John Siracusa and Merlin Mann try to figure out exactly how they got this way.

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#129: Chocolate and Toy Story

April 29th, 2020 · 95 minutes

How do you get your family to watch really good movies?

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Links and Show Notes

Things kick off with Merlin bemoaning John's emerging role as his primary existential creditor. John reminds Merlin that all that grinding is just continually sharpening him.

In follow-up, your hosts thank the many, many listeners who remembered the movie that John and Merlin clearly could not. Turns out, it was not "Batman." Or "The Notebook."

This leads naturally into a main topic that pulls together a bunch of previously discussed topics: how do you get your family to watch really good movies? Like, high-quality movies. Not bad movies, but good movies. As we all know, John is a tough rater, but his diligence has paid off. Merlin's kid hasn't shown much interest in The Godfather.

We learn that John has given Merlin his pasta sauce recipe, but Merlin hasn't tried to make it yet, and, when he does, he'll probably do it wrong. Related: do not ask for John's pasta sauce recipe, because it is not supported.

Finally, John may have discovered a Secret Weird Thing about bananas, which—you guessed it—leads to more homework for Merlin.

(Recorded on Tuesday, April 21, 2020)

Credits

Good Will Hunting | ‘The Best Part of My Day’ (HD) - Ben Affleck, Matt Damon | MIRAMAX - YouTube
Conan The Barbarian: What is best in life...? - YouTube
Scott Simpson on Twitter: "Rotten Tomatoes Decoder"
A Man's Life: The Complete Instructions: Boyles, Denis: 9780060951412: AmazonSmile: Books
Amazon.com: Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food (9780061767937): Seinfeld, Jessica: Books
5by5 | The Talk Show #57: The Banana Window

"On this special episode recorded while Dan was still on paternity leave, John is joined by guest host Merlin Mann. Merlin and John discuss Vegas, Disney, Pixar and more!"