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Constitutional Role-Play

Constitutional Role-Play

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THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE MANDALORIAN: A brief check-in to the release of Disney+ this week as Andrew reacts to the first episode of their original, Star Wars show, The Mandalorian. He is surprised more at how much it pulls from Westerns than Star Wars.

A LONG TIME AGO, WE USED TO BE FRIENDS: Veronica Mars was always a show that hovered just below wide popularity, but its fans were devoted and supportive. From the original three seasons that aired on UPN/the CW to its Kickstarted movie, to Hulu’s revival with a fourth season, Andrew and D. Bethel did a rewatch of the show and have some thoughts on what it has been, what it is now, and what it could be in the future.

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A crudely done version of the For All Intents logo
No One Wants to Go to Boomertown

No One Wants to Go to Boomertown

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NEW TV NOT ON TV: Some interesting tv has not only been announced but is starting to get reviewed, but what makes it interesting is that a lot of this tv is not on “regular” tv. With services like Disney+ and Apple TV+ bringing some high profile shows to the scene, other services and broadcast tv is also starting to step up their offerings as well.

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  • D. Bethel is tabling this weekend at the Reno Pop Culture Convention (table C17 in Artist Valley):

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I Can Segue

I Can Segue

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THE LAST FIRST: Fallout 76 continues to accidentally grab headlines or, at least, grabs headlines it doesn’t want. After a year of toiling in player complaints, bugs, and marketing schemes gone awry, the game seemed to have found a balance for those still enjoying the experience. Then Bethesda announced (and released) “Fallout First”, a premium subscription for players that would get them a whole host of goodies. In true Fallout 76 fashion, it didn’t take long for this to fall apart in big, bad ways.

Also, November 8-10, D. Bethel will be with his comic, Long John, at the Reno Pop Culture Convention! If you’re in the area, it’s looking to be a great show; so, be sure to stop by and say hi!

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Math That Works

Math That Works

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WEEK IN GEEK: Taking a break from the news, Andrew and D. Bethel talk about the things that have been interesting to them over the last week or so. First, Andrew goes back to finish Unknown Worlds Entertainment’s Subnautica. Then D. Bethel finds much to appreciate––and much to make him uncomfortable––in the recent film, Joker. Then, to round things out, Andrew also gets underwhelmed but intrigued by the possibility found in Lazy Bear Games’ Graveyard Keeper.

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RELEVANT EPISODES:

  • Shortcast 21 – Love the Stank (30 Dec 2016): Where Andrew harvests his experience playing Stardew Valley.
  • Episode 126 – Not Choosable Parts (10 March 2017): Where D. Bethel discusses another challenging comic book movie, Logan.
  • Shortcast 28 – Linguistic Bravado (11 Aug. 2017): Where Andrew and D. talk about Lazy Bear Games’ previous game, Punch Club.
  • It’s Always A Game (08 Feb. 2019): Where Andrew first talked about his time with Subnautica.
  • Tummy Drums (04 Oct. 2019): Where D. Bethel mentions “grotesque” art when discussing Warhammer 40,000 (the show notes also include a link to the Wikipedia explanation of “grotesque” in art and literature).

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Listeners in the Woodwork

Listeners in the Woodwork

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TO ME, MY LITIGATORS: Eyebrows raised recently when a Florida man sued Marvel, Fox, Saban Entertainment, and many other production companies saying that the generation-defining theme song of the ’90s X-Men animated show actually plagiarized a strikingly similar theme of a popular Hungarian tv show from the 1980s. Nerd Law man, Andrew, and X-Men fanatic, D. Bethel, put their heads together to see if this case has any legs to stand on. (A big thanks to friend-of-the-show, André La Roche for his consultation on this topic.)

DISNEY PEMDAS: Last week, Disney made waves as it began an irresponsibly long Twitter thread announcing every title that would be available on its upcoming Disney+ service. D. Bethel and Andrew sort through the announcement, talking about how much this will shift the paradigm of entertainment consumption.

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  • “Nerd Law” by D. Bethel
image source: Blizzard
We Are Mostly Ignorant

We Are Mostly Ignorant

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A BLIZZARD OF CONTROVERSY: Activision Blizzard––makers of such hit games as World of Warcraft, Overwatch, and Hearthstone––have hit a geo-political wall as they take a stance over controversial statements made by the winner of a Hearthstone tournament about the protests in Hong Kong against the People’s Republic of China. Andrew and D. Bethel investigate the complicated relationship between popular American entertainment and China.

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Tummy Drums

Tummy Drums

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NOT FAR FROM HOME: It was announced that Sony and Disney/Marvel had once again struck a deal that will keep Tom Holland’s Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, much to the joy of fans and to the benefit of both companies’ bank accounts. Having discussed the initial breakup back when it happened in August, Andrew and D. Bethel have a surprisingly heated discussion of this generally happy news.

THE STRANGEST HANDSHAKE: British tabletop company, Games Workshop, announced that it will be licensing one of its beloved properties––Warhammer 40,000––to American comic book giant, Marvel Comics, to make a line of comic books. This is interesting because both of Games Workshop’s original Warhammer line and especially its Warhammer 40,000 line have deep lore and continuities that has our hosts wondering how well it will translate to a comic book series.

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  • Ghost Highway (23 August 2019): Where Andrew and D. Bethel talk about the great Sony-Marvel contract dissolution of 2019.
  • New Dangers (20 September 2019): Where, briefly, D. Bethel and Andrew display their light wrestling knowledge in the light of AEW’s strange storyline built around a jock heel wrestler insults his opponent for liking Dungeons & Dragons.

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Reliable Virtual Helmets

Reliable Virtual Helmets

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WEEK IN GEEK: This week, Andrew watches the trippy but artistic and engaging new Amazon Prime show, Undone starring Rosa Salazar, while D. Bethel––amidst all of his academic toil––finds time to be challenged and charmed by the actual roguelike deckbuilding phone game, Meteorfall: Journey by SlothWerks.

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THEY'RE EXACTLY THE SAME
New Dangers

New Dangers

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A WHOLE [KIND OF] NEW WORLD: After waiting well past when the rest of the world saw it, our hosts decide to watch and discuss the 2019 live-action adaptation of the animated Disney classic, Aladdin.

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D. Bethel’s drawing of a shot from the live-action adaptation of Beauty and the Beast.
  • Will Smith’s Instagram video declaring Aladdin the best grossing movie of his career.

 

 
 
 
 
 
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Aladdin just became the biggest movie of my career! I’m honored and I’m Speechless. (You see what I did there?Gotta pay attention) The only thing I can say is… Thank You

A post shared by Will Smith (@willsmith) on

  • Quest for Glory II: Trial By Fire featured an Arabian setting that certainly informed at least two nerds’ knowledge of the setting by the time Aladdin was released in 1992.

RELATED EPISODES:

  • Episode 117 – Five Minutes to Funny (09 Dec. 2016): Where Andrew and D. Bethel have a long talk about rebooting franchises.
  • Episode 130 – Form a Constant Voltron (14 April 2017): Where Andrew gives his thoughts on the live-action adaptation of Beauty and the Beast.
  • Shortcast 56 – Accidental Artistry (25 May 2018): Where D. Bethel and Andrew talk about reboots in the context of the reveal of Thundercats Roar announced by Cartoon Network.
  • A Veritable Odyssey (12 July 2019): Where Andrew and D. Bethel discuss the teaser trailer for the upcoming––and seemingly very different––live-action adaptation of another animated film from the ’90s, Mulan.

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Threadnaught

Threadnaught

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TWO MAN’S SKY: With No Man’s Sky Beyond––the newest big 2.0 patch for the open world, sci-fi survival game, No Man’s Sky––it kind of brings to a close the long, arduous, but ultimately heartwarming story of this unique game by the small team at Hello Games. Andrew and D. Bethel talk about the years-long journey of this game.

“I’M NOT LISTENING”: Amid the stories about the varoius #[Insert Noun]Gates and #MeToo stories circulating through nerd culture, one of the bigger cases in the last year revolved around voice actor, Vic Mignogna, known for work in many anime, especially the Dragon Ball franchise. When allegations were made about his misconduct in the workplace, he started suing people and companies when they started dropping him from their employ. In the last few weeks––in an almost comical fashion––a few of Mignogna’s cases were dismissed, casting his defense and seriousness about this fight in doubt despite crowdfunding nearly $250,000 to pay for his legal fees. Resident nerd lawyer, Andrew, talks Dan through this bizarre moment.

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