Guys Of A Certain Age

It’s not the last of Them, but it is The Last of Us. The streaming series, that is. And the game.

In fact, it may be a first: not only are all three Guys in the studio this week, they even brought in a fourth: Jonah Holland, certified by GOCA as an expert in all things The Last of Us. The Guest even brought a Geek of the Week, so he got paid double and extra bonus points because his Geek related to the topic.

As for the rest of Them, Robbie brought news of yet another shift in the streaming scene, Jay revealed some not-so-secret Superman cameos, and Art boldly pronounced the name of the newest Bond movie director.  After the break, Jonah gave The Guys a primer on The Last of Us, with a little game history, a few highlights of the streaming series, and an opinion or two on how the two media matched up. Even the GOCA-phites got into the action, as Mrs. Reed and Mrs. Holland (via their sons) shared their thoughts on the highlight of the series, and who would also like you to “vote for Pedro.”

If Jay binged Season 2 in about 15 hours, it must be pretty good, right?  That’s what all the listeners who binge-listen to this podcast say, too…right? If nothing else, listen to Jonah - he knows what he’s talking about.  

After a brief-ish primer on barbecue styles in North Carolina and beyond, Jay dives into even more food talk in his Geek of the Week, with another movie-focused restaurant that is actually reachable from GOCA headquarters.  Robbie talks about a remake of a childhood favorite TV show and the placement of cameras in the movie he's most looking forward to. 

Movies are the theme in the second half, as they earn the most points in the GOCA Geek Index. Jay discovers that icons of comic book superhero movies may actually have lower Geek Indexes than one might expect.  Christopher Reeve is Superman to most of the GOCA generation, but his score is lower than a dude from the Bad News Bears, rivaled by a child Disney star, and just about doubled by a leading man with way better hair than Jay (maybe it's the hairspray.)..

Get out your pen, paper, and Texas Instruments calculator to keep score.  

The World waited in great anticipation for Season 2 of one of the greatest series in the Star Wars Universe.

Andor finally came back.  Andor kicked Empire bottoms.  The World is abundantly satisfied, especially now that The Guys are finally together in trio form to share their thoughts, and/or their feelings, about this series.  And it hit all the right colorful buttons on the control panel of the ship: great actors and acting, plot surprises, clear connections to the SWU, and a show that stands firmly on its own.  Hopefully Guys of a Certain Age Season 2 will rate the same.

 Art has obituary duty this week as everyday people in the music world remind themselves, don’t worry baby.  Jay shares the biggest rumor-that’s-hopefully-not-a-rumor regarding the next Black Panther film.  And Robbie has a plethora of geek news ranging from Dr Who (of course) to more of Les Grossman.  Listen as the guys prepare to go rogue one!

It’s the mostly annual outdoor cooking episode, an early summer tradition that usually occurs when Art is absent from the studio (though not from the heart.)  This year, however, Jay and Robbie are joined by Chef Mark Coblentz, who happens to be Robbie’s actual offspring and is known throughout the local area as Jay’s TV son.  

Jay grills Mark with questions about favorite back porch cooking methods, including one that began with disaster and ended with some prime TV footage.  They talk unusual foods cooked outside, veggies and fruits that work well on the grill, and the controversial idea of liquid smoke.  This episode may send you straight to the grocery and grill store.  

But first, there’s popcorn.  Yes, Jay introduces a new segment called “Limited Edition Movie Popcorn Buckets+.”  If you like the popcorn (and the buckets) but want to enjoy them from the comfort of your own home (because you have something on the smoker you don’t want to leave), this Geek of the Week is for you.  And perhaps, while grilling, you might want to listen to the new dance track just released from the hottest wedding in Andor’s galaxy.  Food, music, and entertainment - this episode has it all.  Or at least suggests where to find it.  

With Jay Reed out, Robbie and Art launch another rant session. 

With Jay out enjoying his new role as grandfather, aka Baba, Robbie and Art take advantage of a brief window when they are both in the same time zone to quickly rant about a few things.

The Guys are well over 300 episodes into Season 1 of this podcast, which begs the question: at what point does it become, “Guys of a Certain Age, Born Again?”  The bigger question may be: is the world even ready for that?  (See show notes around episode 400 for details.)  

This episode begins, as usual, with exciting news from the world of geekdom.  You heard it here second. Superman is ever closer with a tremendous trailer released, with some subtle changes and fodder for a product tie-in you might not have expected.  MAX seems to be channeling Prince and his identity crisis.  One iconic hero may get an extended cut, while another planned trilogy seems destined for a duology. There’s a lot going on this week.  

And not long ago, Daredevil: Born Again, Season 1 completed its run, and that’s what The Guys hash out today.  Reviews are mixed among the gentlemen co-hosts, but no thumbs were down.  Even with a bit of “it was fine” in the air, there’s still hope for Season 2, "Born Again Anew.” Please listen to this episode, then again.  

It’s another episode of Guys of a Certain Age*, soon to be known across the continents (or at least Antarctica) as The Old Offenders.  The studio could hardly contain all the excitement as The Void released Robbie, Art, and Jay long enough not just to go to the movie together, and not just talk about said movie together in a podcast episode, but to pay even less for said movie than the seasoned citizen rate.  Triple win.  

Ditto with the Geeks of the Week: Robbie expands the Andor universe for all, Jay takes an imaginary joy ride through the forests of Endor, and Art contemplates the director of the next Thor movie, “Love and Thunderbolts*"  Then it’s time to go to the movie.  It’s time to grab the popcorn and the super serum and watch The New Avengers Formerly Known As Thunderbolts*.  The Guys agreed that Marvel is getting its groove back.  Strong characters (though largely unknown and apparently not actual comic Thunderbolts), meaningful plot dealing with actual current issues, plenty of action, a little darkness, and just enough humor.  Listen for all the details and spoilers and name changes (and it’s not just the new pope.)

It’s another fully regrettable episode.  Wait, who writes this stuff??  It’s actually a full and complete episode made entirely of Jay’s Regrettable Segments, where he pulls a semi-obscure (depending on who’s listening) superhero from the archives of Jon Morris’s book, The League of Regrettable Superheroes, then tells the story after a brief “brought to you by” ad from Art the Announcer Guy.  Said (or sad) superheroes are then rated as Regrettable, Redeemable, or Not Regrettable (super original, right?)  

In this segment of segments, The Silver Age closes out with Spyman, then the heroes enter the Bronze and/or Modern Age, depending on how you define it, with Adam-X the X-treme, Holo-Man, and The Outsiders (probably not the ones you’re thinking about.)  And like the Super Bowl, even if the heroes are regrettable, this one’s worth listening to just for the ads.  

The Guys are back!  And that means all three of them in the same room: the room where it happens, where they’re not gonna give away their shot, and where (hopefully) they won’t be shot in a duel of any kind.  

That’s right, Robbie himself went to see the broadway musical Hamilton with Jay, Robbie, and all the GOCA wives, with very little arm-twisting.  And Art sings a couple of lines with royal gusto (on the episode, not in the theater.)  Did it live up to the hype?  Was live better than Memorex? All these questions and more will be answered.  

DC characters get a little love (or they will in 2026) in Geeks of the Week, but most of the action takes place in the Star Wars universe, or in Yaban, depending on how you say it.  One might say it’s a Star Wars celebration.  Perhaps Lin-Manuel will write a song about it!