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Dom Bettinelli, Maria Johnson, and Lisa Hendey discuss the Pixar movie The Incredibles 2, including whether the true superpower in the Parr family is their ability come together as a team, how Bob and Helen come to appreciate each other’s roles, and how Jack Jack steals the show again.
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Dom Bettinelli, Shelly Kelly, and Fr. Cory Sticha continue their discussion of the Indiana Jones movies with 1984’s Temple of Doom, including why this movie was so much darker and violent, how fan assessment has changed over the years, and the very best thing about the movie.
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Dom Bettinelli, Thomas Sanjurjo, and Fr. Michael Gossett discuss Black Panther, the Marvel movie that was an unexpected blockbuster, looking at the hidden layers and deeper meanings in a movie about identity and our obligations to those around us.
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The story in recent Pixar animated movie Coco revolved around the Mexican celebration of the Days of the Dead/Dia de Muertos. Dom Bettinelli, Deborah Schaben, and Angela Sealana discuss the Mexican and Catholic cultural traditions that informed the movie from both insider and outsider perspectives, as well as the deeper layers and meanings in the music and even the names.
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Dom Bettinelli, Steve Nelson, and Fr. Michael Gossett discuss the first three seasons of The Expanse (and the book series it’s based on), especially the moral choices faced by the characters, the complex societies that it showcases, and how religion shows up in surprising ways.
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Dom Bettinelli, Lisa Hendey, Fr. Cory Sticha, and Sarah Vabulas dive into the world of Ready Player One, one of the biggest novels of the last 10 years and an epic Stephen Spielberg film to discuss the deeper layers and hidden meanings, including the origins of some of the ’80s pop culture references and the film’s message warning against getting lost in virtual worlds and forgetting what’s real. They then apply those lessons to many of the pitfalls we face today in online gaming and social media. Plus they geek out over the coolest hidden Easter eggs!
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Dom Bettinelli, Luis Escobar, and Lisa Hendey dig into the deeper layers and hidden meanings in Avengers: Infinity War, including the underlying message of the value of a single life and that you can’t weigh one life against billions of others. Plus, who has the real agency in IW and theories about the sequel.
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From a casual fan of the movies to a hardcore geek who absorbs all related media, our panel of Dom Bettinelli, Shelly Kelly, and Steve Nelson look at the deeper layers of Solo: A Star Wars Story, ponder what made so many stay away, and conclude that it’s a very good movie that more people should see.
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Our panel of Dom Bettinelli, Mac Barron, Shelly Kelley, and Fr. Cory Sticha digs deep into one of the most beloved movies ever, looking for the hidden layers and meanings, including the real story of how the Ark of the Covenant was lost (and maybe found?), how Indy held his breath for so long, and why there are apples everywhere.
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A classic tale of a castaway family set in space, relying on each other to face the unknown. Dom Bettinelli, Lisa Hendey, and Cy Kellett discuss the deeper layers and meanings of Netflix’s Lost in Space, including its connection to the 1960s original and to Swiss Family Robinson, whether the portrayal of marriage and family life is realistic, and what they think of the new Dr. Smith and the Robot.
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Join Jimmy Akin, Mac Barron, Dom Bettinelli, and Fr. Cory Sticha for the second part of their discussion of The Good Place, a groundbreaking network sitcom that cleverly and comedically deals with life, death, the afterlife and philosophy. This episode contains spoilers for the Season 1 finale and Season 2.
If you haven’t watched The Good Place, then we encourage you to listen to the previous episode first and wait on this episode until you’ve seen the first season finale. If you have watched The Good Place, then you know this sort of thing is right up our alley and we have a great discussion of the implications of the story and its comedic vision of the afterlife.
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A sitcom about the afterlife that takes philsophy and ethics seriously? Yes, please! Jimmy Akin, Mac Barron, Dom Bettinelli, and Fr. Cory Sticha talk about the premise of the show and what happens in the first season, not including the finale. We cover that and season 2 in our next episode.
If you haven’t watched The Good Place, then we encourage you to listen to this episode first and wait on the next episode until you’ve seen the first season finale. If you have watched The Good Place, then you know this sort of thing is right up our alley and we have a great discussion of the implications of the story and its comedic vision of the afterlife.
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It’s the second season of the revived X-Files. Jimmy Akin, Dom Bettinelli, and Maria Johnson talk about the return of this amazing series, how well the episodes carry on the X-Files tradition, and the high and low points.
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Our panel discusses the deeper meanings and hidden layers of Star Wars The Last Jedi, including Luke’s true motivations in the story and why the filmmakers did it this way, whether Rey has any flaws, plus their favorite and least favorite bits.
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Jimmy Akin, Dom Bettinelli and Fr. Cory Sticha return to look at the second half of the first season of Star Trek Discovery. How did their theories about what would happen hold up? They also assess the season as a whole, look at each character and the cast and then discuss that amazing cliffhanger.
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Jimmy Akin, Dom Bettinelli, and Fr. Cory Sticha discuss and analyze the first half of the first season of Star Trek: Discovery. Does it live up to the hype? Is it a worthy successor to all the Star Trek that comes before? Plus discussions of streaming v. broadcast, the more mature content and themes, the dark tone, and how it fits in Star Trek continuity.
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Jimmy Akin, Dom Bettinelli, and Fr. Cory Sticha analyze the first half season of the new hit Fox TV show The Orville. Is it just a Star Trek parody or is it a worthy successor? We discuss the humor as well as the drama and the show’s treatment of religion, relationships, and culture.
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Caution: This episode contains spoilers!
Fr. Roderick Vonhögen and Domenico Bettinelli analyze Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
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Beth, Dom and Fr. Roderick discuss season 1 of the Netflix hit-series ‘Stranger Things’.
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