Prodigious Saps: Recent Episodes
Chad Smalley & Brendan Jones
Chad Smalley and Brendan Jones (friends for more than 30 years) reflect on movies, TV, music and comics… with a special focus on their shared love of Superman.
On the docket this week: Chad's rant about the remixed soundtrack of STOP MAKING SENSE (the legendary Talking Heads concert film directed by Jonathan Demme) with comparisons to the original 1984 mix and how it reminds him of George Lucas's revisions to his original Star Wars trilogy. Brendan's discovery of a deeply weird and hilarious SUPERMAN comic strip in his copy of SUPERMAN: THE SILVER AGE DAILIES, 1959–1961 Chad's review of THE CENTER SEAT: 55 YEARS OF STAR TREK, a really engaging documentary series currently available to stream on Amazon Prime Video. 00:00:00 — Preview 00:00:30 — Chad's rant on STOP MAKING SENSE 2023 remix 00:07:26 — Lucas vs Spielberg on "Special Editions" 00:10:36 — Frank Frazetta and the problem of endless revisions 00:14:15 — Lucas vs. Spielberg on revisionism 00:17:44 — Harmy's De-specialized Editions of Star Wars 00:19:29 — Summer movies we have or haven't seen 00:20:42 — Blue Beetle 00:22:54 — 2023 summer blockbuster bombs 00:27:28 — Superman Silver Age Dailies 00:37:26 — Golden & Silver Age Comics and baldness 00:40:12 — How we've outgrown he old timey stigma of baldness 00:48:14 — Brendan's favorite Lex Luthor origin stories 00:55:56 — THE CENTER SEAT: Star Trek Documentary series 00:58:47 — THE FIFTY YEAR MISSION: book series on the history of Star Trek 01:11:52 — Strange New Worlds Season 2 01:12:59 — The Kirk retcon problem on Strange New Worlds 01:15:48 — Wrap-up Also a side note, I've been having fun with our TikTok account lately: https://www.tiktok.com/@prodigioussaps Join us Patreon for early releases and additional content: https://www.patreon.com/ProdigiousSaps Cheers y'all! And as always THANK YOU SO MUCH for your support. Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/
SUBSCRIBE on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@prodigioussaps?sub_confirmation=1 PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/ProdigiousSaps An extended, unedited version of this episode is available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/posts/prodigious-saps-87922804 In this episode: * QUARK, the short-lived 1977 sci-fi comedy series starring Richard Benjamin, created by Buck Henry * DARK STAR, John Carpenter's cult classic 1974 sci-fi comedy film * Our favorite war films (thank you Manasven for the question!) * Jerry Lewis's THE DAY THE CLOWN CRIED * The Marx Brothers 00:00:00 — Intro 00:00:22 — QUARK 00:16:42 — DARK STAR & HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY 00:19:02 — MEMOIRS OF AN INVISIBLE MAN 00:22:09 — More on QUARK 00:25:20 — PLANETFALL & STARSHIP TITANIC 00:27:40 — BILL THE GALACTIC HERO 00:29:40 — Favorite war films 00:32:31 — DR. STRANGELOVE 00:33:53 — WARGAMES (1983) 00:35:15 — THE DAY AFTER and SPECIAL BULLETIN (1983) 00:36:40 — More on WARGAMES and QUARK 00:41:20 — LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL (1997) 00:43:20 — THE DAY THE CLOWN CRIED 00:47:28 — JERRY LEWIS 00:48:47 — THE LADIES MAN (1961) 00:53:14 — THE MARX BROTHERS 00:54:55 — Visible gaffes in ELECTRA WOMAN & DYNA GIRL 00:56:58 — Wrap up Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/
This week we celebrate the life of our recently departed hero of comedy: PAUL REUBENS (a.k.a. Pee Wee Herman), and pay our respects to and the late great ALAN ARKIN. ALSO: Marvel's Secret Invasion and the status of the MCU in general right now Superman II and "the Donner Cut" Our favorite superhero origin story movies Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/UNqAA91Ui30 An extended version of this episode is available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ProdigiousSaps 00:00:00 — Intro 00:00:15 — Paul Reubens 00:16:28 — Alan Arkin 00:22:40 — Other heroes we don't want to lose 00:23:59 — Marvel's SECRET INVASION 00:34:36 — LOKI Season 2 and the Jonathan Majors issue 00:35:55 — Is the MCU "dying"? 00:37:08 — Why do the last episodes of all the Disney Plus shows feel rushed? 00:39:10 — When are fan expectations reasonable? 00:39:48 — Problems with SHE-HULK series 00:42:53 — SUPERMAN II and "the Donner Cut" 00:51:13 — SUPERMAN & LOIS - what it does well 00:53:23 — SMALLVILLE - where it went wrong 00:54:41 — SUPERMAN & LOIS - where it's gone wrong 00:56:08 — Great MCU origin stories: IRON MAN, CAPTAIN AMERICA, and THE HULK Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/
Join us on PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/ProdigiousSaps Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/nuvrqwbpjMA FINALLY! Brendan has seen INDIANA JONES & THE DIAL OF DESTINY, so we spend most of this episode talking spoilers from the film (which we both LOVED), while trying to figure out why critics have reacted so weirdly to it. Also in this episode: UNCLE CROC'S BLOCK, Charles Nelson Reilly's short-lived kids TV show Chad's brief review of OPPENHEIMER Problems shared by THE DARK KNIGHT RISES and THE LAST JEDI Similarities between THE TIME MACHINE, PLANET OF THE APES and ZARDOZ Discussed: 📺 Indiana Jones (all movies) — https://amzn.to/3pMif25 📺 The Dark Knight Rises — https://amzn.to/3qsouIv 📺 The Last Jedi — https://amzn.to/3KD0md1 📺 The Time Machine (1960) — https://amzn.to/46ShiWu 📺 Planet Of The Apes (1968) — https://amzn.to/450LwFu 📺 Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) — https://amzn.to/3DQtvOi 📺 Zardoz (1974) — https://amzn.to/47m72pD 📺 The Artifice Girl (2023) — https://amzn.to/3Ky3zL2 📕 Breakfast of the Gods — https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods 00:00:00 — Indy 5 Spoiler Review 00:52:09 — Uncle Croc's Block and Robert Ridgely 01:00:16 — OPPENHEIMER 01:00:53 — The problem with THE DARK KNIGHT RISES 01:05:12 — The problem with THE LAST JEDI 01:10:45 — Similarites between THE TIME MACHINE and PLANET OF THE APES 01:13:06 — ZARDOZ (1974) 01:15:28 — RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES trilogy (2011) 01:18:47 — The problem with ALIEN 3 01:21:01 — Lance Henriksen in ARTIFICE GIRL 01:22:29 — Classic Looney Tunes sound effects 01:26:07 — Brendan's graphic novel BREAKFAST OF THE GODS 01:27:08 — BoTG Foreword (and some artwork) by Jon Schnepp 01:28:46 — INDIANA JONES theme lyrics 01:29:53 — Final thoughts on INDY 5 and earlier films 01:32:42 — Wrap up Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/ Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/
This week we answer questions from Patreon supporters, leading us into a discussion of recent casting news for James Gunn's SUPERMAN: LEGACY, speculation on what this means for the DCU, and our thoughts on Matt Reeves' THE BATMAN and what we hope to see in the sequel. Brendan then takes us on another nostalgic nosedive into 1970s primetime television with the classic one-season wonder CLIFFHANGERS... with many thanks to Vincent Dawn's Pilot Showcase, whose impressive collection of forgotten TV shows made this discussion possible. Watch this episode of P-Saps on YouTube: https://youtu.be/OWT1fBT-8lg All 11 episodes of CLIFFHANGERS on Vincent Dawn's Pilot Showcase https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPBhzy1f1_eZZFdWoETT8m9d3VlA5SncV Tesla City Stories fundraising campaign: https://boost-tesla.com/ 00:00:00 — Intro 00:00:14 — Questions from Patreon supporters 00:00:29 - SUPERMAN: LEGACY casting news 00:13:10 - THE BATMAN sequel speculation 00:13:16 - SUPERMAN: LEGACY Casting News 00:25:45 - Why so many reboots and remakes? 00:28:50 - Why do video games have more original ideas? 00:34:14 - PRIMER: best time travel film since Pal's "The Time Machine"? 00:35:16 — CLIFFHANGERS (1979 TV Series) 00:50:03 - Kenneth Johnson (Cliffhangers creator) 00:54:21 - Six Million Dollar Man & Big Jim action figures (1970s) 00:56:51 - More 1970s toys 00:59:42 - Vincent Dawn's Pilot Showcase (YouTube channel) 01:01:00 — Tesla City Stories Indiegogo 01:02:41 — P-Saps Patreon Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/
In this episode of P-Saps: - Chad has a bone to pick with critics of Indiana Jones & the Dial of Destiny - Filmation's ARK II and Jason of Star Command - Irwin Allen's classic THE TIME TUNNEL - How advanced special effects have "spoiled" us - Superman: Legacy casting announcements and more! Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/HX61wTdjL58 Support TESLA CITY STORIES: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-tesla-city-stories-help-us-boost-the-signal#/ ALSO: We here at Prodigious Saps now have a Patreon account: https://patreon.com/ProdigiousSaps We here at P-Saps thrive on your feedback and support! It takes time and money to keep this ship afloat, and your patronage will help us keep moving forward. Exclusive clips not available on YouTube Early releases of videos Sneak peaks of works-in-progress A chance to vote on future topics THANKS to all of you for watching and commenting! 00:00:00 — Indy 5: Critics are WAY too harsh 00:10:22 — Responding to Comments 00:10:29 - Ark II 00:12:42 - Space Academy & Jason of Star Command 00:13:06 - The Time Tunnel 00:23:40 - Tales of the Golden Monkey 00:24:56 - Bring 'Em Back Alive 00:26:46 - Zork: Grand Inquistor 00:28:09 - Dusty's Trail (Bob Denver) 00:29:46 - Advancement of special effects has us spoiled 00:35:50 - SHAZAM / Captain Marvel 00:37:21 - Ultraman 00:41:03 — Superman: Legacy casting announcements 00:47:16 — My Adventures with Superman (New Animated Series) 00:48:57 — P-SAPS on PATREON 00:50:49 — Indiegogo for Tesla City Stories 00:52:47 — Wrap-up
We're BACK! This week we respond a bunch of your comments on our recent videos, and man, do the rabbit holes run DEEP in this episode. Topics follow in the timecode bookmarks. Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/d239idqHRns 00:00:00 — Intro / updates 00:02:54 — LOST SAUCER / FAR OUT SPACE NUTS 00:06:04 — Dusty's Trail 00:07:19 — The Good Guys 00:08:14 — Gilligan's Island - Why it got cancelled 00:09:04 — Rescue from Gilligan's Island 00:11:32 — The GHOST BUSTERS (1975) 00:13:00 — Legal issues with GHOST BUSTERS name 00:17:07 — Exo-Man 00:19:43 — THE PHOENIX (1982) 00:20:22 — Judson Scott as Adam Warlock? 00:21:24 — Judson Scott as Valentine Michael Smith? 00:27:41 — STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND as a 1960s period piece? 00:30:05 — More on THE PHOENIX 00:34:45 — Voyagers (1982-83) 00:35:38 — Captain Nice & Mr. Terrific (1967) 00:36:19 — HERO AT LARGE (1980) 00:39:15 — CONDORMAN (1981) 00:41:30 — SUPER FUZZ (1980) 00:42:48 — SHAZAM! and ISIS (1975) 00:53:25 — KROFFT SUPERSHOW (1976-78) 00:53:52 — Captain Kool and the Kongs 00:55:12 — Wonderbug 00:57:36 — Bigfoot and Wild Boy 00:59:06 — ELECTRA WOMAN & DYNA GIRL (1976) 01:07:13 — Electra Woman & Dyna Girl Reboot Attempts 01:10:08 — Wrap-up and THANK YOU
In this episode, we respond to our first big batch of listener comments since our YouTubre channel suddenly starting blowing up in mid-May 2023. Thank you everyone for watching and commenting! Your feedback means the world to us and you're helping to shape the future of this channel. 00:00:00 — Intro and channel updates 00:01:46 — SALVAGE 1 00:02:21 — SID & MARTY KROFFT 00:08:25 — LIDSVILLE, BUTCH PATRICK and CHARLES NELSON REILLY 00:12:17 — 2000 AD 00:17:36 — JUDGE DREDD 00:20:57 — Wrap-up and THANK YOU Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/mwd2dAtR5o4 Amazing Colossal Podcast: Gilbert Gottfried talks with Sid and Marty Krofft https://youtu.be/TWkOZFCJBno Sid & Marty Krofft official website https://www.sidandmartykrofft.com/ Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/
This week we take a hazy look back at Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, talk about the oddities of Rogue One, and rhapsodize about Andor. And as usual, a few Superman-related things... because we care. Paul Roman Martinez prints: https://www.storenvy.com/products/2209092-siegel-shuster-superman-print https://twitter.com/prmartinez19xx/status/462293855971209218 Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/**
This week we talk about James Gunn and Peter Safran heading the new DC Studios and what we think might happen with the DCU going forward. Also: Fan disatisfaction about Chris Pratt voicing Mario, Black Adam, Thor: Love & Thunder, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania trailer, and She-Hulk.
Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/9wEcMCVphI4 This week we begin with the long lost Superman poem by Vladimir Nabokov that gave this podcast its name. It's a remarkable story that almost seems too wonderfully nerdy to be true. We then talk about the atrocious Superman IV for a bit before digging into the classic 1980s TV series "Greatest American Hero". The discussion includes: The impact it had on us as kids What we think of it now Why is it still popular The theme song Should it be rebooted, and how? Along the way we also touch on Quantum Leap, Truth, Justin and the American way, Hero At Large, et al. SHOW NOTES: * "Superman returns: An unpublished poem by Vladimir Nabokov" By Andrei Babikov (https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/superman-returns-poem-vladimir-nabokov-andrei-babikov/) (requires subscription) * Nabokov's Superman Poem (https://blog.bestamericanpoetry.com/the_best_american_poetry/2021/04/nabokovs-superman-poem-by-vladimir-nabokov-june-1942.html) (doesn't require subscriptino) Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/
This week, as Brendan said towards the end of last week's show, we have words for Mr. Snyder. After this... it's time to move on (maybe). We begin with a brief review of the delightful SUPERMAN ‘78 comic book series before getting into it. Once and for all, we detail everything we didn't like—and to be fair, some things that we did like—about the Man of Steel, Batman v Superman, Justice League, the Snyder Cut, etc. Also: Wonder Woman 1984, James Gunn's The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker, Velvet Goldmine, and Chad's old Ziggy Stardust broadway musical idea. Prodigious Saps: profusive nerdery from Chad Smalley of Blaggards and Brendan Jones of Tesla City Stories. https://linktr.ee/prodigioussaps RELATED LINKS: Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast/road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods Campbell & Jones Meet the Monsters https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com/
In our second episode, Brendan and Chad revisit Superman Returns, analyze its strengths and many flaws, and compare it to other portrayals of Superman. Who got it right? Who got it oh so wrong? How could it be done better? Our other main topic: should Matt Reeves' "The Batman" serve as the foundation for a new DCEU? Also discussed: * McCartney 3,2,1 * Marvel: Then & Now - A Night With Stan Lee, Joe Quesada, Hosted by Kevin Smith * Superman: the Movie * Superman II * Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut * Man of Steel * Batman v Superman * Batman '66, Batman '89, and Superman '78 graphic novels As always: SPOILERS ABOUND! Mentioned: * Campbell and Jones Meet the Monsters (https://meetthemonsters.podbean.com) * George Martin sketch by Big Train (https://youtu.be/hQPLyfdCyws)
In our debut episode, Brendan and Chad reminisce about the early '90s Houston music & arts scene before diving into a broad array of nerdy dissections. Batman, Superman, the Arrowverse, Star Wars prequels, sequels and Disney+ shows, and tons more. Watch/Subscribe on YouTube: https://youtu.be/fx79Dqwu0Ao Blaggards https://blaggards.com/ SlapperCast: a weekly podcast / road diary from Blaggards: https://linktr.ee/slappercast Tesla City Stories https://www.teslacitystories.com Breakfast of the Gods https://www.indyplanet.com/breakfast-of-the-gods