Mind Gap

This week’s show kicks off with a bunch of rambling about so many different topics. From the types and styles of onion that Doug will tolerate to the many musings of the Twitch Stream chat. When things really get started, Doug jumps into the deep end with the big question: does anyone care about the GRAMMYs anymore? We’ll give you 1 guess who doesn’t care about the GRAMMYs anymore. Other than the GRAMMYs, the dorks also discuss Bill Burr being canceled by Twitter again, Netflix cracking down on password or account sharing, and Zack Snyder’s Justice League finally arriving. Fair warning, this means that Episode 290 will be the 8th and (probably) last time we ever talk about the Snyder Cut. The episode comes to a close with a disappointing movie franchise villain throw-down. Darkseid of Justice League fame takes on Apocalypse of the X-Men universe. These two are heavy hitters in their own universe, but how do they fare against each other? You’ll have to listen to find out. Follow us on Twitch to hang out while

This week the boys are all alone and things get out of hand in a hurry. Justin shows off his impression skills with both Pacino and Gilbert Gottfried making an appearance in the pre-show on Twitch. One of those gems is available in the clips section of the show Discord. The show kicks off with Doug sharing his excitement to be starting a new health regimen and describing all the foods he can and can’t eat. Once that dies down, the dorks dive into the WandaVision finale (spoilers, so consider yourself warned), the BIG NEWS in the Mind Gap Universe that John Cleese and Rob Schneider are making a Great Emu Wars movie, and the story of Burger King’s International Women’s Day blunder where their tweet that was supposed to uplift women didn’t come across as planned. The show finishes up with a throw-down of truly mythical proportions as Beowulf takes on Achilles in mortal Kom...I mean a battle to the death. This fight gets Doug and Justin talking about these figures’ respective films in recent years as a baseline a

On this very special episode of Mind Gap Podcast, the boys welcome back the one and only mega friend of the show, Jamie Jirak, of comicbook.com and the Hollywood Already Did It Podcast! We’ve held off on all talk of WandaVision up to this point, saving it all up for this exact moment. Jamie is perhaps the single most perfect person on this planet to talk about WandaVision for many reasons, but perhaps mostly because this show seems like it was created expressly for her. Along with a complete breakdown of the show up to this point as well as predictions about how Season 1 will wrap up, the nerds also discuss Age of Ultron, Dark Phoenix, and bringing the X-Men into the MCU. This all builds to a fever pitch that culminates in this week’s throw-down. In honor of the topic and Jamie being on the show, this event pits The Olsen Sisters (Mary Kate and Ashley) vs The Mara sisters (Kate and Rooney). Jamie lays down some hard facts and opinions and Justin blows the whole thing open by bringing up a surprise Skeweton Ki

In this week’s episode, the boys are all by themselves and they are on a roll. They start the show off by bouncing rapidly from impressions, to stories, to housekeeping, and more as Doug and Justin keep a hectic pace. We find out it is in part due to Justin spending the day watching Entourage and Doug going through a small blackout and rediscovering his creative flow. Once that’s been established, the guys dig their heels into the imminent arrival of the Snyder Cut of Justice League due out March 18th on HBO Max. It’s a topic they’ve covered before but somehow there is still more new information on this 4-hour extravaganza. It’s going to be released in the 4:3 aspect ratio and there’s going to be a black and white version called Justice is Gray, which Justin can’t for the life of him understand. The guys also talk about the burgeoning NFT market where the Nyan Cat GIF non-fungible token sold for $580,000 worth of Ethereum at auction. Doug tries to rationalize paying that amount of money for a GIF that is indi

For this week’s episode, the boys welcome a friend of the podcast, multi talented musician, and social media mogul, Austen Reno. You can listen to Austen’s new album, Pull Yourself Together, on Spotify. The guys talk about all things music starting with Austen’s musical lineage. His Grandfather was Don Reno who was responsible for one-half of the famous song Feudin’ Banjos. This leads to a conversation of friends who know music theory and how disgusting high school band rooms could be. Other topics include Austen’s experience touring and living on the road, the 10-year anniversary remix of Rebecca Black's hit single "Friday", the idea of “selling out” for fame and money, and of course...the movie Rudy. This week’s throw-down takes us to the world of sitcoms and specifically the worlds of Parks and Rec vs the Office. Ron Swanson gets pitted against Dwight Shrute in a battle of funny, tough guys with quirks. Check out the finale to find out who emerges victorious! Follow us on Twitch to hang out while we record

This week, the boys welcome avid day trader and friend of the podcast, Daniel Pawlishyn, all the way from Philadelphia! He brings his knowledge of the Stonk Market and breaks down the madness that transpired around GameStop. The panel discusses the story of Roaring Kitty kicking off the hype around GameStop, the concept of the short squeeze, the role that the r/WallStreetBets subreddit played, the controversy around consumer trading apps like RobinHood, and Elon Musk’s tweets contributing to everyone buying the wrong stock. Elon Musk comes back again to participate in this week’s throw-down where he gets pitted against Jeff Bezos. The world’s richest men battle to see who will be the first to make it to Mars.  Only one can leave this billionaire’s Thunderdome so tune in until the end to find out! Follow us on Twitch to hang out while we record our new episodes and stream video game sessions! We have MERCH now! Check out our YouTube channel for podcast episodes, video game live stream highlights, Doug Watches

This week the boys welcome fellow Twitch streamer and leader of the Positive Thots community, ForSale18. Check out all of his promoted links here to find out more. The show kicks off with a short talk about social media, the viral nature of TikTok, and why Vine couldn’t make it in a world that is now flooded with short video social media. After they flesh out the world of TikTok and its inspiration, the boys delve into their guest and how ForSale18 got into the world of being a sex-positive streamer. May angles of this topic are covered including inappropriate improv, the stifling effect of religion and purity culture, how openness about sex while you’re growing up impacts how you view sex throughout life, violence being more accepted than sex in American media, misunderstood kinks, sex with robots, and the recently outed news about Armie Hammer and his possible kinks. It’s a jam-packed episode! This week’s throw-down pits two little old ladies who talk about sex all the time against each other. It’s Sue Joha

On this week’s episode, the boys are all alone again and talking about a little bit of everything. The first real topic out of the gate is the release of the trailer for Godzilla vs. Kong. This movie was on Justin’s list of things he was excited about and the trailer did nothing to keep his enthusiasm up. After they exhaust the Godzilla vs. Kong conversation, the guys get into a topic close to one of the host’s hearts, Hanson Robotics wanting to sell AI bots to lonely people during the pandemic. Hanson Robotics was famous for creating a robot named “Sophia” whose facial expressions can only be described as unnerving. The last topic deals with a rumor that a Harry Potter TV series is being developed for HBO. The dorks give their takes on what could and/or should come out of that universe that we haven’t yet seen. They explore all the different IPs out there that are getting “milked”, so to speak. Finally, the boys end the night on a titanic throw-down pitting Cthulhu vs Godzilla. After breaking down the two co

This week the boys are joined by the very talented Mind Gap all-star Chris Charles. Chris is co-creator of Throughline Films and the writer of the upcoming film The Marksman starring Liam Neeson. Chris tells the gang about the thrill of seeing the film he wrote for the first time and being on set with Robert Lorenz and Liam Neeson. The topic turns to the state of the theaters and film industry in this ongoing pandemic; a topic the guys covered in-depth last May on Episode 246 of the podcast. Our dorks also look at the fate of low and mid-budget films, the rise of mega-budget TV, and the shift in the industry to streaming and simultaneous releases like Wonder Woman 1984 and others from Warner Bros. After more discussion on innovations in streaming services and the future of the industry, we get into a throw-down featuring Liam Neeson’s character in The Marksman vs Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino — also known as Get Off My Lawn: The Film. Chris has some naturally biased but also extremely insightful points to bri

This week the boys welcome back the official Mind Gap DCEU Correspondent, Rob Ballmaier, to talk about Wonder Woman 1984. *Spoiler Alert* This episode is absolutely filled with them. Doug makes a point at the start of the podcast to let it be known that their goal was not to shit on Wonder Woman 1984. What happens after that we’ll call a very critical look at what was a very oddly executed film by most standards. The three all agree that visually the movie was stunning and looked beautiful. With that positive point of agreement out of the way the knives come out and the nerds start carving away at the various glaring issues they’ve all found with this film. These issues include choices that make the lead character come off weaker and more dependent than she is, how Diana keeps her employment throughout the years despite not visibly aging, the fight choreography, outfits, weapons, and Doug’s most hated aspect of the Wonder Woman mythos, her bracers. After a dip into the divergence of the DC universe that was a

It’s a brand new year and the boys are back after a one week break to ring in 2021 on Twitch! After a bit of housekeeping, the boys dive into the concept of New Year’s resolutions, The Daily Wire picking up a possibly controversial film Run Hide Fight for distribution, and a spoiler-laden wrap-up of The Mandalorian Season 2. This week’s throw-down, and the first of 2021, pits the major gods of two of the most famous ancient pantheons in the western world against each other:  Zeus vs Odin. It’s a battle between two completely overpowered entities and if you can believe it, it’s a close one. Tune in to find out which pantheon reigns supreme. Follow us on Twitch to hang out while we record our new episodes and stream video game sessions! We have MERCH now! Check out our YouTube channel for podcast episodes, video game live stream highlights, Doug Watches Awkward Videos, and Justin Plays Video games. Be sure to like and subscribe! Follow us on all of our social medias and other platforms!  https://streamerlinks.c

This week the boys welcome back Chris and Steve from the Reviewniverse Podcast. The show opens with the esteemed guests describing their podcast where things get reviewed and their gaming channel The Streamviewniverse on YouTube. After a bit of mischief, Doug and Justin welcome Mind Gap’s first Special Correspondent JJ “Pogchamp” Howard who gives us the dirt on this week’s main topic Cyberpunk 2077. The guys then discuss “crunch” from game developers and the dangers of massive amounts of pre-orders and buying games that are in early access. Chris however points out not all games in early access are traps like this and cites the huge success of Hades. CD Projekt Red’s review embargo leading up to the game’s release doesn’t sit well with anyone on the panel but it does help to lead to a rather hilarious impromptu skit from Chris and Steve involving the murder of several Santas which is very much worth checking out. We are then treated to the end of the “.7 seconds of Trapt” era due to their general awfulness an

This week the boys are all alone for the first time in a long time. Topics discussed include Marvel’s rollout plan for movies and TV shows on Disney+ in the next 3-4 years, the ever-evolving state of Spiderman 3’s cast that seems to change weekly, and the rather serious story of Senator Thom Tillis proposing legislation that would end in a prison sentence for streamers and YouTubers with DMCA violations. Mind Gap Podcast doesn’t usually dip too deep into politics, but this one hit home in a number of ways.  After the boys share their thoughts on that serious issue, the tension is broken and then amped right back up by this week’s throw-down featuring The Falcon Vs. The Winter Soldier. Since they’re going to be teamed up we might as well know who would survive if they ever fought. Follow us on Twitch to hang out while we record our new episodes and stream video game sessions! We have MERCH now! Check out our YouTube channel for podcast episodes, video game live stream highlights, Doug Watches Awkward Videos, a

This episode sees the boys welcoming back all-star, co-producer of The Quarantine Files and head of Smoose Entertainment, Adam Smestad. Adam speaks about his experience writing, acting in, and directing The Quarantine Files series. Justin also brings up Adam’s Chicago International REEL Shorts Film Fest “Best in Fest” winning film 6 months in 2063 which also stars the very funny Seth Gersbach. After celebrating Adam’s fantastic achievement (which he found out about 15 minutes before the show) the topic turns once again to KFC and the Lifetime Movie they’ve produced, starring Mario Lopez as the Colonel, called A Recipe For Seduction. After the smoothest transition in the business, the topic swings over to Warner Brother’s announcement that they will be releasing all of their 2021 films directly to HBO Max. The panel talks about the potential good and bad repercussions this could cause within the industry as well as Legendary threatening to sue Warner after feeling blindsided by this decision. After all the mov

This week, the boys welcome back the amazing Omari Brown. Many months ago, the Quarantine kicked off with Omari appearing on the show; so, with any luck his return will end this whole thing...because that’s how it works right? Omari of course was a member of the prestigious Late Show Apprentice Program on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Omari comes back to the show a full-fledged member of Stephen Colbert’s crew as a verified clip hunter in the footage department. The conversation kicks off with Omari relating his experiences within his new role in the footage department. Doug gets triggered when the topic of music rights comes up and he goes off on another classic Doug Rant™. Omari goes on to share with us some insight into the name change from “The Late Show” to “A Late Show”. Doug asks Omari to share the joke pitch he’s most proud of and the one he still has nightmares about. The panel then talks about how much luck actually plays into any of their successes as well as much bigger successes that don’t

This week, the boys welcome back Matt Lamson, one half of the power duo Chris and Matt from the Chris and Matt show (hint: he's the Matt half). He’s also the star of the season or series finale of The Quarantine Files. He describes his experience filming remote and his playfully hateful relationship with 2 East 8th’s own Drew Dull. The guys also discuss the benefits of a now masked society, the recent “dick move” by Comcast imposing data caps on home internet use, the myth surrounding the first Thanksgiving and how it still persists in this day and age, Black Friday horror stories, some of Matt’s Lamson Family Christmas traditions, & strange Catholic customs, and more! It’s a show to be thankful for. An audible was called in this week’s throw-down when a Twitch viewer requested Jack Skellington be put up against The Grinch. Matt shows off his debate club demeanor and it’s a closely contested see-saw of a battle. Follow us on Twitch to hang out while we record our new episodes and stream video game session

This week the boys welcome back a true Mind Gap veteran the delightful Jamie Yates. Jamie is also the star of the penultimate episode of the critically acclaimed lockdown web series The Quarantine Files. She describes the unique experience of playing 5 characters while taking direction remotely on 2 computers and being filmed on a single iPhone. The meat and potatoes of this episode is Phase 4 of the MCU! It’s been a while since the dorks really tucked into this topic so Jamie kicks things off with hot takes on the Wanda/Vision series set to come out soon on Disney+. All of the Marvel Cinematic Universe shows and movies coming up in the next few years get a bit of time in the conversational sun. The talk of superheroes eventually leads to the rise of superhero sized budgets that TV shows are currently getting. With an upcoming Lord of the Rings series estimated to have a budget nearing $1 billion and many shows, including the upcoming Marvel shows, having $25 million per episode, Justin ponders if this is ult

In this episode, the boys welcome back the star of episode 6 of the critically acclaimed* The Quarantine Files web series Seth Gersbach. The dorks talk about Seth’s episode of The Quarantine Files as well as the other web series Seth and Justin worked on together, Chicago HR (which you can find on the Our Work page). Other topics include favorite video games like Final Fantasy, Doug’s two-day epic tail of comedic mishaps, Stephen King’s novels (specifically The Dark Tower series), and the future of the Fantastic Beasts series now that Johnny Depp has been forced to step down. After some highly regrettable things for the Twitch crowd, the throw-down between Saruman and Randall Flagg commences. The battle is fierce between two master manipulators but there can be only one. Want more Mind Gap Podcast? Join our Discord!  You get conversation, exclusive clips, and plenty more fun.  Tune into our Twitch channel for a link to join! Follow us on Twitch to hang out while we record our new episodes and stream video gam

Auditory Hallucination Warning: Just before the 6 minute mark there is a touch of audio echo that lasts about 1 minute. We just wanted to let you know that it's real and not insanity creeping in on you. This week, the boys welcome the multi-talented actress and singer Kristi Alsip, star of episode 5 of The Quarantine Files! As it sometimes happens, talk immediately goes into purchasing men’s thongs. This may or may not have something to do with the upcoming Quarantine Files episode, you’ll just have to tune in on November 6th to find out. Luckily, this swiftly transitions to Kristi’s band, Crawford’s Daughter, and her musical experience. The discussion of musicals leads to another Doug rant which is preceded by Justin’s latest musical creation simply titled “Doug Hates Stuff”. You have to hear it to believe how truly on point it is. After a seamless transition from Justin, the conversation turns to the sad passing of Sean Connery last week. Our heroes reminisce about some of Connery’s greatest roles and this

In this episode, the boys welcome Mind Gap All-Stars and the stars of 2 East 8th’s upcoming 4th episode of The Quarantine Files, Ashyln Seehafer and Chris Vellucci. After a conversation about the fun and interesting nature of filming the Quarantine Files, the group slips into an update about the state of the Naperville Swingers. This is of course a reference to Ashlyn’s first Mind Gap appearance where she explained the practice of boulder painting indicates just how freaky your household gets. At some point, Chris tries to highlight the best points of Superman Returns to no effect as Justin and his mighty soundboard save the audience from that torture. This somehow transitions into a conversation on Halloween which is right around the corner.  Ashlyn tells us all about how she used to dress up as puns and Chris describes how he dressed up in a Ninja Turtle costume his mom made him…when he was 18. Everyone talks about their Halloween plans or lack thereof due to the never-ending pandemic. Things like pandemic