A Lawyer's Guide to the Galaxy Podcast
A podcast about geek culture from a legal perspective. The hosts discuss topics like patenting a time machine, copyright of the Klingon language, and selling original stories set in the Star Wars universe. They explore the weird and interesting ways that geek culture collides with the law.
Episodes
S08E10 - The Odyssey - Review
Ben and Kirk discuss The Odyssey (2026).
S08E09 - Maul Shadow Lord Review
Ben and Kirk talk about Disney+'s Maul: Shadow Lord animated series and where it shines and stumbles.
S08E08 - The Odyssey, Public Domain, and AI
Ben and Kirk talk about the use of public domain materials in mainstream cinematic works like the upcoming "The Odyssey" film, and explore some new wrinkles on those issues raised by the use of generative AI. And, of course, they find some way to make it about Star Wars.
S08E07 - The Backrooms, Slender Man, IP, and Kids These Days
We go over the cultural phenomenon of The Backrooms and examine the IP issues with building a movie out of the zeitgeist.
S08E06 - Toy Tie Ins, The FCC, and The Future of Cinema
Ben and Kirk revisit the 1980s and a change in regulations influenced the explosion of toy tie-ins to children's programming, and look at how theaters are changing from content to social experiences.
S08E05 - Mandalorian and Grogu - All Plot, No Story
Ben and Kirk saw the Mandalorian and Grogu on opening weekend and provide their thoughts.
S08E04 - Is It Time to Retire Star Wars
Ben and Kirk talk about why content creatives struggle to maintain the quality of new content for old IP. Is it time to put Star Wars out to pasture?
S08E03 - The 1980s and Self-Regulating Industries
Dive into how and why we ended up with the MPA rating system, how it shaped generations of content, and how markets, culture, and foreign films forced Hollywood to adapt, all resulting in a brief golden age of child-centric adventure films in the first half of the 1`980s.
S0802 - Star Wars Holiday Special (After the Holidays)
Since we used our usual year-end Star Wars holiday special time slots for Stranger Things last year, we're doing it now! Check out our thoughts on Andor season 2, Mando season 3, and the Tales of Jedi/Empire/Underworld anthologies. SPOILER ALERT.
Note: We had some microphone quality issues, you might get some overload here. We're trying to clean it up.
S08E01 - Public Domain Day 2026
S08E01 - Public Domain Day 2026 by A Lawyer's Guide to the Galaxy Podcast
S07E18 - Stranger Things - A One Hour Epilogue
Ben and Kirk spend an hour complaining about the hour long epilogue to the series finale of Stranger Things. But it's not all bad! Find out what we liked, and what we didn't.
S07E17 - All Stranger Things Must Come to an End
On the eve of the series finale of Stranger Things, Ben and Kirk talk about what made this series work, what's still working in season 5, and what isn't.
S07E16 - The NintendoPokemon Patents - Part 3 (Ex Parte Reexamination)
The Director of the USPTO has instituted a re-examination of the Nintendo Pokemon patents. But what does that mean?
S07E15 - Stranger Things
Ben and Kirk dig into what made Stranger Things a cultural phenomenon and consider whether the 1980s might be the perfect decade for this kind of storytelling.
S07E14 - Nintendo's Pokemon Patents - Part 2
By popular demand, Kirk and Ben revisit the "Pokemon Patent" and talk about the challenges in finding relevant prior art.
S07E13 - Nintendo's Pokemon Patents
Ben and Kirk tackle the new Nintendo patent on summoning in Pokemon.
S07E12 - Spoof Movies
Ben and Kirk talk about how spoof movies have changed over the years, and how the IP issues have changed with it.
S07E11 - Custom Lightsabers and Original Cosplay
Ben and Kirk do some theorycrafting in the IP of cosplay - what if you invented your own original character, prop, or vehicle/ship set in an existing universe?
S07E10 - The Great Dragonlance Dispute of 2020
Ben and Kirk go over the short but interesting dispute between the original Dragonlance authors and Wizards of the Coast at the height of COVID over the final trilogy of novels.
S07E09 - Coldplayed
Ben and Kirk analyze the memes resulting from the famous "Coldplayed" incident and the impact on privacy.
S07E08 - Star Wars Reviews - Skeleton Crew and Anthologies
Ben and Kirk dive into Skeleton Crew and two anthology series and provide their thoughts on why so much of the new Star Wars content is struggling to recapture the greatness of the original trilogy.
S07E07 - Will AI Finally Kill Copyright?
We go over the summary judgment rulings in the recent lawsuits against Anthropic and Meta for their LLMs, and then we zoom out and consider whether AI is the technology that will finally unravel copyright in a way that requires a complete institutional rethinking.
S07E06 - Movie Trailers
We talk about some of the weird and unique IP issues around movie trailers.
S07E05 - Character Copyright and the Disney + Universal Lawsuit vs. Midjourney
We talk about the recently-filed lawsuit against Midjourney by Disney and others alleging infringement of the copyright to iconic characters.
S07E04 - Streaming and Fan Communities
Ben and Kirk dive into different television content distribution models - binge watching vs. episodic. Why does it feel like some Disney+ shows mirror the narrative structure of syndicated television, but others are serialized?
S07E03 - Star Wars Holiday Special (orig. rec. Feb. 2025)
Ben and Kirk break down some Star Wars content, mainly The Acolyte and season 1 of Andor. Originally recorded in Feb. of 2025.
S07E02 - Public Domain Day 2025
Ben and Kirk go over their annual tradition of covering the new works entering the public domain this year.
S07E01 - Trivia Night
In our season debut, we tackle trivia nights! Learn about all the weird IP issues that come up at your local bar trivia.
S06E11 - Dance Dance Litigation
Kirk and Bed go over the 9th Circuit's holding in the dispute between a choreographer and Epic games over the use of popular dance moves as purchasable "emotes" in Fortnite.
Other episodes referenced in this episode:
Stairway to Heaven Episode: https://soundcloud.com/user-329223368/season-3-ep-11-the-edamame-episodes-part-3?si=316efde700464719ad52942ea937aae1&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=te
S06E10 - The Bad Batch: Season 3 Review
Ben and Kirk dissect the final season of The Bad Batch. What went right, what went wrong, and where is the future of Star Wars content going?
Bad Batch logo courtesy of Disney Plus (https://press.disneyplus.com/media-kits/the-bad-batch).
S06E09 - Supreme Court Ruling: Can You Really Get Copyright Damages Forever?
Ben and Kirk discuss what the Supreme Court's recent ruling really means. Could you now get in trouble for that time in 1998 whenyou posted the lyrics to a LeAnn Rimes on your Angelfire page?
S06E08 - Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Ben and Kirk discuss the tangled history of IP licenses to the Dungeons and Dragons brand, and the litigation required to sort through them before the recent film could be made. And, of course, they can't help but talk about the movie.
Other related materials:
* S06E07 - The Open Gaming License (https://soundcloud.com/user-329223368/s06e07-the-open-gaming-license-kerfuffle)
* S04E07 - The TSR T
S06E07 - The Open Gaming License Kerfuffle
At long last, Ben and Kirk dive into the open gaming license and the kerfuffle surrounding it.
Image Credit: "Dungeons & Dragons dice 2" by lydia_shiningbrightly is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
S06E06 - (In Camera) Visions Season 2 Review
Kirk and Ben review the second season of the "Visions" series of Star Wars-themed anime shorts on Disney+.
S06E05 - AI
Ben and Kirk at least tackle the ever-present subject of AI, and discuss some of the legal and practical issues. The cover art for this episode was generated by DALL-E after many, many, many failed attempts to produce a lawyer-Terminator.
S06E04 - (In Camera) The Last of Us
In the first "In Camera" episode, Ben and Kirk discuss last year's hit zombie series, The Last of Us, on HBO.
Image: Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey in The Last of Us (2023), IMDB.COM.
S06E03 - Public Domain Day 2024
Ben and Kirk are back after a long hiatus to go over the new works entering the public domain in 2024, not least of which is Steamboat Willie, the original public debut of Mickey Mouse.
S06E02 - The Warhol Rule is Dead
A long-running LGG inside joke was recently killed by the Supreme Court. Why can't we have fun things? Check out our prior episode about this case:
https://soundcloud.com/user-329223368/s05e06-long-live-the-warhol-rule
S06E01 - Public Domain Day 2023
Links and References:
https://web.law.duke.edu/cspd/publicdomainday/2023/
LGG: In Camera:
The URL for the new feed is not set up yet, we'll update this once it's ready.
S05E08 - The Star Wars Fall Holiday Special
We tried not to talk about Star Wars. We really did. But now that we both have Disney+ subscriptions, there's just too much Star Wars to talk about it. Ben and Kirk react to the recently dropped Andor and Mandalorian S03 trailers and run through the lengthy slate of upcoming Star Wars content as published by IGN here: https://www.ign.com/articles/upcoming-new-star-wars-movies-2022-tv-shows-rele
S05E07 - Parody Songs: "Weird" Al Yankovic and 2 Live Crew's "Pretty Woman"
An educational, non-commercial, transformative podcast episode about "Weird" Al Yankovic parodies and 2 Live Crew at the Supreme Court in Campbell v. Acuff-Rose, the seminal fair use decision involving parodies.
S05E06 - Long Live the Warhol Rule
Kirk and Ben discuss the ins and outs of the latest copyright case to make its way to the Supreme Court. Could this be the end of the Warhol Rule?
You can look at the 2nd Circuit opinion here: https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca2/19-2420/19-2420-2021-03-26.html
S05E05P02 - Kenobi Predictions Revisited
Ben and Kirk go over their predictions for Kenobi, and require your help to break a veritable tie.
Summer 2022 Brief Update
A short scheduling update.
(Edamame) The LGG Reading Room
In this edamame episode, Kirk and Ben break from the usual format to talk about their favorite science fiction and fantasy books, ranging from classics to newer works by Ken Liu and Liu Cixin.
S05E05 - Kenobi Predictions!
Ben and Kirk provide some predictions (of various levels of seriousness) for the upcoming Disney+ series Kenobi.
A Brief Production Update
Ben provides a short update on our recently unproductive production schedule.
(Rewind) S01E15 - File Sharing, BitTorrent, and Takedowns (orig. Jan. 22, 2018)
A DMCA reform act was introduced to Congress last week, and we plan to talk about it soon. To refresh you on some of the issues, we are running this Rewind episode, originally released Jan. 22, 2018, in which we talk about the legal issues around hosting third party works.
S05E04 - Twitch, Fair Use, and the Meaning of Life
Ben and Kirk dive into some of the tangled legal issues with video game streaming and how pragmatic considerations sometimes become the ultimate mediator of how people use the IP of others.
(Rewind) S01E04 - Minecraft is an Elaborate Pixel Editor (orig. rel. Aug. 11, 2017)
In this rewind episode, original aired Aug. 11, 2017, Ben and Kirk discuss IP issues related to the things players create in Minecraft.
(Edamame) Toys, Games, And Hobbies
In his first edamame episode in some time, Kirk answers a listener's question about his unusual collection of unusual collectables, including some rare 1980s-era Transformer toys of uncertain origin.
(Rewind) S01E23 - The Monkey Selfie , AI, And Public Domain
In this rewind episode, originally released May 14, 2018, Ben and Kirk discuss the "Monkey Selfie" lawsuit and the potential implications for authorship by AI creators. We also provide our predictions for the then-upcoming Han Solo movie.
S05E03 - Book of Boba Fett Review
Your hosts break down the seven-episode Disney+ series, The Book of Boba Fett.
"Boba Fett Square Cut" by Jens Rost is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse&atype=rich
(Rewind) S01E26 - Cultural Differences in IP Rights (orig. aired June 25, 2018)
In this rewind episode of S01E26, which originally aired June 2, 2018, Kirk and Ben discuss the origins of intellectual property institutions and what happens when they don't fit in neatly with non-western cultures.
S05E02 - Bonus Materials - Dune (1984) Is Weird
In this short bit that didn't make the episode, Ben and Kirk discuss David Lynch's 1984 adaptation of Dune, and why Herbert's empire-spanning novel is so difficult to adapt for cinema.
S05E02 - NFTs and Jadorowsky's Dune
Kirk and Ben explore the intersection between NFTs and intellectual law in response to issues raised by the recent purchase of a copy of Jadorowsky's Dune bible, and discuss what exactly an NFT is and why they are perceived to have commercial value.
(Rewind) S02E12 - Star Wars: Film in Law
This is rewind episode of S02E12, originally released in June of 2019.
Ben and Kirk begin with a brief discussion of the then-very-recent Stanley Cup championship won by the St. Louis Blues, and then proceed to break down various lawsuits over the years involving a favorite topic: Star Wars.
(Edamame) The Greatest Legal Movie Ever Made
In a break from our usual subject matter, Ben takes a minute to talk about the greatest legal movie ever made, and what makes it so good. If you've listened to us before, this take probably won't surprise you.
S05E01 - Happy Public Domain Day 2022!
Happy Public Domain Day 2022! Kirk and Ben talk about major works entering the public domain this year and discuss copyright term and whether it's begun to cost us some of the very works it was meant to foster and protect.
(Edamame) Ghostbusters Afterlife Review
In this short review episode, Ben provides some general thoughts on the new entry in the Ghostbusters franchise, Ghostbusters: Afterlife.
LGG Podcast 2021 Anime Holiday Special
For their 2021 Holiday Special, Ben and Kirk dive into some anime content and discuss the nine Star Wars: Visions short films released on Disney+ this year, followed by closing thoughts on The Bad Batch season 1.
(Edamame) Dune (2021) Review
Ben provides his thoughts on the 2021 Dune film.
(Edamame) Show Update + Monsters
After a long fall break, Ben provides an update on the show and we belatedly publish Kirk's Halloween episode (in December).
S04E10 - Copyrighting your Magic: The Gathering Decks
In one of the stranger twists and turns we've seen recently in copyright law, somebody registered a copyright to their Magic: the Gathering deck. Kirk and Ben dive into what exactly that means for the future of CCG tournaments.
(Edamame) - Roblox Redux - Settled!
Ben provides a brief update on the Roblox music lawsuit, which recently settled.
(Edamame) - The Mysterious Benedict Society
Kirk provides a overview/review of The Mysterious Benedict Society, a curious show we briefly mentioned on a prior episode.
S04E09 - The Roblox Music Lawsuit
Kirk and Ben go over the complaint and affirmative defenses in the Roblox music lawsuit, with the usual assortment of digressions along the way.
Image Attribution: "Carnaby Records (Liège)" by Marc Wathieu is licensed with CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
(Edamame) - Cruella
In the last of our set of four edamame episodes about television, Kirk discusses his reaction to Disney's Cruella live-action take on the villainess from 101 Dalmations.
(Edamame) - Star Wars: Rebels
In this edamame episode, Kirk provides a review of the Star Wars: Rebels television series.
Image Credit: "[135/365] The Rebel Yell" by pasukaru76 is marked under CC0 1.0. To view the terms, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/cc0/1.0/
S04E08 - IP in Programming Languages (and the Next Google v. Oracle?)
Kirk and Ben get into the details of a case that is being described in the press as the next Google v. Oracle, and discuss how various copyright doctrines interact in unusual ways with source code. This episode also features a special guest appearance by an interloping helicopter.
Image Attribution: "Python Source Code" by joncutrer is marked under CC0 1.0. To view the terms, visit https://creat
(Edamame) - The Bad Batch
Since Ben hasn't seen it yet, Kirk flies solo in this episode, providing his thoughts on the first season of The Bad Batch.
(Rewind) S01E05 - Qapla'! Who Owns the Klingon Language?
In this rewind episode, Ben and Kirk discuss intellectual property issues related to planned languages.
(Edamame) Intellectual Property in Popular Culture
In this edamame episode, Kirk discusses the various ways that popular depictions of intellectual property get our day jobs right ... and more often, wrong.
SPOILER ALERT! Kirk gets into some discussion of the Season 3 of Roswell.
A Brief Scheduling Update
Ben provides a brief update on the podcast schedule for the rest of 2021.
Announcing the New LGGPodcast.com Web Site
A short PSA announcing our new and improved web site, http://www.lggpodcast.com/.
PHOTO ATTRIBUTION:
"the world wide web" by frankieleon is licensed with CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
S04E07 - The Great TSR Trademark War of 2021
We break down the recent drama over who owns the revived TSR trademarks and associated registrations, including a side quest through who owns the rights to Gary Gygax's name and legacy.
Please see this episode posted on our website, www.lggpodcast.com, for the show notes. The show URL is: https://lggpodcast.com/?p=268
(Rewind) S02E02 + S02E16 - Rights of Publicity and the EA Sports Video Games
In this rewind episode, we collect our prior discussion of the rights of publicity issues (also known as "name/image/likeness" or "NIL") surrounding the retirement of the Electronic Arts title NCAA Football. Refresh your memory on the issues, as we may talk about how the 2021 anti-trust ruling against the NCAA could impact both the future of these video game titles, and how NIL issues may spill o
S04E06 - In Real Life!
After more than year of pandemic-impose separation , Ben and Kirk reunite to cover COVID-19 IP waivers, the recent anti-trust ruling against the NCAA by the US Supreme Court, and, of course, Star Wars and Star Trek.
S04E05 - Google v. Oracle
Ben and Kirk break down the long-awaited Supreme Court opinion in the Google v. Oracle case, and speculate wildly about the potential consequences.
S04E04 - Character Copyright (Part 4 Of 3)
Catching up on new developments in the law from 2020, Ben and Kirk follow-up on their prior 3-part series on character copyright.
SHOW NOTE: Towards the end of the program, we reference the potential of an upcoming decision in the Google v. Oracle case. After we recorded this but before release, the Supreme Court did indeed issue an opinion in that case. We will be publishing a new episode cove
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