Tower of Babble

Show Notes

'Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith' 20th Anniversary Poster from Matt Ferguson

Andor Season 2's Ghorman Language Sounds Familiar For A Reason

Andor Season 2 Finally Explains Why Saw Gerrera Needs His Breathing Device In Rogue One

It's been a long time since Cassian Andor and his band of Rebel compatriots has graced our TV screens. A long hiatus, no doubt, but when you look into WHY this second season took so long the reason becomes clear - they were dotting every "i" and crossing every "t" (along with dealing with the writers and actors strikes, growing and harvesting ancient grains, hand stitching wedding dresses, the list goes on...) to make sure that this isn't just good Star Wars, but indeed the maybe the BEST Star Wars (I'm partially convinced that it may be the best we may ever get actually). Season 2 roars to life in it's first of four, 3-episode drops (essentially a movie a week for a month), not wasting any time picking up with our characters a year after the events of season 1. The sheer scale, scope, and commitment to its heavy themes is laudable, but when combined with the masterful set design, costuming, writing, and acting, you can't help but to stare, mouth agape, at this singular piece bold storytelling, that will likely go down as Tony Gilroy's largest contribution to popular culture, and deservedly so. Join Julian and Rachel as they unpack it all. It's going to be one hell of a ride!

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Hard to believe that 'Constantine' came out 20 years ago. That being said, as the movie tells us, time stops when you're dead, so what IS 20 years anyway? And as long as we're asking questions, the biggest one related to this movie is "why was it a flop?". Julian and Jeremy try to answer that very question, as well as unpack this extremely dense film that makes no effort to hold the audience's hand. And despite some rocky elements, 'Constantine' holds up as a surprisingly comic accurate rendition of the titular character, even if we weren't aware of it when it first released. Keanu, despite missing some of the obvious character flourishes like the blond hair and a British accent, is still able to capture the essence of the character: an extremely talented magician/occultist, with tortured soul (literally), who's a bit of a dick, and loves a good smoke. All in all, it's a pretty fun ride, and an example of movies that just aren't really made anymore (despite rumours of a sequel) from a different era of Hollywood and comic book movie making.

If you enjoy the show please subscribe and leave a nice review on Apple Podcasts, and check out Patreon.com/TowerBabbleCast to become one of our latest patrons.

After a lot of discussion and contemplation, Jeremy Kozier has made the decision to step back from the show. Though the door is open for him to return at any time, and he may yet still appear on an occasional basis, there is is no official timeline on when or if he will return full time. While we understand this may come as a shock to some listeners, Jeremy expresses his appreciation for the support we've received over the years and values the countless hours of conversation we've enjoyed over that time. I, Julian want to thank him for his dedication and passion. Despite not always seeing eye to eye, it's that difference in opinion that made for quality podcasting and his presence on the show will be missed dearly.

This news comes during a period of change here at Tower of Babble, as previously announced, we look to implement new ideas and rejuvenate a show that has been on the air for well over a decade. The work continues on the relaunch of the Tower of Babble Podcast, and I appreciate the patience from our listeners and fans as this process continues. I remain extremely excited about the potential of the future of the show and in the interim the occasional bonus episode will still be hitting the feed and content from our sister show, Small Screen Star Wars will continue unabated. Thank you, Jeremy and thank you to everyone who has listened to us argue far too often over the years. Your willingness to listen truly means a lot to us.

Julian, once again joined Axel, from the Daily DVR Podcast to discuss a grab-bag of topics, including 'Captain America: Brave New World' and it's milk toast approach to politics, 'Daredevil: Born Again' and how Marvel is comparatively seemingly more willing to actually have a political point of view (so far) with the series, DC and their James Gunn plans, and the latest with 'Severance' (note that this was recorded prior to S2E8). Find more from Daily DVR here: https://dvrpodcast.com/category/dailydvr/

With the news that ‘Lanterns’ has officially begun shooting, coming with the official first look at our new Hal Jordan and John Stewart, Jeremy couldn’t wait to dive into a conversation all about Green Lantern and the many twists and turns that lead us to this moment. DC Studios is certainly busy, putting together a slate of movies and shows to launch the new DC Universe. While the first looks have been met with mixed reception, this one being no different, time will still tell how successful this new era will be. Especially with ‘Superman’ not yet in theatres. At the very least, it’s nice to see the production ramping up, meaning we’re THAT much closer to seeing the emerald knights on screen again. Plus, Julian looks back at the recent Academy Awards ceremony, and the extremely unlikable best actor acceptance speech.

If you enjoy the show please subscribe and leave a nice review on Apple Podcasts, and check out Patreon.com/TowerBabbleCast to become one of our latest patrons.

Surprise! Another episode of Daily DVR (or maybe not so much of a surprise if you listened to our recent Tobies episode)! Julian was invited to join a panel over on friend of the show, Axel’s feed to discuss everyone’s top 10 in television from last year, plus a few disappointments for some added spice. If you felt like you could have listened to another 2+ hours of TV talk after this year’s Tobie Awards (and I cant’ blame you), then do we have an episode for you! Listen as a cast of characters from around the internet uncover the best of the best from the small screen in 2024!

If you enjoy the show please subscribe and leave a nice review on Apple Podcasts, and check out Patreon.com/TowerBabbleCast to become one of our latest patrons.

It is once again that special time, where we come together to celebrate our favourite films and shows from the last year. As part of the ceremony, your hosts look back at some of the concerns worrying Hollywood about 2024 to see if any progress had been made (the answer is mostly no). When it comes to the awards themselves, as is tradition, Jeremy refused to do a list. Which really means he has the privilege of a front row seat as Julian delivers his selections. Plus enjoy an unexpected side tangent celebrating the 20th anniversary of 'Resident Evil 4' (do you feel old yet?).

If you enjoy the show please subscribe and leave a nice review on Apple Podcasts, and check out Patreon.com/TowerBabbleCast to become one of our latest patrons.

1. X-Men 97’

2. The Rings of Power S2

3. The Gentleman

Honourable Mention:

• The Acolyte, Fallout, Lower Decks S5, True Detective: Night Country, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Shogun, House of the Dragon, Skeleton Crew, Shrinking S2, Blue Eyed Samurai

Disappointment:

• Batman: Caped Crusader, The Penguin (only for refusing to acknowledge Batman’s existence), What If S3, Everyone who didn’t watch The Acolyte

1. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

2. Dune: Part 2

3. Civil War

Honourable Mention:

• Transformers One, Conclave, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Alien: Romulus

Disappointment:

• Everyone who didn’t see Furiosa, Aqua-Man and the Lost Kingdom, Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths - Part 2 & 3, Gladiator 2, Joker: Folie A Deux

Well that's all folks! Well possibly anyway. We don't yet have official word on whether Disney and Lucasfilm will bring back 'Skeleton Crew' for another season. So as it stands, this is the story. Overall pretty great, and while we can gripe a bit about the lack of an epilogue to really tie up loose ends, on the whole this finale was satisfying. All four of the kids had an arch that felt complete and inclusion of the parents helped put a bow on that (despite Wendle largely still being an idiot). The episode had strong pacing, as none of the character centric moments felt rushed, though again, it could have maybe done with a few more minutes of run time to make sure that everyone got a fair shake. KB, for instance, got short shrift. The ending itself leaves a lot of story left to be told, and thankfully given it's placement in the timeline, even if we don't get a second season, there should be plenty of opportunity to pick up on some of the loose threads in future Star Wars projects. All in all, 'Skeleton Crew' is one of the strongest outings from Lucasfilm in awhile and it's our sincere hope that it represents a sign of what's to come from the recently maligned studio.

If you enjoy the show please subscribe and leave a nice review on Apple Podcasts, and check out Patreon.com/TowerBabbleCast to become one of our latest patrons.

Penultimate; everyone's favourite TV word. When it came to 'Game of Thrones', we became accustomed to this next-to-final episodes being a big splash, before a relatively calm finale. That tradition has carried forward into all sorts of different series but Star Wars has never been one to follow the trends. So here we are, 'Skeleton Crew' now only has one episode remaining, and the big question is, did this week's lead-up do enough work setup a satisfying conclusion. In our humble opinions, yes, but that's largely on the back of what is, standing alone, a pretty amazing 30 minutes of Star Wars fun. This episode is full of twists and unexpected turns that left us genuinely surprised. The big factor here though is of course Jod (Jude Law), who has now gone full heel, which has us concerned whether the show has the balls to commit to this turn or unwind it all in the last few moments. Either way, not knowing is part of the fun and as they proved this week there are certainly a lot of ways this show can go to stick the landing. Time will tell!

If you enjoy the show please subscribe and leave a nice review on Apple Podcasts, and check out Patreon.com/TowerBabbleCast to become one of our latest patrons.

After a very strong outing last week (maybe the best of the season!), which revealed the pirate lair and cracked the mystery wide open, 'Skeleton Crew' follows that up with the shortest episode so far, which provides neither much plot progression nor anything beyond overly simplistic character beats. Despite that, there is at least one extremely interesting reveal, that begs the question, "why wait this long to reveal this?". With now two episodes left to close out the season, and especially with this week really feeling like it was dedicated to setting up a bombastic finale, we can look forward to the kids meeting the pirate hoard back on At Attin very soon!

And from all of us here at the show, we want to wish a Happy New Year to everyone in a Galaxy Far Far Away (do they celebrate galactic new year?), and to all the Small Screen Star Wars and Tower of Babble fans all around the globe. Here's to a much better year in 2025!

If you enjoy the show please subscribe and leave a nice review on Apple Podcasts, and check out Patreon.com/TowerBabbleCast to become one of our latest patrons.