Gobbledygeek

Once again, Paul and Arlo’s most British friend Wesley “Wezzo” Mead is abducted from the U.K. to discuss Chris Carter’s seminal sci-fi series The X-Files. The gang has reached the show’s fifth season; for a while now, Paul and Wezzo have been warning neophyte X-Phile Arlo that things would go downhill, and we may have reached that point. They discuss why season 5 doesn’t work quite as well as previous seasons; the big celebrity guest writers (Stephen King! William Gibson!); if the mytharc stuff makes any sense at this point; whether or not Scully has been completely robbed of agency; and the series’ first feature film, Fight the Future. Plus, there’s despairing political talk as always, and Arlo revisited every single David Lynch movie.

Next: the lasso of truth compels Paul and Arlo to give you their thoughts on Patty Jenkins’ big-screen Wonder Woman.

Y: The Last Man gets it very own Ring Cycle with Vol. 5: Ring of Truth, wherein Yorick is separated from his engagement ring while the Culper Ring goes head-to-head with the Setauket Ring. Meanwhile, Paul and Arlo’s year-long Four-Color Flashback “study” of Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra’s acclaimed series runs rings around the competition (not that there is any). The boys discuss everyone’s relative morality; the stand-alone issue “Hero’s Journey,” which allows us to see things from a feminine perspective; whether or not it all comes down to crane spunk and monkey shit; and Christ on a cross. Plus, Paul and Arlo remember Chris Cornell.

Next: killer trees are afoot as Wesley “Wezzo” Mead joins the boys once again to discuss Chris Carter’s seminal sci-fi series The X-Files. This time, the gang sets their sights on season 5 and the series’ first big screen outing, Fight the Future.

Family is family, no matter how much they might piss you off. It’s fitting that while the ragtag band of losers at the heart of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 learn this lesson, Paul and Arlo are relearning it. That’s right, kids, the boys’ miraculous and unprecedented string of agreements is over: Paul is tail over paws in love with Vol. 2, while Arlo rides the good ship Kelly McGillis into a sea of disappointment. Are the film’s various character pairings emotionally satisfying? Does Vol. 2 merely rehash everything you loved about the first? Is Michael Rooker a goddamn gift to humanity/Centauriankind? Plus, Paul mind-melds with Sense8 season 2, and Arlo wants to believe with The Leftovers season 3.

Next: after a week off, Ensley F. Guffey will join the boys for the next installment in their (woefully unappreciated) Four-Color Flashback exploring Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra’s Y: The Last Man. This time, they’ll slip on the Ring of Truth for Y: The Last Man - Vol. 5.

Anti-immigrant sentiment. Militarized police. Fascist leadership. A Britain with closed borders. No, this isn’t our world circa 2017; it’s the 2027 of Alfonso Cuarón’s 2006 sci-fi masterpiece Children of Men. A world rocked by mass infertility and faced with humanity’s impending extinction has led down a path of violent extremism, one you and I may be traveling as we speak. Paul and Arlo discuss the film’s terrifying relevance, its rightful ascendance to modern classic status, those insane tracking shots, and, you know, white male privilege. Plus, Paul promised Arlo he would watch Park Chan-wook’s The Handmaiden, and by god that’s a promise he kept.

Next: three years after their self-titled debut, the Guardians of the Galaxy are about to drop Vol. 2, and you’re invited to the listening party.