Fifteen years ago, The Doctor had to wipe Donna Noble’s mind or else the knowledge of a Time Lord would burn her up. While he put in a failsafe to make sure that she would never remember him, fate has returned the face of the 10th Doctor and reunited him with Donna and her family. Can he save her life, and protect the world from the return of the Toymaker?

Vinnk and Sean review the three specials that comprise Doctor Who’s 60th Anniversary – The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder, and The Giggle – culminating in the introduction of the new 15th Doctor in the form of Ncuti Gatwa. Will the return of one of the most popular actors ever to hold the role inject new life into the franchise, or will his shadow forever overcast his immediate and all subsequent successors to the role?

Starring:

Available on Disney+ and BBC iPlayer.

[ Additional Show Notes (and Video Version) Here ][ Show Patreon ][ Logo by Louis Lloyd-Judson ]

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It was only a year into the Doctor Who revival of 2005 that David Tennant took over as the titular Time Lord. Would the show survive changing its lead so soon when it had barely found its feet? Four years later, we scarcely had to wonder, as arguably the most popular incarnation of the new era (and possibly all time) said goodbye. (Well, technically he said “I don’t want to go,” but still…)

With David Tennant set to return, albeit briefly, as the 14th Doctor in 2023’s three-part 60th anniversary special, Vinnk and Sean look back at his original, trail-blazing run that began 18 years ago on Christmas Day, and preview what’s to come as he dons his trademark Converse once more.

Starring:

Available on Max.

[ Additional Show Notes (and Video Version) Here ][ Show Patreon ][ Logo by Louis Lloyd-Judson ]

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In the near future of 2033, Nathan is working on a free version of the software that runs the digital afterlife, only to be uploaded to one of the poshest versions around after his self-driving care malfunctions and crashes. Nora is an “Angel” who works at Lakeview, in charge of Nathan’s comfort and digital appearance in his forever-after. Sparks fly! And we’re not talking about the crashed car. As a relative investigates the circumstances about Nathan’s death, Nora discovers that some of Nathan’s memories are corrupted. Could it be that Nathan was murdered for his altruistic work?

Vinnk and Sean review one of the most inventive and prescient series of the modern day on the eve of the end of the WGA strike. A world where everyone’s lives and even now their afterlife has been commoditized by ever-merging corporations like Nokia Taco Bell and Panera Facebook, nearly every issue from 3D body scanning to AI to cutting corners on scripting comes to bear in the fiction of one of the most clever written shows on television. And somehow it was renewed for not one but two seasons, the latest one premiering on October 20th, 2023!

Starring:

Available on Amazon Prime Video.

[ Additional Show Notes (and Video Version) Here ][ Show Patreon ][ Logo by Louis Lloyd-Judson ]

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You can’t go back to Schmigadoon. So when Josh and Mel find out that their happy ending got them stuck in a rut, they wind up in the land of Schmicago, but populated with a lot of familiar faces, and — if you’re a music fan — familiar leitmotifs.

For the first time ever, Vinnk and Sean review a new season of a show that was previously reviewed on the podcast. How does Schmigadoon’s sophomore outing stack up against the original, a show that wasn’t even called “season 1” when it came out? And will we ever review another follow-up season of a show again?

Starring:

Available on Apple TV+.

[ Additional Show Notes (and Video Version) Here ][ Show Patreon ][ Logo by Louis Lloyd-Judson ]

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The post 18. Schmigadoon! – Season 2 first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

When The Super Mario Bros. Movie was first announced with scant details except an all-star cast, rumors ran wild. Will they try live action again, or is it animated? Will they try one of the many recent video game plots, or will this be an all-new story? Is this a complete and utter financial folly, with $300 million in development and promotion?

Vinnk and Sean review the highest-grossing film of 2023, and (so far) the 19th top grossing film of all time, point out every visual and audio Easter egg they could find, and actually share some criticisms of a Nintendo product! Gasp!

Starring:

Available in theaters.

[ Additional Show Notes (and Video Version) Here ][ Show Patreon ][ Logo by Louis Lloyd-Judson ]

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The post 17. The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Doctor Who tried to come back in the ’90s, but it didn’t take. Christopher Eccleston’s short 13-episode run re-ignited the show into a new cultural powerhouse, which also spawned two concurrent spin-off series.

Vinnk and Sean, along with guest host Miles (from sister podcast Casual Trek) examine what made the 2005 relaunch successful, areas where Davies wasn’t so strong, and some of what we can look forward to (or are dreading) when he returns as Doctor Who showrunner in 2023.

Starring:

Available on HBO Max (for now), Amazon, BritBox, and Disney+ (eventually).

[ Additional Show Notes Here ][ Official Show Patreon ]

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When Doctor Who relaunched in 2005 on the BBC after a failed (but serviceable) Fox US movie/pilot barely a decade earlier, many of us didn’t know what to expect. We didn’t expect Christopher Eccleston, and we certainly didn’t expect Russel T Davies and his eccentric touch, but both rocketed the franchise into a new golden age the likes of which could only have been imagined by fans of the classic series.

Vinnk and Sean, along with guest host Miles (from sister podcast Casual Trek) relive the reboot, ostensibly without the benefit of rose-colored glasses, and not at all influenced by RTD’s return to the remade franchise nearly two decades later in 2023.

Starring:

Available on HBO Max (for now), Amazon, BritBox, and Disney+ (eventually).

Logo by by Louis Lloyd-Judson: https://louistrations.co.uk.

[ Additional Show Notes Here ][ Official Show Patreon ]

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The post 16. Doctor Who – Christopher Eccleston (2005) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Johnny Lawrence is long past his glory days, estranged from his son and mother of his child. That is, until he encounters a kid who needs help. Fortunately, Johnny is still bad-ass, and beats up a bunch of minors Miyagi-style. Miguel Diaz becomes the first student of the new Cobra Kai dojo, where Johnny teaches him how to deal with the bullies from West Valley High. Miguel has eyes for Sam, daughter of Johnny’s long-time rival and successful auto dealer Daniel LaRusso, who is not very happy about the return of his childhood arch-nemesis, and goes to ridiculous lengths to stop him.

Vinnk and Sean catch up on the first two of (so far) five seasons of the Netflix hit show, through the latest incarnation of the All Valley Karate Tournament, the return of Johnn’y sensei John Kreese (now twice presumed dead), and the rise of Daniels rival dojo Miyagi-do. Of course, it wasn’t always on Netflix; Cobra Kai began life as the flagship show of the new YouTube Red streaming service for original programming. YouTube Red shuttered, but Netflix stepped in to save Cobra Kai, which truly never dies.

Starring:

Available on Netflix

Logo by by Louis Lloyd-Judson: https://louistrations.co.uk.

[ Additional Show Notes Here ][ Official Show Patreon ]

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The post 15. Cobra Kai – Season 1 (2018) and 2 (2019) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Welcome to Gravity Falls, a sleepy Oregon woodland, backwater town with its own kitschy roadside, supernatural attractions… that are totally real. Dipper and Mabel Pines spend an adventure-packed summer with their great uncle “Grunkle” Stan trying to uncover the mysteries of the town, and just who wrote the mysterious journals chronicling all of the strange goings-on.

Vinnk has been waiting for Sean to watch this show since we started this podcast, and we review both seasons and the series of shorts that separated them, as well as reveal the many hidden secrets that Alex Hirsch added to the show to keep the guessing game going as to what “really” has been going on in Gravity Falls this whole time, and just how it will end. (Which we don’t spoil, because we’re not monsters!)

Remember, reality is an illusion. Buy gold!

Starring:

Available on Disney+.

Logo by by Louis Lloyd-Judson: https://louistrations.co.uk.

[ Additional Show Notes Here ][ Official Show Patreon ]

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The post 14. Gravity Falls (2012-2016) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Lumon Industries has developed a technology to protect its business secrets by severing the minds of some of its employees between their work and home lives. The “outie” only needs to commute to and from work, never experiencing in-office life, and having no idea what they do every date. Their “innie”, in contrast, is effectively born the basement of the office building, and from their perspective never gets to leave. Workplace culture is replaced by an a religious reverence for the company’s founders. But what is it the severed employees do all day? When one of Mark Scout’s co-workers finds him on the outside, the walls between the two halves of his life begin to come down.

Vinnk and Sean try to figure out how a TV show starring Adam Scott, John Turturro, and Christopher Walken, directed by Ben Stiller could as tense, sweet, and thought-provoking as this one that also somehow lampoons the more inane aspects of white collar office culture. We wonder other characters are severed, discuss the “color theory” that may lead to some clues, and wonder what the heck is up with the goats. (But, also, Dylan is the GOAT.)

Starring:

Available on Apple TV+.

Logo by by Louis Lloyd-Judson: https://louistrations.co.uk.

[ Additional Show Notes Here ][ Official Show Patreon ]

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The post 13. Severance – Season 1 (2022) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.