Peter Jackson's epic film rendition of JRR Tolkein's equally-epic fantasy book series wraps up with 2003's Return of the King, a flick many (including us) consider to be the strongest of the three. As Middle-earth seeks balance and peace, the forces of evil remain very much in play. While Frodo and Sam make a beeline for Mount Doom, the Fellowship and their forces fight for survival. With amazing performances, a wonderful score, solid CG, and an amazing story (of course!), we're sad to see Tolkein's Trilogy off. But fear not, for all hasn't yet turned to vain ambition.

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The 2006 stoner comedy Grandma's Boy is a classic for multiple reasons: It's a stoner romp with great characters, it's fun without being dramatically crude or inappropriate (with some notable exceptions, of course), and -- perhaps most understatedly -- it mercilessly lampoons the gaming industry. Since E3 2021 is now over, we thought we'd do a quick episode all about potentially our hobby's most famous comedy. Just be wary of whatever's in Sophie's tin. It may just turn you into a deer.

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In the early aughts, a late '70s sci-fi show was reimagined for a whole new generation of viewers. It was called Battlestar Galactica, and -- unlike the original, cult-favorite run -- the reboot was a smash hit. It's simple enough to understand, in premise: Humanity creates robotic slaves who turn on them in a vicious war before disappearing for decades. But then, they come back and inflict a holocaust on their masters. BSG deals with more themes than we can even imagine: Fascism and terrorism, economics and philosophy, religion and death. There's so much to talk about, in fact, that we're doing four episodes on the show. This is the first. We hope you enjoy.

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During episode #167 of KnockBack, we spent nearly three hours gushing about Peter Jackson's 2001 rendition of The Lord of the Rings' first book, Fellowship of the Ring. Naturally, we couldn't merely stop there. The following year -- in 2002 -- the second of three Lord of the Rings movies came out. It's called The Two Towers, and this is the flick and book alike that many people consider the best in Tolkein's Trilogy. But does the film hold up, particularly with a heavy mix of special and practical effects? How about the performances and the story? We've much to discuss, of course. So join us as we delve back into Middle-earth, where things are just starting to heat up...

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It's all been leading to this! Our audience on Patreon voted to have us rework the new Star Wars Trilogy (Episodes VII, VIII, and IX), and... well... we got a little carried away and dedicated entire episodes to our visions on a film-by-film basis. Remember! You should listen to KnockBack Episodes #159 and #164 before jumping into this one, if you haven't done so already. You may be lost, otherwise...

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This week's episode of KnockBack is a little different. Instead of covering a topic or some memories, we thought we'd talk a bit about our little retro and nostalgia podcast itself. How has the show grown and changed? How do we think we're doing? What topics do we think we covered best? Which do we think we could have done better with? What's the future hold? This is an episode for the thousands and thousands of hardcore KnockBack listeners, without which we couldn't do this show.

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As you know, we (The Brothers Moriarty) grew up on Long Island, nestled between the water and the woods. It's the latter that we thought we'd focus this particular episode on. We absolutely adore the woods. Playing, hiking, exploring. We basically lived amongst the trees as children! Thus, we thought it would be fun to regale you with some stories of our past being in the woods: Boy Scouts, mountain biking, BMXing, and running away from fictional foes. Discovering new things, using our imaginations, getting to know ourselves and others... and maybe catching some poison ivy, too. Are you an arborist like we are? Only one way to find out.

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The important thing to remember about the 2001 film Training Day is the context in which it was filmed and released. The decade of the '90s were scattered with serious issues of police brutality, and the Los Angeles Police Department was at the center of the storm. Thus, Denzel Washington's and Ethan Hawke's foray into the Southern California underworld -- and the seriously crooked behavior by Washington and his cop colleagues -- can really be interpreted as something greater: A glimpse into a specific place and time where a story like this not only made a lot of sense, but was almost expected. The backdealing, the violence, the betrayal... it's all here in Training Day, one of the most tense movies perhaps ever made. And hey, just remember: Stay off of the rover.

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Every so often, a game comes along that helps define a genre. When it comes to 2005's God of War -- which launched that year on PlayStation 2 courtesy of Santa Monica Studio -- one can't help but see how important it was (and still is) to so many of the 3D action games we play today. Inspired by Greek mythology, a cinematic approach, a glorified sense of gore and sex, and... well... some Capcom games, clearly, God of War remains one of the PlayStation brand's biggest touchstones all of these years (and consoles) later. So grab your Blades of Chaos, Kratos fans. It's about to get tragic.

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South Park rages on even today, but it was during a more embryonic stage in the mega-franchise's history that we got its one and only film: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. Released to theaters in the summer of '99, South Park's movie foray is basically the length of three regular 'ol episodes, but produced differently. For instance, it's a musical, and a damn good one! And there's a whole lot of cursing, nudity, and more. But at its heart is exactly what makes South Park so popular even today, and certainly then: Irreverence, inappropriate humor, excellent comedic timing, and an appreciation for the destruction of Canada. And yes, we do indeed blame them. But we blame bad parents even more... and thankfully, so does this film.

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