Gobbledygeek

Rulers--whether they be corrupt, wise, or both--make rules. They establish boundaries, set parameters within which a person lives their life. Should those rules be broken, there will be consequences. Neil Gaiman explores some of those consequences, joined by an incredibly talented string of artists including Bryan Talbot and Jill Thompson, in The Sandman: Vol. VI - Fables and Reflections. Paul and AJ continue their year-long Four-Color Flashback exploration of The Sandman, discussing everything from barophobia to Greek myth, from the once-great city of Baghdad to the Thriller video. Plus, Donald Glover finally gets to be Spider-Man and AJ offers his thought's on Netflix's first animated series for adults, BoJack Horseman. Next: on September 1, Paul and AJ kick off an epic podcrawl (see information on participating podcasts in the show notes) discussing the Alien and Predator films with a look back at Ridley Scott's 1979 classic Alien.

Not a boy but not yet a man; it's something both humanoid mutant turtles and Texans experience. To cover that wide range of experience, Paul and AJ are discussing both the new Michael Bay-produced version of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as well as Richard Linklater's down-to-earth epic Boyhood. Joining them is Nowheresville director/Smoke Gets in Your Ears: A Mad Men Podcast co-host Joseph Lewis, who manages to summarize TMNT in the most beautiful way possible. That might be the only beautiful thing in relation to the movie; spoiler alert, but one of these films is a hell of a lot better than the other, and it's probably the one about growing up without a stable father figure that was filmed over 12 years. Wait, which--which one was that? Plus, things start on a serious note with Ferguson and the passing of Robin Williams.

Next: we continue our year-long Four-Color Flashback exploration of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman with a discussion of Vol. VI: Fables and Reflections.

Come and get your love, boys and girls: the Guardians of the Galaxy have arrived. Paul and AJ abduct the young, impressionable Kenn Edwards (So Let's Get to the Point host/Smoke Gets in Your Ears co-host), leading him on a whirlwind tour of the universe, discussing the finer points of James Gunn's sci-fi blockbuster. Among those points: whether or not, ten movies in, the film marks progress for Marvel Studios; the unlikely (or perhaps the most likely) breakout characters; and that bitchin' soundtrack. Plus, AJ goes in for a sleep test and gets back up on his Spider-Ham soapbox. Next: Joseph Lewis returns for another gathering of the Turtle...uh, Tribe? Is that a thing? Anyway, this time the gang's discussing the new Michael Bay-produced Ninja Turtles movie.

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, it might just be because Thessaly's pulled it to Earth, wreaking all sorts of havoc on the ground. This Paul and AJ learn in the latest installment of our year-long Four-Color Flashback analyzing Neil Gaiman's The Sandman, this time focusing on Vol. V - A Game of You. Joining the boys again are Wanna Cook? authors K. Dale Koontz and Ensley F. Guffey, who have much insight to offer on Gaiman's depiction of transgender character Wanda, artist Shawn McManus' use of the classic nine-panel layout, and, uh, polar bears. Add to this many Wizard of Oz illusions and discussions of identity, and you've got something we promise makes sense. Sort of. Plus, the gang riffs on Comic-Con, including the unveiling of Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman.

Next: ooga-chaka, ooga-chaka, it's the Guardians of the Galaxy.

Wise man say: forgiveness is divine, but only listening to Paul, AJ, and Nowheresville director/Smoke Gets in Your Ears co-host Joseph Lewis discuss the original 1990 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film will get you past those pearly gates. Or something, a little birdie told us. But not, like, a mutant bird. Anyway. The gang has wildly varying experiences with the Turtles and the movie: Paul is old enough to have read some of the Eastman and Laird stuff when it was new, and saw the movie in theaters; AJ, being a wee little bairn, claims this is the first movie he ever saw and has loved the Turtles ever since; and Joe, well...Joe's right in the Turtle-loving demographic, but he never got into them as a kid, and that pattern holds 20-some-odd years later. How does the film hold up? Is it slathered in enough mozzarella to deserve bargain bin status? Or does it remain crisp, like the finest pepperoni? To put a merciful end to all pizza-related puns, I'm ending this description right here, so you know, go listen. Plus, the gang gets weird with Mandatory Fun and talks about Marvel's Avengers NOW! initiative. Next: that other Smoke Gets in Your Ears co-host, Kenn Edwards, drops by for the next installment of this year's Four-Color Flashback, discussing The Sandman: Vol. V - A Game of You.

We discussed Snowpiercer briefly on our most recent epsiode, but there was too much monkey business going on to talk about it in-depth. So we had to go all-out and do a bonus episode, the sort of episode that fits in between the cracks of our elaborate continuity, featuring none other than The Debatable Podcast host Greg Sahadachny. Shoes as hats, rave cars, orgasmic school teachers...this movie's nuts, and we do our best to honor that babbling about it incoherently.

A new day has dawned, one which doesn't smile too favorably upon humanity. In Matt Reeves' Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, the apes have taken over...well, mostly. As Caesar and company learn, a small faction of humans still resides in San Francisco, and they believe the key to their continued existence lies in the apes' territory. It's not a swell situation, as Paul and AJ discover in their discussion of the second film in this new Apes franchise. They chat about the complexity of Caesar and Koba's relationship, the likable (if simplistic) human characters, and the palpable sadness at the film's core. Plus, the boys hop aboard the Snowpiercer train. Next: the gang (including Nowheresville director and Smoke Gets in Your Ears co-host Joseph Lewis) straps on their musty old half-shells to revisit the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie, AKA OGTMNT.

We here at Gobbledygeek are avowed fans of big-budget epics, be they superheroic or Tolkienesque. But independent film is an important part of any moviegoer's diet, one many don't have access to. Which is why Paul and AJ are thrilled to speak with Kurtiss Hare of the Nightlight Cinema, the new arthouse theater bringing indie film to Akron, OH. Kurtiss talks about the Nightlight's origin, the incredible response to the project's Kickstarter, and how he hopes the theater will grow. Plus, Paul gets an education from some Masters of Sex and AJ revisits the classics. Next: we stop picking fleas off each other long enough to discuss the latest in the modern reboot of the classic Apes franchise, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

Just taking a guess here, but you probably don't want to go to Hell. Probably don't want to rule it, either. And neither does Lucifer, the original fallen angel himself, which sets in motion the events of The Sandman: Vol IV - Season of Mists. Pop culture academics (and Wanna Cook? authors) K. Dale Koontz and Ensley F. Guffey join Paul and AJ for another installment of their Four-Color Flashback series exploring Neil Gaiman's The Sandman. The gang finds much to discuss, whether it be the assortment of mythological envoys sent to The Dreaming, Dream's reunion with one-time lover Nada, or even, uh, the Merkin. Plus, Dale and Ensley went to Slayage, which was the opposite of Hell. Though the squirrels might beg to differ. Next: we'll be chatting about independent film and local business with a representative of Akron, Ohio's brand new Nightlight Cinema.

A dream is a wish your heart makes, or so the song goes. What happens when that wish is fulfilled? Neil Gaiman has a few answers in The Sandman: Vol III - Dream Country, wherein a writer finds his muse, cats rule the world, Shakespeare puts on a play, and an immortal prays for death. Paul and AJ get back on track with their year-long Four Color Flashback exploration of Gaiman's masterpiece, this time joined by The Debatable Podcast host Greg Sahadachny. Plus, Joss Whedon turns 50, Tim Burton's Batman turns 25, and How to Train Your Dragon 2 has something to say about strong women. Next: doubling down on our Four-Color Flashback with another trip to The Dreaming, as Eric Sipple joins us for a discussion of The Sandman: Vol. IV - Season of Mists.