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[00:00:00]
joe: Hey, welcome back to the Rabbit Hole of Research. Down here in the base-
ment studio in the throes of winter here in Chicagoland. It’s
NIck: the cold.
Mary: first day of winter.
joe: Is it the first day of winter?
7How are we there? It’s the first
Mary: day of winter
joe: or recording day’s. The first day. Not to release
Mary: Oh, That’s true. That’s true.
joe: Yeah.
NIck: Oh, Mary. Straight
up lying to the audience immediately.
joe: Alright, well now we,
well I mean
Mary: isn’t going
out live.
joe: Not live. No not yet. Yeah. Maybe in, in the future we’ll do a live
Geo: that, oh boy.
joe: With that we are already hearing some different voices. But you got me, Joe,
NIck: you got Nick. You
joe: Nick Georgia, we’ve got Georgia and a familiar voice.
Yes.
Mary: My name is Mary Schoons And I’m lucky enough to get to come back
joe: back you
NIck: Thank you for coming the multiverse I’m coming Season one Multiverse
episode. Yeah. And we have another
joe: too. And we do have another guest. Now our guests are introducing other
guests.
Mary: Yes.
joe: This is, to feel very comfortable.
[00:01:00] It’s like, let’s get whatever you want out the fridge here.
8Mary: Woohoo.
Kat: We got this
you guys can all kick back.
So,
My name is
Catherine.
Disturbance. You can Call
me Kat. And
My relevance for this topic tonight is that
I am the Chief Comfort and joy officer of the Virtual Nation
of Snow Globia, which
is a, virtual nation that currently is housed on Facebook and
joe: and
Kat: dedicated to
living
in the spirit of Christmas.
You have a sense of humor,
but we’re also very strict and there is no
joe: okay.
Mary: Alright,
Well
Nick, you’re on
NIck: cotton headed ni nuggets on there,
Mary: So yeah.
Thanks.
NIck: will get booted. Got it.
9Mary: Well
remember Santa’s watching.
Yeah.
joe: Oh. Or
Geo: listening.
joe: Listening.
or
Mary: Santa is
listening.
joe: listening. I mean, it could be
Mary: the podcast. That’s
audio Only Yeah. Yeah. Okay.
joe: Yeah.
A little strange that he is
watching all
NIck: Considered a Demigod?
joe: Yeah. Well, we’ll get to that. Let’s not jump the gun here.
NIck: I,
joe: I [00:02:00] yeah.
NIck: was a segue.
I
had to
Geo: question.
joe: was,
But
10what yeah, so if you haven’t guessed we’re gonna be touching on holiday movies
in particular Christmas movies. I think we got little Jingle Jangles. And it’s also our re-
cap.
So we’ll do a little recap of our season, ’cause this is the last full episode of the
season. And then , as we do, we have a mini that will come out New Year’s Eve and
we’ll just really wrap up the season.
NIck: Dang. We’re on New Year’s
Eve for that one.
joe: It is New Year’s Eve. That’s right. You gotta come in with
NIck: Are we gonna do a countdown
Geo: party
joe: hats and we’re not li I guess we could we have time the episode, like you start
this episode?
No. Okay. Exactly.
NIck: That’s exactly.
what we should do.
joe: so I, I do have a little, intro at that this season. I started that , my little mono-
logue at the beginning seems like people like it, Soma.
Got one here.
NIck: you really want to go for that late night talk show host, don’t you?
joe: That’d be nice.
I’m listening. Now I’m talking over the course of season two. We explored a lot of
science through the lens of [00:03:00] fiction. We asked How fast is too fast, what hap-
pens when time is misbehaves, when ecosystem, societies and technology buckle un-
der pressure from noir to kaiju, from superheroes to slashers, from hearts to stretched
and juiced organs.
11Every episode, we separated the science from the hand waving. And as we close
this season, we wanna unwrap a little of that Christmas magic.
Christmas is opposed to be comforting, silver and gold decoration, blinking lights,
hot chocolate, familiar stories, the same songs, same movies every year on a loop.
But if you actually look at Christmas movies, they’re not about comfort. They’re
about pressure. People force together deadlines. You can’t move systems push to the
edge when you expect everything to feel magical. That’s why Christmas is the perfect
setting for movies, action, horror, comedy, sci-fi, and even monsters because it’s uni-
versally understood to be a stressful time.
But a [00:04:00] movie set during a snowy December day isn’t an automatic in to
the Christmas movie club. So in this final episode of season two, we’re pulling the
wrapping paper off to see what stories were built to go on a loop and which ones
were only held together
by Christmas. Handwaving him.
So, alright.
Mary: Very
nice. Very nice.
Kat: nice.
Mary: So,
I’ve been really looking forward
to this
For Kat to
lay out
her arguments about,
I guess it’s
Now an age old question. Is Diehard a Christmas movie or not?
12And I really
am looking forward to Kat
talking
about
why you have now you have a, you have criteria why the why does die Hard is a
joe: movie. Mary’s the
host now. Yeah. She’s taking over.
Mary: I am. I’ve totally, that’s what I do. You
give me a, you give me a mic
and I’m like, whoop.
joe: There you go.
I, there you go.
Okay.
Geo: She
does programming. I
joe: I know. Yeah. I see that. You
Mary: can tell.
Sorry.
joe: No, you’re fine.
Kat: I very much have criteria.
Should I delve [00:05:00] into my criteria? Well, there’s a little business. All right. I
think we should take care of.
Okay. Do it.
joe: Do it. Folks who have listened. We may remember from season one recap, we
sampled the world’s strongest beer.
NIck: And then we did that again, pre-recording this.
13joe: the
Geo: Some of us
joe: which was 75%. It was a Scottish strong,
a blended with spirits.
So for this episode, I start to follow up in our
second season that we’ve completed or completing,
maybe after
this we got the world’s second strongest beer at 67.5%. It’s a fortified scotch beer.
And the fortification is, they concentrate it through freeze distillation. So you freeze it
and you separate the alcohol from the beer during the freezing ’cause the water will
freeze
before the alcohol.
Geo: That was a way to get science.
into the
joe: Indeed
it is. There
Mary: There you
go.
joe: And
then they blended it with some Scottish spirits also. So
that’s
what we have. It’s called a [00:06:00] snake venom.
NIck: By blending it, they just kind of. Threw a few. drops in and they’re just
joe: a few drops. That’s right. They did. And a little taste like, you know,
Geo: and cats Like, thank, goodness I’m not
joe: not,
14here.
Geo: in the studio.
Mary: lucky. You’re so lucky.
No, first
of all, I wanna say as somebody who has stamped the world’s strongest beer,
it’s
absolutely disgusting.
joe: And
Mary: I
knew it was gonna be, as I,
yeah, I was warned about it. And
listen
joe: to the, that episode.
Mary: What was it Nick?
You said it was like nail polish remover.
it’s,
it is.
it, I think
it,
joe: I
NIck: my inside’s so clean
Mary: Yeah.
joe: the tone
NIck: episode though.
joe: episode, though.
Mary: That was amazing episode.
15joe: So,
Mary: yeah. I love
that episode.
joe: Kinda want to some cheers and, we’re gonna get into the holiday movie Kat is
like just champing at the bit right now,
Mary: Oh, we are
so ready. We’re
joe: going. So I’m
Kat: your business. Do your business.
joe: but
just quickly
before we, we do our toast. Yes, please. , I just wanted some stats really fast and
like I said on the mini episode we’ll touch upon us again. But season one we had eight
guests.
Geo: Season
joe: season one, we had eight [00:07:00] guests.
Season two we had 25. Mm-hmm.
So almost
every episode,
At the end of season one, we had 3,823 downloads. But at the time of this record-
ing, we’re at 12,672 total downloads.
So we have listeners, someone has listened to this podcast on six outta the seven
continents. So Antarctica is the only one that’s because it’s
Probably, you know, that’s all right. Yeah, no yeah. There’s still,
NIck: why there are
scientists that live there.
16it.
Why? aren’t they listening?
Geo: Come on. We even
joe: We gotta get it
Geo: a shout out.
joe: Yeah. We’ll make it, that’ll be our season three goal. They
get,
Mary: they seen, have they uncovered the thing?
Are they things,
joe: or might, you know, the problem was to the map they gave with the stats on
Yeah. Didn’t actually have Antarctica in it, so maybe
that could,
Geo: could be, the reason
joe: there wasn’t, a spot for Antarctica, so maybe I’ll have to push
Geo: we need to, they need to have
joe: some better stats
Geo: Yeah. They need to be on the map.
Yeah. So
the,
podcasting,
met I think so.
There,
joe: There’s, they’re
folks
Mary: in that Antarctica.
Geo: Yeah.[00:08:00]
17So I,
joe: I just wanna thank.
Like I said, we’ll do this probably again, but all the guests that came on with us
made it a great show. We’ll probably dig into names and name drop on a mini one,
but, and thank the co-hosts. I mean, it’s this
show wouldn’t
NIck: we have to thank you for doing all the
joe: kind of a,
NIck: and So
Georgia and I
Geo: All
the
work
NIck: bullshit our way through.
Mary: And
joe: so yeah, with that, thanks. I also as I did last year, I like to give out the Rabbit
Hole of Research Award without
Geo: Oh, I didn’t even know.
NIck: Oh. Without consulting
anyone with anything.
Geo: So
joe: last year, Jeff, go, bloom won.
NIck: We’re gonna argue so hard right now. Actually,
joe: this one I think we’ll get consensus.
I think I’m gonna give the Rabbit Hole of Research word of the season. Extremo-
phile.
18Geo: Ooh. okay.
Well, I,
NIck: Georgia shoved that
in
so
many holes
Geo: we,
joe: that’s what
Geo: time
joe: out. Okay.
Geo: I
Mary: thinking,
you
know what, when you said the secret, when you said the word, I was
thinking [00:09:00] that because I’ve been watching the Peewee Herman’s Christ-
mas special a
joe: lot.
Right.
Mary: Which is awesome. It’s free on YouTube,
the secret word.
So if I hear Extre Aile
anytime in
2026, I’m
gonna
scream real
loud.
19joe: should,
yes. That’s what I want.
Mary: Remember,
Geo: always hear
joe: Rabbit hole hear secret
Mary: word,
Geo: and it really deserves a lot.
joe: Yes,
we might. a, It’s such a great, we might talk
about Extre Aile in this episode, but
that’s a little tip.
But yeah.
26 cheers. With the world’s strongest. Do
we
Mary: a beverage for cad? Are you ready? All
joe: Have a beverage. Here we go.
All
right. Cheers. Let’s do it.
Cheers.
We got some little clinking, Holly. We. Nice. Clean
Geo: last
NIck: Oh. One more joke.
Geo: All All right.
joe: Down to hatch people.
Mary: glug Goodbye.
NIck: Bottoms up.
20Not as bad.
joe: That’s actually
NIck: as bad.
joe: That’s a good, That’s a good, sipping.
Mary: You know what it, this is, some, yeah.
This is
not a beer.
I mean,
it
joe: no.
Mary: it’s like,
it’s
joe: a little heat behind it.
NIck: Oh, you guys didn’t shoot it? like A shot?
joe: No. It was a sipper.
NIck: Oh.
joe: What are you doing over there?
Mary: Uhoh.
joe: Uhoh. He’s gonna fall out. He’s got [00:10:00] this tall seat now, like he’s the
king of the studio.
Mary: paralytic in the corner. over There,
joe: But at least listening
Mary: one doesn’t
have a bad aftertaste. It’s slightly.
joe: No, it
doesn’t
21Mary: almost at the end.
Geo: right here. though.
joe: warms your
chest. Like, like if you were
Sitting
out by a fire trying to decide who was The Thing.
Mary: Mm-hmm.
joe: is the drink you want. Yeah.
This is what you want.
NIck: the drink you’d give it everyone.
Absolutely. And the one that isn’t human it’s gonna just freak out.
joe: There’ll be
Mary: the world’s
Geo: I have a,
NIck: I have
joe: people. Now I, now that’s my segue and we’ll get back to you, the others. But
it, there’s a petition going around and this might, this will lead to for you Ka while we
oh,
Geo: now, how the hiccups Is that
gonna be a problem?
Kat: I heard
Mary: A few more.
a few warming
drinks will turn us stiff as a board over here.
22joe: So there’s a petition online, and I don’t know if you’re familiar with the movie
The Thing, but there’s a petition to have it class reclassified as a Christmas movie. And
no.
Yeah. Yeah. The Thing, yeah. So really and there’s some fundamental [00:11:00] I
think there’s some fundamental problems with it that I have.
But,
NIck: what the movie? The Thing.
Geo: like
joe: the thing Yeah,
the movie
NIck: a, you have problems with that movie
Geo: being class. No,
joe: as a Christmas movie.
Yes.
NIck: movie. Oh, I was like, Joe, well, this is Oh, has
no
Geo: with the
movie. No,
joe: I actually, I was like, yeah, let’s do it. Let’s make it a Christmas movie. That’s so,
I could give Christmas movie lovers a hard time, but but yeah,
NIck: it,
Mary: And who
Geo: who’s
joe: you were
Geo: the, who do you petition to like, who’s the ultimate,
Christmas
23joe: It was authority. Was it Internet? Internet movie database? I think it was I don’t
know. The inter internet movie database. Whoever does the previews,
Mary: it was in the snow.
joe: Yeah, so Right. That’s when the cold
Geo: but it’s always snowy and
cold there.
joe: The thing that, that they said, , in the movie is, the first damn and week of win-
ter.
And so I think a lot of people, as you said that today’s the first day of winter, which
is a week away, so that would make it a Christmas movie. But you gotta remember
they were in Antarctica, which is in the
Southern Hemisphere. So actually that wouldn’t be December. You would be
more like. Is that March?
So it’s actually not [00:12:00] Christmas time. It’s more a an Easter movie maybe.
Geo: Okay. you have to tell us where to write in.
Where do you write in?
joe: Where do I write in?
Geo: Yeah.
To say that you think you are asking people to do this
petition
and you don’t even, I’m not,
joe: people to do the
petition. I said the petition?
is out there that you can do.
Geo: Well That should be in the show notes,
24joe: that in the show notes. But what I want to get to you is to hear Cats’ Rules of a
Christmas movie, please.
And we could see, not die hard, but let’s start with the thing like a easy one.
Maybe because I already kicked a leg outta that table, but may maybe, let’s see what
the rules of the road are. Yeah. Yeah,
Mary: let’s
do it.
NIck: Well,
Kat: Well, yeah. So I
I’m only, I just barely
remember
the thing,
but
I’m just
looking at
like people’s
arguments for
the thing. It’s like takes
place in wintery weather and
Kurt Russell has a Santa like beard.
I mean that is the
Geo: Yes,
NIck: well.
Mary: Oh, you know, that beard is hot,
joe: there is a, okay,
Mary: Let’s,
25joe: so you, you brought that up. But [00:13:00] there is a an alternative theory, so
go ahead and then I will
I’ll swing back on that,
Mary: but yeah, go over the criteria, right? Yep.
joe: Yep.
Kat: see how
it fits with
that. Okay. So
criteria on
judging
whether something is a Christmas movie,
it’s number one
does the movie
prominently feature
joe: Mm-hmm.
Kat: That is one of the criteria it’s not like, doesn’t
require all three of the criteria,
but it should have at least one of the criteria. And that is a large one. Number two,
does it feature Christmas and also have
a redemption and forgiveness theme,
Mary: Mm-hmm.
Kat: like you
were hearkening to that
you know, with like everybody’s under
pressure,
There’s like these
26ridiculous, illogical Christmas, Eve deadlines for things
that really, have nothing,
to
do Eve
and
yet. that’s when they’re happening. Number three for me, number three came up
because people sometimes refer to things that really have nothing to do with Christ-
mas, but traditionally occur
in
December.
Geo: Mm-hmm.
Kat: Now, for me, this doesn’t make it a Christmas movie, but [00:14:00] the clas-
sic example is the Sound Of Music, because whoever owned the rights to that for
decades always aired it in.
December. and that always made it
like
it was on
the TV when we decorated the tree and stuff like that. So
for some people, that’s why
the Sound of Music is a
Christmas.
movie.
that’s why my favorite things is a
Christmas song, even, though it’s
really not.
And
27you know,
thematically.
so.
those
are the general
joe: Mm-hmm.
Kat: I
have more specific Diehard rules, but those are the,
those
are my general rules.
So,
let, yeah.
let’s see
how that applies.
to The Thing,
joe: Yep. No, I have similar, that was my similar
Geo: Right. Christmas Doesn’t come up at all.
joe: Christmas doesn’t come up,
NIck: I’m pretty sure Joe’s right.
Geo: Yeah
joe: it’s not set in Christmas.
Geo: Yeah. You don’t even say the word, Christmas. once. Right.
NIck: There’s not even a tree.
joe: Yeah. I mean, am I my cri I mean that, that whole thing about the plot collaps-
es have moved to another season. That’s a strong point. Like you mm-hmm. You need
28the Christmas there, so, but yeah. No, I, the [00:15:00] thing doesn’t fit. I looked it up.
It is internet movie database and letter boxed. That’s
where you petition until December 24th. you can, okay.
If you choose to petition
and
NIck: do have a problem, Joe. You keep saying the whole name. Instead of just IM
db.
joe: Well, ’cause people might know what IMBD is.
That
Geo: is a good point. Come on, we’re old.
joe: Yeah. You
can find, but you know, I, speaking of season
two
Mary: information super highway,
joe: we are, we, I
Geo: and I was just talking about Jill and
joe: I
was looking if
NIck: movie
joe: I was looking this up a few more
Geo: The Royal the podcast.
joe: We,
are now listed in the I am db. I am
Mary: db. ‘
joe: cause I had, I’ve had the snake. Ve but yeah, we’re the
Mary: world’s second strongest
29beer is pretty
joe: can go on in there and write plot points and stuff.
Geo: Getss us back on point.
We never even discussed this or Yeah, we
did.
NIck: Yeah, we did
joe: What?
NIck: Georgia’s drunk
joe: guy. I know. She’s done, she’s had
Geo: wondering.
joe: Yeah.
NIck: she has shitfaced
joe: [00:16:00] think the
thing fails on a
number
Geo: hiccups,
NIck: boy,
joe: A number of points there, but Die Hard. Let’s assume that’s always a favorite
one.
NIck: I got one, that I don’t
think is gonna be brought up, but I’ll wait till the Diehard conversation.
joe: Right,
So Diehards a Christmas movie. It
Mary: It’s not a Christmas movie. It is
joe: It’s solidly
Geo: Oh my
30NIck: A hundred percent
Mary: but
would you
like to hear the rebuttal?
joe: Well, I guess, yeah.
NIck: I mean.
Kat: another
criteria though is does it
have like
The Christmas
bling is
what I like to
call it, and I do look the lousiest,
Most
terrible anemic
plots on Hallmark and a lot
and
fantastic.
Wonderful.
Interior
and
Exterior bling, which Diehard
does have
but I am curious to hear. I’m Curious to hear, the no thing
Mary: Okay. This, is, I do not
think that
31Die Hard is a Christmas movie.
Die Hard is an action movie set at
Christmas time.
joe: That’s
so,
NIck: I mean that, sounds like
joe: Yeah. I mean, yeah,
it sounds like Christmas.
NIck: Yeah,
Geo: Eh,
joe: if you,
Mary: okay, hang on.
Geo: Alright, [00:17:00] so,
NIck: so,
joe: so,
Mary: so
Die
hard’s original release date is July 22nd. 1988.
NIck: Christmas in July. Yeah,
joe: if
you’re in Antarctica.
NIck: Okay.
Mary: Alright.
Now
Kat: now.
32Mary: Now take a look at the, okay. So take a look at this movie poster. So, folks I
know, right?
It is very riveting to be told about a visual
thing
on a podcast,
but
you can look this up on yourself. Google image, the diehard movie
poster. If you saw this poster,
Geo: it
NIck: should be on every tree.
Mary: Where
Kat: I wanna
Mary: If you saw this movie
poster, where
would
you put that movie
Without
knowing anything about
it,
W would you put this in the
Christmas section?
or
would you put this in the action or action movie section?
joe: I mean, you could
Mary: if
joe: you wanted to.
33Kat: mean, as a criteria though. As a, as.
NIck: going on.
joe: Yeah. We
Weird area
Kat: though. I think that would take out a lot.
of movies that are considered generally Christmas
movies. It’s a Wonderful.
Life.
Arguably that could have [00:18:00] happened.
I,
could have
happened on the 4th of July.
that that is not That’s not a Christmas
dependent
plot.
It’s got a great redemption theme. But the poster is probably what all those guys
standing around a big table of money at the end.
Mary: it’s, yeah.
Well, anyway, it doesn’t feature anything in Christmas,
however, so I wanna talk about this because
I
watched, I rewatched Diehard for this.
And I came away, well, first of all, I almost just didn’t even finish it because it’s very
eighties, very machismo, you know,
blah,
blah.
34joe: blah.
I love it. Hold on.
Geo: getting,
joe: I know? geez, you just don’t like, I mean,
NIck: do you have your email so we can have all the hate mail go there.
joe: If you don’t like the movie, that’s one thing,
but now
Mary: hang on for I,
I’m
not finished yet.
All right. So I started this and then I almost didn’t finish it.
And then I get to that amazing scene where he’s talking about,
he’s talking about his wife and
you, he’s
talking to Al.
On
the ground, his other love
interest in the movie. [00:19:00]
And
He’s just saying, you know, I,
she’s heard me say it a million times, I love you. But yeah, she’s never heard me
say I’m
sorry.
And it’s. The movie itself plays with different
themes. It’s
kind of easy to miss with all of the bullets and, blood flying everywhere.
35But the reason he’s on such
a tear
in this movie is because he’s
scared about losing his
wife.
NIck: This sounds like a Hallmark Mart movie.
joe: It does, yeah.
Mary: But,
can we also talk about the insanity
of having a giant
Christmas party, a work Christmas party on Christmas Eve? Can we talk about how
crazy that
is?
joe: Man, it happens. They just closed a big deal. So they were working at that, in
that culture. Yeah, they were working through Christmas.
They just had, that was a whole thing in a party. It wasn’t just Christmas, it was also
Christmas. And they closed a deal before everybody went on holiday. So it was kind of
pressure there that they weren’t still in the office. They still were super excited
and instead of us leaving,
Mary: how do you get a live [00:20:00] band to play a work party on Christmas?
Eve?
joe: I mean, yeah. And it’s not
Kat: Oh, hey.
NIck: I mean, if someone pays me enough money.
I will leave my family.
to go play.
36Mary: and they,
If
they’re cha,
joe: me up. We’re good. Yeah.
Mary: a lot of cash back
joe: in catering, but
Mary: but
can you imagine? I
joe: they had
NIck: and the amount of cocaine.
joe: I think they had, I think they were planning this party, but I think it just also it
because they had more people stayed.
They were there because of that event. And they all kind of congregated there be-
cause they were working hard to finish close the deal. Mm-hmm. And then they were
there on that floor.
Mm-hmm. And Then
they kinda locked the building. Right. So it was a very private thing if you did that
other times of the year.
Other offices in that building could have been occupied. It wouldn’t have been as
clear. So setting it at that time, you actually cleared a building. And then these people
who are business people closing a deal in a different country, like in Japan and other
countries with different work cultures, they were, that was part of that whole thing.
And so they were there working hard,
and then it was oh your family’s here. Yeah. Let’s give him a place. And so when
John was coming, John McLean was coming. It was this whole idea that family might
37be there or show up [00:21:00] because you’re missing that time. Mm-hmm. And this
was, and she was the right hand woman there.
So,
Mary: and that
explains his fear of losing his wife because the head of the company, he saw that
what ha happened to the head of the company. He knows his wife is
second in command
And is very noble. She’s, you know, he
knows that. I think he’s
just trying to, I realize after that scene, like that’s
hi. why he’s on such a frantic tear.
I would argue that diehards more of a slasher than a Christmas movie, actually.
’cause he’s just boom, W him out.
He’s scared about, it’s a love story. It’s a,
love st
joe: But all that could be a Christmas story. Right. I mean, that’s the thing.
Well,
I, I’ll counter every love okay. Not every, okay.
Mary: Now every Christmas story has a bit of redemption. but Not every redemp-
tion story is
a Christmas movie. Otherwise, the Shawshank Redemption would be a Christmas
joe: movie.
Must not
NIck: does it take
joe: though. Well,
yeah. See, that’s
38Mary: it Has
redemption in
it.
joe: I think it was
said
NIck: That’s just because it’s in the name you can’t get.
Mary: okay.
Yeah.
It’s got,
yeah.
Yeah. So, [00:22:00] but the I
and
oh, so, and then one of the things that and this is, I swear this is relevant because
we’re drinking.
joe: And
Mary: When I
was a
when I was
an undergrad, one of the things I did I worked in restaurants to get through
school.
I.
And at that time I think my, I could probably count on two hands how many times
I’d had alcohol. So I had no experience whatsoever with it. And I was at this restaurant
and I’m
tasked with
making mixed drinks from time to time. , I’m like, okay, shot,
39mixer,
steer, here you go.
And
then people would keep complaining about my drinks
not being strong enough.
joe: Mm-hmm.
Mary: Mm-hmm.
And so one day the bartender says, Hey, look, listen, I’m gonna handle this for
you.
She goes, okay,
put a little bit of alcohol in,
then put your
mixer, then put your alcohol
on top. Because if you finish it with the alcohol,
they’re gonna think there’s more. In fact, you can actually put in less alcohol.
And the,
the bar,
the bargo were, and.
we’ll think there’s more. And sure enough, it worked. I started getting [00:23:00]
compliments, like finally I got my drinks right. I was actually giving
them less alcohol, but because I finished it strong. And that’s kind of how Diehard
finishes. The
diehard, diehard, it’s an action movie.
There’s a couple of mentions, , there’s
some pivotal moments where they have the Christmas tape where he is able to
hide the gun.
40joe: Mm-hmm. You know,
Mary: but it ends super
Christmas-y.
joe: Super Christmasy. I like it.
Mm-hmm.
Mary: it does, it didn’t, this body,
joe: body where he has ho, ho. I got a gun now
and he’s got the hat on and ferry play, which, you know, he probably shouldn’t
have done that.
I mean, he shouldn’t have tipped off the guys that he was there. So if he didn’t do
that, he could’ve just got the gun, got the walkie talkie, and then Oh yeah. Just went
around. So really he wanted
Geo: but because it was Christmas,
joe: he wanted to show it
then
Geo: and he had Christmas spirit
NIck: I mean
Mary: I mean,
It’s the Spirit movie
set at
Christmas.
joe: I will say He did
have Natalie,
Mary: it
NIck: So it’s a Christmas.
movie, Right. No,
41joe: He had a really strong redemption arc. Yeah. Family stakes. Like everything in
a Christmas movie [00:24:00] that you would cook in there,
NIck: It’s like saying Jingle All the Way is in I mean you would just put
joe: that in so you would have it
Mary: check out the the.
I’m just saying it takes place at Christmas.
I’m not, obviously I’m not gonna change
any minds here. And you’re not, you’re definitely
not gonna
joe: change mind. No, we’re not.
Mary: But I did come
away with
a new
appreciation of Die Hard because I think, oh yeah. It’s actually a
love story.
He’s scared about lo losing
as he’s scared about losing his wife. I
was kind of a bummed though, at the end of the movie, you know, after he has like
the big,
Embrace with his wife, and so
we’re, I think we’re
probably all of age, we probably saw the movie like the first time in the theaters,
right?
No,
not
Okay. some of
42us are young. Okay.
So
I just,
Geo: I
joe: I remember,
Mary: like, I still remember this one.
joe: We’re watching
Mary: it and like, there’s like the huge embrace at the end, and Bruce Willis is just
covered in mud and blood and ugh.
Geo: ugh.
joe: ugh.
Mary: And
this one person
in
the audience, you could just hear going, Ew,
Geo: they’re just
Mary: going.
but
like when he got down
At the end they had the climactic,
meeting [00:25:00] with Al, I was like,
why didn’t he kiss him like that?
joe: Well, that would’ve been a different movie, maybe. I don’t know.
Kat: I’ve heard arguments that it’s like a reverse,
hallmark plot
because in the
43Hallmark Lifetime movie, the woman
Is the workaholic, with the Christmas Eve deadline and winds up getting sent to
the
Podunk Town where she meets the guy, the overalls with no visible means of finan-
cial support. And then she winds up giving up the big city.
But in this case,
she
actually
went
to the
big city. She’s got the really demanding.
career and her sort of
patriarchical,.
toxic husband
follows her to the Big city and supports her career
which is a funny take on it.
Mary: At the end of the movie, he realizes he’s wrong to stick with
he was and be stuck in the old ways. He moves out to
LA to be with his wife
and
his
wife, takes back, their married name.
They have a, like a reconciliation of
joe: sorts. Yeah. Nice. Redemption art.
Mary: Yeah. Yeah. It is a very nice redemption
44joe: So I’m gonna put another movie out there that Mary’s probably not
[00:26:00] gonna think, but Trading Places another one of my
favorite,
Mary: I no
joe: Christmas don’t know that much about Trading
Places.
Yeah. Eddie Murphy.
NIck: that was a good movie. I just re-watched that recently.
Geo: you feel Like
the fact it was set at Christmas, had a big part of it.
Kat: And
the redemption. theme
also
joe: redemption, moral, the moral story in there, like that all cooked in and then
being set at Christmas did add that consumerism, that greed.
I think if you said it at other times, it may not have landed as well, but yeah, that
one I always think put it in
there.
Geo: don’t know. I have to get back to
What
a Wonderful Life.
Mary: Oh, I
love that movie. I
Geo: think that could be said at a different time.
I think it has to
be said
45at
Mary: Mery Christmas. movie house.
joe: I think you could set it at a different time. I think the problem with that, you’re
right.
Geo: I think that one
Kat: I could.
joe: he, He’s
Mary: through the snow
going, Merry Christmas. I’m back. I mean, come
joe: It could just be like, you
know
Geo: that
scene
joe: Happy 4th
of July.
Happy 4th of July. you
can see
Geo: somebody
their wings. I
joe: Yeah, I know. I mean, you, you have a lot of [00:27:00] elements, but that one,
maybe you can,
Mary: a
Christmas movie.
NIck: a quick rewrite to make that not
a Christmas movie
joe: I mean,
46Geo: what’s that
NIck: quick rewrite to make that not a
joe: Christmas
movie? Yeah.
Mary: Okay.
So Die Hard is a Christmas movie, but it’s, a
joe: gonna go Home Alone also. That’s Home Alone.
Kat: not gonna die
on that hill, but I am gonna say, if You’re gonna be a purist
and really A stickler, if It can’t be two kinds of genres at the same time. Or, , if it’s
not feel good. enough or if it’s
too Violent.
which I have never considered
an
acceptable
criteria to rule out a
joe: No, you shouldn’t.
NIck: What about too sexual
Kat: Christianity and the Nativity are so violent that it’s like, well, you can’t use
that as a criteria, but what did you say Two?
I mean, there’s,
joe: Yeah. Go for it.
NIck: Eyes Wide Shut. Christmas movie.
joe: Yep.
NIck: There’s,
Kat: can’t even,
47Mary: bless
Kat: what? what? are the criteria that makes it a
Christmas
Geo: yeah,
I’ve seen
NIck: I it takes place during Christmas and there’s Christmas decor in
Mary: be arguing that [00:28:00] Halloween is a Christmas movie. I
don’t know.
joe: No, Halloween is set in Halloween, so, yeah.
No,
But
I, I,
was gonna say I would say for moving, shifting, maybe I’m popular, you could
move Home Alone. Like, there’s a lot of structural questions in there. Like why? I
Kat: oh my
Mary: I think Home
joe: you didn’t need, obviously
Christmas. No, it could be
Thanksgiving. Very easy. People
Kat: now that I’m so glad you said that.
joe: it’s, you know. Yeah,
Kat: so Glad you said that.
Home Alone is
but Diehard is not,
Mary: right?
NIck: Yeah,
48Kat: I don’t think you can have it
joe: that’s right.
Kat: because
Home Alone,
Mary: have it anyway I want.
Kat: Home Alone is like Die Hard for kids.
Home Alone is so
joe: Super
violent.
Mary: no,
I
Kat: insufferable brat and , he like sticks, nails in their feet and like third degree
burns and a
blown torch on the
head
NIck: could have killed every one of them. I think
joe: they probably
did die.
Geo: Yeah. no, I
joe: they’re like ghosts. They’re
Stalkers, right? They’re like
incompetent
Geo: I
joe: Jason. I think
Myth Buster [00:29:00]
Geo: did a whole thing about what would be the injuries of all those.
49joe: They all
were fatal. 100%.
They all were fatal. Yeah.
Yeah.
Mary: Oh,
did you ever hear the, Or the internet
to rumor
or? No, not rumor, but it’s not a real thing. But people saying that maybe Kevin
McAllister is actually, grew up to be
jigsaw.
from the saw
joe: I did see something like that.
Yeah.
Yeah. The
Mary: ages wouldn’t be right at all,
but,
I thought that was
hilarious.
joe: What I was gonna swing back to the
Mary: Kurt Russell, Okay.
joe: I, we can always, and really we can always swing back to
Kurt, be old
Geo: that dreaming beard.
joe: I mean, I, you had the ending of The Thing. They’re out there in the frigid
cold,
and
50then in, oh, love this movie,
Kurt Russell’s filmography.
He has was in the Santa was it the Christmas Chronicles? So he became Santa
Claus.
What is this? So
can you actually make the line between The Thing and Christmas Chronicles
where he was now abandoned in this cold weather environment, taken in and became
Mary: That’s his origin [00:30:00] story.
NIck: this pre or post Tim Allen
joe: That is Saw that somewhere. And I was like, you know what, that’s, yeah. That’s
Santa Claus’s or Origin
story. he’S not the Thing. He became Santa Claus. The
Kat: Goldie Hawn.
Mary: Mrs.
Kat: Hawn as Mrs. Claus,
You’ve got your redemption theme
joe: there it is.
Mary: I love it. Yeah. Oh, can
joe: we
also where’s Child’s at?
He’s gotta get in there.
Mary: Okay.
So Swing. okay.
I wanna swing back to Die Hard for a second, not to
debate it, whether it’s a Christmas movie, ’cause it’s not. But
we can talk about,
51joe: wow.
It is,
Mary: I
NIck: love this is almost as
joe: I
Mary: Christmas.
I love Diehard. It’s just not a Christmas movie.
Anyway. Oh, yes, please. Thank you. Actually after I finished the world’s second
joe: with this nice Candy Cane ale, if you remember the Gremlin episode.
But,
But
s Hans Groove is, says he’s an exceptional thief. He is a terrible thief. He is proba-
bly the,
Mary: maybe possibly the worst
thief.
joe: He did a good job. I mean, he got in there.
Mary: Got in there, I mean, he got in there. Why did he wait till Christmas day?
Why didn’t he wait till
joe: we needed the building empty.
I mean, there was a whole, that’s why the heist couldn’t happen. You had to have
the building empty.
You [00:31:00] had to have people there.
No, but he needed,
Geo: And they were, he needed and they were like, He He needed the hostages
because that was part of it, that they were gonna blow the roof. Yeah. And they think
he died in that explosion, but then got out through the, you know, drove away.
52joe: And so that was a whole setup that so you had to do it with the people.
I
understand. And not a lot of people, you couldn’t have a whole building full of
people because then they, you would have more than one John McLean hero. You
needed the building pretty much empty. One security guard maybe watching the
door.
Mm-hmm. Because there’s still some people in the building. So that’s where, be-
cause probably that guy would go home. Right. And you would just not have any se-
curity. You’d just lock up the gates and everything. So really that, I mean, you had to
have this whole thing where you had to have a holiday where you could actually, you
would have a party.
Mm-hmm. You would have the celebration to keep everyone there. Right. And
then have the heist happen. So really it was the, and then you also have probably.
We’ve learned from other movies like Gremlins, the security during holidays seems to
be drunk or a little lax, a little bit.
So when it’s, when the cop came, with the suit and tried to do things. He did
[00:32:00] everything that Hans wanted them to do because he probably had a little
at the you know, at
the station and, Showed up. Pretty confident. Yeah.
Mary: I
just feel,
joe: Al, Al was very.
Kat: strongest beer.
Geo: Yeah.
joe: Al was really more on top of it. Al should just been in charge ’cause Hans Gru-
ber
53would’ve got stomp a lot
Geo: would’ve been like 10 minutes long.
Mary: you know, also, Al would,
Al
is so fired after
this movie. He is so 100% fired.
joe: theory about that he went. That’s where his
boss Yeah,
that’s when, that’s where he went to. Was it the whole theory. That’s where family
Matters comes in.
Mary: Oh, I haven’t
heard.
joe: so he goes,
he
loses because he shoots another person. Right.
And then he kind of goes psychotic and then he winds up in a mental institution
Where
he’s haunted.
Yeah, he’s haunted
Geo: horrible.
joe: Urkel Kel is the kid that he killed originally. And so he kind of loses it. And so
he’s being haunted by this figure who always comes out and he goes, did I do that?
You know, it’s kind of this whole thing, his whole life. And so this whole story of how,
and his said,
Kat: Wow.
joe: and
54so they went through you.
Look what?
Look it up. I’ll [00:33:00] put the
Geo: is it like a website for Really? obscure random storing?
joe: YouTube. Awesome.
As you guys noted, I do
research. It’s like
Mary: I love it. I
love it. Okay.
I
love this.
I, I,
Geo: I wanna say, I think the whole debate about whether something is a Christ-
mas movie or not, right? It’s all how you define it, it’s all my definition.
And I think Christmas movies are that way.
joe: I, I think
Geo: If you watch a movie and you feel like it’s Christmas.
It’s very subjective.
And I think it should be subjective.
Mary: No.
I love, it.
Well, Ebenezer Scrooge said, you keep Christmas in your way and I’ll keep it in
mine. Yeah. If someone thinks that Diehards a Christmas movie, absolutely.
NIck: Unless they talk to you.
Unless
they talk
55to
joe: I think
Mary: well, they
won’t be able to convince me, but if they think it’s a Christmas
movie, absolutely. Go
joe: I think that
you actually secretly agree and you want to you’re
arguing about it
because you keep it alive, you keep it fresh, and then you get, then
you go and
then you
go I watched Die Hard just to make sure.
And you know,
so you
NIck: it wasn’t the [00:34:00] Christmas season, so,
joe: yeah.
Mary: I
was watching it in
joe: When do you, when do you watch, when do you watch it? Usually in the win-
ter, probably right.
Mary: when, I actually can’t remember the last time I watched Diehard. Honestly,
it, I don’t really watch a lot of
action movies,
so
Geo: gonna say, it didn’t sound like she was really like, she went out of her way to
watch it for this.
56joe: Oh, okay. Yeah.
Yeah.
Mary: I watched
it for this
joe: mm-hmm. Heman.
Kat: Shoot him up things. Well I’m a huge fan of Bruce Willis’ Abs and Die Hard.
joe: really, I didn’t even know he abs. Yeah. I didn’t even know he had abs. sense
of
Kat: humor. He
Mary: did in
this movie.
Kat: have, and he does have
nice abs and They are on they washboard. Oh. And can we talk about to s Gruber
and the sexual chemistry
Mary: between Hein Gruber and
John McLean’s wife?
Holly.
That was there were, there was a couple of times Holly was giving Hans the look,
and I thought, you know, John, if you wait a little if you don’t kill all those guys in
enough time,
you are gonna lose her, man.
I’m telling you Alright.
joe: All right. How
about the, Okay.
Kat: gonna, I
57am gonna say that when the topic of, you know, for this [00:35:00] podcast came
up And I started going down my own. Rabbit hole of what constitutes a Christmas
movie. And I started running
like
lightning rounds in my head and talking about it too much until people got un-
comfortable. looks on their faces.
and, you know, things like that.
But I was like,
Okay,
criteria,
Let’s do this.
And I was like, it’s a Wonderful.
life. No.
it’s
not Christmas dependent. I love it.
even a Christmas Carol. If you take a Christmas out,
of the, that, those ghosts could have visited
anytime any holiday.
They don’t have to be Christmas
ghosts,
joe: you got The
redemption. The redemption arc though holds a
little bit.
Geo: I would,
joe: so that’s what saves
Kat: As for sure. I’m just
58joe: yeah. you can,
Kat: with some rewrites. It does
Geo: I wish you could see Mary’s
joe: face.
Yeah,
Kat: Now
I
have three examples of
NIck: you. That’s the great
Kat: I have, so listen, I have three examples of each. Not Christmas dependent.
I had, It’s a wonder, It’s a Wonderful Life.
Mary: that’s
Kat: Carol White Christmas could totally have happened on Thanksgiving.
They didn’t have to save the generals in on
Christmas. But [00:36:00] the ones that are
Like indisputably Christmas Dependent
Plots Miracle on 34th Street,
all about Christmas
Christmas and Santa and all that Elf, absolutely completely about
Christmas from a start to finish and a
Charlie
Brown Christmas, but
also special.
Completely. A hundred percent. A hundred
percent
joe: Rudolph Reno’s, reindeer.
59NIck: Santa
Slay. Krampus. Krampus. I was
joe: Krampus. I was gonna say. Yep.
Krampus.
Kat: yes. Krampus
joe: Christmas
NIck: movie.
Yeah. The, These movies are
Mary: Silent
Night. Deadly Night
NIck: Oh my God. I love those movies. yeah. Garbage day.
joe: gotta
Geo: go,
I gotta go back though. I really, I can’t let, I It’s A Wonderful, life is a Christmas
movie. It’s
joe: Absolutely.
I’m, it’s in my list, but I can make it, if Mary’s gonna make her argument, I can go
up against it. is not a
Kat: that’s exactly what I’m saying. Yeah, I mean, it’s just like you
said though, Georgia, it’s
completely Subjective.
So
for me, I love,
it. I can’t get, you know, I watch it Actually at all kinds of, ear because I am a prac-
ticing
Christmases, you can [00:37:00] just
60gimme a blue pen. I can make, yeah, I
can make some
joe: is that, Kat? You a Christmases
Kat: a, yeah. So
I realized that I had
accidentally, kind
NIck: over that one so much.
Kat: I am made up,
My, I kind of created my
own spiritual practice
because most religions I can’t really connect
with, but I, As I reflected on Christmas.
spirit And.
The
elements that come up in Christmas,
books
and movies and other content.
You know, it always, it, It like highlights the highest form of human behavior. You
know, it’s generosity, sharing
forgiveness.
kindness. No, not
capitalism.
That’s not a spirit of Christmas.
That’s
kind of the bottom line
of Christmas. But you. know, it, you know,
61So as a matter of fact, oh, as a matter of fact, get this,
so
I wrote this small book,
right?
And
it’s the eight tenets of
Christmas. ’cause I figured, well, if
like Catholics, which raised,
I am a recovering Catholic, and it’s like, well, if
you guys can have commandments, then I need to have,
[00:38:00] something cool. So I
have the eight.
tenets of Christmas
and in this book, okay, the fourth tenet, this is relevant, I’m bringing it back around
The fourth tenet of Christmas is
forgiveness, laying down of arms acceptance and redemption.
And my, one of my examples
in the book is Ebenezer Scrooge, John McLean, another popular fictional symbols
joe: Yes. A
Mary: That was written in a book, so it has to be true.
Kat: it has to be
joe: Yes.
Let’s
Mary: was written down.
Kat: Yes, exactly.
It’s
62Geo: how long have you Been a
Kat: Christmases.
Geo: Yes.
Mary: That’s, a hard one to say.
I’ve
Kat: I have been a practitioner of
Christmas
for almost 11
joe: Yeah. How’s that?
Kat: Yeah. Yeah. That was the year That I decided that since humans really are at
our best
behavior in
the Christmas season, that I don’t know why we think we should stop, celebrating
Christmas ’cause things aren’t Going well. So I think anything that we can do to
[00:39:00] try to clean up our behavior I am all for.
but of course that was before the wheels came off and the dumpster fire.
joe: I was
gonna ask,
does Christmas
Geo: cyst is
joe: overlay with like Festivus,
NIck: for the rest of us?
joe: is it, is there
any overlap? It feels like there’s some overlapping kind of ideals.
Kat: Absolutely. I mean,
Chris Christmas.
63is open
to
anything
that embraces the spirit
of Christmas. and for.
me, that is
Absolutely inclusive
of humor.
joe: Okay. Nice. Not taking yourself too serious.
Kat: Right. So,
you We
celebrate.
any holiday
that has some
overlay
with
Christmas in
snow
Glo, my virtual nation. And so we
do Celebrate
Festivus. I just was
recommending
to someone right
before I came on here that they get their
airing of grievances
in
64order, because That’s coming up on Tuesday, stay after Tomorrow. So, you know, I
Got get your poll.
out
joe: Yeah.
NIck: It’s already ready. [00:40:00] Joe,
Georgia, you guys are ready for this, one?
joe: and diehard, she’s gonna be airing her grievance.
Kat: Ramadan, Hanukkah,
joe: Kwanza.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Kat: Have overlapping tenets
for sure.
So, you know, I’m super cool with all of those things.
Geo: So basically you,
that’s
what you do is bring Christmas
to
the,
for
the whole year.
Kat: Yeah. So I try to practice
the spirit of Christmas every day. I have.
jing, I have. jingle bells on my rear view mirror so that when I want to
road Rage on somebody’s ass, I will be like
just like jingling the bells
NIck: you ever
65wrap your finger in like red yarn? and give them
the middle finger so it’s
joe: red,
NIck: cane?
joe: You need red and white. like a candy cane?
Kat: just men. I’ll be like,
I’ll I’ll unleash a three A
stream of
expletives, and then I’ll, and then my jingle bells will ring and remind me, and I’ll
be like, right. Okay.
joe: Christmas in, the glass.
Kat: my brother.
Yeah,
joe: Yeah,
Geo: I do. I really like that. I like that thought
about.
Kat: my book.
joe: Yeah. [00:41:00] Awesome. That’d be
Geo: really like that because
I think it’s so easy. To get to your point, Nick, it’s so easy to fall into
the
expectations and the capitalism
and
Feeling like you’re living up to these expectations, and I think that really comes out
at
Christmas.
66time And do like focusing on those things about Christmas that we should be fo-
cusing on,
NIck: Wasn’t like this whole holiday season started because it was a really de-
pressing time for people where it was cold, people were dying like
Geo: sun.
NIck: And you just had to have a reason to get around together and to,
make yourselves happy by
the
company that you’re with.
Yeah. Like you all here with us.
Absolutely. Man.
Turn that one around.
Mary: I love it. of the tenets. hot damn. tenant, the third
Kat: tenet is gathering with
loved.
ones. you know, To
your point though,
Nick, I mean [00:42:00] the Christmas as it
is today.
is like this ridiculous
mashup of things. It’s like pagan
rituals and
joe: Religious. Yeah.
Kat: agricultural festival of ell and
it’s like whatever Prince Albert brought in to Queen Victoria and all that stuff,
joe: Yep.
67Kat: yeah, Prince
Mary: Albert.
joe: Oh, boy, shees. let out. All right. Yeah.
Kat: Yeah. I’ve also
Mary: the second strongest beer, so
joe: Yeah.
Kat: There you go. Uh, with a non-alcoholic beer, so it’s
joe: like, and a candy cane stout, Oh, and
Mary: candy cane
joe: That’s like Christmas in a can.
Mary: can.
It
is, it’s,
it is absolutely I chased mine with some whiskey and some white claw.
joe: I know
that’s, Oh, mine. Hey, I have a few
Kat: things. I have a few things The
topic of Die Hard. I have a few things
joe: Back to diehard. No, please.
Kat: found when I was, that I, when I was
researching, which I found hilarious. Okay, so the first one is Somebody Posted
Die Hard Isn’t a Christmas movie because
it occurs on Christmas. It’s a Christmas movie because
It’s about a social obligation with a family member that you didn’t [00:43:00] wan-
na participate.
in, but spirals more and more into an unending nightmare.
68joe: Yes. that’s it. You know, That
Mary: might be the most convincing argument that I’ve heard for it.
NIck: There we are.
joe: it is.
NIck: The end of the,
joe: you got Mary. She’s done. a
Mary: Okay.
no, but
I,
I have, a,
NIck: I think we started the season with an argument And
Mary: I have
a rebuttal as well. So, go You have some, What is this? This is like, yeah,
Oh, It’s like a, it’s like a rap battle here on a, you know, a The oddest Yeah, that’s
Okay. So, Kat, what’s the next one?
Kat: Okay.
Uh, well Are you rebooting that one? Is that point for Kat? We give the win
do you wanna,
do
Mary: a Absolutely. It’s Christmas time. It is Christmas. It’s the season of miracles.
That was
joe: Is that your
NIck: Ooh,
joe: point? What
Mary: Oh, my rebuttal.
Okay.
69So,
joe: It’s happening.
Mary: Okay. This
is
another person
who thinks that Die Hard is not a Christmas movie.
Kat: Okay. Bring it
on. Let’s have it do it.
Bruce Willis: careful.
carefully.
Die
Hard is not
Christmas
movie.
NIck: That’s not fair. He has [00:44:00] dementia
Mary: He
didn’t.
NIck: then.
Bruce Willis: It’s a goddamn Bruce
Willis movie.
joe: That’s
because he it be a Willis movie.
That’s a droll. is. droll.
Kat: is to the point of is it a Christmas
movie or an action movie.
It’s like, well, it can be both Bruce.
70Mary: It can
joe: Well, he actually, he said it’s not an action movie either. It’s a Bruce Willis
movie. I mean, he’s a brand.
Kat: take his,
joe: a brand so that he’s disqualified out of this conversation. That’s, well, that was
Macaulay Culkin. He said that Diehard wasn’t because home Alone is, but like, as we
said, Home Alone’s an action movie, essentially.
Violent.
Mary: No, it Home. Malone’s definitely a Christmas
joe: you could pull
it
Kat: Ah,
Geo: Christmas
joe: season.
It’s,
NIck: but you can pull it out. I actually, it doesn’t have to be on,
joe: it
Mary: but it’s
NIck: parents leave their kids
at home all the time.
Mary: A movie
Kat: yes, exactly.
joe: he redeem himself? Because in part two he was still a brat,
Mary: a movie.
Oh, no, he’s, well, he became Jigsaw, so I mean, he
never learned anything. So
71NIck: I see we’re calling him a brat, but like.
those
parents are trash. they have left his child
[00:45:00] alone. did you hear multiple times? Mo
joe: the uncle was in cahoots with the what do they
Geo: Oh, they a, he actually threw, Yeah, he
actually threw
away his plane.
joe: That’s right. Yeah. He actually, he was actually the villain in the whole thing
that he actually wanted him left there. So that, and he wanted to split the money
’cause he was kind of poor. Like they made
comment of that and they were going to actually do that. So really it was a, he that
was a heist job, but they were just bad.
Kat: I am, I’m surprised honestly, Mary, because I really can’t, I have a hard time
getting through Home Alone because it’s a kind of a bummer that family is so mean to
each
other. I yeah, they are. Yeah. it’s got great bling, but the house gets trashed
joe: It does. Mm-hmm. Again, at It together.
Mary: well, like, well, like going back to family members who make things weird
for everyone.
Geo: Well,
joe: I don’t know why they
Mary: That’s also very much
in the spirit of
joe: My
72other issue was that they decorated all that, they put all the decoration, all that
bling up, but they were leaving for a week or two
weeks.
That’s so weird. So I
don’t understand why they even decorate it. I mean, that’s the whole thing.
[00:46:00] They forced hollow Chris Halloween. They forced Halloween
because it could be Halloween. They could have decorated for Halloween, went
on a trip, and then he got
Geo: Halloween would’ve
made it
such a different movie. I
Mary: know
Geo: Gone so so far
Mary: off the
rails, right?
Kat: Well, I mean, honestly, yeah. The only relatable part of Home Alone for me is
when he gets a lovely cheese pizza all to himself, because
I also am from a large family,
joe: Yeah.
Kat: like I don’t get to have the Yeah.
Mary: How many brothers and sisters do you have, Kat?
Kat: have five of each.
NIck: Oh so I’m the, I’m the Damn.
Mary: You’re
the youngest of 11 children.
Kat: 11.
73Yeah. So
Mary: you were like, in the were at alone family,
joe: right? You were at a Macaulay Culkin of your family.
NIck: How
many times were you left home alone?
Geo: Did
NIck: Did your family
forget
you?
Like,
Kat: Are you kidding? I
would’ve
paid to be home alone. to be home alone. Yeah. See, of my experience.
joe: All
right.
I wanna touch on a few. Oh yeah. Solid. Probably non debatable, but there’s some
of the science in them. I have
On the ice way. Is Frosty
the Snowman.
NIck: Wait, what
is, what did you say before that?
joe: What
NIck: you start off with?
joe: That [00:47:00] they’re, I mean they’re Christmas movies.
Oh,
74okay. Solid Christmas Frostiness Snowman. I think that’s a solid Christmas movie. It
could happen some other time in a winter.
Kat: like
joe: It could happen.
Kat: of a winter
joe: Yeah, I guess it’s like The Thing, right?
Geo: or It could have taken place in Antarctica at other times.
over year, but it
NIck: take,
joe: no, I guess he’s a winner. Maybe you’re right. Maybe I just got winter movies
’cause I got Jack Frost here too, so, you know, maybe I’m back off of that.
But the science is interesting. A lot of hand wa on because Frosty. So a Frosty gets
the silk hat and he comes to life, right? And then in the animated feature, the magician
is actually built as a villain. But really the kids stole his hat.
NIck: they did not.
joe: The hat blew
off. Yeah. And he
has
the hat.
Geo: it’s
NIck: finder’s keeper’s rule.
That is exactly how it No. You come you lose your hat.
and I’m driving down the street and I’m like, oh, that’s a nice hat. And I pick it up.
no, you drop
joe: your car
75keys, someone picks ’em up and they start your car and drive off. You’re like, oh,
hey, find his key
for this guy.
Just keep it. That’s
an, that’s
from a No of It’s Always Sunny in [00:48:00] Philadelphia.
is it? I watch that show.
Mary: Yeah,
Yeah.
There
was like something
that flew away and
he, she immediately picks it up like, Hey, wait a second. That fell out of her
hand. She,
that’s not yours
And again,
NIck: to I now it’s exactly how it
joe: But he wasn’t, I think he had some right to get his hat back and
Absolutely. And get that back. So, yeah. I’m gonna put that on record. And then
Jack Frost, who was just,
NIck: wait, What Jack Frost are we talking about?
Kat: The one,
the, the Michael Keaton one, I.
joe: I
NIck: the horror movie, Jack Frost.
joe: Jack Frost. All of those entities have the same biology, particularly
76NIck: Well, I just wanted to make sure which one we were talking.
joe: could talk any of ‘
em. I’m talking
more
NIck: like the serial killer one.
joe: Yeah. He wasn’t, he was a human right. He was Right. I’m talking about the
embodiment of Frost Ice. Water turning into ice.
Kat: Are you talking about the,
Michael Keaton movie?
joe: I’m talking just the actual legend of Jack
Kat: Oh, just the
joe: spit. Right, right, right. An
Geo: Well, is there an, there’s
an animated, right? there’s an
joe: animated one also
where he’s just ice, like he’s an ice person, like frosty.
And it’s kind of, the question is, how would you get [00:49:00] to an ice person?
Because when you form water into crystalline ice it actually is destructive to cells. It’s
something that in, in, in my line of work, my research we try to create vitreous ice and
there’s a whole process to do that.
Mary: So what’s vitreous?
joe: Vitreous Ice is glass like ice, so it’s non crystalline. So when we free cells
quickly you remove heat so fast about 10,000 degrees per second that you form not
crystalline ice, but you form a different phase of ice, which is called vitreous ice. Or a
glass glassy ice.
Geo: So do you think Jack Frost was glassy ice?
77joe: I mean he, that he would have to be, or, you know, in that magician’s hat, the
reason he wanted it back so badly was because I think it was nano machines and AI.
So you had that there, that he was skid it
Geo: oh
joe: an AI hat. But
this would be a, this would almost like,
this
would be like an Iron Man suit hat where it’s this nanoparticle, you’re laughing. But
I mean, frosty, we think of fro let’s F folks on Frosty. [00:50:00] He had no skeleton. He
had no structure to make sound or throat. He had nothing. He had he, , so he is an em-
bodiment.
That’s just a snowman. The hat lands. Mm-hmm. The nanoparticles then infiltrate
and then he he resets every time. Like a bad computer, like happy birthday. , I’m think-
ing
NIck: also dunno how he does.
half the things I think.
Geo: I think he’s an
joe: extreme.
That’s right. Yes. told you it
would come Look, I did my job
NIck: and Georgia’s plugging in so many.
Geo: Oh, I love it.
joe: it. It’s a word.
NIck: every hole we can get in Georgia’s like Extreme Ohio,
Geo: you know?
Mary: What’s another girl.
78Great Christmas movie? Grumpy
Cat’s. Worst Christmas ever
NIck: with Aubrey
Plaza.
joe: the Grumpy Cat thing.
Mary: I love, that
NIck: Never seen
joe: Yeah. It’s so
Kat: Never seen it. I never seen it. Either.
joe: Either. Yeah. Oh, it’s,
Mary: Oh, it’s such a,
NIck: didn’t, that
Geo: like a number one?
Mary: Yeah. Rest in peace. Grumpy cat, yeah. Grumpy cat.
RIP. Yeah. That’s a bummer.
But we have this, and it’s great because [00:51:00] Grumpy Cat spends like 90% of
the movie just like in a cat bed sleeping,
you know?
And Aubrey Plaza’s, voiceover that. So like, the cat’s clearly
Geo: Being a cat,
Mary: Just
joe: So it’s really, like the real life, Yeah. No. Nothing like that. No, It, but it’s it’s
Mary: dumb as all get out. I love it
so much.
joe: Now, George and I, we watched a really interesting movie, Dead End, and it’s
a
79is it horror movie?
I think it billed as a horror
movie
or a
thriller
maybe. And
Geo: think it was billed as a Christmas movie
though.
joe: and it was billed as a Christmas movie. It comes up on list as Christmas
movies. And so on Christmas Eve, they’re driving to the mother-in-law’s house. The
husband’s driving.
Mm-hmm.
Geo: Mm-hmm. And
joe: then it’s this whole scene where they take a different route
Geo: Well, you don’t wanna
joe: yeah. I, I’m not gonna spoil it. I don’t know how old it is, but I’m not gonna
spoil it. ’cause it is a really good
twist at the end.
Mary: I’ve had
this world’s second.
joe: Yeah.
It’s like a So
mind eraser.
NIck: Yeah.
joe: And they drive this, they and little be,
Mary: got my little bell.
80ding.
joe: they drive down this road [00:52:00] and they’re lost on this road.
And then as they go parts of the family are getting taken and killed.
Oh wow. And it’s really it’s very interesting. Yeah. But it was, and we watched it and
at the end I was like, well is that a really
Christmas movie? But then after some thought I think it what it had to be set at
Christmas.
’cause that’s why they were trying to get there. Any other holiday you were just
like, let’s go back home. Like we went, we have to get there at this day. It had a re-
demption arc. ’cause it did have that at the end. It was interesting. It had the kind of
the moral buildup. So it had all these elements in here and I can, you described at,
had a similar list and I started playing with that and it really fits.
We talked about it’s good if you haven’t seen Dead End, check it out. I
mean it’s
Geo: In a strange way,
there’s part of the movie, like, I’m watching and I’m like,
oh, I don’t know. Do I like this movie?
But when it’s all over. It’s still, I’m still thinking about it and we’re still talking about
it.
So That’s
just the sign of good
joe: move. Very, it’s the sign
of a good
move. Very David Lynchian. I think it has that kind of that feel that atmospheric, I
it’s not
Geo: yeah. not, to that [00:53:00] level.
81joe: not his level,
but to that level, it, it’s in
Geo: The main character is a twin Peaks cast member,
and I can’t
remember
his name.
joe: Yeah, it’s all right. We’ll put it in the show notes.
NIck: Ray, Wes,
Geo: Um,
It’s
the dad.
NIck: Lana or Lauren’s dad.
Geo: Yeah. The dad.
NIck: Ray Wise.
Mary: Oh,
okay.
joe: Did you see Deadhead Nick? Yes. Yeah.
NIck: It’s been years and years, but I had to look it up.
joe: Yeah,
Kat: I’ve never heard
of Dead end. I was telling somebody
that I was gonna be uh, having this discussion about
Geo: about
Kat: uh, diehard and and
this guy this person who’s in
our weekly silent writing group, he said you know, McLean basically
82spends the whole movie, hiding from Alan Rickman in a building.
So basically it’s a Harry Potter movie, which
that’s the only person I have ever heard make that point, which I thought was
hilarious.
Mary: Oh, rest in Peace.
joe: Harry Potter is not a Christmas movie. set at
Kat: does have fantastic bling
joe: You’re right,
it does. But no, it’s not even close.
Yeah,
Geo: [00:54:00] like, okay.
Kat: hall with the
Yeah.
joe: Yeah. It has a
Geo: It has some scene, but it’s not a Christmas movie. Oh, no, absolutely. Well,
and then it was funny because we try to watch Christmas movies. Around Christmas
time. And we’re trying to be diplomatic and give our kids a chance to put in their sug-
gestions. So we write down on piece of paper and then we pick ’em out.
And
what was the movie
joe: that Daddy’s Home with a, and
Geo: and it was like,
it was set in the summer, but then there’s
one
scene
that is
83like
Christmas in
July or
joe: a, it’s like
they have like they’re separated the mom and dad and the, and then the wife is
Remar, is it Will Ferrell and John Cena?
NIck: No,
it’s not John Cena. It’s like Will Ferrell and Matt Damon
Geo: Oh,
joe: Oh, Matt Damon. Yeah.
Right. John Cena is Matt Damon’s like, yeah, there’s a whole thing. I think he
comes maybe
Geo: I think he’s in the there’s a couple of the movies. Yeah.
joe: yeah. And it was like, we watched this thing. I was like, well this isn’t Christmas
movie at all.
And then because the Matt Damon character wants to give hi, he didn’t get to do
Christmas ’cause he [00:55:00] was in jail, I think. He then plans this big Christmas day,
and so there’s like scene, a scene of Christmas of him planning that and it was like,
oh,
this doesn’t count. This is not, yeah, right.
Geo: we gotta make some more rules for this
Christmas
movie thing
joe: unless Anna, and the apocalypse, like Christmas musical, zombie Christmas
musical.
Have you guys seen that? Oh, yeah. I haven’t heard
84of it. It’s really good. I heard that
Mary: of that one.
Geo: We haven’t seen that
joe: did, but you
know, I think, oh, I’ve seen it. Yeah.
Mary: think for me though,
like when
you guys were talking about Harry, because I agree, I don’t think Harry Potter is a
Christmas movie either,
Kat: Oh,
no, Absolutely.
Mary: But I but it, but by those rules, I feel like Harry Potter
and Diehard shared
like the same
things
joe: eh,
Mary: Yeah.
NIck: boo.
joe: no.
Kat: No.
Mary: even worse
because Diehard, Diehard came out in
July. You know, and so,
joe: keep, you keep movies don’t Come out and, they’re, you
have to come out at Christmas time to be a Christmas movie. Like I think that’s a,
that
85Geo: that’s an inter some nothing rule there.
joe: But you don’t, I mean, because
that’s all [00:56:00] based on money and when you make money on a movie
is in a
Mary: you You would
Kat: Hollywood to
joe: A Christmas
Mary: movie in July.
In
joe: Yeah.
In the,
Mary: In the eighties when
NIck: it’ll be on DVD, Like by the time Christmas comes around it’s on vh,
joe: right?
That’s right. Yeah.
NIck: So that’s why they add it like that far in advance.
Geo: Well,
Mary: then every summer Blockbuster would be a
Christmas movie
NIck: I mean,
joe: No, no. But dude, no, that’s not,
NIck: they want it to be
out around that time so you can have it at home so you can watch it with your fam-
ily. To
Geo: To be honest, I think it’s an unintentional Christmas movie.
I
86think Christmas just happened to be
in Diehard, and I
think enough people are watching it and.
then
picking up on that and It becomes like
people’s favorite Christmas movie. I
joe: to do to
Geo: think It was intended
For
a Christmas.
joe: the
writers who wrote it, who haven’t come forward, or that Bruce Willis, who was the
action star, making a brand for himself to go.
This is Bruce Willis movie. Okay, great. Yeah.
NIck: Bruce Willis, who didn’t
write the film. It’s a Bruce Willis movie
joe: they [00:57:00] were going through their plot and their plot holes, Uhhuh
they purposely made that movie at Christmas time,
Geo: but they didn’t think it was gonna be a Christmas.
like
joe: they don’t know How do you know? I mean,
Kat: That’s, no, it’s the,
Actually one of the writers is on record,
or Possibly.
the writers is
on record, saying,
87he did write it to be a
Christmas
Geo: Well, there you go.
there you go.
joe: Yep. and
Mary: one more, and one more thing about Die Hard. It’s not
related to Christmas, but I love
this.
This thing about Die Hard is the undershirt.
cool
is the undershirt
Geo: as
Mary: a metaphor?
I do. I love it.
Kat: This is like an
abs adjacent,
uh,
Mary: But
NIck: I’m not sure what’s going
joe: I know I don’t either.
It’s like Rabbit Hole of Research.
Mary: Do you
guys remember?
Like he starts off in the movie. At first he starts off
with a white pristine,
undershirt.
88but
Making fists with
your toes. I don’t know. I don’t,
I think legs up the wall or legs up the chair personally
is better for, you know,
joe: What the heck are you talking about?
Mary: Anyway, remember the
reason
joe: know why he was
barefoot.
Mary: [00:58:00] The reason why he was barefoot
joe: is, The guy
took, he had to be barefoot, so that was a plot device there.
That’s right. Toes. And I thought, what? I thought Quentin Tarantino was involved,
you’re right.
Mary: Right.
Geo: Right.
Mary: So,
exactly. He
might’ve well
Geo: been,
NIck: but like,
Mary: as
the
movie goes
on,
89it gets
progressively Dirtier and by
the end,
like the troll, the
trappings are just
like his straight
and narrow. My way or the highway way is ended,
Like the,
Geo: he’s gotta just go with it.
Mary: completely gone.
at that point. yeah.
Geo: Yeah. I
Mary: just, I love that as a metaphor
joe: metaphor.
The
Geo: the
Mary: for
how,
John McClain has changed throughout the
course of the movie.
Geo: See
joe: his redemption
Kat: great. I have one great regret. One great regret about Diehard that they have
a hugely pregnant woman front
and they have Argyle in the parking garage.
If they had.
90just had her have to
try,
to go, like
give birth in
a garage parking spot, or they would be so open and shut.
Christmas movie, it’s So, like
Merry
and the not a Christmas movie. Yeah. Okay. [00:59:00] Anyway.
joe: But they might have cut that out in the editing floor. It might have had an
edit scene Well, they, but the problem is if she gave
Kat: had it right
joe: then
she would have to leave and ar guy who waited to bust out mm-hmm.
Until the end. I mean, you know, there’s a lot of little f flowy flaws in there where
this could have been shut down a lot sooner.
As Georgia said, it would’ve been a 10 minute movie if you fix all the plot
holes. Oh my gosh.
Mary: Yeah. This movie
would never,
ever happen. But let’s talk about the other cool thing about Diehard is
all of
the
joe: really liked Die Hard, it
sounds like
I mean, you want it to be a Christmas movie.
Kat: Bruce
91NIck: started off really hard.
joe: Yeah, yeah,
Mary: know, I you
Geo: I
joe: You came out like, I
NIck: I don’t like Die Hard. I hate
Bruce Willis. No.
Geo: ab
joe: if he didn’t have nice abs, I would’ve been like, don’t even watch that movie.
Mary: No, but you can
joe: look, I stopped watching him when he put the shirt on.
Mary: a Christmas movie, right?
That is
Geo: true.
joe: true.
Mary: true.
I like
joe: watching the movie when he put
the We wanna hear the one more point that Mary has
Geo: about
joe: now? How much she loves Die Hard. Yes,
Mary: Yeah, I
do like it.
So we’re talking like 1988, so, you know, you don’t have
[01:00:00] black protagonist like the, as the action star.
But you have, Argyle,
92joe: He’s mm-hmm. You know, he’s
Mary: Driving the li, This guy Christmas Eve, he
just has nothing else to do, but hang out in that limbo and hang out with, you
know, like, man, oh man,
Geo: most he’s so Carey about. it.
Mary: That’S the world’s most dedicated Limmer driver.
Right. Can You imagine anyone sticking around that long
for you?
Really? That
Kat: That
is one
thing
I did notice
though, you know?
it’s classic in action movies.
that the black Character goes first and horror.
movies. In this case, you have
the
safe.
joe: Mm-hmm.
Kat: Argyle.
Mary: Yeah.
joe: And
Kat: Al.
And I was, I was especially waiting for the safe
cracker
93to, go down in a hail of
bullets or
Mary: but he doesn’t,
Kat: three of ’em, all three of ’em make it through the
Mary: but don’t Well.
Geo: just
Kat: white guys.
who take it in the
face
and get ho, ho, ho on and, know, all that.
joe: Well,
the
white foreign, the,
Mary: The Germans,
joe: the yeah, the immigrants.
Kat: Oh, You’re right about that. Damnit. You’re right.
Mary: let’s,
also
talk about rest
in [01:01:00] peace. Agent Johnson, I thought he was unfairly
killed. He was awesome.
He was
amazing. Not the other agent Johnson,
Who cares about
him, but
the other guy, remember he was he had such a dry wit.
94And he ended up getting wiped out in
the
helicopter crash,
joe: think, right?
Mary: I thought that was a wrong note for me.
I was
waiting for
them
to survive the helicopter crash.
NIck: And I’m gonna circle back
though real and like
Mary: maybe like they would start in their own in their
NIck: Yes.
Batman
joe: and
Mary: their own action
movie series.
NIck: But the idea that a limo driver wouldn’t
wait around,
that’s They’re getting
joe: paid. Yeah. They are
NIck: like, it’s
money.
joe: Yeah.
I’m
NIck: to wait
95for
money. if I just have to sit somewhere.
Mary: He was really gonna wait.
NIck: Yeah. I’m just gonna sit
there. Yeah. I’m getting paid.
joe: and a timeframe.
Kat: relaxing
evening down
there. He was,
joe: was, out like hours. It wasn’t.
I mean, we didn’t get a good picture of that timeframe, but it wasn’t like that. He
didn’t wait like days down
Mary: I wanna have someone that dedicated on my side,
NIck: you wanna pay me enough, I’ll do
joe: Right. I, I, agree.
NIck: I will do it. and a tip.
joe: [01:02:00] So he is waiting for, he get paid and a tip that he is gonna get
when he comes out there.
And it’s like in a, you know, they’re gonna be taking a little extra especially ’cause
they’re That’s right.
Mary: It’s Chris.
Yeah, a
joe: hundred percent. I’m waiting.
They got a ban on Christmas Eve to show up. I mean, you know, they got, they’re
rolling in the Clearly nobody in this
Mary: movie. Yeah. Like you can have a, you can have a
96holiday.
Yeah. That blows
my mind. Yeah.
NIck: I mean it’s an extra toy for my,
Mary: if the, if, our
work had us a Christmas party, at Christmas Eve night.
oh
my God. I lose my mind.
Kat: what’s gross about
capitalism. though. I just saw a commercial tonight about one of these poor, stu-
pid box stores. You can leave your Christmas
Shopping
till Christmas
Eve.
joe: Mm-hmm.
Kat: I thought You
bastards,
you know, let these People
go,
home.
joe: yeah. Yeah.
Geo: Right, right. Well, and I
Kat: I listen though.
Geo: oh,
yeah.
Kat: Oh, I just have one question.
97I
just wanna, I have, because after this lovely experience is over, I go back to the
land where people look at me funny and start inching away. When I talk about this too
[01:03:00] long,
But I
just have to know
Mary,
why
is
Home
Alone a Christmas movie if Diehard is not
joe: On the is it about? Yeah. Why
Kat: Home Alone? well, it’s not the, it’s not the violence. I think. I think that,
Mary: Some people in here think that, I don’t think it’s a Christmas movie because
it’s violent. I just think that
it
just happens to be said
at Christmas, but it’s not a, it doesn’t really, it just doesn’t feel Christmasy to
me.
Yeah.
it just doesn’t
Geo: part
the whole
NIck: I’m I’m pressing tonight.
Mary: Oh
NIck: yeah, I’ve had A few
98Mary: What, What part doesn’t,
feel
joe: And it has the coolest Christmas song Run, DMC Christmas in Hollis
, you know? Yeah. I
Kat: Uh, that’s
Mary: I
think it ends super Christmasy. Right. It has the loan paper or the bond papers
floating down like snow
and
joe: Yeah. it
Mary: it ends with the
limo.
Yeah.
joe: Snow in la Right. I mean, I was, it’s
Mary: at Christmas. But
I feel like it’s
fairly
joe: Mute. I mean,
Geo: I think that this is one of those things that we just can’t solve, you know?
Well, like we,
just
joe: probably not this episode, we’re [01:04:00] running
against the clock here.
Yeah. What,
NIck: we
started on an argument this season and we’re ending on an argument.
99this season on
joe: What was the argument we started on? We,
Geo: Wes.
joe: oh what’s that? We about
the simulation?
Was that the That was our first, no, yeah, no,
NIck: that was the first episode. The season, wasn’t it?
joe: No, the first episode of the season was exploring Utopia and Dystopia.
NIck: Really? I thought
it was with Wes.
joe: No, that was the last, that was the,
Mary: was
Geo: season
joe: that was season one.
That was season
NIck: That was the end of season one.
joe: was towards the end of season one. And Mary,
Mary: like
for
Home Alone, Christmas is more prominent. It’s a thing you have to get back to,
your kid for s , to celebrate Christmas
together
joe: you gotta get back to your kid if you leave them.
Yeah. And you’re in France. I you just gotta , make a return
NIck: it doesn’t matter what time of year.
that is.
100Mary: Honestly, I, ,
joe: If I, that could be any, that could be a Tuesday
, March. How about,
Geo: Planes, Trains and
Automobiles? That’s,
Mary: it’s
a
joe: movie. Thanksgiving yeah. I said a Thanksgiving. Yeah.
It’s a, it’s
Kat: that does go back though, Joe. That goes back
to Your point [01:05:00] that
Christmas,
you’re under pressure, know, goes, oh God, we have to go to Paris. We’re late,
the flight, blah, blah, blah,
blah.
Mary: I
would’ve just like put, him
joe: well,
Mary: I would’ve
joe: trip anywhere to Paris or any trip you take, you’re under pressure to get to the
airport in time, especially when you have that large of a group of people.
So you pick any of the
other, right. That’s right. Yeah.
But I think
Geo: Christmas just makes it even
more,
101NIck: but it could have been Thanksgiving.
and it
would’ve been
just
as bad. Right.
Geo: And the busyness, of the airport and Yeah.
Kat: 4th
of July.
joe: Fourth or
July.
Okay.
Kat: have been Thanksgiving.
Geo: guess we should wrap this up pretty quick. In a Christmasy
kinda way. Oh,
Nick, what’s your favorite? I
know you’re not a big Christmas fan. Do you have a favorite
Christmas movie?
NIck: have the most sentimental. Christmas movie and that is Santa Slay because
every year Michelle and I will go ahead and make a gingerbread house.
Aw, While watching Santa Slay. Aw, I sweet. And I absolutely love how stupid and
gory [01:06:00] and violent that movie is because it’s something absolutely bonkers
going on.
Well, we’re just making a
nice, you know, gingerbread.
joe: Now think about gingerbread houses in people. Now is the house. Made out
of flesh or is it gingerbread person made out of house material? I
102NIck: the house being made out of flesh.
Kat: I have
a perfect cartoon for that I gotta send you.
NIck: it is
Flesh.
and
that is the only way I will eat it.
I like to know that my gingerbreads
are
full on just
trying
to survive, so they had
a bigger civilization until
joe: it’s a
call back to season one in the That’s amazing. Tortillas that tastes like flesh.
Mary: Well,
NIck: I
joe: I forget what episode
that was.
NIck: Was it taste like flesh or
joe: it
was like, tastes like Yeah, it was it corn?
NIck: Corn tortillas.
joe: Tastes like flesh. Oh, we gotta look back.
Yeah. Oh wow.
Kat: a cartoon. There’s a cartoon,
103my sister posts every year. That’s a
four panel and it’s a gingerbread [01:07:00] man sitting in a gingerbread house
and
it says A gingerbread man sits in a gingerbread.
house. Is the house made of,
flesh or is he made of?
house He screams for, He does not
joe: know.
Oh man. Look at
that.
Kat: Very
Mary: that’s in,
joe: I’m there, right? Someone’s got it. Yeah. Send me a link. I’ll put that in the
show
Kat: I will, I
NIck: What
about you, Georgia?
joe: All right, move along. Well,
Geo: my, I think my favorite,
I don’t know.
I have quite
a few that I like, but I, my favorite I think is Christmas in Connecticut.
joe: Oh, come on.
Kat: Oh fun
joe: thunder.
Now I gotta come back.
104Geo: God. Who
made you,
Who
made you
Kat: one? The original
Mary: also like
Christmas in Connecticut?
joe: I do like Christmas in Connecticut, but I’ll
pick a different one. yeah. It’s really good. You should stay here. We can watch it.
Let’s get it on. I’ll watch it
any time. Even in July,
you go.
Geo: you didn’t even
know about Christmas.
in Connecticut until I
joe: don’t like romcoms. It’s a nice romcom. It is. And I do
like, I like romcoms. Yeah.
Yeah,
too. Stand there. Okay. I mean,
Mary: can like some,
Geo: It’s, yeah. go
joe: Muppets Christmas or whatever. Yeah.
Mary: Oh yeah. Wes Christmas Carol.[01:08:00]
joe: Yeah.
NIck: Yes.
joe: Look at that.
105Mary: I have
a soft spot. I have a soft spot for the George C. Scott, Christmas
Carol. I really like
Geo: that one
Mary: That’s
a great one.
joe: I like Scrooge. Scrooge. That’s one of my favorites. I do like that a lot. I don’t
know. I mean, it’s
probably just, ’cause when it came out and I was of that age and that 88.
Mm-hmm. So I was an impressionable, what,
Geo: Young man. 15-year-old? 13 old.
Mary: Mm-hmm.
joe: I somewhere in that ballpark.
Mary: Yeah.
NIck: What about you? Kay.
joe: Kay.
Geo: Okay.
Kat: Uh, the, the, Muppet, the Muppet, I’ve had a few drinks. Okay.
NIck: I’ve just shortened it completely.
Kat: that. I am flexible.
Uh, Muppet Christmas Carol
is one of my Very favorites. It’s a wonderful life.
but I, but
I have to say, there is a
30 minute
British cartoon
106That was popular. At the same time.
as a Charlie Brown Christmas. It came
out Around the same time, and it was an annual tradition on British tv. It’s called
The
Snowman,
and if you
haven’t seen it, you can find it on YouTube.
It
is like [01:09:00] It is beautiful
and soulful. Uh, there is a piece, there’s a song
that
requires like a,
boy soprano and a choir,
and it’s like basically they’re frosty the snowman, but it’s
so
British. Classier.
yeah. I,
Highly
recommend
Geo: Yeah. Cool.
Mary: Thanks.
Kat: a, Yeah.
Mary: Yeah. Well, mine is the George C.
Scott.
Geo: She already
NIck: She already said this.
107Mary: really like That one.
Geo: I think Joe’s had a
joe: No I missed it. Well, everyone went around and then we foreclose in, so, okay.
Yeah.
Mary: there and,
of course, and right
now I’m just have PeeWee’s
holiday
special
joe: Right. You said that right? Right. Rotation.
NIck: I do. have to say off that. Yeah. TV shows have some of the best Christmas
show like
joe: Specials.
Geo: Ooh.
Like
Kevin Bacon on The Guardians of the Galaxy. Yes.
joe: There
NIck: I just finished up Gilmore Girls Gilmore Girls love it. Oh, that’s a nice
episode. They have. every time I just feel like it’s like, oh, this was great to have on dur-
ing the season. And Bob’s Burgers as well, always [01:10:00] have very solid
Christmas
episodes.
Mary: Oh, yeah. You know, the other one riff Tracks has also put a lot of their
Christmas shorts and
some of
joe: their mm-hmm.
108Mary: their Christmas movies on, on
YouTube for free.
NIck: Interesting.
Mary: And
for free.
Yeah. And they’re excellent. And If you get a chance, watch Wizzo of the Clown.
It’ll scrub your
brain
clean as a whistle.
You
won’t
NIck: remember Oh, good. ’cause I have so much rotten. in there.
Mary: Okay. Yeah.
joe: Or Snake Venom, either one.
Mary: Yeah. It’s, it is like, if you
can’t have Snake Venom, watch Wizzo the Clown.
You won’t remember
your own name after it. Okay,
joe: cool.
Geo: Did you, oh, did you say Joe?
NIck: Yeah.
joe: no, I was letting everyone
go.
NIck: wait, I thought you already did.
joe: No. I mean, Christmas kinetic is a favorite. I got, I Diehard Gremlins Scrooge. I
Scrooge I love Scrooge. I
109Christmas Carol adjacent.
I say Scrooge ’cause that’s a, just a derivative of Christmas, Carol. Yeah.
Those are my favorites. We did a whole gremlins episode, so go check that out.
Mm-hmm. I was gonna bring up the Grinch. I do, I mean the animated
NIck: Oh, not the Jim Carrey one.
joe: I love the Grinch. And [01:11:00] we did in the Heart episode, Heart of a Su-
perhero. We touched on Grinch in his heart condition. ’cause a heart de grows three
sizes too big. probably Not good for
you, you know? No, it’s, it is not good at all. Yeah.
Yeah. So, or something.
NIck: Okay.
joe: yeah. But yeah. Anything else?
Mary: Did we, Christmas ourselves out?
joe: think we’re Christmas out until next year. Well, to come back and debate.
Mary: I know.
joe: Die hard again.
NIck: Oh, I thought next year is the year of Santa Verse Krampus.
joe: We could do that. Yeah.
I have in my notes Yeah. The Biology of the Immortal Santa Claus.
We
NIck: I got Notes about that.
Yeah,
joe: I have notes on Rudolph’s bioluminescent nose also. So, I mean, there’s some
sciencey stuff we could touch on, but we didn’t get there.
Kat: well, my
license plate is X MSS 3 6 5. So I’ll just be waiting here. for you
110guys anytime you wanna come back to
joe: On that note, Kat, why don’t you go ahead and plug your deets.
Kat: Oh, yeah. Well, I
just have really two things. to plug. one is of course the virtual nation of Snow,
Glo, which you can find on
the evil Facebook
for now, even though it exists.
[01:12:00] everywhere at all times.
And
then also if you live,
in
northwest Indiana
I
manage
a
silent writing group under
The
international
Organization. Shut up and write That meets at Tinies in Gary every Saturday morn-
ing at 10 15. So
you can find us on Meetup.
That’s
uh, where I,
got the
comment about , Diehard as a,
as an
111overlap.
uh, in
the Harry
Potter, omniverse,
joe: I’m
Mary: you could do this.
This is
Geo: Yeah,
It’s
NIck: Thank you you for so much for being here with us.
joe: It’s all Oh, thank you. do
Geo: you know the the Tree Twins?
joe: What
are we,
Kat: yes. Do I know the, Tree?
Twins? Yes.
are, are that the Tree Twins.
are our cover photo.
Geo: Oh.
Kat: OG Glo
Geo: I had no idea.
Kat: I
do a
joe: What are the Tree Twins for people who aren’t?
Geo: Well Kat can probably speak to this better than
joe: I
112Geo: did meet the Tree Twins.
And I
have a picture. I got
Kat: You’ve met the Tree Twins [01:13:00] and Octavia Butler. My God, you were
like the greatest human being I have
ever known.
Unbelievable.
NIck: going on. Her
Mary: is
joe: awesome.
Wow. There it is. Yeah.
Kat: Okay. The Tree Twins just quickly are, it’s a married couple of men in San
Francisco. They’re on Instagram as the tree twins and they wear lit up Christmas tree
costumes and they go and they just dance all over
the city.
Geo: so,
you can’t
Kat: they go
on.
joe: Yeah. Wow.
Kat: they’re
Geo: cannot be sad if you,
yeah, if you see the Tree Twins, that sounds,
Kat: That’s why they are our
NIck: All right. That
Kat: mascots of Snow Glo.
113Yeah.
Geo: That’s awesome.
Kat: of Snow Glo is those two. Those two guys, they’re amazing.
NIck: You gonna put those in the show notes. Show
joe: in
the show notes. Yeah. That’s no hand waving on there.
Mary: Tree
Kat: They’re on
NIck: And they’re actual trees, right?
Geo: Yes,
They’re like Groot. Oh,
NIck: Oh, okay. I’m down.
All right. I’m here for
joe: right. Well maybe it’ll a costume
Mary: next year for Halloween.
I’ll dress
up as [01:14:00] a
Christmas
NIck: tree.
Oh,
you and
you Georgia,
Oh,
Mary: Oh, we can
NIck: well, hot damn.
Mary: twins. Yeah.
114Kat: also the tap dancing Christmas trees.
in the Bay Area. There’s the tap dancing Christmas trees, which is a dancing
group of women
who are
wearing Christmas tree outfits,
and uh, they tap. So we
could do that too. I could hit you
Mary: I’m here.
Kat: meet you there
Geo: That’s awesome.
joe: there you go.
Geo: Yay.
joe: Yay.
All right,
NIck: well, thank you, Mary. as well for being here with us
Mary: much. This is so great. I’m so glad I got to come
back.
NIck: I’m sorry. We just had to yell at you.
joe: Oh,
but
Mary: You know, yell away.
That’s I’m, That’s
what
I’m here for.
I’m here to ruin everyone’s Christmas.
joe: It’s all in the spirit. It was
115ruined
Mary: Christmas.
joe: It’s not Christmas though. Hans Gruber falls out of a window, so, Oh.
NIck: He’s on my tree.
Mary: Oh, he’s,
Kat: You know, there is a, There’s an advent calendar out there,
You’ve probably seen it,
which is, it’s the
Nakatomi building. uh, Tabletop size
And
then Hans,
Gruber is flying and you just lower him down. There you go.[01:15:00]
joe: Oh, nice.
I love 24th day he hits the ground. Oh my God.
Kat: Yeah.
not Christmas till Hans Gruber falls off the Naoma
joe: it is.
Mary: Oh my gosh. I love it. I, yeah, anyone who wants to get me
a diehard advent calendar is welcome to do so.
NIck: there.
joe: Whatever it is.
Mary: I mean, it’s still not Christmas movie, but Yeah, you
Geo: do that.
joe: It’s an advent calendar.
Mary: Love,
advent calendars. Anyway, it is ebbs adjacent. yeah
116joe: you’ve got me, Joe.
NIck: Yeah, I got Nick.
joe: I got Nick. You’ve got Nick Georgia. You got Georgia. a merry,
Mary: Merry
Christmas Yeah. everyone. And
NIck: And
Mary: And
NIck: we went down some holes,
joe: some tinsel holes,
NIck: Some
sparkly
Geo: Christmasy holes.
joe: Stay safe.
NIck: Ding, ding. Bye.
