Julian, Daniel and Jeremy are back to discuss the latest in geek news. The most pressing stories being the firing of Colin Trevorrow from Star Wars Episode IX and his immediate replacement by JJ Abrams, the results from this years Emmy Awards and Batman: The Animated Series celebrating it's 25th anniversary. The guys also discuss the Star Trek: Discovery premiere, Linda Hamilton's return to the Terminator franchise, the latest on True Detective season 3 and much more on this week's Tower of Babble Podcast!

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Show Notes

Trailers

Tomb Raider
Marvel’s The Punisher
Star Wars Rebels final season

Miscellaneous News

Toys "R" Us has filed for bankruptcy protection. A sad day for toy lovers everywhere. Check out Julian's blog post discussing what might have gone wrong and where the toy market might go from here.
- http://towerofbabblepodcast.com/blog/2017/9/20/what-happened-to-toys-r-us

Movies

Director Colin Trevorrow was fired from Star Wars Episode IX to be replaced by JJ Abrams
Thor Ragnarok director Taika Waititi is now in talks to helm the live action remake of Akira.
Warner Brothers has now clarified the credits on Justice League. Joss Whedon will receive a writing credit and Zack Snyder will get the sole directing credit.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, it looks like Warner Brothers is trying to use producer Martin Scorsese to lure Leonardo Decaprio into the role of the Joker.
Linda Hamilton will reprise her role as Sarah Connor for the next Terminator movie.
The bid for the distribution rights to James Bond has gotten a bit more complicated. Apple and Amazon have joined in along with Sony, Warner Brothers, Fox and Universal who were already heavily involved.

69th Emmy Awards

The big news out of this years Emmys was how well Handmaid's Tale performed. The Hulu original drama took home several major awards, most notably Best Drama Series and Elisabeth Moss for Best Actress in a Drama Series.
Other notable winners included Donald Glover who took home awards for Best Actor in a Comedy Series and Best Director for Comedy Series and Aziz Ansari for Best Writing for a Comedy Series.
See all the winners here: https://www.emmys.com/awards/nominees-winners/2017

Prediction Results:

Who We Want to Win:

Julian: 2 points (Best Drama Series and Best Actress in a Drama Series)
Daniel: 0 points
Jeremy: 0 points

Who Will Win

Julian: 1 point (Best Actress in a Drama Series)
Daniel: 1 point (Best Comedy Series)
Jeremy: 0 points

TV

Star Trek Discovery premiere
Batman: The Animated Series celebrated its 25th anniversary
BoJack Horseman has officially been renewed by Netflix for a 5th season.
According to the marketing-analytics firm Jumpshot, Marvel’s The Defenders had less Stin the first 30 days than ANY of the other Netflix Marvel series.
Damon Lindelof has officially been given the green light by HBO to produce a pilot for his Watchmen project.
More information on True Detective Season 3
- Will take place over 3 different time periods and will be set in Northwestern Arkansas
- Jeremy Saulnier has been confirmed as a director for the season, along with series creator Nic Pizzolatto.
According to HBO’s President of Programming Casey Bloys it looks like Game of Thrones will be filming multiple endings to the final season to throw off leakers

What We've Been Watching

BoJack Horseman Season 4
Rick and Morty Season 3
HBO’s The Deuce
Batman and Harley Quinn

Apr 9, 2026

SSSW - Maul: Shadow Lord - Chapter 1 & 2

It's been some time since we've been able to sink our pointy teeth into a meaty Star Wars animated project. Since the finale of 'The Bad Batch' all the way back in May of 2024, all we've had to tie us over were anthology installments of varying quality. Praise the Force, that wait is finally over with the release of 'Maul: Shadow Lord', the latest full length series from Lucasfilm Animation. The series marks another technical leap forward for the animation studio, taking their patented visual style and adding another layer of detail and artistry that jumps off the screen. The story follows the titular, Maul shortly after the fall of the Republic and the rise of the Empire, he's looking for revenge and the series wastes no time dropping us right into the thick of things (3 car/speeder chases in 40 mins is impressive). And while we know much of Maul's criminal dealings (and most of the rest of his life actually), the introduction of a new Padawan into the mix, another apprentice-to-be for Maul, adds a layer of intrigue to an otherwise underworld focused story. Join Julian and Rachel as they unpack Chapter 1: "The Dark Revenge" and Chapter 2: "Sinister Schemes", in intricate detail.

Apr 8, 2026

Bonus Episode - ToB Film Club - Slap Shot (1977) - Review + Commentary Track

In honour of Matt strapping on the goalie pads again for the first time in many years (and not completely pulling his groin), it only made sense to revisit the classic hockey comedy, 'Slap Shot' from 1977. This isn't the first time seeing the movie for either Julian or Matt but it's been a long time so there are plenty of questions still to answer. Here's a few examples: How well shot are the hockey scenes? Does the movie feature more or less actual hockey than 'Heated Revelry'? Does the plot and/or humour hold up all these years later? All these questions are answered in time, but we're also trying something new this month. Instead of a traditional movie review, Julian and Matt decided to go a layer deeper and add a full commentary track for the movie as well. So enjoy the full review, which takes place, before, during, and after the movie itself, and sync up your own copy of the movie (there's a countdown before we start) to get the full experience!

Mar 20, 2026

Bonus Episode - 2026 Oscars Recap

Matt and Julian are back to unpack the results from last Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony. While the show itself had few surprises (there was a tie though so that's something!), between Conan's bits, the winners, and the losers, there is plenty to discuss. Congrats to 'One Battle After Another', PTA and all the winners ('Sinners' probably deserved a better fate, but respect to MBJ for his ascension)! Plus, I still can't believe the bit about making Leo into a meme actually made another meme. Join us for the full deep dive!

Mar 14, 2026

Bonus Episode - 2026 Oscars Preview Show

Julian is back from vacation just in time or the 98th Academy Awards! Airing tomorrow (Match 15th), hosted once again by Conan O’Brien, it’s the most prestigious night in Hollywood (after the Tobies of course). This is Matt’s first time on the preview show, so the format is tweaked a bit from our traditional reviews of Oscar noms, though there is still some of that. A broader approach is taken, with a larger focus on the ceremony itself, a peak at the front runners in each category, as well as the betting odds. It’s not all new-school though, find Julian’s traditional “will win”/’want to win” ballots below (Matt will put his together privately) for those curious. Lastly, look for a follow-up show discussing the ceremonies, unpacking the winners, and scoring the ballots next week. Until then, grab your tux, hit the red carpet, rub elbows with the celebs, and enjoy the 2026 Oscars!

Episode 102 - Handmaid's Emmy