As noted by the recent Tobies, awards season continues in full flight, so it's no surprise to have The Oscars drop their nominations just in time for Matt and Julian to break them down. 'Sinners' taking home 16 noms sets an Oscars record and (more importantly) validates Julian's recent Tobie pick. Plus, the guys return to a more traditional news format with headlines about James Bond, Game of Thrones, He-Man and more! Finally, the guys look into their crystal balls, gazing into the future, to make entertainment-based predictions for the year 2026. How will the WB/Netflix deal play out? Will Star Wars have a hit with 'The Mandalorian and Grogu'? Will Nolan's 'The Odyssey' be as big as 'Oppenheimer'? Only the ToB hosts can tell you! (No future lotto tickets or sports almanacs unfortunately)
Read MoreEpisode 203 - The 2025 Tobie Awards (9th Annual)
With the Golden Globes holding their annual ceremony last week, it signals only one thing - it’s AWARD SEASON BABY! And of course, when one thinks of the most prestigious awards in entertainment, of course names like Oscar, Tony, and Emmy might come to mind. But held on equal footing with those self-congratulatory titans is of course the name Tobie. That’s right y’all THE TOBIES ARE BACK for another go around at the top three best movies and shows of year. And while there may be a new host in the rotation, the format and the prestige remain unchanged. Join Julian and now Matt to explore what, upon reflection, was a pretty damn good year for visual storytelling on both the big and small screens.
Read MoreSSSW - Year in Review 2025 + Visions Vol 3
With the back half of 2025 being relatively quiet from a Star Wars perspective, it's hard to remember that 'Andor' wrapped up it's two season run and blew us all away THIS year. Never mind that 'Skeleton Crew' also wrapped up in 2025! Julian and Rachel, using the help of this handy Starwars.com article as reference, look back at the year that was in Star Wars. Overall, despite things slowing down content-wise, 'Andor' alone makes it a stellar year, and with new movies on the horizon and a new animated series set to drop in 2026, there's still plenty to be excited about going forward. If that wasn't enough, join us as we explore 'Star Wars: Visions - Volume III', posing the question: has the Star Wars anime concept run it's course?
Read MoreSSSW/ToB Film Club - Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
It's hard to believe that 'Rogue One' premiered nearly a decade ago. At the time, it was fairly well received, considered to be a decent first step into the standalone Star Wars movies, if not a bit messy. As the years passed, we learned more about the production. Gareth Edwards, who retained sole directing credit, was assisted by Tony Gilroy to "fix" the project. Tony went so far as to call it a "corpse" when he came aboard for rewrites and reshoots. It was Tony's inclusion that brought us some of the movies most memorable moments, and ultimately led him to leading the charge on 'Andor', a prequel project that flew under the radar as hits like 'The Mandalorian' hogged the spotlight. With 'Andor' now complete, considered by many to be a masterpiece in storytelling, not just in Star Wars but on television in general, now is the most appropriate time to reexamine the movie that spawned the Cassian-centered prequel series with fresh eyes. 'Andor', which leads directly into the events of 'Rogue One' recontextualizes much of the film, creating a unique viewing experience that pays off a multitude of threads that are brilliantly laid over the two seasons of 'Andor'. It takes the movie, which was already pretty good, and makes it great. Now existing as part of a whole that weaves a cohesive narrative from the nascent moments of the Rebellion all the way through to the destruction of the Death Star in 1977 (the seed that begat ALL Star Wars, and what we appropriately align our Star Wars BBY calendars to). It all feels wholistic and considered when viewed from the broader perspective - an accomplishment that should set a shining example of what Star Wars can and should aspire to.
Read MoreSSSW - Andor S2 Finale
After only 4 weeks - the blink of an eye - it's all over. The best Star Wars story since the Original Trilogy has graced our screens and left us in awe. These final three episodes weren't able to reach the emotional highs of last week's arc, but that wasn't the goal. Instead, it provides time to look back at what brought us here, and sets the stage for the climax of the story to take place not in this moment, but within the now recontextualized film that birthed all of this in the first place, 'Rogue One'. And while the show may carry Cassian's name on the title screen, it's been the cast of characters we've met along the way that truly elevated this experience. Not to pick favourites, but in particular, Luthen and Kleya, who get an episode all to themselves this week are the standouts. And what an episode it was, as their story which shepherded much of the series came to an end, as we all expected it would have to. Embracing those feelings of closure, in the final moments of the series, as Cassian flies off into 'Rogue One', we are treated to our last glimpses of our heroes and villains. From Dedra to Vel and even Perrin, we are left to consider their fates as the story marches with inevitability into what begat all of this way back in 1977. Will we ever see Kleya, Vel, Wilmon, or Bix again? One can only hope - and rebellions? Well, they're built on hope.
Read MoreSSSW - Andor S2 E7 - 9
When dealing in the world of prequels, it’s impossible to escape the inevitable - Anakin will fall, Han will win the Falcon, Cassian will die on Scarif. Somehow, in the midst of some of the most thrilling episodes of television ever put to screen, Tony Gilroy and his team found a way to address that impending doom and weaponize it against the audience to induce some of the most gut wrenching and heart breaking moments we’ve yet to see on ‘Andor’ - “There’s some place he needs to be”. At a larger scale, the show continues to outdo itself on a weekly basis, proving that the Star Wars galaxy provides a colour pallet of some of the richest hues from which to paint bold and personal stories. Proving you can go beyond the larger than life stories of heroics and grandeur to human stories of loss and pain and everything in between. That’s without mentioning the deft touch in pulling in themes that resonates with the contemporary while remaining timeless - a feeling that is a staple of Star Wars. Every detail is considered, every character is deep and interesting. There isn’t much more that can be said about such a powerful piece of art, except that not even the audience can escape the inevitable - only one week remains of this masterpiece.
Read MoreSSSW - Andor S2 E4 - 6
I'm sorry to tell you all, but we're already halfway through this final season of 'Andor'. Fortunately, the quality hasn't dipped one bit as we accelerate into the finish. Join Julian and Rachel as they savour every minute of this 3-episode arch that takes us to Ghorman for the first time on screen. Tony Gilroy and the team at Lucasfilm outdid themselves yet again in crafting every detail. The size of the set alone is impressive, but they take it a step further by developing a unique culture and even language different from anything we've seen in Star Wars before. It all fits seamlessly into this next chapter of the story that has a heavy emphasis on spycraft as the pressure ramps up for both the Rebellion and the Empire.
Read MoreSSSW - Andor S2 Premiere
It's been a long time since Cassian Andor and his band of Rebel compatriots has graced our TV screens. A long hiatus, no doubt, but when you look into WHY this second season took so long the reason becomes clear - they were dotting every "i" and crossing every "t" (along with dealing with the writers and actors strikes, growing and harvesting ancient grains, hand stitching wedding dresses, the list goes on...) to make sure that this isn't just good Star Wars, but indeed the maybe the BEST Star Wars (I'm partially convinced that it may be the best we may ever get actually). Season 2 roars to life in it's first of four, 3-episode drops (essentially a movie a week for a month), not wasting any time picking up with our characters a year after the events of season 1. The sheer scale, scope, and commitment to its heavy themes is laudable, but when combined with the masterful set design, costuming, writing, and acting, you can't help but to stare, mouth agape, at this singular piece bold storytelling, that will likely go down as Tony Gilroy's largest contribution to popular culture, and deservedly so. Join Julian and Rachel as they unpack it all. It's going to be one hell of a ride!
Read MoreSSSW - Bonus Episode - Star Wars Check-In - November 2024
It’s been two months since we did our “State of Star Wars” episode where we essentially eviscerated the current situation in regards to the decision making process at Lucasfilm and their seeming inability to get a movie into production, among other things. Well in that time, we’ve had a smattering of news stories of all stripes, which Julian and Rachel cover in this episode, but what really prompted another Bonus Episode was the latest piece, again from The Hollywood Reporter, exploring the situation in further depth on the movie side of the business at Lucasfilm. Your hosts deep dive on all of it, and then cap things off with something much more lighthearted. Next up, ‘Skeleton Crew’ in December, where we’ll be breaking down every episode. Stay tuned!
Read MoreSSSW - The Bad Batch S3E7 “The Clone Conspiracy” + S2E8 “Truth and Consequences”
This season of 'The Bad Batch' has been a real rollercoaster. The highs of "The Solitary Clone" to the lows of episodes like "Faster". This week, the show once again elevated itself with a 2-episode drop that feels like a spiritual sequel to the great 'The Clone Wars' episode "Clone Conspiracy". In fact, the first part of this 2-part story arch, aptly named "The Clone Conspiracy", doesn't even feature our titular characters. These 2 episodes also felt like a great companion piece to last year's 'Andor' as we focus again on political intrigue and dangerous secrets. The tension is palpable and the presence of returning characters feel natural in this given situation. But the biggest revelation is that we finally have a clear understanding of the fate of the clones. There's still plenty to explore in this show, but after these 2 episodes, it has easily justified its status as must-watch Star Wars.
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