Episode 202 - CLIFFORD

Casting a middle-aged comedian as a 10-year-old terror is just one of the ways Clifford puts the lie to the wholesomeness of '90s precocious kid movies. Sure, it's unsettling...but it fits right in with the movie's zany spin on family dynamics, workplace politics, and the pitfalls of growing up.

Our bestest friend in the whole wide world, Matt Steele, helps us find the heart in this wonderfully acerbic, under-appreciated comedy.

Clifford (1994)
Directed by Paul Flaherty
Written by Jay Dee Rock and Bobby Von Hayes
Starring Martin Short, Charles Grodin, Mary Steenburgen, Dabney Coleman, Jennifer Savidge, Richard Kind, G.D. Spradlin, and Ben Savage

Episode 187 - TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY

Like a robot foot crushing the skull of an obsolete lifeform, Terminator 2: Judgment Day demolishes the mold of blockbuster sequels. It's a sleek, sexy upgrade jam-packed with iconic imagery, pitch-perfect performances, and groundbreaking special effects. An impressive achievement in every way, it set a standard for action dramas--not to mention gun-toting mama bears and cyborg father figures--that's endured for three decades.

Daniel Borders-Ashe joins us to talk about all things Terminator, and takes us on an emotional thrill ride that'll melt even the coldest metallic heart. So say "Hasta la vista" to your preconceptions, and 'cast with us if you want to live!

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Directed by James Cameron
Written by James Cameron and William Wisher
Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, Joe Morton, and Edward Furlong

Episode 126 - STEEL

Our Shaq-tober celebration continues with Steel, a movie featuring a Superman-adjacent hero who tries desperately to imitate Batman. The concept of a 7-foot African-American vigilante patrolling downtown Los Angeles in a high-tech metal suit seems both ahead of its time and a product of its time. Namely, the brief window where a newly-minted Laker and Superman superfan's media ambitions dovetailed with DC Comics' cinematic supremacy.

Slip into your Shaq-branded sneakers and get ready for some crime fighting on a budget as we watch Shaq try to turn Supes' sixth man into an MVP-worthy star as Steel!

Steel (1997)
Written and directed by Kenneth Johnson
Produced by Quincy Jones, David Salzman, and Joel Simon
Based on characters created by Louise Simonson and Jon Bogdanove
Starring Shaquille O'Neal, Annabeth Gish, Judd Nelson, Ray J, Irma P. Hall, Hill Harper, and Richard Roundtree

Episode 30 - D2: THE MIGHTY DUCKS

Disney's Mighty Ducks franchise re-invented the moribund "ragtag youth sports" genre for the 1990s, sanding off the edges of the protean and profane Bad News Bears and kid-ifying the wild wooliness of adult entertainments like Slap Shot and Bull Durham.

But of the many lessons children learned from the most lovable peewee hockey team in Minnesota - believing in yourself, working hard, and being true to who you are - none of them could boast the incredible stakes introduced in the second film, which doused the series' inspirational fire with a can of jingoistic kerosene.

Just in time for the 4th of July, special guest Lindsay Marie Mead joins us to look back at how D2: The Mighty Ducks and Team USA imprinted our minds with formative images of national pride, ethnic and regional stereotypes, and amazing female goaltenders who only get to play for 30 seconds of an entire tournament.

D2: The Mighty Ducks (1994)
Directed by Sam Weisman
Produced by Jon Avnet and Jordan Kerner
Written by Steven Brill
Starring Emilio Estevez, Kathryn Erbe, Carsten Norgaard, Joshua Jackson, and Kenan Thompson