It’s time to play the music… it’s time to light the lights… our coverage of The Muppets franchise begins TONIGHT!

While he had earned huge success with the creation of Sesame Street, Jim Henson wanted to break out of children’s entertainment and create something for a more well-rounded demographic leading to the creation of The Muppet Show. Almost instantly, the variety sketch series became a pop culture juggernaut, but Henson has another medium he wanted to conquer next: Movies!

With lofty ambitions for his puppet stars, Henson pursued a musical road trip origin film for the Muppet gang featuring unforgettable original songs written by Paul Williams and Kenneth Ascher. After shooting experimental footage to prove that the Muppets could still work outside of the Muppet Show sets, the film was greenlit, and THE MUPPET MOVIE became an iconic part of Muppet history.

Join Nick and Scott as they reminisce about their Muppet fandom, discuss the arduous process of making the film, dive deep into the meaning behind “Rainbow Connection”, and ponder the question: are the Muppets queer culture? (Of course they are)

No guests! Just vibes!

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Patreon Associate Producer: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra

It’s a Betweenisode!

Join Nick & Scott as they discuss the conclusion of the Mummy mini-series, rank each movie, speculate about the future of the franchise, and announce our final mini-series of Franchisography Season Two!

Next week: Our final franchise of Season 2 begins!

FRANCHISE POTENTIAL: Van Helsing (2004) episode now available on PATREON!

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Patreon Associate Producers: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra

Welcome to a new world of gods and monsters. After Tomb of the Dragon Emperor failed to win over fans, Universal Pictures would bury their beloved franchise for another nine years before raising it from the dead yet again as studios all over Hollywood tried to capture some of the profits and popularity that the Marvel Cinematic Universe was seeing in an unprecedented run of box office domination.

Universal’s play? Create their own cinematic universe, featuring interconnected stories starring their iconic cast of monsters. The first chapter of this Dark Universe would be a remake of THE MUMMY starring Tom Cruise, the Last Movie Star. Would this odd concoction of star and series birth a new cinematic universe? Well, we all know what happened next.

Nick, Scott, and guest Jason Hammons dig deep into the history of the Dark Universe in a sprawling and definitive episode of FRANCHISOGRAPHY

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Patreon Associate Producer: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra

Seven years after The Mummy Returns, Universal Pictures was finally able to resurrect the franchise with a third adventure, but they would do so with some key members absent: Writer/director Stephen Sommers would be replaced by The Fast & The Furious director Rob Cohen (Sommers would remain as an executive producer.) and more infamously, fan favorite Rachel Weisz would opt not to return for a third film and would be replaced by Maria Bello. Add in a drastic change in locale and it was beginning to look like THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR would be a very different outing for this unexpectedly beloved series.

Nick and Scott are back on the same page this week as they try to make sense of this unfortunate misfire on an explosive new episode of FRANCHISOGRAPHY.

No guests! Just vibes!

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Patreon Associate Producer: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra

Get ready for a wild ride as Nick, Scott, and guest Andrew Darowski find themselves on opposite sides of the river when discussing the sequel to the 1999 smash hit with 2001’s THE MUMMY RETURNS.

Director Stephen Sommers was already plotting a sequel on the set of The Mummy, so Universal Pictures wasted no time after their action/horror hybrid became a surprise success. But would their eagerness to rush out a sequel prove to be their biggest downfall? Rick, Evelyn, Johnathan, Imhotep, and Ardeth Bay all return for another desert adventure, along with a hot new up-and-coming star named The Rock.

FRANCHISOGRAPHY continues to uncover the secrets of this beloved series with one of our most polarizing episodes yet!

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Patreon Associate Producer: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra

BECAUSE YOU DEMANDED IT Nick and Scott finally begin their dive into the winner of this year’s Listener Pick Tournament with 1999’s generation-defining favorite, THE MUMMY.

Go beyond the memes as FRANCHISOGRAPHY uncovers the long and forgotten history behind this millennial favorite. Which legendary horror directors almost had their shot at remaking the Boris Karloff classic before Stephen Sommers finally beat them to it? How close did star Brendan Fraser come to death during that infamous hanging stunt?

All these questions and more are answered with guest Gary Roby in the episode listeners have been waiting for!

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Patreon Associate Producer: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra

We interrupt our regularly scheduled mini-series with a BONUS FEATURE as we return to the Spy Kids franchise for a look at the latest family film from the imagination of Robert Rodriguez, 2023’s SPY KIDS: ARMAGEDDON.

It’s been 12 years since the last pair of kid spies from the OSS hit our screens and while you would think a reboot would come from a new, up-and-coming filmmaker who grew up with the original franchise, instead it’s a reboot written and directed (once again) by franchise creator Robert Rodriguez, this time for Netflix.

Join Nick and Scott as they come to terms with the latest entry in the Spy Kids saga, whether or not there comes a time for a creator to move on from their past work, and if this is better or worse than Spy Kids 4.

This Friday: THE MUMMY begins!

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Patreon Associate Producer: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra

It’s a Betweenisode!

Join Nick & Scott as they discuss the conclusion of the Spider-Man mini-series and get deep, ranking every Spider-Man movie!

Next Week: THE MUMMY (1999)

FRANCHISE POTENTIAL: Morbius (2022) episode now available on PATREON!

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Patreon Associate Producers: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra

Into the Spider-Verse was Sony Animation’s biggest hit, with a box office lifespan that lasted six months, so, of course, they greenlit a sequel. The first of two planned sequels developed simultaneously and planned for release nine months apart, SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE raises the game across the board narratively, artistically, and cinematically.

Join Nick and Scott for a Bonus Feature-style episode where they discuss the newest Spider-Man film to hit theaters.

No guests. Just vibes.

Become a Premier Tier PATREON supporter to hear our “Franchise Potential” companion podcast, plus bonus podcasts each week including Dueling Genre Tonight hosted by Nick!

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Patreon Associate Producer: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra

Three months after the release of Far From Home, Sony and Marvel Studios entered into contract negotiations that ended abruptly with Sony announcing that the next Spider-Man movie would be made without the help of Kevin Feige and the MCU. Eventually, cooler heads prevailed and a deal was made, allowing for the biggest and most successful Spider-Man film ever made: SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME.

Peter’s identity is now public knowledge and the film wastes no time picking up from the exact moment that Far From Home’s pivotal post-credit scene left off. But when a memory spell from Doctor Strange goes wrong, bringing Spider-Man villains from across the multiverse to the MCU, Peter has to decide just what kind of superhero he’s going to be once and for all… with a little help from two guys with similar backstories.

In a reunion that has been a long time coming, Nick and Scott are joined by actor, cosplayer, and Spider-Man Minute co-host Zach Luna (Mythic Quest, The Sex Lives of College Girls).

Become a Premier Tier PATREON supporter to hear our “Franchise Potential” companion podcast, plus bonus podcasts each week including Dueling Genre Tonight hosted by Nick!

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Patreon Associate Producer: Matt Bennett & Mark Ybarra