Open World Chat

Mark and John look at what makes a movie a horror movie (surprisingly complicated!) and apply that to movies that aren't generally considered to be horror. What movies pass the test of horror-that-doesn't-know-it's-horror?

There are mad scientists aplenty in science fiction, but somethimes - perhaps ironically - it's the science itself that science fiction is demonizing. Mark and John look at the science that sci-fi hates and wind through some examples that you all know, and maybe a few you don't.

"Look at Us Now: A Comic Book Movie" Filmmaker Vee Rodriguez has a conversation with Mark and John about what comics mean to readers and how they've shaped us over the years. As per imdb: "Based on the poem by VRO, The Poet, LOOK AT US NOW: A COMIC BOOK MOVIE follows a diverse group of urban comic book lovers, and tells the story of how geek culture went from being a punchline to a global phenomenon." 

Baddies are a dime a dozen, but the really good ones are the ones that have a point and demand you listen. Mark and John discuss them (and go off on a couple tangents, but that happens...).

There are way too many TV themes to call Mark's list and John's lists definitive, but they've got some good ones (and just to make the point, there was no overlap between the lists). That adds up to 20 awesome things ranging from the 1960s to the 2010s! We've left out a LOT but take a listen and see if you agree!

Mark and John go apocalyptic. What's the difference between an apocalypse and a dystopia in TV and film? Do they have to be scary or can they be silly? Cute? Join us for a discussion of the big booms and why we love them.

You ever watch a movie of a particular genre and have it flip genres right in front of you, leaving you wondering what the heck just happened? We have! And we talk about them for an hour! Some are on the bubble, while others make your head explode - and while it could be a recipe for disaster (or at least crappiness), these are the films where it works. Have a listen!

Mark and John break out what the heck fascism is and then find it in Sci-Fi. Who gets it right?

Mark and John look at examples of time travel across a broad range of movies, TV and other fiction to examine it's logic (or - more often - lack thereof) and it's use as a storytelling tool. Have a listen!

Mark and John start of with the grandaddy of all Utopias (that would be "Utopia") and segue into a discussion of our utopian fiction, or just fiction where utopia shows up, even if it's not the star. We may surprise you with some of our choices.