PLUS Last Samurai Standing

0:07Welcome to Pilot Plus, your extended guide to every show that matters. And this week, we are gathered to address an oversight. Not ours, if I'm honest with you. I'd say a Netflix oversight. So, a show dropped several weeks ago called Last Samurai Standing on Netflix. And it was one of those shows, much like the original, when they dropped Squid Game originally, they didn't really talk about it much beforehand. You know, it just kind of appeared and people discovered it through the algorithm. But it quickly became a bit of a phenomenon. Lots of people talking about it online. And I was like, what is this thing?

0:36So, and this has nothing to do with the fact this is an incredibly slow week and there's nothing else on. we were like, well, you know, let's go back and let's review Last Samurai Standing on Netflix. Now, this is a show that I would describe, and I'm not the only one, because it's an incredibly glaring comparison. If you took Shogun and Squid Game and put them in a blender, you would basically come up with this show. So this stars Junichi Okada, Yumiya Fujisaki, and Kaya Kiyohara. And it is essentially a load, it's set in the, oh, let me get my ears right, it's the Meiji period in Japan. which is the late 19th century.

1:13And to give you some concepts, there's a period of time where the samurai class was essentially being sort of pushed to the margins. It's a phase-out. Right, yeah, they were being phased out. They were being constructively dismissed. So essentially, they were banned from carrying swords. They were no longer receiving stipends or financial assistance. So the samurai class was seen as anachronistic and Japan was modernizing, so they didn't want samurais around. So enter essentially the Squid Game, where they offer a huge catch prize. There's almost like the piggy bank from Squid Game, except it's a big earthenware urn thing full of gold coins.

1:43And they invite, I think it's 292 samurai into this arena. And the idea is that they're going to play a game. And if they agree to play the game, they have to play the game. They cannot quit the game. And the essentially game is, you're going to go through various checkpoints to get to Tokyo, and you must fight to the death along the way. It's basically my idea of a better race across the world. So, because you have to have a certain amount of points at each checkpoint, and that's caused by these wooden tokens you have around your neck. So you essentially have to kill people and take their tokens.

2:13And that's, broadly speaking, the setup of this. And the main character here, who is played by Junichi Okada, he is an old sort of former samurai, a war veteran with crippling PTSD, and doesn't like to unsheathe his sword. But yeah, so, Boydie, that's, broadly speaking, the setup for this. What did you think? Well, first of all, this was, as you said, it is a quiet week, so it's fair enough that we're doing it. But I don't think it's that glaring an omission. Because, I mean, you were saying everyone's talking about it online. It has been a lot of buzz. Maybe in your world. Well, maybe. In James' universe.

2:45But, first of all, it's not in the top ten, we should say, of the UK. So the algorithm doesn't like it. I mean, you know, it's not... Maybe it will grow. I mean, I looked online, and you're right, there's a lot of, you know, people... Basically, the reason it's causing so much discussion is because of your description. Yeah, because it's Shogun meets Squid Game. So extraordinarily, particularly the Squid Game element of it. So, so heavy. It's insane how similar it is, because you've also got bigwigs kind of watching and betting on them. Oh, yeah, like the VIPs. Like the VIPs, yeah. And the host, again, has a real...

3:16And also, and this may not be true, but I was curious, I turned on the dub at one point, and I would swear Blinded is the same people doing... Maybe they do all the Netflix stuff, I have no idea. But I recognise the voices doing the dub from Squid Game. Yeah, I mean, it may be the case, yeah. So it is really weird. And Netflix, I was also doing the research, and Netflix are very keen to point out this was commissioned, or at least mooted, as a show before Squid Game came along. Yeah, but did you see the dates, they said? Yes, I did see the dates, yes. So one reviewer pointed out, an American reviewer pointed out, that actually, unless it's a misprint, the dates don't tally with what they're saying.

3:57No, because I think, oh, this was in development in 2022. Yeah, well, Squid Game aired the year before. Yeah, so it's a real mystery. and also did anything like this really happen? No I mean there's vague attempts by some people somewhere to say something might have happened but no I don't think it did I don't think it did either so it's fascinating from that point of view as for the show itself it starts out in absolutely spectacular style there's this amazing battle sequence and it kind of feels like a one shot is it a one shot? Halfway through I was thinking is this one shot? Do you know what?

4:30I didn't notice It's beautifully shot Beautifully shot your main guy here Junichi Okada he's the action choreographer and the star so he's very much in the thick of it very much like what's his Jackie Chan Jackie Chan was like full on kind of directing being starring and doing all the choreography etc so he's the new Jackie Chan for sure so that sequence is astonishing and it's like incredible mass slaughter beheading then there's these like bombs that arrive at the end of the thing I'm like what are these where did they come from and it's incredibly effective and then it settles down to show you his backstory with his very sick daughter and wife.

5:09And there's a lot... There's a cholera outbreak, isn't there? There's a cholera epidemic going on. Falls on the heartstrings. Just to add to the sense of fun. But it's what you're saying. It's basically the setup of Squid Game. Is it people in financial hardship and desperation are forced into this dangerous game? Yeah. So I think the main reason why it's so interesting as a project is because of the mad connections to Squid Game. but I think once it's settled down and starts doing what Squid Game had to do which is introduce you to a cast of characters who are all going to end up taking part in this game it becomes slightly less interesting and the characters at least to start with I've only watched the first episode are fairly one dimensional but you can't really blame them You don't have to watch the second one because the first one ends on a cliffhanger I couldn't stop Oh yeah, I know It's more of a timing issue Fair enough It does end on and it's bookended by the beginning and the ending are both really kind of exciting and intense and the big old battle royale in the middle yeah I mean there's a lot going on and it is really well handled did you see there was another thing this week there's been a lot of Netflix news stories and stuff going on Stranger Things arrives by the way hopefully we'll be reviewing that if we all get up early enough in the morning but yeah about how all Netflix shows look the same now you know this went back years ago there was this claim that all Netflix shows look the same and have the same kind of colour palette but I was watching the thing that struck me about this show this doesn't look like every other Netflix show at all and it has its own look and feel I don't even know if that and I was reading this a recent article delineating all these Netflix shows that supposedly are the same which I don't think they do I'm really going I don't think that's true anyway you should do a counter article if I had the time pull your finger out maybe yeah I might do a counter sentence just to point out we've done it you said it now exactly it's out there the person who wrote the article should listen to what I'm saying but this but this felt like a show in and of itself which had its own unique style and approach and it is it is spectacular I mean it looks it looks really expensive you know that's the other thing it's not like a it doesn't feel like a kind of you know rip off of those shows we mentioned it feels like it's got the production values of Shogun I mean not quite as no I don't think completely the same right well I think it doesn't need to have quite Shogun has this epic historical depiction of the people the different rivals people in charge of the country.

7:32It just has an intrinsically more epic story. I think this is a slightly smaller scale. I mean, the battle sequences and all of that are a big scale. But it's a personal journey, isn't it? It's Lone Wolf and Carb is what this is. That's what I'm trying to say. Yeah, exactly. But, you know, within its production, it's still pretty impressive. I think it looks the part. It looks like it's had money thrown at it. And it's pretty decent, yeah. But I didn't feel, unlike you, I didn't feel I had to carry on watching it but I will hopefully catch up and yeah it's an interesting phenomenon I'd like to hear more about just how just how when it was commissioned because that's the interesting thing okay so I think anyone who likes Shogun will love this if you love being immersed in that world and I did love Shogun so I did enjoy watching this I don't think the quality is I mean I can see that there is money on the screen but I don't it doesn't compare to me to Shogun which I think is in a league of its own but yeah this is what I'm describing as soapy squid gun right and I think if you like lean into that of this like this blend of these two shows and the fact that it's because I think some of the acting like particularly by our main guy some of it it's there is a soapy quality to it you know these lingering glances and like and in terms of the fighting and everything I actually got samurai fatigue I'd say three quarters the way through because it's only like it's a blitz It's this blizzard of like sword fighting, head decapitations, etc.

9:01And there was a point where I was like, shall I just forward it for a few? Because it was interminable at one point. But I think it's really enjoyable. I don't think it's, you know, up there with Shogun, and I don't know if I'll watch any more. But if you love that world, you're going to, yeah, lap it up. Yeah, I think there is an issue that you are slightly numbed to, because there's so much violence going on intrinsically within the storyline. There has to be. yeah you get a bit immune to it and a bit it all kind of yeah i think that is a danger and it was shogun if i remember rightly didn't really have that much action going on it was about kind of exploring the characters developing the characters introducing them just introducing us to this quite complicated world um whereas this is just going hell for leather isn't it most of the time um thrusting you into the into the violence and mayhem i did enjoy the checkpoint the mention of the checkpoints because i did think yeah this is race across the world but oh yeah it's race Race Across the World as well.

9:56It is, exactly. Yeah, that's the other thing it is. It's Shogun meets the... What's it called? Squid Game meets Race Across the World, which, of course, you would know about, James. I did. I referenced Race Across the World when I introduced it. Oh, did you? Yeah. See, I'm not the only one who doesn't listen. No, he didn't. Don't get smug. We both know that there's one winner of that. I was more monitoring your pronunciation of the star names. I see. I see. That's fair. I don't actually think this really has much, if any, DNA in common with Shogun, other than the fact that it's set in this kind of feudal Japanese time period.

10:26Or post-feudal, I guess, at this point. But it's kind of like, because it begins with the Bochian War, and that I think you could definitely get fatigue from, because he's running through the battlefield just like, and you're seeing this sort of central character in his prime. He's the manslayer. He's this extraordinary samurai, and he just carves a path through this battlefield. And then kind of showing that samurai have essentially become an anachronism, then they sort of bombard them with artillery. It's like, you know, all the swords you like, but we've got mortars. And then you see him afterwards, you know, flash forward a few years later, after the war, he's horribly PTSD'd from all of his ordeals, but also desperate.

11:04So I think, you know, to your point, Kay, I think if you like that sort of like Japanese period, you know, sword, samurai, all that kind of, you know, Shambara stuff, then absolutely it delivers on that. It's quite, I think, computer game inspired. I mean, the last episode, I think, is literally called Mortal Kombat. but there's an element of that in that and I get why they've done it so you have these 292 samurai spoiler not that many by the end of the first episode quite a few get killed but there are very distinct like there's a big grizzly one with dreadlocks and there's another one with a robe and there's like a woman with her weapons and so there are I would say very visually distinctive archetypes amongst the fighters and that for me feels quite gamey but actually I understand why they've done it because you need some visual distinction because otherwise you're right, you get samurai fatigue, it's just people hitting each other with swords.

11:53I actually like that they've got a variety of different weapons and characters, like a huge guy with this great big fat scimitar thing. And it's, you know, I thought the fighting stuff was brilliantly choreographed. I thought it was really, really entertaining. Oh, yeah. I don't think he's only disputing that. It's just more the amount of it. But you also have that squid game aspect where you've got men with guns hiding behind gun ports. Just picking them off. Picking them off when they break the rules. It's so squid game. But that honestly just made it incredibly compelling to me because it is, for me, it's like, it's Squid Game, but it's on the road and it's like in this kind of, and he, we should say, when I mentioned Lone Wolf and Carbis, because there's a young woman there who's clearly out of her depth and she's there to kind of save her mother and he takes her under his wing to try and protect her.

12:34And so he ends up with her and she is, to be fair, certainly early on, a bit of a liability. But yeah, I thought it was really well put together. I blazed through the second episode. I'm really enjoying it. I think it's six episodes long. It's quite short. Do you not feel the music cheapened it somewhat? I didn't. No, I didn't have an issue with the music. No, I thought the whole thing was great. I don't recommend listening to the dub. I did it for about five minutes and then immediately turned it off again. The subtitles, obviously, not on a par with Shoguns. But, you know, I dealt with it. They were quite big, though, weren't they?

13:04Oh, they were big. They just weren't quite as good. Not big enough for this. No, that's right. No, for a while. This connoisseur. I think on the length, I think Six seems right. I'm trying to work out how they're going to stretch it to that far. And continue it. Yeah. But it's, yeah, I think this is one of those really nice discoveries on Netflix. You're like, oh, this is great. Didn't know what it is. It's here. So I do, I recommend people watch it. I think it's a load of fun. Last Samurai Standing on the Netflix. Now. Okay, brilliant. Shall we have the post bag? I was just thinking a spin-off show for us would be the last Pilot TV pod standing.

13:41Last podcast standing. for our Christmas party. Wow. Well, But you've often said that we should go on Race Across the World, so perhaps this is a more interesting spin on it. Yeah. We all just have wooden dog tags. Yeah. And by the end of the party, see who's... See who's got them all. Yeah. God. Anyway, it's something to think about. Ask two for standing. Yeah. Right. Are we going to do post? Yes. Let's do the post bag. Ladies and gentlemen, it's Miss Kay versus the post bag.

14:22Because the sort of like the post bag potluck work quite well, I'm going to go for it again, James. Okay. This is a... The triage system emerges triumphant. Well, for this week. Right, so we are going to start with a message from Andrew who says, Hi guys, I seem to remember James asking for us to give feedback on what we thought about Pilot and Pilot Plus. What was the outcome? I suggested that the three of you should recommend a programme each week, so less of a benevolent dictatorship in operation. Imagine the variety of shows we could hear about. Thanks, Andrew. Well, obviously, I got a team of people to sort through all of the data and separate it into separate spreadsheets, which I then spent many hours poring over, distilling all of your feedback into the show itself.

15:10Oh, good shame. And that is largely what's happened and is continuing to happen. Is it really? Yeah, it's an ongoing process. Okay, just so you know, his eyes are basically telling a different story. Okay, fine, he forgot about it. No, I did not forget. I did not forget. And to be fair, I have gone through a number of... Well, the reason why the kind of spoiler specials got broken out of this episode into their own separate entities is partly for that reason, because that was an overwhelming request from people. Okay. But yes, no, I appreciated all of the feedback. It was great. Okay, well, there's your answer, Andrew.

15:41we can take that you took one bit of advice from the questionnaires and the rest of it is now languishing no I'm sure you are filtering it and slowly yes yes that is that is exactly what is happening that's what we're saying yeah I'm actually happy because I was terrified about the results I don't know about you so the fact that you know yeah it was really I was just scared to share it with Kay that's really what it was I mean I'm a very sensitive son the one who don't slurp tea in the middle of oh he's going to do it he's literally he's slurping tea look at him I love it he can't be contained he just has to do what he wants to do I'm sorry just needs must sometimes always stay hydrated Boydo right so now this one comes from Marek who says oh James you like this a subject heading of a bone to pick with James oh god great so that's a good start they love the potluck nature of the pace back yeah I really enjoy it it seems heavily skewed in a certain direction I wonder why that is no usually I filter this stuff out right okay so he says I've been listening to your fab podcast since it started and while it's an essential part of my week and has helped me wade through the overwhelming amount of TV and choose what to watch, I've recently noticed one glaring omission, documentaries.

16:47I strongly suspect this is due to the authoritarian control James has over what you review and is famously, ha ha ha, a version of things, even barely touching on reality. There are a wealth of fantastic documentaries on streaming services that are just as compelling and dramatic as scripted shows, but there are also a huge amount to choose from and it would be great if you could help your listeners wade through these too. I just watched The Perfect Neighbor on Netflix, which was fantastic. What are some of your favorite documentaries? And James, they don't all have to be scary and depressing and hard to watch.

17:18The latest Eddie Murphy documentary was really funny and interesting. Well, that's a film, so we wouldn't cover that. Being Eddie, which is, yes, quite correct. It's very good. If you're into Eddie Murphy, it's great. But no, so we've covered documentaries in the past, though generally speaking only when there hasn't been a relevant scripted show. We would have covered the Beatles anthology, because last week was very slow, except we didn't get screened, so we literally couldn't. And it was heavily embargoed. And it was heavily embargoed. I think you maybe overestimate my amount of authoritarian control over this podcast.

17:50I don't think it's true about the documentaries. I don't think that he's underestimated it, but I would say... I don't know the demis. But, oh my God. I wish I had more control over this podcast. Absolutely not. But anyways, no, he hasn't put his foot down about documentaries, to be fair. No, I have not banned them. Oh yeah, I think our emphasis from the start, the whole nub of the Pilot TV podcast was cinematic television. That was the whole kind of start of it, of the brand, if I can use that word, wasn't it? And obviously documentaries can be cinematic and often are, and they're often in their way as creative, etc., as scripted shows.

18:32But I think unashamedly our emphasis is always going to be on transcripted stuff just because that's how it all started really so and i guess um you know everyone every now and then did we do the the uh the beetle the last beetles documentary i'm trying to remember which was so interestingly i watched that yeah and i can't think why else i would have done my memories we did because yeah i remember watching yeah exactly i mean i would watch it anyway because i'm i love the beetles but um that i think we did that and we i think back in the day Making a Murderer didn't we do that because that was such a phenomenon I don't think we did Making a Murderer but we've done a few we've done a few true crime was there a staircase staircase maybe yeah we've done a few of those true crime that really hit home and became phenomena and I think we would again but and I love you know do you know what we probably should have done recently in a good example is the Martin Scorsese series Mr Scorsese Mr Scorsese which is which I loved and is a you know it's kind of inherently cinematic because half of it is clips of his work, you know, etc.

19:35Did you mention it? I did mention it. I totally mentioned it. Kay would have vetoed it because it involves films. Yeah, maybe. No, if it's a TV show, I would have. Yeah, no. But something like that, I think we probably should have done looking back on it. But I can't remember what else was on that week, etc., etc. But in general, we admit, it is for good or ill, documentaries are lower on our list of priorities. Yes, but it's not on James. That's just a... No, no, that's definitely... I mean, that's not James. Many other things are my fault. Yeah, everything is his fault. We should emphasise that.

20:01Oh, yeah, he carries the burden for everything else. I mean, we generally assume everything is his fault, and then every now and then there will be something... But on this particular occasion. We're nothing if not fair. Thank you. I'm innocent. But it's like saying one more thing. We don't do... There's other genres of TV we don't really do. Animation, Boyd, lest we forget. No, we have done animation. We have done animation. Similarly, when it's a phenomenon, we have done animation. Oh, really? I advocated for Arcane. I loved Arcane. Yeah, exactly. And I watched that, as I recall, based on essentially listeners telling me that I needed to watch it.

20:29and I did a Bojack Horseman yes you did in fact we did watch that I did not enjoy it no there you go because we did we did a few when we I don't know if it was an off spin off spin an off spin one of those off spins I don't know if it was a funny or dire thing but we went through a period of watching like we did a Rick and Morty we did a few different things on Pilot Plus I think because people got so annoyed with both you and me because was Beth a fact so Beth was our animation correspondent oh okay so she used to champion animated stuff It has been a lack. So it is, in many ways, your form. Listen, when I signed up, you knew that I didn't like animation.

21:06But okay, let's move on to now, James, who says... Is this me? Is this me writing in for right of reply? James Heal, who says, My pilot crew, Boyd briefly mentioned Death by Lightning a couple of weeks back. I'm only two episodes down, but so far it's been fantastic. And it's all largely down to Matthew McFadden. He really brings that Tom succession energy to the role. in a way the show feels like someone typed in Broadwalk Empire does the West Wing but with some succession dark humour to create this show and it really works it's going to be high up there alongside the Chair Company and Pluribus in my end of year list we're really being treated to some great TV this autumn kind regards James yeah Chair Company another show that we weren't able to cover on the podcast I think Boyd did you mentioned it I mentioned the big erect penis shot last week oh yes you did we've not had any complaints about that that I've seen which is good what about the erect penis no about the spoilers about Yes,

22:03I second all those things. And Matthew McFadden is brilliant in that show. I think he'll get Emmy nominations and everything. Heard it here first. Okay, actually, I'm going to skip forward to some spoiler stuff because you mentioned spoilers. And the subject of this is Boyd versus the Spoiler Police. Excellent. Oh, God. Come for Boyd. You've already had your pound of flesh from me. Right. so this is from Alison who says hello lovely pilot team in the case of Boyd versus the spoiler please just now Alison I just want you to know because I've skim read this so I know where it's going right but Boyd doesn't and crucially at one point his arms were crossed in a very like telling way yeah the people versus Boyd Hilton as we should call this may I direct the jury's attention to the title of the episode of Pluribus for which Boyd is accused of giving spoilers which is grenade yes Okay, that's really funny.

22:58As basically, all boys said was, I love the bit with the grenade. I rest my case, Your Honour. Thank you. Yes, Alison, well done. Oh, what a hero. Always a bit exonerated. Yes. This was disappointing. I know. Do you know what? Because I had skim read it. I led you down the garden path, James. You did. But anyway, she goes on and says, I just wanted to say thanks for a fantastic pod that has allowed me to catch great new shows like Pluribus and also older shows that get a mention as being favourites of one or more of the team. this allowed me to discover some absolute delights such as the leftovers which i had missed at the time and brassic where i had the great pleasure of binging season one six prior to the finale of season seven which i'd love a spoiler tastic discussion of i have questions regarding older favorite shows would the team still advise watching the oa which i've not seen despite the fact that the planned story arc was cut short or will it just be too upsetting keep up the good work five star, no notes.

23:51I think you absolutely can, because A, I think the first season of the OA could stand alone, to an extent. And the second one, even that also, it doesn't stand alone in that it ends on a kind of big cliffhanger, but not... It's weird, it's hard to explain without spoiling it, which I'm not going to do, but I would argue, wouldn't you agree, Bordy, that the ending of the OA... It is a cliffhanger because it's tantalising, but the broad events of season two do get wrapped up. It's just, there's a thing on the end, there's a coda that will blow your mind and it's just so exciting what they would have done after that, which we'll never get to see First of all we might get to see because still in answer to any question about it, they say well Jason Isaacs, on this very podcast we interviewed him before, the White Lotus was like, no we're still talking about how to carry on, so I mean I live in hope that one day it will be, I can't quite come to terms with the idea that it won't be because the ending is such a extraordinary thing of season two that it will be insane for us to never find out what the fuck is going on.

24:54So, yes, resoundingly, you should watch the OA. Yes. As should everyone else. Okay, Alison. And thanks on Boyd's behalf for the defence, right? Very much so. Grenade, here we come. Now for a message from Bent who says, taking a risk here because I know that Boyd doesn't play games, Kay doesn't play games, nor has much interest in superhero stories. And James brushed over this last week on the phone. what this is going to be about. But you should really give Dispatch a try. Is this what you thought? Yeah. Okay, he says, yes, it's a game, but think interactive narrative with some mini-games. It's the best superhero story in years across any medium.

25:31The writing is exceptional with A-list performances from Aaron Paul, Geoffrey Wright, and Laura Bailey, brackets Abby from The Last of Us. Come on, James. I'm attaching a 9 out of 10 review to win you over. You're genuinely missing out on something special. Loyal paying listener from Norway who will bring you all real chocolate in capsules at the next Pilot TV or Empire Live show. Best regards, Bent. The next Empire Live show is I think on the 9th of January. So best book your ticket. Okay. Episode 700, I think. Wow. I don't remember. What an achievement. Yeah, don't even. But this, with this patch, yes, I have heard that it's fabulous.

26:05The issue I have, I don't enjoy that type of game. Those kind of interactive narrative games, the telltale type story. Nick, the assemblyman of the Empire Parish, loves those things. But I'm always a bit like, I could just watch this on YouTube and it would be much the same because you don't really, there's not a lot of interaction. You're really just watching it play out. Now, Dispatch started life, it was going to be a TV show before it became a games, which I think, and a lot of that DNA is still in it. So I'm interested in it, but I like games that have proper gameplay. So, just to give you some perspective on this, so The Expanse released a Telltale game, which was an Expanse narrative game where you kind of interact with it, but really it's just an interactive story.

26:44What does Telltale game mean? Telltale, no, Telltale is a company. and they make a lot of these games. The first game of theirs that I genuinely love, which is the very first Walking Dead game they did, which I thought was really powerful, and I thought that was great. But then every game of theirs I played afterwards, these are all very much the same. Like, Clementine will remember this. And I got a bit bored of it. Nick loves them, as I say. I just don't really. It's a type of storytelling I've never really been able to get on board with. I'm like, give me something I can just watch or give me something I can play, but I don't like this kind of hinterland between them.

27:17That said, all of that said, I will do my absolute best to give it a go because we're going to be doing the Games of the Year list on the website. Talking about Unsung Heroes. So I will maybe see if we can have a look at it for that. What is this Dispatch game about? Superheroes, essentially. I think it's a dispatch centre for superheroes, is my understanding. But I know it's had great reviews. It's supposed to be fabulous. Do you know what? Not least from Bent. Right. I'm going to assume it's Ben T. But I don't know. Oh, Ben T. Oh, my God. Oh, Lord. Well, Ben. Ben T. Well. I'm going to send myself a reminder now.

27:47Is that a Norwegian name? I don't know. I'm so embarrassed. I don't know, but I'm going to... Benti, I'm so sorry that I've just been calling you Benter. Hey, I don't... It might be Benter. It might be. Benter is a name. Nicholas Bender was an Arsenal player. Oh, really? It could be just his nickname. Yeah, all names turn back to Arsenal. But I've sent myself a reminder to get hold of a copy of the game for consideration for our Games of the Year list. Oh, very good. See, your emails matter. Yeah, there we go. You've moved the needle. Wow. Right, now for a message from Michael. And the subject heading is, in defence of lint.

28:19Yes. Dear James. Love it. Here we go. I agree with you on quite a number of things. Foundation and reality chase, for example. And I love dairy milk chocolate as much as any other chocoholic worth their sugar. Well done. But to rank it above lint, which is arguably the greatest chocolate in the world, is just absurd. Does he just like the little rabbits? Hang your head in shame, he says. Hi, Kay and Boyd. Just for the record, you three can bang on about chocolate or long promised cakes or New York hotel rooms or missed trains or even TV shows as much as you like. I'm just happy to hear the three of you chatting twice a week.