PTG Episode 110: Winners and Losers

   PTG Episode 110 [72:58m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Originally posted at PrimeTimeGeek.com.

PTG Episode 110 is brought to you by Heroes Landing. We’re honored to have one of Heroes Landing’s intrepid owners, Stu Cohen, in studio for this episode and Episode 111, in part to promote what will be going on over at Heroes Landing on Free Comic Book Day, but also because, well, he wanted to come on the show and hang out. After all that his store has done for us, who are we to say “no”? Head over to the Heroes Landing website and check them out if you haven’t already, and if you’re in the Clermont area next Saturday during Free Comic Book Day, please make an effort to stop by and say ‘Hello!” It’s going to a fun-filled day, so don’t miss it.

We kick off this episode with one last hearty ‘thank you!’ to all of the fans and supporters of Legendary: A Chloe Sullivan Appreciation Project that took time to check out our interview with Maggie Bridger in Episode 109 and leave comments and feedback here on the site. We hope you keep listening to the show and we hope to be able to bring you more news about “Legendary” as it becomes available. That lead Stu and I into a discussion of Allison Mack and the importance of her role on Smallville, and how neither of us can really even imagine what the show might be like without her next season. I, for one, truly hope it doesn’t come to that, and whether or not Ms. Mack will be contracted for Smallville’s upcoming 10th season is something else we’ll be following closely for all you Chloe fans throughout the summer. As soon as we know something, you’ll know it, too.

We also take a moment to remember anime pioneer Carl Macek (1951-2010), who passed away on April 17th of a heart attack. Macek is most remembered for his work as producer and story editor on Robotech, but as the founder of Streamline Pictures, Macek lead the way in the early 1990s in terms of providing anime fans in North America with a steady stream of classic anime features, TV series, and OVAs such as Akira, Vampire Hunter D, The Professional: Golgo 13, Crying Freeman, Wicked City, and the theatrical version of Fist of the North Star. His work with Streamline also made him a controversial figure at the center of the early “dub vs. sub” debate–Streamline released its anime to American audiences dubbed into English with American voice actors, and thus they were accused of “Americanizing” anime, often softening its more mature ideas and themes for Western audiences. Wherever you happened to fall in that debate, its undeniable that Macek’s work contributed to the eventual explosion of anime fandom into world culture. The credit that he gave to young American audiences in particular, that they could handle the more intense visuals and more adult themes found in anime, was truly visionary and ahead of his time. We offer our condolences to the family of Carl Macek during this difficult time. For me personally, because Robotech was such a huge part of my adolescence and the development of my interest in anime, I’ll remember Carl Macek as the man who made all of that possible. Thank you, Mr. Macek. Rest in peace.

Finally, this episode features our review of The Losers, the film adaptation of the DC/Vertigo comic book series by Andy Diggle, starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoë Saldana, Chris Evans, Idris Elba, and Jason Patric, which unfortunately tanked at the box office this past weekend. Not much chance word of mouth is going to help the film gain any ground this upcoming weekend, as the new Nightmare on Elm Street is sure to draw big box office crowds and take the number one spot for ticket sales, but it’s not a terrible movie, by any stretch. It’s not a GREAT movie, either; it suffers from silly editing, a preponderance of action movie clichés, and rather uninspired performances from most of the cast. Evans, our soon-to-be-Captain America, stands out, as does Elba (HBO’s The Wire), who dominates the screen in every frame he appears in not just in terms of physicality, but also in sheer screen presence. Check out the podcast for more on that AND our reviews of Smallville’s latest, “Charade”, as well as the last new episode of Fringe, for which Stu provides the review. Enjoy!