Gobbledygeek

It's been one year--and exactly half the show ago--since DC rebooted their

entire line, dubbing this bold creative decision/shameless marketing ploy

the "New 52." Paul and AJ check back in on the New 52, pointing out what's

working (Animal Man, Swamp Thing) and what's not (Justice League,

Detective Comics). Has this whole thing been worth it? Has it made a

difference for the company? And what are we to make of the editorial

troubles that have been messily dragged out into the public? We can't

promise any good answers, but we sure try! Plus, AJ talks about the best

birthday present he received and Paul has exciting adventures at the zoo.

Next: Celebrate Gobbledygeek’s eleventy-first episode as the boys discuss the 1977 Rankin/Bass animated musical television special The Hobbit. BYOPW (bring your own pipe-weed).

The leaves will soon start falling from the trees and awards bait will soon start arriving in theaters. That's right, it's almost time for the fall/winter movie season, so Paul and AJ give you a little preview of 15 films they're looking forward to. There's showy Oscar stuff like Steven Spielberg's Lincoln and Tom Hooper's Les Misérables alongside the animated video-game-a-palooza Wreck-It Ralph and Quentin Tarantino's Southern Django Unchained, among many others. Plus, Paul talks about a local movie theater that's going the way of the Alamo Drafthouse and AJ discusses the news that this season of The Office will be its last.

Next: it's been a year, folks. Time to look back on what went right and what went very wrong with DC's New 52.

We know that every episode of Gobbledygeek makes you cry, but this one might especially depress you. It's Geek Challenge time once more, so Paul has tasked AJ with watching the 1978 animated adaptation of Watership Down; in turn, AJ has challenged Paul to watch the 1988 anime Grave of the Fireflies. One is about the brutal escape of a group of rabbits from their soon-to-be-demolished warren. The other is about the brutal attempts at survival made by a very young brother and sister after their home is demolished in WWII-era Japan. Both are very sad. To lighten the mood, AJ talks about watching every episode of Childrens Hospital over the last week and both of them discuss the addition of Ciarán Hinds to the cast of Game of Thrones.

Next: as summer winds down, it's time to take a look ahead for the Fall/Winter Movie Preview.

Paul and AJ had an idea for what they wanted this show to be about: science! Unfortunately, it didn't really work out. Fortunately--we think--they managed to come up with a bunch of other things to talk about: Joss Whedon's return to The Avengers, Jason Shayer's blog about 1980s Marvel, the found-footage horror of V/H/S, how AJ pretty much bawled his eyes out at the new issue of Spider-Men, and, yes, science (Mars Curiosity for the win).

Next: Geek Challenge time once more! Paul will watch Grave of the Fireflies and AJ will watch Watership Down. That's not gonna be depressing at all.

The dog days of summer have arrived, and with them even less of a sense of purpose and direction than our hosts usually display. So they babble on about a variety of topics: Chick-fil-A's rampant homophobia (which accounts for the annual violation of their "No Politics" rule!), Olympics spoilerphobia, the forthcoming Marvel NOW! rewatch, and the return of the Furby, among other things.

Next: again, who knows, Paul and AJ's brains are fried.

Do you remember what reading was like when you were a kid? That magical, transportive experience that took you to faraway lands and different time periods? Proving that, yes, they were once literate, Paul and AJ discuss their childhood reading experiences. The books that were important to them include The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Watership Down, and From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, among others. They also discuss the differences they had growing up as readers and what it will be like for kids in the future. Plus, Paul rejoices in The Killing's cancellation, while AJ discusses watching The Walking Dead season 2 and the original Total Recall, both for the first time.

Next: it's a Gobbledy-free-for-all! Anything and everything is fair game.

The third (last?) major superhero movie of the year has arrived in the form of The Dark Knight Rises. Going into it, AJ was pumped and Paul was basically dreading it; amazingly, the two have united and agreed on something for the first time in what feels like months. They discuss the pay-offs to each character's arc, the Bane voice and the Batvoice, what political message can be derived from the film, and how often Michael Caine bawls. Plus, AJ talks about seeing Jaws on the big screen and attending a local comic book show, while Paul offers another monumental national update on the state of his health.

In the aftermath of the shooting in Aurora, Colorado, which occurred at a midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises, we have decided to do a separate episode on the shooting so as not to trivialize it. Here, we discuss our reaction to the shooting and our thoughts about how it might affect the moviegoing experience.

The year's second big superhero movie, following The Avengers--which you

may remember we discussed and AJ even wrote a review of--is The Amazing

Spider-Man, rebooting the franchise that sputtered to an end but five

years ago. Paul and AJ, both opinionated Spider-Man fans, are at odds over

Marc Webb's new film; Paul considers it the best big screen Spidey yet, AJ

not so much. Is Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker a faithful representation

of the one in the comics? Do Spider-Man's jokes work? Is the Lizard a good

starter villain for this new wall-crawler? Is Emma Stone completely

adorable? (Spoiler: they agree on that last one, at least.) Plus, the boys

geek out over the announcement of more Sandman and share their experiences

of seeing Singin' in the Rain on the big screen.

Next: We’re back, back in the Gotham groove. Paul and AJ rise up to discuss Christopher Nolan’s Bat swan song, The Dark Knight Rises.