EP5 - TV

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Hey, Vegas Ski Crew listeners. This is Nate El Vindicator Ramirez. We are starting something new. We are supporting local businesses here in the Valley. And here's a word from a local business. Hey, guys, this is Casey over here at Mana Vault Games. We are located at 7510 Westcliffe Drive. Looking forward to see you. We specialize in trading card games, video games, all your retro collectible media. We are looking forward to see you. [00:00:41] Speaker B: Hey, this is Belante. Just finished recording episode five for Vegas Geek Crew. Hope you guys enjoy it. On the topic, it was all about TV series and the ones that we've enjoyed. [00:00:52] Speaker A: Hello, everybody, and welcome to the fifth episode of Vegas Gate Crew Valley Celestials. My name is Nate El Vindicator Ramirez. [00:01:00] Speaker C: This is Noe Molten Sklos Molino signing on for Vegas Geekrew. [00:01:04] Speaker B: This is Belante on his first ever Vegas Geek Crew podcast. [00:01:08] Speaker A: Hey, guys, thanks for joining me. So, ultimately, we've been away for a very long time, man. We haven't recorded in almost 10 months. [00:01:15] Speaker C: No, a little over a year. [00:01:17] Speaker A: Yeah, it's been a while. Life happens. Ultimately, we couldn't get together to just sit down and record. Let's do some life updates. Tell me what you've been up to. First of all, your facial hair is crazy, bro. My mom got on a FaceTime call with him today, and she didn't recognize him. She's like, who is that, man? [00:01:35] Speaker B: This is your time skip beard. [00:01:38] Speaker C: This is my time skip beard? Yeah, I went. I went time traveling. And here. Here I am. Earrings, beard. I don't know. Maybe next, a couple piercings. I don't know. [00:01:48] Speaker A: And then you got a new car. [00:01:50] Speaker C: New car, yes. [00:01:52] Speaker A: Tell me what's been going on, man? What's been your life? [00:01:54] Speaker C: Let's see. I sold my house. I finalized my divorce. Yeah, I mean, those are like the last couple little things. Same old, same old. I mean, nothing. [00:02:04] Speaker A: How's your little minions? [00:02:06] Speaker C: Oh, my minions are great. My minions are getting older. I have one specifically, my middle child. That's like a Star wars binge right now. [00:02:16] Speaker A: What are you guys watching? [00:02:18] Speaker C: Me, personally, right now. I'm watching. [00:02:20] Speaker A: Oh, oh, no, no, no, no. I don't want to go into that conversation. I meant, like, what is she into right now? [00:02:26] Speaker C: Basically, she just finished the last episode of the newest trilogy. She watched the whole franchise in chronological order from the very, very beginning. Watched the movies, the shows. [00:02:38] Speaker A: The Force is strong with that. [00:02:39] Speaker C: Oh, very strong. [00:02:41] Speaker A: Well, I'm glad to see you're doing well, dude. I'm happy. You look healthy. You look you were unrecognizable. When my mom saw you the other day. When I. When we met for the puppy thing. [00:02:49] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:02:49] Speaker A: I was like, what this guy? Look at him. Barbarian. And now to introduce our special guest, Belante. Hello, buddy. Thank you for joining us. [00:03:00] Speaker B: Thanks for having me. [00:03:01] Speaker A: Ultimately, this is more of a passion project. That's why we don't take it so seriously. And we do it to accommodate people's schedules. This time we did it to accommodate your schedule. Cuz ultimately I wanted to have you on. [00:03:12] Speaker B: Thank you very much. I appreciate it. [00:03:14] Speaker A: Dude, you are one of the most insanely genius people I know. And it's crazy, right? Because, like, when I met you, we had a conversation about video games, and I was like, dude, you're right up my alley. And I'm. I'm into most of this stuff, but my forte is more of the technical aspect of things like recording and editing and stuff like that. You're into programming and stuff? [00:03:37] Speaker B: Not exactly. With the whole programming side, I would say I would mostly like to look at old consoles or old devices that people would have just thrown away otherwise and see if there's a new way to put some new life in them, be it some new kind of firmware, some new additions, some new technology. [00:03:54] Speaker A: You're making me rock hard, dude. [00:03:59] Speaker B: And even if it's not even an old one, even one of the. Some of the more modern devices that are out there, I really like to see if there's any way to tinker with it or add any kind of expansions to it or to replace certain things and either make it live again or breathe a new sense of life into it. It is a real big passion of mine. [00:04:16] Speaker A: Nice, man. Ultimately, we're all in the live event industry, so we understand. We have sporadic schedules, and I. I'm appreciative to be able to have everybody here at the table. Belante, I. This is our. Our TV series episode. [00:04:29] Speaker B: Okay. [00:04:30] Speaker A: And ultimately, that was your suggestion to us, and I brought it up to Noah and. And he got excited and started talking and I was like, dude, we save it for the podcast. It's like, ultimately, that's what made us friends, is that when we get on it, we just don't stop. And then we lose track of time. And next thing you know, we're like, oh, shit, we gotta work. Cause we work in the same place. And it's like we'll run into each other and have these rants. That's. That's what made us do this together. Right? Once every 10 months. No right. [00:05:01] Speaker C: Well, we. We had a good run there for a while. Life goes on and I guess we were just real, real busy. [00:05:08] Speaker A: Well, life events. Right. So I departed for a little while, then came back and then having my kid, she just turned six and then she started a new school schedule. So I see her. Her schedule to visit me is more sporadic than it usually is. Yeah. So it's difficult. So finding time to do things that you're passionate about, it's a little bit more difficult because I want to see her grow up. But this is TV series episode. So my first question to the table, and we're going to start with Bellante. Since we started with you and your updates, buddy, give me a TV show that you finished. A series, a recent series that you finished that you enjoyed. [00:05:44] Speaker B: Well, it's not really a recent one, but I've been re watching an old Disney show, actually. And if you're familiar with Disney's Gargoyles, when I was growing up, it was beautifully drawn. It's a beautiful show. It is very complex for something that was airing for Disney at the time and finally getting through on rewatching it. Notice some things that you never really noticed when you were watching it before, usually in some of the casting choices or some of the story beats. And when you're young, you're just. This is your first exposure to it. You have no reference to it. It was my first exposure to these Shakespearean plays. It was my first exposure to these kind of overarching storylines in an animated show that I can come back to every week. It was really, really good. And when I was younger, like, that was my Goliath, the main character of Gargoyles. That was my Halloween costume when I was five. Going around as that, a lot of people like, oh, what's that? Oh, it's a gargoyle. It was a lot of fun. So coming back to this, it really did play a large role in my childhood to the point where my dad even has like a tattoo of it because he wanted to be like, there for me. And this is like the thing that I liked. And he's like, oh, I was going to have this with you. It was a lot of fun to watch. And I'm about 12, 14 episodes into the second season where they expand on it. [00:06:58] Speaker A: Dude, way to tug on the heart strings. [00:07:00] Speaker B: Just on the first little info about that. No, it's a really emotional show. Loaded for me. [00:07:05] Speaker A: Disney had. So Disney had a great run during that time. Right. They had the Mighty Duck show, the Animated series, they had Darkwing Duck. They had ducktales. [00:07:14] Speaker B: Tailspin was a big one. [00:07:15] Speaker A: Tailspin. They had great writers and a lot of this stuff as kids we, we enjoyed. But it was written for adults because some of the contents, like I recently rewatched ducktales and I love the original, remade it I think like five years ago. And they only had three seasons and it was really good. And so they connected a lot of the stories that were disconnected from the early 90s. How many seasons for Gargoyle? [00:07:40] Speaker B: That's the thing is there's only three seasons, but it's kind of interesting when I've recently learned about it is the first season is almost entirely about something setting up the characters. And I think it was the first four or five episodes which could be watched back to back to back to back. And that's what they did as the. A movie actually like a premiere movie for it. And then the second season was expanding on all these storylines and I guess reading from the creator, they were meant to set up potential storylines that could spread into a more like comic book or web series episodes as well. I don't know about web series being in the 90s with it, but any kind of other media can spread from that. [00:08:16] Speaker A: And then they were, they were big on, on connecting things to their comic books. [00:08:20] Speaker B: Yes, yes. [00:08:20] Speaker A: And so that was great. And I remember seeing a lot of Gargoyle stuff. I don't know where I read it, but because I follow a lot of those entertainment threads on, on social media, they said they, they were trying to bring bad gargoyles. [00:08:33] Speaker B: I did read about a live action attempt to reboot for Disney plus, which I am one of those guys that I really do enjoy seeing a medium story shown in a medium in which it was designed for like an animation, a comic, a cinematic experience, a novel. So to see it adapted, I always have my gripes with it, but I've seen adaptations done very, very well before. And I can only hope that for something so close to me that not only do they do it justice, but improve upon it, like elevate the original. [00:09:00] Speaker A: Nice, bro. Noe, the same question. Give me a series that you recently finished or you're rewatching or that that actually generates some sort of excitement. [00:09:11] Speaker C: I recently finished the Penguin. [00:09:14] Speaker A: How is that? [00:09:14] Speaker C: Dude, it is amazing. [00:09:17] Speaker A: So I like, I'm a big fan of Colin Farrell. So he's. I would, you know, like, I'd be like, come here, bro. Yeah, but though I, I like Colin Farrell and I like his work. He. He did a, a supporting role in the movie. Mr. Something. Mr. Banks. The. The. The Disney movie where they talk about how they. They got the rights to Mary Poppins. And Tom Hanks played Walt, and Colin Farrell actually played Mary Poppins is the. The writer's dad. And he was. He played this drunk. And I was like, man. And this guy, he's been in Hollywood so long, and I don't think he gets the props that he deserves because some of the roles that he plays are gritty and dirty. Like Penguin. When he showed up in the new Penguin movie, the only they should have been called the new Batman. I mean, the new Batman movie. It should have been the Penguin movie because he literally kept that movie afloat. I did. I really wasn't into the vampire Batman, you know. Oh, like, oh, I'm so distraught. You know, Emo Batman. [00:10:13] Speaker C: Oh, I love it. When that movie first came out, it gave me. Have you. Have you guys ever read Black. Black Label Comics? [00:10:24] Speaker A: Yes. [00:10:25] Speaker C: Okay. [00:10:25] Speaker B: That's. [00:10:26] Speaker C: That's the feeling I got from it. [00:10:28] Speaker A: And so the White Knight is way better than Sean Murphy's. White Knight is way better than that Batman movie. That's the first time Batman ever. [00:10:37] Speaker C: I would try to tell somebody, I would say that I have mixed feelings about that. I love Sean Murphy's. Sean Murphy's take on. On Batman because it reminds me a lot of. Because the 1989 Batman. [00:10:50] Speaker A: Well, the thing is, Sean Murphy shows an angry side of Batman. Right. And ultimately that's why I like Frank Miller's Batman. Because it humanizes Batman. [00:10:56] Speaker C: Yes. [00:10:57] Speaker A: And so Sean Murphy took that idea eat for a step further. And he's like, not everyone's gonna be there and be like, I gotta do the right thing. He's like, no, you're gonna sit there. And I'm like, I'm gonna f you up, dude. And you're gonna feel it because I'm feeling it. And because people do let sometimes do succumb to their emotions. And so his Batman is super emotional and super out there. And then he has moments of reflection later. Not during as most Batman's are. Are shown, where they're like, I have to do the right thing. And so like nobody you don't. So. But tell me about Penguin, bud. [00:11:31] Speaker C: So Penguin. What I loved about it was nowhere in the show do you see Batman or anything related to Batman. I mean, yes, there is a lot of like, so is it more characters? But there's. You never see an interaction with Batman and. And Penguin. [00:11:45] Speaker B: I've noticed that a lot with a couple of Batman media where it's not less about Batman, but it's more so taking place in what made Gotham Ben, become what it is that needed Batman. [00:11:54] Speaker C: Yes. [00:11:54] Speaker B: A lot of franchise and media does that, and I do want a marathon Penguin. [00:11:59] Speaker C: Yes. [00:11:59] Speaker B: In probably one sitting, hopefully. Does the show show what happens without a Batman? [00:12:04] Speaker C: Yes. [00:12:05] Speaker A: Okay. [00:12:05] Speaker C: Yes. [00:12:06] Speaker A: So is it more like a. A mobster show? [00:12:09] Speaker C: A mobster show, dude. [00:12:12] Speaker A: I. Now I want to watch it. So I was. Because people were hot and cold on social media, and I just skipped through those videos because I. I don't want to see your opinion. I'd like to form my own. Stayed away from it. And then yesterday when I told you, hey, Belante brought up that we should do a TV series, you're like, oh, the Penguin. I was like, stop. I don't want to hear it. Yeah, so keep going, bro. [00:12:35] Speaker C: So I don't know how much I can spoil. That's. I mean, if. If you care. [00:12:41] Speaker A: Don'T spoil it. But tell me. Tell me what type of emotions in it ultimately. Talk about the writing. Tell me what you think of this. The cinematography, the shot selection. So, like, when it comes to series, I like. I like shows that are. They're well written because then it gives depth without having to actually show depth. Does that make sense where the story lines are great. Yeah, they're. They're. And so we talked about something lately. Yesterday, the Sopranos. That was really well written. That was incredibly written, and it was ahead of its time. [00:13:11] Speaker C: So to me, this is Goodfellas meets the Sopranos. [00:13:15] Speaker B: Double gangster in Gotham. [00:13:17] Speaker C: The reason why I say that is. And I want to spoil this, but I. I don't know if you're gonna allow me to. No, basically it's, let's say, Ray Liotta's character wreaking havoc. And the reason I say that, the. [00:13:32] Speaker A: Good boy gone bad. [00:13:33] Speaker C: I think he was always a. A bad boy, but always acted like the good boy. [00:13:37] Speaker A: Fair enough. Yeah, I can see that Scorsese knows how to. How to make you love the villain. [00:13:42] Speaker C: Right. [00:13:43] Speaker A: You've enjoyed that. What other series? Sopranos. You finished this? [00:13:46] Speaker C: Yes, I finished Sopranos recently. [00:13:48] Speaker A: Talk to me about the Sopranos. [00:13:49] Speaker C: Oh, Sopranos. I gotta say that a lot of people. I. I've read that a lot of people hate the ending to it. I loved it. I think I understood it from the beginning. I kind of researched a little bit. And, you know, the writer said recently. Oh, no. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That was. That was him just dying. That last scene, he's dead. Which makes a lot of sense. [00:14:10] Speaker A: I. I love how they their. The story basically says that you can live life as hard and fast as you want, but it all comes to an end and it's an abrupt end. And that's, that's, that's the message I got from that. [00:14:22] Speaker C: Right. That ending, it was way ahead of. [00:14:25] Speaker A: Its time and based on how spiderweb the stories of all the different characters and you see them develop throughout the show, like his best friend being a snitch and then having to confront him on the boat and things like that. I was like, it also, it's reflective of that lifestyle. Right. Because it's based on an actual mobster in New Jersey that I can't remember his name, but he was the boss of bosses. [00:14:47] Speaker C: Oh, I didn't even know that. [00:14:48] Speaker A: Yeah. So his son was at like 16 or 17 years old. He bought him a minor league hockey team. [00:14:56] Speaker C: Oh, I have to hear that story before. [00:14:59] Speaker A: Yes. And so it was based on him. And I guess, really, I guess he called. Well, who's the main character? What's the actor's name? The one that plays the boss? [00:15:07] Speaker B: James. [00:15:08] Speaker A: Yeah, Gandalfini. So I guess he called Gandolfini and. Because in the first season, in one of the first two episodes or three episodes, Gandolfini was wearing shorts and grilling and I guess he got a call from the boss and said, hey, the boss will never wear shorts. And so then Gandalfini never wore shorts again throughout the entire series. Yeah, always wore pants. [00:15:27] Speaker C: Wow. [00:15:28] Speaker A: So something cool like that, right? You can, you can tik tok search it. You'll find a video on it, I'm pretty sure. But that show is good. Did you watch? [00:15:36] Speaker B: I didn't finish it, but I do. After it's been out for so long, I do know how it ends and I do know the end result, of course, but I haven't finished it to see that full emotional buildup to get to that point. And when I was watching it, what I noticed the biggest thing is as someone that is second generation in the US who comes from Italian immigrants, watching this and trying to adapt and try to find your place in it, the biggest thing that I get with Tony Soprano is how much are you willing to put your own happiness on the line to make sure you get a guaranteed success. And as I'm watching this show, that is the part that grips with me because this is something that I can relate to as a second generation American and seeing how my family could have easily gone into it. So I have that kind of cultural connection to such. It's a great, great, great, great show. I need to really just sit down and finish it. But do two day job work non stop. Actually was about two days. Today's my first day off in 10 days, so I'm happy I'm spending it here talking about things that I love. [00:16:41] Speaker A: Dude, I love this. I love where this is going. I recently just finished probably for the fifth time. I don't know if you guys are Entourage fans. [00:16:50] Speaker B: I liked. I watched the last three seasons. I never watched it from the beginning. [00:16:54] Speaker A: So it's eight seasons of just havoc. So it's loosely. It's loosely based on Mark Wahlberg's life. So when I was in the military, it was something that I used to buy the box sets for because it was entertaining. It was what life in Hollywood is like. And some of the stories that basically Mark Wahlberg incorporated and that's why he's a co producer on Entourage. It's fun. It's. It's a. It's one of those things you watch with the boys and it's like sex. [00:17:18] Speaker B: Porn, Anything that gives you that X ray. [00:17:22] Speaker C: I've never heard of it. [00:17:23] Speaker A: No, really, dude, watch it. It's. It's. It's a boy show. Don't watch it with the girls around your minions. [00:17:29] Speaker C: Okay. [00:17:29] Speaker A: Don't do that. [00:17:30] Speaker B: No, definitely. It pushes what's allowed to be broadcast. [00:17:34] Speaker A: Yeah, it's. It's borderline skin. Do you remember Skinx when you were a kid? [00:17:38] Speaker C: Yes. [00:17:39] Speaker A: The Cinemax 1, 800. Yes. But it's really good and I love seeing that they is essentially they transition that into. Then Mark Waba produced Ballers with Dwayne. [00:17:51] Speaker C: The Rock Johnson also is connected. [00:17:53] Speaker A: Yeah, they're all connected because people, for a long time, they had athletes as do cameos in the show. And everyone's like, man, they want to see more of the athletes because, you know, they're performing sports. So then Mark Walmart called the idea, let's do an a show that's based on an agent and he follows big sports people. It's huge. But I've watched both shows in collaboration. They're really good. They're really well written, they're entertaining. Ultimately, I'm not looking for something that. That'll keep me deep in thought. If anything, I'm just trying to enjoy myself. And it's. I was like, oh, man. I remember I've been to Thailand. I've done some of that stuff. Or, you know, you see things that they do. You're like, oh, yeah, I was young and stupid, but now I Can just appreciate it from afar. I'm like, oh, this is entertaining. That's what it is, is blind entertainment to just keep you numb and enjoy for those. They're only 20 minute episodes pretty quickly. Yeah. [00:18:45] Speaker C: Oh, okay. [00:18:45] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. So you'll enjoy it. You won't get bored. [00:18:47] Speaker C: Okay. [00:18:49] Speaker A: Ari Gold, man, that guy is intense, dude. [00:18:53] Speaker B: If you take every horrible quality and every horrible stereotype of a Hollywood, what would you say? Elitist and just. [00:19:02] Speaker A: Yes. [00:19:02] Speaker B: Combine it into one and synthesize it in a factory. It's the funniest character on the show. [00:19:09] Speaker A: And something newer that I watch. Have you guys heard of It's Florida man? So the title, if you read looks like it's Florida man. It's a Florida Man. No, but it's the way it's meant to be said is it's Florida man and it's a HBO original series, you know? Have you ever been online and seen those crazy stories of things that happen in Florida? [00:19:33] Speaker B: Yes. [00:19:33] Speaker A: So it's basically Hollywood got together and they started recanting some of these events with actual Hollywood actors and then the people. So it's like a docu series slash series. And it goes through, like specific events that you've read in the news. And it's entertaining. It's. [00:19:48] Speaker B: This reminds me of a game that I played with a group of friends one time called who's your Florida man? Where if you type in your birthday and add Florida man at the end, then whatever crime that was is your inner Florida man. [00:20:00] Speaker C: Oh, wow. [00:20:01] Speaker B: And it just gets hilarious with some of that. [00:20:03] Speaker A: That's basically what this is. And so like, if you want something that's just stupid entertainment because there's, like I said, there's no depth or anything into it. You'll watch this. It's great. If you. Do you guys have hbo Max. Max or. Or what's it called? Max now? [00:20:16] Speaker B: Yes. [00:20:17] Speaker A: Yeah, it's Florida Man. And don't watch the first episode. That's kind of weird. The first episode kind of threw me off. I almost stopped watching. They're releasing episode a week. There's five episodes right now. And my favorite episode was the Angry ex boyfriend episode. And this guy tried to blow up his boyfriend's trailer. And it's hilarious because they. When they recant this story. Yeah, this. This double wide. He tried to blow it up. Oh, dude. And the things that he did. And you're like, oh, my God. And then I'm not gonna ruin it for you, but watch it. That's the best episode. [00:20:51] Speaker C: So it's so Basically, it's a. It's a docu series. And what is it? Is it a dramatized by, like, actors. [00:20:57] Speaker A: Or it's like a docu series, but it's not. It is, but it isn't. It's interviews where they're interviewing the actual people that went through it, and then they use Hollywood actors. Like, Anna Faris is on there. You know, the. The girl. Yeah, yeah. She. She. She did the mermaid episode. And there's, like, famous actors and actresses that are doing. Recanting, reacting these stories if you want. Just dumb entertainment. I enjoyed myself. I. My. My brother was like, you need to watch this. I was like, I didn't like the COVID And I was like, no. He's like, you need to watch this. And I was like, dude, no. And then one night, he's like. He knocks on my door. He's like, hey, have you started watching it? I was like, fine, I'll start watching it. And. And. Because he comes home, and he's like a little kid. Kid. And I'm like, all right, dude. So I started watching it. And the first episode, he's like, yeah, I didn't. I. I. I clicked to the next episode, because halfway through the first episode, you're like, what the f. Am I watching? And I was like, I. I almost didn't get through it. He's like, I know, dude. I know, but you're a better man than me. Because I actually watched the whole thing. He didn't. He's like, so what happened at the end? I was like, go watch the episode. [00:21:59] Speaker C: I was gonna say, I'll probably watch the whole. The whole episode, dude. [00:22:03] Speaker A: Like, you know those people we work with, and you hear some of these weird stories of their life? Just think of putting actual, like, pictures to that, and that's what this show is. Okay. [00:22:12] Speaker B: You kind of get that with. I kind of have that vibe when I talk to the security guards and any of the major resorts we have here in Las Vegas. If you ever want to hear the funniest, most intense stories, talk to a security guard in Vegas or one of the security personnel. It's the funniest. And this is. It's Florida, man. Show kind of sounds like this show affirms that reality is stranger than fiction, especially Florida reality. [00:22:38] Speaker A: Since I can remember, there's always been stories about, like. I remember reading a story about a guy that got drunk, tripped as he was leaving his house, and fell in a small puddle and drowned. The puddle was literally less than 2 inches. He could have flipped himself over, but he Drowned because he was just so blasted. And so, like, things like that, right? And you're like, no way. Or the guy in Florida a couple years ago in Miami that ate the bath salts and then ate the people. Do you guys remember that? [00:23:05] Speaker B: I do remember that one. [00:23:06] Speaker A: Yeah. And so, like, I'm like, okay, cool. And so as these stories keep going and they keep releasing episode per episode, I'm like, I'm waiting for the crazy. [00:23:14] Speaker B: Because these are your, your. My Florida story needs to be adapted. I'm ready to see this. [00:23:19] Speaker A: Where's this stuff? I remember. [00:23:20] Speaker B: Can I get Charlie to. As the guy that ate the people? [00:23:26] Speaker C: So I just think it's, it's great because it's going to be. It's actually dramatized by, by actors. That's, that's what sounds very appealing. [00:23:32] Speaker A: Dude. Tonight just watch an episode and then text me and tell me, like, dude. Because I, I, I have to have somebody to talk to about it. Because you're like, no way. No way. Some of the stuff you're like, yeah, definitely not. Not retiring in Florida. Do you guys have any shows that you guys want to recommend anybody? [00:23:50] Speaker B: So I have a. If you haven't watched it yet, this was a really big one earlier. It was Shogun. Have you seen or heard or watched anything about it? [00:23:57] Speaker A: I've heard it. It's. Isn't it a samurai show? [00:24:00] Speaker B: Yes, indeed. So my wife is born and raised in Tokyo. We were watching it together as it's a very feudal show. It's based actually off of a novel by an English writer. We're watching it together, and I'm hearing some things from her perspective of understanding the Japanese language and the history of it. And I'm watching it as someone completely American, seeing how it is. I've been to Japan a few times, so I'm relating to the character and the foreign experience of going to a country like this, especially from a feudal era. I would recommend watching it because it does full respect to not just the culture, but also the adaptation of the novel. It's a short series. It's only like 10 episodes, barely an hour each. I can't recommend it enough, especially since I have that experience of watching it with someone actually from that country. But even if you're not, it's just such a great acting, great storytelling, a lot of intrigue, a lot of espionage, a lot of. And it's very political in the way it's approaching certain casts, certain characters, certain roles. It's an extremely. How do I put it? Yeah, I can only say it's a political, very political show to watch. [00:25:06] Speaker A: It's on F fx. Right? [00:25:08] Speaker B: It is on fx. I mean if you have Disney plus you can also watch it on that if you haven't watched it at all. I recommend it immensely. [00:25:15] Speaker A: Yeah, no, they. I saw some of the promotional stuff for it and it looked cool and I was just like. But I have to. I'm the type of person that only watch it unless you recommend it. Cuz I won't go out and look for it. [00:25:26] Speaker B: I'm subtitles so. [00:25:28] Speaker A: Well, no, no, I. I love, I love film like that. I love foreign film or I love foreign at TV in general. Like I'm a big Bollywood fan. O. I'm a huge Bollywood fan. I love, I love how they, they go over the top when they want to tell a story and tell it the right way. It kind of reminds me of the old Japanese films or. Or ninja films and stuff like that. Like. [00:25:46] Speaker B: And everything is exaggerated and exemplified. [00:25:50] Speaker A: Yeah. And so I. To me that's great because that's storytelling at its best. Because if. If everything was black and white like life, then what? There's no entertainment factor. Right. And so do you have anything want to recommend? [00:26:00] Speaker C: Currently I'm watching two shows both or genre. I'm watching two sentence. I think it's called Two Sentence Horror Stories. That's one. And the other one is. I think it's brand new Cherry flavor. And I believe. You know what, let me look it up real quick. [00:26:15] Speaker A: Yeah, no, no, no. Take your time. You started watching these. Are these on. Are these online web seriess or. [00:26:21] Speaker C: They're both actually on Netflix. Oh yeah, dude. [00:26:25] Speaker A: Netflix has stepped up their game lately. I was kind of off the Netflix thing for a little while. So I finished. Here's my thing is that during Pandemic you had very limited choices and I was like, oh, Netflix is great. And they kept coming out with new things but then they oversaturated the market with stuff they were buying instead of just creating their own stuff. And now they're back to creating their own stuff. I watched. Are you guys fans of Umbrella Academy? [00:26:49] Speaker B: My parents are huge fans. [00:26:51] Speaker A: I like Umbrella Academy because I'm a fan of the graphic novel. And so I finally finished watching Hotel the last series. The last. The last. The last chapter in their series in the. In the live action series. And it was good, but I still think the graphic novel's better. And then I've been watching a lot of their support sports docu series there. Those are really well done. What show was it? [00:27:16] Speaker C: Okay, so it is called Brandy Cherry Flavor. And the other One is called two. Two sentence horror stories. Two sentences. Horror stories is. They're about like 20 minute episodes, very short horror stories. But the twists that they do in there are really, really good. Like, they're great. Like, there's these two ladies, older ladies. [00:27:35] Speaker A: You can. You can spoil them. Tell me. Tell. Finish the whole story. [00:27:38] Speaker C: Yeah, I'll tell you this one. [00:27:39] Speaker B: They're in two seconds. [00:27:41] Speaker C: They're bitter. You know, they're bitter old ladies. They're always at each other's throats. One of them was. I think she was a. Either a dancer or an actress on Broadway. So she's always telling the other one like, hey, you're just jealous of me. [00:27:52] Speaker A: Right? [00:27:53] Speaker C: And they're, like going at it. And then there's this guy who was one of the girl. The lady's son's best friends. And apparently the kid died. They found out that he was just. He was the one that killed their son. Right? And at the end, they. They basically. I don't know what they do to him, but basically they. I think they turn him into a vegetable. And then they're like, taking care of him. [00:28:12] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. [00:28:14] Speaker C: So it's a. It's. [00:28:15] Speaker A: Yeah, it's dark. [00:28:16] Speaker C: Pretty dark. [00:28:17] Speaker A: It's scary. [00:28:17] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:28:18] Speaker A: Yeah. Thanks, bud. I'll probably watch that in the daytime. [00:28:22] Speaker B: Like. [00:28:23] Speaker A: No, no. All lights on and to move on. Banter. That was a great 30 minutes of banter over TV series. I hope you guys enjoyed. We all work in live events and have you guys been to any live events recently as attendees beads that you enjoyed? [00:28:39] Speaker C: I have not. It's been a while for me. [00:28:41] Speaker B: We're getting into that busy season, so I'm just always working end of the year, non stop. [00:28:46] Speaker A: Dude, you gotta find time for yourself. [00:28:49] Speaker B: That's the hardest thing to find right now. [00:28:51] Speaker A: I know. Well, and you're married too, so you need to find time. Your time is kind of split with your wife, so. [00:28:57] Speaker B: With my wife, Actually, we are planning on coming soon as that Wicked movie. She's all about that. So I'm taking the time off. [00:29:04] Speaker A: Taking. [00:29:04] Speaker B: Taking the time for that. I gotta be there for her. She's all about it. [00:29:07] Speaker A: Gladiator 2. That releases. That releases this week. I'm gonna go see that. [00:29:12] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:29:13] Speaker A: So knowing. Here's a. Here's a little bit of backstory. Me and Noe not only were friends at work, but we used to go to movies together. That was my movie buddy, and I'd be like, let's go to movies. Let's go to movies. But then it progressively became harder as life started to happen this last year and so it's been. But dude, we should do a gladiator too. It looks good. [00:29:32] Speaker B: It does look great. [00:29:33] Speaker A: I love. So Denzel Washington is. I think he's getting close to retirement because he's picking anything they offer him. He's doing. He's going to be in the new Black Panther. He did this and then he's doing. I think they, they said they're doing another equalizer to kind of close it off. Yeah. [00:29:48] Speaker C: And so can I ask, what did you guys think of the last Equalizer? [00:29:51] Speaker A: I. I liked it. [00:29:52] Speaker C: I loved it. [00:29:53] Speaker A: Yeah. Because it was just like it was. I don't give a. I'm going to go you up, dude. [00:29:57] Speaker C: But do you think he. He showed his age. [00:29:59] Speaker A: But yeah, especially he started to like, you know, when old people think about what they're going to say and they look up. And so he did a lot of that and I'm like, oh. And you can see he's slowing down little by little. I enjoy most of his movie. I took mom to go see that. [00:30:14] Speaker C: Oh, did you? [00:30:15] Speaker A: Yeah, she loved it. She loves him. She's like, oh yeah, he can come protect me anytime. Been married 30 plus years. I've been. I just went to Decon this last weekend which was. It's usually an Anaheim based show and what it used to be was a platform for Disney to promote a lot of their artists. And it was the, it's first time ever in Vegas and it was great. I had a great time. I still, I still try to go to live events pretty frequently. I was at Utah Retro Gaming Con and I went to, I went to a, a small Comic Con in, in Colorado. I just. Because the events here are so saturated and then most of the venues here, most of those events don't want to cater to those. Right. Most of the venues don't want to cater to those smaller events. They're like, no. And so they end up being at like on Fremont street or something at the Plaza. [00:31:04] Speaker B: Recently had that for a day when we had a local anime convention here in town. And I only went for a day to kind of see it, but I do like to see them expand a little more, especially in Las Vegas. [00:31:15] Speaker C: Did you by chance go to the amazing Las Vegas event this year? [00:31:19] Speaker A: Did you call me? [00:31:20] Speaker C: I did not. [00:31:20] Speaker A: No, I didn't go. [00:31:21] Speaker C: You didn't? [00:31:22] Speaker A: Well, because we went last year. [00:31:24] Speaker C: Yes. So, so I, I've gone to, I believe all of them except for this One, I didn't go because when I went online, I. I'd been looking for the tickets, and when I went online, it was just like, oh, we're just gonna do this amazing Las Vegas event. I can't remember what they called it exactly, but it was not the Comic Con. So it was like some type of smaller event. They, like, didn't plan it on time. [00:31:45] Speaker A: I believe it also has to do with the fact that Comic Cons have really evolved. There are no more Comic Cons, are more retro Cons, and people don't really collect books like we did or we do. [00:31:56] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:31:57] Speaker A: And it's been. It's. It's a. It's a difficult sell, especially to promoters and to exhibitors, because ultimately that's what makes the promoter their money. Right. [00:32:05] Speaker B: Right. A lot of the Comic Cons now are major announcements for new shows or new movies or new media. Less so about like, let's get together, find some things to collect, meet up with some new people. It's starting to show a little bit. I think that as it gets to be more and more promo versus community, so it makes a little different, I feel. [00:32:23] Speaker A: Yeah. And you know what I have seen expanded is gaming expos. [00:32:27] Speaker B: Yes. [00:32:28] Speaker A: They've been. Yeah, no, dude, the retro Gaming Con, I went to and used Utah. Some of the. Some of the businesses that had sponsored this event were huge. They made it a bigger thing than it should have been. Ultimately, I felt like it was in too small of a venue because it felt huge. Another thing, Level Up Expo. Every year it gets bigger. [00:32:45] Speaker B: Yes. [00:32:46] Speaker A: And they do it without a gsa, which to me blows my mind. And I'm like, oh, man. Literally, the promoter does everything from build booths, you name it, top to bottom, which is incredible. That means he's pocketing all that money from each exhibitor, so it's extremely lucrative for him. I want to go to Level Expo this year, dude. We should. [00:33:06] Speaker B: As someone that works Level Up Expo and provide. And provide services to them. Yes. I've been. I've done work with Level Up Expo for the past 10ish years. So I've seen it go from our smaller baseball stadium convention center all the way to taking up the entire north hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center. Level Up Expo is just one of those conventions here in Las Vegas that I like to have a lot of pride in, knowing that this is why people have come from all over to here, talk to people from as far away as Canada. Canada, Australia. [00:33:41] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:33:42] Speaker B: All over the place. And it does present so many things. For if You're a gamer, if you're a comic book collector, if you're a fan of Star wars, if you're a fan of Star Trek, if you're a fan of something new toys, so many things are just well represented at this convention and it's just so massive now. [00:34:01] Speaker A: Yeah, that, that brings up a follow up question for me. For both of you being Valley celestials living here in the Valley, as you see all these events expand, what does it do to your day to day life? Like right now, Formula one and all the events that are going on, it just, it's horrible. Yeah, I try to stay home as much as possible. That's why I was like even asking you last night. I was like, so where do you want to shoot this? Because I was like, I was timing out, like, what's the traffic going to be? Like, am I going to get to eat? Am I, am I going to have enough battery life? And you're like, no, no, we'll do it at, we'll, we'll do it, you know, at the Hub. And I was like, perfect. But what does it do for you, both of you? [00:34:36] Speaker B: So for me, I been leaving about, honestly half an hour early. If I have to do any kind of job on the Strip, it's just a lot more traffic, we're getting a lot more signage all over promoting Formula One. And then when I'm talking to other people coming in here, they always ask me, are you excited for Formula One? Are you doing this for Formula One? What are you working on with Formula One? Are you going to meet anyone from here for Formula One? It's literally the talk of the town. I don't want to say I'm sick of it, but it is the. I'm expected to give a civil answer for every single thing that comes up. [00:35:07] Speaker A: No, it's exhausting, right? Oh, it's just like as, just as a human. Because civilization, sometimes like when my kids in town, she likes going to Circus Circus and I don't want to take that away because that, that, that, that glimmer only lasts so long, right? Or she likes to go, she's like, daddy, let's walk the Strip. I'm like, all right, well let's. [00:35:26] Speaker C: She likes it. [00:35:28] Speaker B: Never do. [00:35:29] Speaker C: It's because when you first see it, you're excited about it. I remember when I first moved to Vegas, I would drive down Las Vegas Boulevard as much as I could. I would. And then once I started working at a casino. [00:35:40] Speaker A: To pick up ladies of the night? [00:35:42] Speaker C: No, just to drive it. [00:35:44] Speaker B: Men of the night. I don't know how you swing. [00:35:47] Speaker C: No, no, no, no, dude. [00:35:51] Speaker A: And I understand you because, you know, mom and dad, they go down there regularly, so. Yeah. So they talk to you about it. Like, they like to hang out down there. I understand that. But right now, with all the major events that are happening in our city, it's. It's not worth my time because it takes almost an hour back and forth. Now. [00:36:08] Speaker B: Now it does. [00:36:09] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah. It's ridiculous. [00:36:11] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:36:12] Speaker A: And as we see things evolve, I. I really hope. I love our convention center. It's huge. But they. They really need to make a smaller one for events like Level Up. [00:36:20] Speaker B: Yes. [00:36:20] Speaker A: On the other, like, either north or very south, almost close to South Point. And that's. That's a destination location for those smaller events. So then. Because sometimes if they overlap events, you're paying up the wazoo for parking. [00:36:34] Speaker B: Yeah. I remember for Level up this year, right across the street was a music festival at the same exact time. So parking was. It's a mythical creature. [00:36:43] Speaker A: No. And even, like, if I. I just went to the UNLV football game on Saturday and I. I invited the both of you. Both of you declined, and. Well, no. You had a thing with your friend. [00:36:53] Speaker B: Yeah, I had something happening. [00:36:54] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I. I didn't want to. I didn't even even want to push it. And then you had a new puppy. Congratulations. [00:37:00] Speaker C: Thank you. [00:37:00] Speaker A: What's his name? [00:37:01] Speaker C: I'm calling him Milo right now. I don't know if I'm. I'm happy with that name. [00:37:05] Speaker A: Milo's so basic. [00:37:07] Speaker C: It is. [00:37:08] Speaker A: I told you. Logan. My boat's Logan. Do you have a name for a dog? Male. [00:37:12] Speaker B: Oh, dog name. Bandit. Depends on the breed, I think I like Bandit. [00:37:16] Speaker C: I kind of like. [00:37:17] Speaker A: Because he has the. The. The black eyes. [00:37:19] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:37:20] Speaker B: Oh, there you go. [00:37:21] Speaker A: Yeah. So he. That is. He is a band or hamburger. Rocket. [00:37:26] Speaker B: Rocket. [00:37:27] Speaker A: Rocket. Rocket is perfect. [00:37:28] Speaker C: That's his name. [00:37:29] Speaker B: There we go. [00:37:29] Speaker A: Rocket. Yeah. Yeah. No, I like it. And so. But I went to the game, and parking at Allegiant was 350 bucks. [00:37:36] Speaker B: No. [00:37:37] Speaker A: Because they call it tailgate parking. And so then we. I parked him in bay, but it was cold and windy. And so it was. [00:37:42] Speaker B: When he did the walk across. [00:37:44] Speaker A: Yeah. And so it was just. Jesus. I was like, man, nothing. Parking sucks down here right now. [00:37:50] Speaker B: Oh, yeah. [00:37:50] Speaker A: Because everything's taken up. And then there was the. There was very. Parking was scarce within Mandalay. We almost went to Luxor because the fight was going on this weekend. [00:37:59] Speaker B: Right. [00:37:59] Speaker A: The UFC fight. And so it just created even more traffic. I was like, oh, wow. Yeah, it's. It's horrible, but I like it. So his name is Rocket. Rocket Dude. I like. [00:38:09] Speaker C: I like that. [00:38:10] Speaker A: That's perfect. Yeah. No, no. See, all it takes is the podcast and 43 minutes of talking. Right. [00:38:17] Speaker B: Right. [00:38:18] Speaker A: To get the name right. Closing up our show for the night. Do you guys have anything you guys want to put out into the universe? [00:38:24] Speaker B: I'm a. Okay for the time being. Nothing to spread, nothing to keep to myself. I am just fine. [00:38:30] Speaker C: I mean, what can I say? Just living life. That's it. I mean, I have nothing else to say. [00:38:37] Speaker A: So my message for the universe is ultimately. Ultimately, I'm appreciative of every moment. Over the last year, I've had a lot of moments of reflection, and I've met a lot of nice people that have kind of enhanced my journey forward. I'm very grateful and to continue to have relationships with, like, you. And, you know, we've kept in touch. Even though we haven't physically been around each other, we've kept in touch. And ultimately you were the first one to find out, because I got a promotion, and it was like, we didn't tell anybody, but when people found out, they're like, hey, when were you going to tell us this? Your mic ringing? When. When everything else is happening. [00:39:11] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:39:11] Speaker A: So. But I'm grateful. I'm grateful for every day, and I try to make every day count and. And doing things like this and having conversations with people, stimulating the mind, building connections, expanding that. And we have such busy lives, all three of us. [00:39:25] Speaker B: Oh, yes. [00:39:25] Speaker A: That sometimes we forget that this. This being social, even if it's on a digital platform, form is needed. It's kind of. It's. It's a good release, talking to people, because it's exciting. Right. The other day came over. I felt 10. I was just like, dude. Because he brought over and we played some of his emulators and stuff, and it was great. And I was playing. What was it? Mallard. I played Ninja Turtles. Turtles in Time. [00:39:49] Speaker C: Oh, really, dude? [00:39:51] Speaker A: And I don't think he understands my obsession. [00:39:53] Speaker B: Like, I'm slowly understanding my. [00:39:56] Speaker A: My obsession with. Of Turtles. And I was just sitting there, and I just. I was like, oh, yeah, I should. I should let him play. I was like, you want to play? Because. But she was like, hey, she texted me. She's like, you have people here. I was like, oh, yeah, I forgot. I have. I have guests. I was like, here. No, I'm appreciative of everything. And I'M trying to just keep on that, that track up and, and not down. And our, our society is just full of negativity. And I try to avoid all that now. And that's why I try to make moments like with my kid count, because I see her a lot less. Those, Those. Those little moments are just more cherished. And I, I'm. I try to be more attentive to her needs. That's what I want to put out there. I appreciate you two being here. I'm signing off. This is Nate El Indicator Ramirez. [00:40:39] Speaker C: This is Nolina signing out. [00:40:42] Speaker B: This is Balante.