Nerds of the Old Republic: The Drinking Person’s #Scifi Club

Hi everyone, and welcome to another Nerds book review, this time of Hummingbird Salamander by Jeff Vandermeer. In this episode, the intrepid hosts struggle to see the appeal of VanderMeer's 2017 novel, especially in light of his other, weirder books. They even challenge, erm, invite, Jeff VanderMeer to share his thoughts with them live, on a cast of his choosing. 

To chase away the bad aftertaste of slow-burn clifi with a weak myst...

Listen in as the hosts, Shaun, Mike and Adam talk about their experience watching the early 2000's anime Cowboy Bebop! They discuss that banger intro by The Seatbelts, noir in the space opera story, and the weird Ed while Adam's own Corgi (sadly, not named Ein, nor data-dog) occasionally interrupts the recording. 

And that score! The soundtrack is discussed many times, as it deserves to be. If you've never watched Cowboy Bebop, che...

Thanks for listening as the hosts try a new liquor and talk up the book 36 Streets by Australian author TR Napper. There's so much for everyone in this title: Vietnamese war history, virtual reality, the most sophisticated propaganda and mindflay ever conceived, cyberpunk weapons, old school crime families and smoking. Lots of smoking. 

If that doesn't sound like a conversation worth listening in to, I do know that next, we're disc...

In this episode of 'Nerds in the Old Republic,' hosts Adam, Shaun, and Mike take on the 1995 anime cult classic, Ghost in the Shell. With much anticipation and fandom excitement in the air, the trio embarks on a spirited discussion about the film's complex plot and philosophical themes, all while savoring the unique experience of sipping on Japanese sake. Is it the anime masterpiece it's often hailed to be? Or does it succumb to th...

Join the hosts of Nerds of the Old Republic as they delve into George R.R. Martin's fascinating world of Westeros, focusing on the enchanting tales of Dunk and Egg from The Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Explore the rich history and complex characters that populate these novellas, as the hosts discuss Martin's unparalleled world-building and storytelling prowess. From the thrilling jousts to the intricate political machinations, dis...

Hey everyone, and Happy New Year! We're back with the second half of our "Year-in-Review" show, and this time, we're focusing on what Shaun, Mike and Adam want to see more of in the coming year. Hint: it's not more Disney+ specials set in the Star Wars Universe.

But it is:

more great anime, like Cowboy Beebop

Fantasy like House of the Dragon

More cyberpunk like 36 Streets

And more!

Since it's that time of year where we reflect on a...

Hey there! And welcome to Nerds of the Old Republic - we're wrapping up the year with a tentative year-in-review in all things nerdy! On this cast, we're chatting about the following:

Tolkien

Star Wars

George RR Martin

Dungeons and Dragons

And a big shout out to our friends at Za Bills - check out their great pizza reviews, and Buffalo Bills chat.

Lastly, if you need a last minute holiday gift, why not support us AND a book store l...

Hey there nerds! We're here reading our sub-etha meson reader, and this month it's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Grab your a big glass of gargle blaster and follow along as we discuss whether not it's parody, and whether or not it's worth your time.

But before you get into that, why not dig into our good friend's podcast, Za Bills? Shaun's been invited there a few times and we think they do great work!

Lastly, if you're loo...

We're going back to the well of The Weird, edited by the Vandermeers. In this cast, we're talking about Shirley Jackson, Jorge Louis Borges, and a story or two we each picked. Cuddle up with the tome, and read along -- this is a perfect fall read.

Something new from us: Check out our Bookshop.org Store!

If you want to support the cast, and read along with us, we're now working with Bookshop.org to help you get your Nerdy hands on...

Hey there! Do you like weird fiction? Is your bookshelf filled with Kafka and Algernon Blackwood? Well, then you know more about weird fiction than I did before we read selections from Jeff and Ann Vandermeer's collection of short fiction, The Weird. 

Today, we're reading "The Willows" by Algernon Blackwood and "In the Penal Colony" by Franz Kafka. After that, we're on to Shirley Jackson's "The Summer People" and "The Aleph" by Bor...

Hello and welcome to Nerds of the Old Republic! We're three friends who love reading nerdy fiction. We're taking a break from the reading this week to talk about Disney's The Acolyte, and it ended up also being about all of the Disney Star Wars Franchise.

Star Wars not your thing? Next month, for two episodes, we're digging into an anthology of weird fiction appropriately titled, The Weird edited by Jeff and Ann Vandermeer. We're s...

Welcome back as we return to form with a book review: Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. It's a multi-epoch book spanning the eras of Colonialism all the way through the glories of Neo So Copros with their fantastic clones serving you in the dinning hall, to the fall and eventual resurrection of human civilization in a Hawaiian colony. 

It's not our normal vibe in that it's less sci-fi and fantasy and more "everything bagel" of a novel...

Hey there and welcome to the first episode in our fourth season! We're stretching our interests a bit with this one, but we're going to talk about The Goonies, that 1985 adventure movie with Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Jeff Cohen, Ke Huy Quan, Kerri Green, Corey Feldman and directed by Richard Donner. Why The Goonies, you ask? Firstly because Mike had vowed never to watch it, and we got him to change a key aspect of his personality fo...

Hello, and welcome to our last episode of season four! We’re reviewing an icon, our idol, and early cast book in William Gibson’s <i>Neuromancer<\i>. It’s got sexy robots, international heists and apartments the size of NYC closets, what more could you need in your cyberpunk? Seriously, this novel is genre defining and explanation avoiding — which is half the fun of listening to this episode. How do Adam, Shaun and Mike...

Hey there fellow nerds! We're talking about the 2022 smash movie, Everything Everywhere All at Once while drinking a smoked, maple bourbon peach smash -- kinda an everything all-at-once cocktail. Listen in if you've already watched it, and if not, grab your favorite chapstick, head to Netflix, and give it a watch.

For those mixologists out there, here's my recipe and process for our beverage:

1 oz bourbon (we used Elijah Craig)

1...

Today we review a book that's all about our avatar's baby cousin -- the octopus. Ray Naylor's The Mountain in the Sea. What's better than octopodes with a culture and written language? How about a near future where we've created the first sentient android, and a security officer with a first name so long you'd have to scroll down to read it all?

There's more to Naylor's Mountain than this, but after a few surprise beverages from Sh...

What do you get when you put three nerds in a room together with spicy margaritas? Our latest 'cast where we discuss the recently released Dune Part 2 based on Frank Herbert's novel, Dune. 

Come for the movie review, stay for the Christopher Walken impressions! And if space operas with intense IR camera filmed scenes of Roman Gladiatorial combat isn't your kind of nerdy, then join us next episode where we discuss Ray Naylor's The M...

In a one-off, we read the ChatGPT generated audio drama we discussed in the previous episode; it's a first for us, and a first for podcasts (as far as we know). Listen in as we read the audio drama "Fear and Loathing in Dallas": three friends trying to escape their rustbelt blues on a road trip to see the Buffalo Bills play in the Super Bowl.

Try not to laugh, or give in and do! Then, listen in next time as we discuss The Mountain ...