The Incomparable Mothership

Take off all your clothes and set the lock code on your mobile phone! It’s time for us to discuss the second season of the BBC’s “Sherlock,” starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. We walk through all three movie-length episodes, starting with the exemplary “Scandal in Belgravia,” moving on to the not-so-exemplary “Hounds of Baskerville,” and concluding with the mind-blowing “Reichenbach Fall.”

We tackle the last of the classic “Star Wars” trilogy, “Return of the Jedi.” Why does Jabba the Hutt enjoy avant-garde wall hangings and ’80s dance moves? Isn’t it sad how Boba Fett goes out with a whimper? Are the alien languages in “Star Wars” too fake-sounding? How is Luke’s journey to being a Jedi not like what you see in most action movies? Who is more heroic in the end, Luke or Vader? Why does the Emperor wait so long to show us his lightning fingers? Why are rebel ships equipped with fireworks? And is Endor the name of the moon, or the name of the planet the moon is orbiting, or both? [This episode was originally two episodes, 88 and 89. It’s been rejoined into a single, double-length episode.]

Here be dragons! Special guest hosts Glenn Fleishman and Lisa Schmeiser discuss books featuring winged and scaly creatures, from Anne McCaffrey to George R.R. Martin. Glenn and Lisa are joined by special guest stars Dori Smith and Sarah Barbour, who are also knowledgeable in the ways of the dragon.

Get out your magic wands, prepare your incantations, and prepare for a battle of wills involving ancient powers and callow youths. We discuss two recent novels with magic at the fore: Lev Grossman’s “The Magicians” and Erin Morgenstern’s “The Night Circus.” One of them we liked a lot… the other, not so much! Prepare yourself for a magical podcast.

It’s the Incomparable Game Show! In a clash of young(ish) versus old(ish), two teams vie for the honor of being the team who wins. Sci-fi questions, confused androids, and a visit from a parallel-universe version of The Incomparable are all part of the story. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you won’t learn a darned thing. Join us, won’t you?

Please join us for Jason and John’s survey of the films of director Hayao Miyazaki. Even if you don’t have kids, like animation, or care about Japan, we think these are some of the greatest films ever made. From “My Neighbor Totoro” and “Kiki’s Delivery Service” to “Spirited Away” and “Nausicaa,” we cover the highlights (and oddities) of his filmmaking career.

Who Watches the Watchmen? We discuss Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’s classic comic “Watchmen.” What made it remarkable and influential? Is it too stuck in an ’80s sensibility? Did the movie ruin everything? And will the recently-announced prequels stink?

It’s the end of the world! And since our eyeglasses are intact, we have time enough at last, to read. We discuss Maureen McHugh’s “After the Apocalypse” short-story collection, Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road,” and other apocalypse tales we have known. Do zombies have their own David Attenborough, leading expeditions into Cleveland? Why should you be afraid if heavy snowfall combines with the appearance of strange invisible magic ghost sex-dragon monsters? And why does John Siracusa plan to ride out the apocalypse in style? We ask several of these questions, but you’ll have to listen to see if we ever answer any of them.

We close the books on the first Incomparable Film Festival with this special follow-up episode. We provide the show times for each day of the festival, share your feedback, and reveal the results of your vote for the best slate of films. We also check in with two panelists who couldn’t make the original draft, one of whom has a bone to pick with John Siracusa. The other one instead tells a heartwarming tale of projectile vomiting. (Part 3 of 2.)

Continuing our assembly of the Incomparable Film Festival! We fill out our list of 35 classic films for imaginary display to imaginary crowds. Find out our final 21 (or is it 22?) choices! Then vote for your favorites. (Part 2 of 2.)