Hey You Geeks

In this very special 19th Episode of the Hey You Geeks podcast we’re taking you into the Jim Henson Creature Shop with special guests Peter Brooke (Creative Supervisor) and John Criswell (Animatronic Supervisor), both Mentors on the the new Syfy series Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge. With the new Syfy series set to premiere on March 25th, a new Muppets film in theaters and this week marking the 15th anniversary of Farscape, theres no better timing for an episode devoted to the imagination geniuses at Henson Studios. From the Creature Shop itself, Peter and John discuss past projects including the Dinosaurs TV series, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films, Where the Wild Things Are and more. Then, we discuss the practical effects vs. CGI debate and what that might mean for the future of special effects.

Episode 18 of the Hey You Geeks podcast is a grab bag of film trailers, the Oscars, upcoming video games and in true Hey You Geeks fashion, lots of Star Wars digressions. We’re talking about the new trailers for Guardians of the Galaxy, Sin City: A Dame To Kill For, Transformers: Age of Extinction and Annie, yes Annie. We also discuss the Oscars and which actor we thought was most deserving of the big bald guy this year. To our surprise, Rocksteady released a trailer for a new Arkham game this week, so of course we discuss that development. Finally, our talk about the final season of Star Wars: Clone Wars coming to Netflix evolves into a discussion about Adam Driver being cast as a villain in the new Star Wars film. It just wouldn’t be Hey You Geeks if our conversations didn’t lead into a Star Wars debate.

In episode 17 of the Hey You Geeks podcast we’re talking about what it means to be a geek parent. As dad’s with kids on both ends of the age spectrum, we discuss what movies and TV shows we enjoy watching with and exposing our kids to, as well as what our kids have exposed us to in return. From problems with the toys of today to the importance of immersing kids in fantastical worlds, we cover it all. After that, we take opposing sides in a deep debate on Marvel’s hotly discussed new series, Ms. Marvel, taking our conversation to a discussion on gender roles in comics and why as parents, Ms. Marvel may or may not give us hope for the future.

In episode 16 of the Hey You Geeks podcast we’re digging into what seems like an endless deluge of franchise shakeups and geek-movie news. We’re discussing the Star Wars rewrites, timing shifts in the Batman vs. Superman movie, rumors of Johnny Depp playing a certain Marvel sorcerer, the problems with today’s comics industry and more. After that, we each talk about our most anticipated films of 2014, including a few surprising choices.

Happy New Year Geeks! In episode 15 of the Hey You Geeks podcast we look back at the year that was 2013. We’re tracing back the best and worst comic book films, falling on opposite sides of the Man Of Steel debate. We’re determining which film is the biggest disappointment of the year and which sci-fi films met or exceeded our expectations. Do we think it was a great year in film, or another nail in the coffin of theatrical film distribution as we know it? Listen to find out. We also look back at what was a fantastic year in comics, celebrating stellar superhero titles like Batman and Guardians of the Galaxy and recommending some even better indie titles you might have missed.

In episode 14 of the Hey You Geeks podcast we are diving deep into the cavernous collection of movie, comics and video game news that has come out over the past few weeks. So much has been announced that we thought it would be fun to talk about it all and see where the conversation takes us. Spoiler alert: it takes us all over the map. We discuss new trailers for Godzilla, Jupiter Ascending, Edge of Tomorrow and The Amazing Spiderman 2. We offer insight and snark about the potential for new Indiana Jones films from Paramount and Disney. We reminisce over the long lost culture of the video store. Everything, including Arrow, Wonder Woman, X-Men, The Hobbit, the World War Z sequel, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, licensed video games, Spiderman comics, Arkham Origins and of course, the future of Star Wars is covered in this jam-packed episode.

In the extra-big 13th episode of the Hey You Geeks podcast we are breaking Batman. With yet another new Batman incarnation in the works with Ben Affleck, we thought it would be fun to pick through each of the live action Batman films from 1966-2012 in search of their failures and successes. We’re breaking it all down, from the music, villains and acting to the scripts, world-building and batmobiles. Starting with Batman: The Movie in 1966, we move through Burton’s Batman films, Schumacher’s missteps and Nolan’s reinvention, digging deep and going back to the source comics to figure out what worked, what didn’t and what should be considered moving forward with a new Batman franchise. This is a fun one, so, to steal a line from Schwarzenegger’s Mr. Freeze; “Chill out’ and enjoy the show!

In episode 12 of the Hey You Geeks podcast we review Thor: The Dark World, the latest film from Marvel Studios. We’re breaking everything down from the films story, end-credit teasers and a particular actor who steals the show…again. We’re also discussing Marvel’s film and TV plans for each of their three phases of entertainment domination. Part of that domination includes Marvel’s live-action TV presence with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and a group of new series’ coming exclusively to Netflix. Inevitably, our Marvel talk devolves into more predictions on where Disney (who own Marvel) plan to take the Star Wars franchise. It happens.

Last week, Hey You Geeks attended New York Comic Con, a geek mecca second only to San Diego Comic Con. On this week’s show, we talk about what we saw from the convention floor and what we learned at some of the Con’s biggest panels from Lucasfilm, Marvel and DC. We also discuss some of the problems with massive fan conventions like New York Comic Con, including the inexcusable levels of sexual harassment endured by a number of cosplayers last weekend. We end the show with an exclusive interview with author Diana Gabaldon and showrunner Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica) about their collaboration to adapt Gabaldon’s Outlander series for television. Did you attend the show? What were your highlights? What are your thoughts on cosplay and harassment?

Summer blockbuster season has ended and Fall is upon us; a time for higher volumes of intelligent entertainment on the big-screen. In episode-ten of the “Hey You Geeks!!” podcast, we sift through the films coming out between now and Christmas to help you get a feel for what to see and possibly even avoid this Fall movie season. We have something for everyone on this weeks show, from Hobbit’s, samurai’s and Norse Gods to WWII art historians and surreal trips to Disney World.