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Welcome to The SciFi Podcast, a wretched hive of scum and villainy a bi-weekly podcast focused on in-depth discussion of all things Science Fiction. The SciFi Podcast features three hosts—Mattroid, Solo, and Station!—and frequent guests. Each episode we look at a science fiction theme or franchise and take the discussion where no show has gone before.
On this episode of The SciFi Podcast, we are joined by actor and Movie Podcast Weekly‘s sci-fi guy, Karl Huddelston, and Solo leads his chosen theme of “The 50 Greatest Sci-Fi TV Shows Ever!”
Theme music courtesy of I Hear Sirens, featuring Matt on bass and Liz on keyboard. Hear more of I Hear Sirens ethereal, instrumental, post-rock at BandCamp. Podcast production by Solo. Art by SpaceWolf.
Show notes after the jump.
I. INTRODUCTION
—Solo will lead our podcast theme and feature review
II. WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING IN THE CRYO-CHAMBER
III. THEME DISCUSSION: “THE 50 GREATEST SC-FI TV SHOWS EVER”
—Episode inspired by “The 50 Greatest Sci-Fi TV Shows Ever” list from Popular Mechanics and Karl’s Facebook feed.
IV. WRAP-UP
—Sign-offs, plugs, and recommendations
LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE:
—Read “The 50 Greatest Sci-Fi TV Shows Ever” list from: Popular Mechanics
—Listen to Karl Huddelston on: Movie Podcast Weekly
—Watch Karl Huddelston in Gary the Unicorn’s: “Alien Abduction”
—Matt says to read his writing for The Daily Herald newspaper as “Gary the Unicorn” at heraldextra.com and listen to him on Horror Movie Podcast
—Liz says to subscribe to The SciFi Podcast on iTunes and Stitcher
—William says to listen to him on Movie Stream Cast and occassionally on Movie Podcast Weekly and Horror Movie Podcast.
—Send emails or pre-recorded voicemails to ask [at] thescifipodcast [dot] com
—If you’re on Facebook, please “like” the TSFP Facebook page and connect with other listeners.
Thanks for listening to the SciFi Podcast!
WOOHOO!
Woah. This guy loves sci-fi television shows!
Am I imagining things or was that comment written in the voice of Jar Jar Binks?
Mesa glad you noticed! But, actually … no.
“But, actually … no”
Oh dear, that means it’s happening again.
The voices; they’re coming back.
David – There is probably a really good beer out there that could rid you of the Jar Jar voice (or at least muffle it beyond recognition).
Allyson, you could not be more right. Good beer is my only option. It’s either that or you guys will end up reading about a young Englishman who went on a crazy murder spree and when questioned all he could say was “They were all Jar Jars, they wasa so wude!”
I love this show and its hosts. I can’t wait to listen to this episode tomorrow. Thank you. Plus, it has one of my all-time favorite people: Karl Huddleston!
J
Karl is the icon of a generation. I hope in the future we see the release of a Karl Huddleston action figure. It would come with “home theatre accessories” and “smack-talking action”.
Haha…
Want this.
I think it would sell out a lot faster than the Andy with “realistic snoring sound effects” and “rustling snack packet accessories” or the Jason with “whizzing in bottle” action.
Don’t forget the Andy “creaky desk chair” accessory, and J’s glass of ice and Coke w/straw (to avoid the Coke teeth, of course).
Obviously the most popular toy in the line will be the Dino, Juan and David 3 pack, all with “craft beer drinking action”. Combine them all to create the most ultimate champion of podcast commentators: Juavino.
Is Juavino a Frankensteinian monster? ‘Cause I always wanted to be a monster.
Juavino is a craft-beer fuelled Frankensteinian abomination.
I guess we could always be a Voltron-like robot. That would be cool too. But then we’d be missing three parts. We have to have a torso to bring it all together and then I guess we’d have to chose to have two legs so we can at least walk. That way, if we have to fight we can still kick or run away. We’d be kind of useless, really. Factor in the copious amounts of craft beer that we’d consume while operating this machinery and we’re well on our way to being the most incompetent robot in the history of robots. We’d be a step or two below Boss Borot!
#fuuuuuuuu
Really, it’s not much different from the Jaegers in PACIFIC RIM.
Thank you Jason, and sorry about the long gap between between episodes.
But it was great to have Karl-with-a-K as a guest. When are you coming on as a guest?
This was an entertaining episode that made me realize two things:
1. There’s a lot of great sci-fi television out there that I’m not watching, and
2. There’s a lot of TV out there that I didn’t think of as sci-fi before, but whose roots are squarely planted in science fiction
Actually, to point #2, I’m finding that a common theme for me. There’s a lot of great science fiction out there, in general, that I don’t immediately identify as science fiction. In other words, this podcast is opening my eyes to the world… of science fiction.
Hi everyone.
1. I love you all.
2. Me tired, can’t think.
3. Check the new banner ad for awesome tee shirts.
4. Love to hear you’re comments, and even though I can’t process most of them at this time, I can say that I’m happy to see Dino is now branching out past the only scifi he watches, which is cartoons about tribbles. (Probably)
We love you too, Mattroid. And don’t worry, your action figure will come with awesome stuff like a talking Mr.Scale accessory and a sweet moustache.
Hey, thanks for thinking of my mustache. His name is Tomahawk Charie and he hates onions. Which is weird because I love them.
I love onions too! Sometimes when I’m eating tacos and I run out of meat, I just stuff my tortilla with onions with a little bit of lime and maybe some salsa and you’ve got yourself a legit little snack! I tell you, every time I always seem to chop more onions than I need to. I’m not sure if that’s my subconscious taking over or if I’m just terrible at calculating how much food I need to make.
I love onions but my stupid eyes don’t. I was making soup the other day, chopping an onion and I swear it must have been cultivated for the purposes of chemical warfare. My eyes melted out of my head and I had to catch them in a cup and put them in the fridge until they were solid enough to go back in their sockets.
The trouble with tribbles is they make everything else seem like utter dribble.
Jason would eat this comment up with a spoon.
And a side of onions…
Well, I’ve watched a lot less sci-fi shows on this list than I originally thought. At only 19 shows, I’ve got a lot of homework to do. Having said that, I don’t think that’s the best list.
I was really sad that they left out Astro Boy and Mazinger Z, both not only groundbreaking and instrumental blueprints for anime in general and the mecha culture boom in ’70s Japan, but they’re incredible shows in their own right. They had so many great ideas (and crazy ones too). One of the villains in Mazinger Z was half man half woman and his voice was a concoction of a guy and a girl voice actor talking at the same time. How insane is that? Way ahead of their time. But I guess their lack of exposure in the U.S. is a big reason why they weren’t even mentioned.
On the animated end (yes they’re different, anime is its own beast), I was very glad that Futurama was included. It’s probably the best thing Matt Groening has done far surpassing The Simpsons in my humble opinion. There were a few notable omissions that may not be as great intellectually others, but visually they’re undeniably rich. Shows like Voltron, Thundercats, Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors, Silver Hawks, and Batman Beyond were rich with ideas and visual flair to spare. The last of these shows, Batman Beyond, is a standout for me though. I think it managed to capture the gothic feel of Batman the Animated Series, keep the witty dialogue and strong character development and combined with with a very bleak and highly stylized cyber-punk future. It worked wonders for me. I loved it.
As far as live-action shows, did anyone mention The Sarah Connor Chronicles? I haven’t seen it yet, but the general consensus on the interwebz is that it’s a must see. Automan is another oldie that has a dear place in my heart because of the awesome visuals. Then there’s Quantum Leap and The Incredible Hulk, which was clearly intended to be an action-drama, but it’s a sci-fi at its core. And that piano song at the end. Just heartbreaking :'(
Anywho, this was a great show you guys. I’ve still got about 45 minutes to go, but I’m really enjoying myself. I love all the intellectual talk — it’s the reason why I keep coming back — but I also love it when you’re all a little more lighthearted about stuff and just geek out with the rest of us.
#geekasm
I think the list shot itself in the foot by not just restricting itself to live-action shows because there’s so much great sci-fi anime out there that the stuff they did include seemed arbitrary and a bit superfluous in places. I don’t think “Neon Genesis Evangelion” deserves to be on there while way more important, superior and less pretentious giant robot shows were left off. The original “Gundam” series from ’79 is immensely important to the genre, not to mention great super-robot stuff like “Mazinger Z” (as you mentioned) and “Getter Robo” and real-robot stuff like “Patlabor” and “Armoured Trooper Votoms”. And “Legend of Galactic Heroes” should definitely be on there. That’s epic and sweeping as epic and sweeping gets. I do agree with “Cowboy Bebop” though, that’s a great show and definitely a good place to start for any sci-fi fans wanting to broach the intimidating realm of anime.
You guys are spot on: anime deserves its own list.
Animated shows too, really. The mentioned ones above are excellent. Batman the animated series and the original animated X-Men are both really good.
Station and I have started The Sarah Conner Chronicles but we haven’t seen much and it’s been a while. I remember thinking it was okay, but friends have told us its great. So we might have to revisit this episode in the future.
There were so many great sci-fi cartoon series on when I was a kid. Do modern kids have anything that comes close to the likes of “X-men”, “Thundercats”, “BraveStarr”, “Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors”, “Cadillacs and Dinosaurs”, “Defenders of the Earth”, “The Bots Master”, “The Phantom”, “He-Man” etc?
I was just spoilt for choice on a saturday morning. And who can forget “Space Ghost Coast to Coast”. Possibly the only animated sci-fi talk-show ever made!
I share the sentiment, David. I feel bad for today’s kids. There are a few cartoons here and there that are genuinely great like Metalocalypse, The Venture Bros, and Archer, but those are aimed at an older audience. But I hear you. Back in the day there was a renaissance of sorts when it came to cartoons. One thing I’d like to point out about that era is that their style was very much influenced by anime. Their intros in particular were animated very similarly and had really high production values (as is the case with anime). What are your favorite intros from ’70s and ’80s cartoons? I think my all time favorite has to be the Thundercats intro, but as far as songs go, my favorite song is from Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors. It gets me super pumped every time! m/
Don’t forget Denver the Last Dinosaur. That was sci-fi, right? And what about The Flintstones. They had their cute little dinosaur technology. Pretty advanced if you ask me.
My comment above is a prime example of why one should proof read before posting, kids. What a mess! Stay in school!
No way am I staying in school. School sucks.
Story of my life…
This episode was really great. The marriage of K-hud and the TSFP regulars was a match made in heaven and the use of the best sci-fi shows list as a jumping off point was a brilliant device to enable the discussion of a whole plethora of genre television.
Here are the shows from the list of which I’ve seen more than a handful of episodes (in most cases the majority of episodes):
Thunderbirds
Space: 1999
Knight Rider
Twin Peaks
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
Cowboy Bebop
Star Trek: Voyager
Battlestar Galactica (1978-1979)
Futurama
Red Dwarf
Farscape
Quantum Leap
Babylon 5
Sliders
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Blake’s 7
Stargate SG-1
Lost
Firefly
The Outer Limits
Fringe
Neon Genesis Evangelion
The Prisoner
Star Trek: The Original Series
The Twilight Zone
Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009)
Star Trek: The Next Generation
The X-Files
Doctor Who
And shows of which I’ve seen just one or two of their episodes:
Dark Angel
Space: Above and Beyond
Alien Nation
Lost in Space
Torchwood
Mystery Science Theatre 3000
And for the record I disagree with both “Twin Peaks” and “Lost” being on the list. I feel like both of those shows are more in a sort of supernatural/fantasy/surreal/drama kind of vein. And “Twin Peaks” is great but the only list that “Lost” should get on is the “TV shows that lied most blatantly to their audiences”.
I haven’t figured out what my favourites on the list are yet but from the little I saw of “Dark Angel” that’s got to be one of the worst. Maybe I should have given it more of a chance but it just seemed amazingly lame and pandering to me. “Stargate: SG-1” is also pretty bad. My dad used to watch it all the time and it just seemed horribly generic and dull; boring characters, lame plots that are just an excuse for sub-par action scenes, endless clichés etc. I just don’t get why it got popular enough to keep going so long and spawn so many spin-off’s when far better shows get cancelled after just a few seasons.
I’ll also say that while “Thunderbirds” is easily the most famous of Gerry Anderson’s supermarionation productions it’s probably one of my least favourites (although I did love it when I was a kid). “Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons” and “Stingray” are both more interesting shows in my opinion and even “Joe 90” and “Fireball XL5” have their charms (although the latter is most notable for its horribly dated and ridiculous approach to space-science).
I have to say I was really surprised by the existence of a “Logans Run” TV show and an 80’s adaptation of “War of the Worlds”. I had no idea about either of those shows.
.
Finally I think the biggest, most glaring omission is “Black Mirror”. That should undoubtedly be on this list.
Also, I can’t wait for Shannon to show up with some crazy left-field suggestions of obscure sci-fi shows that should have been on there.
Black Mirror, the recent BBC program?
That’s the one, created by the cynical genius Charlie Brooker.
Station and I made it through the first episode. It was super tough to watch.
It’s definitely as far as you can get from lighthearted, inoffensive entertainment but I think the social commentary element justifies the shocking bleakness. To me it gets right to the core of sci-fi; exploring disturbing contemporary issues in a speculative, exaggerated way.
I’d suggest giving the second episode a chance before writing it off entirely.
Black Mirror is a show that’s highly recommended by a dear friend whose taste I trust. With David backing it up, I think it just moved to the top of my queue… right after GOT of course.
I’ve heard really good things about BLACK MIRROR.
I’m sure it’s great. But watching the PM screw a pig was not even remotely enjoyable.
Meh, everyday I have to watch the PM screw the entire country.
David,
Thanks for such kind complements about the show, and I’m glad you liked the premise of the discussion. One never truly knows if their ideas are good, how they will develop, and/or ultimately perceived. And as always, you help remind me that I don’t totally suck at this whole podcast thing.
Thanks man
So, is Farscape worthy of Station!’s blind hatred? (well semi-blind, I guess, because http://www.gstatic.com/tv/thumb/tvbanners/184456/p184456_b_v7_ab.jpg)
From what I remember “Farscape” is loads of fun. It’s pretty weird but full of imaginative ideas and memorable characters. And personally, as a huge practical effects nerd, I love those Jim Henson creature effects. Definitely worth checking out if you don’t mind your sci-fi a little quirky and strange.
Yeah, I liked it, even though I did struggle with the puppets at first…but I got used to it after a few episodes. Not too bad of a show.
Dino, that picture just proves my point. I laughed really hard looking at that, so thank you.
And isn’t blind hatred the best, most logical kind of hatred?
Red Dwarf is not just the greatest Sci-Fi show ever, it is the greatest SHOW ever. Dr. Who is a close second, but keep in mind that in the UK Dr. Who is a kids show…hence the dumbness of the newest series season one. But the Tennant years were amazing, watch the episode Blink. Torchwood was a great spinoff for adults, but the episode Children of Earth kiiiiinda made me sick to my stomach. Anyway….I’m starting to ramble.
oh, and Firefly, including Serenity. But I watch that less.
I can’t personally claim they are the greatest shows ever, but I do love watching them late at night (on the weekends) on PBS.
And Brain is dead on, The episode Blink from Dr. Who is soooo good. If you haven’t seen any Dr. Who and you want to check it out, then start there. Don’t worry about jumping in late, the episode should stand alone by itself.
Brain. Even physicists are incorrect from time to time, as you proved with your Red Dwarf comment.
Love you, bro. But nope.
I am scientifically correct about Red Dwarf! hahahaha…
As a Brit I feel obliged to “love” Red Dwarf. Most of my friends do. And I get why it’s a whole lot of fun. But it just doesn’t quite work for me on some strange level. I guess sci-fi and comedy is maybe just a cocktail that I find a little difficult to digest.
I have no idea why I love it so much. I don’t identify with it in any way, yet I could watch all of the original eight series, and even the newer almost as good follow ups back to back non-stop.
It’s certainly a show that I can’t really say a single bad thing about but I’m just persnickety as all hell when it comes to comedies at the best of times. I’d definitely never question it’s status as a classic piece of television.
Plus speaking of mini-series; The Langoliers = Time travel.
Any guise of quality to the CGI in “The Langoliers” is definitely the stuff of science fiction though.
I close my eyes and imagine good CGI at those parts.
I had that down on my list to bring up on the time travel ep and spaced it. (Pun)
I bought that with you and we watched it in your basement a dozen times. It’s so bad, so good.
Wait! You guys know each other!?
What a coincidence!!!
It is a freakin’ HUGE coincidence because none of our real-life friends have listened to these shows before TSFP. In fact, I’m pretty sure Mattroid has never listened to MSC or MPW. William rarely, if ever, listened to MPW of HMP unless he was on the show. All of the sudden, people we actually know from the real world are listening to this show! Matt must be the secret ingredient. Need to spread him around the network more.
Watch for Brian ^ on an upcoming episode of TSFP. He’s a real life scientist and a real life sci-fi geek. A brilliant combination for this show.
So Brain is actually a genuine physicist? That is amazing!
Can he explain to me if our inability to properly measure particles on a quantum level could be interpreted as a microcosmic reflection of our personal cognitive perception of “reality”. is the world around us inherently affected by the very reality of our perceiving it?
David, I could do a very poor job of explaining it, but a better idea is to read the definitive philosophical works that provided the basis for the foundations upon which those ideas you are talking about are founded. Immanuel Kant – “Prolegamena to Metaphysics” and Alfred N Whitehead – “Process and Reality”. Great books, a little dense, but readable to anyone with basic philoshophy under their belt.
Kant spends the entire work using fundamental logic to say “humans are limited in their ability to understand objective truth due to cognitive inability to fully process incoming data.” and then ANW says in his book “Well, that’s because all reality is subjective and not objective.” But ya know…in a much more long-winded way.
Both of those books sound absolutely fascinating and they are going straight on my reading list. Although I don’t know that I could class myself as somebody with basic philosophy under my belt. I’m not even wearing a belt!
But I’m curious if those works make reference to the Schrodinger’s Cat principal? Or is there just no real basis to connect that scientific implication with more metaphysical concepts?
Also, I’m looking drastically forward to your appearance on this podcast. Will it be on a time travel episode?
They do not reference Schrodinger’s cat, they were actually written well before he put out that thought experiment. But they are the foundational philosophy behind men like Schrodinger and Heisenberg. What Schrodinger was actually attempting to explain was the premises for the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, which on it’s face is crazy weird, but when thoughtfully explained is quite easy to understand, and in fact, very logical.
Fun side-note: Schrodinger often claimed that he “hated that damn cat”, as people most easily associate that thought experiment to his work instead of his mind bending equation that actually describes wave functions at the smallest levels.
and don’t get too excited about my appearance…I tend to ramble down dark alleys and reference things that some people aren’t familiar with. But I try to make it fun!
I did have an inkling that they might be pre-Schrodinger. I am very much aware of Kant but have never yet taken the time to become familiar with his history and work.
And I find it fascinating that metaphysical philosophy could have influenced genuine, hardcore scientists.
Also, dark alleys and things that people aren’t familiar with are two of my favourite things, so now I’m even more excited.
Oh yes, philosophy has been the basis of all of physics. Newtons famous “Principia Mathematica” is actually called “Philosophae Naturalis de Principia Mathematica”, or loosely “The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy”.
Metaphysical Philosophy has historically been the foundation of many major breakthroughs in physics, it is only recently that the Metaphysics has gone off the deep end and the word is now more closely related with quackery and fringe science. My personal belief is that people with a bit of knowledge have misused it for their own financial profit, leading to far reaching postulates that make crackpot promises founded on “science”. Within the circles of philosophy and science real Metaphysics, in it’s original form, is still highly respected.
So glad to have you guys back for a new show! We are grateful you all take the time to do this. I am realizing that best of lists often aggravate me (after two were shared on Horror Movie Podcast), but this one wasn’t too bad. I don’t think “Lost” should be on any best of list, and I like to think of “Twin Peaks” as a horror-dramedy. I have enjoyed “Dr. Who” but would never put it toward the top of the list, and the Tom Baker episodes from the 70’s used to traumatize me as a kid. When I was about three or four years old “Dr Who” re-runs would come on public television after “Sesame Street”. The theme music and Tom Baker’s floating head would appear and I would run out of the room crying and afraid. My mom made me sit through an entire episode to help me cope, and once I saw the funny little robot dog K9, I got over my fear. The newer episodes are pretty cheesy, but I enjoy the fun and absurdity of the show.
As for my personal top three sci-fi shows:
1. Star Trek: The Original Series
2. The Twilight Zone ( someday the pinball machine will be mine)
3. Firefly
Honorable Mentions:
The X-Flies (it’s my number 4 pick minus seasons 8 and 9)
Star Trek: The next generation
Both versions of Battle Star Galactica
Here is a link to the Tom Baker “Dr. Who” intro for those who’ve never seen it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwJtYmNpINI
I’ve never seen a single episode of Dr. Who, but just like Station’s hatred for Farscape without ever watching it, I too hate Dr. Who for some unknown reason. It just rubs me the wrong way and it really bugs me because all I need to do is give it a fair shot. I’ve made it as far as hovering my cursor above the play button… but I can never bring myself to press play :/
The funny thing is that I’ve also never seen an episode of The X-Files, but I just love it for some reason haha. I guess it’s the subject matter that really does it for me. I know the show is available on Netflix, but again, I can never bring myself to press play. I’m a very mood dependant show watcher. No matter how much I want to watch something, if I’m not in the right mood, I’ll just endlessly search Netflix until I fall asleep :/
YOU’VE NEVER SEEN THE X-FILES!!!!!?
IT’S MOTHERF******KING, COCKAD******NG, SM***FING, AMAZING! YOU HAVE TO WATCH IT, JUAN! IT’S THE BEST!
Dr Who, I can take or leave though. The older ones are pretty cool and sometimes really creepy and some of the newer ones are really imaginative and fun but it’s never been a personal favourite of mine.
The monster of the week episodes of “The X-files” are beloved favorites I can watch over and over, however the conspiracy/continuing story line occasionally irritated me. I think the series could have wrapped up nicely at the end of season six, as the show seemed to be losing its creativity. There are many who blame the show’s production moving from NW Canada to California for the decline, but I also suspect they lost one or two of their better writers. I only kind of liked the first movie, and I like to pretend the second “X-Files” movie never happened.
In season one there is an episode done as an homage to John Carpenter’s “The Thing” which I love, and seasons 2 and 3 contain the majority of my favorite episodes.
Crazy talk. The conspiracy, while rarely gaining traction it seemed, was the reason to watch. The monster of the week was just fun and spooky filler.
“Crazy talk”, hey, I took my medication today. Spooky and fun filler is what made the show for me. Also, I like that you used the word “spooky” in reference to “The X Files”.
Sorry Mattroid, as much as I love you and Tomahawk Charlie, I’m with Allyson on this.
The conspiracy element of the show is definitely the propulsive force on the first watch but as far as rewatch value goes the monster-of-the-week stuff totally trumps it. Whenever I revisit the show (every couple of years) I tend to skip the overarching episodes and just lose myself in all those wacky, standalone offerings. So many awesomely imaginative monsters.
And in spite of my pseudo-expletive riddled exclamations above, I also agree that the show isn’t perfect. The last few seasons really aren’t that great but boy those first 5 seasons especially are just totally amazing.
“The monster of the week episodes of “The X-files” are beloved favorites I can watch over and over, however the conspiracy/continuing story line occasionally irritated me.”
I agree, 100%.
Where is Brian laying the Dr. Who smackdown on all of youz?
It’s ok josh…people can hate on the Doc, reality is driven in part by a loose set of parameters allowing for moderate free will after all.
Samsies… for literally everything you said in this comment.
There was a lot of teasing the past/future Mad Max episode in this episode. Just sayin’.
It’s on it’s way. DVD release time, probably.
DVD… what’s that?
Dunno. I heard someone say it while pointing to a coaster so I thought I’d say it too.
And by the way, Spacewolfpup, I take exception to your assertion that I’ve not listened to the other shows. I’m a subscriber and a listener. I just prefer HMP.
And I am the secret ingredient. I’m 92% love, 6% farts and 2% magical powers.
Well, now. Maybe. But, until very recently, you didn’t know who THIS Andy Howell was and don’t even say the names of the shows correctly. #realtalk Still love you. Just saying. I have cut audio from the first four TSFP eps to prove it. I think that’s great that our homies support you, though. Haha!
Oh yeah. I’ve always been bad with names of things like shows or songs. I’m guessing it’s my Tourette’s. I’ve been calling our own show “The Science Fiction Weekly Podcast” on accident since day one. I called Movie Podcast Weekly “Weekly Movie Cast” even after I’d listened to a dozen episodes.
I’ve been on the horror podcast but still call it “The Horror Podcast” because even though I’m okay with the talk, I’m apparently no good with repeating things accurately. This is pretty obvious by now, but I probably should work on it a lot more.
In fact, not long ago I was interviewed about the Utah Jazz and couldn’t spell my name right for the guy. I’ve been writing under “Gary the Unicorn” for years but couldn’t spell it correctly over three tries.
I’m hoping it’s stress and not a much deeper issue.
I, on the other hand; never forget peoples names, always say the different correct podcast shows names the right way, and have listened to every episode of every show religiously….
“Owww look at me Marge, I’m making people Happy! I’m the magical man, from Happy Land, who lives in a gumdrop house on Lolly Pop Lane!!!!…… Oh by the way, I was being sarcastic.”
– Homer Simpsons –
I try to do what I can, but it seems to never be enough for Mr. Ligairi.
To my smart phone,
That’s ‘Homer Simpson’, no ‘s’ at the end.
Thanks you.
Coincidentally my Grandma (God rest her soul) used to call that show “The Simpson”
Still laughing…read this yesterday.
Ha
Pedantic nerd comment: When Mattroid was referring to a show which ends with the revelation that the entire series had taken place in the thoughts of an autistic kid he called it “St. Elmo’s Fire” which is the 80’s bratpack movie. I think what he was actually talking about was “St. Elsewhere”.
I wish “St. Elmo’s Fire” had ended that way.
Yep. As one who doesn’t care enough to get the title correct, thank you for the correction.
In fact, I’ve always gotten those mixed up, even though one is a movie and one is show. The weird thing is that Brat Pack is my era, movies I grew up watching and love very much.
So basically, I’m an idiot.
Hey, this is my first time commenting here (after listening to network of HMP, MPW etc. for maybe two years. You guys really helped me surviving anything from daily chores like washing mountains of dishes – that’s what having kids does to you – to being stuck at work. You all are doing stellar work here. I can’t wait to listen to this episode. (Still waiting for tat Fury Road review! ;D) Greetings from Germany!
Hanns! Thanks for finally commenting on one of the shows! The Sci-Fi Podcast brings people out of the wood work! Glad you are enjoying MPW, HMP and TSFP. Have you been over to visit me on MSC yet?
We have about 3 Sci-Fi episodes back-logged that we need to release so expect the Fury Road episode to be timed with the BluRay release, in early September.
Josh
Hanns, welcome. As a huge fan of Germany (I’m the only non-fluent German speaker in my family) and a huge not-fan of dishes I’d like to officially thank you for listening and coming to the boards and contributing. I hope we will hear more from you.
Also, I had a dream that I was wearing a suit made out of yogurt and my boss was upset that I wasn’t sharing with the rest of the people conference room. This has nothing to do with you but it was weird so I thought I’d share anyway.
Last night I had a dream that I was much younger and was sleeping over at the house of a friend who’s parents must have been super rich because the house was huge. I had these three tiny little slug/worm type creatures with me on a credit card type thing in my pocket and I felt this huge well of empathy for them as though I knew them deeply and felt great affection for them and I was desperately trying to keep them alive. I think they needed to be kept hydrated but I was supposed to be watching a film with my friends and I didn’t want them to know about the worm guys so i had to keep going to the bathroom to splash water on them. Then I ended up getting lost trying to find my way around this huge house. After that it goes all blurry but i think in the end the little sluggy guys ended up dying and I was helpless to do anything.
Welcome to comments Hanns. I will drink a German beer in your honour!
Hanns,
You have no idea how much your post means to me.
I feel the exact same way in my life when I listen to podcasts at work.
The fact that I, and my fellow co-hosts had anything to do with helping you get through the day, or work, or whatever, brings me so much personal peace. I don’t want to be a Debbie Downer, but sometimes I just never know if anything I do matters… (I’m not joking).
Wait a minute….Mattroid, no Clone Wars!? It’s great! And it’s CANNON! There’s rumors of Ahsoka Tano showing up in one of the next three sequels! And even then, she made it back for Rebels! Fortunately I have a 9-year old boy obsessed with the show…
I’ve watched some, and I like much of what I’ve seen, but stuff like “Sky-guy” has kept me from getting too involved. The last season stuff with Yoda that I’ve seen, however, was incredible.
cool, yeah the sky-guy stuff is annoying, but there are some great story lines in CW, and Rebels too. I just watched all of the 1996 release original trilogy with my son. Better sound, better picture, no Lucas revisions. I got to actually show him that not only did Han shoot first, but Greedo doesn’t even get a chance to fire!
Yes! I had forgotten Clone Wars as well. A mostly great show…I really liked the last season of lost adventures.
My son (5 y/o) and I just finished the OT and prequels (yes, the prequels), and now we’re on to REBELS. Ramping this baby up for December 18.
Nice. We are planning on doing the same. Our boy will be 2 in November and we are planning on Ep VII being his first movie experience.
That’s pretty awesome. My son’s first movie experience was BRAVE. :-/
His birthday is December 20, and he’s talked about renting out a theater to watch VII for his party. We’ll see… a theater with 20+ screaming 5 and 6 year olds certainly won’t be the first time I see it, though.
Also, I just watched the first (and only so far) season of Other Space. I liked it, even though it wasn’t particularly great right off the bat, I could see some decent character development by the end that made me want to watch more. Anyone else watched it? Check it out, it’s on the Yahoo channel for free.
So where do comedy shows like Spaced and Community fall for you sci-fi people? These only rarely touch specifically on science fiction, but seem to go all the way when they do.
I love comedy scifi, but usually only if it’s more than just a set up or premise; for example, the episodes of the “X-Files” that were designed to be funny were almost always great. Movies like “GalaxyQuest” nail it. The humor in numerous “Star Trek” episodes can be pretty good.
It’s when the purpose is comedy and the vehicle is scifi that I think it’s harder to strike a good balance. With horror it’s the same way, for me, which is why “Cabin in the Woods” was so fun, because it worked, it was self-aware and not pandering to one side or the other. It was probably horror first, I think that could be debated.
Oddly enough, I think the final season of “Parks and Red” could almost be considered lite-scifi, and the touches were pretty cool; it worked. But stuff like “3rd Rock from the Sun,” where it’s “Hey, we are aliens! Now let’s be people,” kind of stuff that usually falls flat for me.
Last season of Parks and Rec = Time Travel! (sort of…future at least.) And Mattroid, you should check out Other Space…maybe you will like it? It’s a comedy Star Trek sort of spoof, I liked it…I think.
Sounds good. Always looking for more stuff I didn’t know I already liked a lot. What?
Has anyone seen the new series HELIX? I’ve heard good things and, judging by the premise, seems to be a sci-fi series.
My father in law is watching it and said its good. Like The Thing meets X-Files, but Station and I have yet to try it.
The tough thing about being more than just a scifi fan is that, even though it’s my favorite genre, there’s just not enough of it. So I (we) get caught up in lots of great non-scifi shows and end up missing some scifi we should probably be on top of from the beginning.
If I was less interested in drama, horror and comedy I’d probably watch all the scifi stuff available. Sadly, I’m just too well rounded (and not just my gut). Dang it all to heck!
Sometimes I get the feeling that Solo just needs a big hug…
…from David
…from your mom.
Ha! There you go.
She’s dead. Thanks.
Well that turned dark quick.
But really, seriously? :/
No, I was just trying to throw off Mattroid.
I’m definitely going to hell now, though. I’m an asshole.
Your mom is so old, she knew the Burger King when he was just a prince.
FYI, TWELVE MONKEYS is now streaming on Showtime Anytime, so I plan to finally watch it sometime soon.
If I can bring up another series that isn’t on the list and wasn’t mentioned at all – SPACE CASES. Chances are, the hosts are too old to remember this Nickelodeon show from the mid 90’s, but I remember loving it as a kid. I went back and re-watched some of the series on Youtube last year and even though it was really cheesy, it still held up for me. The best part is that it was loaded with special guest stars from sci-fi legends including George Takei, Mark Hamill, and Bill Mumy.
You even had Jewel Staite as one of the main stars, a few years before being on Firefly, playing a character that was pretty similar to Kaylee.