The High Tech Low Life Podcast: A Cyberpunk Media Retrospective

This episode has a fresh intro to recap the insane antics of the week and offer up a few recommendations, then we dive back into Simon Morden's Equations of Life.  Once again we are joined by Geoff from the Astronomica Podcast. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Astronomica: http://www.astronomicapodcast.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/johnny60seconds Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com Cover art by Gillyvor

It's another book episode, which means we are joined by Geoff from Astronomica to use our mushy little brains and read words on paper (or listen to someone else read them at us) and this time we are reading Equations of Life by Simon Morden.  The book follows a Russian refugee living in the London Metrozone and the punishment he receives for doing one good deed. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Astronomica: http://www.astronomicapodcast.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/johnny60seconds Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

If you were an adolescent in 2002-2003, Equilibrium ruled.  Equal parts Matrix-cool and not-at-all-subtle anti authoritarianism were the perfect mix for angsty young men such as your humble hosts.  As an adult in 2026 it's still kinda rules, though the flaws may be slightly more apparent.  Pre-Batman Bale, fresh off of LOTR Bean, and post Stella Diggs?  Sign me the eff up. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

Blade Runner Black Lotus seems like it should be right up our alley.  The problem is, it's boring.  And not in a Blade Runner 2049 boring-because-not-a-lot-is-happening-but-interesting-because-you're-watching-characters-develop way, boring in a Surrogates way.  Perhaps we were unfair to Black Lotus because we had just watched the aforementioned Surrogates, but if you don't want to be called boring, then be more interesting! The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

Surrogates is kind of a bummer.  Not because it's exceptionally bad, or exceptionally squandered potential, it's just a waste of time that could be better spent doing almost anything else.  It stands for nothing, it's trying to say nothing, it offers nothing.  Most of the performances are people playing robots, and they act like robots.  This movie is AI slop before AI slop was even a thing.  Now that I've really sold it, listen to us talk about it for 2 hours. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

This week we have a fresh intro to discuss all the fun new dystopian things happening, and then we jump back into Transmetropolitan with issues 2-6. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

This episode will be covering the first six issues of the 1997 comic book Transmetropolitan.  Transmetropolitan is a story about a guy named Spider, who is super cool 90s edgelord journalist, searching for truth in a remarkably prescient cyberpunk future.  It's a lot to cover, and this is just the first 10th of the whole series, but consider this your intro to Transmet course. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

At last this bottom-feeding podcast gets a much needed injection of class and taste with 1981's Heavy Metal.  A film for the discerning cine-o-phile.  Ok so only about 1/5th of this movie can be considered cyberpunk, but that's good enough for us, so we are diving in.  Cut yourself a line of Niborg and Loc your Nars in baby. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

This week's property was a pretty big deal when it came out.  A film created by a legendary director who died before he could see it made, picked up and finished by another legendary director, and what these two legends created was.... fine.  It was fine.  Kind of a bummer actually.  Cool special effects and solid performances, but overall just kind of a bummer.  That's not gonna stop us from talking about it for 2 hours! The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

This is the second half of our Running Man 2025 recap.  What new infuriations will the second half hold?  Tune in and I'm sure we will tell you about it. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Astronomica: http://www.astronomicapodcast.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/johnny60seconds Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

Edgar Wright's The Running Man is not a good movie.  It's so not good that all our complaints couldn't fit into one tight ninety and we had to give it two.  Episode 2 will drop later this week, but in this first episode we discuss our initial thoughts on the movie and start the recap.  That is after we review the horrors of the week, of course.  Big thanks to Kristen from Astronomica for sitting in on this one. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Astronomica: http://www.astronomicapodcast.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/johnny60seconds Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

The year is 202x, Kaiju are squirting out of a butthole in the Pacific ocean.  The only way to stop them is to build impossibly elaborate 30 story tall robots.  It makes perfect sense if you don't think about it at all whatseover.  Pacific Rim is not a cyberpunk film, but it does share certain vibes, and it was requested by our beloved listeners, so we are covering it regardless.  So snort yourself a big line of Kaiju bone dust and get ready for 2 hours of Rimming baby! The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

2025 was a rough year, but it did produce some pretty top notch media.  For this special year-end episode, we will recap our top recommendos of 2025, and yes, we immediately thought of a bunch of stuff we forgot immediately after we finished recording so this is by no means definitive.  Bonus:  Start this podcast at exactly 10:26 PM on December 31st and we'll countdown the new year with you.  The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

This week we have an extra long episode to keep you warm on the cold Christmas nights coming up, even if your Christmas is forecasted to be around 65 degrees like ours is.  The Running Man may seem like a goofy action movie on it's surface, and maybe that's what it is below the surface as well, but whether intentionally or by accident, it actually ends up showing a pretty strong example of how a media-obsessed culture can be controlled and spiral into a fascist police state.  Sound familiar?  Don't worry about it.  Thanks to Kristen from the Astronomica Podcast for sitting in on this one! The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Astronomica: http://www.astronomicapodcast.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/johnny60seconds Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com Cover art by Gillyvor

Robocop 2 is a movie about the drug epidemic, no wait nevermind.  Robocop 2 is a movie about a man turned machine separated from his family, no actually scratch that.  Robocop 2 is about corporate overreach, actually... Who the hell knows what Robocop 2 is about, it's got cool stop motion robot fights, explosions, and some decent gags, and that's good enough dammit. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

Welcome to Part 2 of our recap of the Ten Percent Thief.  This week we explore the second half of tales from Apex City, and ask the question:  Did Lavanya Lakshminarayan pull it off?  Once again we are joined by Geoff of the Astronomica podcast to lend his beautiful brain to the project. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Astronomica: http://www.astronomicapodcast.com Bite The Hand: https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/spellbook-gaming/bite-the-hand-cyberpunk-panic-engine-ttrpg?ref=bk-social-project Twitter: http://twitter.com/johnny60seconds Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

This week we are covering the book The Ten Percent Thief by Lavanya Lakshminarayan.  The book is about a world strictly divided by social hierarchy, and told via interlocking short stories, ranging from humorous to horrific.  Your boys were divided on this one, but even if it fell short in places, the book definitely set itself up for a monumental task, and, for the most part, accomplished that task.  As with most of our book episodes these days we are thrilled to be joined by Geoff of the Astronomica podcast to help us break it down. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Astronomica: http://www.astronomicapodcast.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/johnny60seconds Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com Cover art by Gillyvor

Once in a while we pick a movie neither of us have heard of but yet of which we both end up singing the praises.  It's pretty rare, but thankfully Sleep Dealer is one of those movies. The Budget:  Low.  The effects:  Not so special.  But there is an unmistakable talent in the writing, directing, and acting that more than makes up for the small amount of money they had to make this film.  And to top it off, the theme of the film is extremely important for the time we are living in, despite the fact that it was made 18 years ago. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com  

It's an anime ep!  AD Police is a horny, cheap, and blessedly short collection of cyberpunk tales from 2027 Neo Tokyo.  We have covered a couple other series just like it, and it is, unfortunately, the worst of the bunch.  There might be a few nuggets of cool to pan out of this river of mediocrity, however, so stay tuned and see if these old prospectors manage to... sluice some... gold? This metaphor has gotten away from me. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com

The Dream of the 90s is alive on the High Tech Low Life Podcast.  This week we watch The Net starring Sandra Bullock.  This movie is as 90s as it gets, and even though it's incredibly flawed and not that great, we just can't bring ourselves to hate it. The High Tech Low Life Podcast is a retrospective of cyberpunk fiction across all forms of media. Film, Television, Literature, Games, and Music are all on the table. In each episode we will revisit the property, it's influences, it's prescience, and enshrine it in the chrome and neon halls of Neo Valhalla. Bluesky: @hightechlowlife.bsky.social Patreon: http://patreon.com/hightechlowlife Cover art by Gillyvor Theme music by http://www.nihilore.com