Breaking down the Universes... all of them... one at a time.
Join us as we delve too greedily and too deep into all sorts of Universes, from Star Wars to Monty Python, from Narnia to Christmas classics.
There's something here for everyone (mostly our fellow nerds), and if you don't care about the main topic, tune in to the Fortnightly Unfiltered Conversation and Knowledge Sessions, recorded Fortnightly (it's in the name).
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122 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Eleven, aka "Kurt Russells Hijinks" (00:19:20)
Day Eleven is here, and we're doing another modern movie. Today we discuss the Kurt Russell vehicle The Christmas Chronicles.Yet another take on Santa and his astounding ability to deliver gifts to billions of people every year, but this time he's Kurt Russell. Join two kids as they help Santa ruin Christmas, then fix it up.One more to go, peeps. One more.
121 Harry Potter Episode Four, aka "We Haven't Seen You For Six Months!" (02:03:17)
Merry Christmas Mrs Blaze's Mum! I know you've been waiting for this one, sorry it took so long.In what is our first (but by no means last) split episode we begin our discussion on the fourth Harry Potter novel, The Goblet of Fire.Outside of a plot breakdown, we discuss Harry's possible powers of far-sight, why did wizards choose owls for their postal service, the fact that Molly and Arthur Weasley are Harry's true parents, that Hermione never sees her family, how Mad-Eye's mad eye is more powerful than you think, why Muggle students aren't all as outraged about House Elf slavery as they should be, how Hagrid is actually very competent as a teacher, and how boring the Second Triwizard Task would have been for the crowd.Buckle up everyone - this is the start of multiple episodes per book, and we go deep.
120 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Ten, aka "Cameron Diaz Weeping" (00:20:30)
Which self-respecting men will declare to the world that they like a sappy Rom-Com? These self-loathing guys, that's who! Join us in our discussion of the modern-classic Christmas movie, The Holiday.Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law and Jack Black all come together for an ultimately predictable, but overall, really enjoyable film.Two days to go. That's right, two days till Christmas. Get excited, peeps.
119 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Nine, aka "First Lady Santa" (00:24:22)
Look, it's not as "woke" as you might think, but this is the story of a young woman, and the mantle of being Santa that was kind of thrust upon her. This is Noelle.It's hard to hate either Anna Kendrick or Bill Hader, so just don't, and then watch this pretty serviceable Christmas movie. Yeah, we kind of know how it's gonna go from very early on, but who cares? It's Christmas, y'all.Three to go after this one. Oooh, we're close now!
118 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Eight, aka "Lindsay Lohan Peaking" (00:17:14)
So, we tried to pick a terrible Hallmark-style movie, but we accidentally picked a kind of okay, slightly charming Christmas Rom-Com. Today is the Lindsay Lohan vehicle Our Little Secret.So, the family dynamic is a bit weird, and it's a little tough keeping track of who is banging who, but it's pretty okay. God, I hate myself for even writing that.Oh, there's also drug use, so that's pretty funny.
117 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Seven, aka "Miracle On 34th Street" (00:21:18)
So, it might not be the original, but this remake is totally worth the time - it's time for Miracle On 34th Street.This 1994 remake of an absolute classic is totally worth your time - yeah, it's a bit cheesy, yeah, it's very corny, but also... yeah, it's kind of great.Do the watching, feel the stuff, experience the story-like nature of the thing.
116 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Six, aka "Christmas Carol Slaying" (00:19:04)
'Tis officially the halfway mark - welcome to the Sixth Pod of Christmas, where today we discuss the Musical-Comedy film "Spirited".This is one of our only disagreements - Blaze didn't like it and Henno kind of did. But if you like Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds and want to hear them try to sing a bit, feel free to listen to our take and then watch the movie.
115 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Five, aka "Just The Same Thing" (00:24:22)
Hello, hello. Here we go again.It's day five of our Pods of Christmas, and we discuss the first sequel of the year - the follow up to the hijinks of Kevin McCallister, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York.Despite a cameo by one of shittest blokes in history, this is a serviceable sequel, whilst also just being pretty much the same film as the first.Stay tuned for the next one.
114 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Four, aka "A Colossal Turd" (00:14:36)
Oh, hi people. Welcome to our Fourth Pod of Christmas, today discussing the classic film It's A Wonderful Life.In a moment of total agreement, neither Blaze nor Henno really liked this one - it's questioned why this movie is so beloved.But anyway, have a listen and if you watch it you can tell us if we're wrong.
113 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Three, aka "Kevin Bacon" (00:18:09)
Welcome to the third day/pod of Christmas this year. In an effort to bridge our normal nerdiness and our Christmas theme, we discuss The Guardians of the Galaxy Holidays Special.Loo, it gets nerdy, and yes, there might be some prior knowledge required, but this is a fun watch.Please use this encouragement to go and watch all of the MCU.
112 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day Two, aka "Too Small A Heart" (00:13:48)
Third second episode, here we go.Short episode, short "movie". Today we discuss the 1966 TBS Christmas Special of How The Grinch Stole Christmas.You know how this goes. If you don't, have a listen. It's a bit of fun.
111 The 12 Pods of Christmas 2025 - Day One, aka "The Rock In A Christmas Movie" (00:21:41)
Ding Dong Merrily On High! It's the 12 Pods of Christmas for 2025.In today's episode we talk about the big-budget, action-adventure Christmas caper, Red One.With a massive amount of star power, an interesting premise and some kind of fun set pieces, this movie exceeds expectations without blowing them out of the water.Enjoy, and come back tomorrow for Day Two.
110 The Second Anniversary Reunion Special (02:28:41)
And we're back!It's been a long time between drinks, but here we are. Back on the microphones and recording nonsense again.We have our usual life catch up, look forward to some future gaming, have the obligatory Star Wars and Marvel discussions, go over some issues we have with Fandoms, review a couple of movies we've seen, and ruminate on some Ted Lasso stuff.It's a bit of a long one, but give us a break - it's been a while.
109 Harry Potter Episode Three, aka "A Ginger That's Got Anger Issues" (01:46:43)
Hello there. No, this is not General Kenobi, and we are not at all discussing Star Wars. We're discussing the third book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban.In our deep dive of this book (and to a lesser extent, movie) we discuss the abundance of new themes for the series, the fact that the tone of the series seems to have been settled, the absence of Voldemort, the piece of shit that is Aunt Marge (yeah, I've cleaned it up for this description), the return (technically) of Sirius Black, the new attitude toward Harry, Hermione's new pet, the introduction of several new and important characters, don't Dementors suck, how nice is that Hufflepuff Seeker, friction between The Golden Trio, Harry's broom upgrade, Expecto Patronum, the Marauder's Map, an actual prophecy, and the twist revelation of the true villain of the book.This is our last single episode for an individual book, so... settle in. It's gonna get descriptive.
Yes, we know, it's been ages since we released an episode. But never fear, here we are with a brand-new episode... just this one is totally out of date and in some ways not even relevant anymore. Welcome to F.U.C.K.S 33!Today we have our usual catchup, Henno wonders if he can watch things with Cancelled celebrities again, we discuss Stream v Syndication, how much money some celebrities make, the new (well, it was) Fantastic Four trailer, our concern for Bucky in Thunderbolts* (just totally irrelevant now), what will The Odyssey movie be like, and is TV becoming better than film?Stay tuned, as more episodes will follow soon... ish. Maybe. If you're lucky.
107 Harry Potter Episode Two, aka "Those Floating Cakes" (01:31:49)
Oh, hello to the people who are still listening. Yes, we're still here... for good or bad.Please note: this was recorder well before the passing of Dame Maggie Smith. Any discussion of her is intended to be only complimentary.Today we will discuss the worst book (and film), but that doesn't = bad. But it's the Chamber of Secrets, and everything that goes with it.We discuss the Dobby and The Problem With House-Elves, the concept of The Trace, the introduction of Lucius Malfoy - the true villain of the story, the dumbest decision ever made by anyone in the series, the concept of magical racism, and that's before the school year even starts!Harry hears things, The Heir is back (beware), is Harry guilty, who is Tom Riddle, how clever is Hermione (hint: very), why did Hagrid get expelled, who is Tom Riddle really, and would Lucius Malfoy really have killed Harry?
Oh, hello. Wow.Sorry, nothing too elaborate to see here. It's F.U.C.K.S 32, and we are here to spread the good news... actually, very little is good, most is just stuff.In this episode we discuss the world's attempts to force Henno into having a supposedly important party, our experiences with massive internet outages, the USA (United States of Assholes), and some DC and Marvel stuff (sorry Meg). We also reveal or Top 10 Films of the last 10 Years, and revisit our thoughts on the 2-1-3 theory.Listen, or don't, or maybe do. You are in control of your own destiny.
105 Harry Potter Episode One, aka "The Dursleys Were A Very Ordinary Family" (02:06:31)
Welcome to our latest (and at this point, by far the most comprehensive) topic - Harry Potter.Firstly, the book we are discussing is Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone, not The Sorcerer's Stone - like in so other ways, America is totally wrong.More importantly, we a podcast (and as decent human beings) do not support the views of the author. They (ha) have taken some strong stances, and we do not agree with them.So, we go through sooooo much stuff; was there always a grand plan for 7 books? How big was the impact of the series? Do the Dursleys belong in jail (spoiler: they do)? Did Vernon beat Petunia (probably)? Did they have a long-term reason for their hatred of Harry (no, no they didn't)?We go over Harry's into to magic, his meeting of his best friends on the Hogwart's Express, his first year at the school, the eventually signature twist, and the setup for the success of the franchise.This topic will go for ages. Sorry, but if you like Harry Potter, enjoy like you've never done before.
104 Fortnightly Unfiltered Conversation & Knowledge Session Thirty One, aka "This'll Be Good Listening" (00:36:38)
Hey, hey , hey... nothing interesting to see here, except for our new logo.
This episode we get feedback about our subject matter (sorry, but not sorry Meg) and about our swearing (sorry Henno's mum, but tough). We later discuss some App scams, some MCU and Star Wars updates, a frank discussion about American idiots, and keeping in touch with people in our lives. Oh, and we unbox some wands, which is cooler than it sounds.
Peace out, homies!
103 Monty Python Episode Six - The Meaning Of Life, aka "I Didn't Eat The Mousse" (00:41:00)
Oh, hi there everyone. Keen on this episode? No? Oh, well... here it is anyway.
We discuss the last project the Pythons ever did together - The Meaning Of Life.
What is this film about? Well, the stages of Life, of course. We don't need to break them down, but it ranges from Birth, through to Sex, and finally to Death. We also talk about why Monty Python is so enduring, and also what is coming next.
Here you go. Accept it for what it is.
Yep, we're using the correct spelling of "armour".
We belatedly celebrate our 100th episode, go over what we did at Christmas & New Year, detour to Pokemon, go over what we look forward to this year, show our optimism for the new Superman film, and gush for ages about Ted Lasso.
We hope you have a wonderful experience, but definitely don't guarantee one.
101 Monty Python Episode Five - The Life of Brian, aka "The Most Blasphemous Film... So Far" (00:36:37)
Sorry for the even more delay in episodes, but here we are - talking about The Life of Brian.
It would be impossible not to mention the controversy surrounding this film, to the point a Beatle had to create a film studio to save it (George Harrison, we love you).
We discuss the fact that Gender Identity was raised in this film, as well as the accidental Messiah, the legend of Pontias Pilate, the foiled final rescue, what satire is supposed to be, the ongoing legacy, and I last dig at co-worker Lisa.
Only the true podcast listener will deny it's enjoyability... sorry, tried to adapt a quote there.
100 Fortnightly Unfiltered Conversation & Knowledge Session Twenty Nine, aka "I Retract My Apology" (01:20:41)
It's our 100th official episode (which we don't mention at all) and we do the normal stuff.
It's the Christmas / New Year period, so we go over our plans, we go over our favourite things from the year, we argue which part is the front of the desk, we talk the Star Wars TV show, the end of Sony's Marvel universe, and the future of the MCU.
100 episodes down, who knows how many to go? Anyway, Happy New Year. We can't wait to see what happens in 2025.
099 The 12 Pods of Christmas Part Deux - Day Twelve, aka "Santa's Hammer Clubbing" (00:17:01)
It's the last Pod of Christmas, and so today we discuss a weird, possibly offensive film about a Santa who has no problem with killing: Violent Night.
This movie was better than it had any right to be, and surprisingly has a lot more Christmas spirit than some of the other Pods this year.
Enjoy if you're okay with gore and Santa crushing skulls.
Also, Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!
098 The 12 Pods of Christmas Part Deux - Day Eleven, aka "Seth Rogen Imbibing" (00:15:41)
It's the second to last day of Christmas, and we today discuss a fun semi-stoner film, The Night Before.
Join Joseph Gorden-Levitt, Seth Rogen and Anthony Mackie on an OTT wacky adventure to party, but also grow up.
One more to go...
