The Incomparable Mothership

Our many-part analysis of “The Force Awakens” continues. In this episode we praise the casting of Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac, and ponder how the diversity of the “Star Wars” universe has increased. Plus, did Luke hide something in all the droids? Why does Finn hold a lightsaber like a baseball bat? Why would one of the Weasley brothers become a fascist? And ultimately, why is this film redemptive for the franchise as a whole?

In this installment of our continuing coverage of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” our East Coast panel gushes a little, complains about Starkiller Base a little, ponders “The Force Awakens” as a buddy movie, copes with death, and tries to imagine what it will be like to get a new “Star Wars” movie every year. Also, Scott keeps bringing up “Star Trek.”

Lots of people have opinions about “The Force Awakens,” and it’s sort of our charter to overdo it when it comes to “Star Wars.” So this week we’re presenting several follow-up panels about this new film. In this installment, we travel across the pond for a panel predominantly made up of residents of the UK. Why are there Scottish people in space? Who is the face of fresh young fascism? Where can we get red replacement arms?

After three years of anticipation, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” is finally here, and our panel of “Star Wars” fans is ready to review it. So here we go.

With “The Force Awakens” only a week away, we pause to ponder why we’ve anticipated this film release for more than three years. What spoilers have we avoided? (This episode certainly contains none.) What does it mean that “Star Wars” is now an extended film franchise releasing new films annually? How many times are we going to see the film next weekend, and how will we find time to podcast about it? And perhaps most importantly, can any new “Star Wars” movie ever possibly hope to capture the excitement we felt when we discovered these films as children?

On this Old (Holiday) Movie Club, we review a certifiable Christmas classic, “Miracle on 34th Street.” Then we watch a very different sort of film set on Christmas, “The Lion in Winter.”

Join us as we revisit three childhood holiday TV classics, 1964’s “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” 1965’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” and 1966’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” You’ll learn about Big Santa’s despotic reign over the Grotto of Malfunctioning Headlamps, groove to Schroeder’s piano jazz trio stylings, and may even discover a Hoober-Bloob or two.

We tackled “Her” and “Ex Machina,” two films about artificial women and the men who love them. But while Scarlett Johansson’s Samantha wants to send a ‘Dear John’ update to all humanity, Alicia Vikander’s Ava has more in mind than pleasant dinner conversation. What do these films say about online relationships, society’s power dynamics, and tech-industry culture?

We have seen tens of thousands of years into the future, and our best psychohistorians think the Galactic Empire will once again reign supreme… so long as there aren’t any surprise mutants or aliens. In this episode, we discuss Isaac Asimov’s classic “Foundation” trilogy. From the perspective of 2015, what still works, and what seems out of date? Plus: What else are we reading?

This week came the announcement we’ve been waiting for: A new “Star Trek” series is in the works. But with the announcement came a bunch of interesting details (it’s going to be exclusive to CBS’ streaming service, it’s going to be produced by one of the co-writers of the J.J. Abrams “Star Trek” movies) and a lack of specifics (they’re still interviewing writers and didn’t announce even the most basic of premises). Our panel of Star Trek fans analyzes the interesting decisions CBS has made so far, tries to imagine how a “Star Trek” series from 2017 might differ from its predecessors, and discusses the importance of creating a series that can keep the franchise alive by appealing to a new generation of fans.

On Halloween, our Rocket Surgery series takes us to the swinging ’60s and the height of NASA space exploration at Kennedy Space Center! In this corner, a robot astronaut named Frank! In that corner, a horde of invading aliens and their terrifying monster! In between, a bunch of stock footage, a very ’60s soundtrack, a bunch more stock footage, scientists riding scooters, the least sexy beach bikini scene ever, some military stock footage, and a party where everyone is wiggling their butts until the guy on the diving board is lasered to death. And did we mention the stock footage?

It is a great day, comrades. We will sail our submarine to America, and watch one of their greatest thrillers, 1990’s “The Hunt for Red October.” Join us as we talk about how time has made the cold-war themes feel even more classic, ponder why the movie works despite plenty of signs suggesting that it shouldn’t, and… well, let’s just say we do a lot of Sean Connery impressions. This podcast contains one ping only, so don’t slip on your tea!

We all went and watched “The Martian” at movie theaters and then came home and joined together to talk about it! From Vicodin-topped potatoes to shiny zoomy space stuff, we work the problem to provide something a bit more informative than a Tumblr full of sad pictures.

Our Book Club reconvenes to cover two books that are both sort of about the end of the world: Paolo Bacigalupi’s “The Water Knife” and Neal Stephenson’s “Seveneves.” Regional apocalypses versus worldwide apocalypses! Plus, what else are we reading?

The premiere of ABC’s new comedy “The Muppets” prompts us to look at the entirety of the Muppet universe and lore, from TV to movies to viral videos. We also ponder what’s wrong with the new ABC series, posit some theories about how Kermit went from “Sesame Street” to “The Muppet Show,” and participate in an impromptu Muppet draft. Don’t felt, don’t tell.

Our pointless search for the best superhero concludes. In these final rounds, we challenge our heroes (and their advocates) with devilish scenarios suggested by Incomparable listeners! Our advocates face a jury of their peers, leading to a final confrontation with our two remaining heroic contestants. Our final pairings are: (1) Spider-Man vs. (2) Captain America (5) Doctor Strange vs. (3) The Flash (1) Batman vs. (2) Wonder Woman (12) The Thing vs. (2) Wolverine

Our interests in reading and technology collide in this survey of books about computers and the tech industry, using the 20th anniversary of Douglas Coupland’s “Microserfs” as the jumping off point. Soldering irons and circuit boards! Berkeley hippies fighting German hackers! Early signs of the tech industry’s ongoing mistreatment of workers! Glenning! Join us in a trip through technology’s past, all the while keeping an eye on where we are today.

We discuss two notable TV series from the summer of 2015, “Mr. Robot” and “Humans.” They’re both excellent. One is about humans, and one is about robots (or not), but not the ones you might think from the titles.

Old Movie Club returns with two films featuring George C. Scott: “The Hustler” (featuring an electric performance by Paul Newman) and “Anatomy of a Murder” (starring Jimmy Stewart as a simple country lawyer). One more outburst and I’ll clear this courtroom!

Our summertime superhero tournament continues, as 16 champions are reduced to eight. This round brings new judges and a requirement to argue against the opposite opponent! Who will withstand the withering assaults? Only time will tell. The match-ups: (1) Spider-Man vs. (4) Kitty Pryde (11) Beta Ray Bill vs. (2) Captain America (1) Superman vs. (5) Doctor Strange (3) Barry Allen/The Flash vs. (2) The Hulk (1) Batman vs. (13) Moon Knight (6) Barbara Gordon/Batgirl/Oracle vs. (2) Wonder Woman (1) Iron Man vs. (12) The Thing (6) Rorschach vs. (2) Wolverine

On the occasion of our fifth anniversary, we present this special episode where Jason and five of our favorite panelists come together live around a table to talk about nothing in particular.

Our ridiculous celebration of superheroes continues in round 2, in which 32 heroes enter and 16 depart! This round incorporates your comments and votes, which we solicited after our last round. This also marks the final round for judges Lutz and Michaels, who assure you that absolutely no cash has changed hands in exchange for their votes. We’ve also added some new advocates and shuffled the deck a little bit. Join us on the next segment of our journey to discover which superhero reigns supreme. The match-ups: (1) Spider-Man vs. (8) Aquaman (5) Silver Surfer vs. (4) Kitty Pryde (11) Beta Ray Bill vs. (14) Kate Bishop/Hawkeye (10) Wally West/The Flash vs. (2) Captain America (1) Superman vs. (9) The Falcon (5) Doctor Strange vs. (4) The Tick (11) Invisible Woman vs. (3) Barry Allen/The Flash (7) Ghost Rider vs. (2) The Hulk (1) Batman vs. (8) Black Widow (5) Daredevil vs. (13) Moon Knight (6) Barbara Gordon/Batgirl/Oracle vs. (3) Green Arrow (7) Deadpool vs. (2) Wonder Woman (1) Iron Man vs. (9) Gambit (12) The Thing vs. (13) Big Barda (6) Rorschach vs. (14) Invincible (10) Nightcrawler vs. (2) Wolverine

Our survey of terrible films continues with 1993’s “Super Mario Bros.”, which features surprisingly little of the characters, setting, or joy that one might attribute to the beloved video-game franchise. Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo, Dennis Hopper, and the directors of the original “Max Headroom” film collaborate on this dreadful tale about evolved dinosaurs, dystopian parallel-universe New Yorks, and a couple of plumbers named Mario, one of whom is also named Luigi.

Our Comic Book Club reconvenes to discuss “Runaways,” the 2003-2004 comic series by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona. This is a Marvel Comic that’s also an original creation, and we’re tackling the 18 issues of the first volume, which form a self-contained story. How does the book alienate its teenage protagonists? Does the plot twist make sense? And why isn’t this a Marvel movie or TV show?

It’s time for our annual dive into the Hugo Awards, focused mostly on the five nominated novels, but also touching on short fiction, comics, films, and TV episodes, as well as this year’s big Hugo controversy.

In celebration of the four days of Comic-Con 2015, we present a four-day celebration of silly superhero debates! We’ve seeded 64 heroes into a tournament that’s designed to find the most incomparable superhero of them all. Or something like that. The advocates are sometimes passionate and sometime disinterested, but that’s okay, because the judges are completely capricious.

Pixar’s latest film, “Inside Out,” tells the unlikely story of the conflict of emotions inside the head of a young girl. Join us as we draw a circle around our own parental sadness and instead focus on the joy of an instant Pixar classic.

Old Movie Club reconvenes to watch two films based on the works of Dashiell Hammett: 1934’s “The Thin Man” and 1941’s “The Maltese Falcon.” We appreciate the drunken aplomb of Nick and Nora and the shifty glory of Peter Lorre and Sydney Greenstreet, all while taking in the faint scent of gardenias.

Time to once again wrap up the TV season as a whole and “Game of Thrones” in particular. First we discuss shows we’ve enjoyed watching this year (including the final seasons of “Justified” and “Mad Men”), and then we fire off the Spoiler Horn and talk about the controversial fifth season of “Game of Thrones.”

Time for our annual review of the Nebula Award nominees for the best SF or Fantasy novel of the year, with podcasters from Skiffy and Fanty, SF Signal, and The Three Hoarsemen! We’ll cover (in a spoiler-light fashion) books about space stations, alien invasions, empires, mushrooms, and tea ceremonies. There’s even a deadly incident involving a Zeppelin!

Draw a beard on your face with a Sharpie, prepare to learn math via touch, and we’ll take you to the second level! Our trek into films of questionable quality continues with John Boorman’s 1974 sci-fi epic “Zardoz,” starring Sean Connery in a red diaper and a floating stone head. Even the writer/director/producer can’t explain what happened, and neither can we—except maybe for Glenn.

After a season full of comic-book superhero TV shows, we’re here to chart the highs and lows of “The Flash,” “Arrow,” “Agents of SHIELD,” “Agent Carter,” “Daredevil,” and “Constantine.” Some of them were great, some quite surprising, and others crushing disappointments. (This episode contains light spoilers—nothing we consider completely earth-shattering, but if you wish to be completely spoiler free, listen after watching or consult the time code in our show notes.)

Professor Siracusa’s Anime 102 is in session! This week we’re discussing the 1995 anime classic “Ghost in the Shell” and touching on its follow-up TV series, “Stand Alone Complex.” This is a cyberpunky action story about cyborgs and the meaning of life, and it’s full of guns, car chases, ninjas, weird outfits, and exposition.

On the occasion of David Letterman’s retirement after 33 years of hosting a late-night talk show, Jason Snell presents his take on Letterman’s significance, told with the help of a few friends.

This episode is all about assigned reading from our school days. Stuff we loved and, more importantly, stuff we hated. Does Jason hate all French literature, or just Emma Bovary? Whose teachers assigned Ursula LeGuin and Kurt Vonnegut? And will Charles Dickens tear our friendly group of podcasters apart? Be sure to do the reading—there might be a quiz tomorrow.

Six members of The Incomparable panel went to see “Avengers: Age of Ultron” together, in person! And afterward we convened at Dan Moren’s house to discuss it over pizza and beverages. This is that conversation.

Comic Book Club returns to discuss two ’90s stories featuring art by Alex Ross, “Marvels” and “Kingdom Come.” These books—one each for Marvel and DC, each available in a single trade paperback—feature lavish art and intriguing themes about the relationship between superhumans and regular humans. How do they told up two decades later? Our panel of longtime comic experts and babes in the continuity woods weighs in.

A new “Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens” trailer has appeared! And, as was fated, we are here to deconstruct it within an inch of its life. Dark Side IKEA end tables! John Boyega quotes us the odds! Bespoke evil ships! And is that a glimmer in your eye, or just some lens flare? Plus we give some love to BB8, everyone’s favorite robotic soccer ball. Dan Moren reports in from the Star Wars celebration, and Serenity Caldwell phones in from her car. This is serious business, people.

Lay in a course and engage the warp drive! Our “Star Trek” Debate Club returns with spirited discussion of the best and worst captains in the galaxy, along with the best and worst aliens. Plus we get controversial with our choices for the most overrated and underrated things in “Star Trek,” and engage in a bit of lightning philosophy. Live long and prosper!

Play ball! It’s opening weekend, so Old Movie Club returns with two classic baseball movies: “Pride of the Yankees” and “The Bad News Bears.” Even if you don’t like baseball (like Erika), you may enjoy these movies just fine! One’s a biopic from the 1940s complete with a song, and the other is an appropriately gross 1970s comedy. Join us, won’t you?

Our Rocket Surgery visit to bad sci-fi movies returns with a look at 1984’s “The Ice Pirates.” Foam robots! Swords and lasers! A mysterious water world! A strange balance of racism and social commentary! Bad effects! Baby animals! Robert Urich! A space herpe! Questional castration methods! Poop jokes! Oakland Raiders! John Carradine! Please, someone make it stop.

In honor of Sir Terry Pratchett, who died a week ago, four voracious Pratchett readers discuss what made Pratchett great, their favorite Pratchett works, and recommend places for newcomers to Terry Pratchett to get started.

War! Our final battle with the “Star Wars” prequels is our take on “Star Wars - Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.” After a long string of opening statements, we take on the crawl and the first few scenes of the film. Why does a droid wheeze? Why are villains introduced off screen? Why is Christopher Lee wasted? What’s the deal with all the elevators? Why is Darth Vader a chump? Why is there even more boring political science? What happened to Natalie Portman, and why is she wearing beaded bedclothes while standing on balconies? Then we take you all the way through the dissatisfying ending, and as a bonus, we try to rank the prequels and discover a surprising winner. [This episode was originally two episodes, 237 and 238. It’s been rejoined into a single, double-length episode.]

We celebrate Leonard Nimoy, pondering what made us love Mr. Spock, discussing some of Spock’s finest moments, and even bringing up some lesser known corners of the Nimoy canon.

Our Old Movie Club, featuring classic films many of us haven’t seen selected just for us by Philip Michaels, is back! In this edition, we look at two underappreciated films of Alfred Hitchcock: 1943’s “Shadow of a Doubt” and 1948’s “Rope.” The former features Joseph Cotten shooting up through the ceiling of creepy, a battle of telepathy versus telegraphy, the special bond of people named Charlie, murder by soda, and an appearance by the Exposition Radio Network. The latter offers long unbroken scenes, drunk Farley Granger, a perfect murder perpetrated by Batman villains, and Jimmy Stewart as Columbo. Both films have Hitchcock in common, as well as Hume Cronyn… and murder!

Introducing a new recurring segment on The Incomparable that we call Rocket Surgery, in which we watch an unappreciated science fiction movie from the past and then talk about it. For our first installment, we watched the 2003 film “The Core,” starring Hilary Swank, Aaron Eckhart, Stanley Tucci, Delroy Lindo, and Bruce Greenwood. Yes, this is a movie about people riding a spaceship (of a sort) down into the core of the Earth in order to blow it up with nuclear bombs because reasons. Our discussion topics include the science of birds, peaches as metaphors for the Earth, friendly whales, the destruction of the Golden Gate Bridge, and the powers of computer hackers.

We convene our Comic Book Club not to talk about a specific comic, but more generally the plight of the comic-book reader when it comes to events and continuity. Marvel and DC are both in the process of revisiting and changing their continuity via dramatic in-universe events. Is continuity worth the trouble? Are events fun, or soul-crushing? How do we feel about the old and new Marvel Secret Wars? Does the new all-woman Avengers team fill us with excitement or trepidation or both? And stick around after the show as we discuss Superman’s new power, the appeal of Harley Quinn, and even more comic nerdery!

Okay campers, rise and shine, and don’t forget your booties because it’s coooold out there! We partake in our midwinter ritual of watching “Groundhog Day” over and over again, not because we have to, but because we want to. How does something that seems so generic on its surface unfold into one of the deepest and (dare we say it) most beloved films of all time? Plus, we cope with the Andie MacDowell problem, theorize about everything Phil did in Punxsutawney that the movie didn’t show us, and liken the entire thing to a video-game speed run. Let’s live here!

The end of the world is here, or in the near future, or in the far future, or maybe all three? Our Book Club reconvenes to talk about three somewhat apocalyptic novels: “Station Eleven” by Emily St. John Mandel, “The Peripheral” by William Gibson, and “Slow Apocalypse” by John Varley.

Comic Book Club returns, with a look at a work by legendary writer Alan Moore. This one’s “Promethea” (1999-2005), a strange mixture of Wonder Woman and mysticism and tarot cards and… well, there’s a lot. We discuss the amazing visuals, coloring, and lettering, and ponder the difference between appreciating a work of art and being entertained. (Ideally you’d read Promethea Book 1 and Promethea Book 2 before listening, but the choice is yours.)