Fade to Lack

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The Weekly Stuff with Jonathan Lack & Sean Chapman is a weekly audio podcast, and if you subscribe on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts, episodes will be delivered automatically and for free as soon as they are released. Visit www.weeklystuffpodcast.com for a complete archive of streaming and downloadable episodes.

Monday, July 19, 2021

Weekly Suit Gundam #34 – Mobile Suit Gundam AGE Arcs 1 & 2 (Episodes 1-28) Review & Discussion

It’s time for Weekly Suit Gundam, a show exploring the world of Mobile Suit Gundam from The Weekly Stuff Podcast with Jonathan Lack & Sean Chapman. You can subscribe for free in iTunes by following this link.

Continuing on to the next full-length Gundam series, we reach Mobile Suit Gundam AGE, Sunrise’s 2011 collaboration with video game giant Level-5, whose lead creative Akihiro Hino conceived of and wrote this child-friendly Gundam series that spans 3 protagonists over 3 successive generations in a century-long space conflict. AGE did poorly upon its initial airing in Japan, and has suffered a quiet and often negative reputation in years since. But we don’t think that reputation is deserved – through its first two arcs, at least, AGE is an imperfect but extremely compelling show, with a really cool central narrative conceit, great characters, and some really interesting ideas that take Gundam to places it had never been before. At the very least, it’s a show worth giving a serious shot, and in this first part, covering Arcs 1 & 2 and episodes 1 through 28, we aim to do just that.

Enjoy, and come back in two weeks for Part 2 of Mobile Suit Gundam AGE, with episodes 29 – 49!

Subscribe for free to 'The Weekly Stuff' in Apple Podcasts!

The Weekly Stuff Podcast #386 – Mobile Suit Gundam AGE Arcs 1 and 2 Review & Discussion

Today’s main topic is another Weekly Suit Gundam extravaganza, but before that, we also give first impressions on The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD for Nintendo Switch, react to Valve’s announcement of the Steam Deck portable PC gaming console, and talk about Jonathan’s nostalgic binge of American TV classic ER, and the wonderful, helicopter-related absurdities of the network TV dramas of yore. But then it’s time for Mobile Suit Gundam AGE, Sunrise’s 2011 collaboration with video game giant Level-5, whose lead creative Akihiro Hino conceived of and wrote this child-friendly Gundam series that spans 3 protagonists over 3 successive generations in a century-long space conflict. AGE did poorly upon its initial airing in Japan, and has suffered a quiet and often negative reputation in years since. But we don’t think that reputation is deserved – through its first two arcs, at least, AGE is an imperfect but extremely compelling show, with a really cool central narrative conceit, great characters, and some really interesting ideas that take Gundam to places it had never been before. At the very least, it’s a show worth giving a serious shot, and in this first part, covering Arcs 1 & 2 and episodes 1 through 28, we aim to do just that.

Enjoy!

Time Chart:

Intro & Stuff: 0:00:00 – 0:37:40

News: 0:37:40 – 1:01:09

Gundam AGE: 1:01:09 – 4:00:12

Subscribe to the WEEKLY SUIT GUNDAM Podcast!

Subscribe for free to 'The Weekly Stuff' in Apple Podcasts!

Monday, July 12, 2021

The Weekly Stuff #385 – Batman on Film Part 10: THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (2012) with Christian Bale

Our Batman on Film series reaches the end of the Christopher Nolan era with 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises, the infuriatingly bad final chapter that amps the noxious politics, bad pacing, and frustrating characterization of the first two films up to 11. While Tom Hardy’s inspired performance as Bane is as entertaining as even, 9 years on it’s impossible to ignore the film’s terrible script, endlessly convoluted plotting, and elitist right-wing worldview complete with a strong dose of militaristic cop-aganda. This might be our most exasperated Batman discussion to date, but also one of the most engaging. And before all that, we’ve got an hour of stuff – like Jonathan’s adventures watching movies with Giant Robots – and news, including Nintendo’s OLED Switch announcement, the reveal of Assassin’s Creed Infinity, and the reveal of Genshin Impact’s big 2.0 update later this month.

Enjoy!

Time Chart:

Intro & Stuff: 0:00:00 – 0:18:36

News: 0:18:36 – 0:57:07

The Dark Knight Rises: 0:57:07 – 3:44:57

Stream The Weekly Stuff Podcast Episode #385

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Monday, July 5, 2021

Weekly Suit Gundam #33 – Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash Movie Review & Discussion

Premiering worldwide on Netflix this week after its debut in Japanese theaters last month, Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash is the first film in a planned trilogy adapting original Gundam creator Yoshiyuki Tomino’s trio of novels from 1989-1990, following the exploits of Hathaway Noa 12 years after the events of Char’s Counterattack. And it’s a terrific start to this new film series, offering some of the best animation, music, set pieces, and writing in the history of the franchise. From Tomino’s characteristically rich writing to the complex and nuanced vocal performances to how this story fits into the larger cycle of Tomino’s original Gundam saga, Hathaway’s Flash offers so many rich avenues for discussion, making for a podcast that’s an hour longer than the film itself, and could have gone on much longer still.

Enjoy, and come back in two weeks for Part 1 of our Mobile Suit Gundam AGE review, where we’ll cover Episodes 1 – 28!

Subscribe for free to 'The Weekly Stuff' in Apple Podcasts!