Episode 50: Stranger Things 2

Episode 50: Stranger Things 2
Produced by Relevant to Our Interests
Scripting by Frank Shaw and John Belliston
Edited by: Frank Shaw
Graphic Design by: Nathan Newell
Intro Music: Morning Activities by F.G. Shaw
Outro Music: Morning Activities by F.G. Shaw

It's Stranger Things 2!

John and myself talk about Stranger Things 2, we mostly liked it! It's not without it's problems. 
But even despite episode 7, this season is pretty awesome, and fixes a lot (though not all) of the problems we had with the first season. 

The thing that excites me the most is the Lovecraftian horror that informs the monsters of this series. I throughout the name Nyarlathotep in this podcast, the Nerdist suggests it as inspiration as well. Now is it Nyarlathotep? I'm with John -though I think the idea is cool- it would be better, and cooler if the Duffer brothers are only inspired by the Lovecraftian monstrousity and not stealing whole cloth from it. 

We do talk about a few insane fan theories a bit, (my favorite is still that the "Mindflayer" is Barb taking revenge on the town) the only theory that has any traction is the theory that the Upside Down is somehow in another time.  It's a fun theory. 

We are both looking forward to season 3. 

Episode 49: Wonder Woman!

Episode 49: Wonder Woman!
Produced by Relevant to Our Interests
Scripting by Frank Shaw and John Belliston
Edited by: Frank Shaw
Graphic Design by: Nathan Newell
Intro Music: Morning Activities by F.G. Shaw
Outro Music: Morning Activities by F.G. Shaw

Forever behind, and never ahead. Episode 49 John and I talk about Wonder Woman. This movie was surprisingly good, and honestly if it could be pulled out of the greater DC Universe and stand on it's own two legs it would be even better. The DC Universe is suffering, and all reports that peoples attitude on Justice League are mixed. Wonder Woman suffers for being tied to the overarching DC Universe. It's too bad, because Gal Godot makes a fantastic Diana. I'm not sure what Warner Brothers is going to do with their franchise, but if the Justice League's performance is any indication, things do not bode well for the future of DC. I've seen rumors thrown around, but until I see something solid all I can do is speculate. At least their television franchises are fun. 

Here is a link to the one of the bigger insane fan theories. It's a fun little Reddit thread. It's fun to speculate. 

Episode 48: Video Games and more!

Episode 48: Video Games and more!
Produced by Relevant to Our Interests
Scripting by Frank Shaw and John Belliston
Edited by: Frank Shaw
Graphic Design by: Nathan Newell
Intro Music: Morning Activities by F.G. Shaw
Outro Music: Morning Activities by F.G. Shaw

Better late than never!

Our single October episode this year was dedicated mostly to video games. While mentioned frequently on the show (mostly by myself), John get's in on the act this time as well. 

First off! The Creep Farm at the Bluebell Corn Maze. Now a tiny bit of background: the corn maze is in a small "town" called Bluebell at Water Hallow Ranch. The maze opens up mid September, and goes till the end of October. The haunted part is called the Creep Farm and it is open the last few weekends of October at dark. Now the maze is a lot of fun, if you're in Utah or in a nearby state, you should try and check it next fall. Come on the weekend, make it a day trip. It's great family fun, and worth a visit. Doing the corn maze ate up a lot more time and energy than I anticipated. Between it and the regular 9 - 5, I suddenly found myself with out even minimal time to prepare for each episode, let alone getting it edited and out in a timely fashion. We're back to form though and will be back to the weekly schedule until Christmas. 

Then we have the Viking exhibit at the Natural History Museum of Utah. I personally can't speak about it much (yet) as I haven't attended. John however has and has loved it. I'm excited to see it, and should be heading out at some point this December. 

Now for actual video games: 

So I won a digital copy of The Evil Within 2, as well as some other cool things. I have been playing it and am much further along now than I was during the episode. It's a lot of fun. Sort of a Resident Evil 4 meets Silent Hill 2 vibe. Definitely check it out if you're a fan of survival horror. Prove EA wrong about single player games going away. 

John then dives in about the Forced Unleashed 1 and 2. Fairly middling games (well 1 is) that have some camera issues. The (now) non-canon games help amplify John's problems with the Star Wars universe, that will eventually be address in a John Hates What You Love. 

Frank talks about the Playstation TV. For those that don't know, it's essentially PS Vita put into a mini console form. It's limited to what games it can play, due to the Vita's touch pad and touch screen. However if you're a JRPG fan like I am, and you want to experience an inexpensive way to play the ones that came out on the Vita, it's a good way to go. 

Next John discusses Cuphead. For those that don't know Cuphead is a retro-style run and gun game that released during the end of September and is known for being difficult. John lauds the game, and if you dig the retro style games, it's probably for you. 

Frank then asks for recommendations: Table top war games based around World War One. He's found a few potential candidates, but if you have any that you'd like to share, please do. 

John finishes off this episode by talking about his dream girl (literally), and Duck Tales. I have a feeling that Duck Tales will be the focus of a later episode. So stay tuned. 

And as always... John's Bad Advice. I've decided to start sharing the questions so here we are:

"How do I get Olivia to stop throwing things out of frustrating?"

-Tiffany T

"I'm enrolling in a master's program. How can I focus on my studies and what's the best way to reward myself for studying?"

Sherry S

"I'm thinking of shaving my head. Hair is so annoying. What do you think?"

Mary S