Giving Disclaimer* A Close Read

Clip: [0:00] More than anything else, I was tired of enduring devious behavior from spoiled, entitled brats. Dave: [0:12] This is the Extra Hot Great Podcast, episode 532 for the week of October 14th, 2024. I am hilarious, leaning tower of Pisa photo op, David T. Cole, and I'm here with Nickers of Farewell, Sarah D. Bunting. Sarah: [0:32] Wanker. Dave: [0:33] Cat that has the fucking run of the place, apparently, Tara Ariano. Tara: [0:36] Yeah. Dave: [0:37] And ratty pink cardigan, Alan Sepinwall. Alan: [0:40] I think it looks good on me. Tara: [0:47] Welcome to extra hot great for another week joining us he is the chief tv critic at rolling stone and most recently the author of welcome to the oc it's alan seven one welcome back, i'm. Alan: [1:01] So glad to be back. Tara: [1:02] We're thrilled to have you to talk about disclaimer in which Catherine Ravenscroft, it's a book-ass name, Cate Blanchett, is a documentarian successful enough to be fated at an award banquet with an introduction by Christiane Amanpour. Stephen Brickstock, Kevin Kline, is a dissatisfied teacher and widower. Jonathan, Louis Partridge, is Stephen's son, or rather he was because he's dead now, as is Stephen's wife, Nancy, Leslie Manville. But as Stephen discovers when he finally clears out Nancy's things, there is a way in which both she and Jonathan live on. How do all these lies intersect? And what does a self-published novel called The Perfect Stranger have to do with them? Hmm. Alfonso Cuaron adapted Renee Knight's novel of the same name, writing all the scripts and directing all seven episodes. Only two have dropped so far on Apple TV+. We did get access to the whole season. We will be careful not to reveal spoilers, although I think Alan is the only one who watched ahead, because he reviewed it, and we'll link that in the show notes. Let's do the Chen check-in. Alan, should our listeners watch Disclaimer? Alan: [2:06] Yes. Tara: [2:07] Sarah. Sarah: [2:08] Nah. Tara: [2:09] Dave. Dave: [2:10] So far, yes. Tara: [2:12] Yeah, I feel like I know how it's going to end, and I don't know if I care enough to stay and find out if I'm right. So let's get into it. I'll just say, though, as a member of the self-published author community, I would like everyone to know, we don't all have nefarious intents. Some of us just want to share the novel that we wrote when we were 14, and then I will link it in the show notes. Dave: [2:34] What was her name again in the show? Tara: [2:36] Catherine Ravenscroft. Dave: [2:38] Regular human booksmith. Tara: [2:42] Okay, let's get into the show. Alan, I have not, as I indicated, watched as much of this as you have, but this is showing all the signs of a movie-sized idea stretched to series length. Please tell me if that is correct or not, in your opinion. Alan: [2:55] I mean, there's parts of it where that's absolutely true, and some of the pacing, especially in the middle of slack. Overall, I definitely enjoyed it. I think just because Cuaron is such a good shooter, it looks really cool, even the parts that are sort of very deliberately kind of fakie looking with the sky and the lighting. And he's got like Kevin Kline eating a giant mountain of scenery as Steven Brickstock. And Blanchett, what you guys have seen is not really like giving you full Blanchett. You're going to get that more towards the last few episodes of the season. I felt very engaged wide. Yes, I suspect I know what you're thinking, Tara, and I will confirm it for you offline, We can chat about that afterwards. I was not necessarily shocked by where the story wound up going, but I thought the developments of it were very effective. And there's some nice twists and turns in there in terms of what Kevin Kline's nefarious plot is. And as also as a former self-published author with some help from Sarah D. Bunting, I can also confirm I did not do that with nefarious intent. Sarah: [3:55] Can confirm. Tara: [3:56] On the Kevin Kline tip, I have to say for any Bob's Burgers watchers, the scheme that he comes up with is extremely Mr. Fish odor. Like, that's the kind of thing that he would do except. Dave: [4:07] See, I was thinking that there is a universe in which his character from Fish Called Wanda somehow got out of the muck after being steamrolled. Tara: [4:16] Yes. Dave: [4:16] And then sort of had an epiphany come to Jesus moment where he tried to reform himself. But this is the start of his complete regression back to the asshole character those moments in the early episodes where he's miming throwing the grenade of chaos behind him when he's doing his little machinations was very that character to me so there is a universe in which i think that is actually the case yeah. Tara: [4:43] He was my favorite thing about the episodes we watched i do miss him acting on screen like i feel like i haven't seen him in a million years so it was fun to see him like enjoying himself. Sarah, we already touched on this amongst ourselves and in my intro. The Ravenscroft cats. Is it not immediately obvious Catherine's a bad person from the way her cats are walking around on food prep surfaces? Dave: [5:06] Sarah's like, that's normal. Tara: [5:07] Oh no! Sarah: [5:10] I don't know. That just suggested to me that that was like an actual cat and not like a stunt cat or a cat actor because cats just suck that way. I mean, I love cats, but you know, they're at eye level. That's where they like it. Dave: [5:24] You can't get an honest answer out of Sarah for that one. She's got that toxoplasmus, whatever disease. Sarah: [5:30] Absolutely correct. Dave: [5:31] She is a thrall of all cats. Sarah: [5:34] That's true. Tara: [5:35] I mean, it was stressing me out that they haven't even moved in. And now like all of the dishes they haven't even put away yet that are still sitting out are completely covered in cat hair. Dave: [5:43] And there's a, well, we're skipping all over the place, of course, but who cares? But there is a little storyline beat that this is the small, tiny apartment they had to move into. Their kitchen is the size of our house. And it's in London. Yeah. Sarah: [5:57] I mean, what? And also, for the record, like you clean the surfaces that the cat has crossed. One time I found a paw print on the side of a microwave. I was like, OK, I guess we have to just hose everything down every day. So that's what we do. but it was stressing me out that there's all these glass bowls on every inch of the counters and the cat is like not being all that cat-like about walking around stuff anyway how much of this was in your review alan. Alan: [6:25] Uh there's not a lot of cat content i was more talking about like that that there's definitely kind of a hat on a hat uh sense to this because you've got kevin klein doing his narration you have indira varma doing second person narration where she's mostly like scolding Cate Blanchett. And it took me until like the second or third episode to realize that wasn't just Cate Blanchett, like inner monologue talking to herself. And there's the flashbacks as told, you know, by the book that Leslie Manville writes, it's just sort of a whole lot of different structural devices competing for each other. And it kind of makes thematic sense, but it's also a very, very busy show. Tara: [6:59] Yeah. Dave: [6:59] A lot of buttresses. Architecturally speaking. Alan: [7:04] It's a good word. Buttresses. Yes. Tara: [7:07] Alan, you brought up the emotional support cardigan. I did enjoy the detail of just hanging the glasses in a moth hole when he's not using them. Alan: [7:18] It's just, what's weird is like, for a minute I thought, okay, oh, they've aged up Kevin Klein, and when you see him in Flashback, that's where Kevin Klein. No, Kevin Klein's just an old man now. He's in his 70s. Tara: [7:29] Yeah. Alan: [7:29] He's playing more or less his actual age. I'm sure if you ran into him in Brooklyn, he would not look that decrepit. But, you know, because we haven't seen him on screen, like I said, Tara, in a long time, it's a little bit shocking. But he's just, he's having an enormous amount of fun, and more than anything else, that That is what carried me through these episodes until we got towards the very end of it. Tara: [7:49] Yeah. Dave: [7:49] I did like the costuming note they had with the ratty pink cardigan, which is the first time he wears it, the button barely closes it. And then when he meets his self-publishing helper guy, it is kind of closing. It's still really tight, but he's obviously been cardigating for the past couple. Sarah: [8:05] Broken it in. Tara: [8:06] He's wearing it in every scene. Like when he goes to the store to meet the sun, he has it under his vest. Dave: [8:11] But there was, you know, wool continuity is what I'm saying as far as the stretchiness of it. Tara: [8:17] Yeah, Sarah, this came up when we were talking about Dawson's Creek recently. Is this a pattern you were trying to source, this cardigan? Sarah: [8:23] No, because it looked a little cable-y. It looked a little double-pointed needle forward, which is not a thing I care to do. I just like a straight rectangle where I don't have to pay attention to it. But it did look extremely cozy. I get it. Tara: [8:40] Yeah. Sarah: [8:40] I felt seen, at least in the wearing part. Tara: [8:44] I thought the most perfect detail of the production is that the Ravenscroft's maladapted loser son, Nicholas, is played by Cody Smith-McPhee, who I'm sure is perfectly functional in real life, but he looks like Scrat from the Ice Age movies. Alan: [9:00] Things get worse for him before they get better. Tara: [9:03] No kidding. I probably could have guessed that. Yeah, I don't know how they made it. Like his department store uniform made him look skinnier. Like I don't understand on a physics level how that was possible. Dave: [9:17] Do we know the year this is supposed to take place? Tara: [9:19] Well, the flashbacks are definitely the 90s because they don't have like smartphones and stuff. I assume this was present day. Dave: [9:25] That scene where they're in the vacuum store or whatever that was. The boots or something like that. We don't know exactly. Tara: [9:33] No, I assumed it was now-ish. I mean, it's years after 2011 because that's what it says on the manuscript. Dave: [9:38] Yeah, no, they did a good job setting that store back in time design-wise. Like, this is a store that never just, like, the corporation kind of ran out of money two decades ago. And this is the store you have today kind of deal. Because it was really depressing in a particular British way that I can't quite put my finger on. Alan: [9:54] Look, just be glad people are going into a brick-and-mortar store to the electric department for their vacuums. Dave: [10:00] Kmart was still around here. It would sort of be that. But it's still, there's something British about it that is uniquely depressing. Tara: [10:07] Yeah. I mean, unfortunately, he is right. Dyson's are a superior vacuum cleaner. And now I know that and I can't go back. Sarah: [10:13] Yeah, it's true. Alan: [10:15] What did you guys think of Layla George as like young Catherine Ravenscroft? Sarah: [10:20] This is one of the reasons why I was like, you know what? Tara: [10:24] Go off. Sarah: [10:24] Kind of on the fence about keeping going. But she, I mean, her full name is Layla George D'Onofrio. Yes, that one. So she should be better at this. She's not. I tried, like she, she is often cast really well in terms of the look and she has a certain vibe, but then her acting takes place in this very narrow band that, and I just like, she just is off putting to me and not terribly good. Like she's not awful, but she's not great. She's not good enough. And this was a, this was like, if I was kind of on the fence about keeping going, which Once I spoiled myself, I really wasn't. It was like her. I mean, I watched all of Animal Kingdom and it was in spite of her, not because. So was not a fan. What did what did you guys think? Tara: [11:19] Yeah, Alan, what did you think? Sarah: [11:19] I have issues with her. Alan: [11:21] I thought she was OK. I mean, it's sort of it's tough for any because Cate Blanchett is kind of a one of one. And so asking almost anybody to try to play the young her is tough. I think she does some good stuff in the later episodes. but definitely i'm much happier when the show is in the present day and it's dealing with kevin klein and blanchett and to a lesser extent sasha baron cohen who i thought was fine yeah. Tara: [11:44] He's having a lot of problems with my. Dave: [11:46] Wife wait can we talk about the one thing that upset me about that and i have to call in an old friend for for this one, tara ariana wig cop yeah how bad was that wig on it was real bad it made me mad maybe hate the character like he's not a likable dude but that. Sarah: [12:12] Was some dog boy shit yeah. Dave: [12:14] Holy cow it's so unnecessary. Tara: [12:16] Too like whatever his actual hair looks like it's been a while since i've seen him in real life. Dave: [12:21] Either he's not playing a 30 year old just to give him his fucking hair who cares yes. Alan: [12:26] No it's far from the worst wig-based crime that an apple show will be doing in the month of october and i i meant tara already knows what i'm talking about go ahead go off, billy crystal in before which i think i'm embargoed from saying anything else on but he is wearing just the most bizarre hairpiece i've seen in many like since it's chattonnierian practically alan. Dave: [12:48] Would you say he looks marvelous or not. Alan: [12:50] He does not look marvelous no. Tara: [12:53] I'm looking it up so I can put it in the chat. Dave: [12:56] Back to disclaimer. Tara: [12:57] Back to disclaimer. Alan: [12:59] I'm sorry. Tara: [13:00] This is all my fault. No, this is the show. Like, there's, you know, I had a really hard time, like, getting a grip on this show. I was, I'm still amused by the whole, like, the online claim. And I don't think it's ever been substantiated that, like, Apple does not let any characters, fictional characters use their products if they're, like, villains. so that when you're you know are we supposed to take that it's a a hint of like who's a good person in this that cate blanchett is using an an imac and an apple phone like who knows i don't know like i just all of this felt like it was old-fashioned and like apple-y in the worst way where it just seems like a lot of money was thrown at something that was maybe not worth everybody's effort i don't know that was me. Dave: [13:46] The only show that really takes this time where i thought well this you know speaking to our evergreen grudge against tv shows of this ilk where it's like well this could have been a movie right it's like stretched out too much is the only one that recently that was like it overcame it with everything else it did for me personally was ripley where it was just beautiful to look at and i really enjoyed sort of the rhythm of it like yeah It was also flabby as far as like the storyline goes and what they were doing. But I was there for the ride. This one, I suspect, will not rise to that level for me. But I'm still kind of intrigued about what they're doing and where they're going. And there's a lot of great performances here. And there's a lot of terrible wigs. So it all balances out. Alan: [14:30] This is not Ripley level, certainly. But I enjoyed it. And I think, like, again, having Cuaron and having some of those actors in and of itself kept me going, kept me entertained, even though it was flabby and I knew more or less what was going to happen. Dave: [14:49] All right, it's time to go around the dial. Our first stop is with Tara. Tara, what have you been watching on TV recently? Tara: [14:55] Well, two new multicam network sitcoms are premiering this week. I watched two episodes of each of them. And here's my thoughts. Georgie and Mandy's first marriage is coming to CBS on Thursday. This is the spinoff of Young Sheldon, the prequel to The Big Bang Theory from Living in Culture. Sarah: [15:12] We're through the looking glass here. Dave: [15:14] People. Tara: [15:14] I know that Georgie, who is played by Montana Jordan, is Sheldon's older brother. He marries Mandy, Emily Osmond, after an unplanned pregnancy. She's 12 years older than he is. And they meet when he's definitely less than 21, because that's the age he claims to be to get her to date him. But the show does not dwell on that, so I won't either, I guess. As the spinoff starts, the couples and their baby are living with Mandy's parents. Georgie's working for Mandy's dad at a tire store or body shop or something with cars. His name is Jim. He's played by Will Sasso. Mandy's mom, Audrey, is a huge bitch who is played by someone. I don't know. This seems like it's supposed to be the family-friendly story of a young couple trying to make it, which is why it is weird that Georgie has a stress-induced panic attack in episode two. Keep it light? What the fuck? Also, earlier this year, I watched three seasons of Louder Milk, which is not a very good show either, But Will Sasso was in that as well, and he was the best thing about it. He's the best thing here, too. We are failing him, just as for Will Sasso. Tara: [16:15] Then I watched the first two episodes of Happy's Place, which premieres on Friday on NBC. This is the new Reba McIntyre sitcom, which reunites her with Melissa Peterman from, what else, Reba? The premise is that Bobby, played by Reba, has just left her father happy, the owner of what they keep calling a tavern. No one ever says bar. I don't know if there's, like, a legal distinction going on here. Like, you know, when they called it the big game in Super Bowl commercials. But anyway, tavern. Bobby's been working there for years. She's ready to take over the place now that Happy's dead. But oh, my God. Happy had a secret child named Isabella. She's played by Melissa Escobedo from The Baker and the Beauty, a show no human being watched except me. And Happy left the bar to both daughters. Tara: [17:00] Isabella's a Gen Z psych major who really wants to try to find a family here. Bobby's not very welcoming until she is. And after this, I assume it will stop being about the conflict between the sisters and be about people working at a bar, which I don't know, could be a pretty solid premise for a sitcom. As well, Reba's real boyfriend, Rex Lynn from Better Call Saul, plays the chef. They are cute together. I probably won't continue watching, but this is definitely the better of the two. So if you're visiting your mom and she wants to watch it, you'll have a perfectly acceptable time with it. Dave: [17:30] It may be the better of the two, but it doesn't have the long term vision that Big Bang Theory universe has, which is obviously each time they go, they're going back like a generation. Right. Tara: [17:39] Right. Dave: [17:40] So they are eventually going to ape the Yellowstone. series where it's going to be like by the time they get back into the 20s you're going to have like some a-list fucking movie star as like sheldon's super great grandfather or whatever and it's going to fucking rock the socks of everybody over 65 what. Tara: [17:59] If i told you there is a big bang theory spinoff in the works at max right now with some of the original cast members coming back. Dave: [18:05] Oh not surprising i mean. Tara: [18:08] The fact that this is this durable of a universe is shocking to me. No pun intended. Dave: [18:13] Do they open up a maker store together or something like that? I don't know. You can make your own robots. Tara: [18:18] I plan to never find out. Dave: [18:20] Okay. Tara: [18:22] For my plug, I watched the movie Saturday Night about the first episode of Saturday Night Live, and I ranked the verisimilitude of everybody who played the Not Ready for Primetime players. And that's a crack, and we'll link it in the show notes. Don't see Saturday Night, it's bad. Dave: [18:40] Alan seppenwald what have you been watching on tv that the people need to know about. Alan: [18:44] Well uh shrinking is back this week apple's just having themselves a big month a bunch of things just ended a bunch of things are starting shrinking is a show i mostly liked a lot in the first season especially once it did that bill lawrence thing of oh we have a terrible premise let's just forget about that and we're just a hangout show now and it's funny people being funny and then in the very last scene of the first season it seemed like they were going back to the dumb premise of Jason Siegel as vigilante shrink because one of his patients, Heidi Gardner, pushes her emotionally abusive husband literally off a cliff. And I watched that and I thought, oh God, now we're going to be stuck in the mire again of all this stuff. And fortunately the show came back. And while they do have to deal with this, the show is still the show. So if you liked it, like I did, you're going to enjoy the new season. If you didn't like shrinking, it's still the same show. So you're not going to like it now, but I really enjoy watching these people bounce off of each other. It's very Cougar Townie. in that way uh and so i'm glad to have it back and i'm glad that they didn't somehow manage to avoid fucking it up right when i thought that they were going to, And for my plug, Tara just mentioned Better Call Saul. I have a new book about Better Call Saul. I have to look up the title because I always get it wrong. It's Saul Goodman v. Jimmy McGill, the complete critical companion to Better Call Saul. It's coming out in February, which will be the 10th anniversary of the show's debut on AMC. Tara: [20:02] Oh my God. Alan: [20:03] Wow. Yeah, we are all so goddamn awesome. Tara: [20:06] Time. Sarah: [20:06] That sucks. Alan: [20:08] Earth keeps going around the sun. I do not like it. Tara: [20:10] How dare it? Alan: [20:11] So it's it's got essays on every episode some of which are more or less read the way they did when i originally covered them online for various outlets some of them are brand new you know i started over from scratch it's got a lot of archival interviews i did a very long new interview with peter gould the co-creator of the show where he went soup to nuts over everything including like i spoke to him the day after they you know got shut out forever at the emmys so we talked about that we talked about bob odenkirk's heart attack and what they were going to do if he did not like recover fully, which thank God he did. So there's a lot of new stuff in there and a lot of old stuff. And it also gave me an excuse to rewatch the show. And, you know, spoiler, Better Call Saul is fucking awesome. So whether you're watching the show for the first time or you're revisiting it for the millionth time, I think it's like a good companion piece to have with it as you're watching. So that's my plug. Tara: [21:01] All right. Dave: [21:01] And pre-order link is in the show notes, folks. Sarah: [21:04] Mm-hmm. Clip: [21:05] Thank you. Dave: [21:07] Sarah D. Bunting, What have you been watching? Sarah: [21:10] Well, I didn't watch all of it, and I'll tell you why. But The Hunt for the Chameleon Killer is a Sundance original. It is about the 1990 murder of Beverly McGowan by, law enforcement suspected, Elaine Parent, who stole McGowan's identity to flee Florida for parts UK and then stole a series of other identities, allegedly, before an America's Most Wanted tip in 2002 led to a climactic blah, blah, blah. fish cakes. That is really about this take on the case and not the case itself. This three-parter is almost unbelievably slow and fillery. If I didn't know better, I would think it was deliberately assembled as an exhibit A for this should have been a feature docuseries. It actually should have been an hour-long episode of another franchise or a half-hour episode. It was already a segment on original Robert Stackisode Unsolved Mysteries back in the early 90s, which is what I'd recommend you watch or read the case file online or read a book by one of the talking head interviewees. It might not technically be faster, but it's certainly going to feel faster. It's this moebius of stalling, basically, because it's the same three or four snapshots of the victim, pointless B-roll of the exterior of her condo. One interviewee in particular also. Sarah: [22:36] He speaks so deliberately. And then Robert Stack himself shows up in his trench coat and contemporary footage, and you get impatient and you look the case up. And once you've done that, you realize why they're probably dragging it out so long. And you have no real reason to keep watching. The case is over. I don't want to get spoilery, but the case is over in a manner of speaking. The titular hunt did go on for a dozen years, though, and that could have actually been interesting and involved identity con tradecraft from the pre-internet era. It's perfectly cromulent as a subject. Even if you know the outcome, there's a way to do this. But then the network insisted on this three-part container way that it absolutely doesn't warrant. It's just not good. It's way too slow. My hunt ended after a single episode, and I do not recommend seeking it out. you are welcome. My full review will be linked in the show notes. That's on bestevidence.fyi. Better news, genre star Aaron Lee Carr, who does not do this Moebius filler stalling shit, has two projects dropping this week. We will be talking about both of them at Best Evidence as well. And once again, that's bestevidence.fyi. Dave: [23:56] Coming up on Extra Extra Hot Great Art Club exclusive episode this Friday. It's, it's Florida, man. That is the title of the show. It's sort of like drunk history, but it's all about people doing dumb shit in Florida. Look forward to that. Lots of other stuff in that episode, including of course, tiny cannons, which have started. So what is it going to be this week? Only one way to find out that's to tune in that is available to club members. Go to extra hot, great.com slash club for more info and to sign up and then come back right here on EHG Prime in a week's time for Hysteria! And we're welcoming back Pamela Ribbon, our Listen to Sassy co-host for that one. Dave: [24:43] It is time for the extra hot great canon presenting this week. It is one Tara Ariano. Tara: [24:49] Hello. Way back in 2019 when the streaming platform DC Universe was still extant. There was one show that had so decisively broken through the superhero glut that even I, famously not someone who vibes with the genre, couldn't help being curious. The animated sitcom Harley Quinn. Don't worry about how I got my hands on episodes. the point is I did and was immediately hooked on the story of how the titular Harley breaks free of her terrible ex-boyfriend Joker and starts making her own way as a Gotham City villainess. For my first canon pitch on the show, I'm going with an episode from a phase when Harley's status in the pantheon of Gotham baddies is firmly established. Season three, episode three, the 83rd annual Villy Awards. And here's why. Number one, it has a surprising amount of insight into adult relationships. Healing from her literally toxic ex-Joker is a multi-phase process for Harley, Kaley Cuoco, eventually culminating at the end of season two with her figuring out that her love for Poison Ivy, Lake Bell, goes beyond friendship. As we join them in this episode, they're moving in together. Conveniently, Catwoman, Sanaa Lathan, has basically taken over a wing of a mansion belonging to the guy she's been seeing, so this saves her finding a house sitter for her million cats. Ivy immediately sets up a lab so she can get back to work on her big project for the season, synthesizing a serum that will blah, blah, not really relevant for this episode. Harley is on her phone when clip one. Clip: [26:15] So next step, I gotta get our hands. What? I can't find the damn unsubscribe button in this email. It just pisses me off. So what we really have to do here. I found the button, thank God. And they sent you the email confirming you unsubscribed. No, no, listen to this. The Academy of Evil Arts and Science, in association with the Gotham Foreign Press, Wes is honored to announce the nomination of Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy for Best Couple at the 83rd Annual Super Villain Awards. Yeah! The Villies? Oh, great. Another gaudy award show for egomaniacs. Why would they think that we want to attend that circle jerk? Because I always win that circle jerk! Well, why keep jerking then? Why do you need more awards? Because all those wins were with Joker. That clown kept every villie for himself. Didn't even let me on stage. I never got to give the big speech, and I live for the big speech. Hell, one time, he didn't even take me! He just took one of his goons! Dean. Oh, it was Dean. Tara: [27:10] That's my favorite line reading of the episode, by the way. Oh, it was Dean. Ivy doesn't care about this superficial villain bullshit, but she does care about Harley, so she agrees to go, regretting it as soon as she sees there's a carpet she'll have to walk, a reporter is going to ask about her anxiously bitten nails, and strangers inside who are going to ask about her dress. So she's already having a bad time before she sees her ex, Kite Man, Matt Oberg, is not only in attendance, but seated at their table, clip two. Clip: [27:39] This is awkward, Turtle. No. Why? Why would that be? Because we had an affair while you were dating, then you left him at the altar for me, and now we're all seated at an award show where you and I are up for best couple. Bingo, bango. Sad moon. Like Joker, dude. We've got an incredible show for you folks. Some great guests. Sinestro, Solomon Grundy, Kevin Spacey. Stay tuned. Maybe we should go. Should we go? No, no, no. It's fine. All in the past. Actually, I have completely, totally moved on. Even brought my new boo. You're dating Bane? What? I got a pretty good gig as a seat filler. My girlfriend's not here yet. She's running late, but she's definitely real. I have a girlfriend who is real. Real hot. Muy caliente. But no, it's not just about her looks. That would be shallow. I mean, you girls would really get along. Yeah. Tara: [28:36] As Harley goes on a side mission we will get to momentarily, Ivy flees outside where she runs into a friendly stranger who turns out to be Golden Glider, Kathy Ang, Kite Man's new girlfriend. Ivy is surprised that Kite Man and Golden Glider are already on such intimate terms that they know each other's secret identities, something that took months when Ivy was with him and they go on comparing notes in clip three. Clip: [28:59] Has he made you the chili yet? I love the chili. It's incredible. Right? He gets so obsessive about picking each veggie. It's almost like no onion is perfect enough for him. Oh, actually, I hate, hate, hate, hate onions, so he stopped using them. Really? Gosh, but Kite Man loves onions. I mean, that was like his number two thing under kites. I guess it's like how he took out the meat when he made it with you. Kybin's a really good guy He's so good at being supportive Even if it's a sacrifice for him Yeah We're both lucky Well, you know what? Fuck me I don't matter You shouldn't be nervous because of me I mean, the only person you should give a snow rat's ass about In that tacky theater is Chuck I mean, you're here because of him And I'm here because of Harley So let's just go be in there for them because they sure as hell would be there for us. Hell yeah. Tara: [29:53] When Kite Man runs into Harley in the men's room, we're about to get to it, I swear to God. He helps her arrive at her own epiphany, clip four. Clip: [30:02] You know, this was my first time at the Villies. Always wanted to go, never got invited. Until last week, I got nominated for Best D-Wister at the less publicized, but definitely equally prestigious, Technical Villie Awards. Did you win? I did not. Lost to a guy with a gun for a penis. But sitting in that rented-out kid's dance studio, it hit me. The only reason I got nominated was because of Ivy. Dating her made me want to be a better person, a better villain. Hell, when I first met her, I was a delusional nobody himbo. Now I'm big enough to lose best D-lister. But Ivy left you. Yeah, and now I'm with Lisa and she rules. Things are working out for the old kite man. And win or lose tonight, they seem to be working out for you too. Tara: [30:45] Finally, Harley and Ivy reunite for a polite fight about whose needs are going to be met tonight. Clip five. Clip: [30:52] Let's win this villi, crush the acceptance speech, and make that trophy a cuck. Totally, how? Uh, by making it watch us have crazy sex till dawn. Durr. Okay, I absolutely love that image, but I'm so sorry. You've had real anxiety all night, and I should've helped. I was so fixated on that award when I was with Joker, because it was the only validation I ever got. But that was a bad relationship, and I have grown beyond that. So who cares about a dumb trophy? a real award right here. Oh, that's so sweet. But I should have been more excited. I mean, this is important to you, so it is important to me. Aw. Mm. You want to ditch this hell hole and get some Big Belly Burger, tie up the employees, maybe take silly photos in our fancy dresses? Hard yes. I'd kill for a grilled cheese right now. And you know we're taking those silly photos. It's not going to be silly how hot we look. Fuck you, villies! Yeah, fuck you, villies, and your vegan apps suck. Don't put a leak on a crostini and call it an hors d'oeuvre. Tara: [31:54] So they leave before finding out they did win best couple. I don't know about you. I don't necessarily assume a cartoon Batman spinoff is going to go this hard on the psychological realism of dating for adults. How partners have to balance the demands of one another's work lives and how hard it can be to let go of patterns formed in past relationships. But this episode does portray those things, both, as we heard, thoughtfully and hilariously. Tara: [32:20] Number two, it roasts Hollywood. Harley's crew includes Clayface, Alan Tudyk, an anthropomorphized glob of clay who has the power to transform into anyone or anything and thus obviously aspires to be an actor who can transform into any role. The presence of this character means the show never has to reach too far to find a pretext for making fun of the entertainment industry Including this season with a multi-episode arc about James Gunn as himself, Directing a movie in which Billy Bob Thornton also as himself plays Bruce Wayne's father Thomas. Tara: [32:50] Clayface has gotten himself a job on set as James Gunn's chair But is not able to parlay that into getting Billy Bob to talk shop with him until Clayface transforms himself into James To trick Billy Bob into meeting him later to discuss the script Billy Bob finds dull and pedestrian. Long story short, this ends in Billy Bob opening Catwoman's forbidden green door and getting eaten by Princess, the tiger Catwoman had in a time out there. Killer Shark, Ron Funches, Clayface's fellow crew member, helps out by eating Billy Bob's corpse, clearing the path for Clayface to assume his identity for the rest of the shoot. Forget showing up at Schwab's in a tight sweater. This is how you get ahead in show business, baby. But the poor quality of DCEU screenplays is just one of the episode's Hollywood spoofs. Harley's best couple rivals, Riddler, Jim Rash, and Clock King, James Adomian, let her know she probably doesn't have a shot at the award because unlike them, she hasn't spent the last six months bribing the members of the Gotham foreign press. So when Harley spots one of the official accountants headed for the bathroom with a briefcase full of envelopes cuffed to his wrist, she follows him in, Discovering that he's an android does not stop her initiating a close quarters fight straight out of Mission Impossible Fallout, including the production design of The Bathroom, which stretches across several scenes and ends up incorporating another villain who's in there just trying to take a dump, clip six. Clip: [34:14] Someone's in here! Move it or lose it, invisible kid! An imperceptible man! Oh my god, he did not wash his hands! Tara: [34:23] To backtrack to the wheel greasing Riddler and Clock King have been doing, of course, that is also a reference to the corruption of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which formerly operated the Golden Globe Awards. The episode gets more mileage out of the award show conceit, including host Joker, Tudyk again, opening the ceremony with a corny comedy scene that transitions into a fully choreographed rap number name checking attendees in the crowd. Later, following an in-memoriam montage, Catwoman wins the Joe Chill Honorary Award, swerves Joker's kiss, and uses her acceptance speech to call out the voters' tokenism, a reference to the Oscars So White campaign of 2015, clip seven. Clip: [35:05] Don't forget the fact that I'm not even really a villain. I'm an antihero. The only reason you gave me this award is because I'm black. After 80-plus years, you finally realize you haven't let a single Black villain win, no matter how much we deserve it. Black Manta's been out here for years as a marquee villain, and you don't see him getting an award. He's Black. Tara: [35:28] I won't go so far as to say this show is a rich text, but this episode in particular shows off some sophisticated pop culture fluency. Number three, it ranks on Batman. It can be easy to forget for long stretches that the show even is a Batman spinoff, but this episode is more nods than usual to its progenitor, from James Gunn's crappy movie to the many villains at the awards ceremony, including some just making cameos in the background of shots, to a cold open appearance by the man himself failing to satisfy Catwoman sexually. Would I have liked to see more Bane, Adomian again? Yes, but that's always true. And if you're like me, watch the Kite Man show. He gets a lot more to do over there. Number four, and finally, so many good random jokes. Here's one for Sarah, clip eight. Clip: [36:13] Rembrandt's The Storm of the Sea of Galilee. Descartes, program for the artistic soiree. One and two. Dear Lord, I believe I've solved the Isabella Stewart Gardner heist. Tara: [36:24] Here are a couple for the children among us, clip nine. Clip: [36:27] Honey, can you hand me one of those clean beakers? Ow! My penis is! Tara: [36:35] And clip ten. Clip: [36:36] Maybe you could say sit on me in exchange for one-on-one acting lessons? I don't sit. Ah, the Christopher Nolan School of Acting. No sitting on set. I don't ever sit. Me neither. Another standing pooper. Dave: [36:52] Something for everybody. Tara: [36:53] There's also visual jokes that do not read on a podcast. When Clayface first enters Catwoman's apartment and drops a glob of clay, one of the cats eats it and then coughs it up like a hairball. When Harley finally thinks she's defeated the android and finds the best couple envelope, the android's disembodied hand snatches it away and brings it to the head, which eats it. The In Memoriam segment notes the honoree's causes of death, like murdered acid for Scarecrow and it's complicated for Mr. Freeze. All of this, plus Billy Bob Thornton's bloody head rolling out of the Tiger's room to Clayface's feet, this show never forgets it's animated and uses every opportunity to be very silly, very violent and very gross. And we love that. Like Clock King and Riddler, I did send each of you a puppy to help convince you to cast your votes in my favor. If they somehow haven't arrived yet, I hope you'll do the right thing anyway. Dave: [37:44] Thank you, Tara. Alan Sepinwall, why don't you start us off here? Alan: [37:49] You left out maybe my favorite of all the jokes that won't necessarily play on a podcast, which is at one point, somebody calls Clock King Cock King. And he explains, no, that's somebody else. And then eventually you see Cock King and you assume it's a penis themed supervillain. And instead, it's a poultry themed supervillain. And I just laughed a lot of that. I love this show. It's so stupid. But like you say, Tara, it is sort of surprisingly perceptive and even weirdly adult at times. I don't know that this is necessarily my favorite Harley Quinn. The one where you see Batman's parents being murdered over and over and over again while she's inside his mind is really kind of something. And I love the Bachelorette party episode where they go to Paradise Island. That's good. But this is a really fun one. It has, as you say, a lot of the things that make the show good. Really, the only knock against it is there is not, as you said, not nearly enough Bane, who is the single funniest character on television. the valentine's day special where bane is a giant just humping skyscrapers to deal with sexual frustration is a masterpiece but this is really good too all. Dave: [38:52] Right thank you alan sir. Sarah: [38:54] If this is designed to get me to bump harley quinn up the list mission accomplished um our esteemed colleague and past guest john ramos just finished the entire series and uh really is waiting impatiently for me to start it so that we can discuss it. And this was definitely the push that I needed. There were some other visual jokes that I also liked, like Ryan Reynolds nagging someone to try his gin, which I just paused it. It was like, savage, so good. And Luthor's own pasta sauce, which I mean, it's cheap, but they had to do it. What I really liked about all of these visual gags is that it was a like early Simpsons pacing. You saw it just long enough to register it. And then they were moving on. There were no characters that were annoying. I got a sense of everybody's relationships. Bane's random pronunciations when he's trying to like not take on, but maintain someone else's personhood. Tara: [39:59] Oh, that's Clayface. Sarah: [40:01] Gilmore. Oh, sorry. So he's like, Gilmore Girls. It just made me laugh. And this was like, I don't know, like not heartwarming, but it really had a sense of like, let's be serious about the issues that these characters would face, but then be as silly as possible about how they're facing them and in what circumstances. Extremely enjoyable. 23 minutes zipped right by. But they had me at the Gardner Heist reference. I'm not going to lie. As I'm sure you knew. Dave. Dave: [40:36] I'm glad you cut another standing pooper because I do love me a poop joke. Alan: [40:41] So there we go. Tara: [40:43] I know. Dave: [40:44] The only other joke I think nobody's mentioned is when Harley is first in the Mission Impossible bathroom and there is a man with the briefcase who's holding the envelope that she wants to read, pissing at a urinal and then reveals herself to be an enforcer bot or whatever. There's this like very quiet way to Androids piss, which is like a very good question. But then they, like, as Sarah was saying, they just roll on to the next thing. They don't dwell on it. Do not answer the question why an android is pissing at the urinal. The only thing I would suggest about this episode is that whole bathroom scene needed to be a third as long and then take that time and give me more award ceremony stuff. Because I thought the award ceremony stuff, they were getting somewhere with it, but it was sort of in the background a little bit as far as the whole episode goes. So I could have used more ceremony, less bathroom stuff. And the bathroom scene was basically just a fight scene between her and the robot that went on a very long time. But beyond that, very funny, as everybody's saying, it's a show with a weird amount of heart, you know, like the heart isn't like, yeah, but it works for the show. It's all about odd pairings at first blush and then how and why they work. So this episode illustrates that very well. So let's put this to the official vote. Alan, canon-worthy or not? Alan: [42:04] Yes. Dave: [42:05] Sarah D. Bunting? Sarah: [42:06] I think Tara's going to win this circle, jerk. Yes. Dave: [42:09] Yay, me too. So. Clip: [42:10] Shh. Dave: [42:16] Harley Quinn, Season 3, Episode 3, the 83rd Annual Billy Awards. You are hereby inducted into the Extra Huckery Kingdom. Clip: [42:29] Americans love a winner. Yep. And will not tolerate a loser. Nope. Dave: [42:34] All right, let's talk about the winner and a loser of the week. Tara has this week's winner. Tara: [42:40] I think we've talked about this either here or on the Patreon, But there's a new sort of office show, but sort of not, that is set at a dying newspaper where they are using volunteer reporters to keep it alive. And thus we are opposed to it on a philosophical and moral level. But it is in the news because it has cast, among others, Alex Edelman for his Reason Comedy special. And Tim Key from Taskmaster and from the latest Steve Coogan or the latest Alan Partridge show. So good for them. Bad for the show. I'm mad at it already. Dave: [43:18] All right. Sarah D. Bunting, who is the loser of the week? Sarah: [43:21] I guess I could say Succession because Jeremy Strong in an interview said that it, quote, fucked him up. But it's in an interview that he's doing to promote playing Roy Cohn. So I don't know. Like, I just feel like Jeremy Strong needs to not talk. So that's my loser of the week is Jeremy Strong. Dave: [43:42] Speaking about not talking, do you know what time it is? Sarah: [43:44] Gotta be game time. Dave: [43:59] All right, this is the fifth game time of the season. The scores currently are, get this, Tara with one, Sarah with zero, value guess three. Tara: [44:07] Damn! Dave: [44:07] Ahead of the pack. Alan: [44:08] Ooh. Dave: [44:09] Today we're playing Halloween Spooktacular from Amy Allen Spock, who earns herself an extra credit on the topic of her choosing, plus a free shirt or mug or whatever she wants from the EHG store at throughmethods.com. Amy has brought three rounds of spooky holiday trivia. I'll explain them as we hit them, but they all test your knowledge of spooky stuff on TV. Let's throw it to picky to see who's going first. Clip: [44:38] We will start with Tara. Dave: [44:40] All right. We're going to go Tara, Alan, Sarah for the whole day. We've got, this is going to sound like a lot, but we're going to burn through them quick. 54 questions. Okay. We got one gross with Ecoliator Challenge Zone. Depending on time, we do have some hardouts, so that may get chopped off. Tara: [44:55] Only if we go for one hour. Dave: [44:58] Are we ready to play Halloween Spooktacular? Sarah: [45:02] Yes. Alan: [45:04] I'm scared, but I will anyway. Dave: [45:06] Round one is the trick or treat round. Tara: [45:11] Okay. Dave: [45:12] Identify the TV show from the description of a costume worn in it. Two points. You can ask for a hint and I'll tell you the actor who wore the costume, after which the answer is one point. Tara: [45:24] Okay. Dave: [45:24] You only get one guess. Tara: [45:25] Got it. Dave: [45:26] So make it count. Let's get into it. We start with Tara. Yes. In 2014, a character dressed up as Turner and Hooch on what? Now you can answer or ask for a hint. Tara: [45:44] I want a hint, please. Dave: [45:45] The actor here is Eugene Merman. Tara: [45:50] This has got to be Bob's Burgers? Dave: [45:52] It has to be Bob's Burgers. One point to Alan. In 2012, a character dressed up as Rosie the Riveter on what? Alan: [46:05] Oh, that's Amy Poehler in Parks and Recreation in the episode with the fart attack. Dave: [46:09] You are correct. Two point answer. Yes. Nicely done. Sarah D. Bunting. In 2022, a character dressed up as a spelling bee on... Sarah: [46:21] Oh, I need a hint. Dave: [46:23] The actor is Cheryl Lee Ralph. Sarah: [46:27] Oh, okay. Abbott Elementary? Clip: [46:31] You are correct. Dave: [46:32] Tara. Tara: [46:33] Yes. Dave: [46:34] In 2010, a character dressed up as Phantom of the Opera, whom the character believes to be a vampire, on what? Tara: [46:42] That sounds so familiar, but I can't place an hint. Dave: [46:45] Charlie Day. Tara: [46:46] It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Dave: [46:49] That's a one-point answer to Alan. In 1992, a character dressed up as Hannibal Lecter on what? Alan: [47:00] I'm going to need the hint. Dave: [47:01] Michael Fishman is your actor. Yes, the fish man. Alan: [47:08] Oh, it's Roseanne. Dave: [47:10] Yes, Roseanne, one point. Sarah: [47:12] Nice pull. Dave: [47:13] Sarah, in 2012, a character dressed up as Joey Ramona Quimby. Joey Ramona Quimby on what? Sarah: [47:23] I don't know. Hint, please. Dave: [47:25] Zoe Deschanel is your actor. Sarah: [47:28] A new girl? Dave: [47:29] She's a dorkable, don't you know? Tara. Tara: [47:33] Yes. Dave: [47:34] In 1997, a character dressed up as O from the story of O on... Tara: [47:42] Oh, no. Dave: [47:44] Oh, no. Oh. Tara: [47:45] Oh, God. I know this, too. Fuck. Hint. Dave: [47:50] Harry Gilpin. Tara: [47:53] Frasier. Dave: [47:54] You ought to know your Frasier for one point. Back to Alan. In 2009, a character dressed up as Space Cowboy, and that's in quotes, on what show? Alan: [48:09] I'm going to need the hint. Dave: [48:10] Nathan Fillion. Alan: [48:13] Oh, Castle. Dave: [48:14] Yes, dressed up as his Malcolm Reynolds character on Castle. Tara: [48:18] Boo. Sarah: [48:18] God. Tara: [48:19] Sarah. Dave: [48:21] God. Sarity Bunting, in 2009, a character dressed up as delirious era Eddie Murphy on what? Sarah: [48:30] Oh, God. Happy Endings. Dave: [48:36] Oh, took the two point and... Oh, it didn't pay out this time. Tara: [48:40] Scrubs? Dave: [48:41] No, not Scrubs. That's Donald Glover in Community. Tara: [48:45] Oh, sure. Alan: [48:47] Yes. Dave: [48:48] Tara. Tara: [48:49] Yeah. Dave: [48:49] In 2018, a character dressed up as Inspector Gadget on what show? Tara: [48:57] This also feels like something that I have seen with my eyes. Hint. Dave: [49:02] Johnny Galecki. Tara: [49:03] The Big Bang Theory. Dave: [49:04] Yes. One point answer. Back to Alan. In 2022, a character dressed up as Grogu on what? Clip: [49:13] Dressed as Baby Yoda? Alan: [49:15] Hint. Dave: [49:17] Noah Galvin. Alan: [49:19] I don't know who that is. So I'm going to say Benson. Dave: [49:24] The Good Doctor was answered there. Tara: [49:27] I knew who that was, but I didn't know he was on it. Dave: [49:30] Sarah. In 2019, a character dressed up as Iris from the film Taxi Driver on what show? Sarah: [49:38] Good God. Hint, please. Dave: [49:40] Alexa. Sorry, everybody's got an Amazon product. Alexa Demi. Sarah: [49:45] That does not help. I don't know. Clip: [49:48] Different strokes. Dave: [49:49] Different strokes. Not right. Anybody know it just for shits and grins? Tara: [49:52] Euphoria? Dave: [49:53] Euphoria is correct. Everybody's last question on round one. Tara? Tara: [49:58] Yeah. Dave: [49:58] In 2013, a character dressed up as TV chef Mario Batali on what? Tara: [50:06] Hint. Dave: [50:08] Joe Latrulio. Tara: [50:10] Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Clip: [50:11] One point. Alan. Dave: [50:14] In 2010, a character dressed up as sexy Mother Teresa on what show? Alan: [50:20] Hint. Dave: [50:21] Sarah Hyland. Clip: [50:23] Modern Family. One point. Dave: [50:25] And completing round one for Sarah in 2014 a character dressed up as ducky from pretty in pink on what show oh. Sarah: [50:36] I feel like I'm gonna know this but I still need a hint. Dave: [50:39] John Cryer. Sarah: [50:43] Jesus, two and a half men. Dave: [50:45] Yes, two and a half men is correct. And that is round one. So let's get our scores thus far. Tara: [50:51] Okay, Alan and I have five points apiece. Sarah D. Bunting barely behind with three. Dave: [50:58] All right, let's get into round two. It is vampire, witch, or demon round. I'm going to give you some information, kind of like as presented in round one. You will tell me whether they portrayed a witch, a demon or a vampire. Tara: [51:13] Okay. Dave: [51:13] If you need a hint, I will give you the show in question. Tara: [51:16] Okay. Dave: [51:17] All right? Tara: [51:17] Yep. Dave: [51:18] But two points off the bat, one point after the hint. Tara: [51:22] Okay. Dave: [51:22] Don't know if you're going to need the hint a lot or if it's even worth it. Maybe you just want to do it. But here's the twist. Because it's multiple choice, you lose any points when you get the wrong answer. Tara: [51:32] Oh. Dave: [51:33] I'm sick of multiple choice being kind of a free point giveaway. I'm now doing negative points for wrong answers during multiple choice rounds. Tara: [51:40] So here we go. Okay. Dave: [51:41] Tara. Tara: [51:42] Yep. Dave: [51:42] In 2014, Janet Montgomery portrayed what? Tara: [51:47] Witch. Clip: [51:48] Correct. Tara: [51:49] For one or two. Dave: [51:50] That is a two point answer. Tara: [51:52] Okay. Dave: [51:52] That show was Salem. Tara: [51:54] I, another show only watched by me. That was a WGN original. Dave: [52:00] Wow. Sarah: [52:00] Yeah. Alan: [52:01] Oh God, I remember that. There was something about frogs, right? Tara: [52:04] Yep. Dave: [52:05] There's always frogs when there's witches. This is question 17. oh it is for alan in 2019 david tenet played a what uh demon demon in what just for shits and giggles oh good omens good omens yeah two points sarah debunting in 2007 ray wise played what demon vampire or witch. Sarah: [52:35] Demon, I think. Dave: [52:37] Demon is correct. Yes, he played the devil, the biggest of the demons in Reaper. Tara. Tara: [52:43] Yeah. Dave: [52:44] 2019, Matt Berry portrayed what? Alan: [52:48] Hmm. Tara: [52:49] Vampire. Dave: [52:50] Vampire. Yes. What we do in the shadows. Back to Alan. In 1964, Al Lewis portrayed a... Alan: [53:00] Vampire grandpa on the monsters. Dave: [53:01] You are correct. Two points. Sarah D. Bunting. In 2006, Bryan Cranston portrayed what? Need a hint? I can tell you the show. Sarah: [53:12] Yes, I would like a hint, actually. Dave: [53:14] The show in question is Fallen. Fallen. As in... Splash. Tara: [53:24] Yeah. Sarah: [53:26] Demon? Dave: [53:27] Yes, he played Lucifer. Tara: [53:30] Oh. Dave: [53:31] Tara. Tara: [53:32] Yep. Dave: [53:32] In 2016, Tom Ellis portrayed what? Clip: [53:37] Demon. Dave: [53:38] Yes, also Lucifer. Clip: [53:40] On Lucifer. Dave: [53:41] Alan. In, Alan's getting all the oldies. In 1964, Carolyn Jones portrayed what? Alan: [53:50] Is Morticia a vampire? Clip: [53:54] Nope. Dave: [53:55] She's a witch. Tara: [53:56] She's a witch. Dave: [53:57] She's a witch. Alan: [53:57] Oh, man. Dave: [53:58] So Alan loses two points. Tara: [54:00] Oh, damn. Alan: [54:01] Oh, my God. Okay, well, I would have gotten it wrong anyway. Dave: [54:06] That made my day. Sarah: [54:09] Point system working. Dave: [54:10] All right. In 1997, Sarah D. Bunting, James Marsters portrayed what? Sarah: [54:17] Vampire. Dave: [54:18] Vampire for two points on Buffy. Tara. Tara: [54:21] Yeah. Dave: [54:22] In 2013, Katja Winter portrayed what? Tara: [54:27] I don't know who that is, so I'm going to guess which. Dave: [54:32] You are correct. Tara: [54:33] On what? Sarah: [54:34] Struggle which. Tara: [54:35] Oh, sure. Dave: [54:37] Sleepy Hollow. Tara: [54:38] Sleepy Hollow. Dave: [54:39] Back to Alan. In 2016, Joseph Gilgun portrayed what? Gilgun. Alan: [54:48] I'm going to get screwed here, but I think he was on one of those CW vampire shows. Dave: [54:53] Hmm. You want the hint or do you want to give me an answer there? Alan: [54:57] Fine. Give me the, I'll take the hint. Dave: [54:59] Okay. Good hint. Preacher is the show. Alan: [55:03] Oh, yeah. Then, yeah, he's a vampire. Dave: [55:07] Yeah, he's a vampire. Yes. One point. Sarah, in 2008, Evan Rachel Wood portrayed what? Tara: [55:17] Also known as 2008. Dave: [55:19] What'd I say? Tara: [55:20] 2008. Sarah: [55:21] 2008. Dave: [55:21] 2008. Tara: [55:21] Like an old prospector. Dave: [55:24] Yeah. Hey! Sarah: [55:28] Actually, hint, please. Dave: [55:30] The show was true blood. Sarah: [55:33] Oh, vampire. Clip: [55:35] Correct. Dave: [55:36] Everybody's last question of round two coming at you, and then we're going to take a score break with an equalizer zone. Tara, in 2018, Kiernan Shipka portrayed what? Tara: [55:48] Witch. Dave: [55:49] Witch in what, Tara? Tara: [55:50] Sabrina the Teenage no the. Dave: [55:52] Chilling Adventures Chilling Adventures oh Alan here is your last round two question in 2016 Ted Danson portrayed what Demon Demon The Good Place yes and finally Sarah D. Bunting in 1964 Agnes Moorhead portrayed what. Sarah: [56:15] Witch. Dave: [56:15] Witch on Be Wished. That was Andorra. Tara: [56:19] Hell yeah. Dave: [56:20] Let's get the scores after round two. Tara: [56:22] Oh, it's so close. I have 15. Sarah has 11. Alan, barely behind Sarah. We're 10. Dave: [56:29] All right, but that means Alan's in the equalizer challenge. Alan: [56:32] Oh, all right. Dave: [56:39] All right, this is worth three points if you get half the questions on the cards, and I'll explain that in a minute, or six points if you sweep a card. Now, the innovation since the last time you've been on, Alan, is you get to pick a number between one and eight, and there's eight boxes of trivia cards behind me, and you're not going to know what box you're going to get until you give me the number and I figure it out. Here we go. What number you want? One to eight. Alan: [57:01] Three. Dave: [57:02] Oh, you're fucked. Alan: [57:05] Oh, man. Dave: [57:06] Oh, this is good news for Alan. He has picked the classic TV Trivia Percent booster pack from the 80s. Tara: [57:13] You love to hear it. Alan: [57:13] Oh, nice. Dave: [57:14] One card will go through classics, sitcoms, drama, kids and games, stars, and the wild card for the TV question. So one card, three answers, three points, six answers, six points. Are you ready, Alan? Sarah: [57:29] Good luck. Yes. Alan: [57:30] Hit me. Dave: [57:31] Classics. What subject did contestants on earn your vacation answer questions on? Alan: [57:39] Geography? Clip: [57:41] Correct. Tara: [57:42] Wow. Alan: [57:43] Wow. Dave: [57:43] Sitcoms alan who is opie's godfather on the andy griffith show godfather barney fife yes i. Alan: [57:54] Would not trust. Tara: [57:56] Barney fife with that. Alan: [57:57] Responsibility i wouldn't either but he's the only other male regular so okay. Dave: [58:01] Drama what virginia family's dog answered to reckless. Alan: [58:09] I think they're West Virginia, but what the hell? The Waltons? Tara: [58:12] Waltons is correct. Dave: [58:14] You have got yourself three points. If you answer all three of the next questions, we'll give you another three points. You have to sweep it. Tara: [58:21] Oh my God. Dave: [58:23] What game show saw Bob Eubanks ask, what vegetable would your husband most like to sit on? Alan: [58:30] That's the newlywed game. Dave: [58:31] It's gotta be the newlywed game. Sarah: [58:33] God, I hope so. Dave: [58:34] Stars, the answer is star celebrity. What cop actor crashed the motorcycle that became a planter in an MGM office? So the actor crashed a motorcycle and they turned it into a planter at the MGM office. Alan: [58:50] Everyone's favorite good guy, Robert Blake. Dave: [58:54] Eric Estrada. Alan: [58:56] Of course, of course. Dave: [58:59] And let's just do the wild card for shits and giggles. Tara: [59:01] Sure. Dave: [59:02] Because you were on a roll. What Saturday Night Live character told a Jim Baker lookalike. Apparently, some of us do our thinking below the Bible Belt. Alan: [59:10] That'd be the church lady. Dave: [59:11] Church lady, yeah, so close. But he still get three points. So let's quickly update the scores, please. Tara: [59:17] Okay, they have changed. Sarah has 11. Alan now in second place with 13. Dave: [59:22] All right. Tara: [59:23] Barely add with 15. Dave: [59:24] Lots of opportunity in round three for points, but it is a true or false game, So you can still lose points by answering incorrectly. And you have to choose true or false. No hints. I am going to say a line that is, there is a tree house of horror on the Simpsons segment. That is a parody of the, and then give you some information. You just tell me whether that is true or false, whether that is actually something on the Simpsons or whether Amy made it up. Tara: [59:53] Okay. Dave: [59:54] Are you ready? Sarah: [59:54] Got it. Dave: [59:55] Here we go. We start with Tara. Tara: [59:57] Yep. Dave: [59:57] There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the film Nightmare on Elm Street. Is that true or false? Tara: [1:00:06] True. Dave: [1:00:06] That is true. One point. Alan, there is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the film E.T. the Extraterrestrial. Alan: [1:00:16] False. Dave: [1:00:18] That is true. You lose a point. Sarah, there is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the book The Telltale Heart. Sarah: [1:00:29] True. That is incorrect. Clip: [1:00:36] Tara. Tara: [1:00:37] Yep. Dave: [1:00:37] There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the film Paranormal Activity. Tara: [1:00:43] Ugh, probably. True. Clip: [1:00:47] Correct. Dave: [1:00:48] Back to Alan. There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the film Donnie Darko. Alan: [1:00:55] True. Dave: [1:00:57] Oh, you got Amy'd. Alan: [1:00:59] Sarah. Oh, man. Dave: [1:01:01] There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the TV show Lost in Space. True They have done it but not in Treehouse Tara Yeah There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the TV show Stranger Things. Tara: [1:01:19] I'll say true. Dave: [1:01:20] Danger Things was the segment Oh clever Back to Alan There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the musical Rocky Horror Picture Show. Alan: [1:01:32] Alright Well I know Dr. Hibbert dresses up as frankenfurter in a non-treehouse episode what the hell yes true, sarah. Dave: [1:01:44] There is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the tv show dexter, false true dial D for diddly damn it getting killed here there is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the book Carrie false you are correct, back to Alan there is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the film Parasite, false true oh gross Oh. Alan: [1:02:19] My God. Dave: [1:02:21] Sarah D. Bunting taking us into a score break. Halfway in round three, there is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the film The Blob. Sarah: [1:02:32] True. Dave: [1:02:33] True, yes. Married to The Blob. Well, that was a bit of a bloodbath so far, but let's get the new scores. Sarah: [1:02:41] Oh, fuck. Dave: [1:02:42] I am loving negative points. Here we go. Tara: [1:02:44] Okay. Alan: [1:02:45] Not a fan. Tara: [1:02:46] Alan has nine. Sarah has nine. I... have 19. Dave: [1:02:51] Back to Tara. Tara: [1:02:52] Yep. Dave: [1:02:53] True or false, there is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the film The Blair Witch Project. Tara: [1:02:58] True. Dave: [1:03:00] False. Tara loses a point. Alan, there is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the musical Little Shop of Horrors. Clip: [1:03:09] True. Dave: [1:03:11] False. Sarah, there is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the film Jumanji. Clip: [1:03:17] Jumanji? Dave: [1:03:22] Jumanji. That was from Keenfield. Tara: [1:03:25] Jumanji. Sarah: [1:03:27] Oh, there it is. I don't know. True. Clip: [1:03:32] Correct. Dave: [1:03:33] War and Pieces. Tara. Tara: [1:03:36] Yep. Dave: [1:03:36] There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the film, I Know What You Did Last Summer. Tara: [1:03:42] True. Dave: [1:03:43] I Know What You Diddly Italy Did. Tara: [1:03:46] Yes. We are still watching at this point, I think. Dave: [1:03:49] Alan. There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the TV show, Thomas the Tank Engine. Alan: [1:03:56] Before I answer this, can I ask an important question, Dave, which is, has anyone ever gotten every single question wrong in a round of game time? Dave: [1:04:06] Probably. Sarah: [1:04:06] I have to have. Dave: [1:04:09] Gotta believe it. Alan: [1:04:10] Okay. Dave: [1:04:10] But nobody has accured so many negative points doing so, if you want something to brag about. Alan: [1:04:14] Oh, my God. Thomas the Tank Engine. True. Dave: [1:04:21] It's false wow Sarah yeah there is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the film Sausage Party Sausage Party. Tara: [1:04:38] It's the movie where the food fucks that I talked about the. Dave: [1:04:41] TV adaptation we still have questions about it. Sarah: [1:04:44] I'm sure you do I'm gonna have a lot of questions if I got Amy'd on this, so I'm going to say true. Dave: [1:04:51] You are correct. Tara: [1:04:52] Nice. Dave: [1:04:52] The Sweets Hereafter. Tara: [1:04:54] Gross. Sarah: [1:04:56] Tara. Tara: [1:04:56] Yeah. Dave: [1:04:57] There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the musical The King and I. Clip: [1:05:02] False. You are correct. Dave: [1:05:04] There was not. Alan, you got two more chances here, and this is your penultimate. There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the TV show It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. Alan: [1:05:19] False, oh my god. Dave: [1:05:24] It's the Grand Pumpkin Millhouse was the name of that segment you got one more shot at it Alan Sarah D. Bunting there is a treehouse segment that is a parody of the film King Kong King Kong. Sarah: [1:05:39] Because there should be I'm gonna say true. Dave: [1:05:41] You are correct that is King Homer an early one it. Tara: [1:05:44] Is a good one. Dave: [1:05:45] Everybody's last question is here. Clip: [1:05:48] Okay. Tara: [1:05:49] Yep. Dave: [1:05:49] There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the film Flash Gordon. Tara: [1:05:55] False. Clip: [1:05:57] Correct. Dave: [1:05:58] There is not. Alan, are you ready? Alan: [1:06:02] Not really. Sarah: [1:06:03] You got this, buddy. Tara: [1:06:04] Finish strong. Dave: [1:06:06] There is... Everybody's rooting for you, Alan. Nobody wants to see you get all negative on round three. Here we go. Alan: [1:06:12] Oh, my God. Dave: [1:06:12] No pressure. Is there a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the book film series Harry Potter? Clip: [1:06:19] Yeah. Alan: [1:06:24] I know they've done Harry Potter stuff, but did they do it in Treehouse of Horror? I'm completely psyched out now. Like, I'm writing a book about Rod Serling. Couldn't you have asked me if they did Night Gallery parody? Tara: [1:06:34] Because you know that one. Sarah: [1:06:36] Yeah. Alan: [1:06:37] Fine, fine, fine. I'm going to say true. Dave: [1:06:42] All right. He is saying true. If it is true, he will break the streak. If it is false, we have our complete negative score. Hall of Famer. Helen Semplewall, you are. Clip: [1:06:55] Correct. Tara: [1:06:55] Yay! Alan: [1:06:57] Yes, baby! I still got it. Dave: [1:07:00] Wow. Sarah D. Butting, finish us off. There is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the film The Exorcist. Clip: [1:07:09] True. The Exorcist. Dave: [1:07:12] Yes, Exorcist. You are correct, and that is regulation. I don't think we have a tie, so let's hear the final score. Tara: [1:07:18] Correct, we don't. Alan finished with seven points. Sarah, 13. I had 21. Dave: [1:07:26] All right. We have a tiebreaker. Tara: [1:07:28] Very lucky guesses. Dave: [1:07:28] We're going to let Alan do it. Let's see if we could, because it's another one of these. Alan. Alan: [1:07:32] Oh, no. Dave: [1:07:33] For a future steel mill for use by your fellow value guests, there is a Treehouse segment that is a parody of the TV show Scooby-Doo. Alan: [1:07:45] False. Dave: [1:07:46] Oh, he's on a roll. He's in the zone. Alan: [1:07:49] He knows it all. Dave: [1:07:50] All right. Well done, everybody. Thank you, Amy. today belongs to Tara. Clip: [1:08:00] Tara! Tara! Dave: [1:08:01] Tara. That was fun. Thank you very much. And that is it for this episode of Extra Hot Great. We pulled the pin on Apple TV's disclaimer before going around the dial with stops at Georgie and Mandy's first marriage, that other show she talked about, Shrinking, and the hunt for the chameleon killer. Tara took home the best canon presentation of the episode for Harley Quinn Season 3, Episode 3, the 83rd Annual Ville Awards. We crown winners and losers of the week, and Tara was the winner of this week's Game Time from Amy. Next up, it's Florida Man on Extra, Extra Hot Great. Clip: [1:08:39] Remember, we're listening. Dave: [1:08:44] I am David T. Cole, and on behalf of Tara Ariano. Tara: [1:08:48] Ah, my penises. Dave: [1:08:50] Sarah D. Bunting. you. Sarah: [1:08:53] Clicked the wrong wikipedia didn't you. Dave: [1:08:54] And alan sippenwall. Alan: [1:08:56] I don't think negative points should be a thing dave. Dave: [1:08:59] Thanks for listening we'll see you next time right here on extra hot great. Clip: [1:09:09] All they have to do is give me back my pasta maker if they don't want things to be weird. Tara: [1:09:16] Bane! Sarah: [1:09:18] Best character. Alan: [1:09:20] There we go. Dave: [1:09:23] Alan, would you say he looks marvelous or not? Alan: [1:09:26] He does not look marvelous, no. Tara: [1:09:29] I'm looking it up so I can put it in the chat. Yeah, it's an extremely strange choice, that hair. I'm even having a hard time finding it because they want to pretend it doesn't exist. Here we go. It's important. I know we're stopping, Dave. I'm sorry. I'm sure you're going to edit all this out, but here it is. Dave: [1:09:51] Exciting after show bonus content. You like dead air? Tara: [1:09:56] Oh, wow. That's not even... And that's when Alan was like, look what they did to him in this part. And then he's like, oh, no, I think that's just his hair now. Alan: [1:10:04] No, that's not him. This is a Harry and Sally thing. Hold on a second. No, that's. Tara: [1:10:09] Okay. I mean, all of the ones from. They're so dark. Okay, I found one. Sarah: [1:10:16] Oh, God. Tara: [1:10:18] Sorry. Sarah: [1:10:18] We have problems. Okay, there we go. Oh, okay. Dave: [1:10:22] Okay, yeah. Sarah: [1:10:23] Uh, what? Dave: [1:10:24] I could play a hit, man. That's what that wig says. Tara: [1:10:27] This, yeah, this hair, this has not been his hairline since when Harry met Sally, and that was 25 years ago. 35 years ago. Oh, my God. Alan: [1:10:34] I'm not sure it was ever his hairline. like he has very like no one else on the planet has hair like billy crystal and if you're not gonna like try to recreate that i don't know what you're doing yeah that's not how old. Dave: [1:10:45] Is this guy that is not a hairline for a man that old you know what i'll have what he's having.