Media Sandwich

It was Independence Day this week, but ironically this episode keeps reverting back to kings. Amazon looks for a director and an actor for His Majesty's secret service in the Bond franchise, Stephen King's The Stand gets a new adaptation and Richard Bachman (re: Stephen King, again) gets a trailer for Edgar Wright's new version of The Running Man. Meanwhile, Paramount guarantees their huge merger with Skydance by bending the knee to a man who thinks himself king. Steam and Nintendo offer feasts (of deals) fit for a king, including discounts on many Mushroom Kingdom related titles. It's a real game of thrones around here, I tell you hwhat. That's a little King of the Hill reference. Thought you might enjoy that.Music: "Sweeter Vermouth" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Welcome back to the show our resident Nintendo expert, Chris! After a week with the new Switch 2 and Mario Kart World, Chris has lots of complicated feelings and observations about the reported sales success of the new console. But first...lots and lots of fast-food discussion, the box office misfire of Ballerina, bittersweet news for both Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Dr. Who, and Spaceballs: the Legacy Sequel. Also, some various flavors of Batman to choose from at your local comic book store and a giant-size Pride Month special from Marvel.Music: "Sweeter Vermouth" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Take a break from your shiny new Nintendo Switch 2 to help answer a few questions here. Can Lionsgate's new movie, From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, overcome its clunky spin-off title to dethrone Lilo and Stitch? Will North America embrace the most popular fast-food chain from the Philippines? Can Noah Hawley translate the Alien franchise to cable television success? Meanwhile, a grisly tragedy overshadows the triumphant return of King of the Hill, James Bond (finally) gets a new videogame from the developers behind the splendid Hitman series, and Marvel Knights: The World to Come introduces a new Black Panther that...well, let's just say it's a controversial pivot.Music: "Sweeter Vermouth" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

It's a battle royale at the box office this Memorial Day weekend, Ethan Hunt versus Stitch. Meanwhile the latest Hunger Games prequel drums up a lot of interest just off its spot-on casting announcements. We have a TV review round-up for The Last of Us, Poker Face, and Duster, followed by Kyle's comic book Picks of the Week (POW! if you will). Also, Randy Pitchford weighs in on the $80 price tag of Borderlands 4, not in a cool way. Fortnite gives the world a Darth Vader chatbot no one asked for or needs. And an oft-mocked fast food chain tests out an admittedly tasty sounding sandwich.Music: "Sweeter Vermouth" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Final Destination: Bloodlines opens this week, hoping to pull off a box office heist before Ethan Hunt and Stitch arrive. Superman gets a new, exciting trailer that really nails down the character himself. Andor ends (sniff, sniff) and The Last of Us was just kinda okay this week. Max, formerly HBO Max, formerly HBO Now is now...HBO Max...again. A Game of Thrones spinoff gets delayed, while the already long-delayed Ironheart finally makes its way to Disney Plus. Ubisoft pushes back most of their 2026 releases, and Doom: The Dark Ages is a very different beast than its predecessors. Also, get ready for Local Comic Shop Day in September, and get excited for Ben Grimm vs. the entire Marvel universe.Music: "Sweeter Vermouth" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/