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PODCAST

Gimmicks

Glitterjaw Queer Podcast Collective

A podcast about the high-concept, experimental, structure-breaking gimmick episodes of TV! From musicals, to noirs, to bottle episodes and more -- we look at any television episode that breaks from its own formula in some way. Derek B. Gayle and David Arnold (and occasionally guests!) dig into a different episode of a different show across the entire TV landscape every other Monday!

tv & film

All Episodes

01:46:24

PEE-WEE'S PLAYHOUSE goes up for sale (with Kevin...

Gimmicks ·

2025/11/19

Pee-wee's Playhouse: "Playhouse for Sale"Come on in, and pull yourself up a chair (Like Chairry!) Kevin Cafferty joins us for the series finale of the hugely popular fusion of Saturday Morning kids edutainment and underground surrealist performance art, and its melancholy clip show goodbye inspired by Howdy Doody. We get into the alt-comedy and punk roots of the Pee-wee Herman character, Pee-wee mania in the 80s, the horrible ways Paul Reubens and his sexuality was handled by the

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01:05:52

Late night shows are turned on their heads

Gimmicks ·

2025/11/12

Bonus episode! With the recent developments in the landscape of late night television programs, we wanted to talk about what's going on and look back at some of the high concept and experimental episodes that are part of the long history of this type of TV. In particular, we will discuss the Late Night With David Letterman airing from December 9, 1986. Link to watch care of archivist Don Giller.A proud part of⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Glitterjaw Queer Podcast

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02:29:41

TERMINATOR: THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES takes a...

Gimmicks ·

2025/11/05

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: "Mr. Ferguson is Ill Today"When this TV sequel to Terminator 2 has a climactic face-off with its series-long cyborg Big Bad, it does so in style -- following the disparate ensemble of heroes from their individual perspectives until they come together in Mexico. We talk about why this is one of the best installments of the Terminator franchise, Derek introducing David to yet another short-lived FOX genre show with a 90210 cast member (hi, Brian

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01:50:20

BATMAN villains play poker (with Lan Pitts)

Gimmicks ·

2025/10/22

Batman: The Animated Series: "Almost Got 'Im"What happens when five of Batman's rogues gallery play a game of cards together? They tell stories about their greatest foe! Comic writer Lan Pitts joins us for this series of vignettes and mini-Batman adventures from Joker, Poison Ivy, Penguin, and Two-Face (Killer Croc just threw a rock at 'im.) We get into the history of this iconic show and why this is regarded as one of its best episodes!Look out for Lan's upcoming graphic

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00:33:07

The alternate scenes of the WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS...

Gimmicks ·

2025/10/15

Bonus episode! We just talked about What We Do in the Shadows last week, and we wanted to briefly talk about last year's series finale... which featured three different parody "hypnosis" scenes in the middle of the episode, depending on when and where you watched it. Listen to David learn about and watch these alternate scenes for the very first time!A proud part of⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Glitterjaw Queer Podcast

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01:57:36

WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS flips into a reality TV...

Gimmicks ·

2025/10/08

What We Do in the Shadows: "Go Flip Yourself"Bad news?! Matt Bruneau-Richardson (from Tiny Siren Animation) joins to discuss the reality TV spin of of the mockumentary style show What We Do in the Shadows. We celebrate this series' queerness, alongside its horror and comedy while also talking about the history of home renovation programs, what they've become, and how watching them might be really bad for our brains.Check out Matt's upcoming feature, Sirenetta: Part-Time Mermaid

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01:53:09

ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING goes silent

Gimmicks ·

2025/09/24

Only Murders in the Building: "The Boy from 6B" It's one of the smartest takes on a silent episode when the murder mystery dramedy takes on the perspective of its deaf character Theo (James Caverly)! We get into how a series headlined by Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez could actually exist, and how its stylized take on the genre allowed deaf creators to craft one of the show's most rich and complex episodes with almost no vocal dialogue. Plus, we talk about the nature

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00:47:25

TV shows that grew the beard

Gimmicks ·

2025/09/17

Bonus episode! We just talked about jumping the shark last week... so we decided to chat about our favorite instances of TV shows doing the opposite! We talk about the concept of "growing the beard" -- moments when shows that started out rocky improved and became their best selves. We get into Star Trek, RuPaul's Drag Race, The X-Files, Bojack Horseman, Tru Calling, and much more!A proud part of⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Glitterjaw Queer Podcast

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01:37:54

HAPPY DAYS jumps the shark

Gimmicks ·

2025/09/10

Happy Days: "Hollywood, Part 3" You've heard the phrase "jump the shark." But what about the episode that created it? We're talking the hugely popular 1970s sitcom about the 1950s -- Happy Days, and the Hollywood beach vacation three-parter and pseudo-Jaws riff that led to Henry Winkler's Fonzie waterskiing over a shark... and defining "TV shows going downhill" for the ages. Does the episode deserve the infamy? How much evil has Ron Howard inflicted on the

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01:20:19

Reairing: ROSEANNE does Roseanne without Roseanne...

Gimmicks ·

2025/09/03

Roseanne: "An Officer and a Gentleman" We're revisiting this early episode of Gimmicks from 2022 with new commentary! To start, David shares some personal lore related to this very Gimmicks episode, and Derek talks a little about the controversy of the ending of The Conners.Then, we present the original episode where Kevin from May the Power Protect You Podcast joins for this prescient episode that puts Laurie Metcalf and John Goodman in the spotlight. ⁠Nearly 30 years before Roseanne

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02:00:23

Reairing: KING OF THE HILL does a disturbing...

Gimmicks ·

2025/08/20

King of the Hill: "Pigmalion"We're revisiting this early episode of Gimmicks from 2022 with new commentary! First, David shares his love for Peggy Hill, while Derek talks about the transition from caution to unambiguous excitement over the impending revival of King of the Hill.Then, we present the original episode where Tommy Proffitt (Distant Echoes, Lee Carvallo's Podding Challenge) joins to talk about this dark and infamous Halloween episode that puts Luanne in the clutches of a twisted pork

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02:32:56

Reairing: DEAD END does a climactic rock opera (with...

Gimmicks ·

2025/08/06

Dead End: Paranormal Park: "Phantom of the Theme Park"We're revisiting this early episode of Gimmicks from 2022 with new commentary! To start, David remembers the "nightmares" that led him to Dead End: Paranormal Park, and Derek laments the cancelation of this groundbreaking series.Then, we present the original episode where Doug Fink sings his own "I Want" song for one of the best television musicals in years! The very queer animated adaptation of Hamish

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01:26:10

Reairing: MOONLIGHTING does Shakespeare (with Kevin...

Gimmicks ·

2025/07/23

Moonlighting: "Atomic Shakespeare"We're revisiting this early episode of Gimmicks from 2023 with new commentary! First, David talks about remembering -- and forgetting -- Moonlighting, while Derek rightfully credits this Gimmicks episode as finally delivering this groundbreaking series onto a streaming platform.Then, we present the original episode where Kevin Cafferty (Best Stuff in the World, Gleaming the Tube) cometh to discuss the most famous (and expensive) episode of the classic

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00:19:47

The ALWAYS SUNNY/ABBOTT ELEMENTARY crossover (part II)

Gimmicks ·

2025/07/16

It's a sequel to a previous bonus episode! We last covered part one of the crossover between Abbott Elementary and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia that aired with Abbott, and we loved it. After many months, we've finally gotten the Always Sunny take in part two, and... well, we love it significantly less. Let's talk about why this didn't work as well as the first installment.A proud part of⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Glitterjaw Queer Podcast

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01:53:52

SAVED BY THE BELL is so excited and so scared

Gimmicks ·

2025/07/09

Saved by the Bell: "Jessie's Song" Yes, this is the one where Jessie Spano gets addicted to caffeine pills and sings The Pointer Sisters! It's the textbook example of a Very Special Episode and one of the most lambasted episodes in TV history -- and it actually came from a sincere, personal place. We explore how a Saturday morning sitcom for children decided to do a drug story, why it became caffeine, and the better story about pressures to succeed in school that's buried under

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01:44:47

BLACK MIRROR has a happy ending (with Merrilee O'Neil)

Gimmicks ·

2025/06/25

Black Mirror: "San Junipero" Heaven is a place on Earth! Merrilee O'Neil (from Glitterjaw's Fear Coded) joins us for the queer joy of the bleak sci-fi anthology's first break from formula -- a big gay sapphic love story set in the 1980s (sort of) that is not, in fact, a huge downer. We get into the cultural conversation around Black Mirror (and how it led to the creation of this episode) along with complex explorations of death, the meaning of life, and why queerness elevates this sci-fi

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00:55:57

The TGIF time warp

Gimmicks ·

2025/06/18

Bonus episode! When ABC's TGIF block tried to replicate the success of Sabrina the Teenage Witch in the late 90s, it resulted in a very high-concept time travel crossover that injected magic into the entire block! Sabrina, Boy Meets World, and the mostly forgotten Teen Angel and You Wish all get displaced into different decades thanks to Salem eating a magical time ball, and only Melissa Joan Hart's quips and charisma can save them all. We talk about this network crossover's legacy, and how even a

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01:45:38

FRASIER does a fake clip show

Gimmicks ·

2025/06/11

Frasier: "Crock Tales" Just before the series finale, Frasier Crane breaks a clay crock in his kitchen and reflects on the last 11 years of his sitcom... flashing back to clips we've never seen! We're talking about the iconic Cheers spin-off and the character Kelsey Grammer played for 20 consecutive years, and the unique way this episode celebrates a decade of character development and different kinds of farcical stories. And of course, we talk about all the terrible wigs and how

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00:51:46

R.I.P. Netflix interactive specials

Gimmicks ·

2025/06/04

Bonus episode! We're pouring one out for the "choose your own adventure" style Netflix specials that were recently wiped from the platform, including popular specials Black Mirror: Bandersnatch and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs the Reverend. We get into the origins and mechanics of this unique fusion of movies and games, and why it's tragic to see them disappear so quickly after their creation.Look for our Black Mirror episode on "San Junipero" on June 25!A proud

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01:31:10

STAR TREK: TNG makes first contact (with Chris Farnell)

Gimmicks ·

2025/05/28

Star Trek: The Next Generation: "First Contact" We come in peace! Author Chris Farnell (Star Trek: Lower Decks Crew Handbook, Fermi's Progress) gets beamed up with us to talk about this perspective flip on the usual Star Trek formula -- a story that positions our Enterprise crew as mysterious space invaders to a planet that has never met aliens. We get into the flaws of the Federation’s first contact procedures and how this story is just “a day at the office” for them, and how the episode quickly

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107 results

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