Twice As Bright, Half As Long

Dave and Ian welcome you to their penultimate podcast on Wonderfalls. In "Safety Canary," Jaye and Eric go on their first date, but the animals have other plans for Jaye that involve her helping a zookeeper to steal two macaws for breeding purposes. In "Lying Pig," Eric's wife, Heidi, returns to win him back, and the animals seem to want Jaye to help her. Meanwhile, Mahandra is panicking about having spent the night with Aaron, and Karen is asked to dinner by another doctor at the hospital where Darren works. And in "Cocktail Bunny," Jaye is told by the animals that she needs to "save him from her," so she concludes that Heidi is going to try and kill Eric. Dave start a feature called "Falconry Corner," Ian does an impression of a macaw, and they marvel at the ever-changing internal architecture of The Barrel, Niagra's only bar apparently.

Dave is joined by former Doctor Who writer Andrew Smith to discuss his work writing and script editing the return of Star Cops for Big Finish. They chat about Andrew's history with the show, how his experience in the police informed his work, how Linda Newton was nearly not involved, writing for Devis, and how you tackle having no sound in space on an audio production.

Ian and Dave begin a new era of TABHAL now that Dave has moved to the North. They also watch three more episodes of Wonderfallls. In "Muffin Buffalo," Jaye is less than happy that she is getting a reputation as someone who helps people, but then finds herself trying to help one of her neighbors while the animals tell her not to help another. In "Barrel Bear," Mahandra and Jaye find themselves at odds over the legendary Millie Marcus who might or might not be first woman to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel and live. And in "Lovesick Ass," Jaye and Eric find themselves helping a Russian woman who has come to America to marry her true love only to discover that it is a 13 year old boy. Dave explains how Chicken Boo influenced his taste in comedy, they appoint an official TABAHL fashion correspondent, and Ian is reunited with one of HAA's greatest nemesis: Spencer Breslin.

Dave and Ian have a fine old time watching another three episodes of Wonderfalls. In "Karma Chameleon," Jaye meets a shy woman called Bianca who has a stutter. The animals tell her to "get her words out," but it turns out that Bianca is not all that she appears to be and that Jaye's instructions turn out to have an altogether different meaning. In "Wound Up Penguin," Jaye and Eric find themselves helping a cheese-loving nun who has lost her faith, and a penguin tells Jaye to "bring her home to him." Eric finds himself having to confront his unhappy past, and Jaye's instructions turn out to have an altogether different meaning. And in "Crime Dog," Jaye and Aaron find themselves in trouble with the law after their housekeeper is deported to Canada. A cow creamer tells Jaye to "bring her home," so Jaye, Aaron, and the cow creamer go to get Yvette back. Sharon has a showdown with her siblings at the boarder, and it turns out that Jaye's instructions have an altogether different meaning. Ian is overjoyed at Aaron

Ian and Dave start the new year with a new show: Brian Fuller's Wonderfalls. In "Wax Lion," Jaye Tyler is just a normal person living in a trailer and working in a Niagara Falls gift shop. Then one day a malformed wax lion starts to talk to her, and soon multiple inanimate animals start speaking and urging her to get involved in the lives of strangers. This leads her to learn something new about her sister Sharon. In "Pink Flamingos," Jaye has no intention of running her father over with a car or attending her high school reunion. The animals have different ideas, however, so her father ends up in hospital and high school queen bee Gretchen Speck asks her to help organize the reunion. Dave has trouble pronouncing names, Ian identifies the two minutes of the show he has seen previously, and they reward one listener's loyalty entirely by accident.

Dave and Ian invite you to join them for a vaguely seasonal episode as the watch the somewhat notorious Doctor Who spinoff attempt K9 and Company. Sarah Jane Smith is set to spend time at her aunt's country home but when she arrives she finds her aunt has left in suspicious circumstances, she has to look after her aunt's ward who is back from boarding school, and a crate that has been waiting for her for three years contains a gift from The Doctor in the shape of K9 Mark III. If all that wasn't enough, it seems that there is a pagan cult at work in the village of Morton Harwood that could have dire consequences for Aunt Lavina's market garden business. Sarah Jane and K9 must solve the mystery and rescue Brendan from a sacrificial alter. They also discuss what connects this to Hellraiser, how the BBC viewed anywhere west of Reading, and who are the ringleaders of the Morton Harwood swinger set.

Ian and Dave conclude their look at The Persuaders with three more episodes. In "The Morning After," Brett wakes with a sore head to discover that he is married, while Danny's investigations lead him to Brett being used to derail international peace talks. In "A Death in the Family," someone is killing off Brett's relatives one by one and suspicion falls on other members of his family. And in "To the Death, Baby," Danny and Brett decide to step in when a known con man attempts to inveigle his way into the affections of a young heiress, but things are not what they seem. They also discuss the number of guest stars who have been in Doctor Who, marvel at Roger Moore as a master of disguise, and stumble across an odd IMDB biography. Statistician Ian also returns to inform them what they will be covering for the next episode.

Dave and Ian cover three episodes of The Persuaders as voted for by listeners. In "The Old, the New and the Deadly," Danny finds himself targeted by evil Nazi Patrick Troughton due to a case of mistaken identity. In "That's Me Over There," Brett's investigation into businessman Thaddeus Krane leads him to being kidnapped, and Danny must impersonate Brett in order to get vital information. And in "The Man in the Middle," Brett doing a favor for Judge Fulton leads to a case of mistaken identity as they try to uncover a mole in British intelligence. Danny and Brett's third cousin, Terry-Thomas, must stage a rescue. They also discuss Roger Moore's superhero alter ego, Brettman; characters regularly reaming unnamed on screen for most of the episodes; bring down the imagined legal wrath of the Association of Tennis Professionals; and are delighted to be reunited with two actors from Blake's 7.

With Ian in the process of moving into his new house and Dave about to go on holiday, they decide to take a break from their regular schedule and look back at all the shows that they have covered up to this point. What was the show they enjoyed the most? Which show was the most contentious? Which show contains one of Ian's favorite pieces of TV dialogue ever? Is Dave a contradiction for hating Crime Traveller yet owning to copies of the box set and the only piece of bootleg merchandise known to exist? All these questions and more will be answered.

Ian and Dave try out a new viewing format as they take their first trip to the 1970s with The Persuaders. In "Overture," Millionaire playboys Danny Wilde and Lord Brett Sinclair find themselves blackmailed into helping a retired Judge named Fulton into helping him to investigate the sister of a European crime kingpin. In "The Gold Napoleon," Danny meets a nice woman at the airport who is then shot by a sniper. With the press speculating that Danny was the intended victim, Danny resolves to discover the truth. In "Someone Like Me," Brett is kidnapped and kept in a fake hospital. Upon getting back home he becomes convinced that someone has created a doppelganger, but truth is much more sinister. They also discuss the impressive stunt prowess of Tony Curtis, the good and bad things that come with 70s TV, and are reunited with the writer that brought them together as a podcast team to begin with.

Dave and Ian bring their viewing of Star Cops to a close with the last three episodes. In "A Double Life," the frozen embryos of a rich and powerful woman are stolen from the new Moonbase hospital facility, and the prime suspect has a perfect alibi. In "Other People's Secrets," David shadows the Moonbase's chief engineer to see if he is a saboteur, and the team are analyzed by a psychiatrist who also happens to be Devis' ex-wife. Finally, in "Little Green Men and Other Martians," two reporters arrive on Moonbase amid rumors of an amazing discovery on Mars, which someone is willing to kill for. They also go over the show as a whole, name their series MVPs, and Statistician Ian institutes a new approach for the next show to be covered.

Ian and Dave's coverage of Star Cops continues with another three episodes. In "Trivial Games and Paranoid Pursuits," Spring travels to the space station Ronald Regan in order to try and get permission to place officers on US space facilities. He is soon joined by Kenzy and together they uncover a conspiracy to hide laboratory accident. In "This Case to be Opened in a Million Years," Spring is forced to take leave on Earth and finds himself framed by the Mafia who are using scheduled nuclear waste rocket shots for smuggling. "In Warm Blood" sees a ship turn up with all of the crew dead, and Spring finds his investigation hampered by the Japanese corporation who own it, and Devis utterly fails at undercover work. They also discuss one episode's awful racism, instigate Space Hair Watch, and find they share similar opinions on The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Dave and Ian embark on a new show for the summer: Star Cops from 1987. In "An Instinct for Murder," Chief Superintendent Nathan Spring reluctantly finds his name on the shortlist for the job as Commander of the International Space Police Force. While visiting a European space station as part of his interview, a prominent politician dies during a spacewalk and Spring finds himself in charge of the investigation. In "Conversations with the Dead," Spring's girlfriend, Lee, is murdered in Spring's home while he is in space. While Spring returns to Earth, his second in command, David Theroux, investigates when a ship is sent off course and the two-person crew are very aware that they are as good as dead. In "Intelligent Listening for Beginners," Spring and Theroux seek out corruption in the ranks while they investigate a series of computer failures, and new recruit Colin Devis and a recently fired Pal Kenzy find themselves having to foil a hijacking. They also discuss what a balding man's hair should look like in

Ian and Dave bring their coverage of Dark Season to a close. In the second three-part story, the mysterious Miss Pendragon leads an archaeological dig on the school grounds which Marcie, Thomas, and Reet soon discover is really a plot to unearth an abandoned World War II computer project called The Behemoth. When The Behemoth awakens, Marcie finds herself in a final confrontation with Mr. Eldritch with the fate of the world at stake. They look over the show as a whole, pick their series MVPs, and Statistician Ian reveals the next show to be covered and his double life in the UFC.

Dave and Ian embark on what might be their most divisive show to date, Russell T. Davies' Dark Season. In the first three-episode story, the sinister Mr. Eldritch donates free computers to a local school and gives each child a computer to take home, free of charge. The only person not convinced of Mr. Eldritch's good intentions is pupil Marcie Hatter. Marcie, alongside her friends Reet and Thomas, decide to investigate and discover that a man whose car has the numberplate "Nemesis" might not be as benevolent as he claims. Ian is unhappy at finding his own Crime Traveller, there is a celebration of the career of Cyril Shapps, and they encounter their second Oscar winner.

Ian and Dave cover the final two episodes of Jekyll. In episode five, Jackman's personality has apparently been deleted leaving Mr. Hyde to assimilate his memories, which leads him to making several discoveries about the original Dr. Jekyll. In episode six, Jackman and Hyde are united and are about to go after Claire and their children, who have been taken by Klein and Utterson. But first they must get past Mr. Carver, an experienced mercenary who has had a year to prepare for a battle with Mr. Hyde. They look back at the series, name their MVPs, and Statistician Ian is on hand to name the next show they will be covering.

Dave and Ian continue their viewing of Steven Moffat's Jekyll. In episode three, Tom is fatigued and in hiding while fighting off an increasingly more dominant Hyde. When he confronts Peter about his betrayal, they both end up locked in a wine cellar and Claire Jackman finds out her husband's dark secret. Someone doesn't leave the cellar alive. In episode four, Tom is trapped in a techno box and he and Claire are taken to Klein and Utterson. Miranda, Catherine, and Min confront Peter with what they know and bad coffee is apologized for. They also discus TV storytelling techniques they dislike and the career of 2 Unlimited.

Ian and Dave close out the year by beginning a new show: Steven Moffat's Jekyll. In episode one, Doctor Tom Jackman has left his family, quit his job, and has gone into seclusion. He hires Katherine Reimer to act as a go-between for himself and his dark side. Things grow more complex when Jackman discovers he is being followed by several parties, and Mr. Hyde finds out his name from Benjamin Lennox who claims to represent the company that owns him. In episode two, Katherine drugs Dr. Jackman to find a secret, accidentally unleashing Mr. Hyde in the process. Plus, Benjamin conducts an experiment putting Dr. Jackman's son in danger, and Dr. Jackman meets his mother. They also discuss similarities between this and Moffat's later work, come up with their own episode titles, and make references to British sitcoms of the 1990s.

The moment has arrived! Dave and Ian come to the end of their 11-month viewing of Twin Peaks. In episode 28, Cooper deduces the way to open the Black Lodge and who will be Wyndham Earle's next target. Unfortunately, he is too late to stop Earle from causing chaos at Miss Twin Peaks and kidnapping Annie. In episode 29, Earle takes Annie into the Black Lodge with Cooper in pursuit. What awaits Cooper inside will put his very soul in jeopardy, and he may never be the same again. They also discuss Ian's fury at the final episode, Wyndham Earle dressed as the Log Lady, what Pete Martell's favorite video game is, and the long anticipated return of Statistician Ian to announce the next show that will be covered.

The endgame approaches for Ian in Dave in the penultimate episode of their Twin Peaks coverage. In episode 25, Donna begins investigating her mother's involvement with Ben Horne, Gordon Cole discovers that he can hear Shelly perfectly, and Annie gives Cooper a clue that leads him to the mysterious Owl Cave and the unearthing of ancient petroglyphs. In episode 26, corruption and intrigue surround the Miss Twin Peaks contest, and Earle reveals his plans to Ted Raimi who is then killed and inserted into a giant chess pawn. And in episode 27, Jeddy begins to show signs of rebellion, Major Briggs falls in to Wyndham Earle's clutches, and Bob makes a return to the physical plane. They also discuss the fact Twin Peaks may be set in the same universe as The Phantom, enjoy the mainly absent James Hurley, and make far too many references to Batman Begins.