Episode 235 - ERNEST SAVES CHRISTMAS

Hey Vern, it's the holiday season! This year, we're taking a break from the snow and cold to help a commercial pitchman find the next Santa Claus in sunny Orlando as Ernest Saves Christmas. Nate Tapp joins us in a warm exchange of memories about the magic of the Yuletide and Jim Varney. Knowutimean?

Ernest Saves Christmas (1988)
Directed by John Cherry
Written by B. Kline and Ed Turner
Starring Jim Varney, Oliver Clark, Noelle Parker, Gailard Sartain, Bill Byrge, Billie Bird, and Douglas Seale

Episode 220 - GREMLINS / GREMLINS 2: THE NEW BATCH

It's time for another Thanksgiving twin bill, and this year we're getting gluttonous with Gremlins and Gremlins 2: The New Batch. We're celebrating the sensibility of Joe Dante as he and his collaborators hurl a hearty 'nyah-nyah' at cherished American institutions from Christmas to capitalism.

Nate Tapp lifts up our holiday spirits in our anything-goes appreciation of these chaotic, cartoony classics. This is G1 and G2, people!

Gremlins (1984)
Directed by Joe Dante
Written by Chris Columbus
Starring Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Hoyt Axton, Frances Lee McCain, Polly Holliday, Dick Miller, Glynn Turman, Judge Reinhold, Corey Feldman, and Howie Mandel as the voice of Gizmo

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
Directed by Joe Dante
Written by Charlie Haas
Starring Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, John Glover, Robert Picardo, Robert Prosky, Haviland Morris, Dick Miller, Gedde Watanabe, and Christopher Lee with Howie Mandel as the voice of Gizmo and Tony Randall as the voice of the Brain Gremlin

Key and Peele - "Gremlins 2" Brainstorm

 

Episode 198 - THE NINJA TURTLE KNOCKOFF-OFF

It's Anthropomorph Madness! Nate Tapp helps us narrow down a bracket of eight animated talking-animal teams with attitude, until we crown a champion of The Ninja Turtle Knockoff-Off. Biker mice, steroidal sharks, alien hockey-playing ducks - we've got 'em all and more in this crazy critter clash!

Episodes included in this podcast:

Street Sharks - "Sharkstorm" (1994)
vs.
Extreme Dinosaurs - "Fossil Fooled" (1997)

Episode 194 - AUSTIN POWERS: THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME / GOLDMEMBER

Yeah, baby! We get groovy with Nate Tapp in a special Shags-giving episode as we feast on the two sequel installments of Mike Myers' spy spoof trilogy. From Mini-Me to the Mole, it's a shagadelic spread fit for a Fat Bastard. Oh behave!

Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)
Directed by Jay Roach
Written by Michael McCullers and Mike Myers
Starring Mike Myers, Heather Graham, Michael York, Robert Wagner, Rob Lowe, Mindy Sterling, Seth Green, and Verne Troyer

Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002)

Written by Michael McCullers and Mike Myers

Starring Mike Myers, Beyoncé Knowles, Michael York, Robert Wagner, Seth Green, Mindy Sterling, Verne Troyer, Fred Savage, and Michael Caine

Episode 179 - THE RANKIN/BASS RANK-A-THON

We're making ranked lists...checking them twice...introducing our new thematic device: the Rank-A-Thon has come to our pod! We're doing a thorough breakdown of four vintage Rankin/Bass animated specials, and evaluating them in a wide array of aesthetic, narrative, and festive categories. And we couldn't do it without the help of our old Christmas confidant, Nate Tapp!

We conclude a banner year with this massive holiday extravaganza, and the crowning of a champion among classics. But don't you worry...we'll be back again someday.

Holiday specials included in this episode:

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
Frosty the Snowman (1969)
Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (1970)
The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974)

Episode 175 - RETURN TO OZ

If you thought tin men and flying monkeys were strange, let me tell you about Return to Oz, a film that doubles down on the inexplicable whimsy of L. Frank Baum's beloved books and the unrestrained darkness that pervaded children's fantasy films during the 1980s. It's nightmare fuel delivered with a sprightly, wholesome spirit. It's also a marvel of practical effects with enough imagination and offbeat humor to enthrall a whole new generation of weirdos.

Thank goodness we've brought our friends Brian Rudloff and Nate Tapp along to share their thoughts about uncomfortable creature suits, traumatizing imagery, and the dangerous truth about eggs. Join us as we embrace the odd in our journey back to Oz. After all, it can't be helped now!

Return to Oz (1985)
Directed by Walter Murch
Produced by Paul Maslansky
Written by Walter Murch and Gill Dennis
Based on The Marvelous Land of Oz and Ozma of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Starring Fairuza Balk, Jean Marsh, Piper Laurie, Matt Clark, Denise Bryer, Sean Barrett, Brian Henson, and Nicol Williamson

Episode 158 - THE SANTA CLAUSE

'Tis the ho-ho-holiday season, and we're kicking off our festivities with Tim Allen's turn as a smart aleck St. Nick in The Santa Clause. Is it a sarcastic and saccharine fruitcake of a movie featuring flatulent reindeer, child custody battles, ugly sweaters, and elves...with attitudes? Or is it an eggnog-laced body horror flick featuring a man powerless to prevent his flesh and blood from transforming into the ageless avatar of Christmas cheer?

Jolly old Saint Nate Tapp cartoonishly squeezes down our chimney to help us examine the fine print on this Santa succession story. Whether you were naughty or nice this year, we gift-wrapped this magical episode just for you!

The Santa Clause (1994)
Directed by John Pasquin
Produced by Robert Newmyer, Brian Reilly, and Jeffrey Silver
Written by Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick
Starring Tim Allen, Eric Lloyd, Wendy Crewson, Judge Reinhold, Peter Boyle, and David Krumholtz

Episode 143 - THE SANDLOT: Tequila! Edition

The wait for another commentary/drinking game episode has been killin' us (Smalls), but finally the time has come for The Sandlot: Tequila! Edition. We celebrate Eric's birthday with this ageless classic about friendship and the promise of the perfect summer. Nate Tapp joins us in the dugout to sip cold brews, swap childhood stories, and occasionally pay attention to the action unfolding before us. It's just like attending a baseball game!

Drinking game rules:

You're Killing Me, Smalls!
Take one drink whenever Smalls does something embarrassing. This will depend on your personal tolerance for L-7 weenies.

Unleash the Beast
Drink whenever the Beast is seen, heard, or mentioned: including flashbacks!

A Voice Is Telling Me To
Each time adult Smalls chimes in with voiceover narration, take a drink.

I'll Have What He's Having
Timmy loves to ape his brother Tommy. Let's all indulge in groupthink and take a sip whenever he sounds like a broken record.

The Seventh-Inning Quench
Podcast heroes get remembered, but podcast legends never die. Stand up and toast the Great Bambino when he appears in Benny's dream by finishing your current beverage.

Tequila!
Take a shot of your favorite tequila during the carnival ride scene. For best results, do not mix with chewing tobacco.

The Sandlot (1993)
Directed by David M. Evans
Produced by Dale De La Torre and William S. Gilmore
Written by David M. Evans and Robert Gunter
Starring Tom Guiry, Mike Vitar, Patrick Renna, Chauncey Leopardi, Marty York, Brandon Adams, Grant Gelt, Victor Di Mattia, Shane Obedzinski, Karen Allen, Denis Leary, Marley Shelton, Art LaFleur, and James Earl Jones

Episode 133 - WINTER WONDER-THON 2018

Before we enter holiday hibernation, we're gifting our listeners another stockpile of seasonal delights in our third annual Winter Wonder-Thon, including six scratch-off cards, five lumps of clay, four ninja teens, three father figures, two chocolate morsels, and a singing turd on your TV.  And this time, we're snowed in with that manifestation of merriment himself, Nate Tapp.  (You all must have been extra good this year!)

Come celebrate the season with this collection of clips, commercials, sitcoms, and specials all liberally sprinkled with holiday cheer.  We'll be back again in 2019!

Featured in this episode:

Clips and Shorts
Gumby Adventures - "Humbug" (aired 2/20/1988)
Pennsylvania Lottery commercial - "Snowfall" (1992, 2012)
M&M's commercial - "Faint" (1996, 2017)

TV Episodes and Specials
Full House - "A Very Tanner Christmas" (aired 12/15/1992)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: We Wish You A Turtle Christmas (1994)
South Park - "Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics" (aired 12/1/1999)

Episode 116 - THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK

Calling all dino-lovers and chaos theory adherents! This month we're examining cinematic prehistory, and what better place to start than with a T-Rex rampage through San Diego? The Lost World: Jurassic Park works hard to one-up its predecessor in terms of sheer spectacle, and experiments with an action hero who doubles as a consistent and thorough naysayer.

Also in this episode, Nate Tapp returns to warn us of the horrific consequences of resurrecting unpredictable primordial beasts. Welcome...to Jurassic June!

The Lost World: Jurassic Park

Directed by Steven Spielberg

Produced by Kathleen Kennedy, Gerald R. Molen, and Colin Wilson

Written by David Koepp

Based on The Lost World by Michael Crichton

Starring Jeff Goldblum, Julianne Moore, Vince Vaughn, Richard Schiff, Arliss Howard, Vanessa Lee Chester, Peter Stormare, Richard Attenborough, and Pete Postlethwaite

Episode 105 - TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES (1990)

Like Renaissance sculptures made flesh, the film debut of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles transforms the testudinal heroes from cartoon characters into three-dimensional wisecracking, pizza-gobbling machines. Along the way, they somehow rediscovered their grittier comic book aesthetic, as they emerge in a seedy urban landscape rife with brainwashed children, unhinged vigilantes, and a ninja cult that's very comfortable with torture.

Guest star Nate Tapp joins us as we serve up some wide-ranging banter about family and fatherhood, rank our favorite turtles, and, of course, reminisce some more about the most awesome TMNT toys. So grab a New York slice and get ready for some serious turtle talk, 'cause this is what we do!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990)
Directed by Steve Barron
Produced by David Chan, Kim Dawson, and Simon Fields
Written by Todd W. Langen and Bobby Herbeck
Based on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird
Starring Josh Pais, Brian Tochi, Corey Feldman, Robbie Rist, Kevin Clash, Judith Hoag, Elias Koteas, James Saito, Toshishiro Obata, Michael Turney, and Sam Rockwell


Cowabunga! Check out more of our TMNT tributes:
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987 TV series)
Raph Punk

Episode 33 - ACE VENTURA: WHEN NATURE CALLS

Comedy sequels love taking the show on the road - think Vacation in Europe, The Hangover in Thailand, and The Bad News Bears in Japan - as a way to wring a few more laughs out of the same basic premise.  So, naturally, Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls features the world's greatest pet detective on a mission in an inexplicably colonial corner of Africa.

But make no mistake: this is a completely different and oddly more kid-friendly film than its predecessor, doubling down on the sight gags and relying even more heavily on the quotable hyperactivity of its main character.  Credit the zany spark of writer-director Steve Oedekerk, as well as what might be the most committed comedic performance of Jim Carrey's career.

Also, we're proud to welcome guest commentator Nate Tapp for his first appearance on the podcast.  Ready to start listening?  Alllllll righty then! 

Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995)
Written and directed by Steve Oedekerk
Produced by James G. Robinson
Based on characters created by Jack Bernstein
Starring Jim Carrey, Ian McNeice, Simon Callow, Maynard Eziashi, Bob Gunton, and Sophie Okenedo