We review Darin J. Sallam’s searing and visceral film, Farha, which details the first horrific events of the Nakba.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 49: ‘Farha’ Review and the Resistance of Palestine”
Like us, you know her, you love her as Zari Tarazi on Legends of Tomorrow, it’s Tala Ashe herself on the podcast! Mae has a riveting conversation with Tala on her life and career, her time as Zari on Legends, what she learned about herself playing the role, her theater roles in the SWANA plays English and The Vagrant Trilogy, and much more!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 48: Tala Ashe on Her Career and the Situation in Iran”
We welcome Zaina onto the podcast for us to review The Swimmers!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 47: ‘The Swimmers’ Review with Zaina Ujayli”
We welcome Iranian American actress Kathreen Khavari on the podcast!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 46: Kathreen Khavari on Her Career and the Iran Protests”
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”
We welcome Hanna back on the podcast to discuss her new debut book Strong Female Character!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 44: ‘Strong Female Character’ with Author 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”
We discuss episodes 1-2 of the new MCU Disney+ series Ms. Marvel, joined by Nerdist contributor Maryam Ahmad!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 40: ‘Ms. Marvel’ Episodes 3-4 Review”
We are delighted to welcome on Kuwaiti American author Chelsea Abdullah who has just made her debut with the mesmerizing Arab fantasy novel The Stardust Thief!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Interview: Chelsea Abdullah, Author of ‘The Stardust Thief’”
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”
We are delighted to speak with Legends of Tomorrow cast member Shayan Sobhian and his writing partner and director Max Mooney on their new film Does Bigfoot Dream of Flowers?. What inspired them to do this project? How is this depiction of Bigfoot similar and different from those we’ve seen before? We also hear from Shayan on his role as Behrad on Legends of Tomorrow, and where the show might go from their recent Season 7 finale.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks: Shayan Sobhian and Max Mooney on ‘Does Bigfoot Dream of Flowers?’”
We discuss Netflix’s new horror series Archive 81, which headlines two SWANA stars with Mamoudou Athie and Dina Shihabi! What did we enjoy about this creepy series? Would it have been better if Mamoudou and Dina’s characters were SWANA coded? What do we want from a Season 2?
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 35: ‘Archive 81’ Review”
Even though there’s not a lot to be merry about, we count our blessings and make it merry! We also discuss the wonderful 2020 film Gaza Mon Amour by director brothers Tarzan and Arab Nasser, which shows old love in the middle of Gaza, starring our fave Hiam Abbass. We also discuss the exciting news of We Are Lady Parts Season 2 renewal, Mena Massoud’s new Netflix rom-com coming out soon, and much more!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 33: ‘Gaza Mon Amour’ Review and Holiday Edition”
We’re excited to have Meg Humphrey of Rogue Podron on to discuss Star Wars: Visions, the new anime anthology on Disney+ that breathes fresh life into this franchise with Japanese creators, crafting stories in a universe that was *heavily* inspired by their own culture.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 32: The Promise of ‘Star Wars: Visions’”
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’”
Denis Villeneuve’s Dune adaptation, based on a book that was explicitly and heavily influenced by Middle East and North African (MENA) and Islamic cultures, is out, and we are joined by our friends and fellow MENA critics Hanna Flint and Roxana Hadadi to review it.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 31: ‘Dune’ Review”
Slight setup spoilers for DC’s Legends of Tomorrow Season 7 follow below:
DC’s Legends of Tomorrow is coming back already! After closing Season 6 last month! In the Season 6 finale, just as our time-traveling superheroes celebrated their victory over alien invaders in 1925 Texas, their time-travel ship, the Waverider, was blown up by another Waverider that just came and left! This is where we see them at the beginning of Season 7, and there’s going to be no easy way for them to get out of this one.
Continue reading “Showrunner Keto Shimizu Discusses Season 7 of ‘DC’s Legends of Tomorrow’”
Created by Jordanian creator Tima Shomali, AlRawabi School for Girls is a devastatingly excellent series on Netflix exploring the dynamics of a Jordanian high school. What causes these girls to escalate their psychological wars on each other? How does this series do at exploring some of the systemic patriarchal problems in Middle Eastern societies? We discuss all of that and why we love this series.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks 30: ‘AlRawabi School for Girls’ Makes ‘Mean Girls’ Look Like Cotton Candy”
Middle East and North African (MENA) and Muslim people have had scant options when it comes to the superhero genre or comic book adaptations generally. Arab and Persian people in particular have most often been vilified in popular media through the decades. But this is thankfully starting to change, such as with the Tarazi siblings on DC’s Legends of Tomorrow for Persian people, but perhaps now for Arab people with the news from Deadline that Netflix is developing a Grendel series, based on Matt Wagner’s comic series of the same name, and has cast The CW’s Katy Keene star and Abubakr Ali in the starring role!
Continue reading “Abubakr Ali Cast as Titular Anti-Hero for 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”
Palestinian historian and scholar N.A. Mansour joins us to discuss the situation in Palestine, where the situation stands now, how pop culture plays into the dehumanization of Palestinians, and what you can do to help and learn more about Palestinian people and their struggles. We also discuss all of Loki Season 1! What did we like about the series, and what themes resonated with us? Where could it have done better in areas? We also give our recommendations, and much more!
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks Episode 28: Palestine in Pop Culture and ‘Loki’”
Shayan Sobhian, aka Behrad Tarazi of Legends of Tomorrow, joins Swara to discuss his upcoming episode, “This is Gus!” They talk about how Shayan relates to his character, the importance and impact of representation, and how Behrad may be developing this season. Enjoy listening!Â
This is a podcast form of the interview published here for The Nerds of Color.
Continue reading “The Middle Geeks: Shayan Sobhian of ‘DC’s Legends of Tomorrow’”
Since coming onto the Legends team in a revamped timeline in the Season 4 finale, Behrad Tarazi, younger brother of Zari Tarazi, has been a fixture on Legends of Tomorrow. But it was only this season that his actor, the mult-talented Shayan Sobhian, was promoted to a series regular. He’s the chillest member of the Waverider crew, always looking to defuse tension and make sure that he and his friends have a good time.
Continue reading “NOC Interview: Shayan Sobhian of ‘DC’s Legends of Tomorrow’”