A Cast of Kings - A Game of Thrones Podcast: A Cast of Kings – Pre-Season 5 Bonus Ep.
April 14, 2015 11:28 AM - Subscribe
In this bonus episode of “A Cast of Kings,” Joanna Robinson and David Chen discuss the plotlines they’re looking forward to most in Game of Thrones: Season 5, explain why they didn’t see the show in IMAX, discuss last season’s deleted scenes, and review the Game of Thrones documentary, “A Day in the Life.”
I cheered when I saw the new ACoK ep come up in my podcast feeds this morning. Dave and Joanna (or as Dave says, "Joannarobinson") were my regular Tuesday podcast jogging companions while I was training for my first 5K last spring, and the same will be true for this year.
There's a ton of genre TV podcasts out there right now, and even when you filter out the overproduced/underthought AfterBuzz crud, a lot of them still aren't very good at all. Either the hosts are actively unengaged with the show under discussion, or just there to plug their other 15 podcasts, or have a lackadaisical approach to recording quality, or are just not very insightful in their comments and observations. Thankfully, none of these are the case with ACoK.
posted by Strange Interlude at 12:23 PM on April 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
There's a ton of genre TV podcasts out there right now, and even when you filter out the overproduced/underthought AfterBuzz crud, a lot of them still aren't very good at all. Either the hosts are actively unengaged with the show under discussion, or just there to plug their other 15 podcasts, or have a lackadaisical approach to recording quality, or are just not very insightful in their comments and observations. Thankfully, none of these are the case with ACoK.
posted by Strange Interlude at 12:23 PM on April 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
Hurray! I really like this podcast. Also, it's worth noting here that, if you enjoy Joanna's insights, she does a spoileriffic podcast called, appropriately, A Storm of Spoilers. I'm glad to have them both back in my podcast feed.
posted by pitrified at 12:34 PM on April 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by pitrified at 12:34 PM on April 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I too am a fan. It's very carefully spoiler-free (to the point at which you can almost feel Joanna squirming with "I know what's coming in the books but I can't say anything about it). They have a nice rapport with Joanna being a good eye-rolling balance to David's sometimes over-analytical tangents.
Most importantly: entirely free of the fratty dude-bro-ery that pervades so many other TV podcasts.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 8:37 PM on April 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Most importantly: entirely free of the fratty dude-bro-ery that pervades so many other TV podcasts.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 8:37 PM on April 14, 2015 [2 favorites]
Chen uses that title for Better Call Saul podcasts now (with his brother Michael - I haven't listened to those so cannot comment on them).
I did and can: they were okay, better after Michael had found his feet in the whole podcasting thing. But David and Michael are a little too close in both voice personality so it lacked the counterbalance that Joanna brings. It was somewhat interesting to have two brothers commenting on a show which was, in this season at least, largely about a relationship between brothers.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 8:43 PM on April 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
I did and can: they were okay, better after Michael had found his feet in the whole podcasting thing. But David and Michael are a little too close in both voice personality so it lacked the counterbalance that Joanna brings. It was somewhat interesting to have two brothers commenting on a show which was, in this season at least, largely about a relationship between brothers.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 8:43 PM on April 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
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I've listened to their previous podcasts for GoT (available online) and they have a really good dynamic that they bring to their shows. Occasionally they will have guests (Myles McNutt of Cultural Leanings is a stand-out guest who raises their game), and generally provide thought-provoking and interesting discussion of this HBO series.
These two also produced an excellent podcast for Breaking Bad (The Ones Who Knock), although it looks like Chen uses that title for Better Call Saul podcasts now (with his brother Michael - I haven't listened to those so cannot comment on them).
David Chen is not afraid to say when he doesn't "get it" and is pretty well-known for this (in fact has a pretty good sense of humor about it); Joanna usually explains things well. There is much hilarity when Chen cannot comprehend something that most people take for granted - the most famous of these being his "What are the RULES?" rant, imho, of, I believe Series 2 or 3 of this podcast series.
They bring in listener's feedback frequently and this creates a level-playing field with their fans/audience; they're big enough to accept and air some pretty rigorous criticism from listeners. This provides a refreshing mix and prevents the podcast from slipping into a slough of cozy complacency.
This is just a pre-season warmup- the first podcast to be posted later today or tomorrow! Have at it!
posted by joseph conrad is fully awesome at 11:44 AM on April 14, 2015 [2 favorites]