Alienating the Audience

In "The Truman Show," Jim Carey's character is the unwitting star of a global reality television show–until he decides to escape. Director Henrique Cuoto joins to talk about the iconic film, and the evils of false reality. Henrique's dog: www.helpchicano.com Support the show! Mightyheaton.com/alienating Interstellar Vagabonding Clips, with Nick Sperdute:   www.mightyheaton.com/vagabonding

Neil Stephenson's "Snowcrash" looked at the embryonic Internet and projected a future of VR and avatar onto it. And a world in which nation states had been eclipsed by successor states of corporate "franchulates."  Is "Snowcrash" a corporate dystopia, a libertarian utopia, or merely prophetic? Brian Brushwood joins to discuss.

In this episode we talk about all the times people get tiny in science fiction, from "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" to "The Fantastic Voyage" to Jonathan Swift.

Comedian John Robertson is a regular performer, panelist, and celebrity at science fiction conventions. He joins to discuss the community element of conventions, how celebrities should comport themselves, and how fans can best interact with them.

Charlton Heston stars in "Soylent Green," a film about the terror of overpopulation, urban ennui, and ultimately cannibalism. Based on the novel "Make Room! Make Room!" by Harry Harrison.   Scottish scifi twins Stone and Dickie Lynch join to discuss.   SUPPORT THE SHOW! www.patreon.com/alienating

At its height, Terry Pratchett's Discworld series accounted for fully 2% of all book sales in the United Kingdom. Over the course of his life he wrote 59 books, achieved knighthood, and created a beloved and hilarious franchise.   What was Pratchett's worldview, and what motivated him to crack jokes about Death and wizards?   Guest Marc Burrows wrote the first authorized biography of Pratchett, an...

Captain Pike commanded the USS Enterprise prior to Kirk, and the prequel series featuring him, Mr. Spock, Nurse Chapel, and their contemporaries goes back to the roots of Star Trek: exploring weird planets with weird things... but with just the right amount of fun.   Scottish sci-fi twins Dickie and Stone Lynch return to discuss.

In Charlie Kaufman's weirdest film (and that's saying something) John Cusack discovers a portal that delivers you into John Malkovich's head for a few minutes... so he charges admission.   Henrique Couto and Matt Sienkiewicz join to discuss

Vulcans, humans, Klingons, Romulans--everybody in the Star Trek universe can easily interbreed! Stone and Dickie Lynch rejoin the show to discuss reproduction in the final frontier 

The Expanse explores the political and military tension between decadent Earth, militant Mars, and the Belters stuck in between.   War correspondent Kristaps Andrejsons joins to discuss

What if JFK survived the assassination attempt, and instead of Vietnam, America invested in a moon base? Bill Oakley is a former writer and showrunner on The Simpsons, and award-winning comedy writer, and the author of "Space: 1969" an Audible Original.   He joins, along with Brian Brushwood, to discuss his retro-scifi comedy, and the nature of humor writing.   BOOK AT: www.mightyheaton.com/goodsc...

Characters can selectively wipe memories in Charlie Kaufman's "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," but in doing so they lose part of themselves.   Chloe Effron and Nick Sperdute join to discuss this trippy... romcom?   SUPPORT THE SHOW! www.patreon.com/alienating

Are holograms on Star Trek NPC's, sentient, or in some hellish state of limerence in between? Star Trek aficionados Dickie and Stone Lynch return to discuss

James Gunn's "Peacemaker" chronicles a toxic meathead character as he comes to terms with his past, his racist father, and an alien takeover of the planet. He is neither a hero nor antihero.   He's something new, and hilarious: a "loserhero"   Nick Sperdute and Justin Robert Young join to discuss.  

How do clones manifest in science fiction? When are they evil, good, or a portent of science gone too far?   Scottish scifi twins Dickie and Stone rejoin to discuss.   SUPPORT THE SHOW! www.patreon.com/alienating

"Solaris" by Stanislaw Lem follows a crew of scientists trying to understand an utterly alien intelligence--a planet covered by an ocean of (apparently?) conscious goop. How can we communicate with something truly, truly foreign to our evolution and understanding? How can we even confirm it's "intelligent"?   John Krikorian returns to discuss.

"Rick and Morty" is the funniest science fiction to grace the world sense "Futurama"--if not the best comedy in general. What is it about, and what distinguishes it from other, lesser comedies? Jeff Maurer joins to discuss.  (Note: this episode was recorded before the fall of Justin Roiland)

"The Fifth Element" starring Bruce Willis and Mila Jovovich is a cult classic. But... does it hold up? Did it ever?   To answer that question, we turn to Scottish scifi twins Dickie and Stone Lynch.

"Enterprise" is the prequel of Star Trek, exploring the foundation of the Federation of Planets, and the bump, suspicious period when Vulcans and humans get to know one another. Scottish science fiction twins Dickie & Stone Lynch return to discuss.

There's a subgenre of science fiction we might call "femme fear," exemplified by writers like Margaret Atwood.  Olivia Wilde's "Don't Worry Darling" is the latest example. And while it was mostly panned by critics, Heaton enjoyed it.  Ashland Viscosi joins to discuss. SUPPORT THE SHOW! www.patreon.com/alienating

In "The Sparrow" by Mary Doria Russell , life is discovered on an alien planet, and the first humans to arrive are... Jesuits. The book explores the terrifying consequences of missionaries on a new world, who are there for good reasons--with good intentions--but don't know what they've got themselves into.  Richard Amiro joins to discuss.   SUPPORT THE SHOW! www.patreon.com/alienating   BOOK RECOM...

The Sith are the dark lords of Star Wars. But what do they want? Are they logically consistent antagonists, with clear rationales for their goals and methods, or just mustache-twirling villains with no depth?   Stephen Kent and Mike TV join to discuss

John Carpenter's "They Live" is a cult classic about seeing through societal mirage to glimpse the strings of the puppet masters. It's also a specific and intentional "primal scream" against Reagonomics. Ron Hayden joins to discuss.

In "The Boys" super heroes superficially fight crime, but are really corporate pawns and predators, ranging from ladder-climbing reality show scumbags to full-blown Nietzschean demigods. What happens when super powers are not always entrusted in the super moral? Andrew Young joins to discuss.

Brain swaps are a beloved sci-fi trope, but how feasible are they? Dr. John-Paul Kolsun is a brain doctor, and host of "The Neurosurgery Podcast"  He joins to discuss the feasibility of brain transplants.