Laser Time

What's on TV tonight? Does it matter?! Television shows remain great, while TV itself seems in an unstoppable cycle of decay. Have you noticed your favorite Nature or Music channel look alarmingly similar these days, when you need them most? In this episode we're examining why television channels are desperately abandoning their identity, and yes, it's largely because of the very medium you're listening to this on.

When it comes to cast members who spring boarded from Saturday Night Live into super stardom, there are almost too many names to mention. That's why we're talking about we're talking about kinda the opposite this week! We're looking back the SNL alum you might not even know are SNL alum, because for various reasons, they sputtered out on the show in just a SINGLE SEASON or less, yet went onto become household names anyway. And be sure to check out our companion SNL 2021 Awards podcast on our Patreon!

Continuing our annual tradition, we've once again watched all the movies nominated for Best Picture at the 93rd Academy Awards so you don't have to! A global pandemic has obviously made a giant mess of the Oscars this year, but there's certainly some viewing pleasure and sketch material to mine from the most depressing crop of films the Oscars has ever recognized. Enjoy!

We love ourselves some long lost subgenres, and film subgenres don't get much deader than the Erotic Thriller. As premium cable mainstays of the 80s and 90s, many of us grew up with sneaky late night HBO screenings as our highest form of titillation. But by the internet age, the American Erotic Thriller was all but extinct, and both porn and puritans are responsible for its demise. Even better, we're joined by Honey Leavitt, of The Honey Leavitt Show, as well as a special appearance by Dan Amrich!

It's a little late, but just in time for the Golden Globes, Laser Time's annual TV wrap up is back for another year-end wrap-up. Life outside took a big hit, but streaming services thrived as everyone became of the Scrooge McDuck of indoor time! Let us know your faves below.

Better late than never, our annual tradition of picking out the best films of the year has arrived, if not without a COVID shaped caveat. But a pandemic can't keep cinema down, even if is keeping cinemas closed. There was still plenty to enjoy in 2020, as you'll hear in this week's episode!

Are you a hardened atheist or Holiday cynic who sees no value in Christmas? Well, what about your favorite Christmas movies, specials and TV episodes?! That's what we're here to help with this week, in Laser Time's one billionth annual Xmas special. Hope you and yours have a Merry one!

SPONSORED: Hosted by Taraji P. Henson, Wondery (Dr. Death, Dirty John, The Shrink Next Door) and Universal Music Group present Jacked: Rise of the New Jack Sound.

The story begins with a keyboard player in the heart of Harlem: Teddy Riley. Teddy's entire world was music. Playing it. Composing it. Producing it. Teddy and his friend Timmy Gatling followed their dreams and started a revolution in the world of hip-hop and R&B. They crafted hit after hit, and were on top of the world.

Their group's quick rise to fame came with betrayals and broken friendships. Tensions within the band began to flare, and rivalries with other artists turned violent. As the stakes grew higher, their troubled manager pushed the group past their breaking point, with deadly results.

Listen today at http://wondery.fm/Jacked_Laser

At this point, our second of two episodes, we should probably clarify that we're talking about The Best/Worst of Stephen King ADAPTATIONS. But whatever, the guy is one of the few living authors that's a household name, he's made hundreds of millions of dollars off of his talent, and thus an undoubtedly very big boy. In this final episode of October, we're talking about the worst reviewed, lowest grossing, and our personal least favorite Stephen King adaptations...

Stephen King's obviously one of pop culture's most famous authors, but for our October movie marathon purposes, he's also generated billions of dollars of box office revenue with dozens of film and TV adaptations. We've scoured box office reports, reviews, and the finest in internet user criticism to try and find a consensus of which of Stephen King's cinematic adaptations truly float to the top. In the next episode... we'll tell you about the absolute worst!