Despite being only a few minutes longer than last week's episode, "Part Four" of 'Ahsoka' manages to feel much grander and expansive. It not only packs a heavy action punch, with plenty of lightsabers, it also manages to expand on a lot of the most interesting character dynamics and plot points as well. Character through action is always appreciated and this episode brings that in spades. That's without even mentioning the bold and surprising turns that Dave Filoni is able to pull off here, leaving the heroes in a very tricky spot heading into episode 5, which by all accounts is supposed to be banger. There's plenty of chatter online about where this episode sits in terms of the pantheon of "The best Star Wars TV", which means it certainly holds it's own against the some of best Star Wars installments we've ever seen. Join Julian and Rachel as they break it all down, scene by scene, and make your own assessment.
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SSSW - Ahsoka S1E3 "Time to Fly"
With Julian out in the woods (literally), dialing in remotely with Rachel, and dealing with some technical difficulties (and a few bears), it's a low-tech episode this week. The pair discuss Part 3 of 'Ahsoka', which despite it's surprisingly short runtime, still manages to pickup on the "will she - won't she" story thread with Sabine and the Force. It also features an exciting dog-fighting sequence, which are always very welcome in a Star Wars story. Unfortunately, it doesn't have time for much else, relegating Hera's appearance to a single short scene (which at least had a few surprises of it's own). Next week, we're back in the studio and with it the return of a more "normal" production quality.
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SSSW - Ahsoka - Series Premiere
After only a short 4-months since ‘The Mandalorian’ season 3, Small Screen Star Wars returns with more reviews and breakdowns. After having to (fairly) bow out of covering the season finale of Mando, Rachel returns to the podcast chair, alongside Julian, to unpack the two-part series premiere of ‘Ahsoka’. With these episodes coming in at nearly two full hours combined, there’s a lot of lore, character and details to sift through, so buckle up for a comprehensive exploration of every action-packed moment in this overstuffed exploration of the latest Star Wars story! (which just so happens to basically be a semi-sequel to ‘Rebels’)
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Episode 188 - Frustrations with the System
As Hollywood continues to flounder in it’s own self-created mess of labour action, Julian and Jeremy return to the mic to discuss the ongoing sorry state of affairs. Fortunately, Barbenheimer is still going strong which gives the guys a bit of a distraction from the absolute disgrace that have been the major movie studios. Oh, plus there’s a some discussion about the new TMNT flick and some tangents about the length of TV seasons. That is all to say, enjoy this very casual, but somewhat frustrated, edition of The Tower of Babble Podcast!
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Episode 187 - Hollywood Turmoil Paired With A New Superman
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!
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Bonus Episode - Daily DVR - The Best TV Shows of 2023 (So Far)
Two bonus episodes in a row? What is this Christmas in July?! Well no not really, but Julian did guest spot on the ‘Daily DVR’ podcast again last week (along with a whole plethora of other great guests) to discuss the top 5 best TV shows of year 2023 so far. Unsurprisingly, things like ‘The Last of Us’, ‘Succession’ and ‘The Bear’ make a lot of the respective lists, but there’s still a lot of room for surprises and if all goes as planned you should be able to add a few new shows to your watch list after listening to this.
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Bonus Episode - ToB Film Club - Excalibur (1981)
The ToB Film Club escapes the 90’s but retreats into the past, and depending on how you look at it, how far back into the past may be an open question. Julian and Jeremy delve into the mystical world of Arthurian legend, and examine director John Boorman's interpretation of this timeless tale. Despite the stunning, and surprisingly literal, portrayal of knights in shinning armour, an epic score, and precise cinematography, the film suffers from some dated decisions. Not the least of which being extremely clunky dialogue, accentuated by overly hokey “medieval” accents, some very clumsy action scenes, and a complete disregard for any type of coherent pacing. Despite these drawbacks, a few strong performances and an extremely unique and “cool” visual style (it begs for a 4K re-release) help drive this movie, even as it seemingly tries with all it’s might to disengage the audience at every turn.
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ToB Interlude - The Flash
In what is a somewhat new format for ToB, Julian starts off this episode solo, and is joined by Jeremy mid-stream. Julian, and then also Jeremy, unpack the absolute mess that has been left in the wake of DC's latest box-office bomb. With so much weight of expectations resting on the shoulders of 'The Flash' (thanks a lot Tom Cruise and Stephen King) it may not be a surprise that it wasn't able to reach those lofty heights, but it doesn't make the situation any rosier for WB executives who backed a chaotic lead, shelved 'Batgirl', and spurned Snyder fans, for this flop. The guys discuss the film itself (was it actually any good?), possible reasons it failed financially, and what it means for the future of the DCU.
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Episode 186 - A Slate of Delays
The "less-structured" format continues this week as Jeremy and Julian start by discussing a series of movie release date delays, which spins widely into conversations about a variety of random topics. Such as: the polarizing early impressions of 'The Flash', Zach Snyder's 'Rebel Moon', Lucasfilm's continued refusal to learn any lessons from 'Solo', a review of 'Across the Spider-Verse', MCU turbulence, and why people keep calling for James Gunn's head. All that and so much more on this week's Tower of Babble Podcast!
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Episode 185 - Too Busy for its Own Good
Julian and Jeremy get together for a quick news roundup, including: DC's plan to continue with Ezra Miller after 'The Flash', Martin Scorsese's new trailer and his meeting with the Pope, HBO's reluctance to greenlight the Jon Snow 'Game of Thrones' sequel, the end of the Arrowverse on CW, the latest from Quinton Tarantino, and Mark Hamill's stance on recasting Luke Skywalker. Plus Julian brings some impressions from 'Fast X'.
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