Books & Nachos

The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells

H.G. Wells saw the future of modern warfare when he imagined meteor showers bringing bellicose Martian tripods down upon unsuspecting Victorian England. Stuart In LA has known The War of the Worlds through its many offshoots - the infamous 1938 Orson Welles radio broadcast, the 1953 Hollywood disaster movie, the 1980's syndicated TV show, and the Tom Cruise/Steven Spielberg remake currently being reviewed for special donors at NowPlayingPodcast.com. But he's never read the 19th Century original novel until now. Listen and find out if he thinks the source material still stands as a pillar of the science fiction genre.

Batman: Year One by Frank Miller

Spoiler Alert! This podcast discusses many key elements of Batman: Year One and Batman: Year Two. After DC had a Crisis on Infinite Earths it was time to revisit and revamp the origins of many of their core superheroes, including the Batman. Written by Frank Miller one year after his acclaimed The Dark Knight Returns series, Year One looks at both Batman and Commissioner Gordon during their first year fighting crime in Gotham City. This arc provided a grounded take on the Batman origin, and would inspire the movies Batman Begins and Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, as well as having its own feature-length direct-to-DVD movie adaptation. Now, inspired by Now Playing Podcast's Batman movie retrospective series, the dynamic duo of Arnie and Jakob continue reviewing these seminal Batman stories, Arnie having never read the series before this review, and Jakob a long time fan of the series. And they also take a brief look at the follow-up comic series, Batman: Year Two

E.T.: The Book of the Green Planet by William Kotzwinkle

Steven Spielberg swore he'd never film a follow-up to his most popular and personal work - the 1982 sci-fi fantasy E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. But in 1985, the director did grant children's author William Kotzwinkle approval to publish an account of what happened to the adorable alien being after he left Elliott on Earth. As a companion to the current NowPlayingPodcast.com special donation podcast, Stuart In LA reviews E.T: THE BOOK OF THE GREEN PLANET and takes in the wonders of a never-before-depicted home world. Will Stuart be over the moon about getting a second adventure with his childhood idol, or does a failure to "be good" earn the sequel a glowing middle finger? Listen and find out!

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller

Spoiler Alert! This podcast discusses many key elements of The Dark Knight Returns and The Dark Knight Strikes Again. Batman was a campy comic character best known for his 1960s TV series and the Batdance until 1986 when Frank Miller reinvented the character in The Dark Knight Returns, a 4-issue limited comic series telling the tale of an older, retired Batman in an alternate version of the DC universe. Now, inspired by Now Playing Podcast's Batman movie retrospective series, the dynamic duo of Arnie and Jakob review this seminal comic series, Arnie having never read the series before this review, and Jakob a long time fan of the series. And they also take a brief look at Frank Miller's sequel comic series, The Dark Knight Strikes Back.

Aliens: Female War

As a companion to the current NowPlayingPodcast.com ALIEN donation drive, Stuart In LA takes fans of the franchise into the extended universe of the comic books and novels that serve as an alternative sequel to the James Cameron film ALIENS. Now Ripley will get her revenge as the series concludes in a four issue color comic book entitled EARTH WAR, later novelized as FEMALE WAR. Will the plan to capture a telepathic alien Super Queen lead to the extinction of all xenomorphs on Earth? And how exactly did our sci-fi heroine get home after diving into the lead works of ALIEN 3? Listen and find out!

Aliens: Nightmare Asylum by Steve Perry

As a companion to the current NowPlayingPodcast.com ALIEN donation drive, Stuart In LA takes fans of the franchise into the extended universe of the comic books and novels that serve as an alternative sequel to the James Cameron film ALIENS.The retrospective continues with second installment NIGHTMARE ASYLUM - a four issue color comic book later adapted into a novel by Steve Perry. Hicks and Newt escape an Earth overrun by aliens only to find themselves enlisted in an experimental military outfit where xenomorphs are bred to be super soldiers. Plus Ripley returns to the series with her own ideas on winning the war. Listen to Stuart sound off about all of this and more!

Aliens: Earth Hive by Steve Perry

As a companion to the current NowPlayingPodcast.com ALIEN donation drive, Stuart In LA takes fans of the franchise into the extended universe of the comic books and novels that serve as an alternative sequel to the James Cameron film ALIENS. The retrospective kicks off with graphic novel ALIENS: OUTBREAK and prose novel ALIENS: EARTH HIVE - companion works that chronicle the way HR Geiger's fearsome extra-terrestrial overruns a planet. Have the authors and illustrators conceived of a more deserving destiny for Hicks and Newt in print than they received on film? And what does the series look like without Ripley? Join Stuart now to find out!

My Incredible Life as the Hulk by Lou Ferrigno

Despite three feature films and fifty years of comics, to many people the words "The Incredible Hulk" recall a vivid memory of Lou Ferrigno fully made up in green body paint. The role that made the bodybuilder famous, The Hulk has always been a part of Ferrigno's life. As a young child, Ferrigno was inspired to bodybuild by the Hulk in comics, and in the Marvel movies Ferrigno provides the voice of the green giant. But in 2003, to tie into his cameo appearance in Ang Lee's Hulk film, Ferrigno's autobiography tells of how he got the role of Hulk, retelling tales from all five seasons and the three reunion movies, and his life after Hulk. Listen to Arnie's review of Lou's autobiography now, then head to to hear Arnie, Stuart, and Jakob review all of the Incredible Hulk movies, including Ferrigno's TV movies!

Hannibal Rising

Prepare the Chianti and fava beans. Books and Nachos is having a month long meal with author Thomas Harris and his seminal creation Dr. Hannibal Lecter. As a companion podcast to the current movie review series over at NowPlayingPodcast.com, Stuart In LA is cracking the spines on the four novels that inspired the five films to feature the caged cannibal.

 

The 2006 novel Hannibal Rising delves into the memory palace of Lecter's mind to unlock the secret traumas that drive his thirst for vengeance and human flesh. Can this blunt little tool dissect our favorite serial killer, or will the prequel leave a bad taste in readers' mouths? Join Stuart for the final conversation in this series to find out!

Hannibal

Prepare the Chianti and fava beans. Books and Nachos is having a month long meal with author Thomas Harris and his seminal creation Dr. Hannibal Lecter. As a companion podcast to the current movie review series over at NowPlayingPodcast.com, Stuart In LA is cracking the spines on the four novels that inspired the five films to feature the caged cannibal

 

It took more than a decade for writer Thomas Harris to cook up Hannibal - the sprawling 1999 novel that finds Lecter evading capture in Italy to reunite with disillusioned FBI agent Clarice Starling in America. Does our notorious antihero get his just desserts, or is this unconventional love story too hard to swallow? Join Stuart now to find out!