A Very Special Episode

This week, David, Carolyn & Austin are joined by David's girlfriend, Lauren Paulson, as they tackle one of the greatest sitcoms of the nineties (and all time), Roseanne , by discussing the two-part "Crime and Punishment" & "War and Peace", aka the ones where Fisher beats up Jackie. Join us as we talk about how great Laurie Metcalf is, how sexy John Goodman is, and how very funny these epis...

Don't be a-scared by the lack of color, we've just gone back to an allegedly-simpler time to discuss Leave it to Beaver 's "Beaver and Andy"! Join Ryan, Carolyn & Austin as they discuss an episode NOT about child molestation, but instead, one about the surprisingly-sophisticated question of how much information is too much information to share with kids. We also offer up our own theory as to t...

It's another very special episode of "A Very Special Episode", as Carolyn first leads the Midwest boys in a discussion of "Booby Traps", one of the infotainment cartoons starring Private Snafu ordered by the US Army in World War II and created by some of the finest minds working in Warner Bros. animation, including Mel Blanc and Dr. freaking Seuss. Then, she and Ryan are joined by special guest (a...

It's time for another very special episode of A Very Special Episode, as Ryan leads Austin and special guest Alex Falcone in a discussion of Mary Kay Letourneau, the infamous teacher who had sex with her sixth grade pupil, got pregnant by him, went to jail, had sex with him again , got pregnant again , went back to jail, then eventually married him. We discuss All-American Girl , the made-for-TV m...

Join the Aluminum Four as they travel back in time 65 million years/the early 90s, to a time when dinosaurs ruled the Earth/airwaves, via Dinosaurs , ABC's Jim Henson-produced sitcom featuring pantsless dinosaur puppets tackling the issues of the day via prehistoric-themed puns. Steroids are on the menu in the season three episode "Steroids to Heaven", in which teenage Robbie pops some "thornoids"...

Who is ready for a pizza party? In this week's episode, Carolyn & David are joined by special friends Mel Heywood & Mendi Menefee to discuss the episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show in which Oprah interviews the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (no, really) and "April O'Neil" (no, really) in a shameless hour-long promotion of their concert tour (no, really). So tune up your key-tar and sharpen yo...

Bah Weep Granah Weep Nini Bong! This week, the Aluminum Four tackle an episode from the fourth season of that 90s TGIF staple, Boy Meets World , "Cult Fiction", in which Sean (Rider Strong) gets seduced into joining a surprisingly-robust cult ridiculously fast, much to the dismay of Corey (Ben Savage) and his ready-to-kill dad. Along the way, we learn the most important lesson of all: that ho...

In honor of the recent passing of Mary Tyler Moore, the Aluminum Four reunite for this week's episode to discuss the third season premiere of her eponymous sitcom, "The Good-Time News", in which Mary learns she makes less money than the man who did her job before her, just because she's a woman, then fights with her boss over whether the news should be more informative, or more entertaining. So ne...

In this special "All Minnesota" episode, Austin & David are joined by a very special guest, Austin's wife, Kristi, to discuss the fourth season episode of 24 , "7:00 PM - 8:00 PM" aka " 24 tries to shoehorn a message into a random episode that not all Arab-Americans are terrorists". And because this is 24 , we end up talking torture, EMPs, and looting, all the while doing our best to keep Davi...

It's back to the 80s, as we discuss an episode of Growing Pains in honor of the recently-departed Alan Thicke. And though the lesson of this episode is ostensibly about the dangers of drunk/buzzed driving (featuring a young Matthew "Could I be any more of a guest star?!?" Perry), in true AVSE fashion, we spend just as much time talking instead about how everyone really needs to just stop constantl...

AVSE goes post-modern this week as we discuss Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 1, episode 7, "Charlie Gets Molested", a very special episode whose creators were well aware of the tradition as they tackled the titular event (which may or may not have happened). Carol, Austin and Dr. Bitz are joined by very special guest Aaron Walker, aka Carol's hetereosxual lifemate, and because this is a Carol...

Merry Christmas Happy Life Day everyone! With the holidays in full swing and a new classic era Star Wars movie in theaters, what better time to take a look at the most infamous bit of Star Wars storytelling, the Holiday Special, in which Chewbacca's family awaits his arrival home on a vaguely-defined Wookiee holiday while under Imperial occupation. In between appearances from an embarrassed Harris...

We continue to shake things up, format-wise, in this week's episode featuring Carol, Ryan and a very special guest, comedian Amy Miller . Rather than discussing a specific episode of a show, it's the podcast episode itself that's very special this week as the three hosts take part in a retrospective looking at 80s pop culture icon(?) Corey Feldman!  In light of his recent appearances on the T...

In this week's episode, the Aluminum Four stretch our mandate a little, as we discuss not a "very special" episode of an ongoing TV series, but rather a one-shot show specifically designed to be "special". So travel back with us to those halcyon days of the War on Drugs, when President Bush the Elder told children to read his lips and watch this animated special, in which the brightest cartoon sta...

Gobble gobble, everyone! We are back with a brand new Thanksgiving-themed Very Special episode, just in time for the holiday! This week, we review The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air 's two-part "There's the Rub", in which Will (Will Smith) and Uncle Phil get locked up for visiting an illicit massage parlor (no, seriously), Carlton & Hilary learn the true meaning of Thanksgiving (ie it's a lot easier...

This was supposed to be an episode about the dangers of refrigerators (or the importance of learning CPR, whatever), but instead, we pretty much just rag on Ryan for pulling an Alan and dicking around on his phone during a CPR class. But we also discuss Carol's unique pronunciation of "George Gaynes", what kids' faces David finds punchable, and Austin's enduring fear of fridges.   So look, li...

First there was  Saved by the Bell , including Miss Bliss/And then a creepy pervo on  Diff'rent Strokes /And then there's  Maude /And then there's  Maude /And then there's  Maude ! It's dead rabbits for some, and vasectomies for others, as Maude (the always-awesome Bea Arthur) is faced with a difficult decision in the seminal "Maude's Dilemma", with the series (and the Alu...

Welcome to the very first episode of "A Very Special Episode", the podcast which reviews "very special" episodes of pop culture!  For our first episode, regular hosts Ryan, Carol, Austin & David (aka the Aluminum Four) tackle the always-hilarious subjects of child molestation and growth-stunting kidney disease via the two part Diff'rent Strokes episode "The Bicycle Man", in which Arnold (...