Here's Why It's Great

This episode, John and Sebastian end it all. And by "it all" we mean "this podcast."  

Are you ready to MEAT your maker? Are you ready to saddle up with HORSEY SAUCE? Are you ready to take a FRENCH DIP in the waters of fast food's roast beef king? If you answered yes, then join us on a journey to the meat mecca known as... Arby's!

Hop onto our Dreamcatcher blimp and take a trip with us to EPCOT in the Walt Disney World Resort as we take a Journey into Imagination with our best little dragon pal, Figment. If you're ready to listen to two grown men gush about a cartoon dragon, then listen on, dear listener!

Join us for a somber affair in which we pay our last respects to the angry green giant known as the Incredible Hulk and offer the last word on the Hulk's final made-for-TV movie. We commit this miniseries to the ground. Ashes to ashes, Hulk to Hulk.

Order! Order!! Court is now in session. The defendant? The mean, green dude-tossing machine known as the Incredible Hulk! His lawyer? The Man Without Fear, Daredevil! The charges? Starring in an awesome slice of 80s tv cheese. Join us as we litigate the Hulk's second tv movie adventure on Here's Why It's Great!

We're back! And so are Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno as Dr. David Banner/The Incredible Hulk! This time, they've got company - The Mighty Thor is here to kick ass, drink beer, and rock leather pants like a champ. Join Sebastian and John on a trip down memory lane as they relive the height of 80s television, ogle beefy dudes, and pine for their lost VHS collections on the glorious return of Here's Why It's Great!

Alright, class, take out your pencils and pay attention, because your hosts are about to take you to school. Today's subject? The film world's King of Controversy - the rebel, the maverick, the lunatic, the visionary... Oliver Stone. Before he became a Hollywood pariah, this director won Academy Awards, made boffo bucks at the box office, and challenged his audience with films that made them re-examine the foundations of the United States of America. But as his views and ideas became more extreme, so did the vitriol spewed at his films. Your professors today, John Bring with special guest Daryn Beasley (The Whole Ref'n Show), will examine the artistic, cultural, and historical contexts of the films of Oliver Stone and the impact he has made on film (and the world at large). So open your mind and prepare for a fever dream of Vietnam flashbacks, the JFK assassination, Native American Shamans, predators, patriotism, virtue, vice, and the fall of Camelot. Take notes, there WILL be a quiz on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigoliverstone

Bust out your board, pick a token, and get ready to roll the dice as your brave hosts delve into the history, the legacy, and the global impact of the world's most famous (and divisive) board game. John, Lindsay, and Sandy relive their fondest Monopoly memories while they tackle topics such as house rules, real-life hotels, film adaptations, and the many, many Monopoly knockoffs. They also talk about why this game drives people to the edges of sanity and sometimes sends them careening into darkness. Take this dark and perilous journey with us, listener, but beware... you will soon stare into the beady eyes of Mr. Monopoly himself. Careful, his eyes are a gateway to the abyss - where time and space have no meaning. For that is the way of Monopoly. Abandon hope all ye who enter here. Say a prayer to your god, then pass Go and collect $200 on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigmonopoly  

Bonjour! Let's take a trip back to the halcyon days of late 2019, when you didn't have to wear a mask to go outside and international travel didn't feel like rolling the dice on your health and well-being! For the Christmas holiday, your hosts, John and Lindsay, flew across the Atlantic for the very first time to go to a theme park similar to the one less than an hour's drive away from where they live. Why? They had to see if the nasty rumors were true - was Disneyland Paris the true redheaded stepchild of the Disney Park family? (All apologies to our redheaded listeners who happen to be stepchildren.) In this episode, your hosts will analyze, scrutinize, and (hopefully) popularize the little theme park that could. Keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times, because it could be a bumpy ride on Here's Why It's Great!

In the magical time known as the spring of 1997, a brand-new band burst onto the scene in a fish-eyed lens fever dream, and one question would ring in the minds of the masses since then: what the hell, exactly, IS an MMMBop? Well, folks, your brave hosts have all the answers you've been looking for, and so much more. The brothers Hanson-- that's Taylor, Issac, and Zac-- are more than just a boy-band-turned-man-band that have had audiences swooning since before they were pre-teens. They're entrepreneurs, they're brewmasters, they're philanthropists, they're husbands, and they're fathers, all while they've been churning out perfectly-crafted pop songs since their heyday. They aren't the 90s nostalgia act you might imagine, and to prove it, your hosts John, Lindsay, and Sandy dive deep into their history, their discography, their legacy, and 12 of their grooviest songs. After listening to this episode, you'll be asking yourself: Where's the Love... for Hanson? So dust off those rollerblades and get ready to MMMBop your head to some catchy tunes on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwighanson

Hold onto your butts, because this episode, your hosts are taking you back to Site B for a dissection of gymnastics in survival situations, hunters with a heart of gold, and an incredible shrinking T-Rex. You're a clever girl for joining John and Richard on their journey back to 1997, where all sequels had to be bigger, louder, and dumber than the original. Life found a way for them to gush over Jeff Goldblum, behind-the-scenes specials, and Godzilla rip-offs. Of course, they were so preoccupied with whether or not they could talk about the Lost World: Jurassic Park, that they didn't stop to think if they should. Welcome... to Here's Why It's Great!   #hwiglostworld

Is there something strange in your neighborhood? Then who you gonna call? John and Perry, of course! Ghostbusters fever dominated the 1980s, and five long years after the original film's release, the boys were back for another round of bustin'! Murray, Aykroyd, Ramis, Hudson, Weaver, Potts, and Moranis were back with Ivan Reitman at the helm; what could go wrong? In the eyes of the viewing public at the time, a whole lot, apparently. Upon Ghostbusters 2's release during one of the greatest blockbuster summers of all time, the film hit with a resounding thud, disappointing critics, fans, and the bean counters at Columbia Pictures alike. But your hosts have wondered since that fateful time-- what's so wrong with the movie? You've got Vigo the Carpathian, the Scolari Brothers, Dr. Janosz Poha, more Venkman and Dana, more Louis Tully, more chills and more thrills! So your hosts will take you back to '89 to pontificate on why they have always and will always love Ghostbusters 2. Because sometimes shit happens, someone has to deal with it, and who you gonna call? Strap on your proton packs and gas up the Ecto-1, cuz bustin' makes us feel good on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigghostbusters2

Mamma Mia! It's-a time to jump down that warp pipe, eat some 'shrooms, and revisit a film that has confused children and adults alike for decades... and somehow remains the only big screen adaptation of the world's most famous plumbers. In the year 1993, Mario and Luigi were riding high on a wave of popularity brought on by the 16-bit revolution. The world was primed for a big budget take on these beloved characters, and what they got was... this? Your hosts John and Daryn lived through Mario fever and are here to offer their analysis on every odd directorial choice, every casting misstep, and the many, many versions of this movie that could have been. These two lifelong best friends will take you all the way to the Mushroom Kingdom and back as they explore this confounding cult classic. Nothing's impossible-- improbable, unlikely, but never impossible-- on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigsupermariobros

We hope you're hungry for tiny intergalactic troublemakers, shapeshifting bounty hunters, and kids with homemade dynamite, because your hosts are taking a bite out of an 80s camp classic. First came the Gremlins, then the Ghoulies, and finally the crown jewel of the 'little asshole monster' horror subgenre, Critters. The diminutive devourers ate their way into our hearts so many decades ago and never left, so this week, John and Tyler take a bite out of a film series that gave us not only Leonardo DiCaprio and the Chiodo Brothers, but one of the raddest movie-exclusive hair metal songs of all time-- "Power of the Night." Open up wide because we're chowing down on Here's Why It's Great.   #hwigcritters

Order up a pizza and brush up on those nunchuk skills, because John and Ryan are about to take you back to the time-jumping third entry in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise. Your brave hosts relive the glory days of the Ninja Turtles, crush on Paige Turco big-time, and exalt the brilliance of one Elias Koteas (Casey Jones himself!) in this jam-packed ninja rap. You'll never call golf a dull game again after listening to these lifelong TMNT fanatics crisscross the entirety of Eastman and Laird's radical creation, talking comic books, video games, cartoons, and of course the hallowed film series. Hey dudes, this is no cartoon on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigtmnt3

Prep the boosters and brush up on your morse code, because your hosts are about to take flight with another forgotten 80's classic. This episode, John and Sebastian look back at a time when kid's movies were allowed to be earnest and heartfelt, space exploration still inspired a sense of wonder, and when it was no big deal that a droid gained sentience. Listen as your hosts learn lessons about teamwork, physics, and the effect of zero gravity on hair. Spoiler alert-- there is no effect! Prepare to look beyond bad visual effects and worse perms as we count down to liftoff on Here's Why It's Great! 

Climb into your Quantum Suit and strap on your Time GPS, because Sebastian and John are going back to the early days of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to take another look at a forgotten chapter of the series. Now that Avengers: Endgame is upon us, your hosts will brave the beginning of the Hulk's journey in the MCU. But wait, that's not Mark Ruffalo. When did Edward Norton play the Hulk? Why is Liv Tyler whispering all the time? What's up with William Hurt's eyebrows? And why is the supervillain played by a guy who's a foot shorter than every other actor in the movie? Your courageous hosts answer these questions and more as they smash, crash, and thunderclap their way from Brazil all the way to Harlem on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigincrediblehulk 

Looking for thrills? Looking for chills? Looking for delicious treats featuring a hybrid berry that combines all the best features of blackberries, raspberries, and loganberries? Then do we have the place for you! Knott's Berry Farm may not be everybody's favorite theme park, but each year when they task their chefs with creating dishes that feature the fruit that made Walter Knott famous, the boysenberry, well... something magical happens. Sweet and savory do their forbidden dance in myriad dishes across the four lands of Knott's, and your hosts were there to try every single bite or die trying. But when 30-plus treats are available, will John and Lindsay be up to the task? Will they brave the thrill rides that litter the park? Will they turn into giant boysenberries á la Violet Beauregarde? To find out, pop a Pepto Bismol and take a ride down to Buena Park on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigboysenberry

Here's the bet: Let your hosts take you back to the year 1999, a time when email was still just for "geeks and pedophiles", every boy kept a leather bound sex journal, and every girl published their virginal manifesto in Seventeen Magazine. Be their Captain Picard and boldly go where no man has gone before, and they'll let you put this podcast anywhere... but we suggest in your ears. This week, John and Lindsay revisit a modern classic for its 20th(!) anniversary. The music, the style, the sociopathic teenagers-- this movie has it all. So load up in your '56 Jaguar Roadster and head with us to the Upper East Side on Here's Why It's Great!

Button up that bowling shirt, dust off those Oakley sunglasses, and slide into your best flip-flops, cuz we're goin' on a road trip... to Flavortown! This episode, John and Sebastian chow down on all things Guy Fieri-- from his style to his sing-song voice to his sick rhyming skills, your hosts are prepared to go outta bounds to take a bite out of the face of Food Network. So crack open a bottle of Donkey Sauce, kick back, and relax as we take the red '67 Camaro for a spin, lookin' for funky joints all over this great country on Here's Why It's Great! It's gonna be dynamite, brutha.   #hwigguyfieri

Blast off to warp speed as your hosts John and Sebastian boldly go where... well, probably quite a few podcasts have gone before. As your brave hosts dissect this William Shatner directed entry in the seminal sci-fi series, they'll give it all she's got (Captain) to mine the gold of what many consider to be the nadir of the Star Trek film series. But with the help of Spock's half brother, Sybok, your hosts let go of their pain, and their reasons for loving the film multiply like a holodeck full of Tribbles. Will they find the face of God in the comic stylings of the Enterprise crew? Will they squirm at Uhura's "sexy" dance? And will they ever learn where Kirk finds Jordache Jeans in the year 2287? Find out as we "make it so" (er, wrong Generation) on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigfinalfrontier

Crap sells. Crap, crap, crap crap crap. And that's this week's subject in a nutshell: total crap. So it's up to your hosts Sebastian and John, with a little help from Lindsay Calhoon Bring (writer, Netflix's Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) to dig through the crap and find the bits of brilliance in this odd comedy(?) that you probably haven't heard of! It'll take childhood crushes on Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis, Ed Begley Jr.'s eco-friendly cleaning products, Carole Kane's weird accent, and a lot of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee to get your hosts through Transylvania 6-5-oh-oh-oh. So hop on the train to... over there somewhere, and relive the thrills, chills, and spills (Michael Richards falls a LOT in this movie) of a forgotten classic on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigtransylvania65000

Plug in those amps and turn 'em up to 11, because this week your hosts John and Sebastian are banging their heads to one of the 'Big Four' of heavy metal, Megadeth! You'll be Sweating Bullets as they climb aboard the Train of Consequences to check out 17 of the band's biggest, loudest, and thrashiest tracks. Can your brave hosts endure this auditory onslaught? Or will they Wake Up Dead? This week, listening to Megadeth is their business... and business is good on Here's Why It's Great!    #hwigmegadeth

It has all led to this. Your hosts Sebastian and John have fought their way through four installments of endless pining, heavy breathing, sparkly bloodsuckers, wolf abs, and deep stares to finally reach the end of the Twilight Saga. To help them mine the greatness of the epic final film, your hosts enlist special guest Lauren Kitsune (DeviantArt) to offer a Twi-Hard's perspective on the lauded series and take your hosts to task for all they got wrong about Edward, Bella, and Jacob. Round up the witnesses, because it's time to talk all things Twilight and go to battle on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigbreakingdawnpart2

Buckle your safety belts and keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times, because your hosts John and Sebastian are about to take you on the ultimate thrill ride as they flip their lids over the penultimate chapter of the Twilight Saga. Hang on tight as they take you from Edward and Bella's nuptials in Forks all the way to Rio de Janeiro and back! Chess on the beach! Ill-fitting tuxedos! Vampire fetuses! Wolf parties! Broken spines! Styrofoam blood cups! And that barely scratches the surface of this truly insane film. Get ready for the honeymoon of a lifetime on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigbreakingdawnpart1

Bare those fangs, sharpen those claws, and wig out, because it's time for your hosts to take a bite out of the next installment of the Twilight series. In their careful, ernest, and very serious dissection of the film, John and Sebastian give you the blow by blow of all the action in Forks, Washington: Will Bella get over herself and marry the studly bloodsucker, Edward? Or will she warm to the affections of the hunky wolf boy, Jacob? Will the baby vampire army (not vampire babies, sadly) amassing in Seattle be the end of the Cullen clan? Can the Cullens give us enough sympathetic backstory to actually care? And most importantly, your hosts ask the question on everyone's mind; what's with Bella's hair in this movie? Find out the stirring answers to this and so much more as we crack some vampire skulls on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigeclipse 

These podcast delights have violent ends. This week, your hosts Sebastian and John forge ahead in their coverage of the lauded Twilight saga. As they continue their exploration of the worldwide phenomenon, these two grown-ass men marvel over how Jacob got "hella hot", consider the likelihood of Edward having "stank breath", and question Bella's sudden penchant for extreme sports. During this thrill ride of an episode, the adrenaline-pumping analyses will have you seeing visions of Edward at every corner! So sit back with your wolf bros, pop in a copy of FacePunch, and (cliff)dive into Here's Why It's Great!   #hwignewmoon

John and Sebastian had never given much thought to how they would die. But dying so they can review infamous movies for the listeners they love seems like a good way to go. Your hosts can't bring themselves to regret the decisions that brought them face to face with death. They also brought them to Twilight. That's right-- in this episode, two men in their mid-to-late thirties embark on a journey all the way to the Pacific Northwest to dive deep into the worldwide phenomenon, Twilight. Join your brave hosts as they take their first steps through the Twilight saga, and marvel as they laugh, cry, and definitely stare (a lot) with Edward and Bella. They may not be the key demographic for this series of films, these movies may not be meant for a pair of jaded, aging dudes, but that hasn't stopped them before. So put on your sunscreen and hop into your Audi, because we're going on a journey to Forks, Washington on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigtwilight

Since the 1997 premiere of the television masterpiece Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you may have asked yourself-- "Is that old Buffy movie even worth watching?" Does the word "duh" mean anything to you? This episode, we invite special guest Lindsay Calhoon Bring (writer, Netflix's Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) to break down all the flips, all the quips, and Kristy Swanson's pouted lips as we dissect the unsung classic that is 1992's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". Joss Whedon himself scoffs at this film, to which we say "Excuse much! Rude or anything?" Grow out that soul patch, fire up your Toad the Wet Sprocket CD, and head to the mall as we give a one-armed clap for the Chosen One on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigbuffy

Start 2019 off right with an epic dissection of the fine feathered film, Howard the Duck. In this episode, your hosts John and Sebastian take you back to a time when street toughs lurked around every corner, crimped hair was still in style, and people were not generally perturbed by a giant anthropomorphic duck skulking around CleveLand. It was a time when sex spas were all the rage, and every garage held an ultralight plane perfect for a daring escape-- and when a young filmmaker named George Lucas could do no wrong. Or could he? History tells us that this film made audiences question the Lucas golden touch, but your fearless hosts beg to differ. Strap in, because we're on a one-way trip to Duck World on Here's Why It's Great.   #hwighowardtheduck    

We have a bad feeling about this. In our holiday edition of Here's Why It's Great, your hosts Sebastian and John face their fiercest challenge yet-- finding the greatness within the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special. Yes, they watched the whole thing in one sitting. Yes, they dissected the comedy(?) stylings of Art Carney and Harvey Korman. Yes, they listened to Bea Arthur sing a sad song to the bar patrons at the Cantina. Yes, they sat through a protracted scene of Wookie porn. It gets weird, folks. May the force be with us all as we embark on this grand journey to the Tree of Life on Here's Why It's Great.   #hwigstarwarsholidayspecial

We hope you came hungry, because this week your hosts Sebastian and John are eatin' good in the neighborhood. They brave a meal that would strike down any ordinary man to accurately report the highs and lows of the food chain giant Applebee's. Delight as two grown men earnestly review celery sticks. Weep as they lament a breadstick cruelly left off their plate. Thrill as they debate where riblets really come from. Share their ecstasy as they dive into a duo of divine desserts. This culinary odyssey will take our hosts to their absolute limit. Will they survive? Listen to find out on Here's Why It's Great.   #hwigapplebees

We said it would be a cold day in hell before we covered the fourth chapter of the original Bat-verse, Batman & Robin. The mere mention of the film makes our blood run cold. But despite the risks, your hosts coolly debate the merits of this infamous disaster. It's anything but ice to see the film-- Will it make Sebastian and John's frozen hearts melt? Or will they lose their cool? Will they finally snow some appreciation for George Clooney's take on the Bat? Or will his performance have them asking for the icy embrace of death? Sit back, relax, and chill out on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigbatmanandrobin

Gritted teeth. Enormous guns. Big hair. Dynamic anatomy. Horizontal page layouts. Swords out the ass. And just so, so many pouches. This week, we're covering the one, the only Rob Liefeld. Far and away the most controversial figure in comic books, Liefeld shot to the top of his industry at a young age to become an undeniable superstar. But in the years since his heyday, many have asked if his fortune and success were deserved. Most agree his art is all style over substance, and your average Dick or Jane might call him a hack. But this week, your hosts John and Sebastian take another look at the work of Liefeld to discuss why he's not only great, but a revolutionary force in the world of funnybooks! Join us as we take it to the EXTREME on Here's Why It's Great.   #hwigrobliefeld

You ready to get niche? C'mon, let's get niche! Join our hosts Sebastian and John on a jaunt down memory lane as they dish on the soundtrack for the 1986 film, Transformers: The Movie. Just to be clear, this episode doesn't cover the movie in which these songs appear. No, our brave hosts dedicate roughly an hour of their lives (and yours) to discuss the soaring synthesizer score by Vince DiCola, killer jams from some Kick Axe bands, the wonder and majesty of Stan Bush, and the greatest songwriter of this (or any other) generation, one "Weird Al" Yankovic. Strap in, friends, as we transform and roll on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigtfsoundtrack

Set sail as your hosts John and Sebastian embark on a serene voyage through one of Disneyland's opening day attractions. Marvel as two grown men debate the merits of a ride meant for small children! Thrill as they debate Peter Pan's flight path through London, discuss the merits of 'Frozen', and geek out about getting swallowed whole by a giant whale. This and so much more on Here's Why It's Great!   #hwigstorybooklandcanalboats

In our inaugural episode, your hosts Sebastian and John do a deep dive on the much-maligned fifth and "final" entry of the Rocky saga. Listen to two grown men earnestly discuss the merits of Rocky's climactic clash with Tommy Gunn, chart the shaky timeline of the Italian Stallion's wild career, dig into how Paulie is just the worst, and so much more. Go for it(!) with Here's Why It's Great.   #hwigrocky5

In this episode, your hosts John Bring and Sebastian Kadlecik tell you all about why THEY'RE great. They talk about their upbringing on opposite ends of the country, cover the guiding principles of this new podcasting venture, discuss the finer points of the film 'Desperado', dish on their time as teenage filmmakers, and tease what's to come in this series. Let the adventure begin!   #hwigpodcast