Superman (2025) generated far too much discussion for us to contain it in a single episode. In part 2 we return to the series. We discuss the Justice Gang, what we think of the individual members, and why an unkind person doing good is a great thing to showcase. We also talk about the themes of winning versus saving and how that was modeled throughout the series. We also get into Jimmy weirdness, canine implications, and Gunn violence.
As this is the second part of a two-part episode there is no five-minute controversy this week.
This week Ryan, Shaun, Nate, and Cammie join the cast.
Show Notes:
Shaun’s Business – Popcycled Baubles
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Superman is the first full entry into James Gunn’s DCU. Facing backlash from those who wished the DCEU to continue, the film had a lot riding on it to prove the narrative vision of this new version of the DC universe across multiples forms of media. In this episode we have part one of our examination of this film. We discuss how it works as an initial outting for the DCU. We talk about some of the themes inherent within the character of Superman and shown in this film. We also dive into several of the controversies in the movie and give our takes on them. 
Superman month concludes this week, but we couldn’t leave without talking about the last iteration of The Man of Steel. In this episode we look at the entirety of the DCEU – from a franchise of franchises overseen by Zack Snyder to a disjointed dying gasp of poorly performing films and ones pulled before they could see the light of day – we go over the ins and outs of the series. We talk about the merits of the films and what we feel lead to its downfall. Along the way we also discuss our favorite and least favorite movies of them all. 
Welcome to the first ever Screen Reads. In Screen Reads we look at a movie through the lens of the source material that it’s adapting. In this episode we’re talking about 2011’s Ryan Reynolds film, Green Lantern as well as its antecedents; Emerald Twilight, Green Lantern: Secret Origin, and Green Lantern: Rebirth. We talk about the plot and characters of the Green Lantern film and how well they adhere to their comic origin. We also discuss our opinion on the comics, what we think about the casting of the movie, and what we think could have been done to make the movie work. 
We have a lot of really great cast members on The 42cast, so after episode 100 and the conversations we had, we thought it would be good if we interviewed members of the cast. First up is 
For four years Black Lightning graced our screens with a generational story about an older superhero and person of color. The series was notable for its grounded storytelling, depicting street level foes for the titular character and showcasing a realistic family dynamic for a series with so much fantasy in its conception. In this episode we talk about the final season of Black Lightning. We discuss the plot, the changed premises, new characters, and the performances. We also discuss the Painkiller pilot, why we think that it didn’t get picked up, and whether we’d like to see more from the character. We also give our opinions on the series’ end and whether it lived up to four seasons of buildup. 
This week, green is the new black as we discuss season 7 of Arrow. Oliver Queen has been thrown in jail, and a new Green Arrow appears on the scene in the form of Oliver’s secret half-sister, Emiko. The Queen family tree may have more hidden branches than the Charmings’, but we ensure that everything is clear with our typical, somber commentary on the proceedings. We discuss how this season effected us, how we felt about the departures, whether Diggle should ever be The Green Lantern, and what we think it all means for Crisis on Infinite Earths. It’s an episode so good that Ryan isn’t on the cast. Let’s play the Feud! 
Black Lightning’s back to protect the people of Freeland, and The 42cast is back to give you your weekly dose of awesome entertainment. This week we talk about the first season of this latest DC CW superhero series. As always we talk about the heroes and the villains, but this time we also talk about what makes this series stand out amongst all of the other DC series. We also give our hopes for a second season and get a little schooling in Black Lightning’s comic roots.