Cast Man Standing

"Dodgeball Club"

We dive deeper into Season 2 of Last Man Standing with a breakdown of "Dodgeball Club". We learn that in the LMS universe, dodgeball is the most controversial sport imaginable, and nobody better dare take away Tim Allen, or his grandson's, right to play it. It's another benchmark episode with all the xenophobia, rightwing cultural commentary and child abuse jokes you could ever hope to expect from this program. Before we get into the episode, though, we talk about Erich and Tim hanging out outside of the podcast (we really do!), BC Ferries vegan food options and Tim's ongoing review of it. There is also discussion of the allegations against Tim Allen of sexual misconduct towards Pamela Anderson on the set of Home Improvement. Obviously, we don't condone this in any way, and further enforces our already low opinion of Tim Allen.  "Ryan has dodgeball banned from Boyd's school, which infuriates Mike to the point that he teaches Boyd and his friends dodgeball in the Baxter backyard. Ed and Kyle volunteer in a search and rescue team. Mandy begins dating her school's star quarterback, which has her asking for Eve's help to brush up on football facts."

"Voting"

Oh BABY is Season 2 of Last Man Standing off to a big start with the premiere episode “Voting” coinciding with the 2012 US presidential election. If this photo hasn’t told you enough, Tim Allen is pretty clear about his political leanings in this one and we hear him rant about nearly every problematic Obama-era talking point imaginable. We try our best to navigate these murky waters while also discussing Mark going goth in Home Improvement, Simlish covers of Black Eyed Peas songs, crappy arcade games, and adults who play paintball.  "Mandy is voting for the first time, with Mike urging her to vote for Mitt Romney, while Kristin and Ryan urge her to vote for Barack Obama. Vanessa maintains secrecy about how she votes, which she claims she has done throughout her marriage to Mike. Eve, Ed, and Kyle compete in fantasy football, which has ramifications at work for Kyle when he will not make a trade with his boss, Ed."

"Found Money"

To all our lovely listeners, we made it!!! We wrap up Season 1 of Last Man Standing in a blaze of glory with the "Found Money" season finale. Tim Allen buys a frickin' tank, Vanessa's sister mooches off the Baxters and Kristen and Kyle's relationship ends with a plot that goes almost nowhere. It's a weird ending to a weird show and we're stoked for what Season 2 has to offer. Before we talk about any of that, though, we get into border crossing issues, going to the movies, finding money, and contemplate opening a laundromat/brunch restaurant.  "Vanessa's sweet-but-flighty sister, April, pays a visit. This irritates Mike, who is convinced April only wants to ask for another loan, and he has just used some extra cash to buy a tank so he and Ed can run over old cars and boats. Meanwhile, Kyle and Kristin agree to break up, but Kyle is more worried about what Mike will think."

"The Spotlight"

Welcome back to a breakdown of maybe the worst episode of Last Man Standing to date! And not "bad" for the reasons this show usually is. Like, instead of spouting rightwing values or sexist/racist/xenophobic attitudes, it commits the crime of just plain sucking. "The Spotlight" is poorly written, disjointed, and defies all basic plot structure to the point it just leaves us bummed out and confused. So, uh, enjoy hearing us talk about it! "Vanessa is nominated for an award for her volunteer efforts at the local school, but circumstances put Mike in the spotlight, so he has to try and make amends. Mandy tries to help Eve with her fears about starting high school. Ed wants to market an action-figure model of Mike in Outdoor Man, but the end product received from China has Ed thinking he must brush up on his Mandarin."

"This Bud's For You"

Welcome home to another pre-Christmas recording, so guess what we continue to talk about? Erich recounts a holiday poem he wrote about Tim Allen, Tim reacts to Trump's NFT's, we get excited about monster trucks and we reminisce about the chatrooms of yore. We also break down a rather downer episode of Last Man Standing, 'This Bud's For You', where we see Tim Allen struggling with the reality of his dad moving onto a new chapter of life.  "Bud moves into town to begin working on the new Outdoor Man store. Mike is upset that Bud's girlfriend Stella, who Mike did not know about before, has moved in with him. After getting a company physical, Mike is told he has high blood pressure."