Gobbledygeek

For the first time in a long time, Gobbledygeek dips its beak back into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They’ve done so for a very special film: Jake Schreier’s Thunderbolts*, a return to the MCU’s past glories with a tale of outcasts looking for something to believe in. Yelena Belova, the Winter Soldier, U.S. Agent, Red Guardian, Ghost, and Taskmaster come together to form a new kind of Avengers team; one formed under the auspices of none other than Elaine Benes. Paul, Arlo, and Eric–our own band of lovable misfits–discuss Florence Pugh’s killer performance, the lovable David Harbour, what Thunderbolts* does differently than most recent MCU films, and much, much more.

NEXT: we enter VAL-halla for a second Val Kilmer double feature. This time, it’s 1986’s Tony Scott pro-war classic Top Gun and 1988’s Ron Howard (???) Lord of the Rings rip-off, Willow.

BREAKDOWN

00:00:27  -  Intro / Banter

00:19:43  -  Thunderbolts*

01:59:50  -  Outro / Next

LINKS

• ‘Thunderbolts*’: Marvel’s Allegory of Recovery From Trauma by Jessica Schrader, Psychology Today

• The Dark We Dare Not Speak: Thunderbolts* and the Underworld Within by Jason Batt, Joseph Campbell Foundation

• Thunderbolts and The Lost Souls: On Trauma, Meaning, and The Seduction of Modern Nihilism by Azhar Salleh, Traversing Tradition

MUSIC

• “Pony” by Ginuwine, Ginuwine…the Bachelor (1996)

• “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” by Starship, No Protection (1987)

GOBBLEDYCARES

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/ 

• Abortion Funds in Every State: https://bit.ly/AbortionFundsTwitter

• Support AAPI communities and those affected by anti-Asian violence: https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate

• Support the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://aapifund.org/

• Support Black Lives Matter and find anti-racism resources: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/

• The Trevor Project provides information and support to LGBTQ youth: thetrevorproject.org

• Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/ 

• National Center for Transgender Equality: transequality.org

• Help teachers and classrooms in need: https://www.donorschoose.org/

• Do your part to remove the burden of medical debt for individuals, families, and veterans: https://www.unduemedicaldebt.org/

• Register to vote: https://vote.gov/

The rich tradition of Southern-fried vampires continues with Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, a masterful mash-up of Delta blues, Irish folk, and the horrors of cultural appropriation. Paul, Arlo, and Eric rave about Michael B. Jordan’s dual performance as twin gangsters Smoke and Stack, Ludwig Göransson’s eclectic score, the frankness with which it explores America’s long history of racism, and Coogler’s audacious style. Plus, Paul finally saw the How to Train Your Dragon live-action remake.

NEXT: punches get personal with Thunderbolts*.

BREAKDOWN

00:00:37  -  Intro / Banter

00:21:18  -  Sinners

02:12:22  -  Outro / Next

LINKS

• ‘Sinners’ Is More Than Enough To Chew On by Adam Nayman, The Ringer

• ‘Sinners’ Opens Portals Between Blues, Rap, Heaven and Hell by Sheldon Pearce, NPR

• By Refusing To Do a ‘Sinners’ Sequel, Ryan Coogler Is Protecting Everything We Love About His Horror Masterpiece by Jessica Toomer, Collider

MUSIC

• “I Lied to You” by Miles Caton, Sinners (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2025)

• “Will Ye Go, Lassie Go?” by Lola Kirke, Peter Dreams, Brian Dunphy, Daren Holden & Jack O’Connell, Sinners (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2025)