All Nerd & Tie Network Podcasts

We tend to run long, so this tangent from our Starfleet Academy episode was cut out. If you want to hear a little chatter about comics and RPGs, then it’s here. [ Full Show Notes ]The post Casual Tangent: Akira and Game Design first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

The newly minted Stormwood team has been hired by a local pawn shop owner to make sure his taxes make it safely to the current government of the Autumnlands. But first, a new person has joined the party… “Stormwood & Associates” uses the RPG system Super Awesome Action Heroes Second Edition with the optional Fantasy expansion and Advanced Combat Rules. View Archives and Subscription Options The post C3E6. The New Girl (Into the Autumnlands Part 1) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Welcome to Starfleet Academy, students, we hope you survive the experience! It's the grimdark future of the 32nd century and a bunch of weird, traumatised kids are stuck together having to learn and grow into Starfleet officers! Will the main character be too annoying a main character? How many The O.C. references will Charlie make? How much will Miles lust after an espresso machine? And how delightful are those teachers? Kids These Days brings Holly Hunter and her wayward ward into the orbit of Starfleet Academy, along with Paul Giamatti who Paul Giamattis the hell out of his role. Beta Test gets into some proper Star Trek content: Meetings! Peace talks! Also some teen drama and shonky CGI whales. Timecodes: 00:01:56 What Non-Star Trek Thing We've Been Enjoying: Detectorists, Plur1bus 00:08:29 Starfleet Academy “Kids These Days” 00:52:31 Starfleet Academy “Beta Test” Talking points include: The OC, Blake's 7, Detectorists, Toby Jones would have made a good MODOK, Plur1bus (which is not Polybius), Charlie's lawn is no longer Area X, credit to rexedge.bsky.social for pointing out that Fate of Ophelia would work great in Simlish, The Stranger Things, 80's nostalgia, Rimmer-ness, the wall of references, Paris Gellar, the secret other member of the Gellar family in Friends, Brit Marling's science fiction oeuvre, teen drama ball cancer plots, Charlie would never make it as a barista, psychics who psychic a bit too much, bros, Miles lusts after an espresso machine, the works of Brian David Gilbert, Heated Rivalry, . Oh, and occasionally Star Trek. [ Additional Show Notes ] Music by Alfred Etheridge-Nunn. Read Miles's blog or Charlie's blog. [ Support this show on Ko-fi ] Subscribe to this Podcast: Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 90. Welcome to Starfleet Academy, B****! first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

The team has a lead on the person who stole the magic rock, and they’re looking for their suspect in the Winter Quarter of Denarsus. “Stormwood & Associates” uses the RPG system Super Awesome Action Heroes Second Edition with the optional Fantasy expansion and Advanced Combat Rules. View Archives and Subscription Options The post C3E5. Two in the Afternoon (Trial Period Part 5) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

The team is starting their recovery investigation by visiting the scene of the crime. Then maybe the scene of another crime. The second crime is a metaphor. “Stormwood & Associates” uses the RPG system Super Awesome Action Heroes Second Edition with the optional Fantasy expansion and Advanced Combat Rules. View Archives and Subscription Options The post C3E4. Whose House? (Trial Period Part 4) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Do you hear the siren song of synergy? That means we've got a brand new Star Trek show on the horizon and Miles and Charlie want in. With Star Trek: Starfleet Academy on the horizon, our brave lads are going to squeeze back into their school uniforms and try to remember how school works as they approach three episodes of Star Trek which deal with students at SFA. In The First Duty, Wesley “THE BOY” Crusher gets in with a guy who looks nothing like Tom Paris and is really too invested in being with the cool kids for someone who helped saved the galaxy at least three times. Then, Jake and Nog end up on a ship with a bunch of cadets forced to grow up too fast in The Valiant and Nog drinks the kool-aid of a wanna be Kurtz just out of short trousers. Then we head into the 32nd Century as Tilly and Adira have to debate what's worse, dealing with energy absorbing creatures on an ice-planet or dealing with a bunch of angsty kids with emotional baggage? Oh, and Michael Burnham helps save the Federation. Again. Don't forget to do your homework! EPISODES DISCUSSED: The First Duty (6:50), The Valiant (35:42) and All is Possible (01:01:08) TALKING POINTS: Grange Hill, the novels of John Darnielle, Mario Galaxy, Frollo from Disney's Hunchback never gets invited to Villain hangouts, Wesley Crusher never pulled, Nick Locarno vs. Tom Paris, the two types of Starfleet Academy students, the absence of Wesley's Mum, ‘The First Duty' being the inverse of the typical Wesley Crusher plot, Worf's son Alex isn't allowed on the bridge, Nog and Worf are incredibly very similar characters, Miles gets to talk about both one of his favourite anime Mobile Suit Gundam AND his favourite novel Slaughterhouse 5, the illusion of glory in war, bye-bye Tilly, damn covid-lockdown-inspired emotional baggage, our honest feelings about the upcoming Starfleet Academy show, Michael Burnham has to do something every episode, why is David Cronenberg NOT the villain? PEDANTS CORNER: Charlie has started playing Mario 2: The Lost Levels, the Genesis music video Miles can't remember is ‘I Can't Dance' by Genesis. [ Additional Show Notes ] Music by Alfred Etheridge-Nunn. Read Miles's blog or Charlie's blog. [ Support this show on Ko-fi ] Subscribe to this Podcast: Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 89. Starfleet Academy Prelude – So Much Child Death first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

There’s an annoying thing in the witchcraft community where every new idea or trend gets cast as an “ancient” practice even if it’s just a few years old. Time and time again, we see people constructing false narratives about the supposed historicity of ideas, spells, and rituals in witchcraft spaces, and all of it is bad for us. Why do people feel the need to lie? Why does something being a new idea make it less credible in people’s eyes? Why have we been doing this as a community from the start? So I thought about calling this “Older Doesn’t Mean Better Part 2” or “Older Doesn’t Mean Better Redux” since this is some of the same territory we covered back in episode 17, but I think I’ve gotten more surly on the topic over the last six years, and wanted to talk about it again. Also, I kind of forgot I’d recorded an episode on this when I was prepping the episode, but I like this version better. Read Trae’s new Novel Buried Memories! ISBN: 9798349560958 eBook: Kindle / Kobo / ePub Paperback: Amazon / Bookshop / Direct Order Also check out the rest of Trae’s Books and visit Trae’s website. (And, of course, don’t forget this show is part of the Nerd & Tie Network, and funded by listeners like you via Patreon. Consider joining our Discord or our forums!) Music: “The Man With One Eye,” “So I Said It, “Putz and Pulse,” “Untitled Nonsense” (Trae Dorn) / Random Loops (Apple Music Library)The post 91. “Ancient” Practices first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

It used to be true, and still is to some extent, that visiting a video game store in Japan is a rite of passage for foreign visitors to Japan, but if you pull out a camera to take a video you may find you are no longer welcome. Vinnk discusses how vloggers have ruined retro game shopping for everyone else in Japan with their bad or just obnoxious behavior. In Future Retro and Pile of Shame we talk about Unlimited Saga, and Sean learns the right way to unlock a very old secret in Super Mario World. [ Additional Episode Notes Here ] “One More Continue” and “RPG” theme songs by the Imari Tones: http://imaritones.net. Vinnk and SeanOrange pixel art by Louis Lloyd-Judson: https://louistrations.co.uk. [ Support this show on Patreon ] Subscribe to this Podcast: Apple PodcastsGoogle PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 186. Retro Game Shopping in Japan first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

The team’s together, one of them’s gotten robbed, and now it’s time to meet their first client. Everything hinges on this meeting going well. Maybe, for once, it will. “Stormwood & Associates” uses the RPG system Super Awesome Action Heroes Second Edition with the optional Fantasy expansion and Advanced Combat Rules. View Archives and Subscription Options The post C3E3. The Client (Trial Period Part 3) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Eloise Stormwood has assembled her team, so it’s time to start with the basic, new hire orientation — which consists of filling out a bunch of paperwork and taking a tour of the new office. “Stormwood & Associates” uses the RPG system Super Awesome Action Heroes Second Edition with the optional Fantasy expansion and Advanced Combat Rules. View Archives and Subscription Options The post C3E2. As Quick as Smoke (Trial Period Part 2) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

What exactly is authority? Where does it come from? How do you get it? Can you move authority from St. Paul, MN to the south side of Chicago? Join Em and Jesse for a wide-ranging chat on the subject. [ Full Show Notes ] Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 99. Respect My Authority first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Due to various medical emergencies, our Starfleet Academy episodes are going to have to wait a little while. Instead, here’s an old favourite episode: “They Exploded Odo!” We experience the original Mirror Universe episode and try to understand a system of government entirely based around betrayal (that isn’t the Romulans’), also a fantastic episode of DS9 with some shock as there’s a pretty brutal explosion of one cast member! Timecodes: 00:13:58 TOS: Mirror, Mirror 00:33:15 DS9: Crossover 01:02:02 DIS: Despite Yourself [ Additional Show Notes ] Music by Alfred Etheridge-Nunn. Read Miles's blog or Charlie's blog. [ Support this show on Ko-fi ] Subscribe to this Podcast: Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post Casual Trek Rewind: Mirror Universe Episodes first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

There’s a new office of Stormwood & Associates. There’s someone named Stormwood. There just aren’t any “associates yet.” Which is, y’know, a solvable problem. “Stormwood & Associates” uses the RPG system Super Awesome Action Heroes Second Edition with the optional Fantasy expansion and Advanced Combat Rules. View Archives and Subscription Options The post C3E1. The Interviews (Trial Period Part 1) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Nerd & Tie is excited to announce the beginning of the third campaign for Stormwood & Associates! Trae, Becca, Gen, and Celeste are back at the table for a new adventure, and starting Friday, January 16th episodes will release here weekly on Nerd & Tie. For the third adventure in this ongoing series, we now find ourselves in the Fae Wilds with aftermath of the second campaign. Fifty years after Galfus has been overthrown (but only a few years later in “our” world), Eloise, the black sheep of her family, has made her way to the Wilds to open a new office of Stormwood & Associates in the neutral city of Denarsus, outside of the control of the Fae Courts. While she’s determined to prove herself, she may just be in over her head – as they call them “The Wilds” for a reason. “Stormwood & Associates” uses the RPG system Super Awesome Action Heroes Second Edition with the optional Fantasy expansion and Advanced Combat Rules. View Archives and Subscription Options The post A Stormwood & Associates Campaign 3 Trailer! first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

It's January, the first month of the year, ruled by the god Janus, who looks both ways. But a week ago it was December, the…tenth month of the year? What the heck was up with Roman calendars? Join Em and Dr. Jesse to explore why this otherwise competent civilization just fell apart when it came to tracking what day it was. [ Full Show Notes ] Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 98. In Rome for the Calends first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Casual Trek’s still in recovery mode from life and the festive period and we’ve wanted to fix the “Gamers” episode (episode 17) which was cursed with bad attempts to compress the file. Now, you can listen to the splendour of gaming in Star Trek! In Star Trek: The Next Generation’s “The Game”, everyone gets addicted to Candy Crush except for Wesley Crusher, the big nerd! Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s incredible “Move Along Home” puts the cast in a board game escape room. Star Trek: Lower Decks’ “Least Dangerous Game” shows where TTRPGs are in the future, also Boimler gets hunted, which is kind of a game! Talking points include: Experiencing BiJ, Rock Band, Portal 2, The Gamers, Sean's Zelda II playthrough, Fire Emblem Engage, Oath, Battlestar Galactica/Unfathomable, Reaganomics, video game addiction, Wesley Crusher-themed emo band names, an easy 2 Unlimited dunk, Metal Gear Solid, the cube from the film The Cube, Dread, Cluedon't, the Norwegian LARP scene, The Mountain Goats, I Only Listen To The Mountain Goats, Charlie Goes Off On One About OneD&D, Fucking Drizzt. Oh, and occasionally Star Trek. [ Additional Show Notes ] Music by Alfred Etheridge-Nunn. Read Miles's blog or Charlie's blog. [ Support this show on Ko-fi ] Subscribe to this Podcast: Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post Casual Trek Rewind: Gamer Picard (Remastered) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

I’m getting a bit contemplative at the end of the year, and this month we’re talking about the importance of the mystery of the night. Everything feels just a little more magical in the dark, and why that just feels right as a witch. That’s right, we’re talking about an aesthetic this time around. Who would have guessed? Read Trae’s new Novel Buried Memories! ISBN: 9798349560958 eBook: Kindle / Kobo / ePub Paperback: Amazon / Bookshop / Direct Order Also check out the rest of Trae’s Books and visit Trae’s website. (And, of course, don’t forget this show is part of the Nerd & Tie Network, and funded by listeners like you via Patreon. Consider joining our Discord or our forums!) Music: “The Man With One Eye,” “So I Said It, “Putz and Pulse,” “Untitled Nonsense” (Trae Dorn) / Random Loops (Apple Music Library)The post 90. Nighttime. first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Charlie and Miles have ‘gifted' each other episodes of Star Trek to talk about, both good and bad. The problem with being casual about Star Trek is you just don't know all of what's out there. That's what the Casual Trek mission is for, after all. This year the gang are doing something different, talking about a film that's adjacent to Star Trek, and even some Trek actors say is the best Star Trek movie: Galaxy Quest. They've even got guest stars Reanna Reid-Lobatto and Sean Corse from off of the Famicom Dojo joining the festivities. So sit by the fire, get a nice drink and listen to some nerds getting rabid about a fun film, even if it has Tim Allen in it. Timecodes: 0:03:47 – What Non-Star Trek/non-Galaxy Quest Thing We've Been Enjoying: Pokémon Legends ZA, Taskmaster, 0:21:49 – Galaxy Quest Preamble 0:33:12 – Galaxy Quest Recap 0:54:51 – Thoughts on the movie Talking points include: The Mojoverse, the Junkions, chilli, needing to cuddle a Pokémon, Detective Pikachu, Pokémon Legends ZA, John Pertwee's Doctor Who episodes, conventions, Thought Bubble, Sean learning about names from the UK, Westlife, Santana, Chat Out of Hell's Westlife episode, Charlie's musical knowledge comes from Rock Band, Miles' anecdote about how he saw Galaxy Quest (funny, charming), Charlie's anecdote about watching Pokémon: The Movie (thankfully short, of questionable legal status). Charlie pitching 2000 AD, “some of the old tentacle action”, Sam Rockwell, Susan from Seinfeld, fandom in media, “Duct Tape Boy”, what is wrong with Monk from Monk, convicted felon & narc Tim Allen actually being okay in this, Airplane, The Shining, Three Amigos, favourite non-Christmas Christmas movies. Oh, and occasionally Galaxy Quest. [ Additional Show Notes ] Music by Alfred Etheridge-Nunn. Read Miles's blog or Charlie's blog. [ Support this show on Ko-fi ] Subscribe to this Podcast: Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 88. By Grabthar's Hammer, What a Podcast first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Welcome to an emergency bonus episode! Miles is off, but the fortnightly schedule continues. Charlie's played a solo roleplaying game based on Star Trek. No, not the official one, but “We Saved This Vessel Once.” After that, there's the unhinged pitches from our Section 31 episode, which includes Sean Corse of Famicom Dojo, and Celeste Startwin of Stormwood & Associates! 01:16 – Solo Actual Play 07:38 – Section 31 Pitch Session Pedant's Corner and Pluggable: Reanna Reid-Lobatto's got a GoFundMe (not a Just Giving like I said in the episode… although I don't remember if that's a thing or not). If you can, please help the Reid-Lobattos deal with the expense of her surgery: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-reannas-breast-reconstruction-recovery. We Saved this Vessel Once can be found here: https://citykey.itch.io/we-saved-this-vessel-once [ Additional Show Notes ] Music by Alfred Etheridge-Nunn. Read Miles's blog or Charlie's blog. [ Support this show on Ko-fi ] Subscribe to this Podcast: Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post Bonus – We Saved This Vessel Once & Section 31 Pitch Session first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

One of the biggest things I think a lot of older witches take for granted is that people understand what makes Wicca, well, Wicca. While we’ve discussed the history before, and last month talked about the weird anti-Wicca backlash, I think there are a lot of misconceptions about how this incredibly diverse religion is practiced. Frankly, just the fact that it is largely an orthopraxic religion and not an orthodoxic one is a concept a lot of folks raised in predominantly Christian frameworks struggle with. So let’s talk about it. (I know this is two months in a row talking about Wicca, but I think this is important) Pre-order Trae’s new Novel Buried Memories – out December 15th! ISBN: 9798349560958 eBook: Pre-order on Kindle / Pre-order on Kobo Paperback: Amazon Pre-order / B&N Pre-order Also check out the rest of Trae’s Books and visit Trae’s website. (And, of course, don’t forget this show is part of the Nerd & Tie Network, and funded by listeners like you via Patreon. Consider joining our Discord or our forums!) Music: “The Man With One Eye,” “So I Said It, “Untitled Nonsense” (Trae Dorn) / Random Loops (Apple Music Library)The post 89. What Makes Wicca Wicca? first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

When is Hanukkah this year? When is Lupercalia, or Easter, or Midsummer's Eve? When is your birthday? Figuring out when big events happen is incredibly important, and humans have been doing it for a long time. But while we can see some similarities in the process of calendar evolution, many civilizations had very different ways of conceptualizing and measuring time. Join Em and Dr. Jesse for a discussion of non-Roman calendars! [ Full Show Notes ] Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 97. Non-Roman Calendars first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

We're still concerned with the Delta Quadrant as this episode of Casual Trek covers episodes from Modern Trek's animated series concerning the Voyager, the Delta Quadrant and all those assorted antics. First up is the Prodigy Season One mid-season two-parter ‘A Moral Star' where Dal and the Protostar gang plan to actually do a Starfleet with a little bit of heist antics as they try to break out the prisoners of their old home and then in Lower Decks's ‘Twovix' as Boimler grapples with the possibility of promotion, the crew of the Cerritos discover that when there's an outbreak of Tuvixes, Janeway was 100% right! Episodes Discussed – PRD: A Moral Star (06:36) and LDS: Twovix (35:35) Talking points: Dan Dare (SPACE HYPER HERO), Hades II, the dark history of the Mushroom Kingdom, more of the Dark History of Charlie's time with Dave's, the one time the Holodeck safeties breaking was a good thing, Janeway is definitely cottagecore, 80s cartoons were great nostalgia, but modern cartoons do have some superior moments, Mantzoukis in Taskmaster has coloured our heroes opinion of Jakim Pog, many many references to Katamari Damacy, Janeway was right killing Tuvix, does Riker regret not having sex with his transporter clone? we make Tuvix a verb, an Americano is a Tuvix of Espresso and Water, what happens when coffee reaches Warp 10? Miles sings two seperate theme tunes. PEDANTS CORNER: The TOS episode Miles refers to is ‘Is There In Truth No Beauty.' Miles and his wife DO have the Katamari Damacy soundtrack on vinyl, important to know. [ Additional Show Notes ] Music by Alfred Etheridge-Nunn. Read Miles's blog or Charlie's blog. [ Support this show on Ko-fi ] Subscribe to this Podcast: Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 87. Flesh Katamari first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

It's time for a podcast about a podcast! Yes, we're talking about Star Trek: Khan, the official Star Trek podcast. What happened between Space Seed and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan? Dr Rosalind Lear wants to know and brings some familiar faces to Ceti Alpha V to dig up some old recordings. Does she want to humanize this space tyrant or exonerate Kirk for his actions? Flashbacks, being stranded in a hostile wilderness, Naveen Andrews... Is this Lost? Kind of. At least, it's enough for Charlie and Miles to talk about Lost a lot, as well as serialized fiction and the plot of the first three episodes of Star Trek: Khan. The post 86. Star Trek Khan: Lost… In Space first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

It's that time of year where we try and delve into the strange and scary for our Halloween episode and this time, we've hit upon altered states (not the Ken Russell film) where our heroes undergo a strange transformation. In the TOS episode ‘Wolf in the Fold,' Bones's obsession with getting Scotty laid ends in a lot of mysterious stabbings that date back to Victorian London, while in Voyager's ‘Darkling,' the Doctor's attempt to improve himself by adding bits of other people into him starts making him very large in the tooth and a little too psychosexual towards Kes. Then in DS9's ‘Empok Nor,' O'Brien, Nog, Garak and a collection of clearly important side characters mission to a deserted Cardassian Space Station to steal some wiring ends with psychotropic drug-induced violence. Typical. Happy Halloween! The post 85. Star Trek Halloween III – Let's Get Scotty Laid! first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Starting in the middle ages, a rumor spread of a female pope, elected because of her incredible learning, who went undiscovered until she gave birth to a child. At which point, everyone lost their minds. Join Em and Dr. Jesse to learn about the veracity of this tale and the wacky test it (allegedly) engendered. (Ha.) [ Full Show Notes ] Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 96. Pope Joan first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

If you spend any amount of time on social media these days, especially TikTok, you'll find a surprising amount of anti-Wiccan sentiment... and a lot of it's pretty weird. Thumper Forge, Gardnerian Wiccan and author of the forthcoming The Chaos Apple, joins me as we, frankly, debunk some of the worst of it and talk about why we think this has happened. The post 88. Wicca Bad? Featuring Thumper Forge first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Welcome to spooky season and we're horrifying Miles specifically with a crossover between Star Trek and his favorite fandom! Can you hear the finger of a monkey's paw curling? Assimilation Squared has been a threat on this show for a while, but why is that? Listen on and we'll explain the story and the many questionable art choices. The post 84. TNG/Doctor Who: Assmilation Squared – The TARDIS Enters Data first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Insert all your tired 2025 jokes here because after the last nine months, we're pretty much out as this episode, we go "All-Voyager, All the Time" with a slate of episodes concerning "The Year of Hell," one of Voyager's more infamous wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey moments. The post 83. Insert 2025 Reference Here first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

This episode marks seven years of this podcast, and as we start the eighth, I decided that it was time we looked back on how much things have changed in the modern witchcraft space since then, along with how different things are since I first became a witch over twenty-five years ago. Because what is witchcraft if it's not change? Also, I'm standing in a park most of the episode, which is why it sounds like that. The post 87. A Season of Change first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Put on your best private detective hat and prepare to get into character as we talk step into the Holodeck and prepare ourselves for inevitable disappointment. In ‘The Practical Joker,' the Enterprise computer gets wacky while Bones, Sulu and Uhura fail to enjoy a primitive Holodeck. In ‘My Way,' Odo uses AI to make girls like him and we get a lot of song and dance numbers (and the best IDW comics pitch) as we meet Vic Fontaine. And in Strange New Worlds's Space Adventure Hour, La'an gets to beta-test the Holodeck and nearly kills everyone on the Enterprise doing so. Typical. Bloody Typical. The post 82. Holodickery first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Welcome to Neelix's Kitchen Nightmares you doughnuts! I'm Gordon Ramsey and we've got three meals for you to shove in your face from three questionable kitchens. Neelix's kitchen's covered in fluff and filth and seems to have been made in a large office meeting room. Will his food help Seven of Nine in “The Raven” or will it bring back dire flashbacks? I think we all know how it's going to go. Next up is the unnamed chef of the Enterprise who actually has a full kitchen. Hoshi Sato comes in and takes over, does she think she's me or something? She gets the job done, possibly a bit too much in “Singularity”. Also there's some delightful nonsense with a chair. Finally William T Riker's got the midlife crisis giant pizza oven out for a visit from his space dad, JL Picard in “Nepenthe”. Has he got what it takes, or will this episode and pizza both be undercooked? Whatever it is, it's better than the replicated cake that gets thrown up all over La Sirena! (This is actually Charlie, I've no idea what Gordon Ramsey sounds like, I hope you enjoy the show!) The post 81. Neelix's Kitchen Nightmares first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

If you're in witchcraft spaces, over the last six years or so, you've likely heard someone talking about "shadow work" (or more obnoxiously telling someone "they need to do some shadow work"). And while some folks seem to consider it an essential element of witchcraft, for those of us who have been in the community a long time it's just a little bit puzzling. Likewise, a lot of the people pushing shadow work don't seem to know where it comes from to begin with. With that in mind, this month I'm going into the origins of shadow work, what it is, and maybe why some folks need to stop pushing it so hard. The post 86. Shadow Work (And Maybe Why We Shouldn't Tell Other Witches to Do It) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

It's finally here, the thrilling conclusion to our longest Meatgrinder yet! It's time for our heroes to take on the mall itself. The real question is, will the monkey survive? The post S5E11. Showdown at Camp Spooky (Finale) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Avignon! A city where there is a bridge, and a song about the bridge. And, once, the pope lived there. Why? Let's talk about this weird century. [ Full Show Notes ] Apple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidRSSThe post 95. Sur le Pontife d'Avignon first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

A trip to HR does not go well. It does not go well at all. The post S5E10. Isn't That a Quentin Tarantino Movie? first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Okay, lets you and him fight! In shameless pursuit of ‘brand synergy,' this episode of Casual Trek celebrates the return of Strange New Worlds to our streaming services by doing an episode about those lizardy bastards Kirk fought once at those rocks from Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey, the Gorn! The post 80. Here Today, Gorn Tomorrow first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

For the first time in Meatgrinder history, we have some PVP combat? That's right, in a rare oment where the characters are in zero danger, Noodles has decided that they are done with that monkey once and for all. Also, the season's going long! Expect a few more episodes this time around! The post S5E9. Mascot vs. Monkey first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

A raccoon, a poodle, and a monkey share an elevator. And now you get to know what it's like when two players on an audio podcast decide to play nonverbal characters. The post S5E8. A Raccoon, a Poodle, and a Monkey first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Our brave Casual Explorers are showing their emotional age by watching the infamous ‘everyone gets drunk, horny and crazy' episodes of Star Trek. We start with TOS's The Naked Time where George Takei shows off his impressive sword, followed by TNG's less impressive ‘The Naked Now' where Charlie asks the most important question ‘if Data has no emotions, why did his creator build him to be fully functional, sexually?' (and Miles asks the second most important question ‘Why have this as an second episode?'). Meanwhile, Guest-Star Cele from ‘Celeste is Best' gets to talk about Lower Decks' own ‘everyone goes drunk and crazy' with ‘Empathalogical Fallacies' and has no real important questions to ask except ‘why is this so delightful?' The post 79. The Naked Time is Naked Now first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Look, the security team is doing their best. The only problem is that their best still isn't very good. The post S5E7. Secure the Area first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

It's July which means it's time for the annual feedback/Q&A episode of the show! In this episode I sit down and answer questions that you, the audience, has been sending me over the last few months. It's the same dance we do every summer, and this year you guys sent me some great questions. It's a fun one. The post 85. Feedback/Q&A Special 2025 first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Someone finally asks the important question: If it's the end of the world, why are so many people still at work? The post S5E6. It's a Metaphor for Capitalism first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Strap on those babies and keep clear of the wet ghosts, we're finally talking about Death Stranding! Yes, Casual Trek's 69th episode talking about Trek is going to have to wait as the boys are very excited about the work of the game designer, dreamweaver, visionary plus actor, Hideo Kojima. The post 78. Death Stranding: Somehow Both Deep and Very Stupid first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Grittney calls a friend and they do a little shopping. Also a dude rises from the dead, but that's not as important. The post S5E5. She's Going to Stanford first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Nothing good comes out of an assistant manager, nor a sporting goods store. The post S5E4. Leave Grittney Alone! first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Grab your vials of glowing green goo and prepare to ham it up as we talk once more about Jeffrey Combs, the Philip Madoc of Star Trek (that's a Classic Doctor Who reference) and three episodes where his many characters have large roles. The post 77. Jeff 2: Weyoun Boogaloo first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Our heroes have made their way to a food court, but something seems to be circling overhead. Also you can really tell we recorded this in 2024... The post S5E3. What the Heck is Skype? first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

Last month we talked about a good source new witches might want to add to their libraries, because I know how hard it is to separate the signal from the noise. But this month I thought we'd go look at some of the noise instead! I clicked on every terrible ad for witchcraft stuff I could find on Facebook for a week, and decided to inflict what I found on Hex Positive's Bree NicGarran. It's so, so bad y'all. The post 84. We Clicked on Every Facebook Witchcraft Ad (with Bree NicGarran) first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

And old man, a sword guy, and a woman on a monkey. What could possibly go wrong? The post S5E2. I'm Staying on my Monkey first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

The ‘mystical pregnancy' trope is a bit of an overused one in genre fiction and Star Trek visits that well so many times we had options for which ones to highlight here. The post 76. Mustard Hands first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.

A new season of The Meatgrinder begins here! In Jacksonville, FL the largest mall in the United States of Aremesia is having its grand opening, but something has gone terribly wrong. Monsters appeared out of nowhere, and the happy consumers soon became the very dead consumers. Four hours later, a small group of survivors are trying to escape the mall... The post S5E1. Are You Normal? first appeared on Nerd & Tie Network.