Discerning Geeks Portal

This week we review the season 2 premiere of The Mandalorian, "Chapter 9: The Marshal."  Join us as we discuss the overall look & feel of the episode, the story, its excellent production quality, and our outlook on the season ahead.

Be on the lookout for future episode reviews of The Mandalorian, as we may review the entire season (if schedules permit).

Grab your armor, jet pack, rifle, and Baby Yoda, as we join The Manadalorian on his quest for...The Marshal.

Note:  On Monday 31 October 2022, the two-year anniversary of this episode, it has been re-uploaded with slightly improved audio quality.

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This week is a special "Water Ya Doin'?" episode.  With one of the Daves at the beach when we recorded, we decided to try our first random, (almost) totally unprepared episode based on movies & TV shows with the ocean, beach, or water in general as the theme.

Board our submarine as we take deep dives into Aquaman, Waterworld, Lost, Pacific Rim, and Down Periscope.  Put on your swim trunks as we go for quick dips into Earth Girls Are Easy, Hot Tub Time Machine, The Princess Bride (Andruw finds a way of justifying that entry), Leviathan, Deep Star Six, Last Resort, USA Up All Night, and Silk Stalkings.  And, put on your floaties as we splash around in the shallow end of the pool with at least brief mentions of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Muppet Treasure Island, Battleship, The Shape of Water, Splash, Cocoon, and much much more.

Superheroes, mutants, mysterious islands, monsters & giant robots, antique submarines, hot tubs, nuclear submarines...   Prepare for dive!  We've got it all as we cover lots of geeky things related to the ocean, beach, and water.

UPDATE:  Today, Thursday 27 October 2022, is the two-year anniversary of this episode.  It has now been re-uploaded with slightly improved audio quality.

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This week, we review "The Thing," the original sci-fi horror film from 1982 starring Kurt Russell (not the 2011 prequel of the same name).  We discuss its creature concept, the film's story as a mental exercise, how the setting of Antarctica provides the feeling of isolation, what it is about horror movies that people like in general, a possible connection between our current political climate and the kind of fear the movie's creature instills, and...the convenience of flame throwers.

Is the "Thing" evil, just animalistic, or is it just trying to survive on a world alien to it?  Does one of the co-hosts like this movie even more than the original Alien movie?  You'll also discover which co-host(s) like horror movies and why or why not (it might involve cars, bladders, and shower curtains).

Are our opinions our own, or have we just been assimilated?  Find out on this episode as we light up..."The Thing."

...And, being the geeks we are, we somehow work in brief references to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Uber Eats commercials starring Patrick Stewart and Mark Hamill, The Walking Dead, Ghostbusters 2, a Star Wars quote, the TV movie of the original Battlestar Galactica, Flash Gordon, Jaws, and more.

NOTE:  On Thursday 20 October 2022, this episode's two-year anniversary, it has been re-uploaded with slightly improved audio quality, including a (hopefully) better balance in volume between co-hosts.

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This week, we review the 1982 Jim Henson classic, The Dark Crystal.  We marvel at the amazing artistry, craftsmanship, and performance that goes into a movie starring non-human characters represented by puppets.  We discuss the movie's gradual reveals of its mythology, the alien look & feel of the movie, how the movie is for kids, the conundrum of the clueless Jen character being the main protagonist, the pacing, and other amazing visuals like the sets & costumes.  Joining us again this week is Dave's nephew Andruw (not a typo; he spells it with a "u") for an additional perspective on this 38-year-old movie that is in some ways quaint, in some ways timeless.  We've found a shard to run with; join us on our quest to repair...The Dark Crystal.

NOTE:  On Thursday 13 October 2022, the two-year anniversary of this episode first being published, it has been re-imported with slightly improved audio (sadly, only slightly because one microphone wasn't great back then; but the rest sounds a little better).

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This week, we have another "Whatcha Doin'?" episode where we pause from reviews to talk about current things we're watching, reading, playing, and otherwise enjoying.  Joining us as a special guest for this episode is Dave's nephew Andruw (not a typo; it's really spelled with a "u").  We've mentioned him before as the other player in our weekly D&D campaign.  Together we talk about the following...

TV Shows & Movies

Books

Video Games

Miscellaneous

...And, throughout all this we somehow work in brief references to Animaniacs, Billy Joel, the 1986 animated Transformers movie (and the Canadian band Cybertronic Spree that performs while in cosplay of characters from that movie), and yes, even...The Carol Burnett Show.  We pack a lot of geekdom into 52 minutes.

We recorded this bonus episode on the same day we recorded a review of the Jim Henson movie The Dark Crystal, which just happened to be the day after Jim Henson's birthday, so we spent nine minutes just talking about the Muppets.

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This week, we review the 1985 movie Enemy Mine.  We discuss the movie’s themes of unlikely friendship and overcoming differences through cooperation, the religious beliefs of one of the main characters, the extreme sides of humanity on display in the movie, and of course, the special effects.  It doesn’t look as good as Star Wars, but it’s still a classic sci-fi story with a timeless message.  Join us as we explore…Enemy Mine.

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This week, we review the movie that launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe:  Iron Man.

We discuss the origin story of Tony Stark as Iron Man, the movie's excellent editing & casting, the pivotal role of Pepper Potts in defeating Iron Monger, the greatness of smaller characters Agent Phil Coulson and Dum-E the robot, the importance of Iron Man as the start of the MCU, its director Jon Favreau as a "founding father" of the MCU, and what sets Marvel apart from DC.  Join us as we review...Iron Man; and let's face it, this is not the worst thing you've caught us doing.  ;)

The Discerning Geeks Initiative starts here.  Discerning Geeks, Assemble!  :)

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This week, another first -- our first book review.  We review Dragons of Autumn Twilight, the very first book in the Dragonlance saga, an expansive series of books based in the world of Krynn, specially created for use in the world's most popular role playing game, Dungeons & Dragons.  We discuss nostalgic memories of first reading the books in high school, the book's structure & pacing, our favorite characters, and how the novel helps with the understanding of playing D&D, the game it was meant to embody.   With over 190 novels, the Dragonlance saga has widespread and long-lasting appeal.  But, did it have universal appeal...amongst our three co-hosts?  Tune it to find out for whom this book was a critical hit and whether someone in the group botched in their reading enjoyment roll.

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This week, we have our first review of an animated movie and our first superhero team — Big Hero 6. We discuss the importance of science in the movie, the motivations of the villain, the tendency of Disney movies to explore personal loss, and what it takes for a normal person to turn into a mad scientist. And, of course, we love the adorable, inflated, medical robot, Baymax. Follow us to San Fransokyo as we witness the origin story of a new team of defenders. They didn’t set out to be superheroes, but they became…Big Hero 6.

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This week, we venture to a galaxy far, far away and review Solo: A Star Wars Story.  Did one or more of the co-hosts feel a dark shadow of the underworld cast upon the visuals of the movie?  Did one or more of the co-hosts feel this movie shined brighter than the Millennium Falcon under the original care of Lando Calrissian?  Why is the Kessel Run measured in distance rather than time or speed?  Is this a heist movie, a buddy movie, a love story, a prequel of the Rebellion, all of those things, or none of the above?  Find out if this is when Han learned to always shoot first.  Join us in the co-pilot seat as we make the jump to light speed in our first Star Wars review...Solo: A Star Wars Story.

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