Old School Lane

In this episode of Puppets Go BOOM!, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 1969 sci-fi espionage series The Secret Service. The show takes in a small English village where a parish priest named Father Stanley Unwin is a secret member of the British Intelligence Service Headquarters, Operation Priest (BISHOP). Together with his partner Matthew Harding, they are giving assignments by the head of the organization The Bishop to uncover secrets while under the guise of a regular vicar. By shrinking Matthew small using a device called the Minimiser, Father Unwin packs him in his suitcase and has him learn the plans of various people of bribery, counterfeiting money, sabotage, or blackmail and reports it to Unwin to stop them. When the show premiered, it received mixed reviews. While Gerry Anderson and Barry Gray called it their favorite Supermarionation show they ever worked on, many people felt it was too eccentric thanks to Stanley Unwin's well known way of speaking gobbledygook, had far less action and adventure, and was too distinctly British to connect to a mass demographic compared to the other shows like Thunderbirds. It was cancelled after 13 episodes and is regarded as the weakest Supermarionation show ever made. The Secret Service would be the final Supermarionation show and Gerry Anderson wouldn't create another show featuring puppets until 14 years later with Terrahawks under the term Hypermarionation. Is it as bad as people say it is?

Continuing Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats' theme of spooky stop motion animated films, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2012 Disney animated film Frankenweenie co-written and directed by Tim Burton. Based on the 1984 short film of the same name, a young boy named Victor Frankenstein is devastated that his best friend, a dog named Sparky, was killed by a car. When learning about electrical impulses from science class, Victor decides to conduct an experiment bringing Sparky back from the dead. While succeeding, he has to keep it hidden from his family, neighbors, and classmates. But it won't be easy, especially one classmate who wishes to use the same tactic to raise his pet fish from the dead to win the school science fair.When the film premiered in theaters, it made $81 million dollars out of a $31 million dollar budget receiving decent reviews from critics and fans, but has since been forgotten due to other animated films like Wreck-it-Ralph and Paranorman being released in the same year. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film?

In this episode of Puppets Go BOOM!, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 1968 sci-fi espionage series Joe 90. A young 9 year old boy named Joe McClaine is helping his adopted father Ian "Mac" McClaine testing his invention the Brain Impulse Galvanoscope Record and Transfer (BIG RAT) where it sends pre-recorded brain wave patterns into the recipient sitting on it. After the test is successful, Sam Loomer, an agent of the World Intelligence Network (WIN) sees the potential of the BIG RAT and Joe, so he proposes to have him as their youngest secret agent with the alias Joe 90. Thanks to the BIG RAT, Joe is able to get the knowledge of pilots, secret agents, piano players, military colonels, racecar drivers, and spies. Armed with a pair of glasses to bring the brain waves into his head, a badge, a walkie talkie, and a gun inside a briefcase, Joe goes on various missions to save people from harm as well as preventing shady weapon trading, assassinations, tortures, and murders from happening. When the show premiered, it was released during the height of the James Bond films being released as well as both The Avengers and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. airing on TV. Kids gravitated to the show putting themselves into Joe 90's adventures wanting to be just like him. However, Joe 90 wasn't as beloved compared to its previous Supermarionation shows due to being more child-oriented and having a smaller cast of characters compared to Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. What did Arun and Patricia think of it? Listen and find out.

In this episode of Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2012 stop motion animated film Paranorman. A young boy named Norman Babcock is ostracized from everyone in his small Massachusetts town because he's able to see and speak to the dead. His uncle informs him that every year, a witch places a curse on the town and it's up to him to read from a book to subside it for another year. But trouble strikes when zombies rise from the dead and the witch's curse becomes more and more powerful. Norman then realizes that to get rid of the witch's curse, it involves more than what was done for 300 years to keep her at bay.When the film premiered in theaters, it made $107 million dollars out of a $60 million dollar budget. It received critical acclaim from critics and viewers for its story, animation, atmosphere, and social commentary. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film?

In this episode of Puppets Go BOOM!, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 1968 sci-fi/action/adventure film Thunderbird 6 based on the 1965 series Thunderbirds. Brains creates a airship for the New World Aircraft Organization called the Skyship One. Its maiden voyage starts off on a rough note when a man hired by The Hood under the guise of The Black Phantom killed the original airship crew and replaced them as Captain Foster. Alan, Tintin, Lady Penelope, and Parker are onboard the Skyship One to test out Brains' airship, but are suspicious of Captain Foster with his mannerisms and hidden microphones in their rooms. Meanwhile Brains is trying to create a new Thunderbird vehicle with Jeff's disapproving every design he comes up with.When the film premiered in theaters, it was a box office bomb with negative reviews from critics. It was the last Thunderbirds movie until the 2004 live action film directed by Jonathan Frakes. Is it worse than the first Thunderbirds film or is it a misunderstood gem?

Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats is back with its 4th year covering spooky stop motion animated films. Arun and Patricia start off with the 2009 Laika animated film Coraline based on the book by Neil Gaiman. A young teenage girl named Coraline Jones and her parents move into a new house in Oregon. Her parents are catalog writers for plants, flowers, and gardening and are too busy to give Coraline any attention. When she discovers a hidden door by the living room, she discovers another world where she meets with doppelgangers of her parents, neighbors, and home where everything is colorful, bright, and receiving attention and love from her Other Mother and Other Father. But then a cat tells her that things are not what they seem and Coraline doesn't listen to him at first, but notices things go wrong when her parents go missing.When the film premiered in theaters, it was critically and commercially successful making $185 million dollars out of a $60 million dollar budget praising the story, characters, atmosphere, and animation. It was the film that put Laika on the map for releasing high quality stop motion animated films. How well does it hold up over 15 years later?

In this episode of Puppets Go BOOM!, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 1967 sci-fi series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. Taken place in 2068, Captain Black and his crew traveled to Mars to track a mysterious radio signal. They found out that it came from the inhabitants of Mars, the Mysterons. Believing they were going to be attacked, Captain Black and his crew attacks the Mysterons. Vowing for revenge, the Mysterons kills Captain Black and control his mind making him their primary agent to take down his former organization Spectrum led by Colonel White. They almost killed and controlled one of Spectrum's agents Captain Scarlet, but he eventually broke out of their control and is now indestructible. Captain Scarlet, together with Captain Blue and the all female pilots, the Angels, learn more about the Mysterons as they kill off people or destroy vehicles and control them to try to destroy them. Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons marked a major change in Supermarionation where the puppets were more realistic looking and had more dynamic cinematography due to Gerry Anderson wanting to stray away from doing movies and shows featuring puppets and doing more live action projects instead. It also went in a darker direction where the violence was increased and the action was more intense than previous Supermarionation shows. For some people, they loved it. Others felt it was too dark and took away the charm of the previous shows, especially after the major success of Thunderbirds. What did Arun and Patricia think of the show?

In this episode of Puppets Go BOOM!, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 1966 action/adventure sci-fi film Thunderbirds Are Go based on the 1965 show Thunderbirds. The space ship the Zero-X was sabotaged by The Hood from going to a mission to Mars to explore it. International Rescue are being called to supervise the second attempt for Zero-X to complete their mission. Alan feels that he isn't treated as seriously as his older brothers when it comes to being assigned to missions, so he accompanies Lady Penelope to a space restaurant where Cliff Richard Jr. and his band The Shadows are performing. Meanwhile the Zero-X is on the verge on crashing into Earth after being attacked by Martians and it's up to Alan to save the day.When the film premiered in theaters, it was a box office bomb with mixed reviews from critics calling it an extended episode of the show on screen. What did Arun and Patricia think about the film?

In this episode of Casual Chats, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2025 Sony Pictures Animation/Netflix animated film Fixed co-written and directed by animation legend Genndy Tartatovsky. A dog named Bull notices that his owners are treating him extra nice with treats, sitting on the couch, and drinking Kool-Aid in the toilet. When he learned from his friends that he was going to be fixed, he runs away from home to enjoy the last night with his genitals. When the trailer premiered, it received negative backlash from animation fans. When the film premiered, it had gotten mixed to negative reviews from critics and fans calling it a disappointment from both Genndy and Sony Pictures Animation since they had made better animation projects previously. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film?

In this episode of Puppets Go BOOM!, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 1965 sci-fi action adventure series Thunderbirds in honor of its 60th anniversary. In the year 2065, whenever danger is happening around the world, a secret organization called International Rescue are there to save the day. Led by retired astronaut Jeff Tracy, together with his five sons Scott, Virgil, Gordon, John, and Alan, engineer/scientist Brains, and London agent Lady Penelope alongside her butler Aloysius Parker, they work together to save people from supernatural or man made disasters as well as stop the evil plans of the enigmatic villain The Hood.When the series first premiered, it was an instant hit. Toys, action figures, costumes, and model sets sold by the millions and the show was very popular for kids and adults all over the world. It even influenced people such as Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park, Super Mario Bros. and Legend of Zelda creator Shigeru Miyamoto, and South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Thunderbirds gained a new audience of kids around the 1980s and 1990s when the stage show Thunderbirds F.A.B. premiered and reruns aired on the BBC. To this day, Thunderbirds is seen as Gerry Anderson's magnum opus and the peak of Supermarionation. Is that statement true? Is it as good as its reputation says it is?

In this episode of Puppets Go BOOM!, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 1964 sci-fi series Stingray. Set in the year 2064, an organization called the World Aquanaut Security Patrol is in charge of policing the World's oceans led by Commander Shore. Stingray, their flagship submarine, is controlled by Troy Tempest and his partner George "Phones" Sheridan. They go on underwater missions and adventures as well as take down the evil tyrannical ruler King Titan of Titanica and his agent X-2-Zero who wears disguises to help King Titan to rule the surface. Stingray was the first British television show in color, the first Supermarionation show to feature puppets with glass eyes, rotating hands, and more humanized proportions to make them more realistic, and what many people call the first "classic" Supermarionation show after learning from the previous shows like Supercar and Fireball XL5. Does it stand the test of time or has it not aged very gracefully and should be called the prototype of later shows to come like Thunderbirds?

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia and Arun discuss about the 2025 Sony Pictures Animation/Netflix animated film KPop Demon Hunters. In South Korea, there's a K-pop group called Huntr/x consisting of Rumi, Mira, and Zoey who is the biggest band in the world with millions of fans coming to their concerts and posting their love and appreciation for them on social media. What they don't know is that they're demon hunters who fight evil demons to prevent them from absorbing human life. When Gwi-Ma, the main leader of the demons, is trying to find a way to get a large amount of souls absorbed, one of the demons named Jinu proposes that he and several other demons disguise themselves as a K-pop group named The Saja Boys. Mira and Zoey wish to take them down, but Rumi gets to know Jinu and has a slight change of how she feels about demons, especially since she's half demon herself.When the film premiered on Netflix, it became critically acclaimed by critics and viewers praising the animation, characters, and soundtrack. It's currently the most viewed movie on Netflix and the songs have reached on both #1 on the Billboard and Spotify charts. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film?

In this episode of Puppets Go BOOM!, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 1962 sci-fi series Fireball XL5. Set in the year 2062, an organization known as The World Space Patrol in Space City does various rescue missions and interplanetary discoveries in outer space. A spaceship named Fireball XL5 piloted by Steve Zodiac alongside his companions Dr. Venus, Professor Matthew Matic, and a robot named Robert patrol Sector 25 and go on various adventures. Meanwhile, the head of The World Space Patrol Commander Zero and his assistant Lieutenant Ninety give missions and assignments to the members of all the Fireball XL spaceships. Each episode has Steve, Dr. Venus, her Lazoon Zoonie, Professor Matic, and Robert go on different missions and adventures in space, discover new worlds, interact with various extraterrestrials, and save the galaxy. When the show premiered, it was very popular due to it airing around the time of the Space Race of the 60s. How accurate does it portray space travel? Not very well. Is it a fun and entertaining show? Listen and find out.

In this episode of Puppets GO BOOM!, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 1961 sci-fi action series Supercar. Supercar is about 3 people working at a secret organization in Black Rock, Nevada named Mike Mercury, Professor Rudolph Popkiss, and Dr. Horatio Beaker. One day, they rescue a young boy named Jimmy, his older brother Bill, and his monkey Mitch after a plane crash resulting in being lost at sea. After rescuing them thanks to Supercar, a vehicle with the ability to fly, go underwater, and travel into space, Jimmy and Mitch live with Mike, Professor Popkiss, and Dr. Beaker where they go on different missions to rescue people and stop the evil plans of Master Spy and his partner Zarin.When the show premiered, it became a big hit and would be the prototype of many Supermarionation shows that would come out later. It was the first very first show under the Supermarionation name, the first Supermarionation show that was produced by AP Films, and the first show that was commissioned by British proprietor Lew Grade. How well does it rank compared to the later Supermarionation shows? How is it as a standalone show?

In the premiere episode of Puppets GO BOOM!, Arun and Patricia are looking back on Gerry Anderson's Supermarionation shows from the 1960s. The first one was the 1960 Western Four Feather Falls. Taken place in a town called Four Feather Falls, Tex Tucker is a sheriff who has four feathers given to him by a Native American chief after saving his grandson. Two feathers are for talking to his horse and dog and the other two are for his guns that are able to shoot on their own. In every episode, Tex protects Four Feather Falls from evil cowboys and renegade Native Americans.When the show premiered, it was well received. However, as more Supermarionation shows came out, Four Feather Falls became forgotten. Did it deserve to be forgotten and seen as prototype of better shows or is it a underrated gem?

In this episode of Casual Chats, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2025 animated film The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie based on the 2020 HBO Max series Looney Tunes Cartoons. Daffy Duck and Porky Pig were orphans raised by a farmer named Jim. He left them the farmhouse where it's now in disrepair and disarray. After failing a house inspection, they have several days to raise money to fix their roof before they lose their house forever. They work at a gum factory where a new flavor is being promoted, but an alien invader tampers with it to create gum zombies. It's up to Daffy, Porky, and Petunia Pig to save the earth from aliens.The film went through massive production hell and was even written off for tax purposes by Warner Bros. before an animation company called Ketchup Entertainment saved the film from obscurity. It received a short theatrical release with no advertisement. Despite making its budget back of $15 million dollars, it received positive reviews from critics and animation fans. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film?

In this episode of DreamMachine, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2025 DreamWorks action/adventure film How to Train Your Dragon, which is a live action remake of the 2010 animated film of the same name based on the book series by Cressida Cowell. In the island of Berk, a young teenage boy named Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III is the outcast of his village of Vikings who is unable to fight against the dragons that attack consistently. It doesn't help much that he's the son of the chief of Berk, Stoick the Vast. One night, he uses one of his inventions to shoot down a rare dragon called a Night Fury. When he finds it, he befriends it and calls it Toothless. Meanwhile, the children of Berk are being trained to fight dragons and Hiccup uses his skills and knowledge to take them down without killing them. The village believes that Hiccup is a real dragon fighter and praises him while Hiccup is keeping his secret. When the film premiered in theaters, it made $530 million dollars out of a $150 million dollar budget with mostly positive reviews. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? Listen and find out.

In this episode of PixMix, Patricia and Arun discuss about the 2025 Pixar animated film Elio. The film is about a young boy named Elio who feels alone and isolated because his aunt Olga, who works at the Air Force after his parents died in a car accident, is almost never around, and bullies pick on him for his dream of being abducted by aliens. Before being dropped off at a summer camp, he sends a message to a call from an unknown source from space to take him away from Earth. He is brought to the Commnuverse where he lies about being the leader of Earth and is made into an ambassador to maintain peace in the universe. An evil alien warlord named Lord Grigon wants to be an ambassador, but is rejected because of his harsh attitude. Elio promises the ambassadors of the Commnuverse to make a peaceful treaty with Lord Grigon, but ends up "kidnapping" his son Glordon in exchange of having him and his people go away. Glordon becomes good friends with Elio as they have similar backgrounds and doesn't want to be as evil as his father is. When the film premiered in theaters, it became Pixar's lowest grossing movie ever making $100 million dollars out of a $200 million dollar budget with mixed to positive reviews. It became even more controversial when an article from The Hollywood Reporter brought up that many themes were cut from the final product, the original co-writer and director left, and the story was rewritten and new directors took it over. How did the movie fare despite its production issues? What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? Listen and find out.

In this episode of DreamMachine, Arun and Patricia continue their lookback at the Cartoon Network animated series DreamWorks Dragons: Riders of Berk. How did the first season fare out, especially since they left off on a cliffhanger. Listen and find out.

In this episode of DreamMachine, Arun and Patricia are talking about one of the TV shows based on a DreamWorks movie franchise as voted by YOU. The winner was DreamWorks Dragons and the first season is called DreamWorks Dragons: Riders of Berk. Taking place after the first How to Train Your Dragon movie, the village of Berk are beginning to become accustomed to dragons roaming around. Some are accepting of it, others aren't. Hiccup and his friends Astrid, Fishlegs, Snoutlout, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut begin an academy training to ride their dragons to defend their village and defeat villains such as Alvin the Treacherous. How did the first season fare out? Listen and find out.

In the first episode of DreamMachine of 2025, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2025 DreamWorks animated film Dog Man, a spin-off of the 2017 animated film Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie. Based on the book series of the same name by Dav Pilkey, Dog Man is about an officer and his dog Greg stopping the evil plans of a cat named Petey who wishes to destroy Ohkay City. When trying and failing to diffuse a bomb, the doctors take the dog's head into the officer's body and Dog Man is born. Meanwhile, Petey buys a clone machine to make more of himself, but instead a little kitten named Lil' Petey is created and loves Petey as his father and wishes to spend time with him. Petey wants Lil' Petey to be evil like him, but Lil' Petey wishes to make his father happy and tries his best to do so, even finding his estranged grandfather. Petey even tries to revive Flippy the evil fish to help destroy Ohkay City. It's up to Dog Man to save the day.When the film premiered in theaters, it made $127 million dollars out of a $40 million budget getting mixed to positive reviews from critics and fans. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? Listen and find out.

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia and special guest HamsterMagenta discuss about the 1991 Argentinan comic book series Cybersix created by Carlos Meglia and Carlos Trillo, its 1995 live action series, the 1999 Canadian animated series, and its legacy.Check out HamsterMagenta's Twitter account at https://x.com/HamsterMagenta.

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia and special guest Chris "RowdyC" Moore discuss about the animated Disney films from 2009 to 2019 consisting of The Princess and the Frog, Tangled, Winnie the Pooh, Wreck-it-Ralph, Frozen, Big Hero 6, Zootopia, Moana, Ralph Breaks the Internet, and Frozen 2. These slew of films are known as The Revival Era since they came out when Disney had made a massive comeback with releasing contemporary films that were praised by critics and fans deeming them as classics on par with the Disney films in the 1990s with their back-to-basic approach with telling classic stories, self aware humor, twist villains, and memorable characters, settings, and songs. What did Patricia and Chris think of the films? Listen and find out.

In the first episode of Casual Chats of 2025, Patricia and Arun discuss about the 1999 TV movie Wakko's Wish based on the 1993 animated series Animaniacs. In a small town called Warnerstock, people were living in peace, happiness, and harmony. But then the kingdom of Ticktockia took over Warnerstock and the king is taxing the people to the point of living in disarray, despair, and poverty. Yakko, Wakko, and Dot are orphans who are struggling to survive in the cold weather in an abandoned orphanage. Dot is sick and needs an operation, so Wakko leaves for a year to make money for her needs. He comes back with a haypenny, but is taxed by the king's men and is left poor again. Wakko makes a wish on a star and is told by an angel that he needs to touch the star that fell hundreds of miles away to have his wish comes true. Now, everyone in the town knows about the star and rushes towards it to have their wish come true. When it was released direct to video, it received positive reviews from critics and fans praising the music, animation, voice acting, and story. It would be the final Animaniacs project released until the 2020 revival on Hulu. How well does Wakko's Wish hold up 25 years later?

In the last episode of Casual Chats for 2024, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2024 stop motion animated film Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, the 2nd film of the Wallace and Gromit franchise by British animation company Aardman Animations. Taking place decades after the 1993 short Wallace and Gromit: The Wrong Trousers, Feathers McGraw, the evil penguin who tried to steal The Blue Diamond thanks to Wallace's invention, The Techno Trousers, is planning for revenge to break out of his prison at the zoo thanks to Wallace's new invention, The Norbot. The Norbot is a robot gnome programmed to do any job, no matter how small. Can Wallace and Gromit stop Feathers for a second time? When the film premiered, it received critical acclaim from critics and fans calling it a great return of the dynamic duo with great animation, a solid soundtrack, a stellar voice cast, and an interesting message on artificial intelligence and relying too much on technology. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film?

In this episode of Casual Chats, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2024 Disney animated movie Moana 2, the sequel to the 2016 animated film Moana. Originally, Moana 2 was supposed to be a Disney+ series, but was released in theaters due to the poor box office performances of Strange World and Wish. Years set after the events of the first film, Moana is a Wayfinder traveling to search for other people in other islands. When she receives a vision from her ancestor that an island that connected all of their people is under the ocean thanks to a god named Nalo and that if she doesn't raise it before a certain time, their people would be extinct. Together with a crew consisting of an old farmer, a tinkerer, and a Maui fan, they have a journey to locate the island, rescue Maui from a bat god who is trapped on a clam, and raise the island before it's too late. When the film premiered in theaters, it made $700 million dollars out of a $150 million dollar budget receiving mixed reviews from critics and viewers calling in an inferior movie compared to the original with a lackluster story, unmemorable songs, and forgettable characters. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of DreamMachine, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2024 DreamWorks animated film The Wild Robot based on the 2016 book of the same name by Peter Brown. A robot named ROZZUM Unit 7134 or Roz for short is sent to an uninhabited island to help others in need. But she is surrounded by animals who see her as a threatening monster. One evening, Roz accidentally falls on a nest killing a goose and her eggs. She finds that there is one egg left and the gosling hatches thinking that Roz is his mother. Roz names the gosling Brightbill and together alongside a fox named Fink, they raise him as their own. While Roz is raising Brightbill, she wishes to return back to her homebase so she can fulfill her real purpose. As time passes, she realizes that she has everything she needs in the island: a home and a family. When the film premiered in theaters, it made $323 million dollars out of a $78 million dollar budget receiving critical acclaim from critics and viewers calling it a "masterpiece" and an instant classic with its story, characters, animation, and themes, especially with The Wild Robot being DreamWorks' final in-house film. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia and Arun discuss about the 2016 Walt Disney animated movie Moana in honor of Moana 2 in theaters. 1000 years ago, a demi-god named Maui stole the heart of a god named Te Fiti in an uncharted island. While trying to leave the island, a lava monster named Te Ka attacked Maui and was never seen again. A Polynesian chief's daughter named Moana wishes to explore outside the island that she grew up in to locate Maui and force him to return the heart of Te Fiti to the island, especially since Te Ka's curse of destroying the islands has now reached their island. Receiving the blessings from her parents, Moana journeys to the vast ocean to locate Maui and return the heart of Te Fiti before her home is destroyed. When the film premiered in theaters, it made $687 million dollars out of a $150 million dollar budget with critical acclaim from critics and viewers praising the characters, animation, setting, and music. How well does the film hold up after 8 years later? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In the final bonus episode of Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats of 2024, Patricia and Arun discuss about the 2023 psychological horror fan film Emesis Blue based on the 2007 online first person shooter video game Team Fortress 2 by a YouTube channel called Fortress Films. On Halloween night in 1968, The Scout was let go from his team, the BLU team, after complaining about getting strange side effects from the respawning machines. He visits the Medic for a check up and confirms that his side effects are real and that he had seen this before. The Scout is kidnapped and the Medic investigates where he was taken. Meanwhile, The Spy and The Soldier are investigating the disappearances of the BLU chairman Jules Archibald. When the fan film premiered, it received positive reviews from fans of Team Fortress 2 with some doing analytical videos doing deep dives on its storytelling and plot twists and turns. Patricia has never played Team Fortress 2 or know anything about the lore of the game, while Arun has played the game before and has seeing the fan film several times. What were their thoughts on it? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this second bonus episode of Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats, Arun and Patricia continue their lookback at the 1989 animated series Beetlejuice based on the 1988 movie directed by Tim Burton with the 4th season that aired exclusively on Fox Fids. Lydia Deetz is a 12-year-old goth girl who lives in a small town called Peaceful Pines with her parents, goes to an all girls' school with her friends Prudence and Bertha, and befriends a ghost who lives in the house named Beetlejuice. Together, they go through many crazy adventures in both the real world and the world of the dead called The Neitherworld with Beetlejuice causing trouble towards everyone in his path, including his neighbors Jacques LaLean, a skeleton who loves working out, Ginger, a tap dancing spider, and The Monster Across the Street, a giant hairy monster with a dog named Poopsie. New to the series are a clown named Scuzzo, a television executive named Mr. Monitor, a cowboy named Jesse Germs, and Beetlejuice's brother Donny. Shortly after the ABC run had ended, the show was moved to Fox Kids where it had 65 episodes with a lot more wacky and zany adventures. It had even won an Emmy tying with The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh as Best Animated Show. How well does it hold up? Is it better than the ABC run? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this bonus episode of Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats, Patricia and special guests Nikki Blake from ScoobyAddicts and Mark Norman from The Folklore Podcast and the author of Zoinks: The Spooky Folklore Behind Scooby-Doo discuss about the 1999 direct to video movie Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost. Scooby-Doo, Shaggy, Velma, Daphne, and Fred are invited by horror book author Ben Ravencroft to his hometown of Oakhaven where a celebrating of his ancestor Sarah is being held. However, the town is spreading rumors that Sarah was a witch, but Ben is trying to prove to them that she was a wiccan by locating her lost journal. Meanwhile, a witch is terrorizing the town and the Mystery Inc. gang is trying to solve who's responsible for it. This is the 2nd Scooby-Doo film from Japanese animation studio Mook Animation after their major success with the previous film Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island and it has received just as much praise with its atmosphere, new characters, and music provided by the eco-goth rock band group The Hex Girls. Does the film hold up 25 years later? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

Happy Halloween, everyone! In this episode of Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats, Arun and Patricia interview television writer and Nickelodeon animated series Aaahh!!! Real Monsters co-creator Peter Gaffney in honor of the show's 30th anniversary. They also go over the pros and cons of AI, what kids' shows were able to get away with decades ago compared to now, and the uncertainty of what Nickelodeon is doing now compared to their golden age in the 90s. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2006-2012 OVA series Hellsing Ultimate based on the 1997 Hellsing manga created by Kouta Hirano. The Hellsing Organization, led by Sir Integra Fairbrooks Wingsgate Hellsing, protects the citizens of England from supernatural beings, including vampires and ghouls. When a group of them attack a police force in Cheddar, Sir Integra sends her top agent, a vampire named Alucard to investigate and discovers only one survivor, a police girl named Seras Victoria. She is taken hostage by one of the ghouls and Alucard shoots both of them with him saving Seras by turning her into a vampire. She is now a part of Hellsing and together with Alucard, the butler Walter C. Dornez, a mercenary group from France, and Sir Integra, they fight a revived Nazi vampire army from the 1940s. This is Arun's very first anime series ever. What are his thoughts of it, especially taken place in his home country? What did they think of it as a whole? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats, Patricia and Arun continue their coverage of the ghost with the most with the 1989 animated series Beetlejuice that ran on ABC in honor of its 35th anniversary and the release of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Lydia Deetz is a 12-year-old goth girl who lives in a small town called Peaceful Pines with her parents and her cat Percy, goes to an all girls' school with her friends Prudence and Bertha, and befriends a ghost who lives in the house named Beetlejuice. Together, they go through many crazy adventures in both the real world and the world of the dead called Neitherworld with Beetlejuice causing trouble towards everyone in his path, including his neighbors Jacques LaLean, a skeleton who loves working out, Ginger, a tap dancing spider, and The Monster Across the Street, a giant hairy monster with a dog named Poopsie. When the show premiered on ABC, it was a huge hit garnering praise for its characters, voice acting, and humor despite being a huge departure from the movie it was based on. How well does it hold up? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2014 Cartoon Network miniseries Over the Garden Wall in honor of its 10th anniversary. Two brothers named Wirt and Greg are lost in the woods and are trying to get home. Along the way, they meet up with a bird named Beatrice who tells them that a witch in the woods can help them out. But a woodsman warns them that there's a beast in the woods that they must stay away from. When the show first premiered, it was critically acclaimed with its characters, music, animation, atmosphere, and story filled with mystery and suspense. Patricia and Arun have never seen the show before. Is it worth the praise? How well does it hold up over a decade later? --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

It's October once again and Casual Chats is going in a spooky direction with Old Spook Lane Creepy Chats for the third time. In this episode, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2024 horror comedy film Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, the long awaited sequel to the 1988 film Beetlejuice directed by Tim Burton. Taking place 36 years since the original, Lydia Deetz is now a full grown adult who has a very successful TV series where she talks to people who are haunted by ghosts. However, she has an strained relationship with her daughter Astrid. When they receive news that Lydia's father Charles had passed away, they return to the old house by Winter River for the funeral. Meanwhile in the Afterlife, Beetlejuice receives news that his ex-wife Delores is after him for revenge. When the film premiered in theaters, it made over $377 million dollars out of a $100 million dollar budget receiving mixed to positive reviews from critics and fans. Was it worth the 36 year wait? What did Arun and Patricia think of this film? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia welcomes back actors Kevin Shinick and Greg Lee since their interviews in 2016 about their time hosting their respected game shows based on the PC games Carmen Sandiego. This time, they promote the Kickstarter of their upcoming graphic novel Host Mortem which is about two detective game show hosts from the 1990s who are taken back in time in the 1940s to solve a real murder mystery. To learn more about the project, click on the link down below.https://www.backerkit.com/call_to_action/27031bca-92d6-4cc7-b5d2-606a4676dbc7/landing --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia and special guests Chris "RowdyC" Moore of TV Trash and Jim Bevan discuss about the 2024 animated film The Garfield Movie based on the 1978 comic strip series by Jim Davis. Garfield is a fat, lazy cat who loves food (especially lasagna), hates Mondays, and terrorizes his owner Jon and his dog Odie to no end. But one day, Garfield and Odie have been kidnapped to lure Garfield's long lost father Vic for a heist mission over at a dairy farm. When the film premiered in theaters, it made $250 million dollars out of a $60 million dollar budget receiving mixed to negative reviews from critics and viewers. What did they think of the film? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of In Search of the Crystal Skull, Arun and Patricia conclude Jim Henson Month with looking at what is considered my many Muppet fans the weakest film in the franchise: the 1999 sci-fi comedy film Muppets from Space. Gonzo is wondering on what he is, but no one knows. That is until one day, he receives strange messages asking if he's there. Gonzo believes that it's his family trying to reach out to him and he is determined to respond. However, an Earth ambassador from a secret government agency named COVNET sees these messages as well and believe that Gonzo can lead them to prove that aliens do exist. When the film premiered, it received mixed to negative reviews from critics and fans calling it mediocre than the previous films. It currently has a 63% on Rotten Tomatoes. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia interviews the crew behind the upcoming documentary miniseries Game Changers: The Stories Behind Your Favorite Video Games consisting of producer Scott Barber (The Orange Years), host and narrator Phil Moore (Nick Arcade), and producer Jerod Costa discuss about video games and the importance of highlighting its significance and the people behind them. To learn more about it, check out its Kickstarter down below. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gamechangersseries/game-changers-the-stories-behind-your-favorite-video-games --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of In Search of the Crystal Skull, Arun and Patricia continue with Jim Henson Month with the 1986 fantasy film Labyrinth. A 16-year-old teenage girl named Sarah wishes for her baby half brother Toby to be taken away by the goblin king. When she gets her wish granted, she changes her mind and wants him back. Jareth, the goblin king, tells Sarah that she has 13 hours to traverse through a labyrinth and into his castle by Goblin City to get him back. Along the way, she meets a dwarf named Hoggle, a hairy monster named Luto, and a fox riding a dog named Sir Didymus and together they go many paths, trials, and obstacles to rescue Toby before time runs out. When the film premiered in theaters, it made $34 million dollars out of a $25 million dollar budget with mixed reviews from critics criticizing the plot, but praising its visual effects, puppet work, and creativity. It currently has a 77% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Like The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth has gained a cult following over the years and various comic books, video games, a manga, and picture books were released to continue the story and celebrate its legacy. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

Continuing with Jim Henson Month on In Search of the Crystal Skull, Arun and Patricia look back on the 1982 fantasy film The Dark Crystal. 1000 years ago, everything was peaceful and prosperous, but then a crystal known as The Dark Crystal was cracked and a shard was missing making its guardians divided into two creatures: the Mystics and the Sketsis. The Sketsis rule the world leaving the world in disarray while living in luxury while The Mystics are awaiting a prophecy to being fulfilled. A young Gelflin named Jen is told that he is destined to find the shard of The Dark Crystal and put it together to restore the world to its former glory. When the film premiered in theaters, it made $41 million dollars out of a $25 million dollar budget with mixed reviews by critics calling it a watered down fantasy story with bland characters, a dark undertone that was out of place from Jim Henson's Muppets, and a lack of charm, whimsy, and fun. However, the critics were impressed with the puppetry and background set pieces. It currently has a 78% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Nowadays, it has gained a cult following and in recent years, comic books, novels, a visual history book by pop culture author Caseen Gaines, a video game, and a prequel series on Netflix helped The Dark Crystal reach a new audience. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

It's Jim Henson Month on In Search of the Crystal Skull. In honor of the recent Disney+ documentary, Jim Henson: Idea Man, Arun and Patricia look back at Jim Henson's films. The first one is the 1981 film The Great Muppet Caper, the second film in The Muppets movie series. Kermit and Fozzie are twin brothers who are newspaper reporters and their friend and co-worker Gonzo is a photographer. After failing to cover a report where a fashion designer named Lady Holiday had her jewelry stolen, they are at the brink of losing their jobs. They beg their boss to give them a second chance and they travel to England to interview her. Meanwhile, Miss Piggy wishes to become one of Lady Holiday's models, but makes her her assistant instead. In a series of events, Miss Piggy is the primary suspect of stealing Lady Holiday's jewelry. It's up to Kermit, Gonzo, Fozzie, and the rest of the inhabitants of the Happiness Hotel to prove Miss Piggy's innocence and capture the real thieves. When the film premiered in theaters, it made $31 million dollars out of a $14 million dollar budget receiving mixed to positive reviews from critics and viewers saying that there are some memorable moments, but the plot wasn't as engaging compared to The Muppet Movie. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of PixMix, Patricia and Arun discuss about the 2024 Pixar animated film Inside Out 2, the sequel to the 2015 animated film Inside Out. Riley is now a 13 year old teenage girl who is going to hockey camp with her best friends. But when the puberty button is pushed inside Headquarters, Riley's emotions Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust, and Anger are paired up with 4 new emotions named Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment, and Ennui. Anxiety feels that the old emotions aren't relevant anymore and have them stored in a jar and tossed aside far away from Riley's mind in addition to her old personality core. Now the new emotions are controlling Riley and Riley is feeling the awkwardness of being a teenager. When the film premiered in theaters, it made $724 million dollars out of a $200 million dollar budget receiving critical acclaim from critics and viewers saying it's better than the first film and a major comeback from Pixar after releasing films that didn't generate for a mainstream audience. What did Arun and Patricia think of the film? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of PixMix, Arun and Patricia continue their lookback at the Pixar animated series Monsters at Work, based on the 2001 animated film Monsters Inc. and the 2013 prequel film Monsters University, with its second season. Tylor Tuskmon has been promoted to Jokester at Monsters, Inc., but is struggling with making kids laugh. He has received an offer from Johnny Worthington, the CEO of Fear Co., to become a Scarer. Meanwhile, the canisters and several other items at Monsters, Inc. have gone missing and an investigation on who's responsible is underway. Arun and Patricia were very underwhelmed with Season 1 of Monsters at Work. How does Season 2 fare out? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia and special guests Qadree Fletcher and Tyler Pitis from Every 11 Minutes: A SpongeBob SquarePants Podcast discuss about the 1999 Nickelodeon animated series SpongeBob SquarePants in honor of its 25th anniversary. They cover their introductions of the show, their favorite characters, their favorite episodes, and the cultural significance of the series and why it's still a classic. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia and Kevin discuss about one of their favorite movies of all time: the 1988 animated/live action hybrid film Who Framed Roger Rabbit? based on the 1981 book Who Censored Roger Rabbit? by Gary K. Wolf. A washed up detective named Eddie Valliant is hired by a cartoon named Roger Rabbit to clear his name after he was suspected of murdering famed animator Marvin Acme. Meanwhile, an eccentric business man named Judge Doom wants to find Roger and sentence him to death via a liquid called The Dip that kills cartoons. When the film premiered, it made $351 million dollars out of a $50 million dollar budget receiving critical acclaim from critics and viewers loving the animation, the story, the characters, and its premise. It was one of the crucial films that would bring Disney into a new golden age a year before The Renaissance Era would begin with The Little Mermaid. But does it hold up after over 35 years later? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia interviews writer, producer, and co-creator of the 1990's cult classic Nickelodeon live action series The Adventures of Pete & Pete for the second time. The first time was over a decade ago around November 2013 when Old School Lane Casual Chats was a year old and was doing its 50th podcast episode. They catch up with one another, talking about the 30th anniversary of Pete & Pete, the 25th anniversary of the show's band Polaris, Will's Amazon Prime pilot A Kid Called Mayonnaise, the indie rock band Real Estate and their song Water Underground, clearing misconceptions of the whereabouts of the Season 3 DVDs, and potential future plans of Pete & Pete. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of Casual Chats, Patricia and special guest Arun Mehta from The Arun Mehta Show discuss about the 1956 film The Ten Commandments in honor of Passover. Based on the 2nd chapter of the Bible Exodus, the Hebrews have been slaves to the Egyptians for over 400 years. The Egyptian Pharaoh commands to kill all the Hebrew babies to prevent them from potentially overpopulating them. One Hebrew woman builds a basket for her baby and places him in the Nile River to hide away from the soldiers. The Pharoah's daughter finds him and raises him as her own son calling him Moses. Years later, Moses believes that he's a prince and helps conquer lands and building cities for the Pharoah Seti I. Meanwhile, the Pharoah's son Rameses is jealous of Moses' accomplishments. Even Rameses' future arrange wife Nefretiri loves Moses more than him. But Moses then discovers that he is not an Egyptian prince, but a Hebrew slave. He is eventually banished and becomes a shepherd in Midian. Another few years passed and God tasks Moses to go back to Egypt and free the Hebrew slaves and take them to the Promise Land. But it won't be easy since Rameses is now the Pharoah and is refusing to let the Hebrews go. When the film premiered in theaters, it was a huge success making $122 million dollars out of a $13 million dollar budget. It received critical acclaim for its story, actors, music, and special effects. Nowadays, it's a cinematic classic that gets played on TV during Passover every year. What did they think of the film? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In this episode of DreamMachine, Arun and Patricia discuss about the 2024 DreamWorks animated film Kung Fu Panda 4, the fourth installment of the Kung Fu Panda franchise. Po is now being assigned to being a Spiritual Leader and must now choose a new Dragon Warrior. However, he feels that he isn't spiritually ready to help people with advice or wise words. Meanwhile, Tai Lung has returned and has challenged Po to show up to have another fight with one another. A thief named Zhen informs Po that Tai Lung is actually The Chameleon shape shifting as Tai Lung and that she lives in Juniper City. It's up to Po and Zhen to stop her. When the movie came out in theaters, it made $400 million dollars out of an $85 million dollar budget with mixed reviews from critics and viewers calling the weakest film in the series. What do Arun and Patricia think? Listen and find out. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support

In honor of Season 2A of the Disney Channel animated series Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur completing its run on the Disney channel and Disney+, Patricia and Arun discuss about their thoughts of the episodes with its plots, characters, major reveals, theories, and final thoughts. Warning: major spoilers ahead! 00:00 Introduction 1:35 The Great Beyonder-er and Suit Up 20:05 Belly of the Beast and Ride or Die 33:28 Kid Kree and Wish-Tar 46:28 Make it, Don't Break It and The Devil You Know 1:05:54 In the Heist and Dog Day Mid-Afternoon 1:23:53 Roller Jam and Dancing with Myself 1:41:21 Family Matters and The Molecular Level --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/old-school-lane/support