The Fanboy Podcast

"Marvel and DC's Multiverse Madness, The Fate of Movie Theaters, and The Summer of Superman"

For this return to his weekly format, Mario-Francisco Robles dedicates this episode of The Fanboy Podcast to three long-form topics:

1. Marvel and DC's upcoming forays into the multiverse concept, and how one is destined to beat the other to several punches while on this decidedly similar path.

2. With so many movies getting delayed or shifted to streaming services, what can we expect to happen when it comes to preserving the theatrical moviegoing experience? Is this really THE END? Or is it the start of a new moviegoing culture?

3. A listener asks if MFR thinks Superman might best be suited for an HBO Max TV series, or if he has some other idea for how to make the Man of Steel connect with modern audiences.

An enhanced video version of this episode of The Fanboy Podcast can be found on YouTube.

"DC FanDome Delivers, Snyder Cut, THREE Batmen, Multiverse > Universe, Where's Superman?"

This past Saturday, DC hosted an online event the likes of which we've never seen before- and it was enough to get The Fanboy Podcast host Mario-Francisco Robles back behind a microphone to share thoughts on what happened and what's to come.

From the Snyder Cut of Justice League to The Batman, from Wonder Woman 84 to The Suicide Squad- and the latest news on the Flashpoint movie (which will feature Ben Affleck's Batman AND Michael Keaton's Batman), there's a ton for MFR to sound off on.

"Cavill's Superman Returns, What's Going Into The Snyder Cut, And The DCEU Is ALIVE!"

With reports that Henry Cavill is in talks to return as Superman, and new details emerging about the size and scale of the Zack Snyder's Justice League, host Mario-Francisco Robles has a bunch to say- including how Jim Lee and HBO Max are amidst breathing all kinds of new life into a DCEU that was once thought to be defunct.

"The DCEU Rises From The Ashes: Zack Snyder's JUSTICE LEAGUE, MAN OF STEEL 2, More!"

On Wednesday, the fanboy world was rocked by the news that Zack Snyder's JUSTICE LEAGUE is coming next year, exclusively to HBO MAX.

There's a lot to sift through here, and it was enough to get MFR out of semi-retirement to talk about!

"The DCEU And The ARROWVERSE Become One, Sony Punks Marvel, More!"

On this week’s edition of The Fanboy Podcast, host Mario-Francisco Robles starts off by discussing that Ezra Miller cameo as The Flash in the Arrowverse’s epic Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover event- and what that all means.

He’ll bring in quotes from top-level people from the Arrowverse, from HBO Max, and talk about how DC Entertainment’s film division got involved. It all ties back to what was discussed last week when Andy Muschietti said his The Flash movie would adapt the Flashpoint storyline, and how both the big and small screens are now working together to bring the DC multiverse to life in a way that’s never been seen before.

Along the way, he touches on what it was like to see Brandon Routh’s Superman fly one last time, and how important that was for his personal fandom of the character.

Then MFR turns his attention to the new trailers for Jared Leto's Morbius and Vin Diesel's Bloodshot.

On Morbius, he re-explores the unique dynamic between Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios and what an insane compromise the former is forcing the latter to accept- now that they’ve made crystal clear that Morbius is set in the same world as Spider-Man: Homecoming.

Somewhere in this section he also manages to address Scott Derrickson's departure from Doctor Strange Into The Multiverse of Madness.

This episode of The Fanboy wraps up on a brief discussion regarding Barbara Broccoli’s latest comments regarding the idea of gender-swapping James Bond.

"New BIRDS OF PREY Trailer, FLASHPOINT(?!), And All Things THE BATMAN"

This week's episode is all DC Comics, all the time. The Fanboy host Mario-Francisco Robles breaks down his thoughts on the latest trailer for Cathy Yan's BIRDS OF PREY before launching into a bunch more DC goodness. Next on deck? Andy Muschietti's apparent confirmation that his The Flash movie with Ezra Miller will adapt the ballyhooed Flashpoint storyline, and what that could mean for the entire cinematic DC landscape. Down the rabbit hole he goes with a way for DC to reconcile the lack of a Batman in the world occupied by The Flash. From there he talks all things Dark Knight, with Matt Reeve's The Batman (finally) beginning principal photography. MFR recaps some of the crazy rumor mill that's surrounded this production since it first was uttered into existence in 2014. He shares thoughts and insights gleaned from the set photos that have hit the net in recent days, and dishes on rumors that the film will draw inspiration from things like Batman: The Animated Series, The Long Halloween, and Lee Bermejo's Batsuit design.

He concludes with some analysis on what Walter Hamada and DC Entertainment's approach to the universe seems to (continue) to be, and how it's really starting to pay off- creating a landscape that may lead to some very special movies in the future.

"STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER Is About The Rise of YOU"

For the first episode of 2020, MFR focuses the bulk of his attention of Episode IX of the Skywalker Saga, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. He talks about the film's themes, and how some stuff that seems cheap and lazy is actually rather profound and a wonderful evolution of what Rian Johnson emphasized in The Last Jedi.

Along the way, he also touches on Bumblebee (and how the people behind that film are going to be creating some great work in the years to come), James Cameron's Avatar, and the idea of universal truths being explored in countless forms is actually a great thing.

"WONDER WOMAN 1984, The Return of SUPERMAN, THE FLASH, and DC's Intriguing Future"

On this week's show, Mario starts things off with thoughts on our first looks at GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE and WONDER WOMAN 1984, before going long form on some other major topics- namely Superman, and Brandon Routh's return to the role in this week's Arrowverse crossover event "Crisis on Infinite Earths." 

"Cavill Wants His MAN OF STEEL Sequel, The SNYDER CUT Is Alive(!?), And Could We Handle TWO Batmen?"

On this week's episode of The Fanboy Podcast, host Mario-Francisco Robles catches you up on all of the latest happenings when it comes to Henry Cavill's possible return as Superman, as well as the actor's relationship to the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut campaign.

From there, he discusses Zack Snyder's latest bombshells regarding the state of his cut of Justice League and how he thinks the director may have been able to complete the film on his own time. But beyond that, MFR also explains why he's following all of this so closely and supporting it even despite his negative views on Snyder's DC films- pointing out how the entire situation is win for him no matter which way it goes.

Then he turns his attention to the uniquely bizarre situation DC's cinematic canon is right now- With Aquaman, Birds of Prey, The Suicide Squad, and Black Adam all following up on seeds planted in Man of Steel, Batman v Superman, and Suicide Squad, and are majorly located in Batman's corner of the DC Universe, yet Robert Pattinson's Batman will seemingly exist in an entirely different world. 

But then he stumbles onto a possible solution.

Along the way, he also reacts to the newly-released trailers for Marvel's Black Widow and the 25th James Bond film, No Time To Die.

Check it out!

"Star Wars: The Fandom Menace, Mandalorian Dreams, Superman's Future, and DC's Supposed Plans"

For this special Thanksgiving Edition of The Fanboy Podcast, host Mario-Francisco Robles opens Episode 103 with something he's hugely grateful for: The new Star Wars series, The Mandalorian. Without going into any spoilers, he discusses what he finds so exciting and well-executed about Jon Favreau's journey into that galaxy far, far away. Along the way, he also addresses "The Fandom Menace," which is a nickname some have given to the increasingly bitter and partisan Star Wars fandom- and why that really needs to stop because it's starting to have an impact on the types of creators who would normally be drawn to projects like these.

From there, MFR changes gears and takes this episode of The Fanboy full steam into a dissection of the latest Superman rumblings. He lays out a timeline and a sequence of quotes that seem to indicate a way in which Dwayne Johnson's Black Adam could ultimately help bring Henry Cavill back to the role of Superman. He also touches on how this all connects to why Cavill has been hesitant to join in the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement. MFR wraps up his thoughts on Superman with the most exciting option he sees for moving the character forward in a way that doesn't involve starting from scratch again. 

Finally, the episode wraps up with a deep dive on some of the claims made in a recent Variety article regarding The Flash, Green Lantern Corps, The Batman, and Birds of Prey. There's lots to discuss there, as it looks like we may get a lot more standalone bat-villain films now that Joker has crossed the billion dollar mark...and yet because of the way things have played out in the last 2 years, it creates a convoluted conundrum for potential general audience members. 

Check it out now!