In this episode of Hip Squared, John talks about Dragon Quest XI, the newest installment of one of the most influential and longest running Japanese Role-Playing Games (JRPGs) ever made. Each game has been designed by Yuji Horii, with art by Akira Toriyama (of Dragon Ball fame) and music composed by Koichi Sugiyama. This trio has helped guide RPGs …

In this episode of Hip Squared, Troy talks about the game Animal Crossing for the Nintendo Switch. This game blends sandbox style style gameplay with an emphasis on hanging out with friends and strangers. The player manages their home and island, including its residents, while trading resources and hanging out with their real-life buddies. In this …

Live Episode recoreded at OPEN Community Arts CenterBy John Beechem, Troy Kremer & Maplex Monk

This episode of Hip Squared is a crossover with Armchair Apocrypha! Andrew and Rachel join John in American Fantastic Studio, and Troy talks to John too. First, John talks about Chapo Trap House, a scathing political satire podcast, along with their book, The Chapo Guide to Revolution: A Manifesto Against Logic, Facts and Reason. This podcast is hi…

In this episode of Hip Squared, John and Troy finish season 2 with two topics that aren’t video games, but are related to video games. First, John talks about the Angry Video Game Nerd, a long-running web series about a very angry nerd whose profanity ridden rants describe the most frustrating moments of retro video games. Also known as James Rolfe…

In this episode of Hip Squared, we delve deep into the past and present of American industry. First, Troy talks about the film American Factory. This Netflix documentary is about a Chinese auto parts factory that opens in a defunct General Motors plant. It focuses on the clash of Chinese and American cultures in terms of individualism, collectivism…

THE BREADWINNER WRITTEN AND ILLUSTRATED BY MORGAN TRUE BLUM In this episode, John and Troy divide and conquer two worlds of fantasy! Instead of speaking to each other through the entire episode, they welcome guests, one creator and one devotee, to tell us what they know and feel about the art they’ve been making and experiencing. John talks to his …

In this episode of Hip Squared, we balance the high and low brows of science fiction. Troy talks about Foundation, the first book in the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov. This recommended beach read became Troy’s portal into a galactic empire on the edge of collapse. It also helped form some basic sci-fi conventions, especially for stories set in …

In this episode of Hip Squared, we put the our bike pedals to the metal, and ride through the eye of the hurricane. First, John talks about Paper Girls, an Image comic book series written by Brian K. Vaughan and illustrated by Cliff Chiang. It’s about a group of 12 year-old girls who deliver papers every morning in suburban Cleveland only to get em…

GI Joe: The Movie 1987 In this episode of Hip Squared, we celebrate our Independence Day with two All-American entries into pop-culture. First, John talks about GI Joe: The Movie (1987). This animated feature length film is about America’s top fighting force in their struggle against Cobra and a secret reptilian civilization bent on taking over the…

In this episode of Hip Squared, we enter two realms of magic and adventure. First, John talks about Baldur’s Gate, a series of PC role-playing games released in the late 90’s and early 2000’s by Black Isle Studios. These games revolutionized Dungeons & Dragons by letting players pause and issue commands to all their characters, allowing real-time g…

LOVE DEATH AND ROBOTS In this episode of Hip Squared, we beam into two different sci-fi worlds. Troy talks about the recent Netflix series, Love, Death and Robots. This is an anthology series with 18 different stories that are about 10 to 20 minutes long. As you may have guessed from the title, each episode involves love, death and/or robots. Each …

A HARD DAY’S NIGHT In this episode of Hip Squared, we peek into the past and step into the future. John gains a new appreciation of the early era of the Beatles by watching the film A Hard Day’s Night. Released in 1964 at the height of Beatlemania, this musical comedy follows a fictional version of the fab four as they take a train from London to L…

THE WALK In this episode of Hip Squared, we walk through the neighborhoods of a couple different podcasts. Troy tells us about The Walk, a 1st person podcast that adds a new twist to the audio genre. Instead of experiencing a story being told to the listener, The Walk makes the listener the main character. Everything the listener hears reflects wha…

RARE CANDIES BY DR DUNDIFF In this episode of Hip Squared, we drop the needle on some excellent music we’ve experienced in the last couple years. John talks about a couple musicians in the orbit of Louisville hip-hop artist and producer, Dr. Dundiff. First, John talks about Otis Jr., a soulful, earnest singer whose melodies are laid over the Dr. Du…

In this episode of Hip Squared, we dig into the green earth as we adventure into the wilderness and tend a humble farm. First, Troy talks about the PC game Stardew Valley designed by Eric Barone. This loveable and satisfying farming sim has simple, charming gameplay. After inheriting their uncle's farm, the player must tend to it however they see f…

In this episode of Hip Squared, enter a dark world of adventure and mystery. First, John talks about The Stranger Things soundtrack, composed by Michael Stein and Kyle Dixon of the band survive. Their haunting synth melodies create a perfectly creepy soundtrack for the Netflix show, and are also excellent albums on their own. Including the soundtra…

Wolverin: The Long Night/NixonlandBy John Beechem/Troy Kremer/Maplex Monk

The Dragon Prince In this episode of Hip Squared, we balance the realms of science and fantasy. First, John talks about The Dragon Prince, an animated series on Netflix made by part of the team responsible for Avatar: The Last Airbender. Created by Aaron Ehasz and Justin Richmond, it tells the story of a pair of human princes and a rogue elf that m…

The best bad Christmas movie? Arguably so. Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukka! Happy Kwanzaa! Happy Solstice! Fearsome Festivus! It’s the holidays, and Hip Squared is celebrating with our very first Christmas special (sorry other holidays, maybe next year). Kelly Shiflet comes back to talk about the He-Man & She-Ra Christmas Special from 1985 (availabl…

Sigiled Paladin by Greg Staples In this episode of Hip Squared, the dynamic duo are at it again. First, John talks about books by bipolar authors about being bipolar. He focuses on two books in particular, Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michaelangelo and Me by Ellen Forney and An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness by Kay Redfield Jamison. As …

Hip Squared is back for a spookifying good time! John talks about Hammer horror films, popular British horror movies mostly made from the late 50’s to the early 70’s. Many starred Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, including Dracula A.D. 1972. John also talks about a good resource for the history of horror movies, Cinemassacre’s Monster Madness. Th…

In this episode of Hip Squared, John and Troy are joined on the mic by their producer, Maplex Monk. First, Troy talks about The Adventure Zone, a role-playing podcast starring the McCelroy Brothers (from their first podcast, My Brother, My Brother and Me) and their father, Clint McCelroy. Together, the family plays a table-top role-playing game and…

Hip Squared triumphantly returns for Season 2! Featuring hosts John Beechem, Troy Kremer and very special guest, Kelly Shiflet. Kelly is a Louisville artist and John’s wife (you can also hear her on the American Fantastic Radio Hour, ep. 7). Together, they talk about the #MeToo movement and its fall-out, including Aziz Ansari, Louis C.K. and too ma…

Hip Squared Season 0 Episode 0 Season 2 of Hip Squared is almost here! In the meantime, listen to Hip Squared Episode 0, Hip Cubed. That's right, we've unlocked the third brother, Thomas Beechem, and he's taken us out of our 2-dimensional realm and brought us into the meat-space. [This episode was recorded without the help of our producer, so the a…

John and Troy wrap up Season 1 in a tight little bow. Introducing Gaia, John's daughter in her very first podcast. John explains how the demands of fatherhood and mandatory overtime necessitates the need for between season break, and also takes about plans for the future of Hip Squared. Troy talks about Twitch TV, a video-game streaming service whe…

Welcome to episode 16 of Hip Squared! Troy tells us about crafting a strandbeest, a walking wind creature engineered to amuse as it ambles along at its own pace. John continues white-knuckling through his mandatory over-time shifts, power-napping in his car during lunch breaks. Then John talks about the new Gorillaz album, Humanz. Gorillaz is a ban…

Peer into the future as we as we talk about pop-culture's present and past! John and Troy talk about the intersection of digital technology and (the lack of) privacy. Then John talks about Mystery Science Theater 3000, a long-running T.V. that celebrates the worst of cinema, recently resurrected on Netflix. Created by Joel Hodgson and now hosted by…

Troy comes back from his first international reporting trip (and fiance visit) for Episode 14 of Hip Squared. In addition to experiences in Spain and London, he also talks about The Shawshank Redemption, the subject of the second of three movie posters that adorn his walls. This film is based on a novella by Stephen King, and is one of the most bel…

Hip Squared has baked more than a dozen tasty tidbits into lucky episode 13! First, John describes his failure to get into a Donald Trump rally in Louisville, KY, but also his success in exercising his 1st amendment rights with a number of other vocal protesters. Then, he talks about Samurai Jack, a cartoon created by Genndy Tartakovsky for Cartoon…

Hop into your nearest portal, and come into another world with Hip Squared Episode 12! John talks about Stephen King's strange and gripping fantasy saga, The Dark Tower Series, a story that involves the Gunslinger, Roland, and his obsessive for the tower's secrets, among them many parallel dimensions, including our own. All seven books were penned …

John and Troy are back with a meta-podcast! That's right, a podcasts about podcasts. First, Troy and John talk about River City Revue, a literary reading at the Bardstown in Louisville, KY that John participated in. Ashley Taylor hosted the event, and also featured Michael Baumann and Kelly Morris. Then, Troy talks about the beloved history podcast…

Two very different kinds of nerds are exhibited in episode 10. John talks about a couple of comic books. Lumberjanes by Noelle Stevenson is about a feminist summer-camp with a group of girls who get caught up in all kinds of super-natural shenanigans. And Usagi Yojimbo by Stan Sakai is a classic, black and white comic, still being published, about …

Welcome to Hip Squared Episode 9! John talks about the gritty neo-Western Hell or High Water, earning Jeff Bridges an Oscar nomination, and Michael Bolton's Big, Sexy Valentine's Day Special, a new comedy out on Netflix. And Troy talks about Factorio, a computer strategy game about gathering resources to build bigger and bigger machines, described …

Plug in your Earbuds of Entertainment +1 as John tells us about the mobile game, Symphony of the Origin, a Japanese role-playing game that pulls its user into a world of adventure. And Troy talks about Bill Bryson's "A Short History of Nearly Everything", a book about the world and science that anybody can understand.…

John and Troy host their saddest podcast ever. Troy introduces us to Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, a series of children's books about a group of hard-luck siblings that's been turned into a new Netflix show starring Neil Patrick Harris. John talks about two books dealing with America's heroin and opiate epidemic, one fiction and …

Hip Squared was away last week so John could help welcome his daughter Gaia into the world, but now they're back with a vengeance! John and Troy talk about the sci-fi noir radio drama podcast "A Night Called Tomorrow", written by James Urbaniak (of Venture Bros. fame) and produced by Howl. A very different but also quite good sci-fi show, Netflix's…

roy catches us up on the Magic: The Gathering Grand Prix in Louisville, talk about Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ), a video game speed run supporting the Prevent Cancer Foundation. John touches on his first experience as a Dungeon Master in Dungeons & Dragons and then praises two very different BBC productions. The first is A Bit of Fry and Laurie,…

John and Troy talk about a magical Christmas in Spain, the good and bad about mobile games including Pokemon Go, Super Mario Run, Sonic Dash and Hearthstone, the Magic the Gathing card game and the Magic: The Gathering Grand Prix in Louisville, KY, from January 6th-8th (in 2017).By John Beechem Troy Kremer

John and Troy talk about the new Disney movie Moana with music by Lin-Manuel Miranda, the upcoming Blade Runner movie sequel, Ni no Kuni: Curse of the White Witch, a J-RPG with art by Studio Ghibli, the movie Arrival about a linguist helping the world deal with an alien invasion, and a mega board-game involving sixty people playing Watch the Skies,…

John and Troy talk about the new dryer Troy adult-ed for Christmas, laundry rooms in American sitcoms, The Imitation Game, a movie about computer pioneer Alan Turing starring Benedict Cumberbatch, and Sleepwalk With Me with Mike Birbiglia about his own life as a struggling stand-up comedian dealing with a rare sleeping disorder (which is funnier th…

Episode 1 of American Fantastic's pop-culture podcast, Hip Squared, celebrating everything from the mainstream to the underground, weird, new, old and local, hosted by John Beechem and Troy Kremer. John and Troy introduce each other to you, and talk about video games, the game-ification of society, and the 1982 high-school T.V. show Square Pegs.…