Raven On: A Pop Culture Podcast

A fresh trailer for No Time To Die dropped last week, just in time for Natalie & Stu - plus returning pod guest Nick Wiggins - to have a chinwag about its contents, and mutter about what we could expect from Daniel Craig's last outing as the superspy. Please enjoy this mini-episode while Natalie continues to beaver away on the main Die Another Day podcast edit! She's totally on top of it, we swear!

Tonight we're going to podcast like it's 1999, because it's time for The World Is Not Enough! Your Millenium bug-infested hosts are ready to let loose with all their opinions on Pierce Brosnan's third Bond outing, including: the extended pre-credit sequence with Thames boat chase; M16's Scottish base; the last appearance of Desmond Llewelyn as Q and the first of John Cleese; the bait-and-switch villain plot; Renard's bullet-powered invulnerability and poor Denise Richards. Also, exactly what did Natalie learn from her brush-with-fame encounter with Shirley Manson at a dodgy Brisbane music festival circa 2004? Enjoy!

Nat & Stu are right at home this week with Tomorrow Never Dies, aka the "media & journalism" Bond movie. Your scrappy hacks revel in the original drama llama Eliot Carver, Jonathan Pryce's OTT to the extreme megalomaniacal news baron, as well as Bond's remote control car, a handcuffed bike ride with the indomitable Michelle Yeoh, and a STEALTH BOAT. Be prepared for some sidenotes on nerdy schoolies experiences, nerdy journalism election-covering experiences, and a few references to that other boat-related 1997 film. Enjoy!

We're into the Nineties now people, so hold onto your Tamagotchis and Spice Girls and Windows '95 operating systems because Nat & Stu are spooling up GoldenEye and setting it to stun. Bond buff Tom Salinsky rejoins the virtual chatter couch for a deep dive on a rejuvenated, post Cold War 007 franchise, complete with Sean Bean, a tank chase, and a hot lady with killer thighs, and we're not just talking about Dame Judi Dench. Enjoy!

Oh, Timothy Dalton, did you have to leave us so soon? No sooner had we established a thirst, but you turn off the water mains forever. Yes, it's time for Nat & Stu to discuss Licence to Kill, Dalton's second and final Bond outing, which scratches Stu's 80s action movie itch so hard it may as well be a rash. Bond's revenge story, in which he goes up against South American drug baron Sanchez, is full of over the top stunts, feminist babes, bricks of cocaine and dollar dollar bills. And sharks. Your intrepid hosts take some tangential detours into jigsaw puzzles and 90s movies, and Natalie misses an extremely obvious pun.

Natalie has got the vapours and Stu has to bring the smelling salts for this one, because we're into the Dalton era. Yes, finally understanding what her mother has been saying all these years, Natalie finds herself deeply into the D. Special guest Chris Spensley joins Nat & Stu to discuss Timothy Dalton's Bond debut, which features a darker shift in tone, plus a surprisingly romantic relationship with leading lady Kara Milovy. Enjoy!

Nat & Stu are joined by guest Scott Driscoll to dive into Roger Moore's final outing as 007, A View to a Kill. It's a puzzling film, with good ingredients such as Christopher Walken, Grace Jones, and that banging Duran Duran theme, but still ends up a bit... soggy... thanks to a confusing plot featuring horse racing, Nazi experiments and microchips. Enjoy!

In this bonus mini-episode, Natalie reveals to Stu that the fight co-ordinator on "Never Say Never Again" was none other than Steven Seagal. That prompts a merry wend through the now-faded action star's bulky filmography. That's literally it. It's just Seagal Talk. Don't say we didn't warn you.

Never say we don't do anything for you! Ahhh, you see what we did there. Yes, Nat & Stu have taken a sharp detour to put Sean Connery's non-canonical return film "Never Say Never Again" through its deeply weird paces. How does it stand up next to Octopussy, the other film of the Year of Two Bonds? Your delightful pair get excited about the fabulous Fatima Blush (or is that Bush?), detour into psychic encounters for... reasons, and talk all things hairpieces and colonics, which feature far more in this film than you might remember. Enjoy!

We mentioned in the main Octopussy podcast that Phoebe Waller-Bridge, creator of Fleabag, had been brought in to do a script punch-up on No Time To Die. Well, did you know that our very special guest co-host, Tom Salinsky, was there at the very beginning of the Fleabag story?! Check out this mini-pod bonus to hear all about it, plus a few of Tom's other Bond connections.

Nat & Stu are back and have brought special international corresBondent Tom Salinsky with them for a deep dive into Octopussy, oo-er. The 1983 film saw the return of Roger Moore to ensure a good turnout against the long-touted Kevin McClory Thunderball remake "Never Say Never Again", which was also released the same year. It's full of exotic locales, daring action sequences and terrible jokes. There's also an over-abundance of villains with Octopussy, Kamahl Khan and General Orlov all in the OTT mix. Oh yeah, and Bond is in clown makeup, which Tom believes he can defend. Lots to discuss in this episode, so enjoy!

Wait a second, this isn't James Bond! Well-spotted, keen-eyed detectives - this is in fact a "filler" podcast, recorded to give Natalie a chance to catch up on her James Bond writing and editing. Thank you for your patience! Nat & Stu are joined by guests Dan Beeston and Tom Salinsky for a VERY deep dive into 2005 film The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and the broader Hitchhiker's universe. There's also side tangents involving Hamilton, Monty Python, and Natalie's Dad's new Netflix obsession. Enjoy!

Welcome to the Eighties, the decade that brought you your hosts, Nat & Stu! Bond comes back down to Earth in "For Your Eyes Only", investigating a plot to hijack a British missile tracking system and sell it off to the Soviets. There's more ski chasing, the two-faced villain Kristatos, the heart-of-gold smuggler Columbo, a smart and deadly Bond girl in the form of avenging Greek/British goddess Melina Havelock, and a deeply unsettling B-plot featuring a teenage girl's sudden and intense desire to jump a 007 old enough to be her father. For Your Eyes Only has risen in appreciation over the years, but is it enough to convince Nat & Stu to give it a good ranking? Enjoy!

What do you mean, Nat & Stu diverged into Disney discussions when they should have been talking about For Your Eyes Only? With their reputation? Well yes, it was bound to happen. Excised for time, here's what happened when Natalie went off on the Disney films she hasn't seen, which turned into a dissection of the Aladdin stage musical, and finally Hamilton. This was recorded a couple of days before the filmed stage production of Hamilton dropped on Disney on July 3. It's worth a watch while you wait for the main For Your Eyes Only pod (a shabby attempt to equate ourselves with the greatness of Lin-Manual Miranda).

Oh, so you think Star Wars is good? Well, did it have any actual sexy times in space? No? Not even one space sex pun? Then clearly the Bond franchise made a good choice in sending its superspy up above the stratosphere. Nat & Stu are joined by special guest Eloise Dundas-Taylor to discuss Moonraker, the most expensive and expansive 007 film to date - even if there are rather a lot of similarities to The Spy Who Loved Me. From gondola hovercrafts, to a batshit plan to create a master race in outer space, to the return of Jaws, your three analysts have it covered. Enjoy!

Would you believe Nat & Stu spoke for three hours about The Spy Who Loved Me? You would? Yeah, it checks out. Anyhoo, here's an extra bit of content about the film that was cut for time, in which Natalie goes through the copious notes she took while watching one of her fave Bond films.

Things get raunchy as Nat & Stu dive deep into one of the best films of the Bond franchise, with Natalie discovering hitherto unknown levels of thirst for Roger Moore's Bond. 2020 is bringing up all sorts of surprises. Your intrepid culture vultures pick over the delicious meat that is The Spy Who Loved Me, including the amazing Triple X, the gloriously ridiculous lair of creepy fish-man Stromberg, the fantastic Lotus Esprit (underwater model), and the mighty menace that is Jaws. The film was so much fun to discuss, a lengthy bit has been chopped out to form a follow up podcast, so keep your eyes out. Enjoy!

Roger Moore's round two is routinely rubbished - but what say Nat & Stu? Can the presence of Dracula and Saruman himself, Christopher Lee, raise the bar? What are the optics and/or politics of having a little person as a henchman? Are the women underserved by the script, or is it just bad acting? Did this film tank solar energy in the popular mind?And how good is that kung fu fight scene? These and many more discussion points are raised in this super-flared edition of Raven Bond. Enjoy!

Why IS Natalie so obsessed with James Bond? That's what guest host Dan Beeston wanted to know during the Live and Let Die podcast. For time purposes, we excised it from the main pod, but here it is as bonus content. Enjoy!

Nat & Stu don their flared safari suits to welcome Roger Moore to the role of James Bond in 1973's Live and Let Die. The pair is joined by Dan Beeston from the Smart Enough to Know Better podcast to talk about the first Bond film that had a predominantly African-American cast, but also a heavy tread into blaxsploitation territory. Along the way, Solitaire has a problematic love scene, Bond has a lengthy boat chase, Kananga explodes in several ways, and Bondfind out what it's like to wear Crocs. Enjoy!

Sean Connery returns for his final canonical appearance as 007 in the first Bond film of the 1970s, and it's a diamond-encrusted doozy. There's Plenty O'Toole-ing about with Nat & Stu as they chat about why Connery came back, the numerous memorable set pieces, the somewhat problematic henchmen Mr Wint & Mr Kidd, and Tiffany Case's tiny pants. Natalie also invents the term "Flying Gusset", so that's a thing. Enjoy!

Holy podcast filler, Batman! It's Nat and Stu, the caped crusaders of pop culture communications! Yes, because they rambled on waaaay too long about Diamonds Are Forever, Nat has excised two chunks of chat in which she and Stu randomly decide to do a Batman podcast after James Bond; and also talk about the infamous "Snyder Cut" of Justice League. There's also a concluding anecdote about going to see Heaven's Gate which is thankfully much shorter than that notorious flop film. This won't be in the full DAF podcast, but it still somewhat fun, if you like Batman and that sort of thing. Enjoy!

By George (Lazenby), it's a new James Bond! Nat & Stu are joined by journalist and film buff Nick Wiggins to discuss the strange parcel that is 1969's On Her Majesty's Secret Service. There's the marvellous Diana Rigg, the enigmatic Telly Savalas, the brazen editing and special effects - and of course, the Boy from Queanbeyan himself in his only Bond outing. Enjoy!

It's time for James Bond to make like 1980's one-hit wonders The Vapors - he's "Turning Japanese". Yes, your hosts Nat & Stu, two very white people, grapple with the incredibly uncomfortable plot twist of You Only Live Twice that sees 007 disguised as a Japanese man. Natalie tries to find explanations in the differences between the book and film, while Stu is mostly horrified. There's also a bunch of fun stuff in this movie, including the first appearance of Ernst Stavro Blofeld and his massive volcano lair, Little Nellie the gyrocopter, and a ninja training school. Enjoy!

Once again, Nat & Stu are recording long podcasts for the James Bond retrospective, which means some necessary cutting. But this was a fun 10 minutes which we thought it worth sharing as its own little teaser. A discussion of the depiction of Bond's two Japanese female leads as relatively "innocent" (which will be in the main podcast), Natalie started reminiscing about Beyonce's casting in Goldmember, which leads her and Stu down a rabbit hole in which they discover Billie Eilish's new theme for No Time To Die has actually been released, and somehow they missed it. So they listen to it, and react accordingly. Plus there's some Shirley Bassey in there for good measure. Enjoy!

Nat & Stu bring the thunder this week to discuss the fourth film in the franchise and it's "biggest" to date (certainly in terms of length), Thunderball. With Natalie still emotionally bonded to this movie, it's up to Stu to explain just how overly long and in need of an edit it is. There's some wibbley-wobbley-timey-wimey stuff happening as well, despite Bond most definitely being on the clock to retrieve two stolen nuclear weapons. Still, there's a lot of fun with SPECTRE, some very beautiful ladies, some very blatant sexual harassment, and Stu's delight in discovering the jetpack in the pre-credit sequence was in fact real. Also, at 46.20 mark you may just hear Natalie's best-ever quip. She's certainly proud of it. Enjoy!

GOLD-FINGER! Admit it, you just did the "bwap bwaaa-bwaaa"s in your head. You can't HELP it when it comes to Shirley Bassey's first Bond theme and one of the all-time great Bond movies. Join Nat and Stu as they deep dive into the third film instalment of the 007 series and the way it established so much of what we consider "Bond" DNA. Also, more talk about James Bond's magical penis as it pertains to the lesbianism of Pussy Galore; plus Natalie has a weird theory about Auric Goldfinger's sexual fetish. Enjoy!

A tasty little morsel from the upcoming Goldfinger Raven Bond podcast that will be excised because the rest of the damn thing is LONG! Nat got predictably distracted when pointing out that Felix Leiter is seen waiting outside a Kentucky Fried Chicken while surveilling Bond. This podcast is in no way sponsored by KFC but WE WELCOME IT DEAL LORD GIVE US ALL THE CHICKEN

Grab your tear gas canister briefcase, strap on your shoes with the poisoned pointy spikes, and get cracking with Nat & Stu on the cracker film that is "From Russia With Love". Bond is in Istanbul getting lured into love for a Lektor, ably assisted by the brilliant M16 station head Ali Kerim Bey, and pursued by the evil Rosa Klebb and her assassin Red Grant. There's also talk of the stunning Tatiana Romanova's agency thrown in, plus more highly non-topical Torvill & Dean references than you would expect in a Bond podcast.

Welcome to Raven Bond, the James Bond-themed offshoot of the Raven On pop culture podcast! Nat & Stu are turning their eyes to the longest-running film franchise, and Natalie's personal favourite. The pair start, as linear time requires, with the 1962 big screen debut of 007 - Dr No. It's a spy movie until it becomes a Bond movie, and your sly hosts wriggle their way from one genre to the other, by way of some excellent action shots, the immortal white belted bikini, some top notch villainry and a pair of incredibly high-waisted pants. Enjoy!

Yes, you cool cats and kittens, it's time for Nat and Stu to take on the behemoth that is "Tiger King"! Join your favourite (?) podcasters as they grapple with the world of Joe Exotic, the characters at the Wynnewood Zoo and beyond, and of course the large predatory cat in the room - did Carole Baskin really feed her husband to the tigers? Thanks so much for listening!

Well, looks like the shoddy Doctor Who season wasn't "literally the worst" after all. With the COVID-19 outbreak escalating, Natalie forced Stu to join her via Skype for a random podcast on all things viral. The pair try to establish a new normal - but they're also keen to hear your ideas about other stuff they could podcast about to pass the time. Warning: may contain Natalie ranting about support needed for the arts sector (and her cat rescue). Enjoy!

Strap yourselves in, because this is a long one! Nat & Stu are joined by Dan from the Smart Enough to Know Better podcast to talk all things Doctor Who season finale. There's a lot to digest about "The Timeless Children", much of which gets stuck halfway down the small intestine. Your intrepid hosts gallantly play the role of pop culture psyllium husk in the hope this too shall pass. Enjoy!

Nat & Stu are back, with Nat uncomfortably keen to update everybody on her health, leading to a wild Inception-style tangent stack into June Dally-Watkins, 90s-era deportment courses and egregious hormone use on teenage girls. Eventually they crack open this week's Doctor Who episode, which starts with the Doctor conveniently parking the TARDIS far enough away to allow PLOT to occur. Nat & Stu still aren't entirely sure of what the Lone Cyberman's plans/goals are, but admit they're mostly enjoying trying to figure it out. The most fun is had discussing the "Brendan" flashback subplot, which very much proves writer Chris Chibnall has a *thing* for throwing young men off cliffs. We're just sayin.' Thanks for listening, and enjoy!

Natalie has not been well, which accounts for the first ten minutes of this episode describing symptoms to her long-suffering co-host Stu that were probably not necessary. But still, it hopefully sets the scene for the spookiness of the Doctor's trip back to Lake Geneva circa 1816, in which Frankenstein may or may not be written, and Mary or Percy Shelley may be the most important person in history. There's Lone Cyberman talk, joy at the Doctor having to make tough (house) calls, and predictions for the final two-parter. Also Stu keeps Nat up to date with what's happening in pop culture due to her utter inability to keep up with the kids. Enjoy!

Nat is back in Brisbane but suffering from serious gym-related physical pain, so is back on Skype with Stu for "Can You Hear Me?". There's a general feeling that this was a mixed bag, with some cool spooky concepts (such as Kevan Lannister's immortal fingering) but a slightly odd take on mental health, conflicting fears and nightmares. There was also a HYPER WEIRD scene between Graham and The Doctor, feeding the theory that 13 is a sociopath. Enjoy!

Natalie's been roller skating and crashed on her head, which might explain another long episode of Who's Raven On. However, she and co-host extraordinaire Stu also discover there's way more crap in this episode than you initially think on first viewing. So there's a lot of pointing out the messy joins in "Praxeus". There's also a TON of radio in-jokes that will be really funny to maybe three people. Greg from the Smart Enough to Know Better podcast also joins in the fun; plus Stu brings a lot more pop culture news and views to the table, including Star Trek: Picard; Marvel and Witcher.

Hells bells, wasn't that just the darnedest good episode of Doctor Who in a long time?! Nat & Stu are back to swoon over the platoon of Judoon near a lagoon (or canal); not to mention all the other VERY EXCITING REVEALS in this episode. They're so focused, they even forget to do lengthy sidebars about other topics. That's how thrilling this episode was! Enjoy.

Saddle up for another deep dive, as Nat & Stu connect via Skype to chat all things Nikola Tesla. Turns out this episode was... fun? A nice change from last week. Electricity and scavenging scorpion creatures make for a good time. Greg from the "Smart Enough to Know Better" podcast also weighs in; plus there's a bunch of other pop culture news, including the return of Captain Picard and the somewhat questionable first images from "The Watch", the adaptation of Terry Pratchett's classic Discworld novels. Tune in and drop out, y'all!

Natalie and Stu catch up via Skype to talk about the general disappointment that was "Orphan 55", the third episode of this season of Doctor Who. Disappointment is one word - "giant unholy and rather preachy mess" are several more. Greg from the Smart Enough to Know Better podcast even chimes in to express his A n G e R Y feelings about this relaxing-spa-trip-gone-wrong-oh-wait-it-turns-out-it-was-man sermon of a show. Apologies for the tardiness ("Tardis-ness"?!?) of this upload - Natalie has been in Perth getting a show up and running. Check out www.actreact.com.au if you want to see what she's up to!

Greetings! Nat & Stu were able to do a Skype hook-up to discuss the second part of the Doctor Who adventure "Spyfall". They discuss the rollicking adventurous nature of it, complete with historical badass ladies and just plain bad old Nazis. They also check in with Dan and get his written suggestions on the episode after his tirade last time. And they put the call out for fans to "call in" (or, you know, leave a comment), on what you reckon "The Timeless Child" is, was, means, represents, etc. Enjoy!

Welcome to the first podcast of 2020! Another year of what Natalie calls "friendship" but what Stu might call "getting press-ganged into indulging more of Nat's rambling opinions on things she is mostly unqualified to comment upon"! This time, Dan from the "Smart Enough to Know Better" podcast joins Nat & Stu to discuss "Spyfall Part 1", the New Year's Day episode of Doctor Who, which turns out to be the start of the latest season. Lots of chats about spies, Stephen Fry, and that "O" guy. Enjoy!

It's the last Raven On podcast for 2019! Natalie & Stu are joined by Greg from the "Smart Enough to Know Better" podcast to recap the final episode of season one of "His Dark Materials", before launching into a discussion of all things "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker". As an aside, the title "Garbage" is inspired by Natalie's Dad, who accidentally calls in to the podcast just moments after it gets underway. According to Marcus, most everything is garbage, especially that whole Star Wars business. Thanks to all listeners who've stuck with us during our final Game of Thrones podcasts this year (including our live audiences!), and for going with us as we experiment with other shows. See you in 2020!

Nat attempts to surprise Stu with a belated birthday cake, and accidentally creates the new broadcast format "cake-casting". The subsequent sugar rush allows the chatty pair to rave on for nearly three hours, but that's OK, because at least they're not out on the streets causing trouble. Chill out and enjoy many thoughts on the penultimate episode of His Dark Materials, including the BEAR FIGHT, before a deep velvety dive into the final episode of Watchmen, including eggs, dong placement, fancy pants and even trivial things like the nature of time and contextual links in pop culture. Or something. Enjoy!

Look, Baby Yoda is only tangentially mentioned in this podcast, but the name just stuck. That's right, Nat & Stu are back in the same room and raring to go HARD on Ep 6 of "His Dark Materials" and Ep 8 of "Watchmen". Strap yourselves in for an epic run-time, because there's a lot to talk about. There are problematic daemons, Mrs Coulter back walking the corridors and the destruction of Bolvangar in HDM, while Angela and Dr Manhattan's love story gets the wibbley-wobbley timey-wimey treatment in Watchmen. Lots of tangents along the way of course, plus a bunch of pop culture catching-up on topics such as James Bond, Wonder Woman, Doctor Who, and Disney Plus (hence Baby Yoda). Enjoy!

It's a particularly spell-binding episode, as Natalie had just seen the first instalment of "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" play before catching up with Stu via Skype. Natalie's increasing exhaustion means this is the shortest episode to date, clocking in at just over an hour. What?! Still, the pair manage to shoot the breeze over Episode 5 of "His Dark Materials", which Natalie found more entertaining than Stu, mostly because the Panserbjorne lost the Panser to go exploring with Lyra. The pair then get cracking on Episode 7 of "Watchmen", which featured more twists and turns than a licorice rope in a Gravitron. Also: farting, courtesy of Adrian Veidt. Enjoy!

Nat & Stu are back on Skype this episode, given Natalie has been running around Nakatomi Plaza as part of "Die Hard: The Movie, The Play" and could only podcast very late at night. It's another long episode as your daring duo discuss two great episodes of TV - Episode 4 of "His Dark Materials" and Episode 6 of "Watchmen". There's armoured bears and aleithiometers galore, plus the exquisitely told origin story of Will Reeves/Hooded Justice. Plus a tangent in which your heroic hosts grapple with the merciless march of time. Enjoy!

This week, Nat & Stu drag special guest - Greg, from the Smart Enough to Know Better podcast - down to their level, as they get stuck into His Dark Materials Episode 3 and Watchmen Episode 5. There's all manner of tangents about fantasy, and space, plus a lot of respect for the synchronicity of the joke "squid pro quo". Enjoy another lengthy chin-wag around the microphone!

It's a cross-city chat as Nat & Stu Skype the latest Raven Dong/Daemon On episode. This girthy instalment covers Episode 2 of His Dark Materials, which features Ruth Wilson walking down a series of corridors, and Lyra essentially trapped in a golden cage like some sort of metaphor. Your intrepid interlocutors then turn their attention to Episode 4 of Watchmen, which featured more batshit crazy stuff such as Jeremy Irons in jodhpurs pulling swamp clone babies out of crab pots, and Stu's new favourite (and practical!) superhero, "Lube Man". Strap yourselves in!

Nat & Stu reunite to yabber on about not one, but TWO, new series. First up it's His Dark Materials, the BBC/HBO production of Phillip Pullman's popular young adult series. There's a lot of discussion about what a "Daemon" is, and whether or not it needs to poop, along with how to do exposition in a fantasy series. Please note! Natalie has read the books, and while she has forgotten most of it, is trying very hard not to reveal any possible book spoilers. The BBD of the title stands for "Big Blue Dong", because hooooo boy there's a lot of wang talk this episode when it comes to Watchmen. Stu confesses his instant, undying love for Laurie Blake, FBI vigilante buster extraordinaire, and there's speculation about where exactly Jeremy Irons IS. Once again, spoilers for both the book and TV series. It's another big listen, but we hope you enjoy it. Or not, if you're a masochist. :P