PEL Presents PMP#205: Fantastical Foursome
The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast
Mark Linsenmayer
4.6 • 2.3K Ratings
🗓️ 14 September 2025
⏱️ 56 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
What do we expect out of a superhero film? Does it need overqualified dramatic actors? Does it even need a real budget?
Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn, and Al discuss the various films modeled after Marvel's Fantastic Four comics initiated by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1961. First Steps is clearly the best of them and surpassed our low expectations, with its delivery of a believable family dynamic and a fun retro-futurist production design.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Four brave adventures traveled into the unknown and came back with Fantastic Powers. |
| 0:12.7 | Thereafter calling themselves pretty much pop a culture podcast. |
| 0:15.5 | Today, talking about the Fantastic Four characters created by Stanley and Jack Kirby in 1961 |
| 0:20.1 | in light of the new Marvel film of Fantastic Four First Steps. |
| 0:24.3 | This is Mark Lincenmeyer, often referred to as a child as the ever-loven thing. |
| 0:28.8 | This is Al Baker, a low-budget podcast host, Broughts in to retain the rights. |
| 0:33.3 | This is Sarah Lynn Breck, and hey, Mark, I'm confused. I thought we were the Fantastic Four. |
| 0:39.3 | This is Lawrence Ware and do you know what would happen if Snoop Dog joined the Fantastic Four? |
| 0:44.5 | The thing wouldn't be the only one that was Stone. |
| 0:47.2 | Oh my gosh. |
| 0:48.2 | Oh my gosh. |
| 0:49.2 | Did you expect more goofy humor in this film? |
| 0:54.0 | Like the kind I just gave? |
| 0:55.3 | Like what I just did? |
| 0:56.5 | Yes. |
| 0:57.2 | That the Fantastic Four seems an inherently silly property that even changing Mr. |
| 1:04.5 | Fantastic's power so he can jump around like stretchy Spider-Man Yoda flipping this way and that way, and never, never a comment |
| 1:12.8 | upon it, never a comment about how silly, or just playing on the inherent hilarity available |
| 1:18.6 | in the visage of the thing. I don't know, there's something about as repelled as I was by Chris, |
| 1:25.0 | the previous iteration of the flame boy. |
| 1:28.5 | Chris Evans. |
| 1:29.7 | Chris Evans. |
... |
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