Hey, chooms! Load up your quickhacks, call one of the fixers, and hit the streets of Night City! That’s right, we’re diving into the rise and fall and rise and fall and rise again of an RPG game that is actually pretty good now almost two years after its release. We didn’t get the refund when it was offered back in 2020 and now, after the game’s botched release and various subsequent patches, we’re finally ready to talk about it. This is the “Cyberpunk 2077” episode!

“Cyberpunk 2077” was announced all the way back in 2012 and was lauded as something that would revolutionize gaming. Did it? Eh. Not really. It had one of, if not the worst, releases in gaming history and completely destroyed the public’s faith in its then-beloved developer, CD Projekt Red. It was a metaphoric dumpster fire. The promise of something amazing turned to game-breaking bugs and blue console crash screens across the globe… unless you had a powerful enough PC, of course. NDAs, embargoes, blatant lying from the developers… the game got taken from the Playstation Store because it literally didn’t work. It sucked. But hey… it’s pretty good now! Seriously.

In this episode, we break down the production and history of this game, explore what the hell actually happened with its horrible release, talk about how it affected CDPR’s credibility, discuss how it changed things in the world of game development, and revisit that horrible post-release period where nothing in the game worked at all. It was the biggest fumble of the bag ever and yet, somehow, they managed to turn this game around and release something pretty damn awesome on next-gen consoles. The world-building, the lore, the gameplay, the excellent story, the customization… all really good. And fun to play. This leads to us talking about what we like about the game, the various fixes CDPR made, the amazing depth and insane amount of writing in this game, the various characters and themes of the game, and some of our favourite whacky side missions. We also gush about how much we love Night City and the art direction in the world of “Cyberpunk”.

We then take some time to chat about the state of game development in general, explain why we’re ok with the story of “No Man’s Sky” and not what happened with “Cyberpunk”, and think about the future of CDPR, and more. We round it out with some ranting about Pusha T’s new album “It’s Almost Dry”, Vince Staple’s new album “Ramona Park Broke My Heart”, and the latest album from You, Me, and Everyone We Know, “Something Heavy”. Plus, PALMREADER finally saw “The Batman” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and tells the world which he liked more. We talk a bit about leftist Batman, Colin Farrell as the Penguin, Catwoman being hot in every movie, revisiting "Community", and Otis lets y’all know about some comedy shows and TWO movie premiers he's got coming up. Tap in.

We’ll be back next week!

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What’s good, homies? This week we’re jumping back into the musical realm and talking about a stellar punk band from Toronto that we both really love. This episode is all about the “jazz nerds that made a punk band” known as PUP. PUP has been putting out album after album of bangers and has had a meteoric (and well deserved) rise over the past few years. To be honest, we spend most of this pod gushing about them and how much we enjoy listening to their music because they rule. Check them out if you haven’t already.

This week, we discuss their career and the band’s formation, our favourite albums, when we heard them for the first time, how much fun they seem to be having, and how that translates to a great listening experience, experimentation and influence in a post-genre musical landscape, artistry and laziness in punk, their various awards, and the overwhelmingly positive critical response this band has received. We also break down the new album, “THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND”, and talk about how to properly pull off a concept album. In doing so, we lament bad concept albums and niche lyrical content, and discuss what it takes for a band that is making music like that to succeed. We also dive deep into their outstanding collection of music videos, get sad about “Sleep In The Heat”, talk about their impeccable songwriting and creative direction, “The Dream Is Over” and “Morbid Stuff” being almost perfect albums, modern punk music in general, the use of self-awareness and tongue-in-cheek humour in their lyrics, and more.

As usual, we close out with our regular rambling about what’s been going on in our lives. PALMREADER recounts his trip to PA and rants about the abundance of novelty restaurants in the USA, we share our irritation with themed bars, PALMREADER can’t decide if he likes the new Matrix movie or not which leads to a conversation on the original Matrix and why the sequels kind of ruined its legacy, Otis showers praise on Ti West’s “X” and shares a story of watching a guy get denied at a bar after explaining what A24 is to a woman as a pick-up line, we talk about Lars Von Trier movies, PALMREADER shares his thoughts on “Moon Knight” and we agree that Oscar Isaac and Ethan Hawke have been killing it lately, and Otis shares some updates on “Snow Blinded” and “Regicide”.

We’ll be back next week to talk about the rise and fall and rise again of “Cyberpunk 2077”.

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We’re back for the second film in our sexy artificial intelligence double feature and this week’s episode is hornier than the last while also being a lot more wholesome? Huh? Now, you might be asking us, “Boys, how is that even possible?!” Well, it’s thanks to the twisted and unique mind of filmmaker Spike Jonze. This week we're talking about his 2013 science-fiction romantic comedy-drama film “Her”.

“Her” is a fantastic film that poses the question “What if you really liked Siri? No, I mean REALLY liked Siri… and she liked you back?” Emotional, well-written, superbly crafted, and incredibly well-acted… this movie is made up of the same components as “Ex Machina” but arranged in a completely different way, which makes this an interesting listen when compared and contrasted with last week’s pod. With stellar performances from Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, and Olivia Wilde, this movie is beautifully shot and packed with subtle high-tech questions, hopeful futurism, humanism, introspection, and emotional growth. It also features a verbal sexual encounter between a man and his operating system, phone sex involving a dead cat, a little alien with a foul mouth, a sexual surrogate, Chris Pratt before his fall, Olivia Wilde just ripping a dude apart emotionally, and someone taking a vow of silence after a divorce. Yeah.

This week we break down the movie’s plot, explore the world of “Her” and how close it is to our own, praise the cinematography, lighting, and acting, unpack the questions the movie poses about humans and technology, discuss the interesting aspects the film’s production, and marvel at the emotional punch that “Her” packs. Is this movie depressing? Or is it incredibly hopeful? This sneaky film burrows into your mind and stays there for a while after the credits roll. Also, like “Ex Machina”, this film won an Oscar. Did we mention that it has an actual on-screen sex scene between a guy and his phone? Wild horny moments abound this week.

We also chat about what this movie says about love, depression and loss, personal growth, relationships, sex, and what it does right when it comes to artificial intelligence. We rant and rave about the voice acting from Scarlett Johansson and praise Joaquin Phoenix as Theodore Twombly… both of whom do an incredible job at making you believe in their character’s relationship while never actually being on set together once. This movie is a masterclass in subtlety in acting and writing. It rules.

Plus, random discussion on the future and artificial intelligence, the M.I.G.O.S., Chris Pratt being kinda awful now, Mark Whalberg, the Oscars needing new categories, voice acting and motion capture, the Snyder-verse people becoming the mafia of the internet, Will Smith slapping Chris Rock, the new Playstation Plus subscription update, and PALMREADER talks about his new addiction… “Crusader Kings 3”.

Next week, we’re talking about a great Canadian punk band that you should definitely check out… PUP!

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It’s time to approach the singularity while getting wild horny at the same time… This is the first episode of the sexy A.I. double feature with your favourite bird boys! This week, we’re diving into one of the best science fiction films of the last decade, Alex Garland’s Oscar-winning directorial debut “Ex Machina”. This movie is smart, well-made, expertly written, and thoroughly thought-provoking. It rules. With incredible performances from Oscar Isaac, Alicia Vikander, and Domhnall Gleeson, this movie blurs the line between science fiction and reality, delivering a grounded and character-driven science fiction movie that really gets us going.

The four main (and only) characters in this movie, Ava, Caleb, Kyoko, and Nathan, come together in a masterful narrative that poses questions like, “What is consciousness? What of that consciousness is programming? What happens when you create artificial intelligence that passes the real test of consciousness and to what lengths would that true consciousness go to be free?” The answer? We don’t really know, but Ava had us entranced and rooting for her until the end… so what does that say about us (and the audience in general)? The twists, turns, and incredible dialogue found in this movie force us to reflect on our own expectations and ideas and that is what great science fiction does. To be honest, it’s kind of scary how close to reality this movie really is and that’s what helps make it so great. Plus, Alex Garland is one of our favourite filmmakers and he absolutely just killed it with this movie.

In this episode, we break down the plot, muse on the themes and concepts of the film, revisit the positive critical response upon its release, and gush about all the amazing aspects of this movie… the cast, the lighting, the visual effects, the script, the pacing, the twists, and all the other stuff this movie does super well. But, in a change of pace, we also get real philosophical and talk about consciousness, artificial intelligence, black book technologies, digital privacy, tech billionaires, sex robots, chatbots, and a whole lot more. “Ex Machina” is an engaging and awesome science fiction movie that is all about manipulation, be it sexual or intellectual, and it subverts expectations with a riveting final act and bleak ending (which we discuss at length).

Plus, we talk about Alex Garland’s career, his impeccable resume, his writing ability, his upcoming films, and the rumours about him actually directing “Dredd”. Then we go off on the lesser A.I. movies, great sci-fi directors, the “Halo” TV show, the “Men” trailer, Otis goes on a fiery rant about the new ’Texas Chainsaw Massacre” being a dumpster fire, PALMREADER knocks over a mic and talks about GTA Online not being as insanely annoying as it was on PS4, and Otis needs our help with “Snow Blinded”. Shout out to The Cool Kids!

Come back next week for a wholesome and less murderous A.I. love story ‘cause we’re doing Spike Jonze’s “Her”.

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What’s good, homies?! It’s about that time for us to bless you with another Lazy Bird episode! This week, we round up all the things that we’ve been watching and playing, gripe about some stuff that’s been bothering us, and chat about some upcoming games that we’re really looking forward to playing. But wait, there’s more! Stick around to hear the first-ever BIRD PROTOCOL interview with our homie Whensday. We chat with him about his most recent release, the outstanding “Sky Is Blue” with Flyxo, and ask him a bunch of questions. We talk about choosing the project’s title, his favourite tracks, his writing process, working with Flyxo across different timezones, his plans for the future, the cohesiveness of the album, the awesome guitar samples, playing with vocal tone, flow and melody, and more.

In this episode, Otis talks about being in the throes of “Elden Ring” and PALMREADER gives the lowdown on the next-gen version of “GTA V”. We both discuss “Any Percent Speedrunning” in video games and why it sucks, complain about while also praising PS5 controller, break down the “Hogwarts Legacy” trailer and reminisce on those sick LOTR games on PS2, get excited about the upcoming game “The Quarry”, praise Danny McBride and “Eastbound & Down”, explore why “Last One Laughing: Canada” just didn’t hit the mark and Otis goes in on Canadian comedic television as a whole.

Plus, we chat about Tom Hardy brooding and crying one big tear in “Taboo”, Wes Anderson’s “The French Dispatch” pushing Otis over the edge, “Mad Max: Fury Road” still being awesome, “Reacher” on Amazon, “The Last Kingdom” season 5, and PALMREADER’s love/hate relationship with “The Last Samurai”. This leads to a discussion on Tom Cruise and Otis proclaims he is “one of his least favourite people ever”. Then we sit with Whensday and chop it up about “Sky Is Blue” to close out the pod.

Next week, we start the BIRD PROTOCOL “Horny A.I. Double Feature” with Alex Garland’s cerebral science fiction film “Ex Machina”.

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Ayo! This week we’re letting our pop-punk flag fly so throw on your favourite cut-offs, turn your snapback backward, and get ready to watch the sunrise over Mt. Diablo. It’s all about The Story So Far today on BIRD PROTOCOL.

Formed in 2007 and hailing from Walnut Creek, California, The Story So Far has consistently put out quality music and was very important to the pop-punk revival of the 2010s. With a string of four awesome albums that showcase the band’s talent, musicality, and growth over the years, we felt like they were the best choice to dip into the scene again and chop it up about pop-punk. The Story So Far rode their wave all the way to multiple spots on the Billboard 200, playing the main stage at the Vans Warped Tour, and have cemented their place in the hearts of many fans. From the first time PALMREADER heard them on the stoop of his Toronto apartment to the many nights shared between the bird boys singing along to their emotional, aggressive and fun blend of pop-punk… this band has been in our orbit for a while and we think they rule.

In this episode, we break down each of their stellar albums from “Under Soil And Dirt” to “Proper Dose”, share our personal history with the band, reminisce on our own pop-punk days, talk about what makes them so dang good, share our favourite songs, and imagine what their next release might be like. Plus, we have a conversation about Pure Noise Records, the influence The Story So Far had on music, the unique drumming of their self-titled, the band maturing as musicians, and the pop-punk revival of the early 2010s.

We also share our thoughts on Benny The Butcher’s “Tana Talk 4”, Whensday and Flyxo’s “Sky Is Blue”, Your Old Droog’s “YOD WAVE”, the Alexisonfire album announcement and single, and more new music releases. Get into it.

We’ll be back next week with a lazy bird episode!

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What is good, homies?! This week we’re closing out our series on the Jason Bourne trilogy and talking about the final film in what we consider a near-perfect trilogy. Directed by Paul Greengrass and starring Matt Damon as the penultimate rogue CIA asset, “The Bourne Ultimatum” is a great movie that ties all the themes, motifs, and storylines of the previous films together. It rules. It probably should have been the last Bourne movie that they made… But people love money, so they made more. Sigh.

Released in 2007, this movie was a critical and financial success and cemented Bourne in the pantheon of action cinema greats. Believe it or not, this movie actually won some Oscars. Yeah… actually. This is because “The Bourne Ultimatum” is a masterclass in technical filmmaking and the creation of tension and space through editing and cinematography. Plus, it’s got all the things you’ve come to love about the Bourne movies… close combat, car chases, parkour, Matt Damon not smiling, shady CIA dudes, assassination attempts, international espionage, and all that good stuff. After today you’ll never have to hear us say “Treadstone”, “amnesiac CIA operative”, or “Blackbriar” again. Tap in with us as we break down “The Bourne Ultimatum”, talk about the trilogy as a whole and explore the lackluster sequels.

In this episode, we take some time to rank the first three films, talk about the CEO of white people, break down the cool camera work and editing in both the Waterloo Station sequence and the Tangiers chase, praise the smart writing, discuss the use of technology and surveillance in both a practical sense and as an integral part of the plot, and look at the influence of the Bourne movies on action cinema as a whole. We also talk about the trilogy being grounded in reality and all of the other smart filmmaking choices. We also compare “The Bourne Legacy” and “Jason Bourne”, muse on what they did right and where they fell short, condemn the odd storytelling choices in both the films and discuss which one we prefer. We also praise the great supporting casts in all of the films, discuss the franchise losing its grounding in reality after “Ultimatum”, talk about action movies in the late ’90s and early aughts, share how we both have a crush on Alicia Vikander, think back on John Woo’s “Mission Impossible 2” and “Taken”, and more absolute nonsense.

PALMREADER also briefly talks about how much he enjoys the new EARTHGANG album, the much-needed update to “Jurassic World Evolution 2”, and how weird he felt after watching the Kanye documentary while Kanye publicly attacks Pete Davidson. Otis talks about how much he loves “Elden Ring”, his affinity for physical media, and why he feels bad for “Horizon: Forbidden West”. We also marvel at the fact that we have almost surpassed our total number of plays in 2021 just two months into 2022 and take the time to thank everyone for listening.

We’ll be back next week with something different.

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This week the bird boys are diving straight into the second film of the Bourne Trilogy and continuing our discussion on everyone’s favourite amnesiac CIA operative, Jason Bourne. This week’s movie is the first sequel in the trilogy, “The Bourne Supremacy”, which was released to critical and commercial acclaim in 2004. This time around, Paul Greengrass is in the director's chair and he expertly takes the action up a notch and sets Jason Bourne on a path of retribution and vengeance across India, Germany, and Russia. This is a prime example of a film that amps up the stakes and builds upon the original while also standing on its own two legs. “Supremacy” takes the techniques, motifs, and themes that Doug Liman used and allows them to evolve into something even more kinetic and, ultimately, influential across all of cinema (for better or for worse). It’s a hell of a watch and features some amazing stunt work, choreography and action set pieces. And Karl Urban. Shout out Karl Urban.

“The Bourne Supremacy” is bigger, more action-packed, and far more gritty than the first film but is still grounded in practicality and reality (which we both love). It’s a top-notch thriller that features all kinds of stuff… Russian oligarchs, magazines used in battle and to set off huge explosions, Matt Damon refusing to smile, the rooftop “she’s standing right beside you” scene, a unique and very dull colour palette, the visible influence of documentary-style filmmaking, extreme close combat, reality-based espionage, the streamlining of the fast-cut editing style, and so much more. Matt Damon still kicks ass. Brian Cox is still a shady CIA intelligence officer. Julia Stiles gets more time to shine. Frank Potente gets shot in the head. Joan Allen bursts onto the scene as the razor-sharp Pamela Landy. The intrigue deepens, the motivation becomes more visceral, and Bourne is on the warpath. So, lock in with us as we go through our favourite scenes, set pieces, talk about what they did right, and break down the film and how it compares to the first Bourne movie! Plus, who doesn’t love a good revenge flick? It’s time to make “them” pay for what they did. Get ready to exact some vengeance… this is the “Supremacy” pod.

After that, Otis shares some movie recommendations, PALMREADER talks “Devs” and Alex Garland, and we both go off on a little rant about the trucker convoy playing stupid games with the government and winning stupid prizes. Plus, we discuss the complex situation in Ukraine, the Russian invasion, how awful things really are right now for the Ukrainian people, and the Russian oligarchy, corruption, and kleptocracy. Plus, we take some time to complain about "thoughts and prayers", share some new music recommendations, and rant about Kanye West scamming people with “DONDA 2” and probably needing to be reeled in a bit. What else is new?

We’ll see you next week for a chat about “The Bourne Ultimatum”, the further sequels, and the franchise itself.

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The bird boys are back with the first of a three-part series about a trilogy of movies beloved by dads, grandfathers, and uncles alike. Get ready to wake up, beat up some cops, wreak havoc at the US Embassy, recklessly drive through the streets of Paris, have a shoot-out with a psychopathic librarian looking Clive Owen, and fall in love with some random woman you paid to drive you around! Also, you gotta figure out who you are, why everyone is out to get you, and why you can’t stop effortlessly beating people to a pulp.

That’s right. We’re looking at Doug Liman’s 2002 action-thriller film “The Bourne Identity”. Loosely based on the Robert Ludlum book of the same name, Matt Damon stars as Jason Bourne, a man who has lost his identity to amnesia and is still a top-level CIA killing machine (and conducts himself accordingly). Marvel at Chris Cooper being a shady and conniving CIA official! Be in awe of Brian Cox also being a shady and conniving CIA official! Enjoy young Walton Goggins and Julia Stiles saying a few lines here and there! Get slightly confused but be ultimately okay with Franka Potente falling in love with a man who bodies people the way I make eggs in the morning (with ease and precision)!

Nah, but for real, this movie is slick and has aged like a fine wine. Liman’s small-scale filmmaking gives both the characters and the narrative a practical and intimate feel. The action is raw and realistic (for the most part), the pacing is excellent, and the writing is top tier. This movie, and its sequels, turned the genre on its head and have influenced action and thriller films ever since. The soundtrack is dope too! Plus, it has one of the best car chases in recent cinematic history and a slow burn shoot-out in a french field. What more could you want?! On top of that, the cinematography and editing create a sense of immediacy that elevates this whole thing to another level. In this episode, we chop it up about the film, what we love, what makes “Identity” unique in the trilogy, Doug Liman’s career, Matt Damon absolutely killing it as Jason Bourne, and set up some of the themes and ideas that we will be exploring in the next two episodes.

We also give our thoughts on the next-gen Cyberpunk 2077 and how much the game has been improved, PALMREADER dishes on an unpleasant experience he shared with a deliveryman and gives some suggestions to everyone who just can’t seem to keep their opinions to themselves, Otis talks about James Wan’s “Malignant” and some more ramblings from the boys.

We’ll see you next week for “The Bourne Supremacy”!

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What happens when you wake up in a strange land with a hangover, absolutely no memory and you have to solve a murder? Disco, baby! This week we’re talking about a stellar RPG game that we absolutely love and so do all the critics (not that it matters). Solve the case, figure out your identity, do some drugs, read some books, argue with your inner monologue, tackle a whole new world of politics, history and philosophy, find a cryptid, sing some karaoke, lose your mind… do whatever you want in this bizarre, well-written, beautifully made, and totally unique game. This is the “Disco Elysium” pod and we’re super stoked to tell you about this all-around amazing game.

“Disco Elysium” is the debut game from indie developer ZA/UM and novelist Robert Kurvitz. “Disco Elysium” is a non-traditional RPG that features no combat, instead choosing to focus on dialogue and skill checks, set in an awesome “fantastical reality” filled with its own politics, history, culture, high strangeness, and a coterie of wild characters. Based on a variety of influences and tabletop gaming… this is truly a game unlike anything else. “Disco Elysium” is an amazing, complex, and very re-playable gaming experience that had us both hooked from the moment we picked up the controller. This game is super dense so we may have missed a few things but we did our best to cover all the bases.

In this episode, we chat about the game’s innovative dialogue and skill-based gameplay, the incredible voice acting, the creative direction, its unique game design, the “Thought Cabinet” and skill system, the voices in the player’s head, and how everything you do in this game changes your story (for better or for worse). Plus, we touch on the incredible world and lore of “Disco Elysium” (take a drink every time we say “world-building” if you’re feeling brave), the insane side quests and deep multi-faceted narrative, the developer’s focus on “microreactivity” and the consequences of the player's actions, the almost unheard of amount of detail, cryptozoology, philosophy, existentialism, nihilism, doing meth to solve a crime, politics, D&D, its production and reception, indie developers vs. AAA developers, and more.

We’re not going to spoil much else because this game is sort of hard to explain in a short summary. Trust us. “Disco Elysium” rules. Listen to the episode and, if you like what you hear, you should DEFINITELY check it out.

We’ll see you next week!

STREAM “PRESSURE” by PALMREADER:

https://soundcloud.com/cemetery_sound/palmreader-pressure-prod-yung-hawkim?si=d275c4725bc64983b7ba5254bd440518&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

STREAM “Ill INTENTIONS” by THE BROTHERS SLIMM:

https://soundcloud.com/cemetery_sound/the-brothers-slimm-ill-intentions?si=58e2ae215d6349d3b312dc0c8ce2ac65&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

STREAM “CORPUS CHRISTI” by DR. MEATSSS:

https://soundcloud.com/cemetery_sound/sets/dr-meatsss-corpus-christi-ep?si=c3cb87f7a7924764adf6acac44d5d0f7&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

INITIATE BIRD PROTOCOL!

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram!

Twitter: @plmrdr @otismorrisdude

Instagram: @palmreadr @otismorrisdude