Sweater Weather

Naomi and Aaron discuss the excellent HBO comedy Hacks, starring Jean Smart and Hannah Einbender. Also, we chat about Canada geese attacking university students, Ken from Barbie being Canadian because he's played by Ryan Gosling, Hacks as wish fulfillment for creative types, the challenge of making standup comedy funny in fiction, and Calgary's variable air pressure. Sweater Weather podcast website: https://www.aarongiovannone.com/sweater-weather-podcast   Naomi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/na.oh.mee Naomi on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/naomiklewis Naomi's website: https://www.naomiklewis.com/   Aaron on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aaron.giovannone Aaron on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aarongiovannone Aaron on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@aarongiovannone Aaron on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AaronGiovannoneAuthor/ Aaron on X: https://x.com/SincerityCity Aaron on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/aarongiovannone.bsky.social Aaron's website: https://www.aarongiovannone.com

Naomi and Aaron talk the haunting HBO drama, The Last of Us, which just premiered its second season, starring the terrific Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsay. We also have a heart-to-heart about the Canadian Happiness Index, Aaron's pitch to the CBC for a Letterkenny-meets-Red Dawn prestige show, Naomi waiting for news about her novel, fake deadlines in the publishing industry, seeking recognition, our limited experience playing video games, and seeing Banff and Calgary and other Canadian places pop up in The Last of Us. Sweater Weather website: https://www.aarongiovannone.com/sweater-weather-podcast   Naomi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/na.oh.mee Naomi on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/naomiklewis Naomi's website: https://www.naomiklewis.com/   Aaron on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aaron.giovannone Aaron on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aarongiovannone Aaron on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@aarongiovannone Aaron on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AaronGiovannoneAuthor/ Aaron on X: https://x.com/SincerityCity Aaron on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/aarongiovannone.bsky.social Aaron's website: https://www.aarongiovannone.com  

In this episode of Sweater Weather, we kick things off with jokes about Mark Carney's bestselling book and Mike Myers flaunting a Canadian Tire shirt on SNL, exploring what a truly "made in Canada" store might stock. But the heart of this episode is our revisiting This Hour Has 22 Minutes, the Canadian sketch comedy mainstay that's been running on the CBC since 1993. We reminisce about its edgy allure in our teen years, when it felt like must-see TV. Naomi loved Mary Walsh's fearless Marg Delahunty, who ambushed politicians with Xena-inspired flair. Then we chat about the current cast's antics—especially Mark Critch's Trump and Chris Wilson's Pierre Poilievre impressions. We consider This Hour's liberal tilt, and we muse on how political comedy can make leaders seem like good sports, for better or worse.  Sweater Weather podcast (Video): https://www.youtube.com/@aarongiovannone Sweater Weather podcast (Audio): https://pod.link/1547081850   Naomi's website: https://www.naomiklewis.com/ Naomi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/na.oh.mee Naomi on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/naomiklewis   Aaron's website: https://www.aarongiovannone.com Aaron on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aaron.giovannone Aaron on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@aarongiovannone Aaron on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AaronGiovannoneAuthor/ Aaron on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aarongiovannone Aaron on X: https://x.com/SincerityCity

In this episode, we kick things off talking Amazon's sale of "Canada as a 51st state" merchandise and the strong opinions it has generated among famous Canadians, as well as some questionable examples of Canadian Content available on Amazon Prime. But the main focus of our discussion is the British mini-series, Adolescence, which  centers around a 13-year-old boy accused of a serious crime.  We'll discuss the series' unique cinematic style, filmed as a single take to create a sense of relentless tension . We will also delve into the challenges parents face in understanding their children's lives in the digital age. Adolescence actually reminded us of Degrassi for its intention to educate about the secret experiences of "kids today."   Sweater Weather podcast (Video): https://www.youtube.com/@aarongiovannone Sweater Weather podcast (Audio): https://pod.link/1547081850   Naomi's website: https://www.naomiklewis.com/ Naomi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/na.oh.mee Naomi on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/naomiklewis   Aaron's website: https://www.aarongiovannone.com Aaron on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aaron.giovannone Aaron on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@aarongiovannone Aaron on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AaronGiovannoneAuthor/ Aaron on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aarongiovannone Aaron on X: https://x.com/SincerityCity        

In this episode of Sweater Weather, Aaron starts off by telling some jokes about the Canadian election: Who would fictional Canadian characters vote for? What should you do now that the GST on first homes is gone? Naomi laughs politely. Then we talk about Canadian Bacon, the 1995 film from director Michael Moore, starring John Candy, Rhea Perlman, and Alan Alda, a satire about an American president who declares war on Canada to boost his approval ratings. We liked many of the film's gags poking fun at Canada and Canadian stereotypes, but the real focus of the film is US culture and politics, using Canada as kind of liberal fun house mirror to reflect back to itself a more conservative America. Of course, it's what you'd expect from the famously liberal documentary filmmaker Michael Moore, who only ever made one fictional film, this one. Whether you like the movie or not, the satire turned out to be shockingly prescient, given what's going on in 2025, with a Trump-led trade war against Canada that has inflamed nationalistic sentiment on both sides of the border. Despite all the goofs and gaffs, Aaron found the film oddly disturbing for the dark picture it paints in which everyone is either evil or an idiot, while Naomi didn't seem so put off by that. To be fair, Aaron also napped through the middle third of the film, so he couldn't have been that disturbed. We hope this episode of Sweater Weather doesn't put you to sleep--unless you listen to podcasts in bed while trying to drift off to dreamland. In that case, bon nuit, and enjoy! Sweater Weather podcast (Video): https://www.youtube.com/@aarongiovannone  Sweater Weather podcast (Audio): https://pod.link/1547081850  Naomi's website: https://www.naomiklewis.com/  Naomi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/na.oh.mee  Naomi on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/naomiklewis  Aaron's website: https://www.aarongiovannone.com  Aaron on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aaron.giovannone  Aaron on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@aarongiovannone  Aaron on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AaronGiovannoneAuthor/  Aaron on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aarongiovannone  Aaron on X: https://x.com/SincerityCity