Why Benicio Del Toro's Star Wars Character Isn't the Worst

Julian Meush December 22, 2017

There appears to be one constant among those who’ve seen The Last Jedi. Whether you liked it or not people seem to agree that Benicio Del Toro’s character is terrible. Playing a character named DJ he doesn't have a huge role in the film, but with so much hate being thrown his way I wanted to offer him up some defense.

Exploring the Frustrations Surrounding Star Wars Battlefront II

Julian Meush November 16, 2017

Star Wars Battlefront II officially launches tomorrow. What should have been an overwhelmingly exciting day for gamers and Star Wars fans alike is instead mired in a controversy. Microtransactions, specifically loot boxes, have reportedly poisoned the games multiplayer and people aren't happy. I look at the reason why so many gamers are frustrated by EA's microtransaction strategy.

What EA's Star Wars "Update" Really Means

Julian Meush October 18, 2017

This week EA announced that there would be major changes coming to their much anticipated action-adventure Star Wars game. Along with that news we learned that they would be closing Visceral Games, the studio who had been working on the game since 2013. I examine what their curt press release says about the future of the game, the publisher and the games industry as a whole.

Five Thoughts - March 8, 2014

Julian Meush March 8, 2014

After a few busy months I'm back with another Five Thoughts (so much for "working title"). This time I explore a few of my favorite things: Lego, Star Wars and Batman. I also look at some of the big reveals from the past few weeks, including the Guardians of the Galaxy and Arkham Knight trailers.

Happy FCBD, and May the 4th be with you!

Julian Meush May 4, 2013

Not much to say except go out there and enjoy some free comics at your local shops while living by the Jedi code. and who knows maybe there is a free Star Wars comic somewhere just to make things all meta. Enjoy your weekend, from all of us at Tower of Babble!

ToB: TV Talk

Julian Meush May 2, 2013

The Tower of Babble crew chats TV in this portion out of the Tower of Babble Podcast. We talk Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and more.

Dec 17, 2025

Episode 202 - Could Things Be Worse?

It is often said we're living through "unprecedented times", and I must admit that it rings true when reading the news. Normally, we're fortunate enough to be discussing the frivolous world of entertainment - shielding us from much of the dower nature of the the modern world. Unfortunately, that does not mean we are immune - this week proves there's still plenty of bad news in the entertainment world to go around. And while we try to focus on the fun stuff, sometimes the bad stuff threatens things we love, like creators, and movie theatres, and therefor must be called out. As such, Matt and Julian spend the front half of the show talking about the Netflix/WB deal, and the Disney's investment in AI. Pick your poison on that one. However, stick around, as things take a turn back to the fun as the latest in film and tv news is covered, including discussions about a new '28 Years Later' movie, a new 'Men in Black', 'Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair', and 'Stranger Things',. All this and so much more on this week's Tower of Babble Podcast!

Dec 11, 2025

Bonus Episode - Warner Bros. Sales Chaos - Daily DVR

Julian joins Axel and Andy on The Daily DVR Podcast to wring out all the angst surrounding the impeding sale of Warner Bros. and their myriad of assets, including HBO, to Netflix. With Paramount still sniffing around this is far from done but all of it is far from good for fans of movies and TV.

Nov 28, 2025

Bonus Episode - ToB Film Club - Dark City (1998)

The term often used to describe the 1998 Alex Proyas film, 'Dark City' is "Proto-Matrix" given the many similarities between the two movies. Fair or not, they do have a lot in common but I think the comparison does a disservice to what is still a very clever and well made genre-film that largely holds up today (minus some questionable early CG effects). The 4K re-release gives it a fresh coat of paint, looking extremely sharp on modern televisions, accentuating the mostly dark and moody imagery of this sci-fi film noir, and given it's title this is all very fitting. Alex Proyas has some bid ideas here; what is the human soul? Are we the sum of our memories? Can memories be distilled into chemistry? Is love transcendent? Many of these themes are explored with depth, with answers to many of the films mysteries being laid bare in mostly satisfying way. Performances are strong, with everyone seemingly understanding the assignment, though there isn't much for the female characters to do here. Which is unfortunate as what we do get from Jennifer Connelly is intriguing, if lacking depth. On the whole, despite being pretty weird, this is still a very fun movie, if a bit silly at times, that was unfortunately overshadowed by the phenomenon that was 'The Matrix' dropping the following year.

Nov 17, 2025

Episode 201 - Bond Turmoil and Goldeneye Retrospective

Julian and Matt start getting into the swing of thigs as they tackle the latest in film and TV news, with the hot story being about the turmoil surrounding the new Bond film. Fortunately, 'Goldeneye' turns 30, providing a positive 007 topic to dig into in an effort to balance things out. A new 'The Mummy' starring Brendan Fraser is in the works with Rachel Weis also set to return. To Matt's chagrin, more 'Jurassic World' is on the way as well with the 5th film in the franchise in development with Gareth Edwards looking to return to direct (say what you will but 'Jurassic World: Rebirth' was pretty fun). Lastly, the guys dive into what they've been watching, including 'Predator: Badlands', 'One Battle After Another', 'Pluribus' and for some reason, 'Dexter'. All that and so much more on this week's Tower of Babble Podcast!