November 20, 2023

VIDEO WIZARDS PODCAST – Episode 28: May 1993

5 hours 23 minutes

In episode 28 of the Video Wizards podcast, we are confronted with a persisting theme of assassinations and gun violence in popular media as we head back to the month May in 1993.

In the arcades, Frank Castle drags Nick Fury with him into a cycle of carnage on a rampage through the underworld, in Capcom’s The Punisher. And cinemas are in for a shock as the Hughes brothers confront audiences with how little human life is worth in the ghettos of Los Angeles, in their harrowing real world violence loaded directorial debut Menace II Society.

Away from this thematic center piece and back to the arcades, we also walk right on to the curious late era Toaplan beat ’em up Knuckle Bash, examine how SEGA’s Outrunners updates a predecessor that embodied the previous decade for the 1990s and see how Konami do with launching their very own Street Fighter II competitor, Martial Champion.

The charts are ripe with the most terrible music productions and we have to look once more for the genres of Hip-Hop and Metal to save us from the Euro dance onslaught, while the SNES, Mega Drive and Commodore Amiga demand our attention when gaming at home. And we haven’t even touched on a certain historical first silver screen adaptation of a video game property that manages to bring back a long lost Video Wizards staple… likely out of respect for the late Bob Hoskins. Yes, there is little that is Super about this 1993 Mario movie, Bros.

May 1993 feels like a pivotal moment for the 1990s era of the anti-hero and the Video Wizards are here for it. Will you be joining us on our journey of over 5 hours of nostalgic and reflective podcasting goodness? Of course you will.

The top billing arcade games of the era we discuss on Episode 28, L-R: The Punisher, Knuckle Bash, Outrunners, Martial Champion

Other music used in this episode:

Boss 1 – by Yoko Shimomura & Isao Abe for The Punisher, 1993

Last Boss (King Building) – by Yoko Shimomura & Isao Abe for The Punisher, 1993

Stage 6 – by Masahiro Yuge & Osamu Ōta for Knuckle Bash, 1993

Passing Breeze 1993 – by Hiroshi Kawaguchi & Masayuki Nagao for Outrunners, 1993

Grasslands (Stage 1) – by Shinji Tasaka, Tsuyoshi Sekito & Hideto Inoue for Tiny Toon Adventures: Buster’s Hidden Treasure, 1993

Slaughtahouse / Jeep Ass N**** – by Masta Ace Inc, 1993

Loungin’ – by Guru presents Jazmatazz (featuring Donald Byrd), 1993

Slam – by Onyx, 1993

Streiht Up Menace – by MC Eiht for the motion picture Menace II Society, 1993

American TV – by Terrorvision, 1993

Only – by Anthrax, 1993

Live Forever (Live at Gleneagles, 1994) – by Oasis, 1994

You Suck – by Consolidated featuring The Yeastie Girlz, 1992

TV Theme Style (The Winner) – by Colin Thomson, 2018

Ghetto Bird (Instrumental) – by QDIII, 1993

Blockbusters TV Theme – by Ed Welch, 1983

Episode edited by: Juli Reed & Michiel Kroder

And finally: our special thanks to Andy Hofle.

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By Michiel Kroder, Ben Cartlidge

88 ratings