BNQ: Big Nerdy Questions

Just like Steven Spielberg's dinosaurs, we're back! It's time for Season 2 of Big Nerdy Questions. This week, we revisit our very first topic to tackle eight more fictional universes you might want to live in. Matt, JP, Callie, and Josh bring you life in Futurama, Doctor Who, Hyrule, South Park, and four more universes. Learn how floating onomatopoeia's can ruin the medical billing industry, hear tales of the landscaping and psychiatry businesses at the Water Temple, and listen as Josh goes super saiyan when comparing our current dearth of facts to a literary classic.

Big Nerdy Recommendation: Eon by Greg Bear

Hashtags of the Week: #DungeonInsurance, #DeadlyOnomatopoeia, #ATrainToTheSUV

Theme Song Credit: "Adventure Meme" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)"Adventure Meme" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Contact us: [email protected] | Twitter: @BNQPodcast

Every hero has one, sometimes they are groan-inducing, but when done right, they can set the stage for an amazing story. On this week's BNQ, Colleen, Ed, Matt, and Josh answer which hero has the best origin story. Is it a classic like Spiderman? Is it a modern sensation like Mob from Mob Psycho 100? Listen to find out.

While we discuss origins this week, it's ironically the end of our first season. Thank you to all of our listeners! We'll be back in March with more brand new BNQ episodes.

SPOILER ALERT: We spoil Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and several other works that have come out in the past year. 

Looking for the origin story for your life-long love? Check out Dragon Fruit, the dating app by geeks for geeks!

Check out the Patreon for Geek History Lesson's upcoming web comic!

Theme song credit: "Adventure Meme" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Contact us: Twitter: @BNQPodcast | Email: [email protected]

Time to yell "Expecto Patronum!" at the top of your lungs, because BNQ is heading to the Potterverse. This week, Josh, Ed, Colleen, and newcomer Callie look at the spells, charms, jinxes, and other various magical miscellany that you could learn as a student at Hogwarts. If you could only choose one, which one is it? Do you use your knowledge for practicality, helping others, or to just make the world a more interesting place? Watch out for the bludgers and keep your brooms handy...

Hashtags of the Week: #AccioCoffee; #WizardWorldProblems; #RepealReparo; #WizardUnion

Recommendation of the Week: The Ugly Princess by Henderson Smith

Theme song credit: "Adventure Meme" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Check out Dragon Fruit, the dating app for geeks by geeks!

Contact us: Email - [email protected] | Twitter: @BNQPodcast

AND NOW, THE CONCLUSION...Last week, our intrepid crew of Josh H, Josh P, and Rick from Starbase 66, The 7th Chevron, and Simply Syndicated looked at the two-part episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Having only had the time to cover the first half of those episodes, the crew returns this week to look at Time's Arrow, Chain of Command, Birthright, Descent, Gambit, and All Good Things. Plus, find out our pick for the best TNG two-parter and hear Rick's incredible Jar Jar death! Will you like this episode? Resistance is futile.

Hashtags of the week: #FlyLikeAData, #StarTrekSVU

Theme song credit: "Adventure Meme" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Check out Rick's podcasts: Starbase 66 | The 7th Chevron (Stargate) | Ray Guns and GoGo Boots

Contact us: Twitter: @BNQPodcast | Email: [email protected]

Get ready for a podcast "unification" of the highest order as Rick AKA Adm. Marius from Starbase 66, The 7th Chevron, and Simply Syndicated joins the BNQ Panel for some good, old-fashioned Trek talk. This week, Josh P and Josh H join Rick to discuss which two-part episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation stands out as the cream of the crop. We had a lot to say, so we've broken up the episode into two parts. This part covers our introductions, the Big Nerdy Recommendation (from Rick), and the episodes Encounter at Farpoint through Unification. Time's Arrow through All Good Things, the final decision, and the Jar-Jar Death are still to come next week, so stay tuned.

Big Nerdy Recommendation: The Fifty-Year Mission: The Complete, Uncensored, Unauthorized Oral History of Star Trek: The First 25 Years by Edward Gross, Mark Altman, et al. (Audio version preferred) 

Theme credit: "Adventure Meme" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Sample of Star Trek: The Next Generation audio used under fair use standards.

Check out Rick's podcasts: Starbase 66 | The 7th Chevron (Stargate) | Ray Guns and GoGo Boots

Contact us: Twitter: @BNQPodcast | Email: [email protected]

After the dumpster fire that was 2016, ever think you might like to have the chance to respawn in a new arena? Have we got the episode for you! Josh P, Matt, and Josh H consider the results if video game rules applied to real life. Learn how the mushroom market would skyrocket, the pharmaceutical industry would merge with KFC, and reading the wrong book might cost you some brain cells. Plus, Matt gives 2016 the "eulogy" it so richly deserves--featuring the most bleeps in BNQ history!

#RIPCarrieFisher. We'll miss you, Your Majesty.

Hashtags of the week: #McHitPoints; #ConsoleCommandments; #OccupyMushroomKingdom

Big Nerdy Recommendation: Dust: An Elysian Tale

Theme song credit: "Adventure Meme" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Check out DragonFruit, the dating app made by geeks for geeks!

Reminder: BNQ is rated PG-13 for mild language and adult dialogue.

Contact us! Email: [email protected] / Twitter: @BNQPodcast

If all you want for Christmas is a Corellian fighter, we've got you covered. This week on BNQ, Matt, Ed, and Josh examine the ships of Star Wars and look at the best and worst of the bunch. From the smallest TIE Fighter to the Super Star Destroyer, we run the gamut in this discussion. Plus, our panel analyzes why we care so much about ships in our favorite science fiction franchises.

(This episode was recorded prior to last week's crossover with Beltway Banthas, which is why Stephen is not included in our special guest thank you notes this week. We will rectify this omission on an upcoming episode.)

Big Nerdy Recommendation: The Comoran Strike Mysteries by Robert Galbraith (pseudonym for J.K. Rowling)

Note on spoilers: This episode DOES NOT spoil Rogue One! We recorded it before Rogue One was released. However, everything else in the Star Wars universe is fair game. 

Hashtags of the week: #GungansOnly; #EpicOfChewbacca; #50ShadesOfFett; #ThankYouPoe

Check out Dragon Fruit, the dating app by geeks for geeks!

Contact us: Email: bnqfeedback@gmail.com | Twitter: @BNQPodcast

It's time for another BNQ crossover event! We welcome Stephen Kent from the Beltway Banthas podcast to discuss his specialty, the intersection of Star Wars and politics. This week, we take a deep dive into the politics, economics, and culture of the Galactic Empire to answer this question: Was the Galactic Empire doomed to fail? We examine the Galactic Empire in the historical context of the Roman Empire and the Soviet Union; we also tackle the question by looking at more modern notions of infrastructure poison pills, the problems of production in an empire, and psychological warfare. Was the Empire's fall a product of its own ails or did the Rebel Alliance knock off an otherwise long-lasting foe? Moreover, is it possible that the Empire didn't really fail at all? Join Stephen, Colleen, Ed, Matt, and Josh on this most thought-provoking episode!

Check out Beltway Banthas and listen to some great discussions with Stephen and political luminaries!

Big Nerdy Recommendation: Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel by James Luceno

Reminder: BNQ is rated PG-13 for dialogue and mild language. This episode includes discussion of the Third Reich, the fire bombing of Japan, and the use of the atomic bomb, so discretion is advised for children. 

This episode does NOT discuss Rogue One! It was recorded several weeks before its release. Everything else in Star Wars is fair game.

Check out our sponsor, Dragon Fruit, the dating app for geeks by geeks!

Contact us: [email protected] | Twitter: @BNQPodcast

Several weeks ago, BNQ's history triumvirate of Colleen, Matt, and Josh selected US Presidents to play certain roles in the Avengers based on the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We cast Thor, Hulk, Iron Man, Captain America, Black Widow, and Hawkeye. However, our business was not yet complete. We have returned to this topic and cast presidents for the other Avengers of the MCU: Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, Falcon, Vision, Ant-Man, Spider-Man, War Machine, Nick Fury, and Phil Coulson. If you want a good laugh or an interesting history lesson, this episode is for you!

SPECIAL NOTE: We recorded this episode before the US Presidential Election. Therefore, we discuss both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton as possible picks in the episode. We do not hide our preference in the episode, but we welcome all nerds to our airwaves. When you reach the anachronistic portions, think of them as a time capsule of the last week of October 2016.

Hashtag of the week: #ReaganSmash

Big Nerdy Recommendation: Exam

Check out our sponsor! DragonFruit, the dating app for geeks by geeks

"Adventure Meme" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Reminder: BNQ does not avoid spoilers. Also, BNQ is rated PG-13 for dialogue and some language.

Contact us: [email protected] and @BNQPodcast on Twitter

BNQ is proud to welcome another special guest! This week, Orie Enav, the founder of DragonFruit, joins our panel. What is DragonFruit, you ask? It's the dating app for geeks by geeks where you can let your geek flag fly! Incredibly, the app is free to download and use! Check it out at http://www.dragonfruitapp.com/, in the App Store, or in the Google Play store.

Orie is therefore the perfect person to help us understand the relationship lessons (romantic and otherwise) we can learn from Star Wars. From what to do (like saying "I know" when she says she loves you) to what not to do (looking at you, Anakin and Padme), listen to our panel of Orie with Matt, Ed, and Josh as they navigate the hyperspace tunnel of love. 

Hashtags of the Week: #GeekLove, #ChewieUnchained

Big Nerdy Recommendation (from Orie): Train to Busan

"Adventure Meme" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Contact us: [email protected] / Twitter: @BNQPodcast