Guys Of A Certain Age

Like much of the Marvel fan community, the Guys were looking forward to the Moon Knight series, despite knowing very little about the character.  

And after 6 episodes, they still don’t know much.  What they do know is that Oscar Isaac is a brilliant actor, Ethan Hawke’s foray into the MCU was worth watching, and one shouldn’t make assumptions about hippos in costume.  At the least, the Guys were intrigued, but … spoiler alert … they probably wouldn’t rewatch it.

 In weightier matters, a new Dr. Who is regenerated (or soon will be), the CW “ungenerates” a handful of DC shows, and Canadian mounties are set to experience zero gravity.  The Guys could make this stuff up, but in this case, they didn’t.  At least they can look forward to Kenobi.  

On this week’s episode, The Guys welcome a special guest to the studio, and it’s not Robbie.  Stan Brown, a local author, joins Art and Jay to talk all things novel: his writing process, adventures with publishing, agents and editors, and how he went from writing kinesiology textbooks to paranormal thrillers.  Just for fun, Marvel Comics also gets a mention in his story. 

Meanwhile, it’s not just Robbie and the NFL draft in Vegas, it’s also CinemaCon, the convention of movie theater owners who get to hear all the big studios talk about their upcoming movie rollouts.  Then Art and Jay read about it and share it with our listeners.  It’s the next best thing.  

With Jay sitting this episode out (something about work?), Robbie and Art take a look at some of the movies and series that are coming up this summer...and beyond. (Though, no... they don't mention Buzz Lightyear.) Rest assured, there's plenty to look forward to, one project that may be gone in a Flash, and a current superhero movie that is more dead than undead. 

As the weather improves (except for the tornadic winds and such that The Guys have found themselves dodging of late), that means grilling season is coming.  It’s time to inventory the gear, scrape the dirt dauber nests out of the grill, and gather the ingredients for our favorite rubs and marinades.  

Art had better things to do on this recording day, so Jay and Robbie take to the microphones alone to talk outdoor cooking and generally make themselves hungry.  It doesn’t take much.  From go-to meats to favorite sides, fancy thermometers to new gear on the back porch, they talk of hopes and dreams, smoke and fire, and whether or not Art will ever really invite them over to see his pizza oven.  

Jay brings sad news from the pop culture side of graphic technology, and Robbie finds a way to dress like his soon-to-be favorite space geeks, for just a few dollars less than a Mini Big Green Egg, which is an oxymoron, isn’t it?  Light up the grill and listen, or vice versa.  

It’s Oscars time again, but does anybody care?  Like the tree falling in the woods, if “the slap heard round the world” had not happened, would we even know there was an Oscars?

In this week’s episode of Guys of a Certain Age, a bizarre instance of life imitating art makes its way into the studio.  Will it mean this is the final episode?  And like the Oscars, would anybody care?  In any case, without having actually watched much more than a few highlights, the Guys still find much to say about this year’s Oscars presentation and lack of presentation.  And Jay has another list of movies he’s supposed to watch.  Or not.  

In the “what to look forward to” segment (aka Geeks of the Week), it’s more violence and mayhem than Disney+ used to allow and a new premiere date for the next Star Wars series.  In the other direction, “what we can’t look forward to anymore”, they reflect on sad news from a modern acting legend, which subsequently leads to more violence and mayhem in the studio.  This one is not to be missed.  

Something is afoot in Gotham.  The Art-man, who is well known to be the biggest Batman fan among The Guys, if accumulation of Bat-toys, Bat-shirts, and other Bat-regalia is the true measure of a fan, is suspiciously absent from this episode.  Where could he be?  And why hadn’t he seen The Batman movie yet?  It’s a riddle for sure.  

But it didn’t keep Jay and Robbie from descending on the Bat-studio and waxing eloquently about their opinions on the newest Bat-film without him.  Robbie left the theater with strong opinions while Jay departed into the dark night still uncertain.  Will he come to a conclusion?  Does it matter?  Inquiring Arts want to know.  

Meanwhile, back in the light, a dead fictional character gets an actual tombstone, and Ed Norton’s alter ego appears on a rival network in a bizarre twist in the comic universe.  This episode is best heard in a dark cave or a parents’ basement, which may or may not be the same thing.  

Free Jay!  Free Jay!  Such is the new cry of the NPC’s in Free City, the virtual world in which a blue-shirted Ryan Reynolds lives and loves and is perpetually happy, even after being run over by a train ... until he’s not.  

In this episode The Guys (of a Certain Age, not the one Guy in the film) chat about the nods to other films (some obvious, some not), the consistency of Mr. Reynolds’ style (Green Lantern notwithstanding), and the plain ol’ fun this movie brought to their otherwise crazy lives.  In other words, Three Guys give a thumbs up to Free Guy.  

And despite the Marvel references in the movie (spoiler alert, sort of), the Geeks of the Week focus largely on DC, as The Batman makes a move to HBO Max and Another Batman (and Superman) get new voices as sidekicks to super pets.  Art’s news may not be a true deathwatch announcement, but it may turn to be the demise of our kids’ free ride on Netflix.  Listen free and listen often.  

When the microphone cuts off in the Guys of a Certain Age studio, the talk doesn’t necessarily stop.  And often, one of They Guys (usually Art) will say, “we should save this for another episode.”  Or sometimes Jay will get home and think, “I completely forgot to say ….(insert great idea here).”  

This episode is all about those loose ends.  Filling in the blanks that the listeners may not have realized were even there.  From Charlie Brown to Beetlejuice, Scooby-Doo to the F1 racing series, Blue Dog to the Galactic Star Cruiser, they cover it all and somehow still cover not much at all.  

But that doesn’t mean they don’t have a lot to say!  Come on in to the studio, sit a spell, and catch up on all that stuff you didn’t know you missed.