2 Cents Critic

Tune in as previous 2CC guest Guy Bradford comes back around for a breakdown of the newest Disney+ Marvel Cinematic Universe series Ms. Marvel. It follows Kamala Khan, a 16-year-old Pakistani-American who lives in Jersey City, prides herself on her Captain Marvel geekery, and ends up getting thrown into a journey of self-discovery involving her newfound superpowers and her mysterious family history. Additional topics that Arthur and Guy open up include monstrous depictions of British colonialism, Islamophobic and misogynistic IMDb review-bombers, the burdens of VFX teams, and the stark contrast between the wholesome optimism of the MCU and the vulgar cynicism of The Boys.

Spoilers start at 17:00

Created by head writer Bisha K. Ali (Loki) and leaders of the directing team Adil & Bilall (Bad Boys for Life), Ms. Marvel stars Iman Vellani, Matt Lintz, Yasmeen Fletcher, Zenobia Shroff, Mohan Kapur, Saagar Shaikh, Laurel Marsden, Azhar Usman, Rish Shah, Arian Moayed, Alysia Reiner, Laith Nakli, Nimra Bucha, Travina Springer, Adaku Ononogbo, Samina Ahmad, Fawad Khan, Mehwish Hayat, Farhan Akhtar, and Aramis Knight.

Good Word:

• Guy: Prime Video’s The Boys (Season 3)

• Arthur: Netflix’s RRR

Reach out at email2centscritic@yahoo.com if you want to recommend things to watch and read, share anecdotes, or just say hello!

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Tune in as my bestie Saba comes back to the show for a discussion on It Starts with Us, the latest novel by Colleen Hoover. This is the sequel to what’s arguably one of her most popular books, It Ends with Us, which even has its very own episode in the 2CC catalog. ISWU isn’t nearly as dark as IEWU, but it still treads into some heavy territory while following the rekindled romance between Lily Bloom and Atlas Corrigan, the challenges that Lily has to confront thanks to the persistent presence of her ex-husband Ryle Kincaid, and the unexpected changes in Atlas’s personal life. Whether or not this sequel is necessary, an explanation of the tragic opening scene in Finding Nemo, and the sinking ship that is Twitter are just a few of the subjects that Arthur and Saba chat about here.

TW: abandonment, emotional abuse, gaslighting, toxic relationships, child abuse, domestic abuse, sexual content, a brief reference to sexual assault

Spoilers start at 16:50

Good Word:

• Saba: Chainsaw Man (specifically the manga)

• Arthur: Coraline (not only the movie, but also the Neil Gaiman book)

Reach out at email2centscritic@yahoo.com if you want to recommend things to watch and read, share anecdotes, or just say hello!

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on iTunes or any of your preferred podcasting platforms!

Follow Arthur on Twitter, Goodpods, StoryGraph, and Letterboxd: @arthur_ant18

Follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram: @two_centscritic

Follow Arthur on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144101970-arthur-howell

--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/arthur746/message

Tune in as Sam Cabrera-Dixon (Hardcover Hoes) returns to 2CC for a discussion on Bloodmarked, the second book in the Legendborn Cycle by Tracy Deonn. The first book, Legendborn, had plenty of goodness to offer fantasy readers as a contemporary YA retelling of Arthurian legend. Is Bloodmarked a worthy follow-up (spoilers: it is)? Comparing the intricate worldbuilding to that of the Blood and Ash series, taking a minute to remember a specific Taylor Swift song, and diving into the layered dynamic between Bree and Sel are just a few of the things that Arthur and Sam do on this episode.

TW: Death of a parent and traumatic grief, combat/battle flashbacks, alcohol consumption, mind control/memory manipulation, drugging/medical abuse, forced captivity, racist macro and microaggressions, emesis (vomiting), blood, ritual magic self-harm to access blood (via hands with safety pin and sword), mild gore, torture, combat/interpersonal violence, murder, death, and mention(s) of: physical abuse, racist violence, sexual violence.

Spoilers start at 12:15

Good Word:

• Arthur: Netflix’s Falling for Christmas

• Sam: Midnights (3am Edition) by Taylor Swift and Christmas by Michael Bublé

Reach out at email2centscritic@yahoo.com if you want to recommend things to watch and read, share anecdotes, or just say hello!

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on iTunes or any of your preferred podcasting platforms!

Follow Arthur on Twitter, Goodpods, StoryGraph, and Letterboxd: @arthur_ant18

Follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram: @two_centscritic

Follow Arthur on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144101970-arthur-howell

--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/arthur746/message

Tune in as Shelby Schwieterman and Sam Frontera (The Rom Complex) hang out on 2CC to cover the 2001 rock ‘n roll medieval sports adventure, A Knight’s Tale. They also chat about Nike product placement, the aural creativity of foley artists, and whether or not Rufus Sewell always plays villains (considering Arthur looked up The Man in the High Castle post-recording and found out that he does indeed play the main antagonist as the Reichsführer of Nazi America, let’s say the answer is “yes”).

Directed by Brian Helgeland (42), A Knight’s Tale stars Heath Ledger, Shannyn Sossamon, Rufus Sewell, Paul Bettany, Alan Tudyk, Mark Addy, Laura Fraser, Berenice Bejo, James Purefoy, and Christopher Cazenove.

Spoilers start at 12:00

Note: Arthur was mistaken. Helgeland’s Legend is a gangster movie, not a spy movie.

Good Word:

• Sam: ABC’s Abbott Elementary

• Shelby: House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

• Arthur: Love and Monsters

Reach out at email2centscritic@yahoo.com if you want to recommend things to watch and read, share anecdotes, or just say hello!

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on iTunes or any of your preferred podcasting platforms!

Follow Arthur on Twitter, Goodpods, and StoryGraph: @arthur_ant18

Follow the podcast on Twitter: @two_centscritic

Follow Arthur on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144101970-arthur-howell

--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/arthur746/message

Tune in as Arthur invites Franklin Cota (Teen Girl Talk) onto the program for a deep dive into the 28th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. There’s been plenty to look forward to in this movie, especially since it marks Sam Raimi’s return to the director’s chair since the 2013 James Franco-led megaflop Oz the Great and Powerful. Aside from discussing movie elements like Wanda Maximoff’s arc and the cheesy horror vibes, the hosts chat about Doctor Doom being Franklin’s favorite Marvel character, their shared love for Ms. Marvel, and the underrated status of Dreamworks in comparison to an animation rival like Pixar.

Directed by Sam Raimi (the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man trilogy), Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Xochitl Gomez, Benedict Wong, Rachel McAdams, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Jett Klyne, Julian Hilliard, and Michael Stuhlbarg.

Spoilers start at 25:20

Good Word:

• Franklin: The Bad Guys and the D&D podcast Dungeons and Daddies

• Arthur: Comfort Me With Apples by Catherynne M. Valente

Reach out at email2centscritic@yahoo.com if you want to recommend things to watch and read, share anecdotes, or just say hello!

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on iTunes or any of your preferred podcasting platforms!

Follow Arthur on Twitter, Goodpods, StoryGraph, and Letterboxd: @arthur_ant18

Follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram: @two_centscritic

Follow Arthur on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144101970-arthur-howell

--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/arthur746/message