With the MCU’s newest big hit Thunderbolts* (or *The New Avengers, spoiler alert) and James Gunn’s upcoming take on Superman hitting theaters in 2025, what better time to discuss the comic book world’s most iconic teams of anti-heroes (or even outright villains)? Lando reps the Thunderbolts and impresses Mucci with some of the cool things Marvel did in the comics that may not be able to make themselves into MCU movies because of rights issues. Meanwhile, Huy bravely and boldly vouches for Suicide Squad and the way the movies (even the bad one) brought a resurgence to Harley Quinn, thanks in no small part to Margot Robbie. But of course, Judge Mucci has to call a recess to make sure the debaters know what was in the court transcript with our acronym-based trivia segment, Court Reporter Shorthand.

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci. Other music, courtesy of Freesound.org: "Song of Little Ducks (loop ver.2)" by AudioCoffee [Music by AudioCoffee: https://www.audiocoffee.net/]; “Epic Orchestral Cue” by graham_makes; “Mysterious Music (Who Are You Super Hero?) by mrrap4food (Maurice "YoungBlaze" Clopton); “Tense Crime Soundscape” by Nancy_Sinclair; and "funkygroove beat 0" and "Drum fill 5" by lewk.

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Sources:

https://screenrant.com/marvel-thunderbolts-members-powers-comics-origin-history/

https://gamerant.com/strongest-best-thunderbolts-lineups-marvel-comics/

With his new Robert Pattinson-starring Mickey 17, Korean director Bong Joon Ho displays his knack for blending genres and entertainingly covering sociopolitical and interpersonal themes. Mucci thinks he hasn’t done that better than Okja, an adventure-thriller-heist-comedy with strong animal welfare themes. Lando, on the other hand, advocates for the dark and dreary serial killer mystery that is Memories of Murder, with strong characterizations and inspiration from real-life horrors. And when we take a Recess, Judge Huy says No Caps in Court as he quizzes Lando and Mucci with true/false questions about their respective films.

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci. Other music, courtesy of Freesound.org: "Sad Emotional - bpm 86 loop” by DenKyschuk, and “Born to Drive (loop ver.1)” and "Song of Little Ducks (loop ver.2)" by AudioCoffee [all 3 found at Music by AudioCoffee: https://www.audiocoffee.net/]; "Fly with Dragons" by Misterbates; “Dramatic Trailer Score for High Stakes” by LolaMoore; and "funkygroove beat 0" and "Drum fill 5" by lewk.

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Sources:

https://www.vulture.com/2017/06/okja-did-you-catch-the-joke-for-korean-americans.html

https://www.newsweek.com/2017/06/30/okja-jon-ronson-veganism-heroism-corporate-harm-626829.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/oxfordshire/6400085.stm

https://www.justice.gov/archive/opa/pr/2006/January/06_crm_030.html

https://youtu.be/j8xG9DWwTPM?si=XqXL0LAg5qL5LvXL

https://m.koreaherald.com/article/3162492

https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/memories-of-murder-ending-solved-bong-joon-ho-criterion-1234631471/

https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/7362-10-things-i-learned-memories-of-murder?srsltid=AfmBOopu5_gLO97XYWMk2-bWAPZvmf5vqImsTuQXKvleXvkGgCK5FfdC

We at OTR had several mini debates that we couldn't resolve amongst ourselves going into C2E2, so we took the questions to the cosplayers of the convention! Huy and Mucci had a quiet dispute over the chillest anime, Mucci and Lando went into the convention fighting over Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, and Lando and Huy could not agree on the best X-Men or their coolest mutant powers. Luckily, we had several cosplayers who were ready and willing to give their input on these topics and more -- including some not-so-chill anime and other video game series, such as Fallout. We may have disagreed on one or two things. But, we get to go home.

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci. Other music, courtesy of Freesound.org: "super hero theme 2" by humanoide9000, "Anime Girl Type Beat OwO" by Seth_Makes_Sounds, "Retro Game Music" by edwardszakal, and "funkygroove beat 0" and "Drum fill 5" by lewk.

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Two iconic magical girl franchises are back in the zeitgeist, as Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon: The Super Live continues its US tour and the fourth Madoka movie, Walpurgisnacht Rising, inches closer to its release…sometime in 2025! Huy details Sailor Moon’s lasting influence, its iconic theme song, and the bizarre character renamings in the English dub. Mucci vouches for the short and sweet Puella Magi Madoka Magica, a 12-episode series that covers a lot of ground in a short time and gets darker than anyone could expect from such a show. Will Lando be swayed more by their arguments or their jokes during the Recess segment this week?

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci. Other music, courtesy of Freesound.org: “Dramatic Trailer. Score for High Stakes” by LolaMoore, “Cute Music” by Migfus20, “Guitar for indie game, Lain inspired” by Destructo20, “Anime Encounter Loop #3” by Sirkoto51, "Song of Little Ducks (loop ver.2)" by AudioCoffee [Music by AudioCoffee: https://www.audiocoffee.net], and "funkygroove beat 0" and "Drum fill 5" by lewk.

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Sources:

https://wiki.puella-magi.net/Otona_Anime_Vol.20#Summary_of_Staff_Comments

https://variety.com/2013/film/reviews/puella-magi-madoka-magica-the-movie-rebellion-review-1200922803/

We hope you're hungry for anime that distill the essence of RPGs, because on the menu this episode are Solo Leveling and Delicious in Dungeon! Lando takes us through an E-rank hunter's quest for strength and other stats as he levels up into a formidable fighter. Huy spins a yarn about a journey of a party of adventurers as they try to resurrect the hero's sister and cook delicious creatures along the way. Will Mucci's heart or his stomach get the better of him? And in our Recess segment this week: Interrogatories!

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci. Other music, courtesy of Freesound.org: "RPG Shop Village theme" by M-Murray, "Born To Drive (loop ver.1)" and "Song of Little Ducks (loop ver.2)" by AudioCoffee [Music by AudioCoffee: https://www.audiocoffee.net], and "funkygroove beat 0" and "Drum fill 5" by lewk.

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Join us, True Believers, as we face off with our picks of the best people to have ever worn the Captain America suit! Huy picks two different characters named Steve Rogers (including the most famous one) as well as Kiyoshi Morales, or Commander A. Mucci assembles Bucky Barnes, Isaiah Bradley, and Roberta Mendez from the far-off year of 2099. Judge Lando will have to decide: Which Caps have the better stories? Which ones are stronger? Which ones were the best to ever hold the shield? And in our Recess segment, we do "No Caps in Court," where Judge Lando asks the debaters true/false questions about their positions.

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci. Other music, from Freesound.org: "Claire-Of-The-Mountains" and "Wing Nuts and Brier" by audiomirage (Steven F. Allen - AuDioChosis http://soundcloud.com/user-574803010), "Inspiring and Energetic" by Universfield (https://buymeacoffee.com/universfield), "Song of Little Ducks (loop ver.2)" by AudioCoffee (Music by AudioCoffee: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.audiocoffee.net/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠); and "funkygroove beat 0" and "Drum fill 5" by lewk.

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Sources:

Carpenter, Standford W. (2007). "Authorship and Creation of Black Captain America". In McLaughlin, Jeff (ed.). Comics as Philosophy. University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 9781604730661.

We start season 4 by diving into the PlayStation Plus monthly games for February 2025: High on Life and Pac-Man World Re-Pac! Lando advocates for the Rick and Morty humor of High on Life, with star voice actors such as JB Smoove and Tim Robinson. Mucci vouches for the wholesome family classic of Pac-Man World and this worthy remake version. Will Huy be swayed by raunchy comedy and find Pac-Man derivative of other platformers like Kirby and Sonic? Or will he pick Pac-Man World if only to solve the mystery of where he shoots his pellets from? And in today's Recess segment, we present "Court Reporter Shorthand," where the judge tries to get the debaters to figure out acronyms related to their topics!

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci. Other music, from Freesound.org: "The Summer Equation" by Casonika; "Electronica Techno" by TheoJT; "Inspiring and Energetic" by Universfield; "Song of Little Ducks (loop ver.2)" by AudioCoffee (Music by AudioCoffee: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.audiocoffee.net/⁠⁠⁠⁠); and "funkygroove beat 0" and "Drum fill 5" by lewk.

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Sources:

https://web.archive.org/web/20190404142405/http://www.flamingmayo.com/firstchurchofpacman/pac_interview.htm

https://archive.org/details/NextGeneration32Aug1997/page/n83/mode/2up?q=pac-man+ghost+zone

https://pacman.fandom.com/wiki/Pac-Man_World_Re-Pac

https://pacman.fandom.com/wiki/History_of_Ms._Pac-Man_legal_issues

From Billy Madison to Spaceman, Adam Sandler’s career has run the gamut from comedy to drama to thriller to sci-fi. This week, Lando and Huy must give Mucci their three picks of Adam Sandler movies to introduce to aliens, to give them an idea of what comedy is all about. Would the aliens prefer his Drew Barrymore romcoms to an action fantasy black comedy film featuring the Devil’s son? Is it important to showcase his dramatic roles, like Spanglish, or just stick to pure comedy? Or, at the end of the day, should the aliens just watch one specific Al Pacino-featuring scene from the otherwise bottom-of-the-barrel Jack and Jill?

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci.

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Can anyone make Malört, the controversial Chicago wormwood liqueur, taste good? Classically a shot you have unsuspecting Chicago visitors try, maybe paired with an Old Style for a Chicago handshake, Malört has been described as tasting like bug spray or gasoline. Lando walks us through some of the history of the company, before Andy and Mucci make some cocktails to try to see if they can make Malört taste good (or hide its bite a little bit). Andy has the guys try his own concoction, Andy’s Delight (you heard it here first!) and Mucci cribs from Wicker Park speakeasy The Violet Hour. Who made the best cocktail? And do you have any Malört cocktails you think work?

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci. Other music: “Drum fill 2” and “Drum fill 5” by lewk on freesound.org.

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Happy Halloween from OTR Debate! Of course for us, that means a nerdy debate on the two biggest horror video game franchises! Andy, appearing as a pro se litigant and fresh off playing the Silent Hill 2 remake, directs us through deep and horrifying atmosphere and story of the Silent Hill games, including Hideo Kojima's P.T. that elicited a...certain reaction. And Mucci walks us through the fixed camera angles and intersecting storylines of the Resident Evil games, even though he can't accurately name the characters. Will Lando be swayed by the UFO ending of Silent Hill 2 or the stories told in the info files he never picks up in the Resident Evil games?

OTR Theme by Lando and Mucci. Other music: "super hero theme 2" and "Breaking news intro music" by humanoide9000, "Midi Mix.mp3" by jasnbekr, and "sad mournful background music for game/tv/film etc" by Destructo20, all found on freesound.org.

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You can also email topics you think we should cover at [email protected]!

Sources:

https://www.gamesradar.com/exploring-the-impact-of-resident-evil-4-and-how-it-redefined-the-series-forever/

https://residentevil.fandom.com/wiki/Lisa_Trevor