We dive deeper into Season 2 of Last Man Standing with a breakdown of "Dodgeball Club". We learn that in the LMS universe, dodgeball is the most controversial sport imaginable, and nobody better dare take away Tim Allen, or his grandson's, right to play it. It's another benchmark episode with all the xenophobia, rightwing cultural commentary and child abuse jokes you could ever hope to expect from this program.
Before we get into the episode, though, we talk about Erich and Tim hanging out outside of the podcast (we really do!), BC Ferries vegan food options and Tim's ongoing review of it.
There is also discussion of the allegations against Tim Allen of sexual misconduct towards Pamela Anderson on the set of Home Improvement. Obviously, we don't condone this in any way, and further enforces our already low opinion of Tim Allen.
"Ryan has dodgeball banned from Boyd's school, which infuriates Mike to the point that he teaches Boyd and his friends dodgeball in the Baxter backyard. Ed and Kyle volunteer in a search and rescue team. Mandy begins dating her school's star quarterback, which has her asking for Eve's help to brush up on football facts."
Oh BABY is Season 2 of Last Man Standing off to a big start with the premiere episode “Voting” coinciding with the 2012 US presidential election. If this photo hasn’t told you enough, Tim Allen is pretty clear about his political leanings in this one and we hear him rant about nearly every problematic Obama-era talking point imaginable. We try our best to navigate these murky waters while also discussing Mark going goth in Home Improvement, Simlish covers of Black Eyed Peas songs, crappy arcade games, and adults who play paintball.
"Mandy is voting for the first time, with Mike urging her to vote for Mitt Romney, while Kristin and Ryan urge her to vote for Barack Obama. Vanessa maintains secrecy about how she votes, which she claims she has done throughout her marriage to Mike. Eve, Ed, and Kyle compete in fantasy football, which has ramifications at work for Kyle when he will not make a trade with his boss, Ed."
To all our lovely listeners, we made it!!! We wrap up Season 1 of Last Man Standing in a blaze of glory with the "Found Money" season finale. Tim Allen buys a frickin' tank, Vanessa's sister mooches off the Baxters and Kristen and Kyle's relationship ends with a plot that goes almost nowhere. It's a weird ending to a weird show and we're stoked for what Season 2 has to offer. Before we talk about any of that, though, we get into border crossing issues, going to the movies, finding money, and contemplate opening a laundromat/brunch restaurant.
"Vanessa's sweet-but-flighty sister, April, pays a visit. This irritates Mike, who is convinced April only wants to ask for another loan, and he has just used some extra cash to buy a tank so he and Ed can run over old cars and boats. Meanwhile, Kyle and Kristin agree to break up, but Kyle is more worried about what Mike will think."
Welcome back to a breakdown of maybe the worst episode of Last Man Standing to date! And not "bad" for the reasons this show usually is. Like, instead of spouting rightwing values or sexist/racist/xenophobic attitudes, it commits the crime of just plain sucking. "The Spotlight" is poorly written, disjointed, and defies all basic plot structure to the point it just leaves us bummed out and confused. So, uh, enjoy hearing us talk about it!
"Vanessa is nominated for an award for her volunteer efforts at the local school, but circumstances put Mike in the spotlight, so he has to try and make amends. Mandy tries to help Eve with her fears about starting high school. Ed wants to market an action-figure model of Mike in Outdoor Man, but the end product received from China has Ed thinking he must brush up on his Mandarin."
Welcome home to another pre-Christmas recording, so guess what we continue to talk about? Erich recounts a holiday poem he wrote about Tim Allen, Tim reacts to Trump's NFT's, we get excited about monster trucks and we reminisce about the chatrooms of yore. We also break down a rather downer episode of Last Man Standing, 'This Bud's For You', where we see Tim Allen struggling with the reality of his dad moving onto a new chapter of life.
"Bud moves into town to begin working on the new Outdoor Man store. Mike is upset that Bud's girlfriend Stella, who Mike did not know about before, has moved in with him. After getting a company physical, Mike is told he has high blood pressure."
We're in for a good one this week as we tackle the episode about talkin' shit about your kids and missing important events, "Wherefore Art Thou, Mike Baxter*". We get a taste of some of Tim Allen's acting chops as he uses tough love to teach Mandy an important lesson about hard work. We also discuss different media formats, Christmas, Toy Story (including a special guest), and go into Tim Allen's always chaotic Twitter feed.
"Mike and Ed invite Kyle as a last-minute substitute for Outdoor Man's annual grudge competition against Ted's Tacklebox, but fear Kyle is not very good at outdoor sports. When the competition runs late, Mike has to miss Mandy's school play. Vanessa offends both Eve and Mandy, when she is overheard saying she does not care to attend their extracurricular activities."
*Tim Allen
We got a chaotic one this week as we dive into the 20th episode of the first season, "Animal Wrongs". Its another quintessential Last Man Standing full of boyfriend confrontation, threats of violence, pro-hunting rhetoric and some weirdly touching moments where you least expect. We also chat about being sick, Bob Odenkirk's book (again), and a whole bunch of other good tv shows.
"Mandy worries when Mike does not like her new boyfriend, Terrence, who is an animal rights activist. Kyle discovers that he has Basque ancestors, like Ed, but the two have a disagreement after learning their ancestors are from rival families."
This week we catch up after a few weeks and talk about Bob Odenkirk's book, local hip-hop groups (shouts out Wilderness Crew and Dollah D), transit companies dropping merch and Tim Allen tweeting about Jay Leno's recent injury. Once we finally get to the episode, we break down Tim Allen treating an innocent prank like a major slight, Kristen's collegiate journey and a surprisingly touching story between Kyle and Ed.
"The Baxters are annoyed when teenage prankster Ben Milbauer repeatedly rings their door bell and runs off, but when Mike booby-traps the door, Ben gets hurt on their property. Ben's father Frank orders Mike to cover the boy's hospital bill and Mike discovers that Eve and Ben have secretly been dating. Kristin begins her college classes, but has a difficult time getting acclimated. Kyle gets hurt on the job, causing Ed to fear that Kyle will sue him."
Welcome home! This week is a family focused episode as we meet Tim Allen's in-universe brother and dad for the first time! We also talk about the the gift of a certain grain (listen to find out which!), listen to some music from the killer band Tool Time, and the upcoming Tim Allen Christmas series 'The Santa Clauses'.
"Mike's father Bud (Robert Forrester) and younger brother Jim (Mike Rowe) visit, hoping to win a bid to build a new Outdoor Man store. Jim tries to get a loan from a bank, but when the loan officer (Frankie Muniz) turns him down, Jim refuses to accept Mike's offer to countersign the loan because of their sibling rivalry. The Baxter girls think Bud is lonely since the death of his wife and try to set him up on an online dating site."
We've got an octane fuelled episode of Last Man Standing this week as we review "Adrenaline". But before we do that, we spend a whole lot of time remembering the 90's. We go into everything from sitcoms to toy commercials, and decide if we should become adult LEGO people.
"Mike gets NASCAR driver Tony Stewart and his car to spice up the Outdoor Man retail space, but the car later goes missing. Kristin, wanting to go skydiving, has Vanessa looking back to when she took more chances before becoming a mother."
We're in for another wild week as we get maybe the biggest celebrity cameo to date and the Baxter's go up against local government to prevent a beloved tree from being cut down in their yard. Besides that, Erich and Tim go to a wrestling show, we discuss ongoing repairs in our homes, and chat a lot about other TV shows other than the one we're supposed to actually be talking about.
"Mandy meets Kim Kardashian at a book signing and freaks out, and becomes the butt of jokes from her sisters when video of her way-over-the-top reaction appears on the local TV news. Mike and the Baxter family fight City Hall after a tree which they had planted on their property is listed to be cut down."
Woah, we actually have a well timed Halloween-esque episode, as we review "House of Spirits". This week we try to figure out who Tim Allen thinks is the "face of woke" after a spicy tweet, generate some AI art, and then discuss times we've been scammed. From there, we get into the episode and talk about feelings of not dying alone. Super upbeat!
"After discovering that two elderly women had previously died in the Baxter home, the Baxter daughters fear that ghosts are haunting the house. After hiring medium to investigate, Vanessa also becomes scared. Elsewhere, Ed keeps borrowing cash from Kyle."
We have our first ever guest, John Cullen, joining us this week! With an extra person in the mix, it turns out we get more off the rails than ever as we go into Tim accidentally ordering a P.O.D. album, the origins of the podcast, "the clap", and for some reason we talk A LOT about Lion King 2. When we managed to actually talk about this week's episode "Odd Couple Out", John shares his thoughts as a first time viewer, and they may surprise you!
"Vanessa finds out that her neighbor, Michelle, has not invited her and Mike to a party. She later finds out that Mike was the reason why, due to him insulting Michelle's profession on a previous occasion. So he agrees to change his ways by being more sociable. Eve damages Mandy's car, while trying to move it out of the garage."
Apologies for a little bit of audio funniness this week, but we're back with another big episode! We chat about moving, buying things from Facebook Marketplace, Howie Mandel and crying. Enjoy!
"Ed hires his daughter Gabriella (Jamie-Lynn Sigler) as a marketing consultant and her ideas threaten Mike's standing at the company. Mike and Eve bring home a stray dog that Mandy believes she is allergic to, but her allergies are really a childhood lie started by Vanessa."
It's a travel themed episode this week! Erich recounts his time in Europe, we talk about foreign record stores and we reveal our go to karaoke songs. We then get into a travel themed Cast Man Standing with a surprise cameo that blew our damn minds!
"Chad Bickle, a brash young pro fisherman, renews Mike's interest in traveling the world for work, which does not sit well with Vanessa. After seeing Mike and Vanessa's family life going so well, Chad decides to quit pro fishing to get back together with his girlfriend. Ed hires [REDACTED SURPRISE CAMEO] to replace Chad. Meanwhile, Mandy decides to become a vegan, but Kristin and Eve are convinced it is one of her passing phases and tease her about it."
It's Christmas in September as we breakdown another off-timed holiday special. We reminisce on our own Christmas traditions, talk at length about our memories of Disney channel movies and Erich gets an explanation of lazer discs.
"Ryan (Nick Jonas), the father of Kristin's baby, unexpectedly comes back to town wanting to be in his son's life. Kyle begins to feel threatened by Ryan's arrival. Mandy works as a helper elf for Santa Claus Ed in the Outdoor Man store, until she demands better work benefits."
It's a fun one this week, as we discuss one of Tim Allen's most unhinged tweets yet, Tim's (the podcast co-host) beer container idea, our chiropractor and TV writers lunch habits. Continue with us on the ride as we get further down this rabbit hole.
"Mike and Vanessa meet their new neighbors, a lesbian couple. Mike ends up being good friends with one of the women until she takes one of his joshing remarks as an insult. The girls create a singing group called The Inglorious Baxters and Kyle helps them make a music video about Mandy's lying boyfriend, Travis, which they post online. Kyle tries to jokingly insult Ed, but Ed does not get the joke."
We're back on track this week as the episode misalignment solves itself (finally). We also talk a lot about The Office. Enjoy!
"Mike finds out that Kyle has spent the night in Kristin's bedroom, although Kristin insists that "nothing happened". Taking Ed's advice, Mike lays down new rules in the house, but Kristin's response is to move out, taking Boyd to move in with Kyle. Eve has her first period, making her cranky."
Our episode order mixup saga continues, as we *actually* review "Good Cop, Bad Cop" this week. We spend the majority of the top half deliberating how we're going to continue the viewing order into the future, before breaking down one of the most jarring episodes yet.
"Mandy intends to enter a teen modelling competition, a plan which Vanessa does not approve of. Sick of being the "bad cop", Vanessa persuades Mike to stop Mandy from entering. Mike is reluctant to give up his role as the "good cop", but this changes when he views the revealing pictures Mandy wants to send in. Mike then visits the family of Mandy's boyfriend Travis after he discovers that the semi-nude pictures Mandy took for the modelling competition have been forwarded to Travis' phone. Meanwhile, Kristin tries to stand up to her boss for a raise, but ends up saving his life instead."
Another mix up as we realize Disney+ has the show posted in the wrong order so we actually watched the 11th episode of Last Man Standing this week. This starts a beef the likes of which has never been seen, between two amateur podcasters and the world's most popular streaming service. It's a David and Goliath battle for the ages. Support the little guy, listeners!
Anyways, we clarify the mistake the review "Passion of the Mandy", maybe the least mean-spirited episode so far!
"Mandy starts accompanying Mike to work after sharing her surprisingly good marketing ideas, but her recently successful campaign has Ed upset. Vanessa becomes overwhelmed with trying to spend more time at her job while still running the house. Eve gets upset when Victor Blake does not ask her to a school dance, and Vanessa is pleased that this is one time when Eve needs her Mom more than her Dad."