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PODCAST

Battle of the Network Shows

Rick Brooks and Mike Cowgill

Each week, hosts Rick Brooks and Mike Cowgill explore the TV of the "70s and "80s through hand-picked episodes.

tv & film tv reviews

All Episodes

01:19:34

Episode 11-4: Hart to Hart

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2023/06/22

In a "Rear Windowesque" moment, Jonathan Hart witnesses a possible mur-DAH. Then in his rush to stop it, he collides with a moped and gets...AMNESIA. Sure, he remembers how to hail a cab, how to dress to the nines, how to live a life of luxury, but he doesn't remember his wife Jennifer, his loyal aide-de-camp Max, his dog Freeway, or the mur-DAH. How will this calamity affect the Harts' marriage, Max's access to sporting events, and Freeway's access to the couch? Will they solve the mur-DAH? Will

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15:17

The All-New Game

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2023/06/15

Rick has long espoused the theory that adding "new," "all-new," "brand-new," etc. to the title of a show never works creatively or commercially. This week with the help of the BOTNS Games Lab (TM), we put that to the test in more ways than one as he runs Mike through the paces of "The All-New Game"! Ccan he distinguish shows that had "new" versions from those that didn't? #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #games #new

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38:53

Episode 11-3: The Littlest Hobo

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2023/06/08

This week, we venture north to Canada, where resourceful, wise, and perhaps supernatural German Shepherd The Littlest Hobo wanders Ontario in search of humans in need of help. This time, the action centers around an arcade, where he finds a deaf guy, a mime, and a grumpy old man and helps stop a couple of nogoodniks bent on robbing the place. #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #littlesthobo #dogs #arcades #videogames #canada

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01:12:27

Episode 11-2: Entertainment Tonight

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2023/06/01

In our first listener poll episode of the season, we cover two episodes of the original entertainment news magazine Entertainment Tonight. First up, the series premiere. While the show looks familiar, the hosts might not. Luckily, Burt Reynolds is there to hold the hands the audience and fifty pregnant women. Next, an episode from the classic Mary Hart-John Tesh era. This one has 1986 written all over it--Lionel Richie, the Mets, and Judd Nelson! #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties

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01:27:36

Episode 11-1: Night Court

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2023/05/25

Season 11 is now in session, and it opens with a gavel bang as we take on the original Night Court. We focus our attention on the season 5 episode "Another Day in the Life." If Harry and the gang can make it through 207 cases by midnight, an eccentric tycoon will save an orphanage from foreclosure. Wackiness ensues. We also find time to talk about the various cast changes, the pronunciation of Reinhold Weege, Yakov, Smirnoff, and more! Join us an eighties classic! #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies

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01:47:31

Season 10 BATTY Awards

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/10/06

Live on tape from the Spectrum in Philadelphia, we look back at season 10 and dole out another heap of BATTY Awards on the shows and stars that made the season special. As always, we honor everything from outstanding show to outstanding facial hair with a few surprises in between. Plus, we honor a singular figure with the Robert Pine Genius Award! #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #awardshow

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01:08:05

Episode 10-13: Little House on the Prairie

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/08/11

In our season 10 finale, Christmas Eve arrives in Walnut Grove...but so does a blizzard! The men must head into the storm in a desperate search for the children, who left school early. Bucolic it ain't! We also cover important topics like religion, paste-eating, and orangutans. #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #littlehouseontheprairie #michaellandon #melissagilbert #victorfrench #blizzard #christmas

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01:04:10

Episode 10-12: Bosom Buddies

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/08/04

When Buffy (Tom Hanks) and Hildy (Peter Scolari) accidentally drop a water balloon on Richard Milhous Nixon's car, Kip (Tom Hanks) and Henry (Peter Scolari) get into hot water with the Secret Service, and Kip (Tom Hanks) has a mid-twenties crisis. Could "Waterballoongate" mean the end for the Bosom Buddies (Tom Hanks and Peter Scolari)? #podcast #tv #retrotv #eighties #sitcom #bosombuddies #tomhanks #peterscolari #donnadixon #telmahopkins #hollandtaylor #wendiejosperber

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22:16

Fame Game 10

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/07/28

Will Mike's Fame Game hot streak continue, or will it all fall part? Plus, what do "Slylock Fox," the stone age, produce, and bowling balls all have in common? They appear in this episode! #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #games #famegame

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01:07:45

Episode 10-11: McMillan and Wife

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/07/21

This week, we focus on another spoke of the NBC Mystery Wheel with McMillan and Wife, starring Rock Hudson, Susan Saint James, and most importantly John Schuck! In "Cop of the Year," Schuck's Sergeant Enright finds himself accused of murdering his ex-wife. He and Mac (with a little help from the great Jon Astin) work to clear his name and find the real killer. #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #rockhudson #susansaintjames #johnschuck #mcmillanandwife #mystery

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52:58

Episode 10-10: Kolchak: The Night Stalker

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/07/14

In past episodes, we've encountered vampires, space vampires, Frankensteins, and space mummies, but this time, we sink our teeth into a show featuring another monster! In the cult classic "Kolchak: The Night Stalker," intrepid reporter Karl Kochak finds himself stuck on a singles cruise with Dick Gautier, Nita Talbot, and a werewolf! Will anyone believe him? Will anyone stop the man-beast? Will any of the singles pair up? #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #kolchakthenightstalker #werewolf #werewolves

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18:33

TV Guide Game: August, 1977

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/07/07

Our Facebook Group voted on a year to cover in our long-running TV Guide Game feature. They ended up in a two-way tie, so this week, we return to the BOTNS Vaults and pull out a TV Guide from 1977. Disney, the Hardy Boys, Ethel Merman, a BOTNS theoretical favorite, and more vie for Mike's viewership. Can Rick guess what he would watch, and if he does, will he celebrate in Jim Crockett's Victory Garden? #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #tvguide #tvguidegame

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01:00:35

Episode 10-9: High School U.S.A.

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/06/30

In this season's listener poll winner, Michael J. Fox and Nancy McKeon lead a cast of thousands in a story of teen romance, school politics, and class warfare that could only be called High School U.S.A.! Plus a robot! #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #tvmovie #michaeljfox #nancymckeon #crispinglover #tonydow #toddbridges #thegreatmichaelzorek #highschoolusa #teencomedy

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51:07

Ep. 10-8: It's Garry Shandling's Show

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/06/23

This is the one about Garry's Show. In "Go Go Goldblum," Garry Shandling (Garry Shandling) and Jeff Goldblum (Jeff Goldblum) find themselves in quite the pickle. Rick (Rick) and Mike (Mike), on the other hand, don't have any trouble heaping praise on the underappreciated gem It's Garry Shandling's Show. #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #itsgarryshandlingsshow #garryshandling #jeffgolodblum.

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01:17:19

Episode 10-7: Perry Mason

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/06/16

In this season's Retro-Retro episode, we return to the silver age of TV and TV's wiliest lawyer--the great Perry Mason in "The Case of the Treacherous Toupee." You read that right. Crime, shenannegans, and a toupee! Plus a young Robert Redford! #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #fifties #sixties #perrymason #raymondburr #robertredford #lawyers #courtroomdrama

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18:43

My Favorite Martin

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/06/09

"Imagine if you will a pyramid of Martins." What could this mean? The wizards in the BOTNS Game Labs have done it again, that's what! Can Mike guess the BOTNS-era celebrity Martins (first or last name) and build the pyramid, or will the pyramid crumble like so many misplaced bricks? #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #game #myfavoritemartin #martin

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59:59

Ep. 10-6: Bob Hope

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/06/02

If you watched NBC in the seventies and eighties (and nineties), you saw Bob Hope smirking, mugging, singing, dancing, flirting, and reading cue cards. "Bob Hope's All-Star Comedy Spectacular" features all that and a who's who of variety TV from Ann-Margret and Charo to Sammy and Dino, not to mention Mac Davis! Join us as we discuss all this and Texaco! #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #bobhope #macdavis #sammydavisjr #deanmartin #annmargret #variety #comedy #charo

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01:17:52

Ep. 10-5: Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/05/26

Before Spider-Man teamed up with Spider-Man and, uh, Spider-Man (let-alone Spider-Man Noir, Spider-Gwen, and Spider-Ham) at the movies, he teamed up with Ice Man and Firestar on Saturday morning TV in Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. Not only that, but in "The X-Men Adventure," Spidey and his friends also join forces with the X-Men to defeat a deranged cyborg with a personal connection to one of the heroes. By fan request from our celebrated 2-11-year-old demographic, we nerd out over this

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01:08:17

Ep. 10-4: Siskel and Ebert

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/05/19

The thumbs, the tension, the balcony--who can forget Siskel and Ebert and their various movie review shows? They helped create a new TV format and defined and dominated it with their winning personalities and unique dynamics. We take a look at an episode fron 1989 and also discuss some of their competitors and imitators.

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12:01

Fame Game 9

Battle of the Network Shows ·

2022/05/12

We take a break from our regularly scheduled programming to bring you another round of the Fame Game, where Mike has to guess a famous personality (real or fictional) from the BOTNS era based on a series of clues. Will his hot streak continue, or will he crash and burn? Find out! #podcast #tv #retrotv #seventies #eighties #game #famegame #bonusepisode

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222 results

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