This fortnight, Nick and Alastair watch the entire second season of Marvel-Netflix’s The Punisher and proceed to spoil the hell out of it, much like The Punisher himself at a naughty child’s birthday party.

But first, some discussion of other culture consumed, such as I’m A Joke And So Are You, a book about the science and psychology of comedy by Robin Ince, and the hot hot hot new Netflix show Russian Doll.

And then Nick and Alastair armour up and dive into The Punisher season 2 (7:28), complete, again, with pretty full spoilers. Will they enjoy it as much as they did season 1, back in MFV #51? Are the cartoon mice at Disney willing to stare all the way into Frank Castle’s serial-killing heart?

Finally, after a season of it driving the villain in this show, they ask the related question: is amnesia a valid excuse? (33:42)

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Nick and Alastair stare through the Glass at the conclusion of M. Night Shyamalan’s grounded superhero trilogy, following Split and Unbreakable.

But first, Nick’s read Grant Morrison’s Supergods, a history of the superhero comic, while Alastair’s seen new movie Stan & Ollie, a history of Laurel & Hardy.

And then they begin exploring Glass (9:02), bringing the superheroic alter egos of Bruce Willis, James McAvoy and Samuel L. Jackson together for one epic… therapy session.

To follow that, it’s time to ask: what other films from 10-20 years ago need a belated sequel? (25:22)

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Big moment in MFV history this fortnight, as they tackle one of Alastair’s favourite shows: grim crime drama Luther staring Idris Elba!

But first, Nick and Alastair have other impressively recent culture to discuss, such as Black Mirror: Bandersnatch and well-reviewed new movie The Favourite.

And then they’re pacing the grim streets of London with the BBC’s trenchcoated angry-cop in the fifth series of Luther (7:47). Can he overcome his relationship issues with Alice to actually solve some crime?

More importantly, there’s the other question of the moment: is Luther this generation’s Poirot? (24:38)

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It’s the annual end-of-year extravaganza! Nick and Alastair look back on the TV and film of 2018, and then try to sort it all into content-friendly lists.

But first – Alastair goes back to his roots with guntastic Netflix show Altered Carbon, while Nick’s read warmhearted novel Our Child Of The Stars by Stephen Cox.

And then it’s into the business of the year, with discussion of 2018’s film trends. Can anything stop the superheroes? (6:01) And how will they fare in each of the hosts’ top five movies? (17:43)

TV gets the same discussion as we examine the impact of streaming service wars on our lives (37:38) and then chart our favourite shows, many of which aired on Netflix (47:07).

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Back on schedule for the festive period, it’s time to chat about DC’s latest superhero release, Aquaman!

But first Nick and Alastair have seen some other recent cultural items, such as Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse and the ending of the recent Doctor Who season, following on from their recent entire episode on the subject.

And then we dive into the damp curls of Aquaman (9:24), in which DC’s fish-king dives into his solo adventure and gets wet all over the world.

Lastly, in this year’s seasonal question section, we ask: who would throw a better Christmas party – the Avengers or the Justice League? (32:22)

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A week late due to Nick’s computer dying, but it’s here! The MFV Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald episode!

But first, Alastair has seen brand new movie Wreck-It Ralph 2, whereas Nick is retreating into elderly sitcom The US Office. But at least they both enjoyed themselves.

Which stands in sharp contrast to Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (10:33), a film diving into a part of Harry Potter mythology even hardcore fans are struggling to care about, and Nick and Alastair are not in the fandom.

Which leads us neatly into our related question: what does it take to make the fandom turn on a franchise? (27:47) And no, the answer isn’t just casting Johnny Depp.

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This fortnight, in an episode that just screams Delayed Halloween Special, Nick and Alastair cover Netflix’s teen horror reboot The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.

But before that, they’ve also got to talk about their recent intake, such as Nick reading Kill Or Be Killed by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips from Image Comics – and since a comic is mentioned, there’s time to pay homage to the recently departed Stan Lee. Equally depressing, Alastair’s read the dystopian novel 84K by Claire North.

And then it’s down the horror mines, to find out whether Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (11:55) is a horror, a comedy or the unholy misshapen cloven-hooved bastard child of both. With various spoilers throughout, it has to be said.

Lastly, time to ask: just where is the line between camp, fun Halloweeny horror and the real grim disturbing stuff? (35:31) Does the line even exist? (Also some Sabrina spoilers here, by the way.)

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This fortnight, Nick and Alastair return to the Defenderverse for the full Marvel’s Daredevil season 3 experience, as sixteen-year-old Matt Murdock dresses in black and throws a great big tantrum.

But first, they look at such recent consumptions as the movie Peterloo by Mike Leigh, which Alastair has written more about on his blog, and Netflix’s Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, a show you may hear about again in MFV-land soon.

And then it’s into the dungeon with Daredevil (8:37) as Nick and Alastair find out whether this new season can reinvigorate the show by putting the Kingpin back on centre-stage, complete with inevitable disparaging remarks about past storylines involving the Hand.

Moderate spoilers throughout, pushing into hardcore ending details from 32:07 onwards. Oh, and if you’re into this topic, you may enjoy this bonus clip from the MFV #74 recording where Alastair found out Luke Cage was cancelled live on air.

For their follow-up question, they ask: does knowing the source comic change the viewing experience? (37:15) Of course, they’re doing this because the new Daredevil season draws heavily on classic comics storyline Born Again, which Nick and Alastair both read back in MFV #43.

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This fortnight, Nick and Alastair take on the first two episodes of Doctor Who to feature Jodie Whittaker as the thirteenth Doctor!

But first, Nick talks about his return to undead procedural show iZombie, while Alastair’s been off watching his annual assortment of cinema treats at the London Film Festival.

And then it’s time for the first two episodes (not the third, sorry, scheduling) of Doctor Who (13:11), beginning a new era of Chris Chibnall as showrunner and Whittaker as the first female Doctor. Can they possibly live up to expectations?

And then we ask related important question: how much do production values matter? (35:59)

This episode is sponsored (spiritually, not financially) by new comic The Little Deaths of Watson Tower, written by our very own Nick Bryan and drawn by Rosie Alexander. It’s a short story about a group of kids who are turned into tiny grim reapers and end up confronting death at various levels.

Check out Rosie’s excellent cover to the right, and if you want to check it out, click here to see more details, see interior art and buy it in either print or PDF form.

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