HoopleCast: An IntroCast For HBO's Deadwood

Nuchtchas, host of the Nutty Bites podcast joins us for our last recording of 2019. The Great War looms large for the characters of Parade's End (2013), a five-part mini-series based on the novels by Ford Madox Ford. Benedict Cumberbatch stars as Christopher Tietjens, a real "mug" of the landed gentry, who wrestles with his obligations toward his rotter of a wife, Sylvia, and his affections for the far sweeter but nonetheless impassioned suffragette Valentine. It's a comedy, we were told. (14:34 - 1:22:00) ... The backwaters of Louisiana is the setting for True Detective (2014), HBO's crime anthology series that had one good season. When a deceased woman is found artfully posed way out in the sticks, surrounded by sticks, Matthew McConaughey's Rust and Woody Harrelson's Marty are tasked with finding the killer. But not before much ponderous pontificating on mankind's existence in this giant gutter in outer space we call Planet Earth. (1:22:01 - 2:36:10) ... Also, Run and House of the Dragon. (0 - 14:33). This episode is brought to you by The Encyclopædia Britannica. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded December 8, 2019. Released December 31, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

Matt and Steven are back to chat about the season (series?) finale of Watchmen. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded December 18, 2019. Released December 26, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

David Milch's intention to transform his interests/vices vis-à-vis horse racing into a narrative fit for television leads to mixed results in Luck (2012). Dustin Hoffman is out of prison and looking for revenge against those who done him wrong, and his machinations appear to manifest in the form of a constipated race horse. (Don't ask how; we're not sure.) Meanwhile, the greasy degenerates at the track win big in their Pick Six, which will no doubt lead to much drama in subsequent episodes. The hoopleheads know next to nothing about The (Blood)Sport of Kings, so this was mostly an impenetrable affair. (12:35 - 1:15:59) ... In The Newsroom (2012) showrunner Aaron Sorkin interprets real world news stories through the convenient lens of hindsight. Whereas the lamestream media lazily covers the easy stories, the virtuous team at Atlantis Cable News are doing real journalism, mixing dogged determination with zany pratfalls. Jeff Daniels is lead anchor Will McAvoy and Emily Mortimer is MacKenzie McHale, his executive producer who is fresh from a Middle East warzone (if you say so) and eager to Do Better. Their first assignment: the environment disaster caused by BP's Deepwater Horizon. (1:16:00 - 2:21:03) ... Also, Watchmen, His Dark Materials, Dune: The Sisterhood, Station 11, and The Gilded Age. (0 - 12:34) | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded October 20, 2019. Released December 7, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

Matt (Watchmen newbie) and Steve (Watchmen expert) discuss the first two episodes of Damon Lindelof's new (limited run?) HBO series. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded October 29, 2019. Released November 2, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

Happy Halloween from HoopleCast! Claire and Brad, on loan from the podcast Sassy Sewer-Lion Boutique, join Matt for our final commentary of the year. Our friend Timmy O. stars in the horror sequel Scream 2: Secret of the Ooze (1997) as a pretentious film student (redundant) who is out to terrorize Canadian Neve Campbell and her circle of forty-year old college friends. And if you're upset that I just spoiled who the killer was, admit that you were never going to watch this anyway because if you were you would have done so by now. Also be grateful that I spared you the sight of David Arquette's mustache. | Tags: Halloween Horror Nights, Here Comes the PC Police, Always a Stall, What Tipper Gore World Is This, Back to Neutral, America's Sweetheart Jerry O'Connell, Murderer Coming Through Excuse Me, Red Apple Versus Green Apple Fight, This Is Not Fun This Is Upsetting, Diane Sawyer Boner, Increase Mather, Floor Pizza, She's a Local Woman She's Got Local Strength, What Do Theater Students Know About Anything (Absolutely Fucking Nothing), All This Happened Because of Her Whore Mother | VIDEO VERSION: http://bit.ly/2Wuiuvg | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded: October 12, 2019. Released: October 31, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

We're scraping the bottom of the Olyphant barrel with Hitman (2007) for our seventh (!) unnecessary commentary. This is the movie that our friend Tim routinely cites as an embarrassing low in his career, and aside from some impressive fight choreography, we're inclined to agree. More like, Shitman, amiright? | Tags: Have You Painted Me Thanos Stone Yet, Guvner?, The Man Who Would Be Wolverine, No Woman Looks at a Bald Man Like That, What a Terrible Line Delivery, What a Terrible Line, What a Terrible Scene, Brolly Jenkins, Scottish Jim Caviezel, Clone Drone, I Brought You Breakfast, You Ungrateful Trunk Person, Would You Like To Meet My Little Hitman? (He's Bald, Too), Dummies Everywhere Will Be Blown Away, Shooty Shoot Bang Bang The End | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded: August 3, 2019. Released: September 2, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

This is it, folks. The fucking end. There is no more Deadwood. (Unless those cocksuckers at HBO release those deleted scenes, hmmm?) We conclude our coverage of the film with listener feedback, favorite quotes, characters of the episode, and our all-important ratings. We discussed the plot in depth in part one, but did we actually like the fucking thing? Listen and be enlightened. ... Also, Jonathon, Nutty, Mark, Anthony, Chris, Steve, and Robin debate the merits of prohibition in South Dakota. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded July 7, 2019. Released July 30, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

1889. That bald-plated cunt George Hearst has returned to Deadwood to celebrate South Dakota's transition from territory to state. Upon being mother-fucked from a balcony by a pregnant Trixie, Hearst leverages his newly found awareness of Al Swearengen's deception (vis-à-vis the prostitute Jen) against our heroes in a campaign to secure Charlie Utter's land. Trains, telephones, and electric lights may suggest steps toward civilization, but Deadwood remains a hell of a place to make your fortune. Welcome the fuck back. ... Also, Moira and Russell tell us about the catastrophic events of 1879 and 1883, which profoundly impacted our town. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded June 23, 2019. Released June 29, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

The hoopleheads watch the long-awaited, highly-anticipated film. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded: June 1, 2019. Released: June 2, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

Well, that was certainly a finale. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded May 21, 2019. Released May 25, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

Fifteen months later, we conclude the Deadwood RPG campaign "Nature Abhors" in a spectacularly violent fashion. (Cy Tolliver’s corpse as an I.E.D.? Yes, of course, naturally, why not.) Starring: Matt A as Al Swearengen, Carol as Seth Bullock, Matt H as Dan Dority, Mel as Trixie, Nutty as Calamity Jane, and Steve as our GM.| Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded May 17, 2019. Released May 18, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

Matt, Steven, and Will discuss the epic battle that is Winterfell vs. Night King. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded April 30, 2019. Released May 4, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

Is it a stoner comedy? Is it a crime drama? It's neither. It's the sixth in our series of unnecessary commentaries for Timothy Olyphant movies. Claire and Matt watch the very Canadian based-on-a-play movie High Life (2009), which may be a shared universe prequel to The Crazies and may be secretly sponsored by everyone's favorite antacid Pepto-Bismol. Verdict: Not as fun as the Carousel of Progress but more fun than Peter Pan's Flight. | Tags: Oh, Olyphant, Your Hair, Douchebag Hat, Why is There a Horse in the Apartment and What is that Thing on the Ceiling?, Ron Eldard Karate Chop, Cotton Candy as a Delivery Device for Heroin, Kaifer Sunderland, Suck It Up Sprinkle Tits, It's a Record Player!--To eBay I Go!, Trying to Be Tarantino, Moondog, Blame It on the Boogie/Buggie, But That Bathroom, Stage Magic, Pink Chuck Norris, Definitely a Canadian Film. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded: March 24, 2019. Released: 420, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

Kate Winslet stars in Mildred Pierce (2011), a five part adaptation of the James M. Cain novel. Mildred finds herself a grass widow after tossing her dirty bastard of a husband from their hovel due to his affair with a distinctly middle class frump. Now, staring down the barrel of a Depression-era breadline, she's forced to endure the indignities of (shock) waitressing and (double shock) wearing a uniform. Special attention must be paid to Mildred's daughter, Veda, another contender for our list of worst HBO characters. (21:57 - 1:23:33) ... A manipulative, disloyal, self-obsessed parasite like Veda Pierce would fit right in with the cast of Game of Thrones (2011), a sprawling fantasy epic about feuding Houses and the supernatural forces that threaten to unite or destroy them. King Robert Baratheon is headed north to Winterfell following the death of his Hand, and he's brought along with him the entire royal posse, including the Imp and the Incest Twins. When Ma and Pa Stark get a raven in the night alerting them to a murderous scheme hatched by House Lannister things get dot dot dot complicated. (1:23:34 - 3:03:56) ... Also, The Plot Against America, The Outsider, Gorilla and the Bird, Perry Mason, The Many Saints of Newark, and Mare of Easttown. (0 - 21:56) Thanks to our guest host Steve, and warning: we discuss all of Mildred Pierce and some of season one of Thrones. No major character deaths spoiled, but we do reveal a few early plot points. | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded February 17, 2019. Released March 24, 2019. [Warning: Explicit Language.]

Steve, Will and I play the dice game Deadwood 1876. I will not claim this recording is entertaining, or even mildly interesting, but I am including it in the feed for the sake of completeness. Video version: https://goo.gl/4GLW2z | Send feedback to hooplecast@gmail.com. Find our recording schedule, show notes, discussion threads, and more at hooplecast.com. | Recorded January 25, 2019. Released February 5, 2018. [Warning: Explicit Language.]