We interview Belce, the writer and artist behind the Graphic Novel Kickstarter, Spices and Sorcery, which gives the entire SWANA region a culturally rich and diverse fantasy adventure.
Continue reading “Kickstart This: Belce’s Mesmerizing SWANA Fantasy, ‘Spices and Sorcery’”
Mae interviews acclaimed Swedish-Egyptian director Tarik Saleh on the final entry in his Cairo Trilogy, Eagles of the Republic.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 80: ‘Eagles of the Republic’ Writer-Director Tarik Saleh”
We review Lee Cronin’s latest film set in Egypt with our dear friend, actor Ali Nasser.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 79: ‘Lee Cronin’s The Mummy’ Review with Ali Nasser”
This past week, Egypt unveiled its new Grand Museum with a resounding announcement of their new magnificent structure spotlighting their country’s antiquities. After decades and decades of the West’s cultural theft of their relics, stories, and monopolizing of scholarship on Egypt, the museum’s opening highlights Egypt’s ownership and sovereignty over their rich history, archaeology, and scholarship, serving as a signal forward past the extreme Orientalist narratives the West thrust on it.
Continue reading “At First Glance, Universal’s ‘Mummy’ Sequel is Orientalist Regression”
Nadia Osman joins us once again to review Ramy Youssef and Pam Brady’s new raunchy animated series on Amazon Prime, #1 Happy Family USA.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 73: ‘#1 Happy Family USA’ Review”
We welcome on debut author Rania Hanna to discuss her new book, The Jinn Daughter!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 65: Author Rania Hanna on ‘The Jinn Daughter’”
Joined by our friends Nadia Osman and Zaina Ujayli, The Middle Geeks review the latest Indiana Jones film and how it continues the franchise’s trend of racism and Orientalism against North African peoples.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 55: ‘Indiana Jones’ Dials Up the CGI and Orientalism”
We welcome Hanna back on the podcast for us to review Black Adam together!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 45: ‘Black Adam’ Review with Hanna Flint”
Tariq Raouf joins us once again to review the third season of Ramy, out on Hulu now!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 43: ‘Ramy’ Season 3 Review”
When we find the Hassan family at the start of Ramy Season 3, the son of the family has brought not only shame, but severe consequences for his family that threaten the life they’ve built in the States. Where do they go from here, and will they ever be able to pay back their debts? How will the Hassan family change through their experiences this season?
Continue reading “The Cast of ‘Ramy’ on What’s in Store for the Hassan Family in Season 3”
Ramy is never an easy show to watch. It’s compelling and funny, but it never shies away from showing the (many) faults of its title character, and occasionally those of his family and friends.
Slight setup spoilers for Ramy Season 3 follow:
Continue reading “‘Ramy’ Season 3 is As Funny and Engaging As Ever”
Ramy Hassan’s stated journey has been finding moral clarity on his life and what it means to be a good Muslim. Only problem is, he’s a constantly selfish screw-up. When we left him at the end of last season, he was at his lowest and most morally depraved, having completely humiliated his new (and immediately former) wife Zainab (MaameYaa Boafo), and rightfully enraging her father Sheikh Ali Malek (Mahershala Ali). Where does he go from here, and how will this inform his apparent crisis of faith in Islam?
Continue reading “‘Ramy’ Season 3 Teases a Spiritual Crisis for the Hassan Family”
We discuss episodes 5-6 of the new MCU Disney+ series Moon Knight starring Oscar Isaac, May Calamawy, and Ethan Hawke, joined once again by our friend Hanna Flint!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 38: ‘Moon Knight’ Episodes 5-6”
We discuss episodes 3-4 of the new MCU Disney+ series Moon Knight starring Oscar Isaac, May Calamawy, and Ethan Hawke, joined by Egyptian writer and podcaster, Nadia Osman!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 37: ‘Moon Knight’ Episodes 3-4”
We discuss episodes 1-2 of the new MCU Disney+ series Moon Knight starring Oscar Isaac, May Calamawy, and Ethan Hawke.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 36: ‘Moon Knight’ Episodes 1-2”
Many new viewers may ask themselves “Who the hell are Moon Knight and Marc Spector?” The protagonist of the titular Disney+ series, Steven Grant, grapples with the same question as he’s swept on a psychological and mythological ride across the globe.
Continue reading “NOC Review: ‘Moon Knight’ Raises the Bar for What the MCU Can Be”
We are delighted to welcome Abubakr Ali on the podcast, who will be playing the titular role in Netflix’s Grendel, making him the FIRST Arab and Muslim actor to headline a comic adaptation in TV/Film! We discuss what got him into acting, his career so far, what his favorite superhero and other media are, and much more. Enjoy the conversation!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Interview: Abubakr Ali of Netflix’s ‘Grendel’”
Ferdosa joins us to discuss the Netflix documentary Lift Like a Girl! How well did this documentary do at showcasing the weightlifting journey of Asmaa and her team, and the depiction of everyday Egyptians? What could it have done better? We also discuss the exciting news that Black Palestinian writer and actor Yassir Lester will be the head writer of the upcoming MCU series Armor Wars, and speculate on what that might mean for the MCU’s penchant for military propaganda. Enjoy listening!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 29: ‘Lift Like a Girl’ and an MCU Assessment”
For Pride Month, we are so excited to have on Amin El Gamal, who plays Sam on the amazing queer Ramadan rom-com Breaking Fast, which is now on Hulu! We dig into what drew Amin to acting, the experience of filming Breaking Fast and working with Mike Mosallam, their thoughts on the current landscape of MENA and queer stories in film and, what he’d love to see more of in the industry, and much more!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Interview: Amin El Gamal of ‘Breaking Fast’”
We are joined by our friend Tariq Raouf to discuss the upcoming film Breaking Fast, which features a gay Arab-American Muslim as its protagonist! We discuss what we enjoyed about the film, what director and writer Mike Mosallam was trying to say with this delightful rom-com, how well it does with representation for Arabs, Muslims, and Ramadan, and where it could have been better. Before that, in our MENA news segment, we have some GREAT news to discuss with Ramy’s May Calamawy being base in Marvel’s Moon Knight! And another of our faves, Rami Malek, has been cast in a lead role in David O’Rusell’s upcoming film! Enjoy listening!
Spoilers for Breaking Fast begin around 26:06
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 22: ‘Breaking Fast’ Review”
We are joined by the wonderful Hanna Flint to discuss Wonder Woman 1984 in this special bonus episode! We discuss the various ups and downs of the film, how well we thought the actors did with the script and story they had, and whether this movie did Diana Prince/Wonder Woman justice. We also discuss the many racist and Orientalist aspects of its depiction of Egypt and Egyptian people, and how detrimental it is for MENA representation. There’s a LOT to discuss, and we go through it all. Enjoy listening!
Spoilers for Wonder Woman 1984 begin around 11:26.
TW for discussion of rape and sexual assault 11:44 -12:57
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 21: ‘Wonder Woman 1984’ and its MENA Issues”
We’re back with a LOT to discuss. Joining us is a prolific cosplayer, streamer, and friend, Jasmin! We discuss Jasmin’s cosplaying and how the cosplay community has been doing in quarantine. We also discuss the announcement of a queer Ramadan rom-com coming out next month, highlights of the MCU announcements from last week, and how MENA people are WINNING as directors for Ms. Marvel and Moon Knight, why we’re so excited for these series, and our thoughts on the castings (and on the ones that are controversial), and discuss Netflix’s Mosul as our movie of the month. Enjoy!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 20: Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel, and Mosul”
This month we’re joined by filmmaker Shahab Zargari to discuss Netflix’s new supernatural series Paranormal, a supernatural drama set in Egypt, with a story actually told by Egyptians! We’re excited to dive into this overall excellent show. We also interview Shahab on his filmmaking career and what drives his art, discuss the roller coaster of recent Arrowverse news and what it says about DCTV moving forward, and give our recommendations. Also, we have a very special announcement!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 19: ‘Paranormal’ Activity in Egypt (on Netflix)”
