The Bicks Pod

After another long hiatus, you know it would have to be something really good to bring us back. And what's better right now than Heated Rivalry?

We do our usual chat about this wonderful Canadian romance series, talking production, context, music, and a deep dive into the characters, performances, and cultural zeitgeist of the gay hockey show. We also talk about the origins of the series in fanfic, the romance genre as a whole, and some of the writing and production elements we loved the most.*

As always we're indebted to many discussions that came earlier, since we are so far behind the cultural discussion curve. Some of the discussions/analyses we watched on this one include:

* As well as those we hated, such as the heinous lack of Carly Rae Jepsen in the soundtrack.

Additional Notes:

A sad goodbye to the origin character of our podcast: the one and only David Lynch.

There are few organized thoughts, just vibes, in this podcast as we speak from the heart (and the gut) about the loss of one of our biggest creative and intellectual influences of all time.

Note: We are still working on figuring out our new recording situation, and Lindsay's audio is still less than optimal. We will continue to improve this in the future.

Note 2: Check out the Blue Rose Task Force Podcast, on which Lindsay is a guest for an upcoming episode, here: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/taed2-22e1c1/Blue-Rose-Task-Force-A-Twin-Peaks-Obsessive-Podcast 

The Bicks are back! Nearly 8 years after we started our podcast, and ten since the gum we liked was clearly coming back in style, we've returned from our year-long hiatus to revisit an old favourite: Twin Peaks. We talk about the fandom of the show itself, its lasting impressions on us, and whether or not it has impacted television the way the original Twin Peaks did way back in 1990.

Our new approach is focused primarily on discussing whatever topics we feel like, whenever we feel like it, so fair warning that episodes are not likely to be regular, on any specific topic, or with any coherent structure. Thank you in advance to anyone who has stuck with us over the last 8 years!

We have new social media @s as well, having left the hellsite that is Twitter and the stupid that is Facebook. We're currently on Tumblr, because we are really just internet children of the 2010s, as well as Instagram and Threads. Feel free to drop us a line there whenever you want!

Notes:

• Here is that Drew Gooden episode about how annoying media production is these days.

Note: We will be taking a summer break for the next 4-5 weeks to coincide with some vacation plans, but will be returning in the second half of summer with Season 5.

For this week, join us as we revisit the episode that had the largest divergence of opinions in our Season 4 breakdown, "First Contact" complete with Riker sex innuendo and reactionary martyrs. It may not be the perfect episode, but it did provide some fodder for banter with The Bicks.

Season 4 -- the first full 90s season, as Lindsay says -- doesn't feature a whole bunch of changes on screen or behind the camera, but did bring a lot of depth to the characters and the world they inhabit. Join us as we talk about family, friends, drama, and First Contact, one of the greatest episodes of the show! (Yes, Aidan wrote this intro...)

Episode Sponsor: Ancestry.federation. To find out more about your genetic heritage, use the promo code 'TheBicksFamSentYou' to get a discount on your premium testing kit!

Bicks Log: What does it say about genetic families in Star Trek that they're so secondary to the one found on board the Enterprise?

Notes:

• Once again, it was time for a tier ranking of Season 4 episodes, so be prepared for Aidan to defend how great (almost) every episode is, while Lindsay tries to knock them all down a few pegs.

Recognitions:

• Intro Music: Chasing Stars by AG Music

Another season, another watchalong of TNG, this time the season 3's classic exploration of Star Trek's greatest philosophical topics, the Prime Directive. Join us as we chat and joke our way through "Who Watches the Watchers".

Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 3 is widely considered the start of "good Trek" in the TNG era. Whether you agree with that or not, this season definitely ups the ante in terms of storytelling, characterization, thematic links, and philosophical import. This week, Aidan and Lindsay deep dive into the production history, some of the changes behind and in front of the camera, and explore the larger story arcs that are going to take us into the second half of the series' run.

Episode Sponsor: Rexadrin Cliffhanger Episode Anti-Anxiety Pills: Find Your Calm With Rexadrin

Bicks Log: How useful is the Prime Directive?

Notes and Recognitions:

• The intro music is different between Season 1 (strings high in the mix) and Season 2 (strings lower) and again to Season 3 (strings seem to not be there at all in some places) so Lindsay is kinda right but also kinda full of shit...

Join us for another watchalong episode of TNG, this time the season 2 dark horse favourite "The Royale".

One note: Fermat's Last Theorem had a first proof published in 1995, only a few years after this episode.

The arrival of Riker's Beard heralded the start of the shift towards a more updated, distinct Star Trek, ready for the Next Generation of fans. While many will tell new explorers of Trek to skip over season 2, we love it for its inconsistency and the truly high highs that you only get by introducing the Borg, or debating the nature of sentience (should be sapience but we'll let it slide) on behalf of our beloved Data. Join us as we discuss those highs (and some of the lows), as well as give a bit of a history of what was going on behind the scenes.

Episode Sponsor: SudVPN! Keep your data safe in these trying times!

Bicks Log: Does artificial intelligence require sentience to be considered intelligent? Do AIs as we understand them now deserve rights? What will happen when computer systems are given – or acquire – consciousness?

Notes:

• As a reminder, this was recorded before Picard Season 3 aired, so there may be some odd references.

• S-Tier: Measure of a Man (9), Q Who (16)

• S-Tier: Measure of a Man (9), Q Who (16), Elementary Dear Data (3)

• David L. Lander

Watchalong episodes are back baby! Today we're watching Season 1 Episode 15 of Star Trek: The Next Generation "11001001" (the one with the Bynars).