111 // Alien Day 2019 Roundtable

Join us in this love-fest of a roundtable as JM, Patrick, Clara, Dave, Sean, Shaun, and Conar look back on all the things that made the fourth annual Alien Day such a rousing success. From the North Bergen High School play to the Tongal short films, there was a ton to unpack.

After a year of huge uncertainty—about the future of 20th Century Fox and the future of the franchise—we've emerged revivified and looking toward the future.

So let's celebrate!

iTunes: bit.ly/perfectorganismitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/perfectorganismgoogleplay

53 // NEXUS GENERATION: AN INTERVIEW WITH SUPERFAN GARY WILLOUGHBY (A 700 LAYER CAKE PART 4)

In this episode of our 700 Layer Cake series, Dan sits down with Blade Runner superfan Gary Willoughby as he reminisces on his decades-long involvement in Blade Runner fandom. From his work with BladeZone hunting down actors and crew for exclusive interviews, to his participation in the Dangerous Days documentary, the 2007 Night at the Bradbury Final Cut release party, and more. Gary has a unique insight on the world of Blade Runner and its fans. We hope you enjoy this intimate conversation with one of the original veterans of our favorite dystopian universe!

iTunes: bit.ly/shoulderoforionitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/shoulderoforiongoogleplay

110 // Alien: Harvest: An Interview with Director Ben Howdeshell

Host JM Prater was pleased and delighted to sit down with Alien 40th Anniversary short film director Ben Howdeshell to discuss his film Alien: Harvest, which releases today via IGN and YouTube. From his first story proposal, to how he lit his sets, Ben goes in-depth on the process that brought his brilliant short film to life.

iTunes: bit.ly/perfectorganismitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/perfectorganismgoogleplay

109 // Memory: An Interview with Diane O'Bannon (The Forbidden Planet: Part 2)

Patrick and Jaime were delighted to sit down with Diane O'Bannon—wife of Dan O'Bannon, the original writer and screenwriter on Alien. In this interview, Diane speaks about the origins of Alien, her meeting Dan, his dreams and hopes, and the legacy he's left behind.

Alien would not be possible without Dan O'Bannon. Let’s pay tribute to the man who discovered our Forbidden Planet forty years ago.

iTunes: bit.ly/perfectorganismitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/perfectorganismgoogleplay

52 // The Wall Will Tell You: An Interview with Hampton Fancher (700 Layer Cake Part 3)

In this episode Jaime, Patrick, and Dan interview the lauded Hampton Fancher, who wrote the screenplay for Blade Runner and Blade Runner 2049. This is an exclusive interview coming on the heels of Fancher’s new book, ‘The Wall Will Tell You’ which acts as a poet’s guide to screenwriting. The conversation then shifts to Blade Runner, Philip K Dick and the generation of filmmakers that Fancher has helped to inspire. This interview is a dream come true for all us at Shoulder of Orion. We sincerely hope you are as touched and moved by it as we are.

iTunes: bit.ly/shoulderoforionitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/shoulderoforiongoogleplay

108 // It Looks Like a Warning (The Forbidden Planet: Part 1)

Welcome to The Forbidden Planet—our long-awaited full series on Alien! On this kickoff episode, hosts Jaime and Patrick unpack Alien's importance in film history, in their lives, and in global popular culture. Why does it still haunt us? Why does it still inspire us? How does it fit in the continuum of science fiction—and how did it alter that continuum forever?

We're celebrating the fortieth anniversary of this landmark film with a year full of interviews, research pieces, roundtables, debates, video segments, and more.

Strap into those pressure suits. Let's get out there.

iTunes: bit.ly/perfectorganismitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/perfectorganismgoogleplay

51 // Everything You Need to Know About the Blade Runner 2019 Comics (minisode)

In this minisode, Patrick talks with David Leach, Senior Creative Editor at Titan Comics. David is overseeing the creation of the upcoming Blade Runner 2019 comic series; he was kind enough to give us TONS of new details and information you won't find anywhere else.

iTunes: bit.ly/shoulderoforionitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/shoulderoforiongoogleplay

107 // Every Meal a Banquet: The Triumph of Aliens (40 Miles of Bad Road: Part 9)

At last, we've reached a stopping point on our journey down 40 Miles of Bad Road. But don't worry! We'll be revisiting the series from time to time in the years to come.

As we sit here and reflect on the road we've traveled—the stories we've heard, the reflections we've shared, the people we've met along the way—we thought it would be a nice moment to open the conversation up a bit. 

On this enormous roundtable, Jaime and Patrick are joined by regulars Mykal McCulloch, Clara Fei-Fei (MUTHUR9000; yutani.blog), Dave Gogel (xenomorphing.com), and Conar Murdoch, as well as some new voices: Sean Sumner (part of our Building Better Worlds team) and Dusty Tweedhope (longtime listener and friend of the show).

This show covers the full gamut of what we hope to achieve with this roundtable format: hilarity, genuine introspection, fellowship, ribald banter, and so much more. We celebrate the past and look to the future, and we have a wonderful time along the way.

Thank you all for traveling this road with us. Our Forbidden Planet series is just around the corner!

iTunes: bit.ly/perfectorganismitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/perfectorganismgoogleplay

50 // A Dream of Flying: Shoulder of Orion interviews Joanna Cassidy (700 Layer Cake Part 2)

In this exclusive interview, hosts Dan, Patrick, and Jaime sit down with Golden Globe award-winning actor Joanna Cassidy to discuss her career in acting, her role as Zhora in Blade Runner, and her decades in the film industry. From encounters with creepy studio executives to being a single mother of two, Ms. Cassidy is delightfully candid, funny and unforgettable. We hope you enjoy listening.

106 // Is Aliens Overrated? (40 Miles of Bad Road Part 8)

In Part eight of our series on ALIENS, Jaime and Patrick discuss whether or not the film is overrated and overhyped. This is an intriguing conversation that led to a few other topics surrounding how originals movies are allowed to be these days. This was a great discourse and we hope you enjoy listening as much as we loved talking about it.

49 // Everything Is True: Philip K. Dick and the Birth of a Universe (A 700 Layer Cake: Part 1)

Welcome to the first installment of our first-ever Shoulder of Orion miniseries: A 700 Layer Cake: The Cult of Blade Runner! Since we'll be spending a great deal of time over the coming months focusing on the first Blade Runner film, we thought it fitting to go back to the very beginning: Philip K. Dick's seminal Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Before there was a global fan community—before there were films, before there were digital paintings and tribute albums and comic books and computer games and fan conventions—there was a little book by a brilliant, troubled man.

Our story—the story of this very podcast—begins with that novel. 

Let's start from the beginning.

Tunes: bit.ly/shoulderoforionitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/shoulderoforiongoogleplay

105 // DISPELLING RUMORS (a mini-episode)

Jaime and Patrick step away from 40 Miles of Bad Road to address the recent swirl of rumors making their way through fandom. The hosts continue on to discuss their recent meetup at USC in Los Angeles to enjoy the 40th Anniversary Alien exhibit.  Enjoy!

48 // 2019: A cross-over episode

Shoulder of Orion teams up with fellow podcaster Tony from the FlicksXRayed movie podcast for the first ever cross-over episode of the show. Join us as we have fun seeing which of us is best at Blade Runner trivia (Hint: it's NOT Dan), and have deeper discussion on the film that started it all.

104 // EVERY CHARACTER MATTERS (40 Miles of bad road part 7)

What makes the characters in Aliens so unforgettable? Join hosts Jaime and Patrick as they team up with special guests Dave (of Xenomorphing.com) and Dan (of Shoulder of Orion: The Blade Runner Podcast) to uncover some of the reasons these characters live on so strongly in our hearts and in our memories.

46 // WELCOME TO 2019

In this episode, Patrick and Jaime are joined by Dr. Robin Bunce to discuss the year we’ve stepped into and its parallels to Ridley Scott’s vision of 2019, challenges and lessons.  This was a deep and heady discussion, just the sort of thing we love best. We hope you enjoy it.

103 // Alien: Blackout - The Perfect Organism Review

Join hosts Jaime and Patrick on this extended look at Alien: Blackout, the brand-new Amanda Ripley-centric mobile game! Patrick's been playing it for nearly two weeks, and offers some extensive thoughts on the design, gameplay, replayability, and more.

For an even deeper review, check out our blog post!

iTunes: bit.ly/perfectorganismitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/perfectorganismgoogleplay

102 // Interview with Johnnie Christmas (William Gibson's Alien 3)

In this episode—a brief break from our ongoing 40 Miles of Bad Road series—hosts Jaime and Patrick sit down with Johnnie Christmas, the writer and artist behind the groundbreaking new Dark Horse series based on the second draft of William Gibson’s unproduced screenplay for Alien 3.

Stay tuned at the end for listener questions, and check out more from Johnnie at johnniechristmas.com!

iTunes: bit.ly/perfectorganismitunes // Google Play: bit.ly/perfectorganismgoogleplay

101 // The Queen: Part Two (40 Miles of Bad Road Part 6)

In part two of our Alien Queen discussion, Patrick and Jaime are joined by contributors and guests, Clara (MUTHUR9000), Conar (Building Better Worlds), Shaun (Perfect Organism Video Lead), Dave (Xenomorphing), Mykal, and special guest Bryant Dillon of Fanbase Press. This diverse roundtable further dissects the role of the queen questioning if she’s useful, divisive, or profound. This was a crazy fun episode with a surprise discussion at the end. We hope you enjoy it.

100 // 100th Episode of Perfect Organism: The ALIEN Saga Podcast

Patrick and Jaime convene in this special video epsiode to celebrate 100 episodes of the podcast, the road traveled and the road ahead. The hosts go on to discuss some of the happenings going on in fandom, and what's to expect (or hope for) in 2019.

45 // A Secret Cinema: Shoulder of Orion Investigates the Premiere Blade Runner Event

In this episode, Jaime and Dan discuss the Secret Cinema Blade Runner event with producer Andrea Moccia and attendees Simao and Carlos. This is a three segment episode which provides a very exclusive window into a very, well, secretive experience. Enjoy.