"Pizza Hut 3 with Brendan James" is Episode 360 of Doughboys, hosted by Nick Wiger and Mike Mitchell. "Pizza Hut 3 with Brendan James" was released on July 28, 2022.
"Tomorrow... with Brendan James" - @doughboyspod
Synopsis[]
Brendan James (Blowback Season 3) joins the 'boys to talk Gru, Groot, Goop, and Grunty before a review of Pizza Hut. Plus, another edition of Slop Quiz.
Nick's intro[]
In 1968, writer-comedian Mel Brooks released his feature directorial debut: The Producers, a film where stars Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder produce a play meant to intentionally fail at the box office as a ploy to scam investors. While the film about the bomb wasn’t exactly a hit, it did win Brooks an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay and established the Sid Caesar protégé as a singular comedic voice. In the next decade, Brooks would write and direct multiple comedies, two more of which would become pop-culture touchtones: western spoof Blazing Saddles and another Gene Wilder collab, Young Frankenstein.
But by the 80s, Brooks’ status as the sultan of spoof was ceded to the trio of Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker who burst onto the scene with the Leslie Nielsen vehicle Airplane, just as Brooks’ History of the World Part I bombed critically and theatrically. In 1987, Brooks released the sci-fi spoof Spaceballs starring Bill Pullman as Lone Star and the late John Candy as his sidekick Barf. Contemporary reception was lukewarm, though today, the film is fondly remembered, thanks to a quotable performance from Rick Moranis as Dark Helmet, crowd-pleasing sound-effects work from the one and only Michael Winslow, and a crime boss based off of Return of the Jedi villain Jabba and named for a pizza chain founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas.
Today, that chain is part of the Yum! Brands triforce along with KFC and Taco Bell, and by number of locations, it is the largest pizza restaurant in the world.
After limited success in the '90s with films like Life Stinks and Dracula, Dead and Loving It (also starring Leslie Nielsen), it was a Broadway adaptation of The Producers that breathed new life into Brooks’ career; the must-see Matthew Broderick- and Nathan Lane-fronted production becoming the Hamilton of the early 2000s.
Still alive and loving it at age 96, Brooks published a memoir last year and has an upcoming History of the World TV series in production — a capstone for a comedy career unmatched in staying power.
At the end of Spaceballs, the Jabba-inspired villain made of sauce and cheese has found his grim end by eating himself to death.
But is the actual chain’s fare so delicious that it would inspire autocannibalism?
This week on Doughboys, we return, once again, to Pizza Hut.
Fork rating[]
Pizza Hut in Methuen, MA
This is the third review of Pizza Hut on Doughboys. The first visit was way back in 2016, when Nick gave it 2.5 forks and Mitch 3 (and Neil Campbell famously gave it 1 fork). Then in 2020, they returned a second time and Nic gave it 3 forks and Mitch 2.25 forks.
In between visits, Pizza Hut was part of the Doughlympics, Munch Madness: The Slice Is Right (where it lost to Domino's and then to CPK), and an episode about their P'Zones.
| guest / host | ordered | rating |
|---|---|---|
| Nick Wiger |
|
1.5 forks |
| Mike Mitchell |
|
2 forks |
| Brendan James |
|
1.5 forks |
Mitch went to Pizza Hut with his friends Mikeus (2.5 forks) and Freilbot (3 forks).
Nick's favorite item was the Cinnabon Mini Rolls. Spoonman's Bite of the Night went to the Original Pan Cheese Pizza.
With these scores, Pizza Hut joins the Broken Plate Club! (Also, they prove Neil Campbell's prescience.)
Slop Quiz: Final Bite Edition[]
In Slop Quiz, Nick presents a food-related exam (pop quiz) and Mitch and the guest compete for superiority.
This week's topic is called Final Bite, and is based around the foods famous people ate for their last meal. Nick gives them the celebrity and a trio of options, one of which was their final meal.
| food | Mike Mitchell | Brendan James | correct | score (MM - BJ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
John F. Kennedy:
|
boiled eggs and toast | boiled eggs and toast | 0 - 1 | |
Cleopatra:
|
- | figs | figs | 0 - 2 |
James Gandolfini:
|
fried prawns | fried prawns | 0 - 3 | |
Saddam Hussein:
|
- | chicken and rice | chicken and rice | 0 - 4 |
John Wayne Gacy:
|
KFC, shrimp, strawberries | - | KFC, shrimp, strawberries | 1 - 4 |
Michael Jackson:
|
spinach salad with chicken | 1 - 4 | ||
Frank Sinatra:
|
grilled cheese | 1 - 4 | ||
Elvis Presley:
|
- | ice cream and cookies | ice cream and cookies | 1 - 5 |
Brendan is the winner of this Slop Quiz!
Roast Spoonman[]
Hunter Biden
| “ | Hunger Biden | ” |
–WetBeef | ||
Quotes[]
| “ | I want you to be fatter than me at some point. | ” |
–Mike Mitchell to Nick | ||
| “ | Yum! Brands is a rudderless ship. They don't know what the fuck they're doing. | ” |
–Nick Wiger | ||
#hashtags[]
- #DoughConfidence
The Feedbag[]
| “ | Do you have a go-to dish when you have a feeling that the restaurant you're at isn't going to be any good? | ” |
–Michael | ||
| guest / host | no-confidence meal |
|---|---|
| Nick Wiger | chicken caesar salad
quesadilla |
| Mike Mitchell | chicken tenders |
| Brendan James | burger |
| Emma Erdbrink | salad
chips and salsa |
Photos[]
