Mobile Armored Podcast Show

Brad Turner's Weed

• Adam Moore and PJ McNerney • Season 1 • Episode 25

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After a rock show, Brad finds some weed(s), grabs a mysterious briefcase, and sets out on a madcap 24 hours in Los Angeles. Now THAT'S an episode of M.A.S.K. we could get behind. Instead, we get a lazy V.E.N.O.M. plot, even lazier M.A.S.K. agents, and Scott's quest for diabetes. Join us for laughter - and groaning - on another episode of the Mobile Armored Podcast Show!

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squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Welcome to the mobile armored podcast show. The podcast that transforms into a hydroponic garden. My name is Adam Moore alongside my cohost and best friend, PJ McNerney. How's it going PJ?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I'm doing well today. I think this episode is. Questionable. this is episode 25. There's only 75 episodes. We are one third of our way through,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

and we're also that means a third of the way through our podcast, at least in as much as it covers mask

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Correct. Correct.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Happy anniversary

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Happy anniversary, Adam.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I got you the plant show.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

wow. That's a very questionable gift. I'll say that much right here. And for our audience, you know, congratulations to all of you. If you like us, there's still more to come! And if you hate us, why are you listening to us?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Look, you've made it this far. You might as well keep listening. like, uh, My, my old friend uh, Modi from undergrad who uh, used the handy dandy feature to contact us via mask HQ. You can click on that link and send us a top secret message and Modi did that. So what's up my brother from Hollywood. Hope you're doing well. Thanks for listening. But yes, the plant show, which I find interesting as a title for an episode, cause it's not really a like Yes, there's vines, but it's not like a plant show.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I mean, There's a show. There's plants, and so someone decided, let's mush these two words together.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Sure. Okay. Thanks for defending the writer.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

the writer. Defense Award goes to PJ McNerney this episode.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

see how it goes the rest of the episode. But um, it is episode 25, The Plant Show, in which Venom threatens to cover Los Angeles with mutated kudzu vines. Unless California pays a hefty ransom.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah it's funny, kudzu is not mentioned in the entirety of the episode, as far as I can tell.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

No, it's not.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It's just in the taglines, and from a historical standpoint, this was like a plant that was introduced. For like preventing erosion. I think it was maintaining the landscape and the problem was it was an invasive species that just started taking over a place. So I think it became illegal to actually plant these things anywhere.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I can think of another plant that was illegal at the time in California. That no longer is illegal. I'm thinking the writer of the episode was maybe enjoying a little bit Of the kudzu vines.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

he was enjoying at least. That, if not some other plant based powders.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Here we go. We open on a concert at the Hollywood bowl and will you believe it? It's Brad Turner's band, there's a huge crowd, amazingly, and they're all standing up and they're rockin out. And meanwhile, Matt, Scott, and T Bob are seated in the front row. There's only two seats in the whole place, and it's for them. And Scott says, I can't believe Brad is actually playing the Hollywood Bowl. And I thought, I can't believe it either, Scott.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

To be fair, Brad can't believe it either, and I had to imagine that this was like his big break. Capitol Records wanted to meet with him right after the show He was going to be, like, meteoric like, it's like, hey, I want you to work with Madonna's producer. It's going to be amazing. And it's going to be a life filled with babes and money and power and blow.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

there's a lot of pyrotechnics too. It is uh, it's off the charts. This is a big concert.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

it's huge.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

So Matt's sitting there staring at something.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I did an eyeline check on this one. So, As he's sitting down, and we should remind the audience. He just got married last episode. In his eyeline there's a fetching young woman. You never see her face, but you basically just see from her hips to her neck. And where do you think his eyeline, basically, is like, focused on right now?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I'm not going to touch that. No idea. No idea, BJ. Nope.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I'm like, Matt, you're a newlywed. Stop staring at someone else's bosom. What would Gloria say?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Why didn't he bring Gloria to the concert?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I'm not going to watch

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

to Brad's stupid concert. Just because you bought out the Hollywood ball, Matt doesn't mean he's a good musician. Scott says to Matt that he wants to be a rock musician when he grows up. And that is the least rock and roll thing I've ever heard anyone say. When I grow up, I want to be a a rock musician. Suddenly, giant vines begin growing behind the Hollywood Bowl. And Scott says, How do they do that? And Matt says, I don't know. Maybe rock music is good fertilizer?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I had a question. So is Matt making some kind of subtle insult about rock music? Basically calling it shit. Like, Cause that's, that kind of what I was like, Oh wait, good fertilizer. Wait a minute,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

or it's an insult to Brad's music.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

that's fair.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

ha. well, We are in the green room after the show. And they ask Brad about the plants, and he doesn't know anything about it. Because it wasn't part of the show. And then suddenly, vines invade the room. T Bob gets completely knocked over by a door. And then His logic circuits are scrambled. He's saying all these weird words and things like that. I guess my question is, did his logic circuits ever actually work in the first place?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

so, So what we have to do is baseline the idea that Scott thinks that T Bob was A OK up until this point. So yeah, Scott is able to notice the difference between like, paranoid ramblings and just like, scrambled parano I don't know, I mean, you're right,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

well, uh, They've got to escape before the vines catch them. but Brad is able to, uh, to pack up though.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

He is really concerned about his briefcase. So what Adam is so important about that briefcase that Brad does not want it left behind and found.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I'm sure it's some dried up and powdered kudzu vines, my friend.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It's why Brad wears sunglasses at night.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Exactly. Outside the bowl, there is a big traffic jam, and giant vines are everywhere, but I'd like to be clear that there would be a traffic jam no matter what. So, So far, the vines, not having much of an impact on Los Angeles.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

We should uh, call out the fact, Adam, that you are an LA resident and are the resident expert on this. So

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, on Coanga Boulevard there, by the bowl, there is always traffic. So. so far Los Angeles one vines zero. Let's keep score So we see Thunderhawk and Scott's like come on dad. Hurry up like he's getting pretty pushy Anyways somehow Matt finds enough space to get some runway to transform to jet mode which just make any sense because a moment ago There was no space And, being an LA resident if there was even enough space ahead of Matt to get a little bit of runway, A, someone would have swerved into that lane right off the bat, and B, everyone would be honking at him to move forward. That is completely illogical.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I, it begged a question for me cause you're a hundred percent right. Like the situation is impossible just based on the mechanics, but let's pause it for a second. It exists even without the vines. Would Matt have waited? Or would he have said fuck this shit and just like, transformed T hawk anyway and took off. Hahahahahaha

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

out of the way all of the dark night Well, they're flying over the city and they see giant vines all over the place. It's you know, potentially an improvement over Los Angeles

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Mmhm.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

the 80s. So so far we're doing all right in the last episode It took forever to get to the agent selection scene. In this episode, we're about three minutes in when Brad says, you're going to call in the cavalry. And so we go right into the agent selection scene.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah, this was the qu You're right, this was like the quickest time we've seen. It's also, for me, it was a nice reminder that Matt will call in people even without knowing it's Venom.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

So he says select the best agents for mission in Los Angeles, Brad Turner, preselected, which we've never heard him do before, which Begs the question,

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Ha

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

How many times has Gloria not been selected, but she's been there? How many times has Alex not been selected or Bruce when they've already been there? So it's interesting And what would have happened if he said Brad Turner not selected or just not said anything,

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Eject Brad Turner from T Hawk.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Brad Turner, too stoned to participate.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I think that was the New Orleans episode.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

our agents are Bruce Sato. It's a repeat of one of his exits. He just drops a bunch of boxes and he runs out.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I kind of liked the idea that actually he had finally gotten around to like picking those boxes up. And then it was just like, Oh, fuck it. I'm out of here again.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

And of course, Alex Sector, the other member of the codependent team. Uh, He's putting a bird in a cage and then he kind of accidentally lets a few of them fly out. And then he gets the call and shrugs and He lets them all fly away. It's like, they seem pretty expensive and exotic and now doomed. We cut to Boulder Hill HQ and Matt is giving a video briefing to Bruce and Alex. And he says, Los Angeles is turning into a home for monkeys. And Bruce says, then Brad ought to feel right at home. Whoa, Bruce, sick burn. What is going on?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

This can't be put down. I don't think as a buddy Hawks award nomination, but I was just like, fuck man, that was a dick move. Like what the hell?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

really? What does he have against

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I don't, I like, the only thing I could think about is like back in Japan, like Brad was like, Hey, you remember you just came to the earthquake lab and your stupid little tie and did nothing. Yeah. Fuck yourself. How about that?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I love that Bruce and Brad have a rivalry though. This is good. I want to continue to track this throughout the series.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I would too. But especially because it's like, It seems like it's more on Bruce's side than Brad's because Brad doesn't respond at all.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Brad doesn't care or he doesn't hear or is otherwise indisposed. So Matt says they've tried fire, chainsaws, and strong poisons. Nothing works. You might say we have to get to the. Root of it.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

So many dad jokes in this episode. Like they really leaned into it. Also Adam, would you consider LA a dry environment or a wet environment?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, it's a dry environment and gender reveals gone wrong have started massive wildfires here So yeah, flamethrowers. probably not a great idea

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Also what kind of poisons are they using and where did those get dumped? Is it just being dumped into the LA river? Where does that come from? Don't dump too, Adam.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

It goes right into the Pacific Ocean, but a little poison. That's fine. Also how do you rate Matt's dad joke there?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It's Cosby licious at that point in time. I mean, He's really leaned into it. It's not the last time we're going to hear a dad joke from many people in this episode. A

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Very true. We find out that basically the plant is indestructible and Bruce apropos of nothing. There is no journey unless the first step is taken. And Alex, so patronizing says uh, right. and even Bruce looks sad at Alex's dismissiveness of what he said.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

hundred percent. there's a clear Buddy Hawks nom here. And uh, it also wasn't like, like that deep a sadism either.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

It's kind of obvious. Like, Yeah, Bruce, we know we're, if you'd stop talking, we'd get on the jet and get out to LA, but okay. we do finally get to LA and they're going on a 24 hour patrol. And Matt leaves Scott behind at, I'll get, I'll give you three guesses, PJ.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

is it the middle of the desert?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

No, it is not.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Is it a Potemkin village?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Not this time, though. It depends on how you define Los Angeles.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Is It in a hotel? Yay!

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

the hotel. He says, stay on the ground at the hotel. Of course, T Bob, by the way, is still malfunctioning. Which is kind of hard to tell the difference between a functioning and non functioning T Bob, if I'm being honest.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Um, Going on 24 hour patrol? How the fuck is everyone supposed to stay awake?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Because Brad has his briefcase.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Oh, I see.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I mean, Gather around, everybody.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It goes down smooth.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

What, can we do a travel time check,

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

yeah, we should. So Denver to LA, it's a two hour flight time. It's a 30 hour drive time. And we do know the team got called right after Brad show, which we know is at night, which also would have been an hour later because of mountain time. So Alex and Bruce, we know we're at Boulder Hill late. The team is meeting early the next morning. So I kind of figured one of two things had to be true. They either got to LA the night earlier and then went to sleep and did nothing. Or Matt made them drive and it's almost two days later. They're exhausted and Matt still did nothing.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Either way, Alex and Bruce have not slept. Heh. Nor will they for some time. uh, Matt is up in the air in Teahawk and he's trying Teahawk's lasers, but the vines just keep regrowing. Brad tries the antimatter ray, the same thing happens. Bruce and Alex drive by. The Chinese theater uh, which is kind of covered in vines. And Bruce says, no movie today, kind of Broken English there,

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

was, It was kinda, and it's, and this is going to be a comment about the whole episode later on. They didn't really lean into it. Like they glance at the broken English, which is kind of what I kind of feel about this entire episode. We're sort of glancing. At the entirety of a mask plot here, like it's there, but it's mask light.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, very much. So, Alex has a sample of the plant and it turns out it is a combination of rare varieties known only in Brazil, which means someone is doing this deliberately. And Matt says that venom agents were seen in Brazil just two months ago. But here's my question. If Venom was seen in Brazil two months ago, how come that didn't go back then?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah, it's a really good point. I, hear here's the only sort of in universe explanation I've got, you've got other agents like we'll see Julio Lopez like later on And you can imagine like they went down or something like that and Matt basically was busy marrying Gloria or something like that.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, he gets a call from the PNA. Saying, hey, you know, Venom's down in Brazil. Miles is like uh, I'm in Mardi Gras right now, I'm sure it's fine. Meanwhile, back to Venom. Miles has this ultra UV ray on Switchblade, and Vanessa has the engine on the top of Manta, designed to spit seeds out, right? So Manta will drive around, or fly around, spit out seeds, Miles will spray this ultra UV beam, and suddenly the vines grow really fast. Sly Asks, I don't get it. When do we get some loot for all this work? And I think that's a legitimately great question. Sly.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It is.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Mile says as soon as California is impressed with our friendly little weed, once again, I think this is about more than kudzu vines and they didn't know it back then, but it's a billion dollar industry now. And They could have made a ton if they were just growing different weeds. Maybe up in the mountains away from the city?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Just go a little bit North of San Francisco. There's a nice little County up there.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, you could have done that, but okay. Yeah, let's overrun LA with giant vines.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I was wondering, Miles, do you know how hard it is to grow shit in LA? Like you had to like go through a lot of work to engineer this thing. And I wasn't sure if his like angle, cause we never get to it. his angle affects me to get some kind of big agriculture contract and kind of the tax benefits thereof. Otherwise, you're just helping to clean up the smog of LA in the 80s.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Here's another multibillion dollar idea that miles has that he just wastes because he could solve world hunger, throw some corn seeds, the UV beam, would make it the corn grow immediately you harvest it the next day you do the same thing over and over and over again and endless and abundant supply of whatever vegetables you need.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah, absolutely. Look, if you can grow this shit in LA, which is a desert, you can go to anywhere in the world and grow stuff.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Meanwhile, we are on the set of the blockbuster film, Grandson of Tarzan. Sounds awesome. Vanessa drops the seeds, Miles fires the UV ray, and the vines start to grow. And it's hilarious. This very stereotypical director screams, Cut! This is all wrong! I didn't tell these plants to move.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I couldn't figure out from this shot if they were trying to like reference an actual director or they're just like putting generic parts of a director together.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

It's a little um, like a little Joel Silver, a little Jerry Bruckheimer, actually some more producers than directors. yeah, I don't know. Honestly, at this point, I was like Keep me here. Mask can go off and have the rest of its episode. What's grandson of Tarzan about, but I digress back at the hotel. Scott is fixing T Bobs logic circuit. How does he fix the circuit PJ?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I want to call out the fact that Scott is welding, okay? He's got welding glasses on, albeit the smallest and seemingly least protective welding glasses you can imagine. And there's a huge arc, like it lights up Scott's face. It's, As he's working on T Bob and he's doing this in a hotel room.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

So the, the fire alarms don't even go off, but my question is if he's fixing, fixing the logic circuit, you're an engineer, shouldn't it just be like a soldering?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah, that's the other.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

an arc welder?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yes. Yeah. There's a lot of problems here.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Oh, come on, mask. Get a little better. Why do I even, why? Why do I even ask that? What do I expect? We've been doing this for 25 episodes. I should just give up on expecting any kind of logic.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

maybe Matt bought him a portable welding kit

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Gee, dad, I'd love to learn how to do some welding.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Here you go, son

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

So once T Bob is fixed, Scott hears that Mask is going to Griffith Park and he plays the technicalities that Matt said you got to stay on the ground. To get T Bop to transform and take him to to Griffith Park. And then we're gonna have a great set piece here at Griffith Park Observatory. So they're definitely using L. A. locations condor's flying above, sees Manta, and they have a cool fight in the air. And Brad says, Vanessa Warfield, may I have this dance?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It just occurred to me, because I had the question, What does Bruce think about Brad asking Vanessa for a dance? This is why Bruce is acting like a dick to Brad.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Nuh uh. Uh

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Aha! We've connected the dots.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Well done, sir. Well done. Two gold stars for you.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I'm sure this is what the writers intended. This love triangle.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I would love it if the writers were actually sitting there diving deep into these characters when we both know. That's not what they were doing. well, Scott and T Bob show up at the observatory. Matt appears in T Hawk and records a sample of the UV beam from Switchblade using spectrum, which seems like a pretty useful power.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah. I mean, I think it was like a nice use of a core. Capability of spectrum.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Mac gets fired at by stiletto But Matt to to get rid of Sly plummets to the ground. And then at the last second turns the jets on pointed directly at Sly, putting him directly in the jet wash of Thunderhawk. Um, Ragdoll award,

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

A hundred percent right. Dollar ward. Let's think about how superheated those jets have to be to make the Camaro fly through the air. Like that's cooking. Sly right now, not only like pushing him back, but actually cooking him.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Sly is a charred piece of flesh. R. I. P. Sly, we will see you later on in the episode. so, vines are growing everywhere at the observatory. T Bob and Scott are trying to run away. T Bob trips and falls, and he gets caught by a vine. Scott like, goes to save him, grabbing onto his legs, and they both get pulled into the They're hanging there, T Bob's hands are, can't hold on to the vine too much longer, they're gonna fall to their death. What's gonna happen

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I don't know. I don't know. I was so scared for Scott in this moment.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

let's find out what happens after these messages.

Come on, Jeebop. Mask will be right back. Oh, boy. Back to mask.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

We're back. When we left you, Scott and T Bob were dangling from a vine hundreds of feet up, moments away from dying once again. Because of Matt's negligence. T Bob can't even use the radio, because he needs his hands to turn it on, which, if I can make an aside, seems like a pretty bad design choice.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

design choice. This is so dumb.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Scott actually climbs up T Bob to turn on the radio calling for help. Matt realizes Scott's there. He he puts T Hawk into automatic mode, then jumps down in glider mode to save Scott and T Bob.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

So my question to you, Adam, how many people couldn't be saved because Matt has to deal with Scott and T Bob? A

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

many here. anyways. Scott and T Bob are alive, and other civilians, maybe not so much. Meanwhile, Rhino is chasing Piranha, but the vines catch Rhino, and Bruce says, He who laughs at quicksand should be sure of his own feet. Thanks a lot, Bruce. You're not helping the situation.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

This begs the question. Okay. How many times has Alex had to put up with Bruce saying stuff that's useless?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Why does Alex abuse animals so much? Is it because he's just gotten so frustrated with his partner that it's all he can do? Is take it out on these defenseless animals.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Good question.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

We've blown this wide open, PJ.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

of all the mask agents now.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

While Alex is abusing an orangutan. This is all your fault, Bruce. Not mine. Yours. Look what you made me do. Anyways. Matt brings Scott back to the hotel and orders him to stay inside this time. He says, I'll make my instructions more specific. You can do whatever you want, as long as it stays inside the hotel room.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

you want to weld something there, go ahead. That's okay. As long as it's inside the hotel room.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

There's a lot that a 10 year old kid could do in a hotel room. That is not a good idea. Welding being Just one of. Many of them. Another question could be, Where's Brad's briefcase? Is it in the hotel room?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Wow, this Is magic dust. Let's play with the magic dust.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Brad catches up to Bruce and Alex, Rhino suspended in the air, and Brad says, You guys are really, and then gets cut off by Alex, who says, And Brad okay, But you're really up a tree. guys, can we get a little focused here? We're trying to save the city and instead you're making dad jokes?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

we've seen it in other instances. Like we've had, Buddy and Dusty have like humorous exchange, like an assault on Liberty, which seemed almost like nervously dealing with their own deaths. This time it's just kind of like. these guys are kind of fucking around, huh?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah. Because also Bruce and Alex, they're just hanging there. They both have masks. Are you telling me they couldn't have, jackrabbit it up into Rhino and started, messing around with whatever they got to try to cut the thing down themselves? I mean, Bruce has Lifter and as we're about to see what happens is Brad flies up in Condor, shoots all the vines away, and then Bruce uses Lifter to bring Rhino gently back down to the ground, which is a good use of vehicles and masks.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I like that. I like the way they did that.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

But they could have done something while, instead of just sitting around, playing solitaire, waiting for Brad to show up But, no. Now that Rhino is taken care of, they start looking for Sly, because they know he's around here, caught in the vines somewhere. And they look to where they think he is and it turns out he's gone and the vines are all dead and dried up. So we now know that Venom has a way to destroy the vines. Speaking of Venom, we cut back to them. And when Miles finds out that Sly used the antidote, He is pissed off, but Sly explains, if I get caught, I get nothing except jail.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It's a really good point, Sly.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

quite logical.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

yeah, I, do you get the impression that Sly and, I mean, always Vanessa are kind of getting a little bit pissed off at kind of these really shitty plans that are going on?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah. let's imagine Sly and Vanessa kicking back, having a few drinks, and just looking through the past 25, What's I don't know, weeks, months, let's call it months, past year or two of their life saying, Hey, this guy recruited us in with this really cool tech. And he said, we were going to make billions of dollars doing all sorts of cool and crazy things. Instead we're like growing giant vines over LA and we're going to ransom the state of California for money. I'm not buying this.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

100%. Am I right in thinking there's no Cliff Dagger this episode?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

There is no Cliff dagger in this episode.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Do you think he just got tired of being insulted? He's like, look, I need a few days to myself.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Could be that. Could be when he heard that Miles was going to be using weed to destroy Los Angeles. He went looking for Weed.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It's strange that you'd figure that'd be Sly's jam.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Hey Cliff, get me some of that Maui Waui. Um, Back at the hotel, Scott calls room service. He asks, what's the biggest ice cream sundae you've got? And then says I want one bigger. What an entitled little rich boy he is. Like you and I traveled when we were kids raised by a single mom. Um,

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I never got to order room service. Period. There was no room service.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

neither.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

And now this kid's like, just give me the biggest sundae. No, make me something bigger. And they do it.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Think about like who his dad is, man. This is what he's learned. worries.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

your way out of any emotional problem.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Well, That's what he's trying to do. He's trying to deal with the trauma of neglect using food.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, Scott's gonna either become a drug addict or he's gonna balloon to like 350 pounds. He's just going to eat all his trauma or both.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

You know, He's got this briefcase in there and now he's getting the ice cream. Why can't it be both?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I wonder why he's so hungry. Back with mask, Alex is trying to analyze the dead branches, but he can't find the antidote. Okay. So that's interesting. Let's keep that in the back of our minds as we go forward here.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

should.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Back to Venom. They're throwing seeds and growing vines and Miles wants to grow these vines from here to San Francisco trip the five I guess At what point is he gonna actually call the governor?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I don't know, why isn't he talking ransom? Like it's just so ponderous in terms of just like, all right, let's just keep growing shit.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Maybe he's forgotten What they were doing. Generally, yeah You show off the weapon, and the damage it can cause, and then he asks for a ransom, and you say you got 24 hours. Assault on Liberty, for example. He was doing great. Maybe Miles is having cognitive decline over the course of the series. He was relatively sharp, but sometimes misguided in the first 24 episodes. Now we're starting to see a real drop off in his thought processes here.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It is a good point. Do you think his flair for the dramatic may be contributing to this?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

It could also be like his flair for the dramatic is trying to compensate for The fact that he's slipping, right? He can't quite put all the puzzle pieces together anymore. So he's just going, And we'll grow the vines all over California.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

do you feel like mask is also being a bit ponderous here as well? Do you feel their urgency?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Not particularly. that's because the vines aren't really causing much. It's like clogging up the works and stuff like that, but it doesn't seem like people aren't screaming. In the streets, buildings aren't falling down. It's just a bunch of giant vines growing inconvenient to be sure. But, I think we'll be all right. the hotel, a giant Sunday arrives in the room. And I mean, a Sunday, so giant that the dish it's being served in just doesn't, no one makes a dish that big. It's the size of nearly two outstretched adult arms, right? So it is a giant Sunday.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

We should point out that diabetes was a rampant problem in the 80s, and today. And Scott's well on his way, just with his ice cream alone.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, they should take this and make it the more, you know, at the end of the episode.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

They ought to! That's a brilliant idea. That wasn't the zeitgeist though, man. The 80s was the war on fat. It's like, eat sugar instead of fat,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

ten times more sugar,

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Ten times more sugar! and hence the rapid increase in diabetes.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

That's the more you know, folks. Glad you learned something from our podcast for the first time ever. Um, Alex picks up a police report vines growing. So, Thunderhawk and Condor head to the front of like the line of the growth because that's where Venom will be.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

they're plotting a line to the northwest of Hollywood. Adam, what is to the northwest of Hollywood?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

The San Fernando Valley.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

so what am I to believe about Venom's plan and taking on? The San Fernando Valley in the eighties

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, it sounds like he's just trying to hit the one oh one he's going to take the he's taken like the one ten to the one oh one to the five over the grapevine into San Francisco seems like that's where he's he's headed. Unless there's like a lot of traffic buildup that he's probably going to loop around, probably like. take the, the two to the 134, to the, maybe the, go up to 118. It's really hard to map out exactly which way he's going here.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

um,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Not on the 405.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

that, oh yeah, the four or five is a mess always. What more damage could he do on the four or five

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Back at the hotel. Scott is eating the giant sundae now. But he's not using a spoon. He's eating it like a dog. Like an animal face first into the Sunday, which takes me back to the episode where T Bob was covered in ice cream. And we find out that Scott ate all the ice cream off T Bob. I did assume he used a spoon, but now I realized Scott was licking ice cream. Off of T Bob, if this is the way he eats ice cream.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

wonder T Bob is the way he is.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

suddenly a vine bursts through the window and T Bob falls into the ice cream, which kind of shorts out his circuits. He turns into scooter mode, bumps into Scott and they both go falling out the window and it, but they're caught by a bit of vine. So nothing happens.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I did find myself taken out a bit because T Bob getting fried by the ice cream doesn't match up with what we've seen with T Bob going into water repeatedly.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I agree.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Unless Scott constantly messing with T Bob has destroyed his IPX8 rating. he was waterproof before, but not anymore.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Now, when Scott and T Bob do land on the vines, the vines start dying, and Scott realizes that it's cold that kills the vines. There's a lot I need to kind of pause and talk about here.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

let's do that.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

So LA does get cold, especially in the winter. And there are times when there is a frost, Not every day, but it Miles's plan to solve the bad is fundamentally flawed because eventually if cold is the quote unquote antidote to the vines the vines are going to eventually take care of themselves. The other thing is, and what. Antidote did Sly have? Did he just have some sort of cold compress or something that he rubbed over the vines to get out of them? That's my first issue with with the vines there.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

He keeps a, a, a thing of Freon in his back pocket, mainly to huff, but occasionally it becomes useful. Ha ha ha ha, occasionally it's useful. What about Alex, man? He was studying these things. He never thought to expose them to extreme temperatures.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Exactly.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

And, isn't Alex supposed to be our expert at killing live things?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Only things with like, you know, heartbeats.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I see.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Only things that experience pain. Scott of course wants to tell Matt about this, but the ice cream has shorted out the radio. And the logic circuit. So yet again, Scott's dealing with this nonsense. So we'll check back on that a little later. We're back with Mask now. They catch up to Venom. We've got Condor taking on Piranha. Matt takes on Switchblade and Manta. Vanessa fires Black Paint. At Thunderhawk, kind of like inking over the window as if he's in Mario Kart. Brad uses Hocus Pocus to make a giant like Venus Flytrap appear in front of Sly, Causing him to go flying off the road and into a truck of tomatoes. Could be a ragdoll award, except he does land in the truck of tomatoes, which may, might cushion his fall. Vanessa Accidentally flies under the ultra beam, causing all the seeds in her car to start growing, which destroys Manta. She crash lands and yet somehow survives. So I think Vanessa is getting a ragdoll nominee here, for sure. Sly picks her up, Matt blows up the ultra beam, Miles transforms into jet mode, and goodbye Venom. As simple as that. And in fact they have to let Venom get away so they can deal with the plants.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

right, stop right here. Do they For God's sakes, it's in a farmer's field in Ventura County at this point in time. They've already done the damage and they don't seem to be like causing any more damage. So. know, maybe Make a call to stop venom at this point in time.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, the planes aren't going anywhere. It'll be fine.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah, it's been there for maybe days at this point.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Scott fixes T Bob, calls Matt on the radio, tells him that cold kills the plants.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Scott becoming a diabetic saved the day.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

there's another more you know.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Maybe if you do order the ice cream, you can save the day.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

makes a freeze bomb. He takes one of those big rockets that Rhino can launch and turns it into a freeze bomb. Did you notice that Bruce is just carrying that thing? It's a sizable rocket. It's not a mortar, this is big. This is something that you have a couple of guys in a crane load onto a

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Mm hmm.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

That's impressive.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Bruce is big dogging it in front of Brad to be like, Look man,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

mine.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah. This freeze bomb fires from Rhino and it creates a, like a snow storm over this little group of plants and, kills them all.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Hooray! I wanted to point out you're right, LA does get frost, it does get rain, it does not typically get snow. So this solution's going to kill thousands of LA drivers who are not used to driving in the snow. That snowstorm would also destroy those farmers crops. Do you think that Matt went long on vegetable futures right before he decided to like, unleash this bomb?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, Bruce probably said hey I'll use lifter to load the bomb into the launcher he says actually Do it by hand. I gotta go use the Thunderhawk computer.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Another thing. Okay, so freezing turns out to be the thing that we need to do here. What would have been useful in this scenario?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Well, I know Gator has a freeze ray.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

And

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Firecracker also has a freeze ray.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

yeah,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

It makes you wonder, were they assigned certain toys to put in individual episodes? Or did the writers really have free reign to put whatever vehicles they wanted in there? Because I will say we're seeing a lot of Manta right now, in the past episodes we've seen. And we're always seeing Rhino and Thunderhawk, of course, and Switchblade's always there. Are they told like, here's the toys you can use in this episode? Cause you're right. Gator and firecracker would be perfect.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

again, these are coming out like every day of the week. they must've had these scripts done a little in advance. And so maybe they're getting early toy numbers back and that's, what's being used to guide who's in where.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

But they're being, they're probably produced though. Well In advance, like a year in advance of airtime anyways. So guess we'll Never know. PJ

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

never know

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

that would take some research.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah. we'd have to break into some like filing cabinets somewhere to actually like find the answers to this stuff because none of it got digitized.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I'm game. If you are.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Let's do it. There's an abandoned warehouse somewhere in L. A. Do you think Brad took a sample of the vines so he could see if it could be smoked and or cross bred with cannabis to make it more effective grow?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

I'm sure he did. I'm sure he is. he's grabbing that file of Matt scan of the the UV beam. Oh, this would be great for hydroponic guard gardening. but that's it. I think before we get into the more, you know, uh, we got to kind of. talk generally about the episode. This one was a piece of junk as an episode. I mean, I was excited for them to go to LA. It started out semi cool. Oh, the Hollywood ball. That's fun. But just, it was hard for me to even find the energy to go through the rundown here, because it's just like. what this happened and then this happens like there's no real causality. It's just stuff and the end.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah. No one's really committed to any of the stakes it's like I said earlier like, it feels very mask light, like the core elements are all there. We have the battle in the middle. We have the battle at the end. We've got the massive scientific thing that's like miles is put together, but

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Mm hmm.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Feel like they're really like.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

No. And even with Scott and T Bob hanging on for dear life, the stakes feel low there too.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It's weird, right?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah. I've, they have been in less danger, like at the Hoover dam in just the last episode where I felt more concerned for them than I did here.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

And I think it's just because just Overall, no one was really into what was going on.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Which is sad because like, honestly, like I was thinking about this better use. Like we saw the earthquake machine way, you know, 20 episodes ago. That would have been a kind of a cool thing and it would have been topical and it would kind of be on point for LA and you could have done something that actually like really works well. Like it's a major metropolis that could be destroyed by an earthquake. It's a real thing.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Agreed.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I didn't feel like they used the locale very well,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

No, they did a drive by of the landmarks. Hey, there's the bowl. There's the observatory. A movie set. The Chinese theater.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yeah,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

That sort of thing. It was really just a sightseeing.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I felt like they leaned into it in other spots. Like, Like we had New York City. In Assault on Liberty, New Orleans, actually, they even that had a lot more color to it. My last question to you, because it is the 80s, is this actually an anti drug message? If you let marijuana into the streets, it will take over?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

yeah, I don't know what the message of this episode is other than buy these toys.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

They are cool. I

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

We go to the more you know. Scott and T Bob are doing some gardening. Matt doesn't have someone who does this for him. He's got Scott and T Bob out. Trimming the hedges

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I was like, what did he do to have to get this chore?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

and also, T Bob is using like an electric razor it's not the tool you should be using to trim hedges. And Scott decides Hey, let's trade tools. I'll give you the shears and I'll take the electric thing or whatever. And T Bob inexplicably turns and puts the electric thing he's holding into a bird bath, which electrocutes him. And so the lesson is the lesson stated lesson is don't get electrical things near water, which is fine. That's okay. Don't put a toaster in the sink when it's plugged in. Oh yeah. Cool. Got it. One, we've already done this before because we had T Bob stick a fork into a toaster and get electrocuted. But two, how many kids in this. Era in the eighties are trimming the hedges with a plug in electrical device next to a birdbath Like if this is the lesson you want to tell there's a lot more common in touch with the common man

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Yes.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

to show this

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It's so bizarre, especially because. In this episode, we've seen a lot of times where T Bob got shocked by ice cream or something or other. But we've seen him be put in the water a lot of times. So, The consistency here is just not there. It's just, it's a bizarre ass message. A

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

it is a Dumb message to cap off an equally dumb episode

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

hundred percent.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

episode 25 third of the way through the show You And we are just not impressed. We've had two out of 25 episodes that have been excellent and the rest have been, some have been funnier than others from our point of view. But much of it has been middling to poor,

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I think we could say. three. I mean, we loved Rotex, we loved

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yes.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I think we thought very fondly of Cold Fever.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yes. Okay. Three.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Three.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Three out of 25. So

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Chuck Lorre, start writing episodes again, please.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

three out of 25. That's a bad batting average for any major league hitter. All right, let's take a look at our awards. Father of the Year. What do you think?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Man, I don't know, I mean, like, There's the typical like, just dumping Scott off at the ho the hotel, but I also thought Matt taking Scott to the concert

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

was a questionable decision.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, you see parents doing that more and more. Like Taking their kids to like Taylor Swift or things like that. But this was not a Taylor Swift concert. This is a rock and roll, drug infested, alcohol doused rock and roll show. This is not where a ten year old should be. Sly Rax Ragdoll Award. What do you think?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I kind of was going to give, I mean, there's, there is the, the jet wash incident, which clearly would have killed Sly,

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

And then there's Vanessa's crash landing. Parby wants to give it to Vanessa because she hasn't received it before.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, I'm gonna go with Vanessa here. Manta crash landed and she just walked out and hopped into Piranha. The Buddy Hawks Award. What do we got? Anything?

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

It's tough because like we've got? kind of Might be the obvious one of Alex dismissing Bruce but then we dissected it and it might just be, Alex is just kind of sick of Bruce's bullshit. and Bruce calling Brad a monkey isn't necessarily like worthy of the category, but it is a dick move. So I don't really have a good one for this one. How about you?

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Nope. I agree with you a hundred percent. I do think that Bruce calling Brad a monkey is Uncharacteristic it opens up a new dimension into the Bruce Brad relationship that we will continue to track throughout the episode Last but not least the Roy Batty moment of the episode

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

T Bob getting covered in ice cream like, he was fairly benign, but like, he could have easily have murdered Scott.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Yeah, I'm feeling more Scott using an arc welder On T Bob. Probably going to piss him off a little bit.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Good call.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

You tooled around with my brain a bit too much Scott

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

ha ha Ha!

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Well, That is it for episode 25. Episode 26, moving into the second third of the series. Secret of the Andes. Mask must protect a revived Incan priest, who has been found frozen in ice in the Andes, from venom, who may know the secret location of El Dorado. Have this one yet,

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

I Have seen this one I'm very excited for us to talk about the particular name of the Incan priest. It threw me for a loop when I heard and I'm curious now of the cause and effect. I'm going to have to do a little bit of research about a particular musician who may have taken on this name.

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Sounds good. I am concerned about the number of Buddy Hawks nominations we might get out of this episode. So let us see next time. But for now, this podcast has to transform And head back to HQ. I am Adam Moore.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

And I am PJ

squadcaster-0aif_1_10-03-2024_102948:

Bye bye.

pj_1_10-03-2024_112948:

Bye bye.

The mobile armored podcast show is written, produced and edited. Bye Adam Moore. And PJ McNerney.