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The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast)

The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast)

The Amber Spycast, Joanna Martinez, Travis Johnson, Alaric Hahn

We used to read and discuss Philip Pullman's phenomenal His Dark Materials series but now that we've completed that adventure, we're diving into genre entertainment and nerd cultural touchstones. Look for us on YouTube and pretty much anywhere else podcasts are available. Our first episode should drop soon! Please join us and listen!!
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Top 10 The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

As they head south towards the Himalayas, Will and Iorek discuss the unique properties of the subtle knife. Will explains how he came to possess the knife and shows Iorek the wound he obtained fighting for it. He tells Iorek that he is supposed to take the knife to Lord Asriel but first he must rescue Lyra Silvertongue, to which Iorek pledges the bears’ help. Once they reach the shore, Will shows an awestruck Iorek how the subtle knife opens windows to other worlds. Afterwards, they begin the three day journey to Lyra, unaware that both Lord Asriel and the combined forces of the Magisterium are also on their way. Meanwhile, in the world of Ci’gazze, Father Gomez listens as a little red-haired girl and her brother tell him about a woman who passed through town, unaware and unafraid of the Spectres, on her way south towards the mountains. He thanks the children for their help and sets off through the hot, silent streets towards the south. Further ahead, Mary Malone has learned a great deal about the mulefa she is traveling with. After three days in their company she discovers that these creatures have language, fire, and formed a society. Mary realizes that, while they are not human like she is, the mulefa are indeed a people. She consults the I Ching about what to do next and it replies that she should continue her stay. Mary is taken by the mulefa and works to become a useful part of their intricate and intimate society. One afternoon, while Mary helps to repair the roof of a hut, a flock of giant white birds called Tualapi attack the mulefas’ village, emptying the food supplies and demolishing the wheel store. As a final insult, the Tualapi defecate throughout the decemated village before heading downstream towards the sea. Reeling after the attack, Mary collects the few seedpods that remain to the relief of the anxious mulefa, for despite the great effort, care, and love that they give them, the wheel-pod trees are inexplicably dying.

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As Father McPhail warns of the Tempter, Mary Malone bids farewell to the kind, elderly couple that assisted her when she first crossed into the world of Ci’gazze. Unsure where to go next, she consults the I Ching, a Chinese method of fortune telling kindred to the alethiometer. After hiking a mountain path for four hours, Mary discovers a window to another world. Once through, she is astounded by what she finds. Miniscule insects and tiny hummingbirds fly in sharp relief to the wide, red-gold trunks of the new world’s enormous trees. Yet nothing is as strange as the creatures Mary finds in the grove. Called mulefa, the creatures have short trunks like elephants, diamond-shaped bodies, and claws that they hook through wheel-shaped seedpods they ride through the countryside. Mary communicates with the mulefa, who are able to mimic her in broken English. They befriend her, gesturing for Mary to travel with them as they leave the safety of the grove. Meanwhile, in Lyra’s world, Balthamos suddenly senses that Baruch has died. He is overtaken by anguish and guilt, almost unable to go on, but Will is able to convince him to continue for Baruch’s sake. As they travel, Will and Balthamos encounter a priest who warns them of a village in the south that is plagued by armoured bears. The bears are attacking because the villagers refuse to refuel them. Will and Balthamos make their way to the village where Will comes up with a plan to stop the fighting. He says he will challenge one of the bears; if Will wins, the villagers must refuel the bear’s ship so they can be on their way. The bear agrees; but when Will displays the power of the subtle knife, he refuses to fight such a weapon. The villagers keep their word and refuel the bears’ boats. Will tells one of the bears that he is looking for Iorek Byrnison to help him find his friend, Lyra Silvertongue. The bear reveals to Wil that he is, in fact, Iorek Byrnison. Fascinated by Will’s knife, Iorek agrees to help Will find Lyra, allowing him to travel with the bears as they make their way toward the Himalayas.

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The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) - A Tremendous Release of Energy: Season 1 Episode 8 of His Dark Materials - "The Betrayal"
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12/24/19 • 72 min

"The Betrayal" plays out much like the book, however with the added "Subtle" elements, is the experience diminished?

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The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) - What!? No Armor!?: Season 1 Episode 7 of His Dark Materials "The Fight To The Death"
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12/18/19 • 87 min

You'd never think that the real world stuff would be the most compelling and interesting, but here we are. Lyra's world is fizzling while Will's is en Fuego.

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The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) - Lyra And The Gyptians Are On The Move: Season 1 Episode 3 of His Dark Materials - The Spies
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11/19/19 • 64 min

Please listen, like, review, rate and subscribe to us and check out our website at www.theambersycast.com.

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After hitting a dead-end, Will and Lyra separate to pursue their own interests while in Oxford. Will finds that much of what he needs to know about his father is a matter of public record. He writes a short postcard to his mother, then heads to the library to do some research. Meanwhile, Lyra looks for a quiet place to consult the alethiometer. She ends up in a museum where she discovers an exhibit containing the exact furs and sledge from her kidnapping in the North, along with a photo of the same Samoyed hunters who took her to Bolvangar! Close by is another exhibit showcasing a number of human skulls, all of which have holes bored into them. The alethiometer reveals a strange truth about the skulls that Lyra doesn’t fully understand. Shortly after, she is approached by an older, grey-haired man in a linen suit, who was quietly watching her from the upper level of the museum. He tries to get Lyra to come with him but she declines. After consulting the alethiometer again, Lyra finds a physicist named Dr. Mary Malone, a former nun who researches dark matter and something she calls Shadows. Dr. Malone explains to Lyra that Shadows are conscious and they cluster around humans. Lyra realizes they are the same thing as Dust, and convinces Mary that she can talk to Shadows. Will learns more about the Arctic expedition his father was on just before he vanished. Back in Cittagazze, he reads his father’s letters and finds out that just before he disappeared, his father was looking for the same kind of hole into another universe that Will fell through. In Lyra’s world, Lee Scoresby searches for Stanislau Grumman and accidentally kills an agent of the Church. Serafina and her witches enter the world of Ci’gazze and learn about the Specters and the bene elim, angels who are able to pass between worlds. Ruta Skadi leaves the witches to follow a flight of angels as they make their way North. As they approach a large mountain range, Ruta hears the clanging and pounding of the “fortress Lord Asriel was building at the end of the world”.

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The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) - Will's World, Cittagazze and Serafina's Decision: Chapters 1, 2 and 3 of The Subtle Knife
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10/10/19 • 69 min

The Subtle Knife opens in our world, where a young boy named Will Parry is bringing his ill mother to an elderly neighbor, Mrs. Cooper, who reluctantly agrees to take care of Mrs. Parry. After leaving his mother, Will returns to his house and frantically searches for a green leather writing case filled with letters from the adventure-seeking father he’s never met. Strange men have been coming to the house asking questions and looking for the case, and Will wants to find it before they do. Just as Will finds the letters, the men break into the house and one of them makes his way upstairs. Will rushes through the doorway, accidentally pushing the man down the stairs and killing him. On the run, Will makes his way to Oxford where he hopes to have his questions about his father answered. Late in the evening as Will walks along a tree-lined street, he notices a cat acting strangely. Upon investigating more closely, he is surprised to see a barely-visible opening in the air leading into another world. Will decides to cross through the opening from one world to another. He finds himself on a strange, deserted street and seeks refuge in a small house, where he encounters a feral-looking Lyra Silvertongue. Elsewhere, Serafina Pekkala witnesses Mrs. Coulter torturing a witch for information about Lyra and kills her to prevent her from telling Mrs. Coulter what she knows. Serafina goes to Svalbard to speak with Lord Asriel’s servant Thorold, who tells her that Lord Asriel means to start a war with God. She flies back to her clan, where Lee Scoresby and Ruta Skadi, the queen of the Latvian witches, has joined them. Lee Scoresby says that he is going to look for the scientist and explorer named Stanislaus Grumman. Serafina and her witches decide that they need to summon other witch clans to fight on Lord Asriel’s side and protect Lyra. Ruta Skadi will go to Lord Asriel to see what he is really doing. Back in the new world, Lyra and Will meet two children who tell them that the city they are in is called Cittàgazze. They say that it is filled with specters, which are wraiths that feed on adults but do not harm children. After speaking with them, Lyra and Will agree to go back to Will’s world so Lyra can find a physicist who can tell her about Dust. Once there, it is clear to Lyra that this is not her Oxford and her mission might take longer than expected.

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The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) - Continuing our Revisit and Review of The Golden Compass Film: PART TWO

Continuing our Revisit and Review of The Golden Compass Film: PART TWO

The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast)

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10/01/19 • 50 min

New Line had great success with a fantasy epic in The Lord of the Rings, but could they strike gold again adapting Pullman's masterpiece? Part TWO of our review will close out the film and get us in the right mindset for the series (November 4!).

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The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) - A Witch's Wisdom, a Bear's Desire and a Girl's Deception: Chapters 18 and 19 of The Golden Compass
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09/04/19 • 75 min

Flying high above the frozen tundra, Lyra sleeps peacefully as Lee Scoresby and Serafina Pekkala discuss the girl’s destiny and what it might mean for all involved. When she awakens, Lyra and Serafina talk for a long time about the nature of witches, her relationship with Farder Coram, the Church’s connection to Dust, and daemons. Serafina tells her that she doesn’t know why humans have daemons but she knows it is what separates humans from animals. Lyra muses about Iorek and his armor; she learns that although he is exiled, Iorek is the rightful king of the panserbjorne and the new king, named Iofur Raknison, is clever in a human way. Flying past mountains covered by a thick fog, the balloon is suddenly attacked by cliff ghasts, causing it to lerch and drop violently. Lyra is thrown from the balloon and lands in a large snow-drift, where she is discovered by armored bears. The bears bring her to Svalbard, once grand and majestic but now filthy and appalling, and throw her in the dungeon. Here she meets an old professor from Gloucester. He tells Lyra that Iofur Raknison is infatuated with Mrs. Coulter and would do anything for her, but that he is playing both sides of the game: isolating Lord Asriel to please Mrs. Coulter while still providing him with all the equipment he needs to continue his work. Lyra wants to force Iofur to fight Iorek so he can reclaim his kingdom. But Iofur won’t fight Iorek because it would be undignified for the king to fight an exile. In the dungeon, Lyra remembers hearing that Iofur Raknison wanted a daemon, just like a human. Lyra manipulates the guards into getting her a private audience with the king. Using the alethiometer, Lyra convinces Iofur that she is Iorek’s daemon. She says that if Iofur fights Iorek and wins, Lyra would become Iofur’s daemon instead. Iofur agrees; in an effort to protect Iorek, Lyra suggests Iofur tell the bears that he called Iorek back to fight so they do not kill him on the spot when he enters Svalbard. With Iorek only four hours away, the bears prepare the battle grounds while Lyra waits for him to rescue her.

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Please look for us on Facebook and Instagram! Can't wait for you all to hear us talk about more stuff!

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FAQ

How many episodes does The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) have?

The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) currently has 46 episodes available.

What topics does The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) cover?

The podcast is about Scifi, Film, Films, Bbc, Nerd, Tv Shows, Book Podcast, Entertainment, Television, Anime, Podcasts, Movies, Hbo, Tv, Nerdy, Fantasy, Animation, Tv Reviews, Tv & Film, Fantasy Podcast, Horror and Film Reviews.

What is the most popular episode on The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast)?

The episode title 'Horror Favorites' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast)?

The average episode length on The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) is 62 minutes.

How often are episodes of The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) released?

Episodes of The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) are typically released every 7 days, 6 hours.

When was the first episode of The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast)?

The first episode of The GenNEXUS of NERD (formerly The Amber Spycast) was released on Jun 23, 2019.

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