Talking SMAC: Superheroes, Movies, Animation & Comics

177.3. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Josh and Alex's journey concludes. The Battle of the Five Armies closes out the Hobbit Trilogy and we will never have to talk about this again, right? Why did we do this to ourselves? 
(1:38) War of the Rohirrim & animation styles
(4:57) Gandalf was in the Desolation of Smaug, oh right.
(7:22) I Hate It, Let's Watch it promo
(8:12) Smaug smaugs the city and the good parts
(9:50) Tonal whiplash, war flicks, and too much horror in The Hobbit
(12:50) Josh hates the word 'Da' 
(18:05) Drunk Galadriel
(27:11) Thorin Oakenshield: Face-heel-face-heel-heel-face turn
(34:00) The Hobbit is more hardcore than Lord of the Rings
(41:04) Thranduil is a bad father
(46:01) The good moments
(54:11) final thoughts
(1:01:00) Josh is proud of himself
(1:04:39) Smac-rating and wrap up
Please remember to check out the I Hate It. Let's Watch It. podcast, join our Discord and check out our merch store! 

177.2. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Josh and Alex are continuing their journey to "celebrate" the 10-year anniversary of the conclusion of the Hobbit Trilogy with The Desolation of Smaug. 
(0:01) Spiders!
(3:32) Cultworthy promo
(3:52) 2013: Our lives when Smaug came
(7:42) A deep dive into Smaug's smaugness
(13:45) Broody Legolas
(26:16) Pandering and callbacks
(30:44) Are Orlando Bloom and Luke Evans the same person
(39:15) Downer endings
(41:51) Smac-rating and wrap up
Please remember to check out the I Hate It. Let's Watch It. podcast, join our Discord and check out our merch store! 

177.1. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Josh and Alex are... Celebrating..? 10 years of the Hobbit trilogy releasing in theaters.
First on the menu is inarguably the best of the Hobbit Trilogy: An Unexpected Journey.
We feel older (1:09)
Casting Views promo (5:15)
How we felt about An Unexpected Journey in 2012 (5:45)
How do we feel about An Unexpected Journey now? (16:20)
The Prologue: The Fall of Erebor (19:03)
Josh takes the Dwarf name quiz (19:25)
The Shire prologue (21:00)
The tonal whiplash (24:23)
Radagast the Brown (29:12)
Is Thorin likable? (39:09)
Set ups and punchlines/When are prophecies made? (42:23)
An Unexpected thesis statement (45:01)
Gandalf’s bad at scheming (54:29)
Please remember to check out the Casting Views podcast, join our Discord and check out our merch store! 

175. Gladiator II + Wicked w/Justin Henson

Josh, Alex and Justin (FROM THE MOVIE WIRE PODCAST) discuss the legacy of Gladiator, the issues with Gladiator 2, our love of Denzel Washington, and fawn all over Wicked, while also discussing our love of theater in general
(0:21) intro & theater experiences 
(6:32) Super Familiar with the Wilson's promo 
(7:02) Gladiator 2 & Padding in Peru teaser
(9:21) Gladiator 2 full spoilers
(13:02) God bless Denzel Washington
(33:00) Smac-Rating
(34:19) Wicked review! Praise and cheers for Jon M. Cho, Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande
(1:00:32) Jeff Goldblum love
(1:02:11) Act One song frontloaded plays
(1:12:13) Smac-Rating
Please remember to check out the Super Familiar with the Wilsons podcast, join our Discord and check out our merch store! 

174. 'Sex Lives of Superheroes' Interview w/Diana McCallum (From Superheroes Network)

Josh and Alex are privileged to chat with Diana McCallum, of the From Superheroes Network, about her new book Sex Lives of Superheroes. We dive into her witty exploration of superhero relationships, the behind-the-scenes stories that inspired the book, and how it offers a hilarious deep dive into the sex lives (or lack thereof) for some of our favorite superheroes.
(0:27) Welcome to Diana
(1:55) What'ca doin', Diana? Fanfiction of 9-1-1 franchise, Bones, and more
(6:13) 'Sex lives of superheroes' inspiration and research
(15:24) What stays in, what gets left out of the book and personal opinions on Captain America's virginity
(29:35) Wolverine's immortal sperm body horror and Loki gives birth to a horse
(36:10) What in the MCU do we not want to see adapted? Marvel Zombies, The Ultimates, Spider-Man: Reign, Hydra-Steve/Secret Empire, and vending machines
(46:42) Surprises & fun while writing the book
(52:22) DC comic/movie speculation, our love of Batman and which Robins we don't like. 
(1:05:53) Wrap up
Please remember to join our Discord and check out our merch store! 

172. Agatha All Along Review

Get ready to close out spooky season with the surprising Wandavision spinoff Agatha All Along series on Disney+. 
Josh gets a scam call (0:25)
The tangents begin: Inside Man, an underrated heist movie (3:44)
Introductions to the episode finally happen (4:48)
Movie Wire promo (5:42)
Agatha All Along; the show we didn't know we wanted (5:59)
Skaar Wars (15:02)
Kristen Anderson & Robert Lopez filmography and achievements (17:14)
*SPOILERS* How does Agatha All Along fit into the MCU?  (21:11)
Please remember to check out the Movie Wire podcast, join our Discord and check out our merch store! 

171. Venom: The Last Dance Review

Josh & Matt break down Venom: The Last Dance, the last(?) chapter in the Sony's lone successful non-Spider-Man Spider-Man franchise.
The guys discuss the the franchise as a whole, the impact of Knull in the movie and the fan service moments that stood out most. Is Venom 3 a must-see or pass? Hit that play button and find out! 
Intro (0:00)
I Hate It. Let's Watch It promo (3:58)
Matt likes Riverdale and Josh's most useless fact (4:27)
Thoughts and opinions on Venom as a character (6:24)
What the Venom franchise means to Talking SMAC (11:29)
Venom: The Last Dance Non-Spoiler Review (14:22)
Spoiler Review (16:35)
Eddie's Bare Foot Subplot (22:13)
Juno Temple's in this movie! (25:24)
How the Studios Interfere with the Storytelling of the Venom Movies (32:03)
Venom 3 is Loaded with Borrowed/Stolen Ideas (33:37)
Josh's Theory About Where Sony's Non-Spider-Man Movies are Going (40:11)
Josh gets his mind blown by the weekend box office (48:58)
There are how many symbiotes in this movie!? (51:57)
We finally talk about the hippy family (57:34)
That time Venom said "Fu*k it. I gotta dance!" (1:02:15)
 The plot is weightless (1:05:26)
The finale of Venom 3 (1:07:44)
Was Venom: The Last Dance fun? (1:09:46)
The SMAC rating: Must-See or Pass? (1:15:31)
Let's Get Outta Here! (1:17:01)
Please remember to check out the I Hate It. Let's Watch It podcast, join our Discord and check out our merch store! 

170. 2014 Was 10 Years Ago?!

Josh & Alex turn the dial back to the year 2014, a year packed with cinematic gems! From indie classics like Whiplash and Birdman to blockbuster hits like Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The LEGO Movie, Guardians of the Galaxy and How to Train Your Dragon 2, we’ll dive into the films that defined the year and explore why 2014 remains a standout in modern cinema.
You can find the YouTube version of this episode here
Please remember to join our Discord and check out our merch store!