Most Canon-worthy Episodes of The Canon?

[HoldenMartinson 221]

I've been holding off on a thread like this for a while, but... I think it could be a lot of fun.

 

Let's say there was a canon of the great podcasts of history. As it stands, I don't think there's a film podcast as listenable or consistent in high quality as The Canon--save for You Must Remember This, which is more about film and Hollywood history, rather than going title by title. So, what episodes do you think are the most emblematic of what this show does? Of course, we can discuss the episodes that represent the show best, or maybe the ones that we think are the strongest at what this show can do.

 

I'm not sure what I'd nominate--mostly because there are so many strong candidates, maybe even including The Candidate. Which episodes would you include, and why?

[SiSquires-Kasten 37]

Whoa. I think I tend to like episodes where Amy and Devin fundamentally agree, but have interesting minor differences that expose the depth of their connection to these movies. The Fly v. The Thing feels like an immediate contender for best Canon episode of all time, and I've also returned to The Getaway v. The Wild Bunch more than once for the same reasons.

 

I think as far as non-versus episodes go, There's Something About Mary, The Candidate, and O Brother Where Art Thou are all superb.

[Threshold 93]

Last Temptation of Christ V Passion of the Christ is my personal favourite, with Lolita and Antichrist being close behind them. And all of them, one after the other!!

 

I think it's the combo of intelligent weighty material that they grapple with, mixed with both of them mostly agreeing.

 

I think the episodes where they disagree turns into child-like fighting that is only satisfying if you have a dog in the race.

[HoldenMartinson 221]

Agreed on The Fly vs. The Thing. In fact, any hazy versus episode is terrific. This is an odd choice, but my favorite is Decline of Western Civilization vs. Decline Pt. II: The Metal Years. It's argumentative, it's interesting, it's contentious just shy of being mean or personal. Though, the one for American Beauty is also be up there.

[PinkShep 3]

It's funny, I love the arguing episodes the first time I watch them but they can be difficult to return to. Evil Dead 2 and The Godfather are easier to rewatch because it's just film appreciation, although you don't get as much personality. It's as if you need to see an episode where they defend something or fight for 10 minutes straight to get a sense of Devin and Amy as critics, and then you watch the episodes where they just talk and bring up interesting things. I second Last Temptation V Passion too since they have both an interesting topic, and a whipping boy to work with.

[Muthsarah 124]

I still have a soft spot in my heart for the first two episodes, Goodfellas and Temple of Doom. They weren't MY first two episodes (I started with Casino Royale, because Matt Gourley), but they did a great job setting up the series. Devin trying to provoke Amy and acting totally condescending, and Amy (at least in my mind) spending most of the episode sitting back, incredulous, but never backing down. Devin's 11th-hour twist in the Temple of Doom-cast made a great episode perfect. I knew then that this podcast was a keeper.

[CarlosFerreira 20]

Having not heard the entire back catalogue, my favourite so far is American Beauty. Made me want to re-watch a film I had written off years ago.

 

Honourable mention to Oh Brother, Where Art Thou too. I loved the fact they were both so into the film they were almost talking over each other.

[Cronopio 127]

The Blade Runner episode because they didn't like the film and Devin still tried to make a case for it. And Working Girl, because I enjoyed both Amy's arguments in favor of the film and Devin's attacks on the ideology that the film is defending.

[JeffBurnett 3]

Casino Royale, The Godfather trilogy, Planet of the Apes, Passion vs Last, and The Usual Suspects are some of my favorites. I guess the trend is when Amy and/or Devin (and the guest) REALLY go all-out in their praise. A gushing amount of love.

[Shrek & Donkey Kong 4336]

I have natural bias towards episodes with guests that I love (Paul Rust is one of the funniest dudes ever, Matt Gourley was my improv teacher), but for 'regular' episodes (sans-guest) Do The Right Thing and Clerks both had a lot to offer. Personally, I'm not huge on Clerks, but letting go of my hatred for Kevin Smith (or at least attempting to) in order to see the Canonical merits of Clerks was hard, but Devin helped me out on it. Also, its an episode that the hosts talked about newer movies (Sundance had just happened?), which is always enjoyable. I know this is a podcast about classics, but I love when they discuss newer movies, just like they did in the Do The Right Thing Episode -- also DTRT prompted some really great discussion, and helped it become an instant favorite for me.

 

 

Recent classic: PTA showdown

[ZZZ 63]

I still have a soft spot in my heart for the first two episodes, Goodfellas and Temple of Doom. They weren't MY first two episodes (I started with Casino Royale, because Matt Gourley), but they did a great job setting up the series. Devin trying to provoke Amy and acting totally condescending, and Amy (at least in my mind) spending most of the episode sitting back, incredulous, but never backing down. Devin's 11th-hour twist in the Temple of Doom-cast made a great episode perfect. I knew then that this podcast was a keeper.

 

The goodfellas episode redlined my anxiety but was contentious enough to make future episodes more palatable. I think my favorite episode is The Candidate or the Let Me In Vs.

[Rotmonian 15]

I feel like the Cannibal Holocaust episode was most entertaining.

[JoshuaBrown 3]

Blade Runner because they made interesting points about a film I feel ambivalent about. Perhaps, I like it because it made me feel not alone.

[Ryan L 57]

The codpiece conversation in the most recent episode (Labyrinth, for those who'll see this later) is easily in the top 5 Canon moments.