They Live

"Yes, a lady should be modest." Welcome to my dojo, this is Kung Fu Pizza Party. Today, we're headed back once more to the Arcade with my review of 2001s Lara Kroft: Tomb Raider starring Angelina Jolie. Tomb Raider debuted on the Playstation in 1996 and by 1998 the film was in development. In this episode, I go over why I think Tomb Raider exploded with popularity in the late 90s and early 2000s, how the vision for this first film changed a lot over time, and how summer blockbusters have staying power for an enjoyable watch. Instagram: @kungfupizzapartyLetterboxd: KungFuPizzaPrtyYouTube: @StudioTwoOneNine

Master Splinter is the big takeaway: he raises and trains the turtles as a found family, but his grief and thirst for revenge kinda make him a messy, flawed mentor. Joshua Noel leads the chat and he is joined by former host Brandon Knight, and they dig into Splinter’s origin stories and the long family feud with Shredder. They talk the two origin versions — human master turned rat or a rat who always watched and learned — and how that backstory shapes moments like The Last Ronin. They say Splinter teaches discipline, heart, and family, but he also passes down bitterness that can put the turtles at risk. They riff on why the turtles still stick in pop culture, from arcade games to new films, and why a flawed mentor actually makes the story richer. The audio’s a little rough, but the convo lands clean and fits the Faces Behind Us theme on Systematic Geekology 2026. Heads up: the audio is a little fuzzy, but Joshua and Brandon still dig into some sweet turtle lore. Joshua kicks things off with a playful shrug and Brandon leans in like a ninja coach. They trace Splinter from origin myths to the Last Ronin tale. He gets called wise and messy. He taught the turtles to fight. He also kept a grudge. The hosts call out how that stuck anger made big trouble later. They point at Tang Chen as a quiet but big face behind Splinter. She is the spark that starts the feud. That small detail flips the whole story. It makes the family stuff heavier than kids think. The chat gardens a neat contrast between mentor vibes. They stack Splinter next to Uncle Iroh and Mr. Miyagi. He is less flawless. He helps the turtles grow into real people. He also risks their lives for revenge. Brandon, the coach, drops real talk about martial arts and how most ninja stuff is pop culture. He likes the live action fights and the arcade games. Joshua gets misty about pizza and arcade nights. The tone stays light and funny. Still, they keep returning to one idea: a mentor can give love and also hand down pain. That double edge is what makes Splinter real.Takeaways:He gives a heads up that the audio is rough but the content still matters a lot.They talk about Master Splinter as a flawed mentor who teaches family, honor, and revenge.He and the guest point out that Splinter's revenge loop hurts his family and causes real harm.They compare Splinter to other mentors like Mr. Miyagi and Uncle Iroh to show different mentor flaws.He praises the Ninja Turtles brand for its no-brainer name, reboot skill, arcade games, and big reach.They say found family matters: Splinter lets each turtle grow their own skills and personality over time.He warns listeners to spot bitter leaders and leave toxic groups, saying real mentors give, not take..Be sure to check out our merch, find extra content, and become an official member of Systematic Geekology on our website:https://systematic-geekology-shop.fourthwall.com/.Listen to all of our annual theme episodes for 2026, "The Faces Behind Us":https://player.captivate.fm/collection/dd903597-98be-49ed-998c-5cdaf73b6af4.Check out our episode featuring Kevin Eastman:https://systematic-geekology.captivate.fm/episode/lst-ronin/.Listen to all of Joshua's episodes:https://player.captivate.fm/collection/642da9db-496a-40f5-b212-7013d1e211e0.Listen to more episodes with great guests like Brandon:https://player.captivate.fm/collection/0d46051e-3772-49ec-9e2c-8739c9b74cde

"He'll regret it to his dying day, if he ever lives that long." Welcome to my dojo, this is Kung Fu Pizza Party. Today, I sit down to discuss 1952s The Quiet Man starring John Wayne. The Quiet Man is certainly not a part of the martial art pop culture world, it isn't even a Western, but it is a very good movie that features an excellent nine minute long fight scene. So grab a porter and settle in for a cozy, romcom that is willing to beat the brains out of you. Instagram: @kungfupizzaparty Letterboxd: KungFuPizzaPrtyYouTube: @StuidoTwoOneNine

"How does a good man decide when to kill?"Welcome to my dojo, this is Kung Fu Pizza Party. Today, we are back in the Arcade with my review of 2007s Hitman starring Timothy Olyphant. Hitman is a widly popular game series, but has yet to have much success in the film department. In this episode, I take a brief look at the history of both the games and the films, talk about how the movie is very bare bones creatively, and most important, comment on how BALD everyone is. Instagram: @KungFuPizzaPartyLetterboxd: KungFuPizzaPrtyYouTube: @StudioTwoOneNine

Welcome to my dojo, this is Kung Fu Pizza Party. Today, on the eve of the 100th anniversary of his death, I sit down to discuss the mystery behind the punch that killed famed illusionist, Harry Houdini. After all the hairraising escapes, a punch to the gut did the magician in, or was there more to the story? From spiritualists to medical drama, there's more to Houdini's death then meets the eye.Instagram: @kungfupizzapartyLetterboxd: KungFuPizzaPrtyYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StudioTwoOneNine

"I am here to chew bubble gum, and kick ass, and I'm all out of bubble gum." Welcome to my dojo, this is Kung Fu Pizza Party. Today, we're back to spooky vibes with my review of 1988s They Live starring Rowdy Roddy Piper. In this review, I discuss how this film has managed to find new life on streaming over the years, how the plot and themes of the film are so relevant to us today, and how the alley way fight between Piper and Keith David is the greatest fight in film history. Instargam: @kungfupizzaparty Letterboxd: KungFuPizzaPrtyYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StudioTwoOneNine

"That homicidal bitch might be our only way out of here." Welcome to my dojo, this is Kung Fu Pizza Party. Today, we are headed back to the Arcade but this time, it's spooky. I am joined by Pixel of Page & Pixel fame to review 2002s Resident Evil starring Milla Jovovich. We dive into the brainchild of Paul WS Anderson who launched a very financially successful film franchise that committed every sin that video game films typically would make. We talk about what could have been with George A. Romero as director, and how the Skydance Corporation is the true Umbrella Corporation of the day. Pixel also throws down a pretty hefty challenge to me for going over the 30 minute mark. Listen to Page & Pixel here: https://open.spotify.com/show/7wjvunWm6nROW5TlK7LBGeInstagram: @kungfupizzaparty Letterboxd: KungFuPizzaPrtyYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StudioTwoOneNine

"To live is to fight, and to fight is to live."Welcome to my dojo, this is kung Fu Pizza Party. Today, we are headed back to the Arcade for one of the reasons why this whole series even exists. This is my review of Street Fighter starring Andrew Koji and a whole bunch of other people. After all this time, they finally did it. They embraced what Street Fighter is supposed to be and have made an excellent Street Fighter film. From stellar performances from Collina Liang and Andrew Schultz, to David Dastmalchin protraying the cult leader side of M. Bison, to great fight choreography and humor throughout. Street Fighter nailed it, but it is not perfect. I get into all the nitty gritty in this review.Instagram: @kungfupizzapartyLetterboxd: KungFuPizzaPrtyYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StudioTwoOneNine

Welcome to my dojo, this is Kung Fu Pizza Party. Today, we are headed back to the Arcade once more as I dive into the history of the Marvel vs Capcom series with a look at Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Series: Arcade Classics for the Nintendo Switch. In this episode, I look at the recent history of why this port of these classic seven arcade games is important to video gamers, I go back to the beginning of the relationship between Marvel and Capcom with 1993's The Punisher moving all the way to the year 2000 for Marvel vs Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes; I give my thoughts on which characters I gravitated to and which characters need to be added in any future games.Instagram: @kungfupizzapartyLetterboxd: KungFuPizzaPrtyYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StudioTwoOneNine

"That's it, c'mon maggothead!" Welcome to my dojo, this is Kung Fu Pizza Party. Today, as part of spooky season, we are squaring up with Jason Voorhees himself with my review of Friday the 13th part 6: Jason Lives from 1986 starring Thom Matthews. In this review, I chronicle the series from part 1-6, I analyze how trauma plays such a significant role in the main characters including Tommy Jarvis, and I discuss how I think you take down a undead machete weilding killer with superhuman strength who may be a Deadite who can teleport. Instagram: @kungfupizzaparty Letterboxd: KungFuPizzaPrtyYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StudioTwoOneNineWatch Jason Lives: https://youtu.be/Lks_PiESzv0?si=Kg7I2a-V_tw_1tQr