Podcasts in Review

March 17, 2016 at 12:01 am | Posted in Podcasts, Podcasts in Review, Regular Feature, Reviews, Star Wars | 1 Comment
Tags: pierce brown

Here is this week’s Podcasts in Review.

Aggressive Negotiations: Issue 005 delves into why the Jedi formed, being inherently good or bad, and the Force seeking balance. Ultimately they question whether the galaxy far far away would be better off without the Jedi. If you’re looking for a discussion focused Star Wars show, this one’s worth a listen.

Aggressive Negotiations: Issue 006 covers Force powers from coolest to lamest to whatever is needed to move the story forward. They also talk about masking Force your presence and the possibility of becoming too reliant on Force powers. My one complaint in listening to the show so far is there is a little bit of EU hating going on. Now I might just be overly sensitive to good ole Legends as I seem to be one of the few people who would say they like the whole thing rather than just liking parts of it, but to each their own. On the plus side, it’s not like they’re making EU hating a central focus of the podcast, it just creeps in here and there.

Blabba the Hutt: Episode 16 starts with iTunes reviews, then they get into Episode VIII and Rogue One news. They talk a little about Toy Fair, the stormtrooper who banged his head, Ewan doing a Force ghost and more. This was my first time tuning in. Basically it’s a news coverage format show where they add their commentary and thoughts on the news topics. The hosts are fun and they’be got good audio quality. Unfortunately I’m not really looking to add more news coverage shows to my regular playlist, however I would be interested to know if they stick to the news format or if they ever do discussion topic focused shows as I do like the hosts and would like to hear them talk about things other than just the news.

Blast Points: Episode 4 gets into listener reviews and feedback, the Lu Han Star Wars music video, Rogue One Vader rumors, planning beyond nine, Forest Whitaker and cyber legs, a white caped Thrawn, and more for some fun and entertaining discussion.

Blast Points: Episode 5 features an interview with droid builder Kurt Zimmerman who talk about building a BB-8 and Marvel Star Wars comics. Another fun episode.

Blast Points: Episode 6 covers Episode VIII news and speculation on the crawl, whether there will be a Han Solo funeral, and they goof around about Luke action figures with real hair. I’ve been enjoying Blast Points a lot and plan on sticking with them. There’s a lot of humor and I like their viewpoints.

BNN (Bombad Radio): Episode 3.14.16 covers a lot of video game news as they talk about Fable Legends being cancelled, employees leaving Bioware, Diablo 2 patches, Telltale doing Batman, Everquest Next being cancelled, a Portal movie, as well as some tv news like CW renewing everything, Star Trek Beyond, and Lou Cage Netflix show.

Bombad Radio: Episode 230 features a fantastic interview with Nika Futterman who voiced one of my all time favorite Star Wars characters, Asajj Ventress. She talks about voicing Asajj and Sy Snootles, the differences between working on movies, television and video games, being the voice of Catwoman and Gamorra, working on The Boxtrolls, StarCraft II, her own process with finding voices, working with voice directors and more. Great interview, plus she does some of her voices which is always a fun bonus.

Brews and Blasters: Episode 60 starts with a great bumper by Greg Grunberg aka Snap Wexley. Joe and Chris dive into all kinds of topics like Jedi bathrooms, Yoda showers, Star Wars Rebels, visions, Ezra and Kanan handling Inquisitors, Ahsoka, Anakin and Yoda, Spaceballs, Ghostbusters, TFA home release trailer, physical vs digital, VHS movie talk, antiquing and beer. They get into some collecting as they talk about recent acquisitions and figures they need as they open a few on air. They also tackle listener questions, try to name as many Transformers and GI Joes as they can, and give the best coverage of a negative review I’ve ever heard. Lots of fun as always.

Brews and Blasters: Episode 61 doesn’t feature Chris, however Joe brings in Scott Ryfun to help co-host which leads to some fun discussion even if strays far and away from Star Wars. They talk Larry Bird, The Fox and the Hound, Trap Jaw, Power Rangers, KISS, playing trumpet, 8K movies, Audible and being a character in a novel. Scott digs deep and brings up Shock Top and Crystal Lime, thus cementing himself as the perfect guest co-host. He talks about listening to the movie commentary he and Steve Glosson did while watching TFA in the theater, which leads to a funny story, Star Wars soundtracks being pop albums, his Star Wars story, and a lengthy but oddly intriguing conversation about which sandwich and beverage each Star Wars movies would be. It’ll get you thinking about your own choices. This one racks up as two hours of pure fun. Great addition to any podcast playlist.

Comics With Kenobi: Issue #15 covers Star Wars #16, Kanan #11, Darth Vader #16, Darth Vader #17, plus the rollout plans for Star Wars: Poe Dameron. Lots of fun comic coverage packed into this one. Great podcast for Star Wars comic fans.

Databank Brawl (Force Center): Episode 3 pits Ric Olie against Yarael Poof. Now this was the first episode of Force Center I’ve ever listened to, so I wasn’t sure what to expect, especially given the concept of a podcast having two Star Wars characters fight each other. Surprisingly, they make it not only work, but it’s really entertaining. There are three hosts, two guys and one girl, and they start by go over each character, the role they played in the movies, their canon histories, and a little bit of their non-canon histories. Then they commence to improving a situation where the two characters would get into a brawl and they take turns creating a hilarious fight between Ric ‘State the Obvious’ Olie and Yarael ‘Long Neck’ Poof. Kevin, one of the hosts, has a real knack for it. The episode is only 28 minutes long, which is the perfect length for the subject matter. I highly recommend checking this one out. They’ve got great sound quality, a fun concept, and good hosts.

Fangirl Chat: Honoring Alan Rickman features Teresa and Bethany (Star Wars Report) as they honor actor Alan Rickman and discuss his role as Severus Snape in Harry Potter as well as some of his other film roles. If you’re a Harry Potter or Severus Snape fan, this one is worth a listen.

Fly Casual: Episode 80 is a news and toys episode. They start out with some fish fry discussion before diving into news, box office numbers, Gods of Egypt, JJ on the necessity of Han Solo’s death, which leads them onto a big side discussion on moving writing and the formulaic approach of Hollywood toward storytelling. Continuing the movie discussion, they touch on Ghostbuster, Deadpool and Creed. Then they bring it back around as they go through the special features for The Force Awakens Blu-ray, touch on the Oscars, the Rogue One logo, Chewie being in the Han Solo movie, and five more Star Wars movies being added. For toys, they discuss the Rey K-Mart exclusive 6-inch Black Series figure, the Funko Pop Rancor set, a plush Salacious Crumb, and ANOVOS helmets. Fun episode as always mixing lots of Star Wars news and topics into entertaining discussion.

Force Center: Episode 8 talks about Star Wars canon, as a kid and now, the books and their unity, the comics and their more nutty approach, plus fan feedback and fan questions which lead to some fun discussion. There’s even a fun fan fic feature. Now this is the first time I’ve listened to the main Force Center show. It’s got multiple hosts, unlike Star Wars Spotlight, and it’s a Star Wars topic discussion format unlike Databank Brawl. I really liked the discussion so I’ll definitely be tuning in for more of these. They’ve got a nice professional audio sound. Worth checking out.

Force Cult: Episode 51 covers their thoughts on Star Wars Rebels “Shroud of Darkness,” Blu-ray release content, watching the TFA bootleg, Oscars, Luke in Episode VIII, landspeeder, Mayhew announcement, toy rumors and…some more toy complaining. There’s quite a bit of toy talk at the end, with some discussion on stocking. Now this episode did have a lot less whining than the previous one, and it was better, but I’ve got a pretty good feel for the show now and, sorry to say, this one will not be making my regular rotation. Just a matter of personal taste.

Full of Sith: Episode CLVII is a Kanan discussion. There’s no Amy in this episode, but they bring in guest Erich and Aaron as they talk about Kanan in the comics, books and television show. This leads them to Star Wars Rebels “Shroud of Darkness” where they talk about the visions, putting down the sword, the good and evil of Vader, Malachor, and possibility of Maul being a lesson for Ezra. It’s great content, but there are some audio issues. Aaron’s mic volume is pretty quiet, Erich’s mic volume is really loud, and there’s some white noise on the mic’s. Interestingly enough, I noticed the issue on my computer speakers and in my car, but when I listened via headphones, it actually didn’t sound too bad at all, so that may be the way to go. I was having trouble trying to enjoy the episode until I found that solution which helped a lot.

Full of Sith: Episode CLVIII is hosted by Bryan, Mike and Amy as they discuss Anakin’s hero’s journey in the prequels, how the Jedi gave Anakin the tools he needed for his path to darkness, and Palpatine’s role. They touch on Luke’s role in The Force Awakens and his seeming reluctance to pick up the sword, as well as Rey refusing offers from Han to join his crew, Finn in running away, and Maz in using the Force. Bryan mentions the heroine’s journey which sets off an interesting conversation on whether it’s relevant to have a hero and a heroine’s journey. Afterwards they dive into Amy’s thoughts on Star Wars Rebels “Shroud of Darkness.” Good episode with some nice subject matter. It’s a bit different than the usual hero’s journey discussion.

Hangin’ with Team Kanan: Episode 7 covers Star Wars Rebels “The Honorable Ones”, “Shroud of Darkness” and the Kanan comic. Lots of Star Wars Rebels and Kanan goodness.

Hodder Pod: Pierce Brown Interview features a nice conversation with the author of the Red Rising Trilogy. He talks about his writing process, his disdain for outlining, travel, politics, and how Plato influenced his series. Good audio with fun questions. Not too long and spoiler free.

Legion of Leia: Episode 30 features guests Carrie Goldman and her daughter Annie Rose. Carrie is an author and activist and Annie is the one who wrote to Hasbro about the lack of Rey in the Star Wars Monopoly game. They talk about Star Wars and the importance of women, dealing with bullying, and importance of Rey. There are some audio issues with this episode including mic noises and a hot mic (ie. loud). I’d only recommend this one if you’re interested in the subject matter. This was my first time listening to the show so I might try a couple more episodes to see if the audio is better.

Mass Amplify Show: Episode 16 features a nice interview with Red Rising author Pierce Brown. He talks about how he became a writer, his agent and editor, dealing with criticism, objectives for his story, and using social media to promote your work. Good episode.

Random Chatter: RIP ForceCast is a rather interesting podcast show a lot of people might be interested in checking out. As someone who used to listen to the ForceCast when Jimmy and Jason hosted it, who then checked out the show when it switched over to Eric and Erik, and enjoyed the show when Justin Bolger jumped on, this was an eye opening look at the behind-the-scenes of the show. For those who don’t know, the ForceCast kind of imploded recently and is no more. Erik Blythe hosts this episode and talks about a lot of stuff, from the history of the ForceCast to what went wrong and how it all ended up where it is. Thus it’s interesting in two parts. On one hand you get the history of the show, from when Erik started it, and to the many hosts it changed hands to. On the other hand, you get some of the reasons on why the show changed hands, the difficulties and issues that popped up with the hosts, and some info on what goes on beyond the podcast. Very informative and eye opening. If you’re a fan of any of the incarnations of the ForceCast, you’ll want to check this one out to get the full story.

Rebel Force Radio: Episode 3.11.2016 has more Oscar discussion, Star Wars Rebels, IMDB, Inquisitors, Episode VIII news, night shoots, landspeeder chase, JJ comments, Daisy’s comments, interview with Ernie Cline (author of Ready Player One) covering The Force Awakens, and they wrap it up with listener voicemail.

Rebel Yell (Disney Vault Talk): The Honorable Ones and Shroud of Darkness starts with some discussion of the Star Wars Podcasting Awards, then they head into a really nice discussion for “The Honorable Ones.” They get off on a tangent as they hunt down the names of flying creatures, then dive into “Shroud of Darkness”, the vision, and all the possible meanings. Great show as always.

Rock Out Loud: Everybody Wants Listening Party is their review of The Struts’ debut album. Kristin and Steve bring their enthusiasm as they go through the whole album track-by-track with audio clips and info on the band and songs. I really enjoyed this one, and while I won’t be picking up the entire album, I’ve already started purchasing some of the tracks as some of them are really good. Whether you’re a Struts fan or a music hunter, good episode to check out.

Spotlight Star Wars (Force Center): Episode 39 touches on a lot of things including Star Wars Rebels “Shroud of Darkness,” the Kanan comic, and Rey. Spotlight Star Wars is very different from Databank Brawl as this particular show from Force Center is solo hosted by Ken with no guests and no audio clips, just a 40 minute monologue on Star Wars. It’s got good audio quality and interesting content, but I’m not a fan of solo hosted shows. That’s a very difficult thing to pull off, and Ken does a good job at it, but I much prefer shows that have more than one host or a guest.

Star Wars Rebels Declassified (Rebel Force Radio): Shroud of Darkness features guests Adam Bray and Spencer Brinkherhoff III. They get in deep on some excellent observations from Adam and Spencer. I always enjoy hearing Spencer’s input as he’s really good at analyzing the shows and making connections. Good episode to check out.

Step In Time: The Apple Dumpling Gang covers the Disney live action movie along with guests Steve and Teresa from Disney Vault Talk. As a big fan of both Disney Vault Talk and Skywalking Through Neverland, this is an awesome podcast foursome. Sarah, Rich, Steve and Teresa talk about their favorite parts of the movie, their thoughts of the movie then and now, the characters, the laughs, and more. Fun conversation, even if you haven’t seen the movie (which would include me).

Take Cover: Episode 2 talks a little about the Wildspace UK exclusive books, though they didn’t touch on whether they’re worthwhile for adults to read, which is something I’d really like to find out. They cover other new releases, new magazines, and London Super Comic Con complete with audio clips from the Star Wars comic panel. There’s audio touching on advice for new artists trying to get into the business, the Lando comic and Billy Dee reading it, working with story group, brainstorming, Rogue One, Aphra and C-3PO comic delay. They also have interviews with Alex Maleev, the artist for the Lando series, who talks about getting into the business, doing Lando, and his upcoming Iron Man comic. And they interview Martin Fisher about the Star Wars Rebels magazine, and artist Doug Wheatley who shares some juicy tidbits about concept art he did for the Star Wars live action tv series and George Lucas buying up all his Dass Jennir artwork. All in all, there’s a lot of content in this episode, especially with all the audio clips and the hosts discussion of those topics in between. There are some audio issues, though. One of the hosts had a lot of mic noise, the audio from the panels wasn’t the best as there were some audio issues at the con itself, however the audio for the interviews is good. Worth checking out even with the audio issues.

Tarkin’s Top Shelf: Episode 2 covers Aftermath by Chuck Wendig. They talk quite a bit about the interludes such as the Acolytes of the Beyond and the Boba Fett mentions. They also get into Timmund aka Snap Wexley, Mr. Bones and the mysterious admiral at the end of the book. I have to admit I have a guilty interest in Aftermath reviews since I didn’t like it, but I do like hearing from others who did, and Tarkin’s Tops Shelf gives it a lot of praise. If you’re looking for another Star Wars lit podcast to add to your playlist, it’s worth checking out.

Reviewed By: Skuldren for Roqoo Depot.