Newcomers: Sports, with Nicole Byer and Lauren Lapkus

Actor, writer and podcaster Zach Reino ( A.P. Bio, Off Book: The Improvised Musical ) joins Lauren and Nicole to close out the rollercoaster that has been the Hobbit trilogy with a deep dive into The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. With Zach's musical prowess, the three work together to devise the greatest LOTR musical ever, with one idea just being Bilbo asking/singing for his stuff back f...

Moving on to what the trio will summarize as "The Dead Man's Chest of The Hobbit series", Lauren and Nicole are joined by writer and entertainment reporter Karen Han to shake off the liquid gold and hash out what they just experienced in the second installment of The Hobbit series , The Desolation of Smaug . The three note the dramatically different portrayals of violence between the first and sec...

Moving on from the acclaimed The Lord of the Rings trilogy and buckling in for an all new (and again, very long) adventure, Lauren and Nicole are joined by comedian/writer/actor Jon Braylock (Astronomy Club, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) to begin The Hobbit prequel trilogy, starting with An Unexpected Journey . The three ponder how on earth Peter Jackson was able to stretch out a short children's boo...

Having just finished their first watch through of the acclaimed Peter Jackson trilogy, Lauren and Nicole are joined this week by author, speaker and writer, Preeti Chhibber , to spend some time exploring the world of The Lord of the Rings fanfiction. The trio navigate stories of varying excitement and severity, discovering their limits in both directions, from too tame to WAY too much. And, of cou...

Lauren and Nicole are joined by writers and LOTR fanatics Gaby Paiella (GQ) and Callie Beusman (The Cut) to close out the final installment of the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Return of the King . The four of them venture fearlessly into topics of conversation such as who in the Fellowship has Big Dick Energy, why Callie thinks the Director's Cut is the only way to go (it has a lot...

Helping Nicole and Lauren make sense of and, dare we say, enjoy , Peter Jackson's second installment of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Two Towers, is Mary Holland ( Comedy Central's Robbie / Jedi Temple Challenge ). Listen in as they hash out points of varying importance such as how flawless Gandalf the White's new hair is, the finer details of Elven love and aging, the baffling games the film...

Nicole and Lauren embark on their epic journey across Middle-earth, discussing the first installment of Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Fellowship of the Ring. Your hosts can't do it alone, though. Jon Gabrus ( The High & Mighty , The Action Boyz ) returns to the pod to guide his friends through the first steps of their quest. And if you thought the #1 fuccboi nerded-out har...

Nicole and Lauren are back at it again with experiencing more critical pop culture for the first time. In season 2 of Newcomers, they'll be taking on The Lord of the Rings, starting with the Peter Jackson trilogy! Joined by their own fellowship of LOTR fans, ranging from fellow comedians to creators involved in the franchise, Nicole and Lauren will be in good company, being guided both safely and...

To celebrate our Star Wars finale, we're joined by Ahmed Best (voice of Jar Jar Binks) and Mary Holland (voice of AD-3 droid) to talk about your top movie suggestion - the 1987 Mel Brooks satire film Spaceballs . Mary and Ahmed also discuss what it's like hosting the new children's Star Wars game show series, Jedi Temple Challenge. Plus, Ahmed shares the incredible audition process behind Jar Jar,...

Star Wars author Preeti Chhibber ( The Clone Wars Anthology , A Jedi You Will Be ) joins Nicole and Lauren to break down the critically acclaimed series finale to Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Have Nicole and Lauren been gaslit into liking Star Wars? Is baby Yoda not who we thought he was? Plus more Hoth Goss about 90 Day Fiancé, Disneyland reopening, and how to become a writer for Disney. Looking to...

Have Lauren and Nicole changed their tune on Ewoks? Comedian and Star Wars superfan Joel Kim Booster ( Sunnyside, Singled Out ) joins us to break down the 2 Ewok movies from the 80's: 'Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure' and 'Ewoks: The Battle for Endor'. Next episode, we watch the series premiere and 4-part finale of The Clone Wars . Please donate to organizations fighting against racism and p...

We stand together with the Black community and against racism, bigotry, and violence. Today, Headgum is taking part in “Black Out Tuesday”, to show solidarity and use our platform to fight against racial inequality. What can you do on Tuesday, June 2, 2020? Be an ally and engage in anti-racism. Here are some resources . Help the family of George Floyd HERE . Fight for Breonna Taylor HERE . Help th...

It's Baby Yoda time! Co-hosts of Blank Check , Griffin Newman ( actor/comedian, The Tick ) and David Sims ( Film critic, writer for The Atlantic ) join us to tackle episodes 1-3 of The Mandalorian series on Disney+. They break down how Disney avoided Baby Yoda spoilers, explain the 2-person puppetry behind it, and share their overall LOVE for The Child. They maybe even convinced Nicole and Lauren...

May the 4th be with you! Okay, we're a day late but we still want to celebrate. To retrospect the Skywalker Saga and break down the significance of Star Wars Day, George Lucas impersonator Connor Ratliff (from The George Lucas Talk Show, & the Dead Eyes podcast) joins us! Connor explains why the movies are great but don't make sense, gives insightful advice how everyone can enjoy the series, a...

It's the final film of the Star Wars saga! Matt Gourley ( Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend , Superego ) joins us to answer our questions about the highly divisive Rise of Skywalker film. Who did Palpatine sleep with? Why is it dangerous for a droid to speak Sith? Will this really be the last film? Plus, Matt also explains all the cool puppeteering used in the film, the hot multiple romances going on,...

After popular demand, we're back reading all new Star Wars fanfiction! Comedian & writer Betsy Sodaro (host of A Funny Feeling , voice on Duncanville ) joins us to read our new original stories, and a few fanfic from the web. Warning, this episode is very, very NSFW. Listen to our first fanfiction episode here. Fan Fictions If It Weren’t for the Falcon by reylolove44 Star Wars: The Deceived by...

Who's cashing the check for these CGI'd actors? Can they just screenshot a hologram? Why is the Star Wars timeline so convoluted?? We've got questions after watching Rogue One , the first Star Wars spin-off film. Nicole's podcasting co-host Mano Agapion (host of Drag Her , We Love Trash ) joins us to answer all of our burning questions! Plus, Lauren finds a meditative use in the Force, and Nicole'...

Is this the Star Wars love story we've been waiting for? Did Lando fuck his droid? What the heck is a parsec? Today, self-proclaimed "Human version of Jar Jar Binks" Shaun Diston ( Wrecked, George Lucas Talk Show ) joins us to break down the 2018 Han Solo spin-off film, Solo: A Star Wars Story . He explains what lead Disney to fire the 2 original directors months into filming, all the sneaky littl...

Comedian & Star Wars dork Demi Adejuyigbe ( The Late Late Show with James Corden , Punch Up The Jam ) joins us for the highly anticipated Star Wars episode, The Last Jedi . We talk about all the new cute alien species, secret guest stars, and overall wild horniness of the film. Plus, Demi pitches his BB-8 spinoff movie idea, and dispenses us with so much Star Wars trivia! Stay safe, and stay a...

We are in quarantine, but that won't stop us from podcasting! Paul F. Tompkins ( Threedom , The Neighborhood Listen ) joins us remotely to break down the first installment in the  Star Wars  sequel trilogy. We discuss the Kylo Ren backstory we wanted to see, all of the hot Star Wars daddies, and play Fuck, Marry, Kill with the Chewbacca family. Plus, Paul shares his experience meeting Ha...

Comedian and Star Wars fan Andy Daly ( Veep, Big Mouth, Review ) joins us to break down the final film of the prequel series: Revenge of the Sith . Andy shares his experience growing up as an obsessed fan, how George Lucas would segregate Star Wars superfans, and the logistical problems with the prequel's technology. Plus, Lauren's starting to love the Jedi way, Nicole cracks the Skywalker family...

This holiday special is so terrible that once it aired, George Lucas made sure it could never broadcast again. On this episode of Newcomers, we take a quick break from finishing the prequel series to review the absolute fever dream that is the Star Wars Holiday Special from 1978. This film has it all- a sci-fi drag queen, hypnotic Wookiee porn, fascist themes, and queer canon?! Oscar Montoya (host...

Oh boy, this film was so bad that Nicole and Lauren are regretting doing this podcast. Mike Mitchell ( Love , Doughboys podcast) joins us in an attempt to defend what is universally considered the worst prequel in Star Wars. They discuss the odd dialogue, lack of Jar Jar Binks, and questionable romance subplot. Plus, the girls fantasize about 69-ing the sexy Kaminoan alien race, Mike shares some p...

In a shocking turn of events, Nicole and Lauren are now Star Wars heads? Phantom Menace stan Nick Wiger ( Doughboys , How Did This Get Played ) joins them to recounts the historical hype for Ep. I, Liam Neeson's rumored huge dick, lightsaber continuity between trilogies, and their love/hate for the new CG look of the series. Plus, the girls rank the all Star Wars films they've seen so far. Be sure...

Warning: this episode is very, very NSFW. Nicole and Lauren are joined by writer/improviser Madeline Walter ( UCB, Brooklyn Nine-Nine ) to discuss fanfiction, read some hot Star Wars stories, and share their own original fanfic writings. They also discuss Freddie Prinze Jr's recent public Star Wars rant, the popularity of sneaking sexuality in kids media, and the burning question - Can you use the...