Ghostbusters with Branson Reese
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
Fan favorite guest Branson Reese (Swan Boy, Rude Tales of Magic) returns for another insane new take on a classic film property. This time his sights are set on one of pop culture's most radioactive franchises, GHOSTBUSTERS, which no one has ever made a fool of themselves trying to relaunch before! How does Branson suggest recapturing the magic of the original while avoiding the pitfalls of the underwhelming 1989 followup, the disproportionately hated 2016 remake, or the creatively bankrupt legacy sequels of the 2020s? PLUS: The trailer for Dalton's upcoming scripted pitch, LOS ALAMOS! Our...
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Last Flight of the Stone Hammer, Part Two
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
It's the (hopefully) thrilling conclusion of Dylan's space sci-fi drama, Last Flight of the Stone Hammer! Will the Ley-to and Eridai find a way to survive this cosmic calamity? And what will this mean for our Pod Universe going forward? PLUS: Check out Dalton's newest single, a refreshed and rearranged "Some Dark Magik," at the end of this episode. THIS WEEK'S SPONSORS: by merritt k. - When viral pop star Janie Mack "comes out" as a vampire, most people think it's just a play for attention. But when she launches a new movement to stop climate change, people start listening... -...
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Last Flight of the Stone Hammer, Part One
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
In the far reaches of space, two civilizations are locked in an endless conflict. The Eridai’s reckless industry cost the Ley-to their homeworld. The Ley-to’s quest for vengeance has consumed their entire culture, and there’s no end in sight. But when a twist of fate brings their starships to a halt, two opposing crews will have to bring their long conflict to a conclusion — one way or another. It’s Dylan’s first solo pitch for The Pod Universe, and he’s jumping directly into his favorite sci-fi subgenre: the Space Opera! It’s Battlestar Galactica meets Pirates of the...
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The Happening w/Josh Gondelman
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
CONTENT WARNING: This episode is about "The Happening," a film in which a toxin compels people to kill themselves in a variety of weird and novel ways. If you are sensitive to the topic of suicide or self-harm, this might not be for you. Emmy-winning writer and comedian Josh Gondelman visits the Pod Universe to re-examine M. Night Shyamalan's disastrous disaster movie, "The Happening." What makes this potentially poignant thriller so disappointing, and how would Josh do it differently if he could remake it after the COVID-19 outbreak? Also, should Ted from the movie "Ted" be involved? (No. No...
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Pod People, Part Two
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
It's the thrilling conclusion to the sci-fi thriller that kicks off our entire shared universe of imaginary sci-fi movies! What's the secret of Alterr, the shadowy tech corporation that seems to be replacing people with clones? What does their plan have to do with a failed quantum computing experiment? And, most importantly of all, where do we go from here? Featuring Sarah Norcross as the voice of Stephanie. SPONSORS Order your copy of Dim Stars: A Novel of Outer-Space Shenanigans from Amazon, or from your favorite bookseller. Check out for more information. Check out DC3cast, your exhaustive...
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Pod People, Part One
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
It's the opening chapter of Dylan & Dalton's original cinematic universe of imaginary sci-fi movies! Pod People is a sci-fi thriller set in Silicon Valley, where a pair of brilliant young engineers discover that their employers, their co-workers, and maybe even their friends and family are being systematically replaced by doppelgängers. But for what purpose, and how deep does the conspiracy go? It’s a modern riff on 1950s paranoid thrillers, most obviously Invasion of the Body Snatchers, but if you know us, then you know we’ve got our own wild twist on the premise. SPONSORS - a...
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Welcome to The Pod Universe
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
In 2022, Dylan Roth and Dalton Deschain set out to finish writing the Dark Universe that began and ended with Universal's 2017 remake of The Mummy. Three years and 29 scripts later, they're embarking on a whole new journey, leaving the realm of fan fiction behind to write, workshop, and perform an entire new universe of imaginary movies on their podcast. You are now entering... THE POD UNIVERSE. This episode was sponsored by three independent creative projects: - Ditch the algorithm with PV Guide, featuring recommendations, reviews, and interviews from former Polygon senior curation editor...
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BONUS: Harry and the Wickermen
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
This month's episode of the bonus pod, Are You Afraid of Dylan & Dalton? is free for everybody, and there's even a video version available on our YouTube channel! Become a Patron at Patreon.com/DylanAndDalton to get access to the whole series and all future episodes. (Most of them are just audio, but we've been doing more video episodes lately!) This month's Studio Mandate, selected by one of our Patrons, is "Harry and the Hendersons!" How will Dylan & Dalton reimagine this 1987 family film into a canonical chapter in our bootleg Dark Universe? We've got movies to review, including the...
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BONUS: Into the Weeds
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
You didn't think we'd go radio silent for August, did you? While we toil away at the next phase of our show, we'll be keeping the party going by releasing a few of our favorite bonus episodes — usually exclusive to our Patreon — onto the main feed. Enjoy! Sign up at to enjoy more goofy nonsense like this. Originally published to Patreon on February 16th, 2025. On this episode, D&D stray from the path and grant one Patron's wish: to create a Dark Universe version of Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods! Dalton has an unexpected reaction to one of Trek fandom's least favorite...
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Revisiting The Mummy / Fan Q&A
The Pod Universe with Dylan & Dalton
In the final episode before the big relaunch, Dylan & Dalton take one last look at the film that started it all, 2017's The Mummy, and try and figure out what they'd do differently if they'd been able to start the Dark Universe totally from scratch. Then, at long last, we answer as many fan questions as possible before closing Death's Door for good. PLUS: A clip from this month's new episode of the bonus pod, in which we pitch a Dark Universe horror-western based on a forgotten Universal flick, Curse of the Undead. Become a subscriber at to listen to all of our bonus episodes, plus...
info_outlineIn the final episode before the big relaunch, Dylan & Dalton take one last look at the film that started it all, 2017's The Mummy, and try and figure out what they'd do differently if they'd been able to start the Dark Universe totally from scratch. Then, at long last, we answer as many fan questions as possible before closing Death's Door for good.
PLUS: A clip from this month's new episode of the bonus pod, in which we pitch a Dark Universe horror-western based on a forgotten Universal flick, Curse of the Undead. Become a subscriber at Patreon.com/DylanAndDalton to listen to all of our bonus episodes, plus join our lovely Discord community.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00:00 - Intro & why we’re remote this week
00:04:04 - Reflecting on Hell on Earth
00:19:12 - Dylan & Dalton watch The Mummy (2017) AGAIN.
00:31:01 - How would we have done the Dark Universe?
00:54:00 - Clip from the Bonus Pod
00:55:53 - Fan questions: Process
01:30:23 - Fan questions: Hypotheticals
01:42:01 - Fan questions: Semantics
01:46:46 - Fan questions: Kudos