The 42cast

The first season of What If…? was a surprise hit. Showcasing different paths that the MCU could have taken allowed the storytellers to reveal new aspects of familiar characters. In this episode we talk about the second season of the series. We discuss the various plot lines and what we think about them. We also compare it to the first season and what we think of the overall course of the season. W...

Resident Alien is a clever series that combines hilarious, off-beat comedy with an interesting science-fiction narrative. In this episode we delve into the series. We talk about the amazing cast that they’ve built up, and what we think about the characters and their situations. We discuss the plot lines and what we feel has worked and what hasn’t. We also get into the tone and why this series feel...

In this episode we talk about the most popular actor to play the Doctor with Tom Baker. We discuss his legacy and why he does rank so high in people’s estimation. We examine the controversies of his era such as whether there was too much violence and how he treated his costars. We also take a firm focus at the three different producers that he worked under and what effect they and their affiliated...

After a long hiatus due to the writer’s strike, the MCU returned last February with Captain America: Brave New World. While many fans of Falcon and the Winter Soldier had high hopes for this movie, there were concerns about the use of characters from 2008’s Incredible Hulk, the minimal involvement of Bucky Barnes, and the reshoots that resulted in inserting a completely new main character in the f...

The My Little Pony franchise has been around for a long time and has spawned many animated series. In this episode we discuss the Friendship is Magic installment, which lasted from 2010 to 2019. As arguably the most successful incarnation of My Little Pony we examine why that might be. We discuss the characters and why they create interesting hooks for the audience. We talk about the mythology of...

The first season of Loki was one of the most popular Marvel series on Disney+. It only made sense for Marvel to do a second season. In this episode we review the Loki series. We discuss the plot and whether all of the elements work. We talk about unusual performances and new characters. We also get into the Jonathan Majors controversy and how this may have effected this series as well as what we t...

In this episode we interview the man, the myth, the legend, the Maestro of the Marquis, the human gorilla, Mr. Mark Finn . Mark has been a regular on The 42cast, but this is our first time discussing his past in depth. Join us as Mark discusses his early forays into the world of comic books, pulp novels, and role playing games. Stick with us as Mark talks about early days in the theater, radio dra...

The 90’s was a time of great innovation in animation. The medium had been dominated by stand-alone episodes and simple storylines for decades. In the 90’s even the traditional networks’ programming pushed the envelope. More series with serialized storytelling were being told. An overall movement advanced to tell stories with more grown-up themes and utilizing plots and humor that would appeal acro...

The War of the Rohirrim was the first attempt by Warner Bros to extend the use of their Middle-Earth license to include stories beyond the written works of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. Set 180 years before the events of The Lord of the Rings, it tells the story of how Helm’s Deep got its name and showcases the daughter of Helm, Hera. Conceived as an anime, the script was written in English an...

Rogue One has gained a cult following within Star Wars fandom and has a wide appreciation from a large swathe of the fandom. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there was a desire within Lucasfilm to capitalize on that by creating a prequel series about one of the main protagonists of the film, Cassian Andor. The titular series follows Andor as he is slowly recruited into the rebellion against the galactic em...

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was the first of the Marvel TV series to tie in with the MCU and it was almost the last to air before the collapse of Marvel’s TV division. In this episode we look back at the final season of the series. Along the way we discuss whether the time-travel McGuffin and callbacks to previous episodes created a satisfying conclusion to the series. We’ll talk about the inc...

In this episode we go to Chicago TARDIS 2024 to present you with an interview discussion with Wendy Padbury, Frazer Hines, and Sophie Aldred who played Zoe, Jamie, and Ace respectively in Doctor Who. The trio discuss convention memories, what was special about their respective eras, writing asperations, Doctor Who characters they wish that they had worked with, and what they want young fans to app...

With the release of the second part of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune there are now three live action adaptations of the story. In this episode we examine the Lynch, Harrison, and Villeneuve adaptations. We discuss what we like about each one and talk about the things that we felt do not work in each. We compare notes on the various portrayals of characters and debate what worked and what didn’t in terms...

85 years ago, L. Frank Baum’s classic tale was adapted into the first film that used technicolor. That movie was The Wizard of Oz. In this episode we discuss that epic film. We talk about the acting, characters, and the sheer spectacle that must have left crowd’s awestruck. We discuss the themes of the source material and how well this film works as an adaptation. We get into the Disney sequel mad...

It was a title so good that we had to use it twice. In this episode we take a deep dive on Invincible. It’s a coming of age story about Mark Grayson, a teenager who has to navigate attaining super powers, his father’s secret, and getting into college. We discuss the phenomenal story and what makes it so unique at a time when we have so much superhero content. We also talk about the phenomenal voic...

Marvel’s Runaways adapted a relatively unknown but also fairly recent comic book concept for the small screen. The story followed the children of super villains who ran away from their parents and become heroes. In this episode we take a look at the final season of the series. We discuss the plotlines and how well this final season wrapped up the plot of the series. We talk about the depiction of...

The 42cast is proud to welcome Captain Power himself, Timothy Dunigan , to the show. In this episode Tim talks with us about his career starting with performing in high school plays to starring in his own TV series and beyond. Along the way he discusses being the original Faceman in The A-Team, guest starring in almost every TV series of the 80’s, working for Disney as Davy Crockett, and being Hol...

This episode is dedicated to the memory of Akira Toriyama, a brilliant creator responsible for the design of games like Sonic the Hedgehog and Dragon Quest (Dragon Warrior in the 80’s/90’s in the US) as well of course as the Dragon Ball manga. Dragon Ball Z is one of the first anime that many people in America ever saw. Popularized by the Toonami block on Cartoon Network, Dragon Ball quickly gaine...

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom was the last title to come out of the DCEU. Featuring Jason Momoa as Aquaman the movie was meant to focus on the sibling relationship between Aquaman and his brother Orm, played by Patrick Wilson. In this episode the cast discusses this film. They examine the plot and characters and discuss what they think worked and didn’t. They talk about the controversies surroundin...

Star Trek: Picard was the second series in the new Star Trek line initially created by CBS: All Access and later continued by Paramount Plus. The series provided a bridge for fans who didn’t connect with Star Trek: Discovery by providing recognizable characters from the height of Trek popularity in the 90’s. While many fans appreciated this effort some did not appreciate the darker tone of that fi...

Legion was one of two TV series that Fox produced while owning the X-Men license. The story followed David Haller, the son of Professor Charles Xavier; his struggles with mental health; and his development as one of the most powerful mutants on the planet. The series was told from the point of view of this unreliable narrator which sometimes lead to strange visuals and editing choices. In this epi...

Willow was released in theaters in 1988. The film was George Lucas’ take on a fantasy epic. Unfortunately, it didn’t perform up to expectations in the box office, so a sequel film was never made. However, it did develop a cult following that spawned The Chronicles of the Shadow War novel series and a television series on Disney+. In this episode the cast discusses the film, the novels, and the Dis...

The Marvels was the last MCU film of 2023. Combining plot threads from Captain Marvel , WandaVision , and Ms. Marvel , it created a crossover storyline to begin preparing the MCU for its next big event. In this episode we look at the movie and discuss whether it worked as a sequel for the various properties that came before. We’ll also talk about how the plot worked for us and what we think of the...

The Obi-Wan Kenobi series started as a plan for a movie following the titular character. Over time that morphed into a plan to do a limited series on Disney+. In this episode the cast discusses the series. They talk about how the series fleshes out not only the character of Obi-Wan Kenobi but also Anakin Skywalker, Leia Organa, and Owen and Beru Lars. They also discuss the timeframe of the series...

Secret Invasion was part of the second wave of Disney+ shows after the popularity of the 2021 output. Announced with Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel, and She Hulk, it was long assumed that this series would come out in 2022, but instead it came out in 2023. In this episode we take a look at Secret Invasion. We talk about the use of elements from the Captain Marvel film. We debate the use of AI generated i...