The Incomparable Mothership

The Summer of Sundance comes to an end with “The Natural,” a story of a legendary baseball player—no, we’re not talking about Joe Don Baker as The Whammer, or are we? It’s Bernard Malamud’s take on baseball as American mythology, filtered through the mind of Barry Levinson. Barbara Hershey shocks and confuses, Glenn Close glows, Wilford Brimley is very old and near retirement despite being younger than us, and Robert Redford is so versatile he can play a teenager and a man in his mid-thirties despite being in his late forties. "The Natural" Jason...

The Summer of Sundance continues with the paranoid thriller, “Three Days of the Condor.” A devastatingly handsome nerd goes out to buy sandwiches for the office, and the next thing he knows he’s on the run and kidnapping Faye Dunaway… "Three Days of the Condor" Jason Snell with David J. Loehr, Shelly Brisbin, Paul Weimer, Glenn Fleishman and Dan Moren Referenced Works Three Days of the Condor Robert Redford Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becom...

Now the curtain is going up, “The Sting” is starting the show! Snappy patter and jokes, along with the star power of Robert Redford and Paul Newman, drive this story of an elaborate con that goes right—or does it?! Also there’s a lot of Scott Joplin music. "The Sting" Jason Snell with Micheline Maynard, Dr. Drang, Monty Ashley and David J. Loehr Referenced Works Robert Redford The Sting Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becom...

Eleven books later, our Awards Book Club has finally reached the end of the line. In this episode we cover our last uncovered book, “Shroud” by Adrian Tchaikovsky, recommend some Hugo-nominated short fiction, and rank all eleven books. Plus: What are we reading other than shortlisted novels?! See you next year. 2026 Awards Book Club, final chapter Jason Snell with Erika Ensign, Aleen Simms, Heather Berberet and Scott McNulty Referenced Works Shroud [Amazon] [Apple] Show Notes & Links What are we reading? Erika: Wooing the Witch Queen by S...

Our Summer of Sundance kicks off with Sundance himself, as we travel back to the end of the old west (and, later, to the garden spot of Bolivia) to visit a couple of robbers, their lady friend, and their not-very-important gang with “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.” Did they use enough dynamite? Is Woodcock a little too loyal to his employer? What does it say about the old west when a call for a posse is hijacked by a bicycle salesman? "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" Jason Snell with Dr. Drang, Shelly Brisbin, Phil...

Buy some flowers and get ready to profess your feelings—we’re here to talk about “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” in which Tom Holland’s Peter gets to be a sad sack who is saving New York while his personal life has fallen completely apart. There are surprising character reveals, unsurprising character twists (well, at least Peter was surprised), interesting guest-star choices, and a lot of themes involving the dangers of letting yourself become isolated. "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" Jason Snell with James Thomson, Moisés Chiullán and Ben Rice McCarthy Referenced Works ...

Put on your summer best and board a ferry to New England’s hottest tourist destination! It’s time for us to discuss “Widow’s Bay,” a funny horror story about the mayor and other denizens of a cursed island. Of course there’s a creepy clown, and a slasher, and a dark secret that goes back centuries. Of course Stephen Root is wild-eyed! Once you visit Widow’s Bay, you’ll never want to leave… which is good, because you might not be able to. "Widow's Bay" Jason Snell with Annette Wierstra, Tony Sindelar and Monty Ashley<...

It’s one of the best “Star Trek” movies, a classic Dad Movie, and the start of a franchise that never really started. It’s “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World,” in which oceans have become battlefields and privateer ships lurk like horror-movie monsters. Don’t get attached to any of those nice young sailors! "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World" Jason Snell with Steven Schapansky, Philip Michaels and Brian Warren Referenced Works Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World Show Notes & Links<...

Non-linearly begin and end your journey across a wide range of cursed islands! We discuss Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey,” a film now in theatres and a story that’s (nearly) 3,000 years old! Pig sculpting! Lotus eating! Horrible horse hiding! Were we the sea people all along? That’s a tale as old as time. ”The Odyssey” Jason Snell with Brian Warren, Glenn Fleishman, Kathy Campbell and Moisés Chiullán Referenced Works The Odyssey (2026) Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable...

Our awards shortlist book club rolls on with a selection of books we’re much more receptive to: “A Drop of Corruption” by Robert Jackson Bennett, “The Raven Scholar” by Antonia Hodgson, and The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow. 2026 Awards Book Club, Part 3 Jason Snell with Aleen Simms, Erika Ensign, Scott McNulty, Heather Berberet and Paul Weimer Referenced Works The Everlasting [Amazon] [Apple] A Drop of Corruption [Amazon] [Apple] The Raven Scholar [Amazon] [Apple] Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on...

What if “The Martian” but with an alien buddy? We break down “Project Hail Mary,” and marvel at what a good translation of a sort-of-unfilmable book it really is! Why do we love alien puppets so much? Why is Jason checking his watch at the end? We give this movie a thumbs down—by which we mean we liked it! Amaze amaze amaze! "Project Hail Mary" Jason Snell with Aleen Simms, Quinn Rose, Brian Warren and Casey Liss Referenced Works Project Hail Mary Show Notes & Links Support this show...

Get out your PowerBooks and prepare to punch an alien in patriotic fashion! We celebrate Independence Day with a 30-year-old film, “Independence Day”! It’s a lot of movie. Is Jason ready to forgive it? "Independence Day" (1996) Jason Snell with Moisés Chiullán, David J. Loehr, Aleen Simms and Tony Sindelar Referenced Works Independence Day Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

We combine our love of “Star Trek” with the appreciation for old movies that can only be provided by our sister podcast Lions, Towers, and Shields, by drafting “Star Trek” actors (TOS and TNG only) and the movie roles we loved before they appeared on Star Trek! And be sure to listen to this summer’s LTS’s Star Trek summer event. Star Trek Movie crossover draft Jason Snell with Shelly Brisbin, Micheline Maynard, Cicero Holmes and David J. Loehr Referenced Works Star Trek (franchise) Show Notes & Links ...

William Gibson Book Club reconvenes to close out the legendary Sprawl trilogy with “Mona Lisa Overdrive,” a book in which there are lots of vibes from a lot of people who are secondary characters in a story being driven by an AI that we never really meet. Robot art projects! Many overlapping jackets, none of them the same size! And a car ride to… the future?! We break it all down. "Mona Lisa Overdrive" Jason Snell with Antony Johnston, Erika Ensign, Lisa Schmeiser and Glenn Fleishman Referenced Works Mona Lisa Overdrive ...

Get behind your typewriters! Old Movie Club follows the money to discuss 1976’s “All The President’s Men,” in which the power of dogged reportage and journalistic freedom triumphs over the banality of evil. "All the President's Men" Jason Snell with Philip Michaels, Shelly Brisbin, Micheline Maynard, Steven Schapansky, Dr. Drang and Jean MacDonald Referenced Works All the President's Men Robert Redford Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podca...

Our survey of award-nominated novels rolls on with “The Buffalo Hunter Hunter,” “When We Were Real,” and “Sour Cherry.” Not gonna lie: we’re struggling with the reading a bit this year. But at least one of these novels threw us a lifeline. 2026 Awards Book Club, part 2 Jason Snell with Scott McNulty, Erika Ensign, Aleen Simms, Heather Berberet and Paul Weimer Referenced Works The Buffalo Hunter Hunter [Amazon] [Apple] When We Were Real [Amazon] [Apple] Sour Cherry [Amazon] [Apple] Show Notes & Links Support this show and...

We went out to the movies to see “The Mandalorian and Grogu,” the first “Star Wars” film this decade. We had a really good time, thanks in large part to the charisma of many different puppets. (This is “Star Wars,” after all.) We aren’t without our criticisms—Is there ever really any danger? What is Sigourney Weaver doing?—but all in all, this film filled a Star Wars-shaped hole in our hearts. "The Mandalorian and Grogu" Jason Snell with Erika Ensign, Steven Schapansky, Helene Wecker, Moisés Chiullán, Dan Moren and Brian Warren Refere...

Let’s travel 40 years back in time, to Chicago in 1986, where on one legendary day, a high school student named Ferris Bueller bends time and space, all in service of cheering up his best friend. We break down what makes “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” still work after all these years. "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" Jason Snell with Cicero Holmes, Quinn Rose, Deborah Stanish, Erika Ensign and John Siracusa Referenced Works Ferris Bueller's Day Off Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Inco...

Awards Book Club reconvenes for 2026, as we discuss Nebula-nominated novels “Katabasis” by R.F. Kuang, “Wearing the Lion” by John Wiswell, and “Death of the Author” by Nnedi Okorafor. The mood of the panel is… cautious. Also: What else are we reading? 2026 Awards Book Club, Part 1 Jason Snell with Aleen Simms, Erika Ensign, Heather Berberet, Scott McNulty and Paul Weimer Referenced Works Katabasis [Amazon] [Apple] Death of the Author [Amazon] [Apple] Wearing the Lion [Amazon] [Apple] Show Notes & Links Next Awards Book Club: “When We Were Rea...

Put on your eye phones and jack in to the cyberscape! Rocket Surgery comes for 1996’s cyberpunk epic “Lawnmower Man 2.” (Don’t worry if you haven’t seen the original “Lawnmower Man,” half of us didn’t either.) Matt Frewer is Max Headrooming it up! A bunch of urchins populate a rainy L.A. that’s straight out of “Blade Runner,” but, you know—cheaper. There’s a brilliant doctor in charge of virtual-reality research, and also there’s Jennifer! And everything in the future is hackable! Rocket Surgery: "Lawnmower Man 2" Jason Snell with Monty Ashley, Tony Sindelar and An...