In case you didn’t know, I’ve been part of Scyther Podcasts’ stable of actors for a few years now. This is a group run by Karl Dutton that makes fan-produced audiodramas, most notably for X-Men and Power Rangers. While I’ve played (of all people) Deadpool on X-Men: The Audiodrama and as Johnny Storm (The Human Torch) on its spin-off Avengers: The Audiodrama (which is run by Mitch McFarland), my first claim to fame at Scyther was playing the darkly funny supervillain Rito Bandora (aka Rito Revolto in his original incranation) on Power Rangers: The Audiodrama (see image to the right). Unbeknownst to me, Scyther’s Rito became a fan-favorite.
Because of this and some…spoiler-ific events in PRAD, I pitched an idea to Karl to write and produce a bonus episode that expands on the background for Rito that’s briefly discussed in a few episodes of the main show. He approved the outline, and after a few months of drafting the script, I went into production for my first full-lnegth audiodrama. I say, “full-length,” because I’ve produced shorter drama segments on my flagship podcast, The Monster Island Film Vault, but the longest any of those got was about 20 minutes. This special clocks in at 55 minutes. I Mel Gibson’d the snot out of this; writing, directing, editing, producing, and starring in it. I even commissioned my friend Rebecca Hudgens to do the cover art and purchased the rights to a metal song to use as the episode’s theme song. I’ve joked that the episode should be retitled, “Nate’s Vanity Project.”
So, sit back and enjoy this dark science fantasy comedy!
You can also listen to it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts.
Be sure to watch me be interviewed about the background of this special on The Power Chamber Podcast.
I should be writing proper blogs, I know, but in the meantime, here are more episodes of my podcast, The Monster Island Film Vault. Episode 20 in particular I think is the best one I’ve done so far. Enjoy!
This week I begin my
penultimate semester of grad school. Part of that will be writing a brand new
standalone novel as my creative writing thesis. Amidst all of that, though, I
am also producing a twice-monthly podcast, The Monster Island Film Vault.
The irony is I’ve noticed for a while that it’s become easier for me to do
anything related to the podcast than my writing.
I’m annoyed by this. Some
of it is a time management issue, but I think it goes deeper than that. It certainly
isn’t a lack of passion or ideas (heck, both of my grad school classes this
semester are writing classes). I’ve long joked that I have more ideas than I
have years left to write. I think this shift happened for two reasons: imminent
deadlines and immediate praise.
My podcast’s episodes
drop on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month. Yes, that’s a
self-imposed schedule, but from what I’ve read, the audience comes to expect one
to keep his schedule. This keeps me on my toes and makes me carve out time for
research, recording, and editing. Do I perhaps try to get each episode finished
sooner than it needs to be? Oftentimes. Part of that comes from overestimating
how long it will take. Other times I make excuses like, “I can get more done
editing an episode for 30 minutes than I will writing for 30 minutes.” It’s
illogical, but humans aren’t always logical. (Sorry, Spock!). It simply feels
easier at points to podcast than write (despite the podcast requiring a lot of
writing). I’ve found myself worried that I’ve lost my first love as a creative.
The second reason is
harder to shake off: immediate praise. That isn’t to say that glowing reviews
started coming in within an hour of my first episode dropping or whatnot. However,
as more episodes were posted and I promoted the show, more people listened and
told me they loved it. The positive reviews came faster and more frequently for
the podcast than for any of my books (and it’s not like I don’t promote the
heck out of my books and don’t have readers wanting more of them). There’s a
lot I could say about why my podcast seems to be making a splash in the
kaiju/Godzilla fandom, but those ultimately feed into my need for affirmation.
I don’t consider this a weakness; no, it’s one of the famous “5 Love Languages.” Hearing and
reading positive feedback with every episode incentivizes me to continue. I
think this is why I eventually burned out with my YouTube
channel: I wasn’t getting that feedback as fast or frequently. The
challenge now becomes making sure the praise doesn’t become like a drug. I want
to make this podcast because it’s fun and because I want to be a positive and
unique voice in the kaiju fandom. I can’t let this—or anything, for that
matter—become a crutch for my ego.
Aye, there’s the rub.
All of these combine to
make something that’s new and exciting, so I’m still in the thick of the
novelty of this project. That amplifies the excitement: it’s my “shiny new
thing” right now. Lord help me when I come off that high!
Check out the first full-length episode my of new podcast, The Monster Island Film Vault, featuring Nick Hayden and Tim Deal from the Derailed Trains of Thought podcast and my friends Joe and Joy Metter. Enjoy!
Hello, kaiju lovers!
Our “Kong Quest” begins! 😛 Nathan is joined by his core group of Monster Island Tourists—Nick Hayden & Timothy Deal of the Derailed Trains of Thought podcast and Joe & Joy Metter—to discuss one of the greatest movies ever made: 1933’s King Kong. What’s interesting is none of these Tourists had seen this classic film before coming to the Island, so you’ll hear their fresh reactions, opinions, and analyses to the Eighth Wonder’s first and greatest outing. Listen as each of them compete for best (or worst?) joke of the podcast (“No monkeying around!” says Nick). Along the way Jimmy From NASA gets sassy with the Tourists and has to corral a dog dubbed “Teddy Kong,” who keeps trying to make a cameo during the Toku Talk. The Toku Topic for this episode is the Great Depression since the film was made and released at the height of that period and indirectly mentions it several times.
Be sure to check out the latest episode of Nick and Tim’s podcast, Derailed Trains of Thought, where they visited Monster Island to discuss destruction as a story element with Nathan as a guest host. Their podcast is marvelous, and Nathan has appeared on multiple episodes.
Timestamps Intro: 0:00-4:42 Entertaining Info Dump: 4:42-12:06 Toku Talk: 12:06-1:21:27 Toku Topic: 1:21:27-1:54:52 Outro: 1:54:52-end
After a year of prep and a summer of hype, my new podcast, The Monster Island Film Vault, premiered today. You can listen to it on several podcatchers, but it’s also on YouTube. The video version is below. Click here for the audio version.
Enjoy!
Hello, kaiju lovers!
Listen as Nathan Marchand, co-creator and season one co-host of the Kaijuvision Radio, regales you with the origin story of his new podcast. It includes a vacation to a resort on the fabled Monster Island (formerly Monsterland), where he met his intrepid producer, Jimmy From NASA (who miraculously survived the infamous War in Space), and got a new job as the curator of the Island’s film vault. Between bantering sessions with his detail-obsessed, fact-checking interrupter of a producer, Nathan explains the podcast’s philosophy of film appreciation and lays the groundwork for the upcoming episodes.
And what will Nathan, Jimmy, and their many guests be discussing first? The filmography of Monster Island’s other most famous resident: KING KONG!
Hold onto your butts!
The Monster Island Film Vault: A podcast seeking entertainment and enlightenment through tokusatsu.
It dawned on me that I’ve been on a lot more podcasts since the last time
I indexed them, so I figured I’d update that list for all of you. For most of
these, I appeared as a guest or guest host, discussing everything from
storytelling to video games to Godzilla (no surprise, right? Heck, I’ve kinda
become the “kaiju guy” in most of my circles, and with good reason).
Admittedly, there are few not listed here. I recorded a podcast with
Zachery Oliver for “Theology Gaming” that was lost when he had computer
problems. The same thing happened with “The Bestselling Fiction Podcast” hosted
by Dan Dynneson.
Titles with an asterisk (*) were on the original list.
Happy listening!
Kaijuvision Radio
This is a podcast I co-created with Brian Scherschell on “the appreciation of giant monster movies and the discovery of their historical and cultural value.” I was the co-host for season one (episodes 1-36 plus two interviews), but sadly I had to step down before season two. I’m proud of the work I did on the show, so I obviously I’d love it if all of you listened to it. Even if you’re not into kaiju but enjoy learning about Japan, it’s a great podcast to listen to. Here’s the website.
Geek Devotions
(NEW!) This is a ministry headed by Dallas and Celeste Mora—“a pair of devoted geeks devoted to letting people know they are loved”—that uses nerd culture as outreach. They have a podcast, Comm Talk, a YouTube channel, and a website. Dallas was one of KVR’s first fans and promoters, so he invited us onto the YouTube channel for an interview as part of King of the Monsters Month in October 2017.
The Weekly Hijack* A “spin-off” podcast from “Derailed Trains of Thought” that discusses TV shows. -Episode 27: Doctor Who – The Magician’s Apprentice – I discuss the season nine premiere of Doctor Who with Nick Hayden, Tim Deal, and several others. (Scroll through the episode listing to find it).
Strangers and Aliens A show about faith, fantasy, and science fiction co-hosted by my buddy Ben Avery, who’s a comic writer
Theology Gaming University* A show about Christianity and video games.
–Podcast #58 – Video Games Inspiring Other Media – Theology Gaming – My friend Eric Anderson and I discuss video game adaptations to other media with host Zachery Oliver. –Podcast #62 – I discuss why gamers replay video games they’ve already played with host Zachery Oliver and TGU regular Bryan Hall. –TG Sessions #9 – Cheapness (I.e., You’re Not Special) – Zachery Oliver and I discuss what makes certain things “cheap” in both single-player and multiplayer video games. –TG Sessions #10 – Batman’s Fifty Shades of White Privilege – Remember when this video made me a troll magnet? I also incurred the wrath of trolls about an essay I wrote for TGU. Zachery Oliver and I discuss all of this. –Podcast #72 – One in a Mijinion – I join Zachery Oliver and Roberto Iraheta 20 minutes in, and in our ramblings we set out to solve a very important mystery: What the heck is an Infinity Mijinion? (In case you don’t know, that’s a Mega Man boss).
Forever Classic Podcast (NEW!) This is a show
that “seeks enlightenment through video games” started by my former colleague
Alex McCumbers (from my GigaGeek Magazine
days). Here’s their main website.
–Episode 11: Kaiju Games With Nathan Marchand –
Remember what I said about being the kaiju guy? Anyway, Alex invited me on to
talk about two of my favorite things: giant monsters and video games. We
discuss existing kaiju games—past and present—and what we think would make for
a great kaiju game.
Redeemed Otaku (NEW!) A podcast created and hosted by Bex Smith that seeks to “redeem your love for anime by turning to the truth found only in God’s Word.” Follow the show on Facebook and Twitter.
–42 – My co-author Eric Anderson and I are interviewed about our nerd/geek devotional, 42: Discovering Faith through Fandom. –Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters – Bex has me on to discuss/review part one of the Godzilla anime trilogy. Being that its kaiju and anime, it was the perfect crossover. –Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle – I return to Redeemed Otaku—this time joined by my fellow Godzilla fan Eric Anderson—to discuss/review part two of the Godzilla anime trilogy (that has a title weirdly similar to a class Star Trek episode). –Godzilla: The Planet Eater – In one of the best English-language analyses of the entire Godzilla anime trilogy, Bex, Eric, and I breakdown part three and put the other films into perspective. It truly is the best episode of Redeemed Otaku yet! (Don’t take my word for it—that’s what Bex said!)
This makes me miss having my own
podcast.
Do you have a podcast? What’s it
about? Would you be interested in having me on?
You’ve probably noticed I haven’t been posting videos as often as I used to. There are reasons for that, which this video explains. Don’t worry–I’m not going away completely.
You may recall when I appeared on the 50th episode of Derailed Trains of Thought, the podcast hosted by my friends Nick Hayden and Timothy Deal, that I was featured in several segments. One of those was “Cinema Selections,” a segment that normally featured amateur film historian/critic Brian Scherschel. Since he discussed a Godzilla movie, however, I was invited to join in. While I mostly deferred to Brian since it was his part of the show, we did have a lively talk about the film in question (this one). Tim suggested as he closed the segment that Brian and I should start our own podcast on Godzilla, which I joked would be called “PodZilla.”
That was November 2014. I didn’t think much more about that podcast after that. That is until a few months ago when Brian contacted me and wanted to know if I was still interested in making that a reality. He’d just finished a couple of other projects and was looking to do something new. I told him I was in.
We’ve been meeting almost every week planning things out. I didn’t realize how much work was required to make a good podcast. It’s also because Brian very much wants to make this a high-quality product that people will be interested in listening to. We haven’t had any arguments (yet), but we have had to settle some differences in opinions on how to go about this project. We’ve also been investigating potential copyright/lawsuit issues since Toho, the Japanese studio that produces the Godzilla films, is hypersensitive about protecting its intellectual properties. So far everything looks like it’ll be fine.
PodZillaCast (the name had to change since our first name choices, surprisingly, were already taken) will be a limited series that analyzes and critiques the Godzilla film franchise. It’ll discuss the merits of each film while also putting them into their cultural and historical contexts. Brian and I believe these films are massively underappreciated and underrated by most westerners, and we hope to shed some light on the films that will get more people interested in watching them.
Will we stop after getting through all 30+ Godzilla films? Maybe. I’ve said that if people enjoyed what we’re doing, we’ll turn our attentions to other kaiju (giant monster) films like King Kong or Pacific Rim, but that’ll depend on how our initial project does.
When will the show launch? I’ve no idea. We’re still hammering out some details. I think it should be up and running by the end of the year, I think. So, keep an eye out for us on your podcatcher of choice!
How will this affect my videos? I don’t know that, either. As it is, I’ve been scaling back on how many videos I make, usually limiting myself to one (or two) a month. I simply don’t have the time to make as many. I keep very busy, obviously. “But I Digress…” may go on hiatus. But only maybe.
I’m keeping today’s blog simple and helpful, especially for those who want a quick reference for all the places I’ve appeared online. Or, at the very least, the podcasts I’ve been on. So, here’s an index of the shows and episodes I’ve appeared in. I discuss everything from storytelling to video games to Godzilla (no surprise, right? 😛 ).
Admittedly, there are few not listed here. I recorded a podcast with Zachery Oliver for “Theology Gaming” that was lost when he had computer problems. The same thing happened with “The Bestselling Fiction Podcast” hosted by Dan Dynneson last summer. I’ve subsequently recorded two more episodes with him that he has yet to post. I also appeared on GigaGeek Magazine’s podcast to talked about Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but I don’t have a link for that yet since it was broadcast live.
Regardless, happy listening!
Derailed Trains of Thought A show on storytelling and creativity hosted by my friends Nick Hayden and Tim Deal
Theology Gaming University A show about Christianity and video games
–Podcast #58 – Video Games Inspiring Other Media – Theology Gaming – My friend Eric Anderson and I discuss video game adaptations to other media with host Zachery Oliver.
–Podcast #62 – I discuss why gamers replay video games they’ve already played with host Zachery Oliver and TGU regular Bryan Hall.
–TG Sessions #9 – Cheapness (I.e., You’re Not Special) – Zachery Oliver and I discuss what makes certain things “cheap” in both single-player and multiplayer video games.
–TG Sessions #10 – Batman’s Fifty Shades of White Privilege – Remember when this video made me a troll magnet? I also incurred the wrath of trolls about an essay I wrote for TGU. Zachery Oliver and I discuss all of this.
–Podcast #72 – One in a Mijinion – I join Zachery Oliver and Roberto Iraheta 20 minutes in, and in our ramblings we set out to solve a very important mystery: What the heck is an Infinity Mijinion? (In case you don’t know, that’s a Mega Man boss).
The Weekly Hijack A “spin-off” podcast from “Derailed Trains of Thought” that discusses TV shows
In case you didn’t know, I’m a huge of Toho’s Godzilla franchise. I have been since high school. With a few exceptions, I consider these movies to be some of my guilty pleasures.
That being said, this week I reviewed the new American film–which I loved–not once, but twice (and there may be a third!) First, I wrote a review for GIGA Geek Magazine. The second, however, was the most fun. I was the guest host on the “Strangers and Aliens” podcast with my friend and fellow Christian writer and Godzilla fan, Ben Avery. I enjoyed it so much, I want to be on his show again. 😉 You can listen to it here.
What will the third one be? Most likely an overdue new vlog! (Until then, you can watch my review of last summer’s Pacific Rim).
And for all you kaiju fans out there, be sure to check out my own giant monster story, Destroyer.
A Man from Another Time Exploring Another Universe
