The Geek Agenda

In which Thom & Andru ping-pong between the past and the future with Team Bregman (Lauren on the Skype, Bernie in the studio) and Travis J Coleman, marveling at Raiders Of The Lost Ark's IMAX resurrection while counting down the days to the Nerds Like Us premiere of FDR American Badass and Castle Corsetry's adventures at Comickaze Expo 2012. Plus, proxy drum solos, nerdy underpants, and whatever happened to Rick Moranis, anyway? Music by Wonderboy

In which Thom relentlessly ball-hogs the conversation with tales of his recent trip to Europe and the pop-cultural windfall reaped therein, but Andru, along with Chris Jackson and Robbie Rist of The Spoon, still manage to get a few edgewise words in about the bequeathment of The Beatles, an influx of indies, and the future of foodies. Plus, tales of the legendary brown cheese, and the show's theme song now has lyrics... of a sort.

In which Thom & Andru catch up with Bernie Bregman, who makes a strong bid for the position of the show's official sports geek, despite his "meh" attitude toward this year's Olympics. Also on the docket: further Comic Con decompression, a round of Repo madness, and the multi-pronged legacy of Jurassic Park, which just happens to be August's midnight movie from Nerds Like Us. Top of the line episode, spared no expense!

In which Thom and guest co-host Travis J Coleman extol the virtues of pop-culture pet names, lament their lack of Sorkinesque smoothness, put the goth back into Gotham City (moderate spoilers for The Dark Knight Rises), spot Imperial shuttles in unexpected places, and get cranky about the uselessness of competing fandoms for something like the 427th time. All in all, a successful venture, and no wildebeests were harmed.

In which Thom & Andru swap stories with filmmakers David Barras and Scott MacKay about the vast joys and perils of Comic Con 2012, the creation of the duo's geektastic film Electric Man, and their adventures in combining the two. Plus, the importance of fantasy, the bonding power of 2% jokes, and the rare times when meeting one's heroes doesn't suck.

In which Thom & Andru pre-funk for 2012's San Diego Comic Con with the help of Amanda Lynne Shafer and Lauren Matesic Bregman (aka Phoenix and Diamond Dove from Birds Of 'Play) who are more than happy to share their con-related ambitions, anecdotes, and advice for the overwhelmed first-timer (aka Thom). Also, the joys of extended editions and second breakfasts, and drawing the line on nerd hipsterism. Again. Music by Kielen King.

In which Thom & Andru search for verisimilitude in a sea of Sorkinisms, facial prosthetics, deus ex viruses, anachronistic ratings data, and unexpected Tatum reevaluation. Travis J Coleman is also on hand to offer opinions and anecdotes concerning Ted, Brave, Haywire, and Magic Mike, then delves a little deeper for the pilot episode of The Newsroom (moderate spoilers, as well as some for the first season of Farscape.)

Episiode 066: Of Being Excellent And Progging On In which Thom & Andru surf a tsunami of 80s nostalgia whilst catching up with Bernie Bregman of Nerds Like Us on their next midnight movie, new adventures in shadowcasting, and healing the jock/nerd divide. Then, Thom chats with Marillion guitarist Steve Rothery about the power of crowd-sourcing, the art of a great set list, and the redemption of progressive rock, whilst mostly managing to curb his inner fanboy. Mostly.

In which Thom & Andru roll out the red carpet for the return of Brian Peck, who is more than happy to discuss science fiction without the science, Charlie Sheen without the dysfunction, and how he ended up on the DVD commentary for X-Men, amongst other topics. Then, a brief chat with Joel McCrary on the music and mayhem of Fellowship!, the musical parody of Fellowship Of The Ring, which is ending it's LA run this month.

In which Thom & Andru frisbee-dog their way through fandom frustrations, pretty puzzle-boxes, cinematic shame lists, semi-intended sequels, and more with movie uber-geek Travis J Coleman. Plus, 4th week favorites, multiple calls, and a dose of Mac love (not to mention Mac & Me love.) Mild spoilers for Prometheus (go see it already!) and Dark Shadows.

In which Thom & Andru catch up with Aaron Duran on the state of Portlandian pop-culture, the continuing saga of La Brujeria, and a special focus on All Things Alien, including the admonishment that one should avoid viewing Prometheus through xenomorph-colored glasses. Plus, 4th week favorites, the importance of 1963 in nerd culture, and a spoiler-free review of Snow White And The Huntsman.

In which Chris Jackson, Robbie Rist, and Travis Coleman team up with Andru to give Thom the best birthday present ever: an episode of the show where he barely has any verbal weight to lug around at all. A chaotic cornucopia of conversation ensues, much of it concerning ruination in pop culture -- what has been ruined, how it was ruined, who deserves blame for ruining it -- all leading up to a question which pops the soap bubble of the premise, and leaves us all wondering if fandom simply boils down to swimming in solipsistic Matrices of our own making. Plus, influences both comic and cosmic, adventures in RPG pronunciation, and movie mash-ups with the potential to save civilization as we know it.

In which Thom & Andru join forces with Amanda Lynn Shafer of Birds Of ‘Play and Bernie Bregman of Nerds Like Us to shine a light on shadowcasting, de-sharpen the LED spearhead, direct traffic at the intersection of cons and cosplay, and spend an inordinate amount of time reviewing a film that none of them have seen. Plus, 4th Week favorites, the Visa Theater’s latest 35mm adventures, and Thom commits geek heresy...twice.

In which Thom & Andru set out to separate the high-performing from the user-friendly, the hipster from the reactionary, the Young Avengers from the Tiny Toons, the Ds from the 3s, the ETX from the IMAX, and, perhaps most crucially, the battleships from Battleship. Plus, the danger of conflating an artist with their fan base, the great strides being made in the fields of phantom keyboards and carbonite effigies, and the importance of remembering that no matter what our differences, everyone is red on the inside... except for Spock.

In which Thom welcomes movie ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary Grae Drake back to the show, to regale one and all with tales of drunken junkets, star-power subversion, and the thin line between critic and journalist. Then, our dynamic duo searches in vain for superlatives potent enough to describe the joy that The Avengers hath wrought. If you haven't yet seen the movie (yeah, right) beware of random acts of spoilers. And swooning.