock to chat about the concept of the Expanded Universe! We debate canonicity and ask why we just can’t get enough of our favorite media franchises, no matter the format!
Previously titled: “Ant-Man’s Lawyer”
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