When It Was Cool Pop Culture Podcast

Larry Hama returns to the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero comic book series now being published at Skybound/Image for issue 301 or issue 1 of the new run. G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero issue 301 picks up directly where issue 300 ended and has a great new artist breathing new life into this old product. Duke, Roadblock, Will Bill, Cobra Commander, Serpentor, and others are prime players in this story arch and we finally start to sort out the convoluted Snake Eyes storyline with one less to worry about.

Karl, who is a huge fan of the rock band Rush, reviews Geddy Lee's new memoire My Effin' Life which dropped a couple of weeks ago. Geddy Lee's book takes a detailed look at the history of the band, his parent's incredible story as holocaust survivors, their musical variety over the course of their 40 plus year career, induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Alex Lifeson's infamous speech, and the final days of Neil Peart. A fantastic and fun biography!

Recently, Karl and Tonya from When It Was Cool visited the gravesite of American music legend Johnny Cash. We recently had watched an amazing documentary about the life, faith, and career of Johnny Cash and this episode of the When It Was Cool Podcast takes a look at that documentary. From the highest of highs and incredible success to literally crawling into the depths of a cave and laying down to die, the Redemption of an American Icon is a fascinating documentary film.

Karl and Tonya take a trip to the movie theater this week to see the new movie The Exorcist: Believer which is a sequel to The Exorcist 50 years later. And it is a sequel, following the mother of Regan from the original as she hopes to help solve a modern-day demonic possession of two schoolgirls who disappeared for three days only to reemerge in an altered state. Does this movie stand up to the original which was one of the greatest horror films ever? Let's talk about it.

Join Karl and Tonya for a new Friday the 13th movie review podcast. Every time the real calendar hits Friday the 13th, When It Was Cool reviews another chapter in the supernatural / slasher / killer franchise featuring the hockey masked monster Jason Voorhees. This one, sad to say, is another dud with very little Jason and very little plot. Still, we have fun with it so come and join us!

Today Karl and Tonya review the 2012 Mark Wahlberg stoner comedy Ted. Ted is a Teddy Ruxpin inspired stuffed bear who magically comes to life and becomes best friend with his human owner. The problem is, neither ever grow up. This is a buddy comedy movie hit from a decade ago which includes a cool guest star from a crazy retro movie!

By Patreon request, Karl and Tonya watch and discuss an episode of Jem from 1985. Tonya remembers the Jem dolls but not the cartoon and for 1985 standards this cartoon wasn't bad at all. Too bad there was no G.I. Joe crossover for Karl because they happen in the same Hasbro/Sunbow/Marvel universe. This was as fun a show as a show about rudimentary computers and synth-pop music can be. It was outrageous. Truly, truly outrageous.

Karl and Tonya take a look back at this 1980s classic starring Patrick Swayze, Sam Elliott, with guest star Terry Funk! I remember liking this movie back in the day, it had all the things I liked: Fightin', drinkin', bullshido, Sam Elliott, and Terry Funk. I mean, it's almost impossible to mess that up, right? Well, sadly, Road House doesn't hold up too well but we take a look back at it and I trying not to rip out anyone's throat with my karate.

On this episode, The Plot Podcast sends a digital valentine to the original, British version of Whose Line Is It Anyway?, which just celebrated its 35th anniversary. We look at the show's creation on BBC Radio 4. its move to television to Channel 4 and then discussing how the show evolved over the years. And some clips featuring folks like Josie Lawrence, Paul Merton, Ryan, Stiles, Greg Propps and my favorite, Tony Slattery.

In the last of our sword and sandal reviews for a while we revisit the 1985 abomination of the Adventures of Hercules (or Hercules II) starring Lou Ferrigno. Is this one as bad as the first? Yes, in fact worse, much worse. They somehow resurrect the miserable heel from the first movie and reuse footage from the first film as well. This movie was made in 1985... let that sink in when watching this movie with special effects like it was 1955. A disgrace of a movie, let's talk about it. Support When It Was Cool on Patreon for access to over 2000 podcasts on pop culture and retro pop culture!

Sweet Dollar General knock-offs! This is the most amazing monstrosity of a movie I have ever seen! Robocop verses Hopping Vampires! Also, the cover is a complete bait and switch the actual "Robocop" in this movie looks nothing like that. He's a dude in a tin foil suit whose gun doesn't work like guns are supposed to. Did I mention hopping Vampires? This "movie" I understand, is actually TWO unfinished movies mashed together. This is something else.

This is a Patreon requested movie review. A knock-off of Marvel Comic's Thor franchise but this one features Kevin Nash in the role of Odin... and it is terrible. Look, this movie is beyond terrible. Most of the action takes place off screen due to the lack of actors, the special effects are terrible, and Kevin Nash is honestly beyond awful as an actor. This movie is bad on every level. An obvious cash grab for the video store (remember them?) And the dude who played Thor? Oh, brother. There's a reason he never appeared in anything else.

The pod is happy to welcome for the first time author Daniel Budnik, author of "From Beverly Hills to Hooterville" as we discuss the surrealistic hidden gem that is Green Acres. We talk about the creation of the Hooterville Trilogy, of which Green Acres is the third part after the creation of The Beverly Hillbillies and Petticoat Junction. We discuss how the show's root lie in a 1950 radio show and how it was adapted and updated by Jay Sommers. We go through the premise and cast of characters, from Oliver and Lisa Douglas to Eb, Mr. Haney and Sam Drucker, to the breakout star of the show, Arnold the Pig. And then we go though many of the episodes' plot, just how absurdist they were, es[ecially for 1960s network TV. Naturally, we go into all the metatext on the show, including the cast interacting with the show's credits. We close with CBS and the "rural purge" of their schedule, making way for the new era of TV lead by All in the Family. This was a fun episode to discuss, and we hope to have Daniel back on the show in the future for more popular culture chat.

Let's be honest, Hulk Hogan has made some really good bad movies in his life. In the late 1990s as Hollywood Hulk Hogan he had a pro wrestling career resurgence in WCW and he also made some really, really good bad movies. Hogan wanted a deal with TBS/TNT to make some terrible similarly themed Commando style action movies where he wore a hair piece and played an anti-hero. Many of these went straight to video including this one. The Ultimate Weapon is one of the most cliched action movies ever and Hogan looks awful in a toupee. Let's talk about it. (A hilariously terrible special appearance by BRUTUS BEEFCAKE as well).

The classic television series Gilligan's Island (1964) is the topic of this episode of the When It Was Cool Podcast. I loved this show as a kid but watching it as an adult I realize that these geeks are exactly where they deserve to be. What a bunch of idiots. I had forgotten how infuriating Gilligan and The Skipper were. This is also another of those classic TV shows which tells you everything you need to know upfront in the theme song.

Join the Arkansas Hellbender this week as we try to pop a wheelie over the front handlebars. Tons of fun for everyone in the world that is Harley Davidson!

Bullshido at it's finest! The 1976 post-Bruce Lee era Master of the Flying Guillotine is one of my favorite Kung-Fu movies. It is utterly ridiculous. Featuring a one armed Kung Fu master who is the target of an evil Kung Fu master. The evil Kung Fu matches shows up at an incredibly ridiculous Kung Fu tournament and starts killing every one armed person there! This movie features everything you love about wacky Kung Fu movies: bizarre tournament to the death, evil Kung Fu heels, traps, and more! Prepare to be destroyed!

On the 78th anniversary of the atomic bomb being dropped on Hiroshima, we look at the 1980 song Enola Gay by the British band OMD. And, with the box office success of Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer, we look at some of the older films that tackled the historical topic, including "Fat Man and Little Boy," where Oppenheimer was played by ... Dwight Schultz from the A-Team and Star Trek: The Next Generation?

Tonya and Karl went to see the 2023 blockbuster movie Barbie starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling. Bringing the iconic Mattel toy property to a live action movie seemed like a challenge and this movie isn't really sure what it is. Part bizarre pink fantasy and part feminist manifesto the Barbie movie has still managed to strike a chord with a large audience catapulting it to becoming 2023's biggest hit so far. Tonya and Karl give you their thoughts on this strange, yet memorable film.

A more modern take on Hercules starring Lou Ferrigno in the lead role. This movie is terrible. I think it regressed from the Steve Reeves movies despite the fact that Lou Ferrigno (yes, the Hulk guy) looks like he literally stepped off of Mount Olympus. You may or may not know that Lou Ferrigno is mostly deaf and has a speech impediment so his lines were actually dubbed pretty well but the special effects are horrible beyond words. This, however, is one of those movies that is so bad it's kind of good. Hercules!