In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the latest episodes of Alien: Earth and Peacemaker. Homework for next week: Alien: Earth Episode 5 (Hulu/FX) Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3 (HBO) Shownotes: 03:05 - TV News Duffer Brothers Deal at Paramount Streaming Access News: …

In this Decoding TV bonus episode, David and Patrick discuss the season 2 premiere of Peacemaker, “The Ties that Grind.” The first season of Peacemaker emerged in a totally different era of the DCU. This new season straddles the line between them. How well does it pull this off? How do the themes of the episode mirror what’s going on in the DCU? An…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the third episode of Alien: Earth. What do we think of MSNBC’s rebrand to MS Now? Is it a bad sign that Ben Stiller won’t be directing season 3 of Severance? Can YouTubers like Mark Rober successfully make the move to Netflix? An…

Watch the video version of this podcast. This podcast contains SPOILERS for The Rehearsal Season 2 on HBO. The Rehearsal Season 2 chronicles Nathan Fielder’s attempts to understand why aviation accidents happen. According to Fielder, one major factor is that pilots are unwilling to communicate candidly with each other, especially when they disagree…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Matt Goldberg discuss what we think of the Alien franchise is at this point in popular culture. Then, we review and recap the first two episodes of Alien: Earth on FX/Hulu. What did we think of the bold new premise for the show? Does it look like they spent $250 million to bring this to life? (Y…

In this bonus episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David Chen and Sarah Marrs discuss Untamed’s first season on Netflix. What did we think of how this show handled its central mystery? Were we captivated by any of the characters’ side plots? How did the show take advantage of its unique setting? And where do we think the second season of Untamed sho…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the first few episodes of Twisted Metal Season 2 on Peacock. What did we think of South Park’s provocative season 27 premiere? How excited are we for the possibility of a Wolfenstein TV show? And what do we make of the details ab…

n this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the first five episodes of Smoke on Apple TV+. Was the cancellation of the Late Show financially motivated or were political considerations involved? Are the price hikes at Peacock reasonable or out of control? And what do we thin…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the fourth season of The Bear. What is behind the President’s hatred of Rosie O’Donnell? Is Squid Game: The Challenge as abominable as it sounds? What were the biggest streaming shows in the first half of 2025? And did The Bear s…

In this bonus episode, David and Myles McNutt from the Episodic Medium newsletter discuss the 2025 Emmy nominations (you can watch our live broadcast on YouTube here). Which shows came away with some of the biggest nominations? Why do the “Guest Actor” categories continue to be a travesty? What were the biggest snubs? And was this overall a shamefu…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the final season of Squid Game. How is Squid Game Season 3 performing on Netflix? What did we make of the fact that Neil Druckmann has left The Last of Us? What’s going on with the creators of South Park and Paramount/Skydance? A…

In this bonus episode, Dan Gvozden joins the podcast to review and discuss the final three episodes of Ironheart on Disney+: Episode 4 - Bad Magic Episode 5 - Karma’s a Glitch Episode 6 - The Past is the Past How did the show handle the arc of Riri Williams? What did we make of that big cameo at the end? And what do we think is coming next for the …

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the first three episodes of Ironheart on Disney+. Does the Showtime name still have any meaning in our current streaming environment? Did Andor season 2 get more viewers than season 1? And why did The Last of Us season 2 have few…

In this bonus episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David Chen and Sarah Marrs discuss Dept. Q's first season on Netflix. What did we think of how this show handled its central mystery? Did any of the subplots work well for us? What about the red herrings? Was Matthew Goode, well, any good as the lead? How excited are we for the prospect of a second …

In this bonus episode, David chats with director Dan Trachtenberg about how Predator: Killer of Killers (now streaming on Hulu) came together. Dan discusses why they chose the time periods they did, the challenges of putting together an anthology film based around the Predator in different time periods, and what his favorite action moments are from…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss the differences between the Invincible and Game of Thrones videogames (and why the former will probably be way more successful), muse on the plight of Warner Bros Discovery, and lament the loss of press freedom in the American media. Then, it’s time to dive into Dan Trachtenberg’…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss Succession creator Jesse Armstrong’s latest HBO original, Mountainhead. Does it do a good job of satirizing the billionaire tech class? Will Nic Pizzolatto ever write a True Detective episode again? And why do we feel sympathy for the new kids cast as the main Harry Potter charac…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick are joined by Christian Spicer to dive into the latest episodes of The Last of Us and The Rehearsal. Why was The Last of Us season finale such a disappointment? What were some of the most memorable moments? What two narrative crimes did the episode commit? And why was The Rehearsal so ex…

In this bonus episode, David and Patrick discuss some follow-ups to their podcast series about Andor season 2. Why did Tony Gilroy feel the need to delineate the true nature of Kleya and Luthen’s relationship? What about Mon Mothma’s relationship with her husband and daughter? And what do we think of the possibility of Jyn Erso and Leia cameos in A…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick dive into the latest episodes of The Last of Us and The Rehearsal. Is Max’s rebrand back to HBO Max one of the worst instances of corporate brand destruction ever? Are we excited about the new Alien: Earth series launching this summer? And why does David hate the marketing for James Gunn…

In this bonus episode of Decoding TV, David and Patrick Willems discuss the final three episodes of Andor Season 2: Ep 10 - Make It Stop Ep 11 - Who Else Knows? Ep 12 - Jedha, Kyber, Erso What did we think of how this show connected to the events of Rogue One? Were we happy with how the show wrapped up the stories of characters like Bix and Luthen?…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick dive into the latest episodes of The Last of Us and The Rehearsal. It feels like there’s not gonna be enough time to tell a complete story in this season of The Last of Us. Where does episode 5 leave our characters? Is there any possibility the Harry Potter PR tour is going to turn aroun…

In this bonus episode of Decoding TV, David and Patrick Willems discuss the next three episodes of Andor Season 2: Ep 7 - Messenger Ep 8 - Who Are You? Ep 9 - Welcome to the Rebellion? This batch probably has some of the most intense action in Star Wars ever put to film. We also got some actual Star Wars references to things like the Force and othe…

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick dive into the latest episodes of The Last of Us and The Rehearsal. What do we think of The Last of Us’s depiction of Seattle? How did we feel about how this week’s episode moved Ellie and Dina’s relationship along? And was Nathan Fielder’s The Rehearsal this week an act of insanity of ge…

In this bonus episode of Decoding TV, David and Patrick Willems discuss the next three episodes of Andor Season 2: Ep 4 - Ever Been to Ghorman? Ep 5 - I Have Friends Everywhere Ep 6 - What a Festive Evening We’ll be doing a podcast episode for each of the four Andor drops. This batch introduces us to the world of Ghorman. What parallels is the show…