The Overrated Podcast

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta mull over possible solutions to the Daylight Saving Time clock-shift, think about how to interact in fandoms full of unconscious bias, and retire further discussion of Bill Maher after listing his ten worst takes.

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta return for their fifth season of the podcast. This week, they discuss the most overexposed stories from the first few weeks of 2022, including Spotify choosing Joe Rogan over several creators upset about his anti-vax and racial rhetoric, the controversy surrounding Awkwafina's use of AAVE/"blaccent", artists selling NFTs to grift their fans, and the latest chapter of the Kanye saga. They also discuss the comedy special 'Bring Back Apu' by Aakash Singh, including his odd branding choices.

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta deliver a brand new Overrated Podcast (Taylor's Version), discussing how Swift's album re-recording effort is going, the authenticity of releasing previously written material, whether 'Reputation' is salvageable in a re-release, and the 10-minute cut of 'All Too Well' (1:30). Then, they check-in with Marvel's 'Hawkeye' (Disney+) at its midseason point, debating the merits of street-level vs. multiverse, assessing the strengths of a contained story, and gauging why this series is a good vehicle for Jeremy Renner's particular type of charisma (47:00).

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta break down the two biggest films of the Fall. In Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of Frank Herbert's 'Dune', they discuss how stakes are sacrificed for worldbuilding, the main book-to-film changes, Chalamet's believability as a sci-fi lead, and whether adapting faithfully benefits the practical limitations of a movie (2:00). Then, they dive deep into Marvel's 'Eternals', focusing on Kumail Nanjiani's Kingo character and South Asian representation, the film's ambitious scale, the conflict of director Chloe Zhao's influence with the superhero template, and whether it deserves to be the lowest critically-rated Marvel movie (36:00)

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta break down Baxter Holmes' ESPN story about Robert Sarver's racism and misogyny within the Phoenix Suns workplace, including what fans, players, and the league commissioner can do about it, as well as whether Sarver is in danger of losing his team (2:00). Then, they discuss the developing story at Travis Scott's Astroworld festival, who is culpable for the deaths, and the general safety of moshpits and large crowds (40:30).

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta dive extra deep into the 25th film in the James Bond franchise 'No Time To Die'. They disagree on whether the movie was good, discuss how Craig's bond run stacks up against its action franchise peers, revisit their picks for who should take up the mantle going forward and debate their preferred take on the character, and give their Craig-era movie rankings.

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta discuss Dave Chappelle's final Netflix stand-up special 'The Closer' including the validity of his argument against cancel culture, the evolution of his beef with the Trans community, and how a back-and-forth with the audience influences his comedy(1:30). Then, they break down the new movie 'Venom: Let There Be Carnage' [SPOILERS], the wasted potential of a psychological thriller, content fatigue, and more (33:00).

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta give their thoughts on the two biggest projects in hip-hop, Kanye West's 'Donda' and Drake's 'Certified Lover Boy', whether the albums are cohesive at their length, the value of having multiple edits of a track, whether material should be play-tested with the public, and if Kanye can still be a good rapper or Drake can have good production (1:30). Then, they give a quick review on Marvel's 'Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings', leading into a larger discussion of prominent South Asians in media and why that community hasn't yet gotten a similar moment of representation.

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta debate the merits of David Lowery's new film 'The Green Knight', including ambiguity in art, what elements a story should require, whether music and film have the same structural needs, the divergence from the source material, and the interpretation of the movie's ending (2:00). Then, they discuss food critic Gene Weingarten's article in The Washington Post titled "You can't make me eat these foods", his distaste for Indian cuisine, and his fundamental misunderstanding of spices (39:00). Finally, they give some background on the California gubernatorial recall election, the consequences if Gavin Newsom is indeed recalled, and go through how to fill out your ballot step-by-step (55:00).

Sagar 'J' Kamnani & Uday Mehta break down the evolving situation in Afghanistan with the Taliban's takeover of Kabul, including how to apportion blame pie among the presidents that have overseen the war, the demoralization of the Afghan army, Ashraf Ghani's sudden departure, President Joe Biden's response and refusal to admit mistakes, whether to second-guess those with the best knowledge of the situation, and the political implications moving forward (2:00). Then, they discuss the first four episodes of the final season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, how the show has adapted in light of anti-police sentiments, whether they had a moral obligation to discuss topical issues, and whether the message feels forced enough to affect the product (34:30). Finally, they look over the latest footage from 'Pokemon Presents', including new gameplay video from Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, as well as the promising Legends Arceus (52:00).