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?).
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Episode 199.5 - Marvel/DC News Roundup
For the most part, genre entertainment news has been relatively light. Yes we’ve had a round of castings for DC projects, and Kevin Fiege is slowly opening the kimono for X-Men info, but on the whole nothing earth shattering (who knows, we might see a planet shatter whenever the ‘Superman’ trailer finally comes). This makes for a perfect time to defer the 200th episode of the show and take a look at the state of things over at DC and Marvel. They are both looking to emerge from a slump, despite taking very different approaches (though I’m sure DC would have loved a $1B hit that allowed them to have their cake and eat it too). The guys unpack the similarities and differences and sprinkle in a few different news bits along the way. All that and so much more on this week’s Tower of Babble Podcast!
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Episode 199 - That Tom Holland is Full of Shit!
Julian and Jeremy sit down to discuss the surprisingly good Menendez Brothers series on Netflix, and try to better understand the draw of true crime content. Later they get into the HBO hit 'The Penguin', as well as the state of the 'Terminator' franchise. The guys also get into it about what exactly is going on with Tom Holland and his mixed messaging around 'Spider-Man 4' and the situation with the 'Blade' movie. All that and so much more on this episode of the Tower of Babble Podcast!
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Episode 198 - Art by Committee
Between the chaos surrounding 'Joker 2', the hate pouring out of fandoms like Star Wars and Lord of the Rings, and the commercial failures of critical darlings like 'Transformers: One', and 'Furiosa', it's easy to understand why it's so hard to predict success in these wildly uncertain times in Hollywood. Todd Phillips 'Joker' made over one billion dollars in 2019, and took home the Best Actor Oscar for it's trouble, but the sequel, which adds the massively popular Lady Gaga to the mix is set to be a massive box office bomb. Why? Julian and Jeremy examine that question, and try to put things in context with the recent Variety article about Hollywood executives cow-towing to angry fans. All this and more on this episode of The Tower of Babble Podcast!
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Episode 197 - The End of the Golden Age of TV
With the news of 'The Acolyte' and it's cancellation sending ripples through the media world, it was only natural that there might be some reflection on the larger state of the television landscape. Julian and Jeremy pier out into a dark and dreary graveyard of cancelled shows and failed streaming services to take stock of the current situation. The assessment? The "Golden Age of TV" is over. What comes next is still to be determined. Plus, a grab-bag of news stories from around Hollywood to help lighten the mood.
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Episode 196 - Marvel at SDCC & Deadpool Review Round Two
'Deadpool & Wolverine' is quickly rising through the box office charts and is on pace to set some records. It may even finish the summer as the highest grossing movie and that would certainly be an accomplishment. Particularly for an R rated film. That being said, that's not the reason Julian and Jeremy decided to continue their conversation on the movie following the review earlier this week. No, the reason is that the movie is so dense, so unique in it's approach, that it took a few more days to process what exactly it even is. Hopefully this follow up conversation puts things to bed for good this time. But the Marvel mayhem does not end there. No sir, the guys then turn to San Diego Comicon to discuss the massive announcements out of Marvel's Hall H panel. Surprisingly, Harrison Ford pretending to be the Hulk on stage wasn't the biggest news, he was upstaged by RDJ himself as we learn that he's returning to the MCU as Dr. Doom, and bringing back the Russo brothers to direct (don't worry they only cost like $180 million between them). Is this good news, bad news, or something in between?
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Episode 195 - X-Men '97 Exceeds All Expectations
Surprise! The ToB Podcast is back from a Star Wars caused hiatus, and just in time to cover one of the biggest nerd culture phenomena so far in 2024. We're talking of course about the revival of one of the greatest animated shows of all time with 'X-Men '97'. With only one episode remaining until the grand finale of season 1, Julian and Jeremy discuss how impressive it is that despite the lofty expectations fans had for this show, it managed it exceed them by nearly every measure. A rare treat. The guys discuss some of the biggest moments from the show as well as the creative work behind it that makes it tick. Afterwards, things shift somewhat as the discussion turns to the first reveal of David Corenswet's Superman, which was met with middling responses. All that and so much more on this week's Tower of Babble Podcast! Plus, stay tuned after the end of the show for some bonus content.
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Episode 194 - Oscars Recap and Dune Part Two
Julian finds some time to link up with Jeremy between the weekly ‘The Bad Batch’ reviews to discuss the winners from this year’s Oscars, the big wins from ‘Oppenheimer’ and the state of the ceremony itself. The guys also review ‘Dune: Part Two’ and preview ‘X-Men ‘97’. Plus some general Marvel and DC news to keep things flowing. All that and so much more on this week’s Tower of Babble Podcast!
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Episode 193 - The 2023 Tobie Awards (7th Annual) - Movies
With TV now out of the way we can move on to the medium that TV wishes it was - film! Part 2 of the 2023 Tobie Awards focuses in on the best in movies from last year. The Oscars seem to think that there was one movie that stood head and shoulders above the rest, in ‘Oppenheimer’, at least based on how many nominations it got, and Julian, Vince, and Jeremy, certainly give it it’s due, but there is a lot of other worthwhile films to cover on this list. Especially on the genre side of things - movies that would more often than not, never fall under the Oscars purview. Buckle up as the ToB Crew discuss a wide array of top tier films from across the spectrum. Enjoy!
Read MoreEpisode 192 - The 2023 Tobie Awards (7th Annual) - TV
The prestigious Tobie Awards returns for it's 7th annual ceremony. In a bit of a change from tradition, the decision has been made to split the show into two parts. Part one, today, will cover the best of television from 2023. There was a lot of great shows to chose from, but your hosts, Julian, Jeremy, and special guest, Vince, deliver a varied list that has something for everyone. Of course the breakout hit from HBO, 'The Last of Us', gets it's fair share of love but outside of that, I dare you to guess where all the pieces fall. Next week, we dive into the best in film!
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