Marvelous TV Club

Hi all! The MTVC has been an incredible ride, and I don't think it's over yet. But for now, I gotta press pause.  I'm so grateful to each and every one of you for taking this journey with us. Kristine, Maeve, Jesse, and Amanda have been relentlessly awesome, and I've had so much fun, but life has conspired to make it tough to fit all this fun into my schedule every week. BUT. I hope to bring the team together now and again to check in. So much is happening in the MCU that I need to know what my besties think about it all. So don't take us out of your feeds yet! Just look for us in concentrated doses vs. every week. Thank you to my fearless co-hosts and to each of you. Keep your ears peeled for some fun in the future, though. MTVC forever! -Marc

We began this series with a messy character in Marc/Steven, but in a good way! We end this series with a messy finale, and that's...a little more complicated. So what went right in this last episode? What could have gone better and how? Our Charactercast team of Kristine Kippins, Jesse Taylor, and Marc Faletti assemble to balance the scales of Moon Knight, its finale, and the arcs of its characters.   

We all like to think we know the difference between a good person and a bad person. But the penultimate episode of Moon Knight challenges that assumption. Along the way, it reckons with the question: what is justice without mercy or compassion? Our Storycast team of Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti dissect this episode's nuanced examination of human nature and accountability.  [Content note: we get into some heavy topics on this episode, including sexual assault. Just a heads up!]

It's the ultimate showdown between Marc and Layla, then Marc and Harrow, then Marc and Steven and...a hippo goddess in a psych ward? Kristine Kippins, Jesse Taylor, and Marc Faletti grab their bingo cards and take stock of what the eff is going on, whether Layla's involved in TV's most complicated romance, and if Moon Knight's character tropes are working. Won't you join us for some jell-o?

It's not just the cult of Ammit that has a problem with blind faith in Moon Knight. Marc Spector, Steven Grant, and most of western science (yeah, you heard us!) fall into their own faith-based traps, and this third episode challenges all of them.  Storycast's Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti break down this episode's theme of blind faith, related works and influences ranging from Shirley Jackson to James Bond, and more! If you want to support the MTVC, consider giving our sponsor Latchkey a follow on Insta: https://www.instagram.com/shoplatchkey/

...be Steven Grant or Marc Spector? Be *with* Steven or Marc? Follow Khonshu or Ammit? Wear a snappy three-piece suit or cool robes?  And those are just the beginning of our conundrums! After another thrilling episode of Moon Knight, Jesse Taylor and Kristine Kippins join Marc for a Charactercast breakdown of our heroes, villains, outfits, and lust objects through a little game known as Would You Rather. If you wanna join in on the discussion, follow us on Twitter or Insta @marveloustvclub! 

Lots of superhero shows explore identity, but Moon Knight asks really interesting questions about what *defines* identity. Is it how we see ourselves? How others see us? What our job is? How much good or bad we do—or will do?  We assemble our Storycast crew of Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti to examine how the show's themes, plot, and costuming all interrogate these ideas and more.  Just release your body and mind to us, we'll take it from here. 

Egyptian mythology. Moon gods. Split personalities. And Batman? We're a week away from Moon Knight, and that means our Storycast crew is back to explore the symbols, themes, and famous works of literature that might influence the series.  Join Amanda, Maeve, and Marc for all of that and more on the Marvelous TV Club!  

The multiverse has gone mad. The Netflix shows are on Disney+. And wildest of all, DC finally released something that gives Marvel a serious run for its money. As we enter a new era full of new characters on Marvel TV, this felt like the perfect time for Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti to take stock of the MCU. Are we at the peak of its glory? What storm clouds might be on the horizon? And, of course, who should play Reed Richards? Get into all of that and more with us on the Marvelous TV Club!

Happy Wandaversary! A year ago—Jan 15, 2021—the first two episodes of WandaVision dropped and blew our minds. On this special episode of the Marvelous TV Club, Kristine Kippins and Maeve Adams join forces with Marc to analyze the show with all the perspective we've gained over the past year. How does it hold up? Which episode is the best of the series? Who's the real villain of the show? Where do Wanda, Agatha, and the rest go from here? And so much more. Buckle up for a journey through character, theme, philosophy, and the cringeworthiness of child actors on the MTVC!

Did Clint Barton truly reckon with his past as Ronin? Is Kate Bishop a bad daughter? Can the Kingpin really be dead? And does Marvel struggle with satisfying finales? A flash-bang finale of Hawkeye left us gasping for air, but also left us with a lot of questions about our favorite characters. Join Kristine Kippins, Jesse Taylor, and Marc Faletti as we dive into all the unresolved issues big and small. And SPOILER ALERT: we get into some Spidey talk, too, so fair warning to all.  Last but not least, we end the first year of Marvel TV with some surprise cameos and reflections on our favorite shows of the year. Onward to 2022 and more Marvelous TV Club!  

Once someone has serious red in their ledger, can they ever hope for a chance at redemption? Yelena and Maya have a very different answer to that question than Clint and Kate, and that battle takes center stage in the penultimate episode of Hawkeye.  Meanwhile, Eleanor does her best to re-establish some control over the life of her daughter just as Kazi tries to do the same over Maya.  These ideas of control and redemption tie into everything from Arrival to A Christmas Carol (and, of course, The Royal Tenenbaums). Join our Storycast crew of Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti as we break all of that down and more!

What was up with Clint's "Thanos Was Right" mug? Whose watch has everybody been hunting? Is Kate in a healthy place with Clint? What's Yelena's game? And are Eleanor and Jack really in love, or are they playing each other?  Join Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti as we untangle the webs that weave together the characters of Hawkeye on this week's MTVC Charactercast!

We're at the halfway point of Hawkeye, and the primary themes of the series are starting to emerge! The MTVC Storycast team assembles to break down the subtly complex ideas driving the series thus far. What makes someone a superhero, and is it a choice or a destiny? What are the risks and benefits of a more expansive definition of family? And is the Hawkeye series reframing what it means to tell a Christmas story? Join Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti for answers to all of those questions and more on the Marvelous TV Club!

Charactercast is back with a deep dive into faces new and old from the first two episodes of the Hawkeye series! Is Clint Barton dealing with his trauma or hiding from it? Is Kate Bishop in the hero game for the right reasons? What's Jack Duquesne really up to? And is Kate's mom a heckuva lot more sinister than she appears? These may seem like unrelated questions, but two threads tie them together: parenting and privilege. We explain it all on the latest release from the Marvelous TV Club, starring Kristine Kippins, Jesse Taylor, and Marc Faletti.

The MTVC is back! Our Storycast crew breaks down the themes, archetypes, and big ideas of the Hawkeye comic series that inspired the TV show. You don't have to have read a single page to enjoy this conversation. But by the time we're done, don't be mad if you wind up wanting to grab the issues for yourself! Join Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti for a trip through Matt Fraction's world of Clint, Kate, Pizza Dog, goofy Russian gangsters, and so much more!

We're three episodes into "What If?" and that means it's time to unite a few timelines of our own to discuss what's working, what isn't, and where it's all headed.  Amanda Marcotte and Jesse Taylor join Marc for a discussion of our favorite characters, the biggest missed opportunities of the series, and how "What If?" will impact the future of the overall MCU. Oh, and we talk about Thanos's butt, too. So settle in, because we're as excited as a wild-eyed, serial-killing Hank Pym to dissect "What If?" on the MTVC!

Kang/He Who Remains was full of surprises. And lies—at least if you ask Sylvie. She and Loki began the final episode closer than ever, only to find themselves multiverses apart in the end. Meanwhile, the TVA as we knew it seems gone. And in its place...well, we probably won't know for sure until season 2 just how different the new TVA is. But we definitely have some ideas. On our final Charactercast of Loki season one, Kristine Kippins and Marc Faletti discuss the finer points of Loki's growth, Kang's plan, Sylvie's revenge, Mobius's new form, and Ravonna's past.  The Marvelous TV Club: For all time. Always!

The possibilities within the MCU literally exploded out of the Loki season finale, and the implications are almost impossible to comprehend. But that is exactly the kind of problem space we love here at PonderVision!  If you want to know how time works now, what happened to the TVA at the end of the episode, the potential origins of Kang's tech and plans, and where the MCU might go from here, we've got you covered. Join Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti for the kind of branching discussion through the exciting possibilities that we specialize in here at the Marvelous TV Club!

What a barnburner! What a mind-twister! What a cliffhanger! The end of Loki's first season had it all -- well, except pat answers. Those were in short supply. But that's what makes it so fun to unpack and explore thematically, which is what we specialize in here at Storycast. Join Maeve Adams, Amanda Marcotte, and Marc Faletti for a look at two primary themes of the finale: 1) that we do not need to invent an oppressive god to save us from ourselves, and 2) despite what many other stories have told us, love and war are fundamentally incompatible. 

Loki and Sylvie showed major growth in teaming up to battle Alioth. But will those changes stick? And should we be worried about either (or both) of them surviving the series if their arcs start to feel complete? Meanwhile, we met a bunch of new Lokis to discuss, Mobius continued to be the Loki Whisperer, and Ravonna might be the biggest bad of them all. Or is it Miss Minutes? Kristine definitely votes for Miss Minutes. Join Kristine Kippins and Marc Faletti for the kind of entertaining reflection on our fave heroes and villains you'll only get on Charactercast!

PonderVision is back to take you for a mind-bending ride through the wildest questions raised by Loki episode 5, "Journey into Mystery!" Inside the episode, we explore the easter eggs littered throughout the Void, the ideal candidates for the Big Bad at the end of time, how Loki's powers work, and more.  Then we step into the real world to discuss the controversy surrounding a Loki reviewer, the challenge of meeting fan expectations for the series finale, and Jesse's fond memories of childhood D.A.R.E. concerts. Join Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti for all of this, a few convoluted sports analogies (we promise we're banning them for a while!) and who knows what else on PonderVision!

Loki's fifth episode is titled "Journey into Mystery," which is a tip to the ways it draws on the themes and ideas of classic works about, well, journeys into mystery! (Yes, it's also the name of the comic where Loki and Thor first appeared, but it's not *just* that!) On Storycast, Maeve Adams and Amanda Marcotte explore how this episode and the series itself ties into the Divine Comedy, the Wizard of Oz, and Alice in Wonderland. But it doesn't just reference their ideas, it also updates them—particularly in regards to what it means to love someone.  Grab your horned helm and join us beyond the veil of time for a ride on the wild side of literature and Loki!

Put on your alligator Loki horns and join Kristine Kippins and Marc Faletti for an exploration of the complex relationships between Loki, Mobius, Sylvie, Ravonna, B-15, and more!  We also address, once and for all, who's the superior Loki, how much of the TVA propaganda Ravonna actually buys, and the creative decision that made the scene between B-15 and Sylvie so moving.  We've got two episodes left, and the time/space shenanigans show no signs of letting up. So strap in for a Charactercast that's not afraid to wake up at the end of the timeline!

The nature of the relationship between Loki and Sylvie is as hard to define as it is for them to actually get a damn moment of peace together. To resolve this, Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti examine it in the most scientific way possible: a Cosmo quiz. This being PonderVision, we also explore the outer limits of the most fascinating questions raised by Loki's fourth episode. For example, how does "pruning" actually work given the revelation of Loki's survival? What are the real names of the Timekeeperbots? How good would it feel to be the Sif in that timeloop situation? And so much more. Come ponder the most captivating conundrums of "The Nexus Event" with us now!

The shocking and surprising fourth episode of Loki intertwines two powerful ideas: that the so-called "natural order" is a way to write marginalized people out of the dominant narrative, and the idea that the reclaimed stories and histories of those same folks are much more powerful than the "official" stories. Join Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti as we explore the power of revolutionary storytelling in "The Nexus Event."

The clues Sylvie dropped about her history might've revealed much more than she intended—especially about her relationship to the TVA. And while Loki's moral compass has proven unreliable so far, one crucial event on Lamentis may have changed all of that. Meanwhile, from motivations to instincts to attention span, Loki and Sylvie are night and day. And yet! They both strive to shield themselves from the very thing they also most desperately seek. What could that be? Well, if you join Kristine Kippins and Marc Faletti on this week's Charactercast, you'll find out! Provided we don't mind-wipe you after the fact, of course...

Let's face it: The name "Lamentis" is telegraphing that you're gonna have a bad time. But maybe there's more to that name than meets the eye? Meanwhile, there are so many small details that raise big questions, like: Where is Sylvie's missing horn? What's at the top of those gold elevators? Where's that Lamentis scene from the trailer? Which is weirder: Sylvie and Loki, or Josh and Cher from Clueless? Join Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti for PonderVision, the place where Loki episode 3's most captivating conundrums will be explored. Even if it takes a toll on our backsides. 

They say you can't truly love someone else until you love yourself. But, uh, what if you combine those into one relationship?  The third episode of Loki is an intimate examination of love, but not in any traditional way. Like Loki and Sylvie, it's subversive, chaotic, and interested in testing the boundaries of what's possible.  It's also an episode that drives home the old adage that no plan survives first contact with the enemy, which happens to Loki and Sylvie at every turn, but also almost everyone else we meet (or watch blow up).  Join Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti for a judgment-free romp through the themes of "Lamentis" and what it means to love.

Sylvie pulled off her scheme, but what's her real agenda? Loki dove through her time door, so does that mean he's given up on the TVA? And will Mobius's mistakes mean he's a fugitive from the only life he's ever known? Charactercast goes inside the hearts and minds of our main characters to tease out their plans, loyalties, arcs...and a fascinating theory about who's "real" and who might be a variant. Join Kristine Kippins and Marc Faletti for all of this and more as we gear up for episode three of Loki!

The TVA cafeteria is a source of endless mystery. How do they decide what food is available? Where do those Jostas even come from? And if you like *that* mystery, wait til we get to the question of how there can be both a sacred timeline and a bunch of different Lokis running around!  Loki episode 2 gave us a ton to chew on, and Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti decide to take a huge bite out of its most compelling mysteries and paradoxes. If you've ever wondered to yourself, "Is Loki more like Charles Lindbergh or Prince?" then this PonderVision is the perfect show for you. 

If the first episode of Loki pitted free will against fate, the second episode sets up a clash of order vs. chaos. This tension ripples throughout the relationship between Loki and Mobius, but also in the showdown between Loki and his female counterpart. Even the jet ski plays a crucial role in this debate! But that's not all. "The Variant" also explores how much our ideology can shape the reality we perceive. And when competing views of reality come face-to-face, violence is usually just around the corner... Join Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti as we strip Loki's second episode down to the scaffolding to see what makes it tick. 

How villainous is this Loki, really? Is Mobius someone he can trust? What about anyone else at the TVA? And what would cause a Loki to go full serial killer? As we anxiously await episode 2, it's a perfect time to get inside the heads of everyone we met in the premiere. Join Kristine Kippins and Marc Faletti for a breakdown of our favorite potential allies, most serious threats, and how many Lokis it might take to bring down the TVA.

What does it mean to be Loki? Is he a side character in the lives of the people around him? Does he exist so that other people can make use of him on their more important journeys? Is he truly at fault for the time variance he created? PonderVision exists to wrestle with the most captivating conundrums of each episode of Marvel TV, and the first episode of Loki delivered a heaping helping of them. Join Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti as we digest the delicious meal that is "Glorious Purpose."

Loki begins! And Storycast is here to break down its underlying themes and genre conventions. As always, we'll also discuss the works of literature and film that inform it. Episode 1, "Glorious Purpose," explores the question of free will vs. predetermined fate, and sets up even more thrilling interrogations of that eternal conundrum. It also makes powerful use of the archetype of the dystopian bureaucracy, which informs everything from character to set design. Join Maeve Adams, Amanda Marcotte, and Marc Faletti as we unpack all of this and more on the Marvelous TV Club's Storycast!

Our character-driven preview of Loki focus on the main man himself, Loki. But which Loki? Because this show has teased the possibility of meeting several different Lokis from various times and timelines. So we're going to discuss three of the Lokis near and dear to our heart: the Loki of our past, the Loki of the present, and the Loki we might see in the future.  Join Kristine Kippins and Marc Faletti for a look at what makes Loki tick, how he's grown over time, and what it means that the 2012 version of Loki is back in the saddle.

In the second MTVC Loki preview, we explore the Time Variance Authority and how time travel works(ish) in the MCU. What are the best uses of time shenanigans thus far? Is there a coherent theory of time travel in the Marvel universe? How will—and how should—the Time Variance Authority work? And is this all the fault of Steve Rogers? Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti explain all of this and more on an especially mind-bendy episode of PonderVision. 

Loki is less than a week away! To kick off our preview week, Storycast unearths tricksters — and trickster gods — that have appeared in art from ancient times through the streaming era. What makes them tricksters, exactly? Who are the best tricksters? Who are some famous characters that we might not think of as tricksters but most definitely are? We also discuss how Loki fits into the archetype, and whether the Loki from Avengers makes as much sense as we think he does. Join Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti as we sneak through literature and film to find the tricksters hiding in plain sight! 

Who created Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four? That seems like a simple question, but the super messy answers—and the difficulty in determining them—may astonish you! Abraham Riesman, author of True Believer: The Rise and Fall of Stan Lee, joins Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti for the first-ever interview on the Marvelous TV Club. Buckle up for a trip through Marvel's past, and prepare to challenge the way we give credit for the creation of our favorite Marvel characters.

Five hosts. One TV universe. Several rounds of an absolutely unforgettable game we call f***/marry/snap. And that's just the appetizer! In our first-ever epic crossover event, the stars of the Marvelous TV Club's Storycast, Charactercast, and PonderVision unite to take stock of the Marvel TV project on Disney+ thus far. Who are the best and worst characters? Which themes meant the most to us? What do we hope to see from Loki and beyond? All of that and more awaits you in the most sacred event for any comics-related project: the epic crossover!

How many children can Bucky lift? What are the best locations for a fight scene? Did the Flag Smashers' plan make sense? Why was John Walker treating the Senate hearing chamber like an H&M dressing room?  All of these questions and many more arose from the season finale of Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Jesse Taylor and Marc Faletti strive to answer them all for you on the one and only PonderVision.

Sam Wilson isn't just a new Captain America, he's redefining what it means to be Captain America. But did Sam do justice to Isaiah Bradley's story in the end?  Meanwhile, Bucky starts making genuine amends while John Walker can't wait to pat himself on the back for one half-decent decision. Karli, Sharon, and Zemo all factor into a jam-packed episode, too.  On the MTVC's Charactercast, Kristine Kippins joins Marc Faletti to evaluate where our heroes and villains landed in the season finale of Falcon and the Winter Soldier. 

If there is a pat moral to this story, it's this: there are no pat morals to the American story.  The season finale of Falcon and the Winter Soldier stages its final battles between nationalism and patriotism. It also asks the difficult question of how best to reckon with past sins, especially when their impact in the present is a matter of life and death. Sam and Karli present opposite ends of the spectrum, and we interrogate their competing beliefs on Storycast! Join Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti for a deep dive into the big ideas of this series and how they reflect on our current moment.

From a mysteriously acquired fingerprint to the extent of Steve Rogers's blind spot on race, Falcon and the Winter Soldier episode 5 cracked open a ton of interesting questions. Jesse Taylor joins Marc Faletti to explore all of them and more in the way that only PonderVision can. (Bonus: if you've ever wondered what the parenting policy should be for playtime with vibranium weaponry, well, we have thoughts!)

Isaiah Bradley's story has a lot to teach Sam, and also the audience. Meanwhile, in Delacroix Sam and Bucky each take meaningful steps towards personal growth. The same can't be said for Walker or Karli, though, whose personal warpaths continue to threaten everyone's safety. And somehow Zemo's the person most at peace? Kristine Kippins joins Marc Faletti to talk about all of this and—of course—the mutual emergent thirst between Sarah and Bucky. (Sam, get out of the way, please! This Charactercast has no time for overprotectiveness. Let Sarah have her fun!)

Heroism is powerfully interrogated by the fifth episode of Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which is also one of the best hours of Marvel content ever made. John Walker thinks there's heroism in empty vengeance, whereas Sam and Bucky find a much more meaningful version in the little things. The Delacroix community finds it in the goodness of the Wilson family, which they reward with their own small acts of heroism. But Isaiah Bradley's story is a monument to the hard truth that many heroes never get the chance to tell their own stories; instead, they're tortured and exploited by cowards in power.  Join Amanda Marcotte, Maeve Adams, and Marc Faletti for a compelling look into the themes that arise from this exploration of heroism and other works of literature and film with similar ideas.

This week, we tackle challenging topics like: How does the ending of this episode relate to ongoing cop violence in America? Was Lemar's death narratively justifiable? And why doesn't Sam's therapy background make him a better friend to Bucky? But we also take time to find the joy in questions like: Why is Bucky afraid of holes? Could the Dora Milaje have gotten away with icing Walker? And what kind of Zemo candy would've worked on us as kids? On this PonderVision, Jesse Taylor and Marc explore the twists and turns of these two very different paths. Join us on the emotional roller coaster, won't you?

Zemo manipulated heroes into fighting amongst themselves again. John Walker just became the most hated man in the world. And Bucky learned just how ungrateful and vulnerable he really is.  The fourth episode of Falcon and the Winter Soldier delivered some exhilarating highs and devastating consequences for our characters. Kristine Kippins joins Marc to assess the fallout on the MTVC's Charactercast.

The super soldier serum = fruit from the Tree of Knowledge—and some characters are extremely bad at resisting its temptations.  The fourth episode of Falcon and the Winter Soldier tells a positively biblical tale about that temptation and its corresponding corruption.  The show also wrestles with the perils we suffer when there's inequality in our bodies, our wallets, and our systems of justice. Amanda Marcotte and Maeve Adams join Marc to break down all of that and more (Steve Rogers = Aslan?!) on the Marvelous TV Club!  

Jesse Taylor joins Marc to debate the best Madripoor theme bars and the best supervillain lair to keep on ice while in prison. We also get into the meaning of the heightened violence in this series and what it means for Zemo (the guy who killed T'Chaka) to be weighing in on the Black experience in America. Also, there seem to be multiple flavors of One World Government taking root. Which one is least bad? Grab a jalapeno popper from Jesse's new Madripoor joint and join the conversation!

Sharon seemed pretty pissed at Sam and Bucky, but she's also living in a mansion with stolen art...and a private driver she hid from our heroes. What's she really up to? Meanwhile, Zemo flashes a more sympathetic side, and a certain legacy continues to haunt Sam, Bucky, and even John. Kristine Kippins joins Marc to puzzle analyze characters new and old from Falcon and the Winter Soldier, episode 3: Power Broker! Grab a snake ball cocktail and join us, yeah?