Planet 8 Podcast

Episode 142: Road to the Apocalypse II

BECAUSE YOU DEMANDED IT!
OK, maybe you didn't demand it, but it's here: our sequel to episode 13's Road to the Apocalypse, from all the way back in November 2018! This idea has been gestating in Commander Larry's mind for some time, and now it's here. We jump back on the strange tram that carries us through various apocalyptic films and face the challenges of surviving them. How would you handle an invasion by giant ants? Or deadly gladiators in a dystopian world? Larry runs us through a bunch of scenarios, with unpredictable results!
For the Sensor Sweep, we discuss what shows we're watching, and share some new stuff they got. Karen got a couple of birthday gifts from Larry: the Star Trek Book of Friendship, and the Marvel Comics Mini-Books set! Bob is moving ahead with the Godzillafest convention, coming in September, so stay tuned to Godzillafest.com for more news! Bob also picked up a Speed Racer Funko Jumbochan via a lottery! Finally, Larry also has a Funko figure to share: a Funko figure of the Tall Man from Phantasm! Who knows where we will put all these things.
We hope you enjoyed our trip through various dystopias and apocalypses (apocalytpii?). We'd love to hear your thoughts about your favorites in these categories. You can always reach us at the following places:
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I heard you were dead....

Best of Planet 8: Episode 78: You Will Believe a Man Can Fly: Superman

NOTE: This summer has become a very busy one for your Planet 8 crew, and unfortunately that means we must bring you another "Best Of" episode, but it's a fun one from July of three years ago, as we took a look back at 1978's Superman! We hope you enjoy it.
 
To our American listeners, a belated happy 4th of July! As we celebrate our country's independence, we thought it appropriate to celebrate that all-American hero, who fights for truth, justice, and the American way -Superman! The Planet 8 crew revisits the classic 1978 Superman movie, which promised that we would believe a man could fly. And we did indeed! Actor Christopher Reeve remains iconic as the Man of Steel in this light-hearted film.
As always, we'll discuss the cast and crew, how the film came together, and our feelings about the film, from when we first saw it and now. Although Reeve was an unknown when cast as Superman, he was surrounded by an all-star cast, with actors such as Marlon Brando as his Kryptonian father, Jor-El, Gene Hackman as villain Lex Luthor, Ned Betty as Luthor's henchman, Otis, Glenn Ford as Pa Kent, and Jackie Coogan as Daily Planet editor Perry White. The cast absolutely makes the film, with Reeve and his utter sincerity in the role essential to selling it.
There's also a wonderful chemistry between Reeve and Margot Kidder as Lois Lane -although we could all live without Lois' "Can you read my mind?" segment! But the two actors are absolutely charming together.
The effects in the film are a mixed bag, but the most important effect -Superman's flying -still holds up and gives us a thrill. The way Superman flies in the movie is graceful and majestic -truly beautiful, and Reeve again is the element that clinches it, the way he moves his body and hands as he flies. Of course, the music also gives it a lot of oomph! Speaking of music, who could forget the grand John Williams score? The Superman theme is unforgettable! Williams' soundtrack here is every bit as good as his work on Star Wars or Jaws or anything else from his catalog.
There's a reason that this film, even 40 plus years later, continues to show up on favorite super-hero film lists. It's just a fantastic film. As we prepare to release this episode, it has been announced that director Richard Donner has passed. He truly deserves so much credit for the success of Superman. He was greatly loved and respected by his cast and crew. Rest in peace.
 
 
 
To our American listeners, a belated happy 4th of July! As we celebrate our country's independence, we thought it appropriate to celebrate that all-American hero, who fights for truth, justice, and the American way -Superman! The Planet 8 crew revisits the classic 1978 Superman movie, which promised that we would believe a man could fly. And we did indeed! Actor Christopher Reeve remains iconic as the Man of Steel in this light-hearted film.
 
 
 
As always, we'll discuss the cast and crew, how the film came together, and our feelings about the film, from when we first saw it and now. Although Reeve was an unknown when cast as Superman, he was surrounded by an all-star cast, with actors such as Marlon Brando as his Kryptonian father, Jor-El, Gene Hackman as villain Lex Luthor, Ned Betty as Luthor's henchman, Otis, Glenn Ford as Pa Kent, and Jackie Coogan as Daily Planet editor Perry White. The cast absolutely makes the film, with Reeve and his utter sincerity in the role essential to selling it.
 
 
There's also a wonderful chemistry between Reeve and Margot Kidder as Lois Lane -although we could all live without Lois' "Can you read my mind?" segment! But the two actors are absolutely charming together.
 
 
The effects in the film are a mixed bag, but the most important effect -Superman's flying -still holds up and gives us a thrill. The way Superman flies in the movie is graceful and majestic -truly beautiful, and Reeve again is the element that clinches it, the way he moves his body and hands as he flies. Of course, the music also gives it a lot of oomph!
 
 
Speaking of music, who could forget the grand John Williams score? The Superman theme is unforgettable! Williams' soundtrack here is every bit as good as his work on Star Wars or Jaws or anything else from his catalog.
 
 
There's a reason that this film, even 40 plus years later, continues to show up on favorite super-hero film lists. It's just a fantastic film. As we prepare to release this episode, it has been announced that director Richard Donner has passed. He truly deserves so much credit for the success of Superman. He was greatly loved and respected by his cast and crew. Rest in peace.
 
 
For this episode's Sensor Sweep, Commander Larry shares the Hasbro Stormbreaker, Thor's hammer/axe. This thing is crazy! It's full size, about 4 feet long, and makes a racket! It also lights up. If you feel the need to be a thunder god, or fear you might have to protect yourself against a mad titan, go online and pick one up.
 
We hope you enjoyed this episode. Be sure to tell us about your first time seeing Superman. How do you feel about the movie today? As always, you can leave comments on the site, or go to our other hangouts:
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Up, up, and away!!!!
 

Episode 141: Getting to Know Your Crew

We've been doing this podcasting thing for over 5 years now, and we thought it might be fun to share a little bit about ourselves.  Reconnaissance Officer Karen has devised a questionnaire that will reveal the "inmost selves" of Mission Commander Larry and Chief Engineer Bob. But these questions are all focused on the stuff we all love - sci fi, horror, and fantasy films and TV shows! After we're through, you'll know more than you ever wanted about this crew. And you can play along - what would your answers be?
In our Sensor Sweep segment, Karen shares two  blu rays she got from Shout Factory recently, The Abominable Snowman and Curse of the Werewolf.  Larry shares a Bigfoot stein from Munktiki, and Bob talks about the Cybot Godzilla he purchased from X-Plus. We will also chat a bit about Robodoc, The Acolyte, and other recent genre happenings.
Thanks again for tuning in. We appreciate your support! Feel free to share your answers to our Planet 8 questionnaire. You can do so at the sites below:
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Getting to know you, getting to know all about you...
 

Episode 140: Roger Corman, King of the B Movies

Once again, we are joined by our friend and horror host extraordinaire, Lord Blood-Rah, this time to pay tribute to the late producer/director, Roger Corman. The legendary Corman passed away this last May 9th. He left behind an unparalleled portfolio of films over a huge range of genres, all made quickly, efficiently, and on the cheap! Corman had a system for getting a film made fast and getting every ounce of value out of every resource he had. Despite the meager budgets of his films, he often brought unexpected artistry to them. He also had his finger on the pulse of the young theater-going public and made films that appealed to them. 
Your Planet 8 crew and Lord Blood-Rah discuss the life of Roger Corman, how he got his start in movies, some of the characteristics that make a Corman movie, the many actors, directors and other Hollywood luminaries who got their starts with Corman,  and our favorite Corman films. We hope you'll enjoy our tribute to the King of the B Movies.
In our Sensor Sweep segment, you can learn about where you can find Lord Blood-Rah (hint: check out lordbloodrah.com), Bob has more news about Godzillafest (there are two big shows, in July and September!), Karen shares an X-Men Dark Phoenix trade paperback, and Larry has another book, Crab Monsters, Teen-Age Cavemen, and Candy Stripe Nurses, which is all about Corman films. It can be hard to find, so good luck if you're interested in it!
That's it for now. Let us know your thoughts on Roger Corman and his incredible catalog of films.
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One of the worst things you can do is have a limited budget and try to do some big looking film. That's when you end up with very bad work. -Roger Corman

Episode 139: What a Wonderful Day! Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

We just can't get enough of those apes! We've done retrospectives on all five of the original Planet of the Apes films, and now, we are finally looking at a brand new Apes movie! Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has arrived to much hoopla - but how did your Planet 8 crew feel about the film? Listen and find out!
We will say that we did not unanimously agree on the film.  But that's all right - differing opinions can lead to some interesting conversation. And we hope that's what we've delivered!
We'll also discuss how the new film connects to the Caesar trilogy, and even the originals. There are many elements in this film that connect, if not directly, then thematically with things that have come before in POTA. 
Kingdom is definitely taking POTA in a new and interesting direction, and we're (mostly!) excited to see where it goes.
We also chat about different shows we've been watching - there are so many genre-related series, both past and present, to binge! There's a little bit of insider talk about the podcast, and an unannounced segue into the Sensor Sweep, which includes a strange soundtrack album from the 70s, a Christopher Lee Sideshow  figure, a Lawgiver tiki mug, a Bad Ape glass, several Godzilla x Kong popcorn buckets, an Ultraman Z figure, and a special issue of Variety featuring Space Battleship Yamato. And don't forget to keep an eye out for Godzillafest at bayareafilmevents.com.
Thanks for listening! What did YOU think of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes? Let us know!
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What a wonderful day!!

Best of Planet 8: Something about The Thing

It's happened again: unfortunately, the real world has gotten in the way and we were unable to produce a new episode. But never fear, we are bringing you one of our favorite episodes from April 2019, "Something about the Thing," which explores the different films based off the John Campbell novella, Who Goes There?   We hope you enjoy it. Next time, we'll be back with a new episode looking at the latest Planet of the Apes film.
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Episode 138: Factions of Fandom

You know what they say: it's a thin line between love and hate. And it seems like this is especially true in fandom. Nowadays, more often than not, fans of different long-standing franchises are taking to their keyboards to complain, in the strongest terms imaginable, about the things they supposedly love! Your Planet 8 crew dives into this phenomenon to try to understand what's going on.  We start with Godzilla and the rift between the fans of the Japanese Godzilla films and the Legendary/Monsterverse films. This year, we got two Godzilla films AND even a tv series (Monarch) but boy, were there a ton of unhappy fans! We'll look at what the complaints were and talk about our own feelings on this.
But this sort of love/hate isn't just found in Godzilla fandom. We'll move on to other beloved franchises, such as Star Trek, Star Wars, Marvel, and more. Why is the dislike so extreme? Is it just because of social media? Is it similar to the extremism we see in politics as well? The crew puts on their thinking caps to debate this heady topic!
In our non-divisive Sensor Sweep, we all share some things no one could complain about. Karen shares the massive MCU Reign of Marvel Studios book, which is a must-read for anyone who has enjoyed the MCU films. Larry shares his old Eaglemoss model of the Nostromo from Alien. He just dug it out as he has been unpacking. You need to hop onto our YouTube show to take a look at this beautiful model!
But the big news is that Bob's Bay Area Film Events is going to host not one, but two Godzillafest events! Go to Bay Area Film Events for all the details. This is the 70th anniversary of Godzilla, so big stuff is happening! First, from July19-21st, at the Balboa Theater in San Francisco, is Godzillafest featuring a ton of films! Then, in September (dates to be determined), a full-blown Godzillafest convention will take place at Japantown in San Francisco! You won't want to miss it! Stay tuned for more info.
Thanks for listening! Are you in a love/hate relationship with a show? Let us know!
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It's craaaaaap!!!
 

Episode 137: Hangin' with Jeff Wehenkel

It's a joy to make friends with fellow geeks, and even more wonderful when you discover that they have amazing talents. Some are artists, some make masks, some do make-up or create costumes, some are sculptors - and then there's Jeff Wehenkel, who does all of these and more! Jeff is a true renaissance geek! Heck, we even found out AFTER the podcast recording that he's done special effects on movies! He's done so many other things, that didn't even make the show. Besides all of his make-up work, he's made masks, is a member of the 501st Legion, and had his own tiki mug line, Bootiki -you may have seen his Creature from the Black Lagoon and other horror-themed mugs. We talk about all of this with our incredibly accomplished guest.
In our Sensor Sweep, everyone has a little something to share. You may want to check out our YouTube site to see some of the goodies, especially some of the fabulous masks that Jeff has made. Also, Jeff and partners are starting a model company, Danger Island Models, and the first model they are producing will be Caroline Munro's character, Mariana, from the Golden Voyage of Sinbad. Keep your eyes peeled for an announcement soon. You can find Jeff on Instagram as bootikijeff.
The Planet 8 crew is pleased to be nominated for Best Podcast again for the Rondo Awards! Thanks to all of you who nominated us. Voting ends April 16th, so please cast your vote before then. You can find all the categories at https://rondoaward.com/rondoaward.com/blog/ but you can vote for as many or as few as you like. We would appreciate your vote!
That's it for us. We hope you  enjoyed this episode. Please continue to send us messages at any of our sites below:
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We'll be back