

The Incomparable Mothership
Jason Snell
The Incomparable Mothership is the flagship of the Incomparable podcast network. It’s all about geeky media we love, including movies, books, TV, and more, featuring a rotating panel of guests and hosted by Jason Snell and friends.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 22, 2025 • 1h 14min
780: The Perfect Bubble
We return to 1995 not to hack into the Net but to wander, Netless, around Vienna with Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy. Palm readers! Street poets! Plays featuring cows! It’s “Before Sunrise,” a movie in which nothing happens… except maybe the most extraordinary thing in two people’s lives.
"Before Sunrise" (1995)
Jason Snell with Brian Hamilton, Erika Ensign, Annette Wierstra and Steven Schapansky
Referenced Works
Before Sunrise
Show Notes & Links
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

Aug 15, 2025 • 1h 12min
779: Not a Hugo
Our Awards Book Club closes up shop for 2025 with a final set of rankings, the presentation of an award we made up, and an overview of all the Hugo-nominated short fiction.
Awards Book Club final rankings and Hugo short fiction
Jason Snell with Erika Ensign, Scott McNulty, Aleen Simms and Heather Berberet
Show Notes & Links
What Are We Reading?
Scott: How to Solve Your Own Murder
Erika: Swordheart, Throne of Glass series specifically Heir of Fire
Heather: Dungeon Crawler Carl
Aleen: When Women Were Dragons, Lake of Souls
Jason: The Fourth Consort by Edward Ashton, Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz
The Incomparable Award
Service Model (4 first-place votes, 2.0 average placement)
The Tainted Cup (3.4)
Someone You Can Build a Nest In (1, 4.0)
A Sorceress Comes to Call (4.4)
Alien Clay (5.0)
The Ministry of Time (5.8)
Asunder / The Book of Love (tie) (6.4)
Rakesfall (8.6)
Sleeping Worlds Have No Memory (9)
The Short Fiction
Novella
“The Brides of High Hill” by Nghi Vo (Tordotcom)
“The Butcher of the Forest” by Premee Mohamed (Tordotcom)
“Navigational Entanglements” by Aliette de Bodard (Tordotcom)
“The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain” by Sofia Samatar (Tordotcom)
“The Tusks of Extinction” by Ray Nayler (Tordotcom)
“What Feasts at Night” by T. Kingfisher (Nightfire)
Novelette
“The Brotherhood of Montague St. Video” by Thomas Ha (Clarkesworld)
“By Salt, By Sea, By Light of Stars” by Premee Mohamed (Strange Horizons)
“The Four Sisters Overlooking the Sea” by Naomi Kritzer (Asimov’s)
“Lake of Souls” by Ann Leckie (in Lake of Souls)
“Loneliness Universe” by Eugenia Triantafyllou (Uncanny)
“Signs of Life” by Sarah Pinsker (Uncanny)
Short Story
“Five Views of the Planet Tartarus” by Rachael K. Jones (Lightspeed)
“Marginalia” by Mary Robinette Kowal (Uncanny)
“Stitched to Skin Like Family Is” by Nghi Vo (Uncanny)
“Three Faces of a Beheading” by Arkady Martine (Uncanny)
“We Will Teach You How to Read | We Will Teach You How to Read” by Caroline M Yoachim (Lightspeed)
“Why Don’t We Just Kill the Kid in the Omelas Hole” by Isabel J Kim (Clarkesworld)
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

Aug 8, 2025 • 1h 49min
778: Oops! All Batman
We celebrate the tenth anniversary of our Summer Superhero Spectacular tournament with something slightly different: A draft of our favorite superhero movies.
Superhero Movie Draft
Jason Snell with Andy Ihnatko, Chip Sudderth, James Thomson, Annette Wierstra, Tony Sindelar, Moisés Chiullán and David J. Loehr
Show Notes & Links
Tony - Batman Begins (2005)
James - Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (2020)
David - The LEGO Batman Movie (2017)
Annette - Wonder Woman (2017)
Moises - Superman (2025)
Andy - The Incredibles (2004)
Chip - Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
Jason - Unbreakable (2000)
Tony - Iron Man (2008)
James - Dredd (2012)
David - The Shadow (1994)
Annette - Batman (1989)
Moises - Blade (1998)
Andy - Watchmen (2009)
Chip - Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Jason - Megamind (2010)
Tony - Hellboy (2004)
James - Captain Marvel (2019)
David - The Rocketeer (1991)
Annette - The Marvels (2023)
Moises - Roger Corman’s Fantastic Four (1994)
Andy - Nine Superman Fleisher Shorts (1941)
Chip - Black Panther (2018)
Jason - Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

4 snips
Aug 1, 2025 • 1h 11min
777: The 44% Rule
2025 Awards Book Club nears the end with award nominees “Asunder,” “The Ministry of Time,” and “The Tainted Cup.” Plus: What else are we reading?
2025 Awards Book Club, part 3
Jason Snell with Scott McNulty, Erika Ensign, Aleen Simms and Heather Berberet
Referenced Works
Asunder
[Amazon] [Apple]
The Ministry of Time
[Amazon] [Apple]
The Tainted Cup
[Amazon] [Apple]
Show Notes & Links
What are we reading?
Aleen: Sounds Like Love and Saint Death’s Daughter
Erika: The Assassin’s Blade and Moonstorm
Heather: When Women Were Dragons and Atmosphere
Scott: Shroud
Jason: Shroud, and also the Barker & Llewellyn series
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

Jul 25, 2025 • 1h 30min
776: Next Stop Black Hole City
We went to the theater to see James Gunn’s “Superman” (2025) and are back to report about the pleasant experience. Gunn sets a new direction for DC superheroes, and fans of Zack Snyder may want to look elsewhere. From Krypto the Superdog to a surprising squirrel save, from The Marvelous Miss Lane to that Elemento guy, we’ll break the whole thing down.
"Superman" (2025)
Jason Snell with Tony Sindelar, Dan Moren, Shannon Sudderth, Chip Sudderth and Brian Warren
Referenced Works
Superman (2025)
Show Notes & Links
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

Jul 18, 2025 • 1h 27min
775: Herring Salad
We remain submerged for a very long time to watch a very long film, 1981’s “Das Boot.” This certifiable classic is certainly long and German, encompassing almost everything you might expect in the genre. There’s action, suspense, a lot of character moments, and long periods of tedium spent listening for bad sounds, punctuated by moments of terror as the boat goes to eleven (and beyond).
"Das Boot" (1981)
Jason Snell with Erika Ensign, Brian Warren, Casey Liss, Dan Moren and Philip Michaels
Referenced Works
Das Boot
Show Notes & Links
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

Jul 11, 2025 • 1h 5min
774: A Very Photogenic Submarine
The Summer of Submarines joins forces with Old Movie Club to take on 1958’s “Run Silent, Run Deep,” starring Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster. It’s a tense thriller that has inspired sub and sci-fi movies for many decades. Erika’s gleeful reaction to the film’s abrupt ending may surprise you!
"Run Silent, Run Deep" (1958)
Jason Snell with Erika Ensign, Philip Michaels, Shelly Brisbin, Dan Moren and Casey Liss
Referenced Works
Run Silent, Run Deep
Show Notes & Links
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

Jul 4, 2025 • 1h 15min
773: One Dog Is Too Many
The summer of submarines kicks off with 1995’s “Crimson Tide,” a taut character drama that pits a captain (Gene Hackman) against his XO (Denzel Washington) in a conflict that escalates as global tensions rise outside their nuclear submarine.
"Crimson Tide"
Jason Snell with Philip Michaels, Lisa Schmeiser, Dan Moren, Casey Liss and Erika Ensign
Sponsors
Jiiiii: All your anime stream schedules in one place. Free to download, unlock your anime-watching-superpowers today!
Referenced Works
Crimson Tide
Show Notes & Links
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

Jun 27, 2025 • 1h 25min
772: The Compulsion of Art
With the guiding hand of Prof. Siracusa choosing the curriculum, we watch select animated shorts from the Netflix series “Love, Death + Robots.” John’s quest to find the perfect photorealistic CGI animation continues. Tony does his companions a solid if he’s ever killed on a moon. The others debate if they represent love, death, or robots. We try to reconnect with our inner pool-polishing robots. It’s a real team effort.
"Love, Death + Robots"
Jason Snell with John Siracusa, Annette Wierstra, Brian Hamilton and Tony Sindelar
Referenced Works
Love, Death and Robots
Show Notes & Links
Here’s the viewing list for the Love, Death & Robots episode of The Incomparable.
“Sonnie’s Edge” (Season 1, Episode 1) 17m
“Lucky 13” (Season 1, Episode 13) 15m
“Zima Blue” (Season 1, Episode 14) 11m
“Bad Travelling” (Season 3, Episode 2) 22m
“The Very Pulse of the Machine” (Season 3, Episode 3) 17m
“Swarm” (Season 3, Episode 6) 17m
“Golgotha” (Season 4, Episode 6) 10m
Plus one (optional) upsetting bonus episode:
“Jibaro” (Season 3, Episode 9) 17m
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

Jun 20, 2025 • 2h 5min
771: Nothing Can Kill Doctor Who
The second (and final?) season of the BBC/Disney+ collaboration era of “Doctor Who” is at an end, and so our crew of fans is here to pick up the pieces and ponder what went right and (unfortunately) what went wrong. Where does this franchise go from here?
"Doctor Who" season 2 wrap-up
Jason Snell with Steven Schapansky, Erika Ensign, Chip Sudderth, Annette Wierstra and Heather Berberet
Referenced Works
Doctor Who
[Amazon]
Show Notes & Links
Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.