Michael and Us

The archetype of the shadowy, Machiavellian political strategist is potent in the popular imagination, and no strategist has leaned into this potency harder than Roger Stone. We look back at one of Trumpworld's wackier characters by watching the Netflix documentary GET ME ROGER STONE (2017) and discuss how he is both a more and less significant figure than he seems. PLUS: Roger Stone's fashion blog!

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/52173881

Ross, Rachel, Chandler, Phoebe, Joey, Monica... even 17 years after their show ended, these characters remain as dear as real-life friends for millions of viewers. But why has a show that's so stubbornly of the '90s endured? On the occasion of the megabucks FRIENDS: THE REUNION (2021) special, a longtime Friends hater (Will) and a Friends fan-turned-quasi-apostate (Luke) attempt to provide an answer. PLUS: examining Boris Johnson's side-hustle as an author/historian!

Paul Schrader's FIRST REFORMED (2017) looks at a world that might be beyond saving, and asks: "How can we go on living?" We discuss how this great film about religion, capitalism, and the environment is a rare Movie Of The Moment that actually is one. PLUS: the legacy of Canada's residential schools.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/51892949

Our Superdelegate patrons have made a selection, and they couldn't have picked a spikier topic if they'd tried! AMERICAN RADICAL: THE TRIALS OF NORMAN FINKELSTEIN (2009) captures Finkelstein -- academic, writer, and outspoken critic of Israel -- while he's in the midst of a war with Alan Dershowitz. The documentary gives us opportunity to discuss Finkelstein's incendiary rhetorical style and to wade into the fraught issue of "cancel culture." PLUS: we discuss two of the key films of our time (Paul Schrader's The Canyons and Christopher Nolan's Tenet), eroding voting rights in the United States, and a recent rebuttal to Luke from no less than David Frum!

Why has an oligarch like Elon Musk attracted so many admirers? To answer that question, we looked at the short puff-piece documentary THE RISE OF SPACEX: ELON MUSK'S ENGINEERING MASTERPIECE (2020), which presents the story of his outer-space initiatives the way he would like them to be seen. We examine the very real political implications of his "apolitical" tech-guru brand. PLUS: an odd new footnote to Canadian WWII history, the Amazon/MGM deal, and the surprising career trajectory of Tucker Max.

"The Rise of SpaceX: Elon Musk's Engineering Masterpiece" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_T4QayqtI4&ab_channel=ritm1

PATREON BONUS - https://www.patreon.com/posts/51686456

The boys have a chat about some of their current writing projects. Luke talks about a new wave of Republican legislation that represents an assault on American democracy, and why the Democrats are likely not up for the challenge. Then Will talks about a filmmaker who he passionately loves: the gutter auteur Andy Milligan.

"If Democracy Is Dying, Why Are Democrats So Complacent?" by Luke Savage - https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/05/democrats-voting-rights-filibuster/618964/

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/237-bills-brain-51613897

Microsoft founder/self-appointed global health czar/Epstein buddy Bill Gates is receiving his worst press in 20 years. To celebrate, we looked back all the way to 2019 at the documentary series INSIDE BILL'S BRAIN: DECODING BILL GATES - a hagiographic look at his selfless charity work and harmonious marriage. PLUS: Luke talks with novelist Cory Doctorow, a longtime critic of restrictive intellectual property laws, about Gates’s dogged commitment to monopolism.

THE SIMPSONS taught a generation to be skeptical of authority. And then, at some point, it stopped. We revisit one of the greatest television show with two of its greatest episodes - "Marge vs. the Monorail" and "Sideshow Bob Roberts" - before venturing into the Season 26 episode "The Musk Who Fell to Earth" with guest star (...sigh...) Elon Musk. PLUS: Netflix's Dirty Money, the shifting discourse on Israel-Palestine, and an airtight theory about what Kramer would be doing today.

PATREON EPISODE - https://www.patreon.com/posts/235-fuck-it-we-w-51343674

On this very special crossover episode, we're hanging out with our good pals from across the pond - Jack and Geraint from the great Reel Politik podcast - to share a few cheap laughs over a target that's just asking for it. Yes, we discuss "Renegades: Born in the USA," the new Spotify-exclusive podcast from Barack Obama and the boss himself, Bruce Springsteen. We discuss how the show represents much that is unfortunate about Obama's post-presidency, and how exactly it fits into Bruce Springsteen's long and glorious career as a celebrity avatar of the working class. (Don't worry, we're not going to be too hard on Bruce.)

Check out Reel Politik - https://soundcloud.com/reelpolitikpodcast

In the wake of the Labour Party's disastrous performance in the 2021 U.K. local elections, we're taking a look back at a key moment in recent British history. The made-for-TV movie COALITION (2015) documents the wheelings and dealings that led to Nick Clegg's Liberal-Democrats joining forces with David Cameron's Conservatives after. the 2010 election left no party with a parliamentary majority. We share some larfs over a perfectly mediocre movie, and. discuss the true meaning of "Cleggmania" and its aftermath. PLUS: Why can't Keir Starmer sell centrism like Tony Blair could? And reflections on Toronto's alt-media landscape, from NOW Magazine to Eye Weekly to The Grid.

"The Grid R.I.P." - http://radiofreecanuckistan.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-grid-rip.html

"Keir Starmer’s Televised Meltdown Was Decades in the Making" by Luke Savage - https://www.jacobinmag.com/2021/05/keir-starmer-bbc-meltdown-labour-election-hartlepool