ORB: A Venture Bros. Podcast

It's a great episode, we just there was more of the robot date! The hunt is on as the OSI starts tracking down leads, singling out a single member of the Guild Council: Vendata. And it just so happens he's gotten into online dating. One Ghost Robot and one Galacticon costume later, the noose begins to tighten. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our theme song, and Bray...

The two most unlikely subplots and characters return and collide. On one hand, "Ted" is in danger, even if "Ted" is just a talking teddy bear that once "kidnapped" Rusty, and now Hank and Dermot are using the toy to keep their dad busy on the phone so they can go gig. Meanwhile, Dean has remained in contact with Myra, Rusty's old bodyguard and, possibly, the boys' mommy (she's not). But all roads...

Spanakopita! It's a pie, it's a catch-phrase, it's a fake festival, it's the name of a very good episode of the Venture Bros. Rusty's life has been a never ending parade of tragedy, so his friends are understandably unnerved when they see him acting happy at the Greek festival of Spanakopita. But as Billy Quizboy faces off against his archrival Augustus St. Cloud's attempts to buy off the festival...

If we had to name the fifth season's primary sins, they would be unnecessary closure and walking back changes to the status quo. We were pretty satisfied with how things left off with Molotov... but they had to bring her back just to make things weird again. The episode has some high flying action charms, but man, it's a bummer when they walk back good decisions. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett fo...

I promise that we don't do the Cobra Commander voice in this episode, although it's tempting. This episode serves a single purpose: to put S.P.H.I.N.X. to bed so the OSI can take center stage and Gary can return to the Monarch... eventually. Meanwhile we get some unrelated hijinks from the Monarch, and Hatred finally makes a little bit of progress in getting Dean to open up. Special thanks to Josh...

It starts will a villain-ge, grows to an atro-city, and then a full blown abomi-nation! Rusty is called to deal with a problem with one of the weapons he sold to the army... Venturestein has decided to rebel and create a haven for all of the misbegotten science experiments out there. It's a neat premise, but does this shaky episode fulfill its promise? Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover...

It's crunch time as Rusty panics to fulfill a contract he made with JJ, delivering a highly radioactive space shield no matter how many interns it costs him. Meanwhile Billy Quizboy gets his arch rival, Augustus St. Cloud, and Dean finally asserts his own individuality. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our theme song, and Brayton Cameron for being our announcer.

A bittersweet episode about self discovery, the Venture Halloween special hits in a weird spot. It's technically supposed to be the second episode of the series, but its status as a special might make you ignore it. And that would be a mistake, because important lore stuff happens here. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our theme song, and Brayton Cameron for being ou...

Season 5 begins with a short little special about everyone's favorite underdog, the band that came from nowhere: Shallow Gravy. This Behind the Music-style documentary walks us through the formation of the band that brought us the hit song "Jacket", and it's packed full of little jokes and fun references. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our theme song, and Brayton C...

We wrap up the best season of the Venture Bros. yet by talking about the DVD special features, ranking our firsts and worsts, and reading your listener mail. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our theme song, and Brayton Cameron for being our announcer.

It'll be the most magical night of your life, when your dad hires a sex worker to dance the Cha-Cha Slide with you. The boys have graduated, and it's time for them to have their rite of passage, which provides the backdrop for this extremely sweet season finale that provides good closure for a number of our running plots. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our theme so...

Poor Billy Quizboy can't catch a break. Just when he thinks he's broken into the world of super science, he's kidnapped to perform ethically messy surgery again... this time for the Guild's super lawyer Monstroso. Meanwhile, Pete marshals the forces of Sphinx to rescue his friend, and has a heart to heart with Sergeant Hatred about his messed up priorities. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our...

Rusty's self preservation instinct takes a sudden and noticeable dive, and it's up to Dr. Orpheus to venture into his mind to find out what's up. Meanwhile, we see the Monarch is the cause of the trouble, which mostly provides us with an excuse to see Henchman 21 and Dr. Mrs. the Monarch bond over his inert, dream-projecting body. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our...

Dean learns hard lessons about how inescapable the Venture life can be, as he heads to New York for a prestigious internship but has his dreams of independence squashed by his unthinking father. Meanwhile, the Revenge Society attempts to build themselves up under Dean's nose, and Rusty tries to make it big on Broadway with the vanity project to end all vanity projects. A big thanks to this week's...

Even the most soft-boiled detective knows that some mysteries should remain unsolved. That's where Hank messes up when he starts HankCo Superworld in an effort to "get a job" after graduating from "high school", and he ends up play acting as a private eye searching for the truth of Dermot's parentage. And it goes without saying that the answer is disturbing. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our...

Sidekicks, henchmen, butlers, and scientists are being abducted all around the world, and Rusty feels left out. But he likely wouldn't have lasted at the Farm, where Zeus and his general pit the abductees against each other in mortal combat. Thankfully, Henchman 21 has a plan. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our theme song, and Brayton Cameron for being our announce...

It's not like the boys can stay kids forever... anymore. So they graduate "high school" and get to work thinking about their future. While Rusty tries to force Dean to walk in his footsteps, Hank inadvertently proves that he would make a top notch secret agent. Meanwhile, some dumb and bad stuff happens with Phantom Limb. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our theme so...

The Venture Bros. returns from its mid-season break with a real banger of an episode about strange conveyances. The Monarch has a mid-life crisis and buys himself a Green Goblin-esque glider, angering his men and Dr. Mrs. the Monarch. Meanwhile, Rusty mysteriously goes into a coma during an attack, and the boys need to team up with Brock to shrink down and go inside him, Fantastic Voyage style. Sp...

This mid-season finale arranges the pieces on the board, bringing Brock back and introducing our new antagonist: Monstroso. This gigantic lawyer's methods stand in stark contrast to the Monarch's pageantry, in that they're very effective. And the Ventures will need to team up with the extralegal mercenary band Sphinx if they want to keep their compound out of Monstroso's hands. Special thanks to J...

This season's Orpheus focus episode is a triumph. Dr. Orpheus feels upstaged by the man who's sleeping with his ex-wife, and he sets about trying to reassert his own strength as a sorcerer and as a man. Meanwhile, Triana has to work through tough questions about what her future will look like, and whether or not Dean will figure into it. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May...

A therapist has died from a mysterious, potentially mythical snake bite... and that means this looks like a case for several unwell former boy adventurers! Rusty, the Hale Boys, Wonder Boy II, and Ro-Boy muster their forces to find the neerdowell responsible. Meanwhile, Sergeant Hatred runs out of his medication at the worst possible time. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen Ma...

Phantom Limb is having a rough couple of months. First he loses his girlfriend, then his job, then his mind. Now he's back, a prosthetic arm replacing one of his ghost arms, with a crack team consisting of a mug, a toaster, and a high-heeled shoe. Will the Guild be ready for his assault? Will the Venture family be ready to reassume their proper role within the Guild? Will the rock and roll Sousaph...

How 21 got buff and mad. That's the main subject of this non-action episode of the Venture Bros. 21 goes rogue and kidnaps Hank and Dean to interrogate them about the death of his best friend, and this creates all kinds of problems for the Monarch and Dr. Mrs. The Monarch. And he's kind of already dealing with that face thing. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our the...

At a compound, in an around the lake with mountains coming out of the sky, Dean assumes his destiny. At least that's what Rusty hopes will happen. This excellent episode takes the clone storyline to an unexpected place as Dean finally gets a chance to grow up, while an old part of him wants to take his place instead. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art, Gwen May for our theme song, a...

The Monarch's plan to hold the boys hostage for a ransom payment is foiled by Captain Sunshine, his sometimes nemesis. What results is a fraught half hour of television that plays with rumors, jokes, and questions about the nature of the relationship between superheroes and their boy wards. But seriously, the joke is that it isn't what you think. Special thanks to Joshua Jarett for our cover art,...