Nerd Lunch

The AfterLUNCH Star Trek crew return to debrief about the second season of Enterprise. Delaney, Evan, Michael, and Rob discuss the continuation of the Temporal Cold War, the introduction of the Romulans, the return of the Borg, and all the other plot developments. They also update their opinions about the crew and of course discuss favorite and least-favorite episodes. 

What secret connection do 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), Being There (1979), and Clueless (1995) have in common? Erik Johnson asks Evan Hanson, Michael May, Dave Roof, and David May to find out.  As always with Mystery Movie Night discussions, opinions and spoilers abound, so if you haven't seen a film and prefer not to listen to that part of the episode, here are the time stamps to help you skip to the parts you want to listen to: 00:02:38 - Review of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) 00:23:25 - Review of Being There (1979) 00:46:20 - Review of Clueless (1995) 01:06:51 - Guessing the Connection

Michael, Rob, Evan, and Pax gather for another after-dinner conversation sparked by what they’ve been listening to, reading, watching, and thinking about. Discussions start from the following topics, but meander: Podcasts like Bonanas for Bonanza and The Untitled GenX Podcast. Albums like Disney's Heigh-Ho! Mozart, Yesterday's Wine by Willie Nelson, and This Is What I Live For by Blue October. Other audio material like the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy radio series and SiriusXM Books like Growing Gills by Jessica Abel, The Vanished Bride by Bella Ellis, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, and The Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule. Comics like The Essential Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson, Baltimore by Mike Mignola, Christopher Golden, and Ben Stenbeck, Winter Soldier by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting, Truth: Red, White, and Black by Robert Morales and Kyle Baker, and Eternals by Peter Gillis, Sal Buscema, and Walt Simonson. Movies like Romeo and Juliet (1968) and the trailer for Shang Chi. TV shows like Rei

In response to The CW's producing sexy, modern versions of Jane Austen stories, Michael, Rob, Sue London, and Evan Hanson made their own sexy CW shows based on things that weren't super sexy to begin with. Be sure to tune in for hot versions of The Ropers, IKEA, the life of Richard Milhous Nixon, and Richie Rich. Be sure to visit MichaelMay.Online or NerdLunch.Net for show notes including part of the script that Sue wrote for the pilot episode of The Ropers and Evan's proof-of-concept visual for sexy IKEA.

To quote David St. Hubbins and Nigel Tufnel, "It's such a fine line between stupid and clever." In this episode, Michael and Rob are joined by Sue London and Jeff Somogyi to test that line by workshopping a movie based on whatever was trending on Twitter at the time.

Michael and Rob welcome some new AfterLUNCH voices to talk about Legendary Entertainment's MonsterVerse in general, while drilling deep into the Hollow Earth and the current Godzilla vs. Kong film. Joining the panel are a trio of giant monster super-fans: Sophie (a long-time friend of Michael who lives in the UK), Corinna Bechko (who not only writes cool comics like The Expanse and Smithsonian Dig It: Dinosaurs & Other Prehistoric Creatures, but also has a background in zoology and has worked professionally with both giant lizards and primates), and David May (Michael's son and frequent podcast partner).

Michael, Rob, Evan, and Pax gather for another after dinner conversation sparked by what they've been listening to, reading, watching, and thinking about. Discussions start from the following topics, but meander: Podcasts like The Classic Tales, Writers/Blockbusters, Judge John Hodgman, and The History of Philosophy Without Any Gaps. The poetry of Emily Dickinson and Langston Hughes Books like The Exploits of Arsène Lupin by Maurice Leblanc, the Darth Bane trilogy by Drew Karpyshyn, and Marvel Classic Novels - X-Men and the Avengers: The Gamma Quest Omnibus by Greg Cox. Comics like the Thor Eternals saga, A Silent Voice, Vol. 1 by Yoshitoki Ōima, and Star Trek:Year Five. Movies like April Fool's Day, A Star is Born, and Godzilla vs Kong. TV series like Lovecraft Country, Bleak House adaptations, Resident Alien, and The Haunting of Hill House. And real talk about wedding rings, racism, pets, and staying young.

Michael and Rob steal a popular Twitter meme with the help of both fresh and familiar voices. Michael's college pal Faith Regn makes her podcast debut alongside our good friend Kay and the Muppetational return of Carlin Trammel! Our sensational, inspirational, celebrational panel creates five new Muppet movies by picking existing non-Muppet films, keeping one or two human actors, and replacing the rest of the cast with Muppets. Tune in for new Muppet capers and mysteries and maybe even some Muppets in space.

The Mystery Movie Night podcast moves to AfterLUNCH! If you're new to the format, one of the panelists picks three movies with some sort of secret connection. Everyone watches the films and talks about them, then the other panelists try to guess the common element. In this inaugural AfterLUNCH episode, Evan Hanson picked Empire of the Sun (1987), Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), and Sacro Gra (2013). For listeners who haven't seen all the movies and want to avoid spoilers, here are the time stamps for each review, including the guessing part in case you want to skip straight to that: 00:05:37 - Review of Empire of the Sun (1987) 00:23:18 - Review of Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003) 00:36:32 - Review of Sacro Gra (2013)) 00:49:49 - Guessing the Connection

Michael, Rob, Evan, and Pax gather for another after dinner conversation sparked by what they've been reading, watching, thinking about, and - new with this episode - listening to. Discussions start from the following topics, but meander: Relationships with music Books like the Don Camillo stories by Giovanni Gerserchi, the Jane Austen detective series by Stephanie Barron, Jim Butcher's Dresden Files, and The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle. Comics like Aster of Pan by Merwan Chabane and Joshua Williamson’s Flash run. Godzilla: King of the Monsters and movies about Queen Elizabeth I.  TV shows like The Clone Wars, The Expanse Season 2, Jeremy Brett's Sherlock Holmes, Stanley Tucci’s Searching for Italy, Queen’s Gambit, WandaVision, and the 90s Flash series. And finally, real talk about Family, Loss, Identity, and Spring.

Having discussed humanity's first contact with the Vulcans, our Star Trek Trek panel reconvenes to talk about the souring of that relationship and how it affects Earth's first human-populated mission into deep space. Delaney, Evan, Michael, and Rob talk about how the first season of Enterprise fits into continuity while also getting around to what they think of the various characters and episodes. 

Michael and Rob are joined by Joanna from Bloody Popcorn and new-to-AfterLUNCH Dan Taylor to create a science-fiction-themed amusement park with lands devoted to Twilight Zone, Firefly, the works of Philip K Dick, and Planet of the Apes. 

Michael and Rob talk with one of their favorite writers. Kelly Thompson has written novels like Storykiller and The Girl Who Would Be King, but she's most known for great, funny, character-driven comics like Marvel's A-Force, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and Captain Marvel as well as series featuring popular characters like Jem and the Holograms, the Pink Power Ranger, Nancy Drew, and Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Kelly shares huge aspects of her writing process, but also geeks out about other things that she's enjoying watching and reading.

Evan, Michael, Pax, and Rob reconvene to talk about what they've been reading, watching, and thinking about. As always with the After Dinner Lounge, the conversation meanders, but topics begin with: Books like Carthage Must be Destroyed: The Rise and Fall of an Ancient Mediterranean Civilization by Richard Miles, Redwall by Brian Jacques, the Horatio Hornblower series by CS Forester, The Tournament by Matthew Reilly, and Storykiller by Kelly Thompson. Comics like The Eternals by Jack Kirby and Marvel's Killraven series. Movies like Mank, the Schwarzenegger Conan series, and Legendary Pictures' Godzilla and Kong MonsterVerse. TV shows like Ted Lasso. And real talk about Heist Stories, Separating Art from Artist, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and Truffles.

Michael May, Rob Graham, Delaney Graham, and Evan Hanson begin their journey through the various movies and TV shows of Star Trek, in chronological order. In this first episode, they discuss humanity's introduction to the larger galaxy in 1996's First Contact. It's a controversial place to start since it's neither the first adventure of the time travelers who are trying to protect the historic meeting, nor is it the earliest time period that these travelers have visited. So our panel also discusses other Star Trek movies and TV episodes in which Starfleet crews (and the occasional Ferengi) go back in time.

Lizzie Twachtman, John Vanover, and Jeeg join Rob and Michael to create an historical period film with an all-star cast of actors known for their historical period films. And if that's not enough for ya, stay tuned to the end for Real Talk about New Math and Arrested Development.

Paxton Holley joins Michael May, Rob Graham, and Evan Hanson in the lounge for another meandering talk about what they've been reading, watching, and thinking about. Topics start from: Books of fairy tales and the works of Ray Bradbury and Italo Calvino Comics about Spider-Man and the third Green Goblin, Red Hood and the Outlaws, and The Shadow TV shows like Dickensian, The Expanse, The Great, Queen’s Gambit, and the eighth season of Mad About You Movies like Overlord and the Marvel films leading into WandaVision And real talk on Boat Names, Book Formats, Family, and Spheres of Influence

Annaliese Trammel, Paxton Holley, and Jeeg join Michael and Rob to hunt down Mandalorians and Jedi and -- ooh! side quest! -- on this in-depth, episode-by-episode symposium on the second season of The Mandalorian.

After Michael May and Robert Zerbe check in on their resolutions and predictions from last year's Nerdstradamus episode, Rob Graham, Evan Hanson, Kay, and Paxton Holley join the fun to look back on the books, movies, and TV shows of 2020 and forward to what's potentially coming in 2021. This episode is full of resolutions, recommendations, and reckonings. And a little bonus something we like to call "Tea Talk." Opening song by Andrew Bird.

Michael May, Rob Graham, and Evan Hanson reconvene for another informal conversation about what they’ve been reading, watching, and thinking about lately. Topics meander merrily, but start from: Books like Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, Charles Dickens' Christmas Books, The Devil’s Due by Bonnie MacBird, The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, and Becoming by Michelle Obama. Comics like Silver Spoon by Hiromu Arakawa Movies like the original Black Christmas, this year's Fatman, and the documentary Pilgrims. TV shows like Dicktown and Truth Seekers And real talk on Holiday Traditions, Movie Theaters, and This Podcast.