After a supersized recap of episodes 1 and 2 last week, Julian and Rachel return to discuss the more subdued (but surprisingly dark) third episode of 'The Bad Batch'. With an homage to 'Empire Strikes Back' and undercurrents of political intrigue maintaining the momentum this week's episode might not move the plot forward much but it makes up for it in style. The control chip is still top of mind for all parties but new Imperial players start to lay the groundwork for a new conscripted army, all while the titular Bad Batch work to get themselves out of a jam. Join the SSSW Crew as they break it all down, scene by scene.
Read MoreSSSW - The Bad Batch S1E1 "Aftermath" and S1E2 "Cut and Run"
It's been a long 5 months since we last visited Mando and Grogu. But Star Wars Day brought a return to the galaxy far, far away with the premiere of the much anticipated 'The Clone Wars' sequel; 'The Bad Batch'. Julian is once again joined by Rachel to break down every scene from the 90 minute premiere "Aftermath", as well as the second episode of the season that came only two days later, "Cut and Run" (yes, it's a long podcast). Gorgeous animation, moving musical themes, a grittier tone and darker setting are all hallmarks of this new Lucasfilm Animation series, but will it reach the same heights as 'The Clone Wars'? Let's find out!
Read MoreToB Interdude - Mortal Kombat
With more and more video games being adapted into movies or TV shows, it’s about time that we looked to our roots and revived one of the OG video game movies; ‘Mortal Kombat’. The movies from the 90’s hold cult status, and with the game franchise as strong as ever, WB felt like the time was right to bring Sub-Zero and Scorpion back to the big screen (or I guess small screen on HBO MAX). Julian sits down with Dan and Jeremy, both of whom bringing decades of MK history and knowledge with them, to dissect the film. Will this version become a cult hit like it’s forebearers? Will it do well enough to kickoff a whole new series? All these questions and more are tackled in this week’s episode of the Tower of Babble Podcast.
Read MoreToB Interlude - 2021 Oscars Preview Show
With less than a week left before the Oscars, it’s time for the annual ToB Oscars Preview Show! Last year, pre-covid, the festivities were much more formal (with some of the hosts even wearing fancy jackets!), but this year things are a bit more subdued. It’s just Julian and Dan this week (subbing out Jeremy) as they look forward to what should be a memorable Academy Awards celebration. Or so they tell us! With covid impacting every aspect of Hollywood, they discuss what that will mean for the broadcast. With names like Steven Soderbergh taking the reins expect things to be a dit different. According to Soderbergh himself, they want the show to “feel like a movie” (whatever that means), and don’t call the stars on stage “presenters”! No they’re cast members nows. Either way, it’s shaping up to be something interesting. After that, we move into our “main event” as the guys discuss each of the “Best Picture” nominees before moving on to predictions for the winners in the biggest categories (sorry “Costume Design”).
Read MoreEpisode 164 - Netflix Inking Deals, WB Cancels New Gods, and the Iron Anniversary
Just the two J’s this week as Dan is away. Julian, and Jeremy discuss Rian Johnson’s big money ‘Knives Out’ deal with Netflix, Warner Bros. cancelling ‘The Trench’ and Ava DuVernay’s ‘New Gods’, and the 10th year anniversary of ‘Game of Thrones’ premiere on HBO that they’re calling the “Iron Anniversary”. The guys also touch on some notable release schedule changes around Hollywood, and the cast list for ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’, which had a few pleasant surprises. All that, and so much more, on this week’s Tower of Babble Podcast!
Read MoreEpisode 163 - The Suicide Squad, Game of Thrones, and Black Widow
Julian, Dan, and Jeremy discuss the latest ‘The Suicide Squad’ trailer, as well attempt to decipher an interview from Variety with a WB executive. Spoilers; according to them, there’s no more Snyderverse and David Ayer’s cut of the original ‘Suicide Squad’ will not be produced, plus everything else happening in the wake of ‘Zack Snyder's Justice League’. The guys then muse about the plethora of Game of Thrones spinoffs in the works. Of course it’s not an episode of the Tower of Babble Podcast unless there’s at least one Marvel story, so they also discuss ‘Black Widow’ and it’s move to Disney+, and look forward at the rest of the Marvel slate. Plus much more!
Read MoreToB Interlude - Zack Snyder's Justice League - Spoilercast
The original release of 'Justice League' hit theatres all the way back in 2017. To say it was poorly received would be an massive understatement. It was a disappointment in almost every sense. To make matters worse, the whole production was mired in studio meddling in its most incompetent form. During those turbulent times, tragedy struck. It was during that time that Zack Snyder stepped away from the project and was replaced by Joss Whedon. A decision that has been widely criticized since. When Snyder left the picture, his original vision was discarded. Replaced by something tonally similar to what Joss had brought to the MCU. Almost immediately following the theatrical premiere in 2017, fans starting calling for the "Snyder Cut" to be released, spawning the infamous hashtag. At the time, the existence of Snyder's version of the movie was considered to be a myth. But slowly over time, more evidence of the existence of the infamous directors cut began to surface. Fuelled by support from Snyder himself, as well as stars like Ben Affleck, the push for the release of the “Snyder Cut” reached a fever pitch. Warner Brothers took notice, and when they needed flagship content for their fledgling streamer, HBO Max, the dream became a reality. ‘Zack Snyder’s Justice League’ would premiere in its full, uncut, 4 hour runtime (and even get a black and white version) to home viewers everywhere. The ToB Crew has spent those 4 long years since Whedon’s version discussing the nuances and discourse surrounding the “Snyder Cut” (for better or for worse), but the time has come to now discuss the film itself. Julian, Dan, and Jeremy break it all down and discuss what worked and what didn’t for what is, in many ways, an unprecedented piece of entertainment. Be warned, full spoilers ahead!
Read MoreEpisode 162 - Snyder Cut, Mortal Kombat and Scorsese
If you’ve been listening to the show for awhile you’ll know that the ToB Crew have been closely following ‘Zack Snyder’s Justice League’, or as it’s colloquially known, ‘The Snyder Cut’, since the theatrical release of the film waaay back when. So of course it’s big news when the official trailer drops, so the guys dive deep into that (and unfortunately, the ongoing drama surrounding it). But when it rains it pours, becasue we also got the trailer for the new ‘Mortal Kombat’ film (another long standing focus of the show) along with another rant from Martin Scorsese who’s back in the news talking about how streaming services are devaluing film (which means it’s time for another “Agree of Disagree” segment!). In addition to all of that, Marvel revealed the official title for Tom Holland’s ‘Spider-Man 3’ and ViacomCBS rolled out details for Paramount+. All this, and so much more, on this week’s Tower of Babble Podcast!
Read MoreEpisode 161 - One Crazy Day... on Twitter
Some days during the pandemic it feels like Hollywood has gone to sleep, with not a drop of news. Other days, the news comes at you so fast you forget you’re even in a pandemic. This last Wednesday was one of those days. Between the news of Gina Carano’s firing from Disney, and Joel and Ellie’s casting for ‘The Last of Us’, it felt like the good ol’ days on Twitter. News coming in so hot, that before you can even formulate a thought, it’s been debunked or some other news bit is thrown at you. It was exciting. So with at least one news day worth of stories to discuss, the ToB Crew takes a look back at a busy day on Twitter as well as a ton of other stories from the last couple weeks, amd to end the show, the guys discuss the latest goings ons with ‘WandaVision’ in a full spoiler discussion. All that, and so much more, on this week’s Tower of Babble Podcast!
Read MoreEpisode 160 - Cap Coming Back?
With 2020 now firmly in the rearview mirror, ToB can now return to it's regularly scheduled programming. Or at least as close to it as we can get! It's been a few weeks since a full news show, so there's a lot to discuss. Julian, Dan, and Jeremy break down the biggest stories in the world of film and television, not the least of which being that Warner Bros is apparently doubling down on 'Harry Potter'. They've installed a new VP to oversee the franchise and a live-action series is in early development at HBO Max. On top of that, rumours are swirling about the possible return of Chris Evans' Captain America to the MCU. Plus, Snyder confirms that his Justice League will not be a 4-part series afterall, and instead will be a 4 hour film. Oh did we mention that Amazon's 'Lord of the Rings' series got an official synopsis? Well the guys are covering that too! All that and so much more on this week's Tower of Babble Podcast.
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