046: Aliens (1986) - They Mostly Podcast At Night. Mostly.

SPOILERS FOR ALIEN (1979), ALIENS (1986), ALIEN 3 (1992), ALIEN: RESURRECTION (1997), PROMETHEUS (2012), and ANIMORPHS #53: THE DECISION (are you even surprised?).

In this episode:

• Cleolinda Jones joins us once again for one of her (and our) favorite movies!
• Discussion of Aliens (1986), including our first exposures to the film, the theme of family throughout the film, the differences between the theatrical and Special Edition cuts, and our favorite moments and lines.
• Why does this movie speak to so many people? We theorize.
• Ian pulls in references to Captain Underpants and Animorphs, because of course he does.
• We need a bingo card for frequent podcast occurrences. Any takers?
• The morality of Carter Burke
• Cleo shows us why Aliens really is It Gets Worse: The Movie.
• We discuss the xenomorph lifecycle as a dark reflection of human reproduction, this movie especially emphasizing parenthood.
• Ian regales all with excerpts from the Aliens novelization.
• Bishop and androids in the Alien movies.
• We talk a little bit more about the upcoming Alien: Isolation video game, which just had a pretty awesome announcement.

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

• I am aware the line is "You've blown a trans-axle," not "busted." For the longest time I remembered it as "busted" (and also as "ease off" instead of "ease down"). It's close enough that I didn't feel like re-recording it once I realized the error. FORGIVE ME, INTERNETS.
• According to Wikipedia, it was 17,372 Yeerks that Jake ordered Ax to flush. Of course, it also says he did it "Hoping to distract Visser One and Tom long enough to save Rachel's life," which is a complete and utter lie.
• In a rare moment of clarity while listening back to the podcast, I remembered where Cleo must have gotten "158" for the colony's population.
• Highlights from Fio's timestamps:
• 4:00 - 5:10 - And a phone is ringing. That no one can hear but you, Ian. There was no phone. There was no phone, was there Ian? Was there?
• 16:41 - I said Lurkers when I meant Licker. I’m a bad Resi fan.
• 26:51 - I know you said “thirty-thousand, or…” here, but it sounds like you said “thirty-thousander” and it made me giggle.
• The betrayal and disappointment of Alien3. WE’RE NOT EVEN THERE YET. WHY ARE WE TALKING ABOUT THIS ALREADY? DON’T MAKE IT HURT ANYMORE, IAN.

Music:

• Opening: "Ripley's Rescue" - James Horner, Aliens: The Deluxe Edition (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | YouTube | iTunes | 
• Intro: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
• Outro: "Killer Queen" - Queen | YouTube | iTunes |

(Header image taken from http://backgroundartists.tumblr.com/post/233670691)

http://archive.org/download/AMOT046/AMOT046.mp3

045: Alien (1979) - I Sing the Nostromo Electric

SPOILERS AHEAD FOR ALIEN (1979), ALIENS (1986), ALIEN 3 (1992), PROMETHEUS (2012), Starcraft, Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm, and JASON X (2001) (no, really).

In this episode:

• Well, we're talking about Alien, so clearly there's only one way to begin:
• A loooooong-ass digression on 2001: A Space Odyssey, that's how!
• We discuss the movie Alien, its impact on the horror genre, specifically talking about Sci-Fi horror and the evolution of Monster-based horror away from the campier radioactive terror flicks of the previous decades.
• Retro-futurism, more specifically whether or not we would consider Alien to be intentionally retro-futuristic, or if that's a layer added by the temporal distance between the film's creation and our discussion of it.
• It's actually pretty wonky when you think about it, we get into it a little deeper on the 'cast.
• The Chestburster scene, how it's a masterpiece, and our initial experiences with the Alien franchise as children.
• Yes, children. People with glass parenting skills shouldn't throw stones.
• Where exactly does the term Xenomorph come from, how is it applied in the films, and what is it with toy companies in the 80s making (admittedly awesome) action figures (that were marketed to children) for films waaaaaaaaay outside their target demo?
• The way Alien has a habit of drawing you into the perspective of the characters so that you experience the film alongside them.
• We get a little bit into writing strategies and how they could have achieved that, but really not much more than that. This is something we've both agreed we'd like to mine out some more before approaching the subject in a later podcast.
• Always Reblog Ripley
• Always.
• Seriously, though, we get into Sigourney Weaver's immense performance and her equally immense impact on the sci-fi genre, how she navigates the "final girl" trope in the film, and the legacy she's left in her wake.
• The possibility of perfection and the horror of actually attaining it.
• We dance around different definitions of Body Horror and what it means to us.
• Finally, if you were having trouble finding the podcast on Archive.org, we've navigate that treacherous crossing ourselves.

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

• If it wasn't blisteringly obvious, the title of this podcast is Ian's and the header image is Fio's
• Highlights from Ian's Timestamps:
• 1:15 - 1:30 - *sung a la Dave Matthews* The space betweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen, the podcast paaaaaaaaarts…
• 26:58 - Have you heard my new band, Jungian Osmosis?
• 52:41 - “The cat is an ill omen in this movie!” File this under: Sentences I’m glad exist.
• 1:00:31 - “When Ripley goes into that...I dunno, control panel room, if that’s what you want to call it…” Oh, I don’t know, Ian--maybe you could call it a CONTROL ROOM? *facepalm*
• 1:01:07 - p, and “It was so much computer.” Another sentence I’m glad exists.
• 1:12:10 - P and what the fuck do we talk about for the next 40 minutes, damn
• 1:15:47 - If only I had had the presence of mind to say, “Yeah… yeah, that’s right.”
• 1:40:20 - It was all I could do here to keep from bringing up the uncanny valley again--at this point it’s almost a given when discussing horror monster design.

Music:

• Intro: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
• Outro: "I Sing the Body Electric" - Me First and the Gimme Gimmes | YouTube | iTunes |

http://archive.org/download/AMOT045/AMOT045.mp3

044: The Video Game Episode or I Knew it was Going to Happen, You #@$%ing Criminals

Minor spoilers for Bioshock; Dead Space 1 & 2; Half-Life 2; Portal 1 & 2; Oddworld 1 & 2; Silent Hill 1, 2, & Shattered Memories; The Evil Within; Amnesia: The Dark Descent; Batman: Arkham Asylum; Folklore. MAJOR SPOILERS FOR MASS EFFECT 2 “OVERLORD: ATLAS STATION,” THE LAST OF US, ODDWORLD, and HANNIBAL SEASONS 1 & 2.

In this episode:

• Our dear friend Vic joins us for a few hours of revelry
• As you may or may not have gleaned from the spoiler warnings, this episode we're discussing horror in the realm of video games. The Ole' Interactive Electronic Hickory Spookshow, as no one has ever called it in history ever.
• So of course we're going to talk about our personal experiences with horror games, because none of us did the reading.
• Consummate professionals.
• We discuss how the player's agency in the narrative changes the different tactics the producers of the game need to utilize in order to maintain the horror atmosphere.
• By that token, we also get into the influence that horror movies have (some might argue obviously had on the horror game genre).
• We address the concept of Aggressive vs Defensive gaming in regards to Action Horror vs Survival Horror.
• Going off of that concept, we also look into what purists might argue are "true" horror games vs games that are not by their nature horror, but employ a horror-themed aesthetic.
• There's, like, a whole lot about lighting in here. Ian's got a serious jones for lighting, if you guise weren't aware.
• We get into how far logic can be bent in the medium of the game vs a non-interactive medium (Say, Hannibal, perhaps?)

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

• CORRECTION: LJ user nano-moose points out in the comments below that Penumbra was created by Frictional Games (the creators of Amnesia: The Dark Descent), NOT thechineseroom as I stated on the podcast. My mistake!
• The film that Vic references near the beginning is The Woman in Black, not The Woman in the Black Dress.
• Here's a link to a video of the Beetlejuice game Ian mentions. I will warn you, last time I tried to watch it my connection totally freaked out and went all static-jumpy. So, you know. Surfer beware, and junk.
• Vic mentions something about the geth being "bad" during the podcast, and... dude... don't make me break out my passionately held headcanons up in this piece.
• Here are some screencaps that are examples of the type of diegetic lighting Ian was talking about during the podcast.
• Some links to Silent Hill info that Ian brought up during the podcast. Fair warning, even more spoilers than what's discussed on the podcast after the jump.
• Here's Bryan Fuller's quote regarding how he believes the logic of Hannibal works/should work.
• Highlights and further links from Ian's Timestamps:
• 22:16 - OMG. I just remembered another MS-DOS horror game I played (that was actually, like, legit horror-themed): Hugo’s House of Horrors. Part text adventure, part puzzle game, it was one of the weirdest games I ever played, and we never beat it. http://youtu.be/UijhBRheB8k - I had to find a video with the music, it’s so goofy.
• 22:40 - Jeff Goldblum as Dracula in Escape from Horrorland
• 43:51 - Headcrab zombie backwards
• 48:24 - Rattman’s message in Portal 2, with a user’s  guess at what he’s saying
• 54:30 - “In Oddworld…the world...is…” I wish I had had the presence of mind to jump in and say “...Odd?” here.
• 1:29:40 - 1:30:36 - Aaaaaaaand here’s where things get kinky. Cut all of this.
• 2:33:39 - Tumblr post about Nevermind

Music:

• Opening: Clip from Resident Evil (Linked is your best bet of getting a new, physical copy of the first game at this point)
• Intro: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
• Outro: "Want You Gone" - Jonathan Coulton | YouTube | iTunes |

(Header image taken from this post: http://sonyablade.tumblr.com/post/85939704931)

http://archive.org/download/AMOT044/AMOT044.mp3

043: Hannibal 2x13 "Mizumono" - It Was Weirdly Upsetting

SPOILERS FOR THE HANNIBAL SEASON 2 FINALE

In this episode:

• Cleolinda Jones returns!
• ...so we can all sob together.
• Discussion of Hannibal 2x13 "Mizumono," including why, God, why.
• From Fio: "So much of this episode is just us commiserating via emotional vomit cleansing."
• Blood. So much blood.
• srsly why.
• what's even the point of description bullets.
• Life advice: If you hear the theremin, just stay downstairs.
• The AV Club Interview with Bryan Fuller for "Mizumono" 
• This is My Design eyeshadow collection from Aromaleigh
• As we said on the episode: Between now and the fall, we'll be covering general horror topics (and possibly more movies!). Let us know here or through one of the ways listed in our sidebar if there's anything in particular you want us to discuss.  
• You can expect the next episode of A Matter of Taste in two weeks' time on Thursday, June 12. Prospective topic: Horror video games.

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

• The song from Inception is "Non, je ne regrette rien" by Édith Piaf
• "Dear Sister," the SNL (Lonely Island) sketch I reference which features "Hide and Seek" by Imogen Heap
• Despite us backtracking through the episode several times, we managed to completely gloss over the scene between Bella and Hannibal this episode where they talk about forgiveness. Will you forgive us?
• Highlights from Fio's timestamps:
• 19:46 - “At the Breakfast Dinner Table” is like a lighthearted palate cleanser version of our podcast
• 46:26 - Price and Zeller’s Bed and Breakfast spin off is my dearest dream and I refuse to let it die.
• 48:03 - Hah hah. Yes, fifteen other serial killers living in Baltimore who are not me, not at all even a little bit in any way shape or form. Hah hah. Cleo, you kidder, you slay me, which is entirely different from the way that I, a normal human creature, interact with other people. Hah.

Music:

• Opening: "Sirens - Air Raid Siren - CU - Rise, Steady, Fall"- SoundDogs.com
• Intro: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
• Outro: "Mosquito Song" - Queens of the Stone Age | YouTube | iTunes |

(Header image taken from this post: http://watson-sighs-and-tuts.tumblr.com/post/86707139009/watching-hannibal-finale-in-a-nutshell)

http://archive.org/download/AMOT043/AMOT043.mp3

042: Hannibal 2x12 "Tome-Wan" - A Matter of Interpretation

SPOILERS UP TO (and including) HANNIBAL 2x12, as well as MAJOR SPOILERS for the Hannibal novel/movie.

In this episode:

• Discussion of Hannibal 2x12 "Tome-Wan," including the most horrific thing we've ever seen, ever, Hannibal's amazing reaction to Mason trouncing around his office with an utter lack of respect, the plot points and details cherry-picked from Thomas Harris' Hannibal, Bedelia's return, and where we think things might go in the finale. 
• We dive right into the super-upsettingness of the Mason scene, the uncanny valley (drink) nature of his mask, and how we can see the Vergers featuring into the rest of the series.
• How much of the books/movies the show is burning this early in its run, so where do we go from here? (drink)
• C'MON, STEVE LIGHTFOOT. GIVE US A FLASHBACK. PRETTY PLEASE WITH PEOPLE SUGAR ON TOP.
• Who will live? Who will die? How fucked up will it really be?
• If you're trying to minimize your spoilers for future storylines, the biggest spoilers for the Hannibal novel/movie begin around the 54:00 mark.
• Next week: A special guest will be joining us for the finale! Hint: It's Cleo. ...I may not entirely understand the whole concept of "hints."

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

• Made it through the whole episode without making a Hitchhiker's Guide reference. I'm...slightly disappointed in ourselves.
• Bryan Fuller's AV Club interview on this episode. Just as fair warning: He makes a few vague comments about the season finale near the end. 
• The Wikipedia article for the novel Bedelia by Vera Caspary 
• The point I think I was trying to make RE: Bedelia and Hannibal's role reversal as patient and psychiatrist, and what Fio basically comes to on the podcast: The way she characterizes her relationship with Hannibal draws connections to Randall Tier, Margot Verger, and of course Will, and back to the major themes of Shiizakana in general. That's where I'm getting this whole "teacher/acolyte" idea from. Bedelia, like Randall, Margot, and Will seems to have at one time been one of Hannibal's "students"--a "student of predators," as Will comments about Randall. Interestingly, it also possibly casts Will's bringing up Bedelia in the whole "How many are there?" conversation in Shiizakana in an entirely new light.
• You in danger, girl. (As if anyone who's spent a modicum of time on the Interwebs needs a link.)
• The production still of Bedelia from the season finale that I bring up. EDIT: As an anonymous Tumblr user brought up, the post actually says 113, not 213, meaning it's from Savoureux, not Mizumono. Doesn't mean she can't be in the finale, but yeah. My mistake, and my most sincere apologies.
• Highlights from Fio's timestamps:
• 9:55 - I’m stumbling over my words a lot around here, care to clean this up and make me not sound like an idiot? I know it’s a tall order, but I trust you, Ian. I trust your judgement. I trust your ability to judge the heat and texture of a poorly cooked ravioli and I trust that you would stop a well meaning manticore from losing an argument with a storm drain.
• 17:22 - I’m pretty sure that with that Gaiman quote it’s originally used to reference retellings and I’m just bogarting it to talk about adaptations. But I guess you could make a very reasoned argument that adaptations are just retellings with a bit of a medium shift. Blah.
• 31:51 - Mason whips out... test the meat... heyoooooooooo
• 46:10 - A Matter of Interpretation is our spinoff podcast where we’re even more obtuse and pedantic

Music:

• Intro: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
• Outro: "March of the Pigs" - Nine Inch Nails | YouTube | iTunes |

(Header image taken from this post: http://ninthdoctorsbutt.tumblr.com/post/86010252406)

http://archive.org/download/AMOT042/AMOT042.mp3

041: Hannibal 2x11 "Ko No Mono" - Useless Prognostication

SPOILERS UP TO (and including) HANNIBAL 2x11, as well as mild spoilers for the novel Hannibal.

In this episode:

• Discussion of Hannibal 2x11 "Ko No Mono," including the fate of Freddie Lounds, religious symbolism, how Hannibal perceives the people around him, the Vergers, and Alana's journey this episode and beyond
• What does all of this mean for Will's slide into darkness?
• Hannibal as manipulator vs Hannibal as lifetroll. Ian concludes: Hannibal, you fucker.
• Also according to Ian: Bryan Fuller is basically Hannibal. Minus the cannibalism and the murder and all that jazz, but you catch my drift.
• Lots of religious symbolism.
• We talk about how serialized this season has been, and the way the writing reflects elements of Red Dragon and Silence of the Lambs.
• Who's in on what? What's the end game?

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

• There's definitely a bunch of stuff we didn't dig deep into here--feel free to bring things up in the comments.
• Highlights from Fio's timestamps:
• 33:08 - Does anyone want to join my Nerdcore Shoegaze band Useless Prognostication?
• 39:37 - So we’re talking about Hannibal’s religious beliefs here, but quick aside. A Gay Christian and a Straight Atheist debate horror movies. You realize this is a sitcom, right? We live in a sitcom right now and it’s all our fault.
• 52:47 - WHY IS SOMEONE FROM KENTUCKY CALLING MY PHONE IAN? I KNOW THIS IS YOUR DOING IAN.
• How sincere is Hannibal? Like, at any point in time? Ever?

Sounds/Music:

• "Previously On" clips taken from AMOT 012 & 013. 
• Intro: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
• Outro: "I Want to Conquer the World" by Bad Religion | YouTube | iTunes |

 (Header image taken from http://mongoosewillygraham.tumblr.com/post/85291482730/bless-you)
 
http://archive.org/download/AMOT041/AMOT041.mp3

040: Hannibal 2x10 "Naka-Choko" - Theremins, Harpsichords, Glass Harmonicai

SPOILERS UP TO (and including) HANNIBAL 2x10, as well as spoilers for the novels Red Dragon and Hannibal.

In this episode:

• Discussion of Hannibal 2x10 "Naka-Choko," including the so sexy, so confusing 2-way-by-2-way-which-turned-into-a-3-or-4-way-and-then-somehow-became-a-5-way-except-not-since-the-wendigo-represents-Hannibal-but-kind-of? ...What the fuck, Bryan Fuller.
• Mason and Margot: model siblings.
• Here's the Hannibal meta from Tumblr user dignityisforotherpeople, concerning the parallels between Margot and Will's backstories and how they might factor into their relationship.
• So what DID happen to Freddie? (Featured above is Ian's current headcanon.)
• How long before we start to see the whole story, and not just the version of the truth we're seeing now?
• No one is going to be happy at the end of this season. Not Will, not Alana, not Hannibal.

THERE'S ALWAYS AN ADDENDUM:

• Here is the Wiki article on Franz Mesmer, the inspiration for the term mesmerize. Witness how bad I am at recalling history! EDIT: Also, listening back to the episode--in my excitement to bring in Dr. Mesmer, I didn't actually say "Dr. Mesmer would play the glass harmonica for his patients." Which was the whole point of bringing him up, and why the glass harmonica is often associated with being a "psychological" instrument, as evident from its use in...
• The Mad Scene from the opera Lucia di Lammermoor, featuring glass harmonica. The improvisation and echo I mentioned on the podcast begins around 10:11.
• Highlights from Fio's timestamps:
• 10:05 - Let’s just take a moment to reflect on how upsetting the use of the word “tore” is here. Like why. I get that we like cherrypicking lines from the books and all, but fucking why.
• 38:10 - You say “we’ve had some awkward dinner conversations” and for a second I forgot you were going to say “on this show” and my brain immediately went to “yeah, we have had some awkward dinner conversations. Like remember that loud conversation about whether or not having sex on top of a dead body would count as a necrophiliac threesome? Or about how squid-people were the future of intelligent life on earth and somebody posted the whole thing on Facebook like ‘what is wrong with these people?’”

Music:

• Intro: "This is My Design" - original song, music by Ian. More on this as it develops.
• Outro: "Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts III-IV)" - Pink Floyd | YouTube | iTunes |

(Header image drawn by me, Ian. I imagine them holed up in a bunker somewhere getting sick of each other as they wait for word from Will or Crawford. It's much more pleasant to imagine than the alternative.)

http://archive.org/download/AMOT040/AMOT040.mp3