Needless Things

Dave talks to musician, illustrator, puppeteer, and all-around renaissance woman Valerie Meiss!   From Valerie's website :   “A fascination with fairytales and detective stories at bedtime, a never-ending stockpile of cardboard, and a slew of old junk and toy instruments have left their mark on Valerie Meiss' work.   She boldly claims to be a singing, songwriting musician (though hardly a singer-s...

  LIVE from the Dragon Con 2017 Puppetry Track!   Dave – formerly and sometimes still known as Phantom Troublemaker – talks to the wonderful Tim Clarke about two of the legendary 80s toy lines he created – Boglins and Sectaurs!   Listen in as Tim talks to Dave about the genesis of these two innovative puppetry-based concepts and their legacy in the world of toys!   Be sure to join the Needless Thi...

The Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to discuss the newest entry into the DC Comics movieverse, Justice League! Starting with Man of Steel in 2013, Warner Bros. has been trying to ape the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Despite having an available roster of arguably the best-known superheroes, the films have struggled to find acceptance, much less the acclaim of the...

  Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films!   This month’s movie is the 1987 animated feature, GI Joe: The Movie. The Irregulars are joined by special guest Noel from GI Joe cosplay group The Finest ’s Southern Command. Thirty years ago Hasbro planned to release an animated theatrical GI Joe...

  Dave talks to Clint from Birmingham, Alabama horror punk/metal band Kamikaze Zombie !   Kamikaze Zombie started in 2014. They are heavy crossover band from Birmingham Al, with multiple influences from hardcore, metal, and punk. All of these very different influences led them to become their own genre of heavy music with multiple styles flowing through every KZ song. Kamikaze Zombie pushes to bri...

Recorded LIVE at Dragon Con 2018! The third entry in the Elm Street series set the tone for the future of the franchise, introducing a group of strong, unique kids that audiences would remember for decades, as well as upping the ante on the nightmare visuals and Freddy’s puns. Many – including our own Dave West – consider this the best of the franchise, or at least a favorite. Listen in as Dave, t...

Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films! October’s film was chosen via fan poll on the Needless Things Podcast Facebook Group ! Have a happy Halloween, Halloween, Halloween with the Irregulars’ October Commentary for a movie that was once seen with a degree of disdain but that seems to have...

This special episode of the Needless Things Podcast presents the exploration of Corpsewood Manor, the site of murders that shocked Georgia in the early 1980s. Dave, Ryan Cadaver, and Rad Ranger traveled to Trion, Georgia to examine the once majestic ruins of the ill-fated paradise. In December of 1982 Dr. Charles L. Scudder and his partner, Joseph Odom were murdered inside their dream home in the...

It's a celebration of Friday the 13th! Join Dave and a massive cast of Needless Things Irregulars for a surprise cornucopia of audio delights all about the Friday the 13th horror franchise! Listen in as the Needless Things Irregulars talk about everything from Creighton Duke to Jack Marshak to who Jason should fight next!! Be sure to join the  Needless Things Podcast Facebook Group  and get in on...

LIVE from Dragon Con 2017, but the perfect way to kick off 31 Days of Halloween on the Needless Things Podcast, Dave talks to one of the most notable horror icons in the history of professional wrestling – the Big Red Machine, Kane! As one of the longest-tenured athletes in WWE, Kane has personified evil many times throughout his career. From long-running feuds with his brother the Undertaker to I...

The Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to watch Star Trek: Discovery! Discovery is the newest entry into the mighty Star Trek franchise, and one that CBS is hoping will lure customers to subscribe to their proprietary streaming service. Basically nobody is happy about that, and it's possible that before too much longer CBS isn't going to be happy about it, either. But that's nei...

LIVE from Dragon Con 2017! Dave – formerly and sometimes still known as Phantom Troublemaker – talks to the wonderful Tim Clarke about his time with the Jim Henson company and his work on The Dark Crystal. Listen in as Tim talks to Dave about his start with Henson, the experience of creating such an immersive world, and what happened to the toy line that Tim worked on! Be sure to join the Needless...

Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films! It’s Rad Ranger’s birthday, so he picked 1995’s Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: The Movie for September’s Commentary! There was no bigger children’s franchise in 1995 than the Power Rangers, so obviously Hollywood wanted to capitalize on it with a silv...

LIVE from Dragon Con 2017! Dave – formerly and sometimes still known as Phantom Troublemaker – is joined by Nicole Gould, Rebeccah Hunter, Michael Bailey, Gary Mitchel, and Noel Wood for an all-new panel about the pop culture from thirty years ago! Listen in as the panelists and audience share their favorite things – from Spaceballs to Guns N’ Roses, we’ve got the year covered, LIVE from Dragon Co...

Dragon Con 2017 coverage continues on Needless Things in this special Wednesday episode! In this week’s episode of the Needless Things Podcast Puppetry Track Director Beau Brown returns to lay down everything that's going on this year in Dragon Con's most inclusive and all-encompassing Track! Listen for all of the exciting Puppet Track news, as well as some exclusive announcements! Be sure to join...

Dragon Con 2017 coverage continues on Needless Things! In this week’s episode of the Needless Things Podcast Phantom Troublemaker is joined by the ESO Network's Mike Gordon! Listen in as Phantom and Mike discuss their histories with Dragon Con and share some of their favorite memories. Also, get the scoop on Phantom and Mike's schedules for Con and what they'll be up to when they're not on panels....

Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films! Special guest Award-Winning Bobby Nash joins the Commentary Team for the first-ever Dragon Con-themed Commentary – 1981's Dragonslayer! Everyone knows that dragons are badass, but for some reason Hollywood has rarely done a good job of capitalizing on...

Dragon Con 2017 coverage continues on Needless Things! In this week’s episode of the Needless Things Podcast Horror Track Director Derek Tatum returns to discuss ghastly business old and new, as well as the keys to successfully programming a Track for the third pillar of speculative fiction – horror! Listen in as Phantom and Derek talk movies, television, and the expectations of the modern horror...

Dragon Con 2017 coverage continues on Needless Things! In this week’s episode of the Needless Things Podcast, Joe “Virtuoso” Crowe and “Glorious” Gary Mitchel return to the show to play a surprise game of Classics Roll-A-Panel and discuss the ins and outs of running a Track for the ever-evolving entity of joy that is Dragon Con! Listen in as Phantom and Gary do their best to keep Joe from talking...

It’s time once again for the Needless Things Irregulars to look at the big news out of San Diego Comic Con! Every year at Comic Con Hollywood, comic book publishers, and toy companies reveal some of the most exciting things that will be offered in the year to come. Listen in as Phantom, Head of Research Ryan, Belligerent Monkey Jay, and Josh Wilson talk about the products and news that came out of...

Part of an ongoing series – the Needless Things Irregulars gather in the Phantom Zone to provide their own unique commentary on classic genre films! Special guests Mr. Beau Brown and Award-Winning Bobby Nash join the Commentary Team for the 1987 Masters of the Universe! Thirty years ago children all over the world were disappointed by Cannon's live action adaptation of Mattel's Masters of the Univ...

  Phantom Troublemaker, Ryan Cadaver, and the Award-Winning Bobby Nash once again gather in the Phantom Zone, this time to discuss Spider-Man: Homecoming! The newest entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe is one that for years seemed impossible – a movie starring Peter Parker, your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man! Thanks to fan demand and probably more than a little corporate greed, Sony and Di...

Phantom Troublemaker, Ryan Cadaver, and the Award-Winning Bobby Nash discuss everyone’s favorite wall-crawler, Spider-Man! Spider-Man has been everywhere and done everything as Marvel Comics' highest profile and most consistently profitable character. He's been the subject of cartoons, movies, TV shows, and countless toy lines. Regardless of the media support or lack thereof, Spidey's face is one...

The dynamite team of Phantom Troublemaker, Beth V, Rad Ranger, and Chris DePetrillo reunite to look thrity years into the past! 1987 was another banner year of the eighties, presenting us with new TV shows and toy lines and an absolutely stellar slate of films from Hollywood! As part of a new annual tradition, Phantom Troublemaker gathered some of the Needless Things Irregulars to reflect on the p...

Recorded on location at Memory Lane Comics in Wilmington, North Carolina! Phantom Troublemaker sits down with Jake, the owner of Memory Lane Comics, a Local Comic Shop which has been operating since 1983. Wilmington has been Phantom’s home away from home for his entire life, and as it turns out he was shopping at Memory Lane when he was just a little Phantom. The opportunity to talk to the current...