Podcasts about lawful good

In this week's episode, I take a look back at the movies and streaming shows I watched in Summer 2025. This coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Ghost in the Serpent, Book #1 in the Ghost Armor series, (as excellently narrated by Hollis McCarthy) at my Payhip store: FALLSERPENT50 The coupon code is valid through September 15, 2025 (please note the shorter expiration date). So if you need a new audiobook this fall, we've got you covered! TRANSCRIPT 00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Updates Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 267 of The Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is September 5, 2025 and today I'm doing a review roundup of the movies and streaming shows I saw in Summer 2025. Before we do that, we will have Coupon of the Week and a progress update on my current writing and audiobook projects. First up, this week's coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Ghost in the Serpent, Book One in the Ghost Armor series (as excellently narrated by Hollis McCarthy) at my Payhip store. That is FALLSERPENT50. This coupon code will be valid through September 15th, 2025 (exactly one week). So if you need a new audiobook to listen to as we head into fall, we have got you covered. Now for an update on my current writing and audiobook projects. I am pleased to report that the rough draft of Blade of Flames, which will be the first book in my new Blades of Ruin epic fantasy series is finished. The rough draft came at about 90,000 words long, which was what I was aiming for. Next up, I will be writing a short story set as sort of a bonus in that plot line called Thunder Hammer and that will be the backstory of one of the characters in Blade of Flames. And when Blade of Flames comes out (which will hopefully be later this September), newsletter subscribers will get a free ebook copy of Thunder Hammer. So this is an excellent time to subscribe to my newsletter. I am also 8,000 words into Cloak of Worlds. At long last, I am coming back to the Cloak Mage series after nearly a year's absence. Longtime listeners will know the reason was that I had five unfinished series and I wanted to spend the summer of 2025 finishing the unfinished ones and focusing up so I will only have three ongoing series at any given time. I'm hoping Blade of Flames will come out before the end of September and Cloak of Worlds before the end of October, and after that I will be able to return to the Rivah series at long last. In audiobook news, recording is finished on Shield of Power. That will be excellently narrated by Brad Wills and hopefully once it gets through processing and quality assurance and everything, it should be showing up on the various audiobook stores before too much longer. Hollis McCarthy is about halfway through the recording of Ghost in the Siege, which was, as you know, the last book in the Ghost Armor series that just came out. And if all goes well, the audiobook should be coming out probably in October once everything is done with recording and quality assurance and all that. So that is where I'm at with my current writing and audiobook projects. 00:02:34 Main Topic: Summer 2025 Movie/TV Roundup So without further ado, let's head into our main topic. The end of summer is nigh, which means this time for my summer movie review roundup. As is usual for the summer, I saw a lot of movies, so this will be one of the longer episodes. For some reason I ended up watching a bunch of westerns. As always, the movies are ranked from least favorite to most favorite. The grades of course are totally subjective and based on nothing more than my own opinions, impressions, and interpretations. Now on to the movies. First up is the Austin Powers trilogy, the three movies of which came out in 1997, 1999, and 2002. The Austin Powers movies came out just as the Internet really got going in terms of mass adoption, which is likewise why so many Austin Powers and Dr. Evil memes are embedded in online culture. Despite that, I had never really seen any of them all the way through. They've been on in the background on TBS or whatever quite a bit when I visited people, but I've never seen them all. But I happened upon a DVD of the trilogy for $0.25 (USD), so I decided for 25 cents I would give it a go. I would say the movies were funny, albeit not particularly good. Obviously the Austin Powers movies are a parody of the James Bond movies. The movies kind of watch like an extended series of Saturday Night Live skits, only loosely connected, like the skit is what if Dr. Evil had a son named Scott who wasn't impressed with him or another skit was what if a British agent from the ‘60s arrives in the ‘90s and experiences culture clash? What if Dr. Evil didn't understand the concept of inflation and demanded only a million dollars from the United Nations? What if Dr. Evil was actually Austin's brother and they went to school together at Spy Academy? Michael Caine was pretty great as Austin's father. Overall, funny but fairly incoherent. Overall grade: C- Next up is Horrible Bosses, a very dark and very raunchy comedy from about 14 years ago. It came out in 2011. Interestingly, this movie reflects what I think is one of the major crises of the contemporary era, frequent failures of leadership at all levels of society. In the movie Nick, Dale, and Kurt are lifelong friends living in LA and all three of them have truly horrible bosses in their place of employment, ranging from a sociopathic finance director, the company founder's cokehead son, and a boorish dentist with a tendency to sexual harassment. At the bar, they fantasize about killing their horrible bosses and then mutually decide to do something about it. Obviously, they'd all be prime suspects in the murder of their own bosses, but if they killed each other's bosses, that would allow them to establish airtight alibis. However, since Nick, Dale and Kurt are not as bright as they think they are, it all goes hilariously wrong very quickly. Bob Hope has a hilarious cameo. If the best “crude comedies” I've seen are Anchorman, Zoolander, Tropic Thunder, and Dodgeball, and the worst one was MacGruber, I'd say Horrible Bosses lands about in the middle. Overall grade: C Next up is Cowboys and Aliens, which came out in 2011. Now I almost saw this in 2011 when it came out, but I was too busy to go to the theater in July of 2011, so I finally saw it here in 2025 and I would say this was almost a great movie, like the performances were great, the concept was great, the scenery was great, the special effects were great, and the story was packed full of really interesting ideas, but somehow they just didn't coalesce. I'm not entirely sure why. I think upon reflection, it was that the movie is just too overcrowded with too many characters and too many subplots. Anyway, Daniel Craig portrays a man who wakes up with no memory in the Old West, with a mysterious bracelet locked around his wrist. He makes his way to the town of Atonement, and promptly gets arrested because he is apparently a notorious outlaw (which he doesn't remember). While he is locked in jail, space aliens attack the town. The aliens, for unknown reasons, abduct many of the townspeople, and Daniel Craig's character, who is named Jake even if he doesn't remember it, must lead the town's effort to recover their abducted citizens. Harrison's Ford has an excellent performance as this awful cattle baron who nonetheless has virtues of courage and fortitude that you can't help but admire. An excellent performance. That said, the movie was just too packed, and I thought it would work better as a novel. After I watched the movie, it turned out that it was indeed based off a graphic novel. Novels and graphic novels allow for a far more complex story than a movie, and I don't think this movie quite managed to handle the transition from a graphic novel to a film. Overall grade: C Next up is Heads of State, which came out in 2025. This was kind of a stupid movie. However, the fundamental question of any movie, shouted to the audience by Russell Crow in Gladiator is, “are you not entertained?!?” I was thoroughly entertained watching this, so entertained I actually watched it twice. Not everything has to be Shakespeare or a profound meditation on the unresolvable conflicts inherent within human nature. Anyway, John Cena plays Will Derringer, newly elected President of the United States. Idris Elba plays Sam Clark, who has now been the UK Prime Minister for the last six years. Derringer was an action star who parleyed his celebrity into elected office (in the same way Arnold Schwarzenegger did), while Clarke is an army veteran who worked his way up through the UK's political system. Needless to say, the cheerful Derringer and the grim Clarke take an immediate dislike to each other. However, they'll have to team up when Air Force One is shot down, stranding them in eastern Europe. They'll have to make their way home while evading their enemies to unravel the conspiracy that threatens world peace. So half action thriller, half buddy road trip comedy. The premise really doesn't work if you think about it too much for more than thirty seconds, but the movie was funny and I enjoyed it. Jack Quaid really stole his scenes as a crazy but hyper-competent CIA officer. Overall grade: C+ Next up, Captain America: Brave New World, which came out in 2025 and I think this movie ended up on the good side of middling. You can definitely tell it went through a lot of reshoots and retooling, and I suspect the various film industry strikes hit it like a freight train. But we ended up with a reasonably solid superhero thriller. Sam Wilson is now Captain America. He's not superhuman the way Steve Rogers was and doesn't have magic powers or anything, so he kind of fights like the Mandalorian – a very capable fighter who relies on excellent armor. Meanwhile, in the grand American political tradition of failing upward, Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, who spent years persecuting The Hulk and whose meddling caused the Avengers to disband right before Thanos attacked, has now been elected President. To Wilson's surprise, Ross reaches out and wants him to restart the Avengers. But Ross (as we know) did a lot of shady black ops stuff for years, and one of his projects is coming back to haunt him. Wilson finds himself in the middle of a shadowy conspiracy, and it's up to him to figure out what's going on before it's too late. I was amused that lifelong government apparatchik Ross wanted to restart the Avengers, because when the Avengers had their biggest victory in Avengers: Endgame, they were essentially unsanctioned vigilantes bankrolled by a rogue tech billionaire. Overall grade: B- Next up is Ironheart, which came out in 2025. I'd say Ironheart was about 40% very weird and 60% quite good. It's sort of like the modern version of Dr. Faustus. The show got some flak on the Internet from the crossfire between the usual culture war people, but the key to understanding it is to realize that Riri Williams AKA Ironheart is in fact an antihero who's tottering on the edge of becoming a full-blown supervillain. Like Tony Stark, she's a once-in-a-generation scientific talent, but while she doesn't have Stark's alcohol problems, she's emotionally unstable, immature, ruthless, indifferent to collateral damage and consequences, and suffering from severe PTSD after her best friend and stepfather were killed in a drive-by shooting. This volatile mix gets her thrown out of MIT after her experiments cause too much destruction, and she has to go home to Chicago. To get the funds to keep working on her Iron Man armor, she turns to crime, and falls in with a gang of high-end thieves led by a mysterious figure named Hood. It turns out that Hood has actual magic powers, which both disturbs and fascinates Riri. However, Hood got his magic in a pact with a mysterious dark force. When a job goes bad, Riri gains the enmity of Hood and has to go on the run. It also turns out Hood's dark master has become very interested in Riri, which might be a lot more dangerous for everyone in the long run. Overall, I'd say this is about in the same vein as Agatha All Along, an interesting show constructed around a very morally questionable protagonist. Overall grade: B Next up is A Minecraft movie, which came out in 2024. I have to admit, I've never actually played Minecraft, so I know very little about the game and its ecosystem, only what I've generally absorbed by glancing at the news. That said, I think the movie held together quite well, and wasn't deserving of the general disdain it got in the press. (No doubt the $950 million box office compensated for any hurt feelings.) One of the many downsides of rapid technological change in the last fifty years is that the Boomers and Gen X and the Millennials and Gen Z and Gen Alpha have had such radically different formative experiences in childhood that it's harder to relate to each other. Growing up in the 1980s was a wildly different experience than growing up in the 2010s, and growing up in the 2010s was an even more wildly different experience than growing up in the 1960s. Smartphones and social media were dominant in 2020, barely starting in 2010, and implausible science fiction in 2000 and earlier, and so it was like the different generations grew up on different planets, because in some sense they actually did. (A five-year-old relative of mine just started school, and the descriptions of his school compared to what I remember of school really do sound like different planets entirely.) The Minecraft game and A Minecraft Movie might be one of those generation-locked experiences. Anyway, this has gotten very deep digression for what was essentially a portal-based LitRPG movie. A group of people experiencing various life difficulties in a rural Idaho town get sucked into the Minecraft world through a magic portal. There they must combine forces and learn to work together to master the Minecraft world to save it from an evil sorceress. As always, the fundamental question of any movie is the one that Russell Crowe's character shouted to the audience in Gladiator back in 2000. “Are you not entertained?” I admit I was entertained when watching A Minecraft Movie since it was funny and I recognized a lot of the video game mechanics, even though I've never actually played Minecraft. Like, Castlevania II had a night/day cycle the way Minecraft does, and Castlevania II was forty years ago. But that was another digression! I did enjoy A Minecraft Movie. It was kind of crazy, but it committed to the craziness and maintained a consistent creative vision, and I was entertained. Though I did think it was impressive how Jack Black's agent managed to insist that he sing several different times. Overall grade: B Next up is Back to School, which came out in 1986 and this is one of the better ‘80s comedies I've seen. Rodney Dangerfield plays Thornton Melon, who never went to college and is the wealthy owner of a chain of plus-sized clothing stores. His son Jason is attending Great Lakes University, and after Thornton's unfaithful gold-digging wife leaves him (Thornton is mostly relieved by this development), he decides to go visit his son. He quickly discovers that Jason is flailing at college, and decides to enroll to help out his son. Wacky adventures ensue! I quite enjoyed this. The fictional “Great Lakes University” was largely shot at UW-Madison in Wisconsin, which I found amusing because I spent a lot of time at UW-Madison several decades ago as a temporary IT employee. I liked seeing the characters walk past a place where I'd eat lunch outside when the day was nice, that kind of thing. Also, I'm very familiar with how the sausage gets made in higher ed. There's a scene where the dean is asking why Thornton is qualified to enter college, and then it cuts to the dean cheerfully overseeing the groundbreaking of the new Thornton Melon Hall which Thornton just donated, and I laughed so hard I almost hurt myself, because that is exactly how higher ed works. The movie had some pointless nudity, but it was only a few seconds and no doubt gets cut in network broadcasts. Overall grade: B Next up is Whiskey Galore, which came out in 1949 and this is a comedy set in Scotland during World War II. The villagers living on an isolated island have no whiskey due to wartime rationing. However, when a government ship carrying 50,000 cases of whiskey runs aground near the island, wacky hijinks ensue. I have to admit the first half of the movie was very slow and deliberate, gradually setting up all the pieces for later. Then, once the shipwreck happens, things pick up and the movie gets much funnier. Definitely worth watching both as a good comedy movie and an artifact of its time. A modicum of historical knowledge is required – if you don't know what the Home Guard is, you might have to do some Googling to understand the context of some of the scenes. Regrettably, the version I watched did not have captioning, so I had to pay really close attention to understand what the characters were saying, because some of the accents were very strong. Overall grade: B Next up is Happy Gilmore 2, which came out in 2025. This was dumb and overstuffed with celebrity cameos but thoroughly hilarious and I say this even though it uses one of my least favorite story tropes, namely “hero of previous movie is now a middle age loser.” However, the movie leads into it for comedy. When Happy Gilmore accidentally kills his wife with a line drive, he spirals into alcoholism and despair. But his five children still love him, and when his talented daughter needs tuition for school, Happy attempts to shake off his despair and go back to golf to win the money. But Happy soon stumbles onto a sinister conspiracy led by an evil CEO to transform the game of golf into his own personal profit center. Happy must team up with his old nemesis Shooter McGavin to save golf itself from the evil CEO. Amusingly, as I've said before, the best Adam Sandler movies are almost medieval. In medieval fables, it was common for a clever peasant to outwit pompous lords, corrupt priests, and greedy merchants. The best Adam Sandler protagonist remains an everyman who outwits the modern equivalent of pompous lords and corrupt priests, in this case an evil CEO. Overall grade: B+ Next up is Superman, which came out in 2025 and I thought this was pretty good and very funny at times. I think it caught the essential nature of Superman. Like, Superman should be a Lawful Good character. If he was a Dungeons and Dragons character, he would be a paladin. People on the Internet tend to take the characterization of superheroes seriously to perhaps an unhealthy degree, but it seems the best characterization of Superman is as an earnest, slightly dorky Boy Scout who goes around doing good deeds. The contrast of that good-hearted earnestness with his godlike abilities that would allow him to easily conquer and rule the world is what makes for an interesting character. I also appreciated how the movie dispensed with the overused trope of the Origin Story and just got down to business. In this movie, Lex Luthor is obsessed with destroying Superman and is willing to use both super-advanced technology and engineered geopolitical conflict to do it. Superman, because he's essentially a decent person, doesn't comprehend just how depraved Luthor is, and how far Luthor is willing to go out of petty spite. (Ironically, a billionaire willing to destroy the world out of petty spite is alas, quite realistic). Guy Gardener (“Jerkish Green Lantern”) and the extremely competent and the extremely exasperated Mr. Terrific definitely stole all their scenes. The director of the movie, James Gunn, was quite famously fired from Disney in 2018 for offensive jokes he had made on Twitter back when he was an edgy young filmmaker with an alcohol problem. I suppose Mr. Gunn can rest content knowing that Superman made more money than any Marvel movie released this year. Overall grade: A-   Next up is Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, which came out in 1988. This was a very strange movie, but nonetheless, one with an ambitious premise, strong performances, and a strong artistic vision. It's set in post WWII Los Angeles, and “toons” (basically cartoon characters) live and work alongside humans. Private eye Eddie Valiant hates toons since one of them killed his brother five years ago. However, he's hired by the head of a studio who's having trouble with one of his toon actors, Roger Rabbit. Roger's worried his wife Jessica is having an affair, and Valiant obtains pictures of Jessica playing patty cake (not a euphemism, they actually were playing patty cake) with another man. Roger has an emotional breakdown, and soon the other man winds up dead, and Roger insists he's innocent. Valiant and Roger find themselves sucked into a dangerous conspiracy overseen by a ruthless mastermind. This movie was such an interesting cultural artifact. It perfectly follows the structure of a ‘40s film noir movie, but with cartoons, and the dissonance between film noir and the cheerfulness of the toons was embraced and used as a frequently source of comedy. In fact, when the grim and dour Valiant uses the toons' comedy techniques as a tactical improvisation in a moment of mortal peril, it's both hilarious and awesome. Christopher Lloyd's performance as the villainous Judge Doom was amazing. (I don't think it's a spoiler to say that he's villainous, because his character is named Judge Doom and he's literally wearing a black hat.) Like, his performance perfectly captures something monstrous that is trying very hard to pretend to be human and not quite getting it right. And the amount of work it must have taken to make this movie staggers the mind. Nowadays, having live actors interact with cartoon characters is expensive, but not unduly so. It's a frequent technique. You see it all the time in commercials when a housewife is smiling at an animated roll of paper towels or something, and Marvel's essentially been doing it for years. But this was 1988! Computer animation was still a ways off. They had to shoot the movie on analog film, and then hand-draw all the animation and successfully match it to the live film. It wouldn't have worked without the performance of Bob Hoskins as Eddie Valiant, who plays everything perfectly straight in the same way Michael Caine did in A Muppet Christmas Carol. So kind of a strange movie, but definitely worth watching. And it has both Disney and Warner Brothers animated characters in the same movie, which is something we will never, ever see again. Overall grade: A Next up is K-Pop Demon Hunters, which came out in 2025. Like Who framed Roger Rabbit?, this is a very strange movie, but nonetheless with a clear and focused artistic vision. It is a cultural artifact that provides a fascinating look into a world of which I have no knowledge or interest, namely K-pop bands and their dueling fandoms. Anyway, the plot is that for millennia, female Korean musicians have used the magic of their voices to keep the demons locked away in a demon world. The current incarnation is a three-woman K-Pop group called Huntrix, and they are on the verge of sealing away the demons forever. Naturally, the Demon King doesn't like this, so one of his cleverer minions comes up with a plan. They'll start a Demon K-Pop Boy Band! Disguised as humans, the demon K-Pop group will win away Huntrix's fans, allowing them to breach the barrier and devour the world. However, one of the Huntrix musicians is half-demon, and she starts falling for the lead demon in the boy band, who is handsome and of course has a dark and troubled past. Essentially a musical K-drama follows. I have to admit I know practically nothing about K-Pop groups and their dueling fandoms, other than the fact that they exist. However, this was an interesting movie to watch. The animation was excellent, it did have a focused vision, and there were some funny bits. Overall grade: A Next up is Clarkson's Farm Season Four, which came out in 2025. A long time ago in the ‘90s, I watched the episode of Frasier where Frasier and Niles attempt to open a restaurant and it all goes horribly (yet hilariously) wrong. At the time, I had no money, but I promised myself that I would never invest in a restaurant. Nothing I have seen or learned in the subsequent thirty years has ever changed that decision. Season 4 of Clarkson's Farm is basically Jeremy Clarkson, like Frasier and Niles, attempting to open a restaurant, specifically a British pub. On paper it's a good idea, since Clarkson can provide the pub with food produced from his own farm and other local farmers. However, it's an enormous logistical nightmare, and Clarkson must deal with miles of red tape, contractors, and a ballooning budget, all while trying to keep his farm from going under. An excellent and entertaining documentary into the difficulties of both the farming life and food service. I still don't want to own a restaurant! Overall grade: A Next up is Tombstone, which came out in 1993. The Western genre of fiction is interesting because it's limited to such a very specific period of time and geographical region. Like the “Wild West” period that characterizes the Western genre really only lasted as a historical period from about 1865 to roughly 1890. The Western genre was at its most popular in movies from the 1940s and the 1960s, and I wonder if it declined because cultural and demographic changes made it unpopular to romanticize the Old West the way someone like Walt Disney did at Disneyland with “Frontierland.” Of course, the genre lives on in different forms in grittier Western movies, neo-Westerns like Yellowstone and Longmire, and a lot of the genre's conventions apply really well to science fiction. Everyone talks about Firefly being the first Space Western, but The Mandalorian was much more successful and was basically a Western in space (albeit with occasional visits from Space Wizards). Anyway! After that long-winded introduction, let's talk about Tombstone. When Val Kilmer died earlier this year, the news articles mentioned Tombstone as among his best work, so I decided to give it a watch. The plot centers around Wyatt Earp, played by Kurt Russell, who has decided to give up his career in law enforcement and move to Tombstone, Arizona, a silver mining boomtown, in hopes of making his fortune. However, Tombstone is mostly controlled by the Cowboys outlaw gang, and Earp is inevitably drawn into conflict with them. With the help of his brothers and Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer's character), Earp sets out to bring some law and order to Tombstone, whether the Cowboys like it or not. Holliday is in the process of dying from tuberculosis, which makes him a formidable fighter since he knows getting shot will be a less painful and protracted death than the one his illness will bring him. Kilmer plays him as a dissolute, scheming warrior-poet who nonetheless is a very loyal friend. Definitely a classic of the Western genre, and so worth watching. Overall grade: A Next up is Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning, the eighth Mission Impossible movie. Of the eight movies, I think the sixth one was the best one, but this one comes in at a close second. It continues on from Dead Reckoning. Ethan Hunt now possesses the key that will unlock the source code of the Entity, the malicious AI (think ChatGPT, but even more obviously evil) that is actively maneuvering the world's nuclear powers into destroying each other so the Entity can rule the remnants of humanity. Unfortunately, the Entity's source code is sitting in a wrecked Russian nuclear sub at the bottom of the Bering Sea. Even more unfortunately, the Entity knows that Hunt has the key and is trying to stop him, even as the Entity's former minion and Hunt's bitter enemy Gabriel seeks to seize control of the Entity for himself. A sense of apocalyptic doom hangs over the movie, which works well to build tension. Once again, the world is doomed, unless Ethan Hunt and his allies can save the day. The tension works extremely well during the movie's underwater sequence, and the final airborne duel between Hunt and Gabriel. I don't know if they're going to make any more Mission Impossible movies after this (they are insanely expensive), but if this is the end, it is a satisfying conclusion for the character of Ethan Hunt and the Impossible Mission Force. Overall grade: A Next up is Deep Cover, which came out in 2025. This is described as a comedy thriller, and I didn't know what to expect when I watched it, but I really enjoyed it. Bryce Dallas Howard plays Kat, a struggling comedy improv teacher living in London. Her best students are Marlon (played by Orlando Bloom), a dedicated character actor who wants to portray gritty realism but keeps getting cast in tacky commercials, and Hugh (played by Nick Mohammed), an awkward IT worker with no social skills whatsoever. One day, the three of them are recruited by Detective Sergeant Billings (played by Sean Bean) of the Metropolitan Police. The Met wants to use improv comedians to do undercover work for minor busts with drug dealers. Since it plays 200 pounds a pop, the trio agrees. Of course, things rapidly spiral out of control, because Kat, Marlon, and Hugh are actually a lot better at improv than they think, and soon they find themselves negotiating with the chief criminals of the London underworld. What follows is a movie that is both very tense and very funny. Kat, Marlon, and Hugh are in way over their heads, and will have to do the best improv of their lives to escape a very grisly fate. Whether Sean Bean dies or not (as is tradition), you will just have to watch the movie and find out. Overall grade: A Next up is Puss in Boots: The Final Wish, which came out in 2022. I don't personally know much about the history of Disney as a corporation, and I don't much care, but I do have several relatives who are very interested in the history of the Disney corporation, and therefore I have picked up some by osmosis. Apparently Disney CEO Michael Eisner forcing out Jeffrey Katzenberg in the 1990s was a very serious mistake, because Katzenberg went on to co-found DreamWorks, which has been Disney's consistent rival for animation for the last thirty years. That's like “CIA Regime Change Blowback” levels of creating your own enemy. Anyway, historical ironies aside, Puss in Boots: The Final Wish was a funny and surprisingly thoughtful animated movie. Puss in Boots is a legendary outlaw and folk hero, but he has used up eight of his nine lives. An ominous bounty hunter who looks like a humanoid wolf begins pursuing him, and the Wolf is able to shrug off the best of Puss In Boots' attacks. Panicked, Puss hides in a retirement home for elderly cats, but then hears rumors of the magical Last Wish. Hoping to use it to get his lives back, Puss In Boots sets off on the quest. It was amusing how Little Jack Horner and Goldilocks and the Three Bears were rival criminal gangs seeking the Last Wish. Overall grade: A Next up is Chicken People, which came out in 2016. A good documentary film gives you a glimpse into an alien world that you would otherwise never visit. In this example, I have absolutely no interest in competitive chicken breeding and will only raise chickens in my backyard if society ever collapses to the level that it becomes necessary for survival. That said, this was a very interesting look into the work of competitive chicken breeding. Apparently, there is an official “American Standard of Perfection” for individual chicken breeds, and the winner of the yearly chicken competition gets the title “Super Grand Champion.” Not Grand Champion, Super Grand Champion! That looks impressive on a resume. It is interesting how chicken breeding is in some sense an elaborate Skinner Box – like you can deliberately set out to breed chickens with the desirable traits on the American Standard of Perfection, but until the chickens are hatched and grow up, you don't know how they're going to turn out, so you need to try again and again and again… Overall grade: A Next up is The Mask of Zoro, which came out in 1998. I saw this in the theatre when it came out 27 years ago, but that was 27 years ago, and I don't have much of a memory of it, save that I liked it. So when I had the chance to watch it again, I did! Anthony Hopkins plays Diego de la Vega, who has the secret identity of Zorro in the final days before Mexico breaks away from the Spanish Empire. With Mexico on the verge of getting its independence, Diego decides to hang up his sword and mask and focus on his beloved wife and daughter. Unfortunately, the military governor Don Montero realizes Diego is Zorro, so has him arrested, kills his wife, and steals his baby daughter to raise as his own. Twenty years later, a bandit named Alejandro loses his brother and best friends to a brutal cavalry commander. It turns out that Montero is returning to California from Spain, and plans to seize control of California as an independent republic (which, of course, will be ruled by him). In the chaos, Diego escapes from prison and encounters a drunken Alejandro, and stops him from a futile attack upon the cavalry commander. He then proposes a pact – Diego will train Alejandro as the next Zorro, and together they can take vengeance upon the men who wronged them. This was a good movie. It was good to see that my taste in movies 27 years ago wasn't terrible. It manages to cram an entire epic plot into only 2 hours and 20 minutes. In some ways it was like a throwback to a ‘40s movie but with modern (for the ‘90s) production values, and some very good swordfights. Overall grade: A Next up is Wick is Pain, which came out in 2025. I've seen all four John Wick movies and enjoyed them thoroughly, though I've never gotten around to any of the spinoffs. Wick is Pain is a documentary about how John Wick went from a doomed indie movie with a $6.5 million hole in its budget to one of the most popular action series of the last few decades. Apparently Keanu Reeves made an offhand joke about how “Wick is pain” and that became the mantra of the cast and crew, because making an action movie that intense really was a painful experience. Definitely worth watching if you enjoyed the John Wick movies or moviemaking in general. Overall grade: A The last movie I saw this summer was Game Night, which came out in 2016. It was a hilarious, if occasionally dark comedy action thriller. Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams play Max and Annie Davis, a married couple who are very competitive and enjoy playing games of all kinds. Jason has an unresolved conflict with his brother Brooks, and one night Brooks invites them over for game night, which Max resents. Halfway through the evening, Brooks is kidnapped, with Max and Annie assume is part of the game. However, Brooks really is involved in something shady. Hilarity ensues, and it's up to Max and Annie to rescue Brooks and stay alive in the process. This was really funny, though a bit dark in places. That said, Max and Annie have a loving and supportive marriage, so it was nice to see something like that portrayed on the screen. Though this also leads to some hilarity, like when Annie accidentally shoots Max in the arm. No spoilers, but the punchline to that particular sequence was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. Overall grade: A So no A+ movie this time around, but I still saw a bunch of solid movies I enjoyed. One final note, I have to admit, I've really come to respect Adam Sandler as an entertainer, even if his movies and comedy are not always to my taste. He makes what he wants, makes a lot of money, ensures that his friends get paid, and then occasionally takes on a serious role in someone else's movie when he wants to flex some acting muscles. I am not surprised that nearly everyone who's in the original Happy Gilmore who was still alive wanted to come back for Happy Gilmore 2. So that is it for this week. Thank you for listening to The Pulp Writer Show. I hope you found the show enjoyable and perhaps a guide to some good movies to watch. A reminder that you can listen to all the back episodes at https://thepulpwritershow.com. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a review on your podcasting platform of choice. Stay safe and stay healthy and see you all next week.  

On this week's episode of Windbreaker, Yahtzee, Marty, and JM8 attempt to make a D&D-esque alignment chart for video game developers, ranging from Lawful Good to Chaotic Evil.Second Wind is fully independent, employee-owned and fan-funded. Consider supporting us on Patreon for as little as $1/month at patreon.com/SecondWindGroup

Welcome to episode 256 of the Grow Your Law Firm podcast, hosted by Ken Hardison. In this episode, Ken sits down with Luke W Russell, the award-winning host of Lawful Good.   Award-winning host of Lawful Good, Luke W. Russell, returns with a new platform: Beautiful Humans. Luke entered the legal world in 2011 and has since managed $30 million in social media ad budgets, driving thousands of personal injury and mass tort cases. Everything began to change when on January 1st, 2021, Luke launched Lawful Good, a groundbreaking podcast that shared untold stories of prominent lawyers like Ken Hardison, John Morgan, and Ben Crump. After three successful seasons, the podcast ended, but it sparked Luke's realization that storytelling was his true passion.   Now blending years of study in human connection with powerful storytelling, Luke focuses on harnessing film to drive business objectives and foster meaningful connections. His work includes documentaries on survivors of child sex abuse and the Beautiful Humans movement launched in Fall 2024. Beautiful Humans renews our sense of shared humanity, championing the belief that all humans are inherently beautiful. As the industry shifts toward AI, Luke's insights show how firms can leverage the vital, biologically-rooted power of human connection to thrive in an increasingly digital world. What you'll learn about in this episode: 1. How You Can Use Film and Video to Create Trust  Videos can be a tool for shareing personal stories that connect with your audience, helping build trust and authenticity.  This could mean using a video to showcase marginalized groups or sensitive topics, showing your commitment to justice and compassion.  2. Why Intentional Storytelling Resonates With An Audience   Sharing authentic stories helps audiences see themselves in the experiences, creating deeper emotional connections. Intentional storytelling builds understanding and empathy, even across differing perspectives or backgrounds.  3. How Lawyers Can Maximize Film and Video for Marketing and ROI    Videos that emphasize human connection build credibility and loyalty, helping law firms attract and retain clients.  Incorporating films into PR, social media, and email marketing campaigns boosts engagement and increases conversions, turning trust into measurable business growth. 4.  Why Both Short-Form and Long-Form Video Have Lasting Impacts  Longer videos provide the opportunity for deeper connection, allowing law firms to share impactful stories that resonate and establish trust with their audience.  Short videos can amplify a law firm's message in a quick, memorable way, helping to establish a strong, consistent brand presence across social media and digital platforms.  5. How the Beautiful Humans Movement Strengthens Shared Humanity  By showcasing individual beauty and experiences, the Beautiful Humans Movement encourages empathy and deeper understanding across diverse communities.  The movement uses storytelling to challenge negative stereotypes and promote unity, encouraging people to see and appreciate the humanity in others.  Resources:  https://www.beautifulhumans.film https://www.youtube.com/@BeautifulHumansFilm https://www.facebook.com/lukewrussell https://www.instagram.com/beautidians/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/lukewrussell/   Additional Resources:  https://www.pilmma.org/aiworkshop https://www.pilmma.org/the-mastermind-effect https://www.pilmma.org/resources https://www.pilmma.org/mastermind

We hop on the controversey carousel and FINALLY give our thoughts on the old argument about paladins.  Which of the gang believes they must be Lawful Good (and human) and who is playing the tiefling holy warrior?  Then, we tackle the news with pop gaming garbage that boggles the minds of each of the guys.  Lastly, we take a trip to Reddit where a LOT of SparkleTrolls and NuGamers are bemoaning that "DnD is too hard!"  Crunch is good!   ----more---- The News: A Drizzt movie should NOT be a fantasy adventure?!? Schizo DMG Says Say "No" While Indulging Player's Power Fantasies It came from Reddit... ----more---- Episode Sponsors and Affiliates: Shop Amazon and Support the Show: https://amzn.to/3djotja *We earn a small commission for each Amazon purchase at no additional cost to you!

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Please donate to help our friend Nico get top surgery here and share the link even if you can't donate!Now that the Line Bulls have learned about the ownership of the train, saved the track, and stashed away a Leviathan Tentacle, the cast of Ghosts on a Train discuss episodes 64 to 66 along with guest David. We discuss how Ditri formed in David's mind, Andrel's child development, Pip's becoming a better person through guilt, and advice for being a guest at an established table. The gang also discusses being Lawful Good in the bathroom and what Trials of the Apocalypse arcs you might enjoy!Find special guest David on Twitter @TotaPodcast, and occasionally on Twitch with https://www.twitch.tv/seroRPGGhost Lines by John Harper. Music by Sebastian Black and TJ Woods. Art by Yoshiko Agresta.Donate to an Abortion Fund. Twitter Thread with funds for Trigger Law States here. Donate to Equality Texas and Trans Texas. https://ukrainewar.carrd.co/ https://www.navajowaterproject.org/ Follow us on Twitter @ghosts_train, and if you have questions or suggestions for the train email them to ghosttrainpod@gmail.com or leave a voice message at https://anchor.fm/ghosts-on-a-train/message and you might hear yourself on the showWe are a proud member of the Faustian Nonsense Network of podcasts! Join the Faustian Nonsense Network discord here, and support us by joining the FN Patreon!Help the Show by Rating and Reviewing on Apple Podcasts

Join Keith as he reviews all the comics of the week!

A Bad ass princess, high school girl's fight club, super heroes, and drug dealers are just a few of the things we discuss before talking about the Oscars and what purchasing a digital copy of movies really means. Bill also has a follow up to his review of Shogun.Reviewed this week:Damsel - NetflixMy name is Loh Kiwan - NetflixBottoms - Amazon PrimeA Day - Amazon Prime Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom - MaxThe Gentlemen - Netflix

The crew decides the best way to turn a man into a backpack, a will-they won't-they begins, and they go investigating the missing peoples' homes. Looking for a tee with the best nerdy designs by independent artists from around the web? Check out www.TeePublic.com or discover our favourite designs at Dungeonstore.FromSuperheroes.com Dungeon Master: Nile Séguin Party Members: Kyah Green, Hisham Kelati, Leonard Chan, and Rebecca Reeds Music Featured: "Renaissance" by Artist - Audionautix. Produced by Andrew Ivimey as part of The From Superheroes Network. Visit www.FromSuperheroes.com for more podcasts, articles, YouTube series, web comics, and more.

Shownotes can be found at https://www.profitwithlaw.com/387.There's no one-size-fits-all marketing formula to marketing a law firm. In the legal field, as in any business, failure is a part of the journey. However, rather than viewing setbacks as defeats, see them as opportunities for growth and improvement. Analyze your mistakes, learn from them, and dust yourself off. With diligence and putting trust in the process, your law firm's growth potential is limitless.In this episode, Luke Russell joins us to discuss why it's okay for law firms to fail in their marketing ventures. He emphasizes that the key is finding a marketing strategy you genuinely enjoy. He also encourages us to use social media as a relationship-building tool, not a channel for getting attention. Most importantly, Luke urges lawyers to embrace experimentation, recognizing that failure is integral to successfully marketing a law firm.If you want to know how to start building a marketing approach that captures your personal values and your firm's brand, this episode is for you.00:00 Introduction4:55 Luke's Beginnings7:18 Getting into the Legal Field10:57 The Business Problem We Need to Solve in the Legal Field in Relation to Mental Health12:53 Entrepreneurial Frustrations as a Lawyer15:52 Navigating Business and Marketing as a Lawyer18:44 Doing YouTube25:51 Pulling the Plug When Something's Not Working28:32 Perfectionism vs. Diligence in Marketing a Law Firm33:21 Luke's Parting Piece of AdviceResources mentioned:Subscribe to Profit with Law's Youtube channel for exclusive content!Want to implement what you've learnt in this episode? Download the Action Guide, a workbook designed to help you process and implement the knowledge gained from this interview.Learn more about the Profit with Law Elite Coaching Program here.Profit with Law Episode 340: Investing in the Growth of Your Law Firm with Jim FarrinConnect with Luke: LinkedIn l Instagram l EmailCheck out Luke's podcast Lawful Good to discover how you can become a better lawyer in and out of the courtroom!American Bar Association's Mental Health ResourcesThe E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. GerberJoin our Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/lawfirmgrowthsummit/To request a show topic, recommend a guest or ask a question for the show, please send an email to info@dreambuilderfinancial.com.Connect with Moshe on:Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/moshe.amselLinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mosheamsel/

In which the party learns a meatball sub is the best medicine. Tony Sindelar with Aleen Simms, James Thomson, Kathy Campbell, Monty Ashley and Tiff Arment.

In which the party learns a meatball sub is the best medicine. Tony Sindelar with Aleen Simms, James Thomson, Kathy Campbell, Monty Ashley and Tiff Arment.

We are together at the shore. First beach meet up of the season. We talk about steeplechase. Erin goes over some of the heptathlon events she will have to participate in. A man tries to propose after completing an Ironman. Someone finds an old Mcdonald's meal in their wall while renovating their house. Crocs were meant to be "idiot shoes". Erin can make 5 second decisions. Are you a maximiser or a satisficer? Why is the food at the Masters so cheap? What's the catch? We take the Moral Alignment Test to see if we are good, lawful, chaotic or evil. If you were handed 10 billion dollars right now, what would you still never buy? We have been watching someone on social media grow and become successful by buying followers and using sketchy tactics. A child parked his bike in the same spot everyday, a stranger noticed and did something special. Consider leaving us a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify! Follow us on social!   https://www.instagram.com/nonmembersonly/ https://www.tiktok.com/@nonmembersonly https://twitter.com/NonMembersOnly Mike: https://www.tiktok.com/@scraptownusa Erin: https://www.tiktok.com/@mrs.space.cadet Erin Azar Podcast, mrsspacecadet podcast, nonmembers only, space cadet podcast, immrsspacecadet

In my recent interview with Regina Calcaterra she explained the drastic differences between children who are adopted from the foster care system and those who simply age out of the system.  Adopted children are 50% less likely to be arrested or become homeless, and 50% more likely to graduate college, among many other emotional and practical benefits.  In that interview, Regina recommended that anyone interested in becoming foster parents or forever parents contact an organization called You Gotta Believe.  The nonprofit helps foster children find families, provides certification and licensing for foster parents, and provides a framework for helping those parents learn to care for youth dealing with trauma and abandonment.In this episode, I'm having a conversation with three people involved with You Gotta Believe — executive director Jennifer Pinder, director of the Nobody Ages Out Youth Movement Anni Keane, and advisory board member and returning Lawful Good guest, Regina Calcaterra.  Join us as we delve into the importance of the work the organization does, how it's making positive, long-term changes in the lives of foster kids, and how you can get involved.Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesLooking for other great shows? Check out the Society of Women Trial Lawyers and Trusted Legal Partners podcasts.Law Firm SEO by Jason HennesseyGet it on AmazonDownload on AudibleSupport the show

Sex, Drugs, and Saving Throws is an adults only actual-play podcast filled with graphic violence, bad language, bizarre sex stuff, and copious drug use set in a heavy metal homebrew fantasy world using the Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition rules. Set six months after the events of the first chapter of this story "Endless Harvest", Baking the Law finds the Mithril Maidens back together again, down on their luck and trying to get back into the music scene. The main difference is that now they have a manager, Orin Killroy, who won the honor of being the band' front man by losing in a game of cards. Orin and the Mithril Maidens have travelled to the Lawful Good kingdom of Obscondia to partake in the Baking the Law extreme baking contest. They have met the competition - The Hex Pistols, a group of wanna-be bad ass lady warlocks and The Feebler Elves, three extremely old and unpleasant high elves and have started their first challenge - baking muffins made from parts of a Manticore.  So tease up your hair, tug up those tight leather pants and get ready for Baking the Law! Your Tour Manager and GM for Sex, Drugs and Saving Throws is Matt. The rest of the cast is: Malcolm, as Orin Killroy, a half-elven cleric and newly named manager of the Mithril Maidens. Nathan, as Echoes of Banter, an Eladrin elven monk and lead bagpiper of the band. Sean, as Huilgrim of the Lost Shire, a Halfling barbarian and lead lutist. Tyr, as Raine Northshine - a Fey rogue/arcane fighter and lead bass lutist. Chris, as Zulja Azeya - a Half-orc bard and drummer. and... Cupo, as Gromarsh - a Half-orc bard and lead singer and front man of the band. Original Artwork for Sex, Drugs, and Saving Throws as done by Simmone Tammeta or also known as Old Raging Barbarian. Music and Sounds provided by Dark Fantasy Studios, Sound Q, as well as original sound effect made by our very own Nathan. You can listen to our stories, interviews, and tutorials on most major podcast platforms like Apple, Spotify, Google, Pandora, Podchaser, and many, many others. If you want to learn more about the cast, find additional content, and even pick up some AARPG merchandise you can head over to our website at - https://www.theaarpgs.com/ If you like what you hear, please like, subscribe, follow, and write a review. It helps us reach more folks with our stories. Also, feel free to reach out to us on Twitter @theaarpgs, Facebook, or YouTube, let us know what you like, don't like, or anything you would like to share with us. #ttrpg #rpg #actualplay #humor #heavymetal #D&D #dungeonsandragons Update Description SUBSCRIBE   Apple Podcasts    RSS    Spotify    Amazon Music    CastBox    Deezer    iHeart    JioSaavn    Listen Notes    Player FM    Podcast Addict    Podchaser    Stitcher 

Welcome to The Nonlinear Library, where we use Text-to-Speech software to convert the best writing from the Rationalist and EA communities into audio. This is: IMPCO, don't injure yourself by returning FTXFF money for services you already provided, published by EliezerYudkowsky on November 12, 2022 on The Effective Altruism Forum. In my possibly contrarian opinion, and speaking as somebody who I don't think actually got any money directly from FTX Future Fund that I can recall; also speaking for myself and hastily, having not run this post past any other major leaders in EA: You are not obligated to return funding that got to you ultimately by way of FTX; especially if it's been given for a service you already rendered, any more than the electrical utility ought to return FTX's money that's already been spent on electricity; especially if that would put you to hardship. This is not a for-the-greater-good argument; I don't think you're obligated to that much personal martyrdom in the first place, just like the utility company isn't so obligated. It's fine to be somebody who sells utilons for money, just like utilities sell electricity for money. People who work in the philanthropic sector, and don't capture all of the gain they create, do not thereby relinquish the solidity of their claim to the part of that gain they do capture, to below the levels of an electrical utility's claim to similar money. The money you hold could maybe possibly compensate some FTX users - if it doesn't just get immediately captured by users selling NFTs to Bahamian accounts, or the equivalent in later bankruptcy proceedings - but that's equally true of the electrical utility's money, or, heck, money held by any number of people richer than you. Plumbers who worked on the FTX building should likewise not anguish about that and give the money back; yes, even though plumbers are probably well above average in income for the Bahamas. You are not more deeply implicit in FTX's sins, by way of the FTX FF connection, than the plumber who worked directly on their building. I don't like the way that some people think about charity, like anybody who works in the philanthropic sector gives up the right to really own anything. You can try to do a little good in the world, or even sell a little good into the world, without signing up to be the martyr who gets all the blame for not being better when something goes wrong. You probably forwent some of your possible gains to work in the charity sector at all, and took a bit of a generally riskier job. (If you didn't know that, my condolences.) You may suddenly need to look for a new job. You did not sign away your legal or moral right to keep title to money that was already given you, if you've already performed the corresponding service, or you're still going to perform that service. If you can't perform the service anymore, then maybe return some of that money once it's clear that it'll actually make its way to FTX customers; but keep what covers the cost of a month to re-search for a job, or the month you already spent searching for that job. It's fine to call it your charity and your contribution that you undercharge for those utilons and don't capture as much value as you create - if you're nice enough to do that, which you don't have to be, you can be Lawful Neutral instead of Lawful Good and I won't think you're as cool but I'll still happily trade with you. (I apologize for resorting to the D&D alignment chart, at this point, but I really am not sure how to compactly express these ideas without those concepts, or concepts that I could define more elaborately that would mean the same thing.) That you're trying to be some degree of Good, by undercharging for the utilons you provide, doesn't mean you can't still hold that money that you got in Lawful Neutral exchange for the services you sold. Just like any ordinary plumber is entitled to do, if it turned out they unwittingly fixed the toilet of a bad bad pers...

Nathan Bruemmer is a Florida native who grew up the adopted child of older parents. He was assigned the female gender at birth, but as he headed into high school, he became increasingly aware that there was a big difference between his experience of the world and the expectations others had for him. After a long process of self-discovery and advocacy for others, Nathan enrolled in Stetson Law at the age of 40. He now serves the LGBTQ+ community in a wide variety of roles, including his position as the LGBTQ+ Consumer Advocate at Florida's Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.In this interview, we discuss Nathan's years teaching in the public school system, the presence and loss of the strong women in his family, and what it's like working for the government in the midst of a culture war.Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesLooking for other great shows? Check out the Society of Women Trial Lawyers and Trusted Legal Partners podcasts.Join our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Our guest today is James Helm, founding attorney of Top Dog Law.James grew up as an only child with boundless energy. He always wanted to know what was next and he spent most of his time playing sports with the neighborhood kids. A curious mind is one of the hallmarks of James' personality; even as a young kid, he was always asking “why,” sometimes to the chagrin of his teachers. His desire to get to the root of an issue is a characteristic that makes him a diligent attorney and businessman.James started wrestling at a young age, and he discovered he was pretty good at it. He continued wrestling throughout grade school, where he tore his rotator cuff. While recovering from his injury, a doctor prescribed Percocet. Although James didn't abuse the opiate at the time, he would later end up taking opioids recreationally at parties as a way to “fit in.” Before he knew it, he developed a full dependency that followed him through the remainder of high school and higher education.James graduated from Penn State and later went to Rutgers for his law degree. Even with his success at school, he hit a breaking point with his addiction and entered rehab in August 2016.In today's episode, James and I talk about the start of his opioid addiction, why he chose the name Top Dog Law, and the power of wearing your heart on your sleeve. Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesLooking for other great shows? Check out the Society of Women Trial Lawyers and Trusted Legal Partners podcasts.Join our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Today's guest today is Randi McGinn, one of America's leading trial attorneys. Because of her dad's position in the military, Randi moved around a lot as a kid. Although she was often jealous of her friends who had permanent homes, her experiences cultivated a unique view of the justice system and how it's been applied to different people. As the oldest of four siblings, Randi proudly claims her “bossiness.” Growing up, her grandmother McGinn had the biggest influence on her life. In Randi's own words, she was a “pistol” who didn't play by the rules. Randi had powerful female influences, including her mother, that inspired her to fearlessly take on any challenge. In today's episode, Randi and I talk about the intensity of grief after losing your soul mate, giving birth one day before the bar exam, and how she accidentally found her perfect career. Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesLooking for other great shows? Check out the Society of Women Trial Lawyers and Trusted Legal Partners podcasts.Join our Better Together LinkedIn Group

When an unusual cleric asks for passage to Mt. Celestia, who is the crew to refuse? Offering their helping Hans, they find themselves victim of not only a comedy duo, but the more sinister side of the Plane of Lawful Good. Will they be able to guide their passenger to his godly task?---Our show contains fantasy violence (and the occasional foul language), treat us like a PG-13 program!---Thank you to World Anvil for sponsoring today's adventure!Check them out at https://www.worldanvil.com/ and don't forget code "PLUG" for 40% off yearly membershipsContact the Pod:rollwithdifficulty@gmail.comTwitter: @rollwdifficultyInstagram: @rollwithdifficultyRSS Feed: https://rollingwithdifficultypod.transistor.fm/Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/RollingwithDifficultyMerch: https://www.redbubble.com/people/RWDPodcast/shop?asc=uCast:Dungeon Master - Austin FunkTwitter: @atthefunkThe Set's Journal of Faerun: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/345568/The-Sets-Journal-of-Faerun-Vol-1?term=the+setKyana - OSP RedTwitter: @OSPyoutubeInstagram: @overly.sarcastic.productionsOverly Sarcastic Productions: https://www.youtube.com/c/OverlySarcasticProductionsChannel/Dani -  Sophia RicciardiTwitter: @sophie_kay_Instagram: @_sophie_kayMoviestruck: https://moviestruck.transistor.fm/Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/moviestruckFinbar - WallyInstagram: @stuckinspaceTwitter: @walpoleinspacePortfolio: https://ghost_astronaut.artstation.com/VR-LA - NoirTwitter: @NoirGalaxiesCampaign Art by @stuckinspaceMusic by: Dominic Ricciardihttps://soundcloud.com/dominicricciardimusicFeatured Tracks:Rolling Possibly with a bit of DifficultyBig DowntimeRolling with Difficulty ThemeCity of DoorsTense MomentTea Time

My guest today is Alexander Shunnarah, known as a master of marketing among many personal injury attorneys.  Alexander grew up in Alabama, where he spent his weekends at flea markets with his father.  Later, the two would buy and grow a chain of convenience stores, putting into practice the principles of sales and marketing that Alex had learned from a young age.Believing that Alex's future could hold greater things, his father encouraged him to continue his education at law school — a path that would eventually lead him one of the biggest personal injury brands in the south.In this interview, we discuss that journey, including his family's migration from Palestine, the faith that still guides Alex daily, and the joys and tribulations of parenthood.Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Chris Seeger is a leader in mass tort and class action. Chris grew up on Long Island, where he practiced carpentry for years after high school. Almost on a whim, he took a few courses at a local college. A few years later, he was graduating Cardoza Law at the top of his class. For two years, Chris worked at a "white shoe" firm, where he liked the people but hated his chosen field of real estate law. For a while, he thought he might quit and focus on his side–hustle doing legal work for fighters [or boxers]. Chris did eventually decide to set out on his own and took any case he could get, mostly living off of credit cards. That's when he found personal injury and his professional calling. In this interview, Chris and I discuss the importance of boxing in his early years, the controversy surrounding his NFL concussion litigation, and how his own parenthood led to a reconnection with his estranged mother before her death.Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Our guest today is Je Yon Jung, senior counsel at May Lightfoot. Je Yon has more than two decades of legal experience, including work in consumer protection, civil rights, discrimination, and financial services. What all of this diverse work has in common is a dedication to serving communities that have been left out or abused by the legal and justice systems.Je Yon emigrated to the United States with her family as a small child. From her earliest memories, she was certain that she wanted to be a lawyer. Though the patriarchal tradition of Korean culture left her with little support for this ambition, Je Yon's determination landed her in the Department of Justice only one year out of law school. Her work has now branched into the mass tort space with the complex and ongoing Zantac litigation.In this interview, we'll discuss how Rodney King changed the trajectory of Je Yon's career, the value of friendships, and how she came to know so much about soccer.Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Our guest today is Cordell Carter II, a self-proclaimed “dreamer” and vivacious entrepreneur.Growing up, Cordell couldn't wait to leave his hometown in Virginia. It wasn't because he didn't love where he grew up; he simply had an innate hunger for adventure and exploration. His passion for travel was first ignited in 1985 when his uncle gave him a globe. He'd spin the globe and stop it with one finger, vowing to visit the place his finger landed on.Cordell found his voice his freshman year of high school after joining a Morman musical enclave. Since then, Cordell has been using his voice to bring people together. He's been the fuel behind the Festival of the Diaspora, a diverse and inclusive group focused on identifying and solving the most pressing issues that impact our global society. In this interview, we discuss how Cordell found his voice through music, why the western world needs a revival, and the time he talked himself out of a presidential appointment at 24 years old.Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Our guest today is Paul Bland, the executive director of Public Justice.Unlike many of his peers, Paul didn't go to law school to practice as an attorney. Instead, he wanted to run for Congress one day.In the 80s, after getting his Juris Doctorate from Harvard, Paul was working for the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. From there, he found himself at a law firm where he was introduced to consumer class actions, which seems to be where his life trajectory shifted.Working on toxic torts and forced arbitration, Paul became an advocate for the rights of consumers, and that eventually led him to Public Justice. In today's episode, we discuss the twists and turns of Paul's career, taking a case and arguing it before the US Supreme Court, and the joy of being a father.Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Today's guest is Michael Morse, founder of one of the nation's leading personal injury law firms. Michael grew up in a Detroit suburb, where his offices still reside today. Though his early life was disrupted by the divorce of his parents and bullying in school, Michael discovered a childhood knack for marketing and entrepreneurship before he was even a teenager,. The money he earned helped build a sense of independence and security in a world that felt uncertain.The death of his father, who had inspired him to be a lawyer, changed everything.  In his journey/quest to rise above the death of his father and the subsequent loss of multiple jobs, Michael developed an attitude and a system to learn and improve himself. Today, that's what he calls becoming "Fireproof".  Michael now teaches the Fireproof method to lawyers all over the nation.In this interview, we discuss the principles of Fireproof, but perhaps more importantly, the immense power of gratefulness, exercise, and delegation in overcoming life's personal and professional challenges.  Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Prya Murad is a Miami-based attorney who is passionate about criminal and juvenile defense. Prya immigrated to the U.S. from Pakistan when she was just three years old. Growing up in Hazard, Kentucky, Prya recalls her desire to fit in, particularly in a school where she'd hear comments about what culture is supposedly like in Pakistan. When 9/11 happened, Prya and her family experienced prejudice rooted to fear and ignorance.Prya didn't grow up in a religious household. She stopped believing in God around middle school, and her father was proud of her for that. In today's episode, Luke and Prya talk about her passion for being a public defender, why the media sensationalizes trials, and how her grandmother was interrogated by the Pakistani military at 80 years old. Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Our guest today is Julia Metts, attorney with Levin, Papantonio, and Rafferty in Florida.  Julia was born to a Pentecostal homemaker and a rebel atheist, and as the youngest of three children, often found herself the center of attention.  From an early age, Julia exhibited a gift for persuasion. Between that and her father's early problems with the law, her path toward a career as a lawyer was clear.What Julia hadn't expected is that much of that career would be spent in prosecution.  After quickly developing a name for herself, some defense lawyers wouldn't even dare face her in court.In this interview, we discuss Julia's experiences as a member of the LGBTQ+ community while attending a Baptist college, the loss of the first woman she ever loved, her biggest tips for prosecuting attorneys, and how being a parent has shaped her life.  A note to listeners: Julia and I will be discussing some disturbing court cases and personal experiences involving suicide and violence against women.  While we won't discuss graphic details, listener discretion is advised.Check out our sponsors! Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Our guest today is Ali Awad, founder of the personal injury firm Ali Awad Law. Ali is a first-generation Palestinian immigrant who moved to an abandoned trailer in the Bible Belt at the age of three.Like many of our guests, Ali was entrepreneurial from a young age.  He used the fierce competition between his siblings to develop a work ethic that has now created one of the fastest growing law firms in the nation.Much of that success has been due to his skillful use of social media platforms.  Ali has generated a following of more than 1.5 million on Instagram alone, and his account is often used to help others learn how to do the same.  In this interview, we discuss traditional Islamic marriage in the modern world,  Ali's dream of building the first Muslim hospital in the US, and how he made his first million only a year after being rejected by his 100th law firm.Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Brian Cuban is an attorney, best-selling author, and speaker. His story is one of triumph and recovery.Brian began battling body dysmorphia at a young age, a mental health disorder where an individual can't stop thinking about their perceived defects or flaws as it relates to their appearance. He struggled to feel comfortable in his own body, especially in a household where his mother often fat-shamed him. At 18-years-old, Brian began binging and purging. This eating disorder followed him into college, where he began a pattern of drinking alone. Not long after starting his freshman year, Brian developed anorexia. Brian decided to attend law school because he believed that it would allow him to continue a lifestyle he depended on. For another three years, he could continue to engage in behaviors that had become survival to him. After college, Brian moved to Dallas where he was introduced to cocaine. In his own words, Brian found the magic trick to instantly transform himself. Throughout the years, Brian received help and support from his brothers, and he started his journey of sobriety April 8, 2007 after 20 years of addiction.In today's episode, Luke and Brian talk about the impact of an emotionally abusive mother, how he felt like the best version of himself when he tried cocaine, and the defining moment when he decided to fully commit to sobriety.Check out our sponsors!Hennessey DigitalMilestone FoundationTrial School7 Figure CasesJoin our Better Together LinkedIn Group

Old school TTRPG players reminisce about the days of hardcore alignment restrictions. Not only did it provide a list of do's and don'ts, but it explained why certain characters had access to spells, items, and classes that others did not. In more recent editions of games, alignment has become more of a legacy feature that you can take or leave as you please. Today, we talk through the black, white, and large spectrums of gray present in modern-day alignment understanding. Does it serve any purpose at all? Is it a system of morality, personality, or both? And is it possible to play an "evil" character without the underlying assumption that you're a murderous psychopath? If so, what does that look like? All of this and more on this episode! We borrow heavily this week from http://www.easydamus.com/alignmentreal.html and highly recommend that you take some time to read that essay and the other articles on their site. We found them incredibly helpful. And then, yap yer fool head off on Twitter! Rate the show and leave us a review! Tell a friend! It's a trifecta! --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/epicblunders/message

Which car would you consider Lawful Good? Which martial art style would you consider Chaotic Neutral? The guys will give their opinions and explain why they think that car or style should be in that alignment.

In this episode I speak to Eugene who is a superstar lawyer who runs his own law firm and sells coffee machines as a side hustle. In this episode we explore how we can practice law effectively and still have side hustle(s). Tune in to this interesting conversation as Eugene shares on how to he sparks joy in his legal career. Special Promo code for listeners: Sarahmae @ https://thelawfulgood.sg to get 20% off machines, and grinder coffees and 5% off accessories @https://www.arklaw.com.sg/our-team/ Tune in to find out more.

In this episode, we talk about pacing. We've talked a little about this before, but we do a deep dive into the specifics in this episode! Come have a drink & listen!Support the show (http://patreon.com/EDWpodcast)

In this episode, we talk about nature symbolism: what it is, how to work it into your novel, and why! Come have a drink & listen!Support the show (http://patreon.com/EDWpodcast)

In this episode, we talk about holidays in your books.  Adding holidays can make a richer setting and history to your book as well as add to the depth of your world and character growth.  Come have a drink & listen!Support the show (http://patreon.com/EDWpodcast)

We wanted to give a quick, special shoutout to Lawful Good's very first sponsor: Jason Hennessey. Jason is such a great guy, and he immediately hopped on board to financially support Lawful Good. He's been a generous supporter, and we are grateful to have him as a partner. If you haven't already, listen to his episode on our Powerful Partner series. You can also check out his website at hennessey.com and purchase his book, Law Firm SEO, on Amazon. Support the show

Join us this week for a cozy, reflective episode with Lawful Good's host, Luke W Russell. Luke will take you behind the scenes of this amazing podcast and how it came to be. You'll hear fun and interesting details about: The big "why" behind the podcastBrainstorming podcast names Why we started our ancillary interviewsLuke's first interview with Mike PapantonioLuke dropping their phone in the water while trying to edit an episode in a kayakThe one question Luke asks every guest before they start the interview Visiting the Supreme Court on a whim in pursuit of a S3 guest The Lawful Good Better Together event being planned for 2022If you're someone who loves Lawful Good and has followed our journey, we think you'll really love getting a sneak peek at the work put in to make LG amazing.We are incredibly grateful to have a show that holds space for our guests to share part of their lives with our listeners. Support the show

Join us for another break week episode with our host, Luke, and Lawful Good's producer, Kirsten Stock.Luke and Kirsten highlight their favorite moments from each episode of Season One. And trust us, it was really hard to do.Support the show

Listen in to this Lawful Good style interview with Luke and their kiddos, Lilly and Isaac. In this, you'll hear discussion about ranking family members, things that are hard for kids to explain to adults, cookie dough days, the best thing about being a kid, and Lilly and Isaac's 80th birthday celebrations.Support the show

Couatls… benevolent serpents you'd be lucky to encounter. Although serpents are typically associated with deception and evil, these creatures couldn't be more opposite. In this episode we'll enter the dreams of a Couatl and sense the world with Truesight. We'll explore the jungles of their society and find the sacred power that is protected within. If you're a DM and want to make your players question their own goodness, then take a seat by the fire and prepare to be immersed in Couatl Lore. Your players won't ever forget the meaning of Lawful Good. Happy listening!

Visit https://jewishbooks.blogspot.com/2021/08/zoe-rosenthal-is-not-lawful-good.html for full show notes. Or see episode "Zoe Rosenthal Is Not Lawful Good" posted August 9, 2021 at BookofLifePodcast.com. Zoe Rosenthal Is Not Lawful Good by Nancy Werlin is a coming of age story with a Jewish protagonist, about the power of fandom, friendship, and finding your inner nerd. Speaking of fandom, be sure to check out my guest spot on the August episode of the podcast Star Trek and the Jews at https://startrekandthejews.podbean.com/e/dont-call-it-a-midrash-captain-david-gold-part-i/ Your feedback is welcome! Please write to bookoflifepodcast@gmail.com or leave a voicemail at 561-206-2473.

Zeus gives everybody magical items they travel to a castle and kidnap people for Medusa

What do the lives of people who get their Juris doctorate look like? Who are they, and what are they doing? Join us for 2021's new show, Lawful Good. It's a show about lawyers and the trials they face inside and outside the courtroom.Law Firm SEO by Jason HennesseyGet it on AmazonDownload on AudibleSupport the show

In this first episode we get to know the hosts Joe and Kagan and how they got into Dungeons and Dragons, and how they're continuing to play during a global pandemic. What happens when a minmaxer DMs? Do parties ever retreat? What do you do when your riddles totally bomb? And much more.Minor spoilers for the adventures Tomb of Annihilation and Storm King's Thunder. Jargon Cheat Sheet5e: Short for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition, the current edition of the game.Anti-party: A party of characters working against the players.APL: Average Party Level. Example, APL 12 is a group of level 12 adventurers (on average).LG: Often in D&D this means Lawful Good, but when Joe says it he's referring to Living Greyhawk, a massive shared campaign played by thousands of people in the 2000s. We dive into this more in a later episode!Minmaxer: Someone who optimizes their character to the fullest extent within the rules of a game. In D&D, this usually means maximizing for combat.Mod: Short for module, which is an old school term for a written adventure.

Katrina and Geoff get silly! Inspired by the legendary meme status of the D&D alignment chart, we pull fairy tale character names from a hat and decide where they fall. Is Cinderella really Lawful Good? Or could she actually be Chaotic Evil? Is Sleeping Beauty the closest thing we can get to a True Neutral princess? Some of our answers might surprise you.

In this episode, we talk about the media and their unhealthy relationship with white nationalism. Music: "Bernie Sanders" by Ugly God

In this episode, the two Matts finish up their set about the alignment system, discuss Valentine's Day/Singles' Awareness day, try desperately not to make certain things recurring segments, and list off a bunch of characters that fit in each part of the alignment system. What characters are Lawful Good, True Neutral, Chaotic Evil, and the rest? What seemingly totally different characters exist within the same alignment? Do any of the characters change their position as their franchise goes on? Will Matt David ever accept his defeat and let "Matt Picks His Nose" be the recurring segment of the show it has always been destined to be? We discuss it all, extra-exhausted by this point due to recording these four episodes all at once, and talk about Star Wars, Marvel, Lord of the Rings, and Megazoic (if you wanna buy it, check the links below! I mean, you can see them, right? They're totally there) Have any feedback or questions for our hosts? Email us at mattd@matthewdonaldcreator.com. Also you can purchase Matt Donald's book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, or its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here. If you'd like, of course.

In this episode, the two Matts do the second part of a four-episode series about character alignment, sell an incredible machine that replaces the Tolkien ripoffs from fantasy stories with more original elements, pick their noses in a riveting new segment of the show, and talk about writing characters from the Lawful Good to True Neutral Alignment. What's the difference in writing a Lawful Good character from Chaotic Good? What makes someone "good" and what makes them "neutral"? What words can describe the motivations of each alignment? How many listeners will come at our doors with torches and pitchforks due to not having either the "What We'll Rip Off" or "What We Have Writ" segments? We discuss it all, with distinguished professionalism that rivals the classiest businessmen, and talk about Superman, Iron Man, Robin Hood, and Noah. Have any feedback or questions for our hosts? Email us at mattd@matthewdonaldcreator.com. Also you can purchase Matt Donald's book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, or its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here. If you'd like, of course.

In this episode, the two Matts start the conversion of the show from monthly to weekly, literally fish for ideas in a creek, make a metaphor about crossing the street that goes off the rails VERY quickly, and do the first episode of four based on the character alignment system. What do Lawful Good, Chaotic Neutral, or Neutral Evil even mean? What are the differences between the definitions? How different can characters be within a single alignment? How much of Matt David screaming in shock had to be edited out when he heard about Matt Donald reading a nonfiction history book that wasn't about dinosaurs? We discuss it all, with a jolly demeanor and a plucky attitude, and talk about Superman, Deadpool, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Ultraman again (seriously, David, watch new Japanese shows!) Have any feedback or questions for our hosts? Email us at mattd@matthewdonaldcreator.com. Also you can purchase Matt Donald's book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, or its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here. If you'd like, of course. Helpful links:  easydamus.com/alignment.html tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CharacterAlignment