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PODCAST

Ancient Geeks

Two old geeks talk about being young geeks, at a turning point in popular culture. In the 60s, 70s, and 80s, the threads of modern geek culture emerged and wove together. Science fiction, fantasy, comics, movies, TV shows, tabletop games, computer games, ad all their incarnations. The great SF&F writers, Star Trek, Star Wars, monster movies, D&D, Doctor Who, the Marvel and DC superheroes, 2001, Planet of the Apes, conventions, Zork, Ultima...What was it like to experience these for the first time

fiction science fiction

All Episodes

79:32

Ancient Geeks episode 40: Star Trek VI The...

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/11/10

The last of the Star Trek movies with the entire original cast, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country saw the return of Nicholas Meyer in the director's seat. Not only were there high hopes for it to exceed the low bar set by the previous movie, but expectations were high for this finale. How did it succeed as the capstone on original Trek? As a Cold War metaphor? As an environmental metaphor? As an opportunity for Christopher Plummer to chew the scenery even more than William Shatner? Come with us

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65:27

Ancient Geeks episode 39: Star Trek V: The Final...

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/11/03

We continue our coverage on the TOS era of Star Trek movies with what nearly everyone agrees was the low point, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. But how low did it go? We didn't love it when we saw it, but how do we feel about it today, after a re-watch? Why didn't this movie work as well as the others, despite the fact that the general premise didn't ipso facto doom it to mediocrity?Future camping technology! Pop psychology in spaaaaace! A surprisingly easy trip to the center of the galaxy

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83:43

Ancient Geeks episode 38: Alien

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/10/27

It's an understatement to say that Alien is a classic, a genre-defining moment in science fiction and horror. Tom saw it when it was released, and was blown away. Steven just saw it, and...Well, you'll have to listen to find out! Join us for both our reactions to the movie, some behind-the-scenes facts, and much more.A truly alien alien! Frights galore! Confined spaces! Containment protocols everyone should follow! Fantastic filmmaking! They're all here. Ancient Geeks is a podcast about two geeks

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63:32

Ancient Geeks episode 37: Adam Warlock

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/10/20

In the 1970s, Jim Starlin, a comic artist and writer, revamped a C-list Marvel character named Adam Warlock. Starlin's unique art, sharp writing, and unique vision for this "cosmic" superhero made us instant fans! Plus, Warlock's story became a foundational part of The Infinity Gauntlet, in which Thanos strives to destroy life across the universe! (You may have heard of this Thanos fellow.) Starlin went on later to write some of our favorite comics, both at Marvel and DC.Totalitarian theocrats

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52:54

Ancient Geeks episode 36: The Adventures of Buckaroo...

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/10/13

Kind of an homage to pulp heroes, kind of deliberate camp, and definitely one of the most 80s-ish movies you'll ever see. It's The Adventures Of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension! It has been about 40 years since we saw this movie for the first time, and we're still trying to figure out what it was supposed to be, and how we feel about it. OK, so the title character is a brain surgeon, a physicist, a rock star, a test pilot, and a comic book hero....? OK, cool.Join us as we re-visit this

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84:46

Ancient Geeks episode 35: Planet Of The Apes

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/10/06

It's a madhouse! A maaaaaadhouse! One of the critical Big Ideas science fiction movies of our youth was Planet Of The Apes. Not only was it filled with jaw-dropping revelations, but it became popular enough to inspire four sequels in rapid succession. The world went ape, and so did we!One of the biggest plot twists in movie history! Satire! Misanthropy! Incredible makeup effects! The original Rod Serling script! It's all here. Ancient Geeks is a podcast about two geeks of a certain age

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77:48

Ancient Geeks episode 34: Star Trek IV: The Journey Home

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/09/29

Star Trek III: The Search For Spock answered some questions about the fate of the Enterprise crew, and left others very unresolved. Where would they go next? Why, on a trek to find humpback whales, of course! Star Trek IV: The Journey Home was a very light-hearted adventure to the 20th century to save the future of Earth, and became one of the most beloved Star Trek productions ever! Come with us back to the 80s, an era of colorful metaphors and peak Trek. A mysterious alien probe! San Francisco! A

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79:05

Ancient Geeks episode 33: Star Trek III: The Search...

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/09/22

After Star Trek II, it wasn't completely clear where Star Trek would go, but given the success of The Wrath Of Khan, it was clear it was going somewhere. We only had a couple of years to wait until the release of the third movie, The Search For Spock. Journey back with us to the early 80s, when Star Trek movies became a popular event, Leonard Nimoy started his directorial career, and the fate of the Enterprise crew, and the Enterprise, was still uncertain.Klingons! The Genesis planet! Scrambled

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73:23

Ancient Geeks episode 32: Elric of Melniboné

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/09/15

"Stormbringer, come to me!" Michael Moorock's Elric of Melniboné is the classic sword and sorcery...Protagonist? Anti-hero? Definitely his own person. The albino ex-emperor of a decadent empire, wielding a soul-stealing sword, destined to play a pivotal role in the climactic clash between Law and Chaos, an incarnation of the Enternal Champion, traveler in the multiverse...He's definitely all that. In this episode, Tom discusses why he has been an Elric fan since his teens, and Steven talks about

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80:45

Ancient Geeks episode 31: Crisis On Infinite Earths

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/09/08

In the early 1980s, the editors at DC Comics decided that the DC Universe(s) had become unmanageable. Heroes and villains from different eras of comic continuity, often living in different realities, crossing over to have a friendly chat with their peers -- it was all too much. They hired Marv Wolfman and George Perez to blow it all up, and then re-build. Crisis On Infinite Earths, a 12-issue mega-series, was the result.Journey back with us to 1983, when the Crisis first started. We talk about the

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103:01

Ancient Geeks episode 30: Fan service

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/09/01

We've mentioned fan service in past episodes. Now, we take it head on. Tom and Steven have a lot to say about fan service, because it's a big part of geek culture today. But was it also a major part of our earlier geek lives? How much more of geek culture, especially on the screen, is dominated by it today? Is it always a bad thing, the death of creativity and quality? Or, in the right hands, can it be used for good. Sequels! Remakes! In-jokes! Deep cuts! Updates! Transmedia! Spirited debate between

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01:11:19

Ancient Geeks episode 29: Blake's 7

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/08/25

Blake's 7 was definitely ahead of its time. A BBC science fiction series chock full of political intrigue, interesting characters with unexpected arcs, crazy ideas, and plot twists, all wrapped up in a neat space opera package. It ran at the same time as classic Doctor Who, but it doesn't have the same recognition as the good Doctor's adventures. But it's definitely worth tracking down this somewhat lost (or temporarily misplaced) series, and we'll tell you why.Totalitarian regimes! Feisty rebels

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01:09:43

Ancient Geeks episode 28: Flash Gordon

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/08/18

Flash! Aaah-aah!Steven and Tom journey back to 1980, when the big budget Flash Gordon movie premiered. Was it a camp classic? A post-Star Wars cash grab? A sincere homage to the comic strip? A weird amalgam of British, Italian, and American science fiction motifs? Something else? All of the above? Listen and find out. Thrill to retro rocketships blazing across the screen! Cringe at the acting! Marvel at the incredibly colorful costuming and production design! Cover your ears when Brian Blessed

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01:37:02

Ancient Geeks episode 27: Godzilla

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/08/11

Look! Towering over the city! It's another episode of Ancient Geeks!We discuss the first Godzilla movie, which is a powerful, compelling piece of film-making. No, really! If you haven't seen it, we'll tell you why the original Japanese movie is compelling, thought-provoking, and scary. We get into the interesting behind-the-scenes story of the earliest Godzilla movies, and how this series evolved during the course of its immediate sequels during what fans call "the Showa era." We also talk about

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01:28:28

Ancient Geeks episode 26: The Fantastic Four movie

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/08/04

We've seen the new Fantastic Four movie, and this episode contains all of our thoughts on the film, and then some! We discuss how good a movie it is, how good a Fantastic Four movie it is, and how good a comic book movie it is. Will it appeal to both comic book nerds and people who aren't comics fans? Will this movie help the MCU get back on its feet? We also have one of the liveliest debates between Tom and Steven in the history of the podcast – so far! Can long-standing franchises avoid getting

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01:25:10

Ancient Geeks episode 25: John Byrne's Fantastic Four

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/07/28

What better way to celebrate the release of the Fantastic Four movie than to journey back to the 1980s, when John Byrne took over both the writer and artist roles for the Fantastic Four comic book. This was one of the best runs of any writer or artist over the 64 year history of the comic book, and Steven and Tom are eager to tell you why. The FF family facing crisis after crisis! Science fiction galore! Doombots exploding! Galactus getting beaten up by everyone! Reed Richards as a mediocre adjunct

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01:18:42

Ancient Geeks episode 24: Andor, an allegory for...

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/07/21

In this concluding episode of our Death Star-sized coverage of Andor, we look at this series through the lenses of political science and history (topics about which we know a few things). What are the important lessons from a galaxy far, far away about authoritarianism and rebellion here? How do the characters in this series epitomize the roles people play in real-world times of upheaval? How well does Andor depict the hard choices that people have to make? What ultimately makes this show as good as

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01:09:13

Ancient Geeks episode 23: Andor season two

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/07/14

More Andor! Our discussion of the show continues with our analysis of season two. The Empire tightens its grip. The Rebel Alliance gains strength. Characters reach the final destinations of their story arcs. And in the process, we get the best Star Wars in a long, long time. It's John le Carré-level fiction, but with blasters and droids.Hear our analysis of season two, and the series overall. Next episode, we'll get the political science take on this ground-breaking series. What makes this show one

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01:10:54

Ancient Geeks bonus episode 1: James Gunn's Superman

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/07/13

Steven and Tom rushed to the movie theater, saw the new Superman movie, and now present their reviews! There's a spoiler-free section in the first part, followed by spoilers galore in the second, so listen carefully for the transition. Thrill as we give our opinions of how well this movie captures the essential Superman! Gasp as we disagree over how much we liked the movie! Hear how we compare James Gunn's Superman to the 1979 Christopher Reeve classic, as well as other movie and TV

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01:13:27

Ancient Geeks episode 22: Andor season one

Ancient Geeks ·

2025/07/07

What's it like to watch Andor, from the perspective of two lifelong geeks who were there for the premiere of the original Star Wars film? And who also have a deep interest in politics and history? That's the topic of the next three episodes of Ancient Geeks. In this episode, we talk about the first season of Andor. How much did we like this show? (Answer: A lot.) How does it change our perception of Star Wars, including the first movie? How well does it stand on its own, without all the connections

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