Insights Into Entertainment: Episode 134 “Busting on Bob”

[INTRO THEME]

[INTRODUCTIONS] (2-3 minutes)

• Insights Into Entertainment: Episode 134 “Busting on Bob”
• My stylish and fashionable co-host Michelle Whalen

[SHOW SUMMARY] (2-3 minutes)

• Today in our Disney Detective, Disney CEO Bob Chapek has a new strategy for Disney. But do fans agree, and Guests Show Distaste For Bob Chapek at Magic Kingdom With Giant Signage
• In our Tales from the Edge of the Galaxy, DISNEY, LUCASFILM, AND FIRST JOIN FORCES ONCE AGAIN plus Disney+’s new ‘Star Wars’ series ‘The Book of Boba Fett’ hasn’t caught on with audiences as quickly as ‘The Mandalorian’
• And for our Entertainment News, Britney Spears Fans Have A New Purpose: Freeing Nichelle Nichols From Her Conservatorship and news from this year’s Golden Globes
• And as always we’ll finish up with our Insightful Picks of the week….and some afterthoughts

[Show Plugs] (2-3 minutes)

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[TRANSITION]

[SEGMENT 1: Disney Detective] (8-12 minutes)

• Disney CEO Bob Chapek has a new strategy for Disney. But do fans agree?
• https://www.deseret.com/entertainment/2022/1/11/22878267/disney-ceo-bob-chapek-new-strategy?fbclid=IwAR3jkDhpVu-eQIjMU7fmY26tOW5itxzliQPTFe3fcD3wu9ZaUtpaC1nxjiU
• https://bit.ly/33AHecQ 
  • Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Chapek sent out a memo to Disney staff members Monday that outlined three new “strategic pillars” for the company, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
  • The three pillars: Chapek outlined three pillars for the strategy.
    • Storytelling excellence.
    • Innovation.
    • Relentless attention to the audience.
  • What he said: “I believe our mission for this year is clear: set the stage for our second century, and ensure Disney’s next 100 years are as successful as our first,” he said.
  • “Right now, their behavior tells us and our industry that the way they want to experience entertainment is changing — and changing fast thanks to technology and the pandemic,” Chapek wrote. “We must evolve with our audience, not work against them. And so we will put them at the center of every decision we make.”
  • Chapek also thanked employees who had to work from offices, studios or theme parks, and those working from home while balancing childcare needs. Chapek added that “our long-term goal is to provide greater flexibility,” suggesting that the company could adjust its in-office plans in the future.
    • Reaction: Disney fans reacted to Chapek’s mission with a little skepticism, according to Inside the Magic. For example, some said they were offended by the focus on the audience when Disney has increased prices.

• Guests Show Distaste For Bob Chapek at Magic Kingdom With Giant Signage
• https://insidethemagic.net/2022/01/disney-world-magic-kingdom-ceo-rundisney-ld1/?fbclid=IwAR0jRnQMdRWUyckxi68mCa7hMNrSidCddC5JOVj9tvMWGGIJbCoJQjWaH6U
• https://bit.ly/3GrWGa1 
  • While Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and the international Disney Parks are incredibly fun and immersive places to spend a vacation on, this doesn’t mean that “the Most Magical Place on Earth” is free from controversy.
  • As has been covered by us at Inside the Magic and many others, Disney Guests are passionate and will make sure their voices are heard regarding attractions, products, and restaurants they may not approve of. This is most noticeable with Disney’s new Genie, Genie+, and Lightning Lane services, as many Guests either do not want to pay what they cost to use or think the old systems were better.
  • One of the most controversial things happening within the Disney community right now is the overall reception to Walt Disney Company’s newest CEO Bob Chapek. Chapek took on the role of Chief Executive Officer in February of 2020, right before the entire world shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Many Guests do not approve of Chapek, as they see him as a profit-driven, penny-pinching corporate guy rather than an imaginative and exciting visionary. While many blame Chapek for the problems Disney World and Disneyland are both facing like the Galactic Starcruiser and closure of the NBA Experience at Disney Springs, it is important to remember that a lot of these issues were already taking place or were developing while former Disney CEO Bob Iger was in charge.
  • Chapek has even come out saying he does not like being called a “cost-cutter” and does not see himself as one. Regardless, many Disney Guests just do not approve of Bob Chapek’s approach to the Disney Parks, with a petition to remove him gaining a lot of traction recently. Now, Guests have noticed a pretty public display of disapproval at the runDisney marathon event happening at the Magic Kingdom.
  • In a tweet by @Imagine_Ears, a sign saying “You “Run Disney” Better Than Chapek” could be seen as runners passed down Main Street U.S.A. 
    • It is important to note that signage like this is prohibited at the Walt Disney World Resort and that this sign was most likely removed from the Guests very quickly. See more on Disney World’s official theme Park rules and regulations here.
  • Another controversial event taking place in the “Disney sphere” right now is the upcoming Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, an immersive and expensive new hotel experience, keyword expensive. The over $5,000 price tag will surely leave a lot of Guests stunned and the new hotel has already received a lot of cancellations.

[AD 1: SSE]

[SEGMENT 2: Tales from the Edge of the Galaxy] (8-12 minutes)

• DISNEY, LUCASFILM, AND FIRST JOIN FORCES ONCE AGAIN
• https://www.starwars.com/news/disney-lucasfilm-and-first-join-forces-once-again
• https://bit.ly/3qoOkdr 
  • For over three decades, FIRST® has been building a movement to introduce millions of young people to STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), preparing them for the future, developing confidence, and inspiring them to be the leaders of tomorrow. 
    • And for more than 20 of those years, Disney has been a proud sponsor of FIRST, further providing today’s youth with inspiration, access, and opportunity through STEM. 
    • This year, Disney and FIRST will continue to bring more hands-on learning opportunities and mentorship to youth, empowering them to not only think big, but to develop the skills needed to become the next generation of heroes and innovators and lifting them up as forces for good.
      
  • Now Disney, Lucasfilm, and FIRST are proud to announce Build the Future powered by Star Wars: Force for Change. 
    • Build the Future will give FIRST teams around the world an opportunity to amplify their unique stories as thinkers, innovators, and forces for good and to demonstrate the use of their STEM skills, Gracious Professionalism®, and global citizenship while off the field. 
    • The most impactful stories will be featured in an upcoming FIRST multi-media campaign together with Disney and Lucasfilm.
      • “We’re thrilled to be shining a spotlight on FIRST students and their stories through Build the Future,” said Lynwen Brennan, executive vice president & general manager at Lucasfilm. 
      • “As future technologists, engineers, and changemakers, today’s students hold the promise of enacting real change and creating a brighter future for all. 
      • Their creative, groundbreaking ideas will help our society confront increasingly complex challenges — from health and hunger to climate and clean water.”
        
      • Chris Moore, chief executive officer of FIRST goes on to say “We’re grateful to have innovative partners in Disney and Lucasfilm helping to grow our impact,”
      • “Disney has provided our organization with invaluable financial and creative support for more than two decades. 
      • Their call for us all to be “forces for change” combined with our deep commitment to the FIRST Core Values, has inspired our community to build a better future through innovation and inclusion in their hometowns and around the world. 
      • With Build the Future, we look forward to sharing our students’ incredible ideas and stories.”
        
  • As a FIRST Strategic Partner focused on reducing barriers to underrepresented, underserved youth, Disney and Lucasfilm, through the Star Wars: Force for Change philanthropic initiative, provide financial support as well as mentorship and storytelling opportunities to inspire, strengthen, and diversify interest in science and technology careers. 
    • Their commitment to providing opportunity to more youth worldwide has expanded, with a new investment now reaching more regions than ever before — including Japan, Philippines, Australia, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Spain, Brazil, United Kingdom, Turkey, South Africa, and Germany.
    • In 2020-2021, with funding provided by Disney, FIRST was able to deliver STEM program access to 51,318 students in underserved and underrepresented communities. 

• Disney+’s new ‘Star Wars’ series ‘The Book of Boba Fett’ hasn’t caught on with audiences as quickly as ‘The Mandalorian’
• https://www.businessinsider.com/disney-boba-fett-series-not-as-popular-as-mandalorian-2022-1?fbclid=IwAR32Spk5expxQPE-0Vse6TK020meYchHxZiaZGCZV4GHfYRsyhW6ews5v6I
• https://bit.ly/34IPTKZ 
  • Disney+’s latest “Star Wars” live-action series, “The Book of Boba Fett,” debuted on December 29. 
    • In the nearly two weeks since then, it has yet to catch on with audiences in the same way that Disney+’s first live-action “Star Wars” series, “The Mandalorian,” did during the same time period.
    • Parrot Analytics provided audience-demand data for both series, showing that while they had similar pre-release demand, “The Mandalorian” significantly increased in popularity following its debut compared to “The Book of Boba Fett.”
      • Audience demand accounts for the engagement with and interest in, or overall popularity, of a TV series.
        
  • During their first 11 days of availability on Disney+, demand for “The Mandalorian” was 75.5% higher than “Boba Fett” in the US, according to Parrot Analytics. 
    • Globally, demand for the former was 101% higher than the latter.
    • “The Mandalorian,” which premiered in November 2019, was the No. 1 most in-demand show both in the US and globally during this time period. 
    • “The Book of Boba Fett” has been the 12th most in-demand show in the US and No. 18 in the world.
      
  • Disney is developing a dozen new “Star Wars” shows for its streaming  service, including “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” while its theatrical movies have gone on hiatus. 
    • A planned “Rogue Squadron” movie from “Wonder Woman” director Patty Jenkins that was scheduled for release next year has been delayed. 
    • It’s a far cry from Disney’s initial plan of a movie per year when it first relaunched the franchise with “The Force Awakens” in 2015.
    • It’s safe to say that the future of “Star Wars” is TV, and the definition of success for the franchise in its new streaming age could evolve.
      
  • “The Book of Boba Fett” hasn’t enjoyed rapid success in the way that “The Mandalorian” did, but demand for it is still in the top 0.2% of all shows, according to Parrot Analytics.
    • “The Mandalorian” was helped by the Baby Yoda character, which grew into a viral sensation. 
    • “The Book of Boba Fett” stars a fan-favorite character from the original “Star Wars” film trilogy, but that might not be appealing to new or casual fans of the franchise who subscribed to Disney+.
    • “The Mandalorian” also had the benefit of being a launch title for Disney+ and was its only blockbuster original series for more than a year.
      
  • Reviews for “The Book of Boba Fett” have been solid. 
    • The show’s first episode received an 83% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes and its second has a 100% score, the third episode debuts  today. 
    • “The Mandalorian” has an average 93% critic score for its first two seasons.
    • “On a macro level, it’s not telling the most compelling story … but the show is packed with enough charming little details and moments that it’s enjoyable to watch,” the AV Club’s review of “The Book of Boba Fett” said.

[AD 2: TEENS]

[SEGMENT 3: Entertainment News] (8-12 minutes)

• Britney Spears Fans Have A New Purpose: Freeing Nichelle Nichols From Her Conservatorship
• https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/skbaer/free-britney-nichelle-nichols-conservatorship
• https://bit.ly/3K9VASj 
  • “We’re going to do whatever we can … to make sure that there’s lasting change for not just Britney, not just Nichelle, but everyone who is trapped in this corrupt system,” one #FreeBritney organizer told BuzzFeed News.
  • The chants outside the downtown Los Angeles courthouse were familiar, but this time they weren’t talking about Britney Spears.
    • “Free Nichelle Nichols!”
    • “Isolation is abuse!”
    • “Hey hey, ho ho, the conservatorship has got to go!”
  • On Monday afternoon, a group of just over a dozen #FreeBritney supporters and fans of Nichelle Nichols, who became a Star Trek legend for her portrayal of Nyota Uhura, marched around Stanley Mosk Courthouse to raise awareness about the 89-year-old actor’s situation. Since 2018, Nichols has been living under what they believe is another abusive conservatorship that has allowed her son, Kyle Johnson, to take control of her life and finances and decide who she sees and where she lives.
  • “We’re going to do whatever we can to shed light on the issue and to make sure that there’s lasting change for not just Britney, not just Nichelle but everyone who is trapped in this corrupt system,” #FreeBritneyLA organizer Kevin Wu told BuzzFeed News.
  • Known for her trailblazing role as Lt. Uhura in the original series that first aired in the 1960s, Nichols is now living with dementia, a condition that has made her susceptible to exploitation, Johnson claimed in his original petition to place her under the court’s supervision. But her longtime friend Angelique Fawcette, a producer and actor, has argued that Nichols was and is able to manage her affairs with help from an assistant and that Johnson is not acting in her best interests.
    • Instead, Fawcette says Johnson moved his mother out of her Woodland Hills home to New Mexico against her will, sold her property against her wishes, and isolated her from her friends. She points to a troubling 2019 recording of Nichols screaming at Johnson to get his hands off of her and a deposition from a former conservator who raised concerns about him having control as proof that he is unfit to take care of his mother. “You’re trying to get rid of me,” Nichols cries at her son in the recording.
  • “You just can’t come and take people’s home and money and just say, ‘Hey, it’s mine. Sorry, you’re old, you’re almost dead anyway, so I’m taking this,'” Fawcette told BuzzFeed News. “Look at all these amazing old people who are out there doing things. They’re living the life ’til their last drop and that’s really what I’m fighting for, for Nichelle.”
  • During a hearing on Monday, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge overruled Fawcette’s objections to Johnson’s final accounting report for his mother’s conservatorship, which is now under the jurisdiction of a New Mexico court, finding that she did not have standing to lodge her complaints and that they did not pertain to any specific line items in the report.
    • Fawcette and her attorney Matthew Taylor tried to argue that Johnson failed to declare Nichols’ home and neighboring property as assets of the conservatorship estate and provide the necessary evidence required by state statute to sell the properties. They also alleged that Johnson may be misappropriating his mother’s assets and asked for time to conduct discovery to investigate their concerns.
  • His attorney, Jeffrey Marvan, argued that the objection regarding Nichols’ home, which was sold after the conservatorship was moved out of California, should instead be raised in New Mexico, and said Johnson acted appropriately.
    • “He’s the only son and child,” Marvan told the court via videoconference. “The conservatee’s family supports everything that my client is doing.”

• “I’d be damned if this is my last stand for Nichelle Nichols,” she said. “Whether you are white, Black, Latino, Asian, American Indian, Persian, no matter what you are, you have roots in the soil. And you have a right to stand up for yourself and you have a right to stand up for your family and your friends.”
  • Dressed in a replica red Star Trek shirt like the one Nichols wore in the sci-fi show, Alexa Justo wiped her eyes as Fawcette spoke. The 26-year-old grew up worshipping Nichols as Lt. Uhura.
• “She was definitely one of the only people I could look up to as a kid,” said Justo, who is Black and Latina. “She made it cool to be smart. She made it cool to be strong and obviously the whole being a woman of color — it’s not just for me personally but for the world, in general, her being one of the only characters that wasn’t like a slave or a maid. That means a lot.”
  • Justo said she didn’t think it was fair for Nichols to be placed in conservatorship, a system in which people lose basic rights and are exposed to, as a BuzzFeed News investigation found, abuse, exploitation, and even death.
• “Whether you’re emotionally invested or not, you should give a shit,” Justo said. “And Nichelle’s awesome, so you should give a shit about her. “

• Golden Globes 2022 winners: Complete list with nominees
• https://nypost.com/2022/01/09/golden-globes-2022-winners-live-updates-of-tonights-awards/?fbclid=IwAR0wOKgcCCjZ_fEDcDRD9RwQJ2dNhQTmiB8Bc3d66o5ksJXT0uKpPu05mVQ
• https://bit.ly/3Fp2fV9 
  • Live from Twitter and press release blasts, it’s the 2022 Golden Globes!
  • With no livestream or cable broadcast, victory-lapping celebs, cringeworthy host jokes, completely pointless performances, red carpet peacocking or even press, the show — somehow — still went on for the controversy-ridden Globes.
    • Despite a scandal regarding its lack of diversity, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association went forth with announcing winners for the best in TV and film on Sunday, eschewing the normal chaos for a toned-down live announcement — mainly since no network would air the spectacle.
  • That means the very small number of people who typically watch — last year’s ratings were abysmal — were forced to simply imagine Ricky Gervais’ smack talk and A-list cleavage while spending yet another pandemic night in.
    • “Things may look a little different this year,” read a very understated tweet from the official Golden Globes account as the “private” affair at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif. began.
  • In film, “The Power of the Dog” and “West Side Story” scored top honors for the night, winning Best Motion Picture in Drama and Musical or Comedy, respectively. Nicole Kidman (“Being the Ricardos”) and Will Smith (“King Richard”) won Best Actress and Actor — Smith’s first-ever Globes win despite being nominated six times — in the Drama category while Rachel Zegler (“West Side Story”) and Andrew Garfield (“Tick, Tick… BOOM!”) earned wins in the Musical or Comedy categories.
  • As for television, “Hacks” and its star Jean Smart were victorious with Best Television Series, Musical or Comedy and Best Actress, which marks her first Globe triumph, while Jason Sudeikis logged a win for “Ted Lasso” for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy Series. In the drama category, “Succession” won Best Television Series its star Jeremy Strong scored the win for acting. “Pose” phenom Michaela Jaé (Mj) Rodriguez made history as the first trans actress ever to win a Golden Globe, which also marked her first win.

[TRANSITION]

[SEGMENT 4: Insightful Picks of the Week] (8-12 minutes)

• Michelle 
  • Tick, Tick… Boom!
  • https://www.netflix.com/title/81149184
  • https://bit.ly/3nq14Pg 
    • On the brink of turning 30, a promising theater composer navigates love, friendship and the pressure to create something great before time runs out.
    • Based on the autobiographical musical by playwright Jonathan Larson. It’s the story of an aspiring composer in New York City who is worried he made the wrong career choice, whilst navigating the pressures of love and friendship.
    • Tick, Tick… Boom! (also stylized as tick, tick… BOOM!) is a 2021 American biographical musical drama film directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda in his feature directorial debut. Written by Steven Levenson, it is based on the stage musical of the same name by Jonathan Larson, a semi-autobiographical story about Larson’s writing a musical to enter the industry.
      • Background
    • Tick, Tick… Boom! began as a rock monologue titled 30/90 and later Boho Days that Larson wrote between 1989 and 1990 and first performed at Second Stage Theater from September 6-9, 1990.[13] Boho Days was a semi-autobiographical work following a musical theater composer named “Jon” who tries to figure out his next project after a failed workshop of his musical Superbia, based on Larson’s own experience in trying to get Superbia staged.[4] Larson later rewrote it into Tick, Tick… Boom! which he performed at the Village Gate in November 1991, and later at New York Theatre Workshop’s “O Solo Mio” Festivals in 1992 and 1993 before turning his attention to Rent.[14] The piece changed significantly in this period, as it was written in response to events in Larson’s life: the character of Susan notably changed with each iteration based on Larson’s relationship with his real girlfriend Janet Charleston. Larson’s friend and producer Victoria Leacock Hoffman recalled the work became increasingly pessimistic with Larson’s increasing frustrations with his career.[4]
    • Following Larson’s death, Leacock Hoffman and Robyn Goodman recruited playwright David Auburn to transform the solo piece into a three person musical. Auburn reworked both the story and structure of Tick, Tick… Boom! while still attempting to preserve Larson’s writing. Besides the addition of dialogue, one of Auburn’s most significant contributions was the Superbia workshop plot (in all of Larson’s versions of the script, the Superbia workshop took place before the events of the show). J. Collis, the author of the oral history Boho Days: The Wider Works of Jonathan Larson, describes Auburn’s changes as giving the musical a better dramaturgical structure, changing the show from a story about the artist’s struggle to one about making adult choices and dealing with the consequences.[4] This production ran Off-Broadway at the Jane Street Theatre in 2001 and is arguably the version most familiar to audiences.[4]

• Joe
  • Leviathan Falls
  • The ninth and final novel in the Expanse Series by James S.A. Corey
  • https://www.jamessacorey.com/books/leviathan-falls/ 
  • https://bit.ly/3qseSuG 
  • The biggest science fiction series of the decade comes to an incredible conclusion in the ninth and final novel in James S.A. Corey’s Hugo-award winning Expanse series with Leviathan Falls
    
    • The Laconian Empire has fallen, setting the thirteen hundred solar systems free from the rule of Winston Duarte. 
    • But the ancient enemy that killed the gate builders is awake, and the war against our universe has begun again.
      
    • In the dead system of Adro, Elvi Okoye leads a desperate scientific mission to understand what the gate builders were and what destroyed them, even if it means compromising herself and the half-alien children who bear the weight of her investigation. 
    • Through the wide-flung systems of humanity, Colonel Aliana Tanaka hunts for Duarte’s missing daughter. . . and the shattered emperor himself. 
    • And on the Rocinante, James Holden and his crew struggle to build a future for humanity out of the shards and ruins of all that has come before.
      
    • As nearly unimaginable forces prepare to annihilate all human life, Holden and a group of unlikely allies discover a last, desperate chance to unite all of humanity, with the promise of a vast galactic civilization free from wars, factions, lies, and secrets if they win.
      
    • But the price of victory may be worse than the cost of defeat.

[TRANSITION]

After Thoughts

• https://zolocon.com/
• https://bit.ly/2UfiDpk 
• Saturday MARCH 5, 2022 (10:00AM – 6:00PM) V.I.P. 8:30AM –> CHILDREN (4 – 12) $5.00
• Sunday MARCH 6, 2022 (9:00 AM – 4:30PM) –> Children under 10 FREE
• 780 Falcon Circle . Warminster Pa. 18974

• http://www.toyshows.org/aboutme.html
• https://bit.ly/33veum0 
• Delaware Train Show    Aprilfools Toy Show
• Saturday, April. 2nd        Sunday, April. 3rd 
• Nur Shrine Center
•  198 S. DuPont Highway, New Castle, DE.

• FanExpo (Formerly Wizard World
• https://fanexpohq.com/fanexpophiladelphia/
• https://bit.ly/32VSRen 
  • Philadelphia Convention Center
  • Apri 8-10 2022

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00;00;01;17 – 00;00;07;22
Michelle
Insightful podcasts. By informative host.

00;00;10;10 – 00;00;16;19
Michelle
For Insights Into Things.

00;00;17;27 – 00;00;19;04
Michelle
A podcast network.

00;00;27;21 – 00;00;47;23
Michelle
Welcome to Insights into Entertainment, a podcast series taking a deeper look into entertainment and media. Your hosts, Joseph and Michelle Whalen, a husband and wife team of pop culture fanatics are exploring all things from music and movies to television and fandom.

00;00;50;22 – 00;01;04;03
Joseph
Welcome to insights into entertainment, this is episode 134 busting on Barb, I’m your host, Joseph Whelan, and my stylish and fashionable co-host Michelle Whalen.

00;01;05;11 – 00;01;06;10
Michelle
Hi, everyone.

00;01;06;11 – 00;01;07;13
Joseph
How are you doing today, dear?

00;01;07;15 – 00;01;09;00
Michelle
I am well. How are.

00;01;09;00 – 00;01;09;13
Michelle
You?

00;01;09;14 – 00;01;15;21
Joseph
I am doing well as well. So today is Thursday. We are past the midpoint of the week.

00;01;15;23 – 00;01;17;27
Michelle
Oh, thank God. Uh.

00;01;20;04 – 00;01;23;26
Joseph
Well, on our way to a rapidly approaching weekend.

00;01;24;05 – 00;01;25;23
Michelle
Yesterday of.

00;01;25;23 – 00;01;27;22
Michelle
Nothing.

00;01;27;26 – 00;01;29;18
Joseph
No, I got to rewire the media record.

00;01;29;19 – 00;01;35;18
Michelle
Oh yeah. Good luck to that was supposed to be a Christmas endeavor.

00;01;35;27 – 00;01;36;12
Michelle
The long.

00;01;36;18 – 00;01;37;19
Joseph
Drawn out project.

00;01;37;20 – 00;01;37;27
Michelle
Yeah.

00;01;37;28 – 00;01;39;08
Joseph
Well, multi-stage.

00;01;39;10 – 00;01;42;09
Michelle
Yeah, yeah. We’ll get you’ll get to Sunday.

00;01;42;09 – 00;01;43;21
Joseph
We’ll get it. I got all the parts down, I.

00;01;43;21 – 00;01;45;25
Michelle
Think right now. Now you have all the parts.

00;01;46;00 – 00;01;49;06
Joseph
I’m missing on missing two more parts, but they’ll be here by the weekend.

00;01;50;09 – 00;01;50;17
Michelle
Good luck.

00;01;50;29 – 00;02;08;24
Joseph
But that’s not what we’re talking about today. Today on our Disney detective, Disney CEO Bob Chapek has a new strategy for Disney, but the fans agree. And guess show distaste for Bob Chapek at Magic Kingdom with giant signage.

00;02;09;15 – 00;02;13;25
Joseph
I can only imagine because, you know, we all love Bob Chapek here.

00;02;14;04 – 00;02;18;10
Michelle
We sure do almost as much as Ryan Johnson.

00;02;18;13 – 00;02;33;24
Joseph
That’s right in our tales from the edge of the Galaxy, Disney, Lucasfilm and first joined forces once again. Plus, Disney Plus’s new Star Wars series, The Book of Boba Fett, hasn’t caught on with the audience quite like The Mandalorian did.

00;02;33;25 – 00;02;37;03
Joseph
We have some statistics on that which are very revealing.

00;02;37;05 – 00;02;37;14
Michelle
Mm-Hmm.

00;02;38;10 – 00;02;49;19
Joseph
Then for our entertainment news, Britney Spears fans have a new purpose freeing Michelle Nichols from her conservatorship. And news from this year’s Golden Globes. That was.

00;02;50;12 – 00;02;53;00
Michelle
Odd. Just odd. Yeah.

00;02;53;21 – 00;03;07;26
Joseph
And as always, we’ll finish up with our insightful picks of the week and some after thoughts before we get to all that exciting stuff. I do want to appeal to our listening and viewing audience to subscribe to the podcast.

00;03;08;19 – 00;03;26;00
Joseph
We are listed. Our audio versions are listed as insights into entertainment. Our video versions of all the network’s podcasts are listed as insights into things. You can find us on Google, Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon, et cetera, et cetera.

00;03;26;17 – 00;03;39;03
Joseph
I would also invite you to contact us, give us your feedback, give us your pop culture shows and not tournament conventions. The tournament’s two of you.

00;03;39;05 – 00;03;39;28
Michelle
Have any tournament.

00;03;39;28 – 00;03;40;17
Michelle
Why not?

00;03;40;26 – 00;03;56;02
Joseph
You can email us at comments and insights into things dot com. You can find us on Twitter at Inside’s Underscore Things We are on the accursed evil Facebook at Facebook Dot Com Slash Insights Into Things podcast Big Fan, By the way.

00;03;56;03 – 00;03;56;17
Michelle
Yeah, I can.

00;03;56;17 – 00;03;56;26
Michelle
Tell.

00;03;57;05 – 00;04;03;04
Joseph
We are also on Instagram. Only slightly less evil on Instagram account slash insights into things.

00;04;03;05 – 00;04;04;00
Michelle
All part of Metta.

00;04;04;07 – 00;04;13;15
Joseph
Or you can find links to all those and more on our official website. Add insights into things dot com. Are we ready?

00;04;13;26 – 00;04;15;26
Michelle
Yes, we kind of are.

00;04;15;27 – 00;04;26;01
Joseph
All right, I love the constant and ongoing. Go for Disney Detective.

00;04;26;08 – 00;04;51;06
Michelle
So it seems that Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Chapek sent out a memo to Disney staff members on Monday that outlined three new strategic pillars for the company. According to The Hollywood Reporter, and the three pillars that he outlined were storytelling, excellence, invention and relentless attention to the audience.

00;04;51;19 – 00;05;18;16
Michelle
What he said was, I believe our mission for this year is clear. Set the stage for our second century and ensure Disney’s ensured Disney’s next 100 years are as successful as our first, he said. Right now, their behavior tells us and our industry that the way they want to experience entertainment is changing and changing fast thanks to

00;05;18;16 – 00;05;42;11
Michelle
technology and the pandemic. Chapek wrote. We must evolve with our audience, not work against them. And so we will put them in the center of every decision we make. Chapek also thanked employees who had worked from home offices, studios or theme parks, and those working who had been working from the offices of the studios and the theme

00;05;42;11 – 00;06;07;13
Michelle
parks and those who were working from home while balancing child care needs. Chapek added that long term goals to provide greater flexibility, suggesting that the company could adjust its in-office plans in the future. But the reaction for most Disney fans mission kind of left them a little skeptical, according to Inside the Magic.

00;06;07;20 – 00;06;27;24
Michelle
For example, some said that they were offended by the focus on the audience when Disney has obviously been increasing prices all over the place and this is something there have been a couple of different articles that have come out talking about the price increases, and we’re not even talking about just the theme park tickets.

00;06;28;15 – 00;06;54;00
Michelle
People now are noticing that the food prices within the parks have gone up. Now, granted, you know, maybe in some cases it’s only gone up $0.25, but for other items, it’s gone up $2 or $3. So, you know, a churro was already kind of pricey at $6 and now it’s $7 for a churro or a bottle of

00;06;54;00 – 00;07;12;12
Michelle
soda is almost like $6 for a little, you know, one serving where you could go and buy a two liter, you know, for the same price outside of the park. So it’ll be, you know, the intentions are great that he wants to put the guests first.

00;07;12;12 – 00;07;26;10
Michelle
But unfortunately, as we’ve been talking about. For a while now, I’ve lost count of, you know, it seems like he’s lost sight of the guests and the guest.

00;07;26;10 – 00;07;27;04
Michelle
Experience I.

00;07;27;04 – 00;07;39;06
Joseph
Look at, I look at the three pillars. So we have storytelling, excellence, innovation and relentless attention to the audience. And I think of that third pillar and I can’t help but think of like.

00;07;39;28 – 00;07;42;04
Michelle
A thief burglar. Yeah.

00;07;42;04 – 00;07;54;29
Joseph
And the first thing that they do is they case the place that they’re going to hit. They they follow the victim. They learn the victim’s hands and steal their money or still their valuables and make away. Get away with it.

00;07;55;01 – 00;08;07;26
Joseph
Hmm. And I can’t help but think that, well, this is really what Chapek is talking about is relentless attention to the audiences. Let’s figure out how we can take their money right as pleasantly as possible and make them like us for.

00;08;08;21 – 00;08;10;12
Joseph
Because that’s exactly what he’s doing.

00;08;10;13 – 00;08;10;21
Michelle
Yeah.

00;08;11;14 – 00;08;19;28
Joseph
So and I can’t help but but look at the picture that they put up on the website here and think, Wow, he looks remarkably like kingpin.

00;08;20;28 – 00;08;22;12
Michelle
I was going to say Lex Luthor.

00;08;22;13 – 00;08;24;24
Joseph
We’re Lex Luthor. I mean, he looks like a villain. He looks like.

00;08;24;24 – 00;08;27;01
Michelle
Right. You’re right. He doesn’t. Yeah, yeah.

00;08;27;12 – 00;08;37;26
Joseph
And I think his actions speak volumes to support that. Yeah, yeah. Feeling, too. Anyway, let’s stop busting on Bob and go to the next story to.

00;08;38;10 – 00;09;02;10
Michelle
Last on Bob. Yeah. So this was kind of funny. So a guest showed some distaste for Bob at Magic Kingdom with with a giant sign. So while so while they’re there, so let’s try this again. While Walt Disney World Disneyland and the international Disney parks are incredibly fun and immersive places to spend their vacation, this doesn’t mean

00;09;02;10 – 00;09;27;10
Michelle
that the most magical place on Earth is free from controversy. So as has been covered by the Inside the Magic website and many other Disney guests have, you know, talked about how passionate and you know they are for, you know, things about the attraction and products and restaurants you know that they just don’t approve of.

00;09;27;10 – 00;09;43;25
Michelle
And obviously, most notably is the new Disney Genie and Genie Plus and the Lightning Lane services, as many of the guests don’t want to pay what it costs to use and to use these new services, and they actually prefer the older ones better.

00;09;44;05 – 00;10;08;25
Michelle
So one of the most controversial things happening within Disney’s company right now is obviously Bob Chapek. He took the role of chief executive officer in February of 2020, right before the entire world shut down due to COVID. And obviously, many guests just don’t approve of him as they see him as a profit driven, penny pinching corporate guy

00;10;08;26 – 00;10;33;11
Michelle
rather than an imaginative and exciting visionary. While many blame Chapek for the problems Disney World and Disneyland are both facing, like the galactic star cruiser and the closure of the NBA experience at Disney Springs, it is important to remember that a lot of these issues were already taking place or were developing, while former Disney CEO Bob Iger

00;10;33;11 – 00;10;53;16
Michelle
was in charge. Chapek has even come out saying that he does not like being called a cost cutter and does not see himself as one. Regardless, many Disney guests do not approve of him and his approach to the Disney parks and that, as we’ve mentioned, they have been, you know, they have the petition to try and get

00;10;53;16 – 00;11;13;27
Michelle
rid of him. So now guests even notice a public display of disapproval at the run Disney Marathon event that happened over this past weekend. In a tweet by Imagineers ears a sign saying You run Disney better than Chapek could be seen as runners were passing by down on Main Street.

00;11;14;06 – 00;11;30;08
Michelle
It’s important to note that signage like this is actually prohibited at Walt Disney World and that the sign was most likely removed from a guest very quickly. And, you know, but enough people got pictures of it and then were posting it all over the place.

00;11;30;17 – 00;11;47;25
Michelle
And obviously, another controversial event taking place is in the in the Disney sphere. And this is what we’ve been talking about is that the galactic star cruiser that you know, it’s the hotel experience that’s over $5,000 for just two nights.

00;11;47;25 – 00;12;01;27
Michelle
So we’re getting close to the the launch of that. So that’ll be interesting to see how how that happens. But it was kind of funny that at the marathon, you know that the runners could run Disney World.

00;12;01;29 – 00;12;02;16
Joseph
For the.

00;12;02;16 – 00;12;02;29
Michelle
Better.

00;12;03;12 – 00;12;07;27
Joseph
You know, I’d give let, but that’s the only way you can make change.

00;12;08;01 – 00;12;09;04
Michelle
Absolutely. You know.

00;12;09;04 – 00;12;24;19
Joseph
You have to let Disney know that you’re unsatisfied with the direction that he’s taken the company. Yeah, they’re nosediving the company. And it’s not even like they’re taking it into uncharted territory. They’re doing exactly what they did back in the nineties.

00;12;25;00 – 00;12;25;28
Michelle
And why.

00;12;25;28 – 00;12;31;02
Joseph
After that abject failure of a decade would they continue to want to go back down that.

00;12;31;02 – 00;12;31;24
Michelle
Path? Mm-Hmm.

00;12;32;07 – 00;12;47;04
Joseph
They finally got to the point where people were coming back. They were enjoying things. They were making money hand over fist, right? And now they’re going to go back down that route because. You know, let’s wants her wants to wants to run the company and that a.

00;12;47;16 – 00;12;50;08
Michelle
New name now. I mean, it’s just.

00;12;50;12 – 00;12;56;00
Joseph
It’s a sin because you have so many people that were dedicated fans of the company that are now so turned off.

00;12;56;00 – 00;12;56;29
Michelle
By it. Hmm. Yeah.

00;12;57;09 – 00;13;07;29
Joseph
Yeah. The other thing that’s really disappointing is everyone and their brother is now busting on Chapek and Disney, and I don’t have much ammunition to really even get into and get worked up over on the show anymore.

00;13;08;26 – 00;13;10;00
Michelle
Because you agree with everything.

00;13;10;00 – 00;13;10;19
Michelle
I do.

00;13;10;23 – 00;13;15;09
Joseph
It’s like, OK, I got an army of people out there now that I’ve recruited that, they’re going to do my bidding.

00;13;15;16 – 00;13;16;02
Michelle
So instead of.

00;13;16;02 – 00;13;16;07
Michelle
Me.

00;13;17;10 – 00;13;21;03
Michelle
So instead of being part of DVC, now we’re part of the.

00;13;21;03 – 00;13;22;03
Joseph
Anti DVC.

00;13;22;07 – 00;13;23;24
Michelle
Anti bob.

00;13;23;26 – 00;13;24;15
Joseph
That’s right.

00;13;24;16 – 00;13;25;18
Michelle
B.S. or whatever.

00;13;25;18 – 00;13;26;09
Joseph
The busting.

00;13;26;09 – 00;13;26;27
Michelle
Bob.

00;13;27;22 – 00;13;28;17
Joseph
Cartel or.

00;13;28;17 – 00;13;30;27
Michelle
Yeah, something like that. I’m sure we’ll have a name soon.

00;13;32;10 – 00;13;33;26
Joseph
We’ll send that over to the marketing department.

00;13;33;29 – 00;13;35;11
Michelle
There you go. There you go.

00;13;36;01 – 00;13;37;06
Joseph
So that was all we had for.

00;13;37;06 – 00;13;37;24
Michelle
Our.

00;13;38;04 – 00;13;39;20
Joseph
Disney detective for this week.

00;13;39;21 – 00;13;40;00
Michelle
Mm hmm.

00;13;40;06 – 00;13;56;18
Joseph
We’ll be back in a minute with our tales from the edge of the galaxy. For over seven years, the second Sith empire has been the.

00;13;56;19 – 00;13;57;09
Michelle
Premiere.

00;13;57;12 – 00;14;17;26
Joseph
Community Guild in the online game. Star Wars The Old Republic with hundreds of friendly and helpful active members, a weekly schedule of nightly events, annual guild meet and greets, and an active community both on the web and on Discord.

00;14;18;29 – 00;14;46;25
Joseph
The second ship Empire is more than your typical gaming group. We’re family. Joining us on the star forward server for nightly events such as operations, flashpoints, world boss funds, Star Wars trivia, Old Lottery and much more. Visit us on the Web today and W W W start the second sip and fire dot com.

00;14;54;26 – 00;14;56;24
Joseph
And yeah, when we push the button.

00;14;57;24 – 00;15;05;10
Michelle
Mr Button, to the. My cell phone went.

00;15;05;10 – 00;15;07;18
Joseph
Back for my scriptwriting to do my job. Sorry.

00;15;08;04 – 00;15;08;07
Michelle
Hmm.

00;15;09;02 – 00;15;24;03
Joseph
Anyway, this week in our tales from the edge of the galaxy, since I find my mouse cursor here, I got five to six screens here, so I lose it frequently anyway. Tales from the Edge of the Galaxy. Disney, Lucasfilm and first joined forces.

00;15;24;03 – 00;15;42;15
Joseph
Once again, this comes from StarWars.com. For over three decades, first has been building a movement to introduce millions of young people to stem science, technology, engineering and math. Preparing them for the future. Developing confidence and inspiring them to be the leaders of tomorrow.

00;15;43;12 – 00;16;07;24
Joseph
And for more than 20 of those years, Disney has been a proud sponsor of first, further providing today’s youth with inspiration, access and opportunity through STEM. This year, Disney and first will continue to bring more hands on learning opportunities and mentorship to youth, empowering them to not only think big but to develop the skills needed to become

00;16;07;24 – 00;16;21;21
Joseph
the next generation of heroes and innovators and lifting them up as forces for good. Now Disney, Lucasfilm and first, are you okay, man? Yeah, I’m fine. Can you give me a weird look?

00;16;21;23 – 00;16;22;10
Michelle
No, no.

00;16;22;29 – 00;16;47;24
Joseph
OK. Now Disney, Lucasfilm and first are proud to announce Build the Future powered by Star Wars Force for Change. Build the future, we’ll give first teams around the world an opportunity to amplify their unique stories as thinkers, innovators and forces for good and to demonstrate the use of their STEM skills, gracious professionalism and global citizenship while off

00;16;47;24 – 00;17;10;13
Joseph
the field. Most impactful stories will be featured in an upcoming first multimedia campaign together with Disney and Lucasfilm. We’re thrilled to be to be shining a spotlight on first students and their stories through Build the future, said Linden Brennan, executive vice president and general manager at Lucasfilm.

00;17;11;04 – 00;17;34;00
Joseph
Our future technologies engineers and change makers today, students hold the promise of enacting real change and creating a brighter future for all their creative brown. Their creative, groundbreaking ideas will help our society confront increasingly complex challenges from health and hunger to climate and clean water.

00;17;35;02 – 00;17;51;29
Joseph
Chris Moore, the chief executive officer of first goes on to say we’re grateful to have innovative partners and Disney and Lucasfilm helping to grow our impact. Disney has provided our organization with invaluable financial and creative support for more than two decades.

00;17;53;00 – 00;18;13;17
Joseph
Their call for us to be forces of change, combined with our deep commitment to the first core values, has inspired our community to build a better future through innovation and inclusion in their hometowns and around the world. With Build the Future, we look forward to sharing our students incredible ideas and stories.

00;18;15;02 – 00;18;39;04
Joseph
As a first strategic partner focused on reducing barriers to underrepresented, underserved youth, Disney and Lucasfilm through the Star Wars Force for Change philanthropic initiative provide financial support as well as mentorship and storytelling opportunities to inspire, strengthen and diversify interest in science and technology careers.

00;18;40;01 – 00;19;09;02
Joseph
Their commitment to providing opportunity to more youth worldwide has expanded, with a new investment now reaching more regions than ever before, including Japan, Chile, Turkey, South Africa, Germany and more. In 2021, the funding provided by Disney with funding provided by Disney first will be able to deliver STEM program access to more than 51,000 students in undies, underserved

00;19;09;02 – 00;19;14;17
Joseph
and underrepresented communities. Now this one kind of hits home for us because.

00;19;14;17 – 00;19;15;08
Michelle
Absolutely.

00;19;15;11 – 00;19;19;10
Joseph
Our daughter is a avid STEM student as well.

00;19;19;11 – 00;19;19;22
Michelle
No.

00;19;20;04 – 00;19;26;11
Joseph
No, I don’t think her school. It is part of any of the first programs at this point in time.

00;19;26;12 – 00;19;27;29
Michelle
Right, yeah, I don’t know.

00;19;28;04 – 00;19;35;25
Joseph
But there’s a number of different organizations out there that support, you know, STEM education. And I think all of them are worthwhile.

00;19;35;27 – 00;19;36;06
Michelle
Mm-Hmm.

00;19;36;16 – 00;19;49;09
Joseph
Because that’s really where. The future of our students are much it’s these. Programs that help to not only educate the kids, but to inspire them.

00;19;49;09 – 00;19;49;18
Michelle
Mm-Hmm.

00;19;50;06 – 00;19;57;10
Joseph
And as much as I bash on Disney, I can’t help but but compliment them on their support for these things.

00;19;57;25 – 00;20;17;02
Michelle
Yeah, there’s a if you go to the the website, there’s a nice little video with a bunch of different Star Wars actors basically talking about the program and saying, Hey, you know, apply and, you know, send your ideas and you could be, you know, one that that’s picked right for this.

00;20;17;02 – 00;20;23;15
Michelle
So it was it was nice to to see and and you know, again, because our daughter is very much a steam kid.

00;20;25;07 – 00;20;37;03
Joseph
Well, and it’s funny because one of the things that she had done as part of a science and engineering project previously was how to apply math in careers.

00;20;37;04 – 00;20;37;15
Michelle
Mm-Hmm.

00;20;37;25 – 00;20;42;21
Joseph
And you had to pick, I think, was at five careers or ten careers or something like that, something.

00;20;42;21 – 00;20;43;05
Michelle
Like that.

00;20;43;05 – 00;20;53;20
Joseph
And how you would apply math to it. And I thought that was really a great way to get kids to understand that you’re not just sitting in class churning these numbers. These numbers mean something in the real world, right?

00;20;53;24 – 00;21;01;18
Joseph
So let’s figure out what they mean and what kind of career you can have. And one of the careers that she had picked to profile was Disney Imagineering.

00;21;01;18 – 00;21;02;00
Michelle
Yep.

00;21;02;10 – 00;21;11;21
Joseph
And we went through, and I think the example we used was a roller coaster. How you’re going to use math to calculate the fractions and the angles? Yeah, the speeds and all that.

00;21;11;23 – 00;21;14;18
Michelle
We also happen to be on vacation and Disney at the time, too.

00;21;14;25 – 00;21;15;16
Michelle
It definitely.

00;21;15;16 – 00;21;16;19
Michelle
Did. So it kind of helped.

00;21;16;19 – 00;21;17;09
Michelle
Yeah, yeah.

00;21;17;25 – 00;21;31;02
Joseph
But you know, it’s things like that. But the it’s the inspiration. It’s not just the knowledge, because if kids aren’t into what they’re doing and they don’t want to learn, they’re not going to learn.

00;21;31;03 – 00;21;31;14
Michelle
Mm hmm.

00;21;31;29 – 00;21;42;00
Joseph
They’ll remember things because you’re going to drill it into their head. But the spark of of inspiration has to be there for them to really want to learn.

00;21;42;02 – 00;21;42;12
Michelle
Yeah.

00;21;42;25 – 00;21;50;02
Joseph
And as organizations like first and in their partnership with Disney to to really do that and then do a very good job at then.

00;21;50;08 – 00;21;50;18
Michelle
Yeah.

00;21;52;01 – 00;22;09;03
Joseph
So next, we have a story about my insightful pick from last week. And sounds like other people seem to share my opinion of it. So Disney’s new Star Wars series, The Book of Boba Fett, hasn’t caught on with audiences as quickly as The Mandalorian.

00;22;09;25 – 00;22;28;27
Joseph
This one comes from the Business Insider, Disney’s latest Star Wars live action series, The Book of Boba Fett, debuted on December 29. In the nearly two weeks since then, it is yet to catch on with audiences the same way that Disney Plus’s first live action Star Wars series, The Mandalorian did during the same time period.

00;22;30;01 – 00;22;53;08
Joseph
Parrot Analytics provided audience demand data for both series, showing that while they had similar prerelease demand, The Mandalorian significantly increased in popularity following its debut compared to the Book of Boba Fett. Now, audience demand accounts for the engagement with an interest in her overall popularity of a TV series.

00;22;54;15 – 00;23;24;20
Joseph
During their first eleven days of availability. The demand for Mandalorian was 75.5% higher than the book of Boba Fett in the U.S., according to Parrot Analytics. Globally, the demand for the former was 101% higher than the latter. The Mandalorian, which premiered in November 2019, was the number one most in-demand show both in the U.S. and globally during

00;23;24;20 – 00;23;44;04
Joseph
this time period. The Book of Boba Fett has been the 12th most in-demand show in the U.S. and 18th globally. Disney is developing a dozen new Star Wars shows for its streaming service, including Obi-Wan Kenobi, which it’s theatrical while its theatrical movies have gone on hiatus.

00;23;44;29 – 00;24;06;09
Joseph
A planned Rogue Squadron movie from Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins, which we talked about on this show, was scheduled for release released next year and has been delayed. It’s a far cry from Disney’s initial plan to move a movie per year when its first relaunch the franchise with Force Awakens in 2015.

00;24;07;15 – 00;24;30;22
Joseph
It’s safe to say that the future of Star Wars is TV and the definition of success for the franchise in its new streaming age could evolve. The book of Boba Fett has enjoyed rapid success, hasn’t the book of Boba Fett hasn’t enjoyed rapid success in the way The Mandalorian did, but demand for it is still in the

00;24;30;22 – 00;24;49;05
Joseph
top 2% of all shows, according to Parrot Analytics. The thing I actually did a read through this earlier to think I would have gotten this anyway. Tough day. The Mandalorian was helped by the Baby Yoda character, which grew into a viral sensation of which we partook.

00;24;50;05 – 00;25;10;25
Joseph
The Book of Boba Fett stars a fan favorite character from the original Star Wars film trilogy, but that might not be appealing to new or casual fans of the franchise who subscribe to Disney Plus. The Mandalorian also had the benefit of being a launch title for Disney Plus and was its only blockbuster original series for more than

00;25;10;25 – 00;25;35;08
Joseph
a year. Reviews for the Book of Boba Fett have been solid. The show’s first episode received 83% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes and its second has a 100% score. The third episode actually debuts today. The Mandalorian has an average 93% critic score for its first two seasons, which is exceptionally high for a television show.

00;25;36;14 – 00;25;50;21
Joseph
On a macro level, it’s not storytelling. It’s not telling the most compelling story. But the show is packed with enough charming little details and moments that it’s enjoyable to watch, The A.V. Club’s review of the Book of Boba Fett said.

00;25;51;04 – 00;26;15;28
Joseph
And I think these numbers and that review kind of support my thoughts from last week. Hmm. It’s a show about a character that. Was endeared to a lot of people from the original series. But the character had a very conclusive ending to his story.

00;26;15;28 – 00;26;16;12
Michelle
Right.

00;26;16;24 – 00;26;21;27
Joseph
And has been resurrected and I think a lot of people were confused about why he was resurrected.

00;26;21;29 – 00;26;22;09
Michelle
Mm-Hmm.

00;26;23;02 – 00;26;29;10
Joseph
I think part of the problem with the first two series is it’s not telling a compelling story.

00;26;29;14 – 00;26;29;27
Michelle
Right?

00;26;30;03 – 00;26;54;11
Joseph
The first two episodes give you so much. I mean, it’s 70% flashbacks, right? And there are flashbacks that could have been told. As part of The Mandalorian, when he shows up in The Mandalorian, part of the problem I think they ran into was they did so much foreshadowing in The Mandalorian because they introduced Boba Fett in the

00;26;54;11 – 00;26;57;19
Joseph
first season. When you see him walking up the fence, right?

00;26;57;29 – 00;26;58;09
Michelle
Right.

00;26;58;17 – 00;27;01;12
Michelle
But you don’t know that it’s, you know, it’s him.

00;27;01;12 – 00;27;17;08
Joseph
So they kind of hyped and hyped and hype and hyped, right? And then in the last episode of The Mandalorian, you get a cut scene with him taking over Java’s Empire. And I mean, even for a diehard fan like me, it left me scratching my.

00;27;17;08 – 00;27;18;00
Michelle
Head, right?

00;27;18;10 – 00;27;33;02
Joseph
Like, You’re a bounty hunter. Why do you want to be a crime lord? You don’t have an organization. You have one assassin friend of yours. You don’t know how to manage. Like, like being a crime lord is not.

00;27;33;11 – 00;27;34;21
Joseph
It’s a, you know, I don’t want to.

00;27;35;07 – 00;27;36;16
Michelle
You don’t just fall into it.

00;27;36;21 – 00;27;48;05
Joseph
It’s a tough job. You know you. You go to school for that. You know, you, you a for a four year degree, you know? But it’s it’s more complex than just waking up one day and decide that I’m going to be a crime, right?

00;27;48;05 – 00;28;04;15
Michelle
You don’t just go and take out the guy, especially when you haven’t been around exactly. And so long you’ve been in the shadows. Now I will say we have not. The the third episode dropped yesterday. We have not watched it yet, but I’ve seen various people.

00;28;04;15 – 00;28;05;17
Joseph
Through today them that.

00;28;05;21 – 00;28;06;02
Michelle
Yeah.

00;28;06;23 – 00;28;11;16
Michelle
There is, yeah, various people with the hashtag, not my Boba Fett.

00;28;11;16 – 00;28;11;29
Michelle
Yeah.

00;28;12;03 – 00;28;17;07
Michelle
So a lot more people, I think after this week’s episode or like.

00;28;17;25 – 00;28;25;05
Joseph
I had a couple of people on my Star Wars guild, watch it and not give spoilers away, but basically say it was it was the worst one yet.

00;28;25;06 – 00;28;26;15
Michelle
OK, so.

00;28;26;25 – 00;28;27;09
Joseph
So.

00;28;28;22 – 00;28;41;20
Michelle
And I think, you know, basically, like you said and what they they were talking about, I think with The Mandalorian, what the the biggest thing with that was. We didn’t know who anybody.

00;28;41;20 – 00;28;42;12
Michelle
Was, right?

00;28;42;17 – 00;29;05;02
Michelle
Everybody was a surprise. And then the end of the first episode, freakin baby Yoda. Yeah. And you know, and they admitted that they didn’t want to release toys beforehand. They they wanted to wait. And, you know, and that was so smart of them.

00;29;05;02 – 00;29;09;24
Michelle
And I think the problem with Book of Boba Fett is everybody knows everybody.

00;29;10;00 – 00;29;18;27
Joseph
But you see, and I’ll I would even go so far as to say, even if Mandalorian didn’t have Baby Yoda, it would have been as successful.

00;29;18;28 – 00;29;19;25
Michelle
Oh, absolutely.

00;29;19;25 – 00;29;26;04
Joseph
Because right up until that point, you introduced a brand new character. Nobody knew anything.

00;29;26;04 – 00;29;26;24
Michelle
About it, right?

00;29;26;25 – 00;29;29;01
Joseph
Everybody instantly fell in love, right?

00;29;29;02 – 00;29;34;13
Michelle
It could have been a baby, whatever the package could have been.

00;29;34;17 – 00;29;36;18
Joseph
And nobody was expecting it to be a baby because they.

00;29;36;29 – 00;29;37;05
Michelle
They.

00;29;37;06 – 00;29;38;18
Joseph
Tell you right off the bat to be 50.

00;29;38;18 – 00;29;42;10
Michelle
Years, it’s 50 years old. It could have been, you know, whatever.

00;29;42;10 – 00;29;47;04
Joseph
But like that opening scene of the show, right? Where it was the spaghetti western music.

00;29;47;16 – 00;29;47;22
Michelle
He.

00;29;47;22 – 00;29;49;05
Joseph
Walked into the cantina.

00;29;49;06 – 00;29;50;04
Michelle
The guy gets chopped in.

00;29;50;04 – 00;30;05;09
Joseph
Half, the guy gets chopped in half with it. I mean, it just it clicked on all fronts, right? Automatically have this. This just rugged, bad ass looking guy who, you know, it was that Han Solo, sorry about the mess, throw a coin in the bar type thing.

00;30;05;10 – 00;30;07;10
Joseph
Right, right. And it was everything that you wanted.

00;30;07;14 – 00;30;07;21
Michelle
Hmm.

00;30;08;15 – 00;30;17;14
Joseph
You know, right down until he teams up with the the assassin droid and he’s he’s on the web and he’s blasting the door like every thing clicked.

00;30;17;20 – 00;30;18;01
Michelle
Yeah.

00;30;18;02 – 00;30;22;09
Joseph
And then all of a sudden they just went over the top with Baby Yoda one over everyone else.

00;30;22;10 – 00;30;23;05
Michelle
Right, right.

00;30;24;09 – 00;30;34;22
Joseph
So I think no matter what, it would have been successful without it because it was a new character. You knew nothing about him. And now you’re going to go on his journey and take that journey with him.

00;30;34;23 – 00;30;35;07
Michelle
Right?

00;30;35;12 – 00;30;42;07
Joseph
Everyone that he met in that first season was somebody new that you never knew you met them and they added to the story.

00;30;42;08 – 00;30;43;01
Michelle
Right, right.

00;30;44;03 – 00;30;47;18
Joseph
But what does it need a series, right? Bowman never needed the series.

00;30;48;07 – 00;30;58;21
Michelle
And the only thing I can think of is with all the flashbacks and whatever that that’s going to lead up to why he decided to be a crime boss. I don’t know it.

00;30;58;21 – 00;31;15;01
Joseph
Just if they tell you right now if they want to save this season, OK, they need to have a flashback with him fighting Vader. That is the only way that you’re going to. You can even bring Luke Skywalker back for this, and it’s not going to cut it.

00;31;15;20 – 00;31;21;11
Joseph
He needs to have a flashback of him fighting Vader, and that gets him to some point that make him want to be a crime word.

00;31;21;13 – 00;31;21;22
Michelle
Okay.

00;31;22;03 – 00;31;25;24
Joseph
That’s it. Hmm. If Vader doesn’t show up, this season is a failure.

00;31;26;01 – 00;31;27;25
Michelle
OK, so all right.

00;31;27;25 – 00;31;28;26
Joseph
Well, anyway.

00;31;29;02 – 00;31;30;08
Michelle
We’ll have to wait and see.

00;31;30;16 – 00;31;35;03
Joseph
I’m glad to see that I’m not the only one who’s questioning the motivations of the show.

00;31;35;05 – 00;31;35;16
Michelle
Yup.

00;31;36;13 – 00;31;41;12
Joseph
That’s it for our tales from the edge of the galaxy. We’ll be right back with our entertainment news of the week.

00;31;48;29 – 00;32;13;11
Michelle
Insights into teens. A podcast series exploring the issues and challenges of today’s youth. Talking to real teens about real teen problems. Explore issues from braces to puberty, social anxiety to financial responsibility. Each week we talk about the topics concerning today’s youth.

00;32;14;00 – 00;32;38;13
Michelle
We look at how the issues affect teens, how to cope with these issues and how parents, friends and loved ones can help teens handle these challenges. Check out our video episodes on YouTube.com Backslash Insights Into Things. Catch our audio versions on podcast insights into teen XCOM.

00;32;40;17 – 00;32;43;29
Michelle
Or on the Web at insights into things dot com.

00;32;53;24 – 00;32;55;08
Joseph
Go for entertainment news.

00;32;55;25 – 00;33;23;03
Michelle
So it seems that Britney Spears fans now have a new purpose freeing Nichelle Nichols from her conservatorship. Coming to us from BuzzFeed News.com. The article talks about how a bunch of protesters actually were out, saying, We’re going to do whatever we can to make sure that there’s a lasting change for not just Britney, but for Nicole and

00;33;23;03 – 00;33;41;24
Michelle
for everyone who is trapped in this corrupt system. The chants outside the downtown Los Angeles courthouse were familiar, but this time they weren’t talking about Britney Spears free. Nichelle Nichols isolation is abuse. Hey, hey ho ho. The conservatorship has got to go.

00;33;42;04 – 00;33;59;17
Michelle
So on Monday afternoon, a group of just about a dozen FreeBritney supporters and fans of Nichelle Nichols, who became a Star Trek legend for her portrayal of Uehara, marched around Stanley Mosk courthouse to raise awareness about the 89 year old actor situation.

00;34;00;03 – 00;34;24;00
Michelle
Since 2018, Nichols has been living under what they believe is another abusive conservatorship that has allowed her son, Kyle Johnson, to take control of her life and finances and decide who she sees and where she lives. We’re going to do whatever we can to shed light on the issue and to make sure that there’s lasting change not

00;34;24;00 – 00;34;44;26
Michelle
just for Britney, but for Nicole, but everyone else who’s trapped, said the FreeBritney L.A. organizer Kevin Wu, who spoke with BuzzFeed News. Known for her trailblazing role as Lieutenant O’Hara in the original series that first aired in the 1960s.

00;34;45;07 – 00;35;11;08
Michelle
Nichols is now living with dementia, a condition that has made her susceptible to exploitation. Johnson claimed in his original petition to place her under the court supervision, but her longtime friend, Angelique Fawcett, a producer and actor, had argued that Nichols was able and is able to manage, manage her affairs with help from an assistant and that Johnson

00;35;11;08 – 00;35;27;14
Michelle
is not acting in her best interest. So when said, Fawcett says Johnson moved his mother out of her Woodland Hills home to New Mexico against her will, sold her property against her wishes and isolated her from her friends.

00;35;27;29 – 00;35;45;14
Michelle
She points to the troubling 2019 recording of Nichols screaming at Johnson to get his hands off of her and a disposition from a former conservator who raised concerns about him having control as proof that he is unfit to take care of his mother.

00;35;45;22 – 00;35;58;07
Michelle
You’re trying to get rid of me, Nichols cries at her son in the recording. You just can’t come and take somebody home and money just like that. Hey, it’s mine. Sorry, you’re old. You’re almost dead anyway. So I’m taking it.

00;35;58;15 – 00;36;23;00
Michelle
Fossett had told BuzzFeed News. Look at all these amazing old people who are out there doing things. They’re living the life til they last drop, and that’s really what I’m fighting for for Nichelle. So during a hearing on Monday, a Los Angeles County Court judge overruled Fossett’s objections to Johnson’s final accounting report from his mother’s conservatorship, which

00;36;23;00 – 00;36;45;15
Michelle
is now under the jurisdiction of a New Mexico court finding that she did not have standing to lodge her complaints that they did not pertain to a specific line item in the report. So the article goes on and talks about the different lawyers going back and forth, and basically at this point, it’s kind of up in the

00;36;45;15 – 00;37;08;03
Michelle
air. They had a couple of different fans that showed up, and the one person said, You know that being the fan who happens to be black and Latina said, you know, growing up. This was someone she could look up to a powerful black woman in a powerful role on television and that.

00;37;09;01 – 00;37;22;28
Michelle
You know, she just doesn’t feel that she’s getting a fair case, that she’s kind of being a slave. You know, in this situation and that, you know, people should should take this to heart and and care about it.

00;37;23;00 – 00;37;23;14
Michelle
So.

00;37;23;26 – 00;37;34;11
Joseph
You know, it’s funny. This kind of kind of took me by surprise because I didn’t realize that she was under conservative, nor do I really understand what the purpose of conservatorships are.

00;37;34;13 – 00;37;34;22
Michelle
Mm-Hmm.

00;37;34;24 – 00;37;43;01
Joseph
Or the legal ramifications. But it’s if it’s if the allegations are true, it’s unfortunate.

00;37;43;01 – 00;37;43;11
Michelle
Right?

00;37;43;20 – 00;37;53;13
Joseph
You know, she’s a groundbreaking legend. Mm hmm. Her industry and the things that she’s done. And if she’s really being treated the way that the allegations state that she is.

00;37;53;14 – 00;37;53;23
Michelle
Mm-Hmm.

00;37;54;08 – 00;37;56;10
Joseph
That’s a shame. And something needs to be done about it.

00;37;56;11 – 00;37;56;21
Michelle
Right.

00;37;56;29 – 00;38;05;26
Joseph
But I don’t know. I mean, if she is living with dementia, how far gone, you know, right? Is she at this point in time? Can she support?

00;38;05;28 – 00;38;06;19
Michelle
Exactly.

00;38;06;23 – 00;38;07;10
Michelle
You know.

00;38;07;23 – 00;38;29;17
Joseph
But I guess my point is is, if anything, the system itself needs to be. Revised to the point, do you have more qualified people making independent analysis on an ongoing basis, right? Making it making a ruling once and having it stand for decades probably isn’t the best way for something like this.

00;38;29;17 – 00;38;36;29
Joseph
There has to be a review process, right? I mean, how even people who are in jail get get are up for parole periodically and get reviews?

00;38;37;00 – 00;38;37;24
Michelle
Right, right.

00;38;37;25 – 00;38;39;15
Joseph
You know, it’s the least that you can do right.

00;38;39;15 – 00;38;50;09
Michelle
And that’s the whole thing. You know what it kind of sounds like is with these conservatorships until somebody fights against it, it’s kind of like there forever. You know, it.

00;38;50;09 – 00;38;52;09
Joseph
Almost like, that’s really where the problem.

00;38;52;09 – 00;38;52;26
Michelle
Is. Yeah.

00;38;52;27 – 00;38;55;29
Michelle
Like, it almost sounds like it’s a power of attorney type.

00;38;55;29 – 00;38;58;17
Michelle
Right. And I’m sure being there is.

00;39;00;08 – 00;39;02;14
Joseph
There’s a legitimate purpose to these.

00;39;02;19 – 00;39;05;03
Michelle
Life or else they wouldn’t have them.

00;39;05;04 – 00;39;13;23
Joseph
If you look at what was happening to Britney Spears when she came on the conservatorship, I don’t think there’s very many people in the world that would say it probably saved her life.

00;39;13;27 – 00;39;14;07
Michelle
Right?

00;39;14;21 – 00;39;33;03
Joseph
So but it’s one of those things that, OK, I’m young and stupid now. Right? In ten years, maybe, maybe for an hour, but we need to revamp. But. Right. But is it every ten years you evaluate? Is it every year like there has to be something in there to do to protect people?

00;39;33;04 – 00;39;33;16
Michelle
Right?

00;39;35;02 – 00;39;40;09
Joseph
Anyway, let’s talk about something even more of an conservatorships. The Golden Globes.

00;39;40;09 – 00;40;00;18
Michelle
Yeah. So until Sunday night, I had no idea that they were even going on so live from Twitter and press release. Bless. It’s the 2122 Golden Globes. So with no live stream or cable broadcast victory, lapping celebs cringe worthy hosts jokes.

00;40;00;27 – 00;40;27;27
Michelle
Completely pointless performances. Red carpet peacocking or even press the show somewhat still went on. So despite a scandal regarding its lack of diversity, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association went forth with announcing winners for the best in TV and film on Sunday, skewing the normal chaos for a toned down live announcement.

00;40;27;28 – 00;40;47;28
Michelle
Mainly since no network would air the spectacle. That means a very small number of people who typically watch last year’s ratings were actually abysmal were forced to simply imagine Ricky Gervais is smack talking an A-list cleavage while spending yet another pandemic night in.

00;40;48;13 – 00;41;13;00
Michelle
Things may look a little different this year. Read a very understated tweet from the official Golden Globes account as its private affair at the Beverly’s Beverly Hilton in Lausanne in Beverly Hills, California, began. So the film The Power of the Dog and West Side Story scored top honors for the night, winning Best Motion Motion Picture and Drama

00;41;13;00 – 00;41;30;22
Michelle
and Musical or comedy. Nicole Kidman won for Being the Ricardos, Will Smith won for King, Richard for Best Actor and Best Actress. And this was Smith’s first Golden Globe win, despite being nominated six times in the drama category.

00;41;31;25 – 00;42;00;22
Michelle
Rachel Zegler won for West Side Story and Andrew Garfield for Tick, Tick, Boom in a musical or comedy categories. As for television hacks and it starred Jean Smart were victorious with Best Television Series, Musical or comedy and Best Actress with which marks her first Globe win and Jason Sudeikis won for Ted Lasso for Best Actor in the

00;42;00;22 – 00;42;22;21
Michelle
drama category for television. Secession won Best Television Series and its star Jeremy Strong scored the win for acting and pose. Actress Molina Jay Rodriguez made history as the first trans actress ever to win a Golden Globe, and it also marked her first win.

00;42;23;10 – 00;42;26;04
Joseph
Wow, that’s very interesting.

00;42;29;06 – 00;42;45;09
Michelle
It’s amazing how normally when the Golden Globes are on, it’s like a three hour show, and it took me less than five minutes to to go through all of that. So really, they could have just tweeted, you know.

00;42;45;16 – 00;42;48;25
Michelle
Every well, minute I’ll be. I know.

00;42;48;25 – 00;42;49;01
Joseph
You.

00;42;49;12 – 00;42;49;20
Michelle
You don’t.

00;42;49;20 – 00;42;50;28
Joseph
Care. I don’t.

00;42;50;29 – 00;42;51;13
Michelle
I know.

00;42;51;14 – 00;42;53;12
Joseph
I couldn’t muster enough care to even.

00;42;53;12 – 00;42;53;15
Michelle
Go.

00;42;53;16 – 00;42;55;24
Joseph
I know and read that before the show.

00;42;56;10 – 00;42;57;14
Michelle
The good thing you didn’t have to.

00;42;58;06 – 00;43;01;10
Joseph
I kind of feel the same thing about all the awards.

00;43;01;12 – 00;43;01;24
Michelle
I know.

00;43;02;06 – 00;43;11;19
Joseph
You know, these these actors, I think they they’re pretty well compensated. They probably don’t need any more glad handing or people patting them on the back at this point.

00;43;11;19 – 00;43;20;08
Michelle
And that’s what it kind of makes you wonder now during all of this. What’s the point of it?

00;43;21;00 – 00;43;25;02
Joseph
It’s basically to make really rich people feel better about themselves?

00;43;25;13 – 00;43;26;01
Michelle
Yeah.

00;43;26;08 – 00;43;34;23
Joseph
And I’m sorry, but there’s. Other thing there’s paint drying that needs to be watched that deserves more attention than this show.

00;43;34;23 – 00;43;35;04
Michelle
Sure.

00;43;36;03 – 00;43;39;27
Joseph
And we have grass that grows that that deserves to be watched more than he should. Okay.

00;43;40;05 – 00;43;40;20
Michelle
Sure.

00;43;41;16 – 00;43;45;09
Joseph
And you know, it’s probably, you know, toxic for me to say something like that on an.

00;43;45;09 – 00;43;45;22
Michelle
Entertaining.

00;43;45;22 – 00;43;47;05
Michelle
Entertainment podcast.

00;43;47;06 – 00;43;47;17
Michelle
Right?

00;43;47;22 – 00;43;55;09
Joseph
I’ll be happy to watch the movies and review the movies. I just can’t get in to award shows. I really can’t.

00;43;55;19 – 00;44;08;19
Michelle
Well, and I think part of the the award season is for those that you know, Oh, I didn’t see that, but it got, you know, it won for the award. Maybe it’s something worthwhile to.

00;44;08;20 – 00;44;10;12
Michelle
Show on the list, right?

00;44;10;22 – 00;44;13;01
Joseph
You can have your award show, have your dinner and.

00;44;13;04 – 00;44;13;26
Michelle
All that stuff.

00;44;13;28 – 00;44;15;16
Michelle
And that’s what they did. They don’t they.

00;44;15;17 – 00;44;17;16
Joseph
Don’t preempt my TV shows in order.

00;44;17;16 – 00;44;19;07
Michelle
To do, and they didn’t this time.

00;44;19;08 – 00;44;20;16
Joseph
That’s what’s perfect, right?

00;44;20;17 – 00;44;21;19
Michelle
So this was.

00;44;21;19 – 00;44;22;19
Joseph
Happy with this format.

00;44;22;19 – 00;44;22;28
Michelle
Right.

00;44;22;28 – 00;44;26;16
Michelle
So this was your perfect way of doing it.

00;44;26;24 – 00;44;27;21
Joseph
This is ideal.

00;44;27;25 – 00;44;28;05
Michelle
OK.

00;44;28;14 – 00;44;33;01
Joseph
Keep it on Twitter or some other social networks that I don’t worry about, and that’s perfect for me.

00;44;33;08 – 00;44;33;21
Michelle
Sure.

00;44;34;24 – 00;44;41;24
Joseph
And that’s what we had for our entertainment news. I busted on the Golden Globes when I busted on Disney today, and that’s pretty bad.

00;44;41;27 – 00;44;44;13
Michelle
Well, because you agreed with all the busting of Disney.

00;44;44;13 – 00;44;45;04
Michelle
So true.

00;44;45;05 – 00;44;57;11
Joseph
Yeah. Anyway, we’ll be right back with our insightful picks of the week. Go for your insightful pick.

00;44;57;12 – 00;45;15;09
Michelle
So speaking of. Tick, tick, boom. Was pretty good. I was like, no, it’s over there. No, it’s over there. Of tick, tick, boom. This happens to be my insightful pick of the week. I actually had watched this during the holiday break.

00;45;15;10 – 00;45;29;18
Michelle
It was something that popped up on Netflix and I had heard about it and I was like, OK. So on the brink of turning 30, a promising theater composer navigates love, friendship and the pressure to create something great before time runs out.

00;45;30;01 – 00;45;56;20
Michelle
Based on the autobiographical musical by playwright Jonathan Larson, it’s the story of aspiring composer in New York City who is worried he made the wrong career choice while navigating the pressures of love and friendship. So, tick, tick, Boom is a 2021 American biographical musical drama directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda in his first directorial debut.

00;45;56;29 – 00;46;14;25
Michelle
Written by Steve Levinson, Stephen Levinson, it is based on the stage musical by the same name by Jonathan Jonathan Larson, a semi-autobiographical story about his writing a musical to enter the industry. So to give a little background of who Jonathan Larson is.

00;46;15;17 – 00;46;40;12
Michelle
Anybody that’s into theater would know him. He is the writer and composer of rent, and unfortunately, he passed away within hours of rent, opening up on Broadway. And you know, he spent, you know, most of his life trying to to get a Broadway show to get something.

00;46;40;17 – 00;47;04;05
Michelle
He wrote a couple of different things. And the idea behind Tick, Tick, Boom is he’s trying to to get this one show produced and it, you know, they go through the workshops and then unfortunately, it doesn’t work. But the idea is that he kind of has for it or, you know, move on to the next show.

00;47;04;05 – 00;47;23;28
Michelle
And basically this becomes this and this becomes this. So you can see if it’s something where you’ve ever watched rent or saw rent. You can see different pieces, you know of his life that kind of became it. And he, you know, he kind of feels like, you know, if he doesn’t have something by 30, he’s never going

00;47;23;28 – 00;47;56;07
Michelle
to be successful. And unfortunately, he didn’t live much past 30, but he did become successful. It’s very interesting. And Andrew Garfield. Garfield is spectacular, and he does. The singing and the dancing and stuff like that would have never thought, you know, Spider-Man, you know, did this and there’s tons and tons of Easter eggs throughout the movie.

00;47;56;07 – 00;48;18;23
Michelle
You can actually, you know, go on YouTube and look for the Easter eggs of all these different Broadway stars who kind of, you know, lend their little cameos to it. one of the interesting cameos is one of the characters is Stephen Sondheim, and they have an actor playing him in it.

00;48;19;05 – 00;48;36;15
Michelle
But at the end of the the the movie, Steven calls and leaves a voicemail for Jonathan. And this was when Steven was still still living, and he had talked to Lynn Lin-Manuel, and he said, Oh, we’re going to do, we’re going to do this voicemail thing or whatever.

00;48;36;27 – 00;48;54;18
Michelle
Would you like to do it? So it’s actually Stephen Sondheim leaving the voicemail. And he actually told Lin-Manuel Miranda, I wouldn’t say it like this this. And he rewrote the script for it and did it. And then, you know, unfortunately, not much.

00;48;55;05 – 00;49;11;03
Michelle
After that, he had passed away, but he saw a preview of the movie and loved it and everything. So it was kind of nice to have the blessing because for Jonathan Larson, Stephen Sondheim was like his idol. He wanted to be like him.

00;49;11;04 – 00;49;22;29
Michelle
So it was very, very nice to have that intertwined in in the movie. So if you’re a theater type of person, this would definitely be a movie that you’d be interested in seeing.

00;49;23;03 – 00;49;24;03
Joseph
OK, good luck.

00;49;24;04 – 00;49;24;17
Michelle
Thank you.

00;49;29;27 – 00;49;35;00
Joseph
So my pick this week full disclosure is one that I’m not finished with yet. I’m about.

00;49;35;20 – 00;49;36;14
Michelle
80.

00;49;36;18 – 00;50;05;26
Joseph
6% through, according to my Kindle. And that’s Leviathan Falls the ninth and final novel in The Expanse series by James S.A. Corey, the biggest science fiction series of the decade, comes to an incredible conclusion. In the ninth and final novel in this Hugo Award winning experience series with Leviathan Falls, the Laconia Empire has fallen, setting the 13

00;50;05;27 – 00;50;32;08
Joseph
hundred solar systems free from the rule of Winston Durant. But the ancient enemy that killed the gate builders is awake, and the war against our universe has begun again. In the dead system of Andrew Elvia Couper, he leads a desperate scientific mission to understand what the builders were and what destroyed them, even if it means compromising herself

00;50;32;08 – 00;50;56;16
Joseph
and her half alien children who bear the weight of her investigation. Through the wide flung systems of humanity, Colonel Ileana Tanaka hunts for Doherty’s missing daughter and the shattered emperor himself. And on the road, Senator James Holden and his crew struggle to build a future for humanity out of the shards and ruins of all that has come

00;50;56;16 – 00;51;19;02
Joseph
before. As nearly unimaginable forces prepare to annihilate all human life, Holden and a group of unlikely allies discover a last desperate chance to unite all of humanity with the promise of a vast galactic civilization free from war factions, lies and secrets if they win.

00;51;20;01 – 00;51;40;15
Joseph
But the price of victory may be worse than the cost of defeat. So the books, if you’re a fan of because we we profiled the Expanse television series on here as well. So if you’re a fan of that but haven’t read the books you’re going to find, there’s deep similarities between the novels in the books, but they

00;51;40;21 – 00;52;05;21
Joseph
diverge at certain points. The current season of experience gets you up to about Book five. I want to say four or five somewhere in there. This is book nine in the series, this is after a large time gap, and it builds on the foundation of everything that came before it, and they do a very good job.

00;52;05;21 – 00;52;18;26
Joseph
I can’t put this book down every chance I get them. I’m picking it up to finish this book because it’s such a well-written novel. And the heartbreaking thing is, it’s the last one in the series. It’s been such a great series.

00;52;18;26 – 00;52;40;09
Joseph
I’ve read all the other novels, and it’s just probably one of the best written science fiction novel series I’ve seen in a very long time in, you know, looking on the screen here. Even George R.R. Martin writes interplanetary adventure the way it ought to be written, and nothing can really summarize it better than that.

00;52;40;10 – 00;52;40;18
Michelle
Mm-Hmm.

00;52;40;29 – 00;53;08;01
Joseph
The character development, the storytelling, the the reinforcement of foundational things that happened back in book one, and you don’t have to go back and reread the books because they have these reoccurring themes. And it’s just it’s such a well-supported book series on its own that it’s definitely worth a read.

00;53;09;13 – 00;53;26;11
Joseph
And and so far, it’s a fitting finale to the The nine book series. Leviathan Falls available in hardback. Digital e-book Pretty much anywhere. You can get books now, and that’s it for my pick. We’ll be right back with.

00;53;28;13 – 00;53;47;25
Joseph
Stuff, but not the same stuff that we always do. Oh, so that’s all we had today. We were going to do after hours, but we didn’t have anything new, so I didn’t want to bother people with that as we get closer.

00;53;48;06 – 00;54;03;12
Joseph
Our first show coming up, it’s going to be in March. As we get closer to that, we’ll talk about that a little bit. Sure. And and we’ll have more added to the calendar. But before we do go, I would want to once again invite folks to subscribe to the podcast.

00;54;03;13 – 00;54;21;15
Joseph
You can get audio versions of this podcast, listeners insights into entertainment. VIDEO versions of all the network’s podcasts can be listed, found listeners insights into things we’re available on Pandora, Castro, Stitcher Pod being any place you can get a podcast these days.

00;54;22;08 – 00;54;31;13
Joseph
I would also invite you to contact us right in. It is on social media and you can get us on email comments and insights into things.

00;54;31;13 – 00;54;37;12
Michelle
Dot com on Twitter at twitter.com. Backslash Insights into underscore things.

00;54;37;12 – 00;54;50;10
Joseph
We do stream on Twitch five days a week at Twitch Dot TV slash insights into things If you are an Amazon Prime subscriber, you do get a free monthly Twitch Prime subscription. We’d appreciate it if you threw that our way.

00;54;50;12 – 00;54;56;01
Michelle
You can find us on Facebook at facebook.com Backslash Insights Into Things podcast.

00;54;56;03 – 00;55;01;16
Joseph
You can find audio versions of this podcast on the web at podcast Dot Insights into Entertainment Dot Com.

00;55;01;21 – 00;55;06;14
Michelle
You can find us on Instagram at instagram.com. Backslash Insights Into Things.

00;55;06;14 – 00;55;11;15
Joseph
VIDEO Versions of the podcast can be found that podcast on insights into things dot com.

00;55;11;23 – 00;55;27;05
Michelle
And for links to all of our various places where you can find us and even some information about each one of the hosts, you can go to our official website on WW Dot Insights into things dot com.

00;55;27;05 – 00;55;28;11
Joseph
And that’s it. Another one in.

00;55;28;11 – 00;55;28;24
Michelle
The books.

00;55;28;24 – 00;55;29;13
Michelle
Have a good week.

00;55;29;13 – 00;55;30;10
Michelle
Everyone buying.

00;55;30;13 – 00;55;30;26
Michelle
By.