Episode 197 - The End of the Golden Age of TV

Julian Meush August 30, 2024

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.

Episode 187 - Hollywood Turmoil Paired With A New Superman

Julian Meush July 20, 2023

Julian and Jeremy get together to try to make sense of the current tumultuous state of Hollywood. With the actors joining the writers on strike, the pressure mounts for studios, who are currently going through an almost unprecedented streak of box office failures. It's not looking good out there folks! Which is why it was necessary to revive the "Agree or Disagree" segment of the show to really dive into the complexities of the situation. Meanwhile, DC Studios continues to try to steady the ship by announcing casting news for 'Superman: Legacy'. Surprisingly they've gone further than just announcing who will be playing Clark and Lois, and added character announcements for the likes of Guy Gardner, Hawk Girl and more. Unsurprisingly, this leads to some debate on the merits of James Gunn's recent decision making. On top of that, the guys discuss a grab-bag of movie topics to round out the show. All this and so much more on this week's episode of the Tower of Babble Podcast!

Episode 182 - The 2022 Tobie Awards

Julian Meush January 22, 2023

As the calendar flips to a new year it's always nice to look back at the best-of-the best from the last 12 months. It's become a highly prestigious tradition here at Tower of Babble - 6 years running. Therefor, as is tradition, the ToB hosts, Julian, Jeremy, and Rachel, gather together to discuss their top 3 ranked favorites in film and television from 2022. If you've been listening (or watching live!) throughout the last year, some of these picks might be predictable. That being said, there was a lot of great content to pick from so don't be shocked if something comes out of left field. Congrats to all of this year's Tobie winners!

ToB Interlude - Now on Wednesdays

Julian Meush June 27, 2021

With Dan out of town, Julian and Jeremy sit down for a casual news catch-up that takes the guys through a myriad of different topics, including: Disney+ moving their original content premiers to Wednesdays, ‘Transformers: Rise of the Beasts’ announcement , Jensen Ackles Batman voice, James Cameron’s Avatar, the value of physical media and the role of “special features” in 2021, and much, much more!

Episode 127 - Trailers Galore

Julian Meush December 12, 2018

It’s been over a fortnight since the last full ToB Podcast but the guys are back to unpack a metric ton of nerdy news. Starting with Marvel, who certainly didn’t help lighten the news load, as they dropped both a Captain Marvel trailer AND a teaser for Avengers 4, now titled Avengers: Endgame. On top of that Disney released the first teaser for their Lion King remake, which quickly became an internet sensation. Plus, as we get closer to the premiere of Aquaman, DC treated us to even more footage with their final trailer. Julian, Dan and Jeremy also discuss the latest drama out of the Oscars, debate Christmas movie lists and question the strange Sonic the Hedgehog “motion poster”. All that, and much more, on this week’s Tower of Babble Podcast!

Episode 95 - Everyone's Favourite Goldblum

Julian Meush May 9, 2017

It's just Julian and Daniel this week on the program as Jeremy is "away". But the show must go on, so to kick things off Julian takes us through his picks for this year's "summer movie wager" and rips Regal Theatres for some questionable business practices. The guys then dive deep into the latest geek news, starting with a couple notable trailers for Marvel's Defenders and The Dark Tower. Moving on, Fox announces 3 new X-Men movies for 2018, Kevin Feige talks about "Phase 4" of the MCU, the Avatar sequels get new release dates (again) and Jeff Goldblum joins the Jurassic World sequel. On the TV front we got our first tease of Marvel's Inhumans and, DC and WB announce a new "DC focused" streaming service that will feature Young Justice season 3 and a new Teen Titans live action series. Over with games, Call of Duty: WWII got a trailer, Nintendo revealed some impressive sales numbers and Injustice 2 continues its march towards launch. To wrap things up the guys shower praise all over the premier of American Gods on Starz, the latest show from Brian Fuller based on the work of Neil Gaiman. All this and so much more on the week's Tower of Babble Podcast!

Episode 90 - James Cameron's Opinion

Julian Meush February 8, 2017

Its just Julian and Dan this week as the two of them cover some of the latest in geek news. Including: Ben Affleck stepping down from directing Batman and who's on the short list to replace him, CW's Riverdale, James Cameron's opinion on some of his old franchises and much more.

Episode 89 - DCEU and Nintendo Switch

Julian Meush January 27, 2017

Its been awhile since everyone has sat down and really drilled into the latest in geek news. But with Julian now settled (somewhat) back onto the island, the ToB Crew can return to their old routine. Starting with a whole pile of stories and rumours coming from WB about seemingly every one of their upcoming superhero projects. The Oscars also released their list of nominees for the upcoming ceremony so of course the big categories are discussed. On the TV side, news comes out that the Coen brothers will be trying their hand at the small screen for the first time and that Fox has ordered another X-Men series with Brian Singer attached. Over with video games, the guys talk about some rumours about the next Batman game as well as the future of Marvel in the games space now that they've inked a deal with Square Enix. Finally, the big Nintendo Switch conference was only a short time ago so every detail from price to the launch game lineup are covered.

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May 22, 2025

SSSW/ToB Film Club - Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

May 22, 2025

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.

May 22, 2025

May 15, 2025

SSSW - Andor S2 Finale

May 15, 2025

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.

May 15, 2025

May 9, 2025

SSSW - Andor S2 E7 - 9

May 9, 2025

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.

May 9, 2025

May 2, 2025

SSSW - Andor S2 E4 - 6

May 2, 2025

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.

May 2, 2025