Gobbledygeek

For this month's Four-Color Flashback, Paul and Arlo roll the Die to discuss Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans' dark tale of a group of one-time RPG nerds getting sucked into the world of the game. Gillen has described the book as "goth Jumanji," and there's some truth to that–these characters feel everything, hard. Luckily, so do we, and so does special guest Eric Sipple, author of Mimesis and co-creator of The Deli Counter of Justice. The gang discusses how Die takes apart and rebuilds typical D&D classes, its commentary on the entire history of gaming, why Ash is so important to Eric, and much more.

NEXT: by the hoary hosts of Hoggoth, it's Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness!

BREAKDOWN

00:00:32 - Intro / Guest

00:05:46 - Our histories with RPGs

00:14:56 - Die

02:44:20 - Outro / Next

LINKS

• "Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans On Bringing Their Acclaimed Image Comics Epic 'DIE' to an End" by Matthew Jackson, SyFy Wire

• "Die is the Darker Side of D&D Fans Didn't Know They Needed" by Evan Mullicane, ScreenRant

• "We Roll A Nat 20 For Interviewing And Talk To The Creative Team Behind DIE" by Mark Turetsky and Corey Smith, ComicsXF

• Kieron Gillen's DIE RPG Beta

MUSIC

• "Tumbling Dice" by The Rolling Stones, Exile on Main St. (1972)
• "Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)" by Kate Bush, Hounds of Love (1985)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• Abortion Funds in Every State: https://bit.ly/AbortionFundsTwitter
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
• • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

In a multiverse without limitations…you have chosen to listen to Gobbledygeek. Let that sink in. While you do, you'll also get to hear Paul and Arlo's latest Geek Challenge! Arlo sort-of challenges Paul to The Daniels' Everything Everywhere All at Once, the year's big breakout movie, starring Michelle Yeoh as infinite versions of herself; and Paul in turn challenges Arlo to James Wong's 2001 action flick The One, featuring Jet Li vs. Jet Li in a dystopian future. The boys discuss the Daniels' hyper-maximalist approach to filmmaking, how Everything Everywhere earns its zaniness with real emotion, the shocking amount of hair Jason Statham sports in The One, and that film's perfect time capsule of a soundtrack.

NEXT: Die! The Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans comic book, that is. Eric Sipple joins us for this month's Four-Color Flashback.

BREAKDOWN

00:00:29 - Intro / RIP Tim Sale

00:09:55 - Everything Everywhere All at Once

01:09:30 - The One

01:36:49 - Outro / Next

LINKS

• "'The One' Is the Original Multiversal Arts Movie for Fans of 'Everything Everywhere All At Once'" by Collier Jennings, Collider

• "How 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' Earns Its Kindness and Optimism" by Joe Hoeffner, Collider

• "How 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' Subverts the Action Movie Climax" by Fredrick James, Collider

MUSIC

• "Googly Eyes" by Caspar Babypants, This is Fun! (2011)
• "Down With the Sickness" by Disturbed, The Sickness (2000)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• Abortion Funds in Every State: https://bit.ly/AbortionFundsTwitter
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
• • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

Travelers of the night, welcome to Paul and Arlo's latest MCUTV discussion. They join hands once again with Hollywood wonder boy Michael Holland, and together they summon Moon Knight. Oscar Isaac joins the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Marc Spector, the human avatar of Egyptian god Khonshu, and…well, is he Marc Spector? Is he Steven Grant? Or is he someone else entirely? The gang discusses how the show tackles Marc's dissociative identity disorder, the killer costume design, how the series pushes the MCU's boundaries, and more.

NEXT: on a new Geek Challenge, we are The One who is Everything Everywhere All at Once.

BREAKDOWN

00:01:17 - Intro / Guest

00:11:00 - Moon Knight

01:36:40 - Outro / Next

LINKS

• Holland Imaginarium - The Essentials

MUSIC

• "A Man Without Love" by Engelbert Humperdinck, A Man Without Love (1968)
• "Nights in White Satin" by The Moody Blues, Days of Future Passed (1967)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• Abortion Funds in Every State: https://bit.ly/AbortionFundsTwitter
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/

• • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

It's a freestyle episode, boys and girls! You know what that means: the Dragon's Milk is flowing, the tangents are plentiful, and Paul and Arlo just can't get enough Dick's. Now, now, get your mind out of the gutter–we're talking Dick's, the iconic Seattle burger chain. In addition to chowing down on their favorite regional burgers (Arlo shouts out Akron's very own Swenson's), the boys are very much on their bullshit throughout. Arlo recounts the entire A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, Paul experiences Stranger Things with a fella named Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Arlo gets progressively more inebriated.

NEXT: welcome, travelers of the night, to another MCUTV installment with Hollywood wonder boy Michael Holland. This time, we're discussing Moon Knight.

LINKS

• Dick's Drive-In
• Swenson's Drive-In

MUSIC

• "Posse on Broadway" by Sir Mix-a-Lot, Swass (1988)
• "Who Let the Dogs Out (As Made Famous by Baha Men)" by Karaoke DJ, Karaoke Hit Music the 00's Vol. 2 - Instrumental Sing Alongs From the 2000's (2010)
• "Are You Ready for Freddy" by Fat Boys, Coming Back Hard Again (1988)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• Abortion Funds in Every State: https://bit.ly/AbortionFundsTwitter
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
  • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

Sit back and say 'Aaaahhhh!' For this month's Four-Color Flashback, Paul and Arlo take a trip to the dentist with Raina Telgemeier's 2010 autobiographic novel Smile. Raina looks back on how her orthodontic woes served as a marker for her adolescence, from the loss of her two front teeth in 6th grade circa 1989 through finally ditching those braces in freshman year '92. This prompts Paul and Arlo to recount their own dental dramas in dramatic (traumatic?) detail before praising Telgemeier's skillful cartooning, her incisive rendering of middle school social mores, the way historical events are set against the backdrop of teen life, and more. Plus, the boys have thoughts on the This Is Us series finale.

NEXT: more drama, more trauma.

BREAKDOWN

00:00:23 - Intro / This is Us

00:35:17 - Smile

01:35:33 - Outro / Next

MUSIC

• "Dentist!" by Steve Martin, Michelle Weeks, Tichina Arnold & Tisha Campbell, Little Shop of Horrors (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (1986)
• "Braces" by Robbo, A Kid's Life (2000)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• Abortion Funds in Every State: https://bit.ly/AbortionFundsTwitter
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
• • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

Riddle me this, riddle me that…who's afraid of Matt Reeves' The Bat(man)? Not Paul and Arlo, that's for sure, at least not with Project Batman vet Kenn Edwards at their side. There's a lot of ground to cover, beginning with: Did we need the 897th Batman movie? Of course not, but since we're here, the gang discusses Robert Pattinson's turn as the Caped Crusader, the film's emphasis on detective work, whether or not the story is served by a three-hour runtime, and much, much more.

NEXT: Smile! For this month's Four-Color Flashback, Paul and Arlo have a little dental work done with Raina Telgemeier's autobiographical novel.

BREAKDOWN

00:01:10 - Intro / Guest

00:10:00 - The Batman

02:24:47 - Outro / Next

LINKS

• Project Batman: The Batman Immortal Podcast

• Batman Immortal: The Audio Drama - Official Trailer

• A/V (The Film)

MUSIC

• "Something in the Way" by Nirvana, Nevermind (1991)
• "The Riddler" by Method Man, Batman Forever (

GOBBLEDYCARES

• Abortion Funds in Every State: https://bit.ly/AbortionFundsTwitter
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
• • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

And you run, you run to catch up with the sun, but it's sinking…well, before it sets, Paul and Arlo have a few MCU movies they need to discuss. Due to that pesky pandemic, we've gotten behind on the Marvel Cinematic Universe here at Gobbledygeek, but fear not! In this special, super-sized episode, Paul and Arlo discuss three mighty Marvel movies: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which brings Chinese mythology to the MCU; Eternals, which brings a race of immortal god-beings to the MCU; and Spider-Man: No Way Home, which brings a whole bunch of Spider-Men to the MCU. The boys rave about Tony Leung, have a friendly (?) debate about the merits of Eternals, can't get enough of Andrew Garfield, and so very much more.

NEXT: he is vengeance, he is the night, he is Kenn Edwards! Everybody's favorite podcaster/guitarist joins us for a look at Matt Reeves' The Batman.

BREAKDOWN

00:01:47 - Intro / Banter

00:03:53 - Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

00:46:42 - Eternals

01:45:50 - Spider-Man: No Way Home

02:37:50 - Outro / Next

MUSIC

• "Time" by Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
• "Three is a Magic Number" by Bob Dorough, Schoolhouse Rock! (1973)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
• • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

What happens when a child is born who will invent immortality? According to Ram V and Felipe Andrade's The Many Deaths of Laila Starr, Death is fired from her job, is cast into a mortal body, and attempts to find and murder this child. Oh, she also dies a lot. On this month's Four-Color Flashback, Paul & Arlo discuss the book's unique approach to Indian mythology, Andrade's beautifully distorted figures, V's ability to be self-serious without being pretentious, and more. Plus, Paul gets into Severance, the boys aren't feeling This Is Us' final season, and Arlo reads more Superman.

NEXT: it's an MCU catch-up session. The boys will discuss the trifecta of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals, and Spider-Man: No Way Home.

BREAKDOWN

00:00:34 - Intro / Banter

00:27:39 - The Many Deaths of Laila Starr

01:32:20 - Selecting the next FCF

01:36:03 - Outro / Next

LINKS

• "'The Many Deaths of Laila Starr' is more than the sum of its parts" by Meera S. Kumar, The Michigan Daily

• "Read This Book: The Many Deaths of Laila Starr" by unclehighlander, Biff Bam Pop

• "INTERVIEW: Ram V and Filipe Andrade on Death's rude awakening in THE MANY DEATHS OF LAILA STARR" by Nancy Powell, The Beat

MUSIC

• "(I Just) Died in Your Arms Tonight" by Cutting Crew, Broadcast (1986)
• "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" by Blue Oyster Cult, Agents of Fortune (1976)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
• • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

It's Ladies' Night on Gobbledygeek! By which we mean we've got a Geek Challenge featuring Richard Donner's 1985 medieval fantasy epic Ladyhawke and Greta Gerwig's 2017 millennial coming-of-age tale Lady Bird. What do these two films have in common? They're both about transformation, of course! In Lady Bird, Saoirse Ronan transforms into a young woman ready to take on the big city; in Ladyhawke, Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfeiffer quite literally transform into a wolf and a hawk, respectively. Paul struggles with passive aggressive family drama, Arlo is annoyed by Matthew Broderick, and they both remember what it was like to be 15.

NEXT: this month's Four-Color Flashback contemplates mortality with a dive into Ram V and Filipe Andrade's The Many Deaths of Laila Starr.

BREAKDOWN

00:00:45 - Intro

00:10:54 - Lady Bird

01:04:04 - Ladyhawke

01:57:04 - Outro / Next

LINKS

• "Is 'Ladyhawke' the Best Fairytale of Them All?" by Leah Schnelbach, Tor.com

MUSIC

• "Main Title" by Andrew Powell & Philharmonia Orchestra, Ladyhawke (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (1985)
• "Crash Into Me" by Dave Matthews Band, Crash (1996)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
• • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

For Paul and Arlo, existential crises and comic books often go hand-in-hand. Such is the case for this week's freestyle, wherein Paul's rumination on the erosion of his teenage self-confidence leads into a discussion of superhero mags. Paul tells Goblin punks to fuck off as he rocks out to Cody Ziglar and Justin Mason's Spider-Punk, goes undercover with Kelly Thompson and Elena Casagrande's recently wrapped run on Black Widow, and cloaks himself in Jed MacKay and Alessandro Cappuccio's Moon Knight. Meanwhile, Arlo rides on horseback through more goofy Silver Age Superman.

NEXT: we will continue to spiral.

MUSIC

• "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times" by The Beach Boys, Pet Sounds (1966)
• "Running Water" by Daniel Johnston, Hi, How Are You (1983)
• "A Horse with No Name" by America, America (1971)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate
• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/
• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org
• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
• • US (877) 565-8860
  • Canada (877) 330-6366
• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org
• Advocate for writers who might be owed money due to discontinuance of royalties: https://www.writersmustbepaid.org/
• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/
• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://ripmedicaldebt.org/
• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/