Last Looks: Drop Zone

Summary of Last Looks: Drop Zone

by Earwolf and Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael, Jason Mantzoukas

51m•May 29, 2026
Listen to Episode

Overview of Last Looks: Drop Zone

This episode of How Did This Get Made? Last Looks is a postmortem on Drop Zone, built around listener corrections and omissions, plus a long Just Chat segment where Paul Scheer and Jason Mantzoukas talk summer movies, superhero/DC plans, Fast & Furious spinoffs, and new music they’re enjoying. Paul also shares show updates, memorial merch for Avril Halley, and the next movie selection: The Manitou.

Corrections and Omissions on Drop Zone

The bulk of the first half is listener and Discord feedback pointing out plot holes, realism issues, and details the hosts missed:

  • Dead bodies on the plane: Sylvia asks where the extra unidentified bodies came from that led authorities to believe the hijackers died on the plane.
    • Paul agrees the logic is messy, noting the film never clearly explains the body count or the identification process.
  • EMS realism: Greg, a firefighter/paramedic, confirms the show was right that EMS would be first on scene and says the movie’s ambulance behavior was unrealistic.
    • He also defends the bell-ringing tribute to fallen responders as believable.
  • Why didn’t Sally die? Jake questions why the young mechanic survives his parachute accident instead of being killed to raise the stakes.
    • Paul and Jason agree it would have worked better dramatically, but would also have made the ending less playful and harder to land.
  • Wesley Snipes’ missing car: Matt explains that Snipes’ character sold his car to get the money needed for Yancy Butler’s plane.
    • This clears up a confusion from the episode.
  • Skydiving subculture: Keetron shares first-hand experience with skydiver culture through a friend’s family.
    • The description paints the scene as intense, loosely regulated, and tightly bonded, especially once the beer starts flowing.
  • Discord insights:
    • Brownie confirms skydiving competitions are real and varied, including formation speed, artistic, and accuracy events.
    • Dr. Guts asks why Wesley Snipes doesn’t alert the building under attack.
    • John Steele spots a sticker reading “White men and women can jump” and identifies Sally as Corey Nemec from Parker Lewis Can’t Lose.
    • Amani Taylor suggests the female leads are designed to resemble each other to show the bad guys trying to replace the heroine.
    • Sean McBee catches Gary Busey repeatedly saying “9-11” when he means “9-1-1.”
  • Winner of corrections: Paul ultimately gives the week’s win to Amani Taylor, awarding her the skydiver nickname “Xerox.”

Listener-submitted takeaways

  • The film’s internal logic is shaky, but some of its weird details are even stranger—and funnier—than the hosts realized.
  • Real skydiving culture is much more developed and competitive than the movie suggests.
  • The film contains several hidden visual and dialogue gags that reward close viewing.

Paul and Jason’s Just Chat

The middle of the episode shifts into a wide-ranging conversation about upcoming entertainment they’re excited for.

Summer movies and blockbusters

They discuss a mix of big franchise titles and smaller offbeat projects:

  • The Odyssey
  • Spider-Man: Brand New Day
  • Avengers: Doomsday
  • A new sex-purge rom-com, One Night Only, starring Callum Turner and Monica Barbaro
  • Boots Riley’s upcoming film, which Paul is especially excited about
  • A new Masters of the Universe film, which Jason is cautiously optimistic about
  • A rumored Steven Spielberg / Close Encounters-adjacent project called Disclosure Day

DC and superhero talk

Paul and Jason are very bullish on the new DC direction:

  • They praise James Gunn’s Superman and the expanding DCU.
  • They’re excited about Supergirl, especially given its connection to Tom King’s comic.
  • They also mention Clayface and admire Gunn’s willingness to let different creators bring different tones and styles to the universe.
  • They both like the idea of Elseworlds-style storytelling and standalone entries that aren’t overly tied into one giant continuity.

TV, reboots, and spinoffs

  • Jason shares that a friend is working on continuing the Fast & Furious universe for television.
  • Paul says there are now apparently four Fast & Furious TV projects in development.
  • They also talk about the return of PI shows, including:
    • Rockford Files
    • a Jake Johnson PI project
    • Scott Speedman’s show with Keith David
  • Jason compares the vibe of these projects to classic, light-action shows like Knight Rider and Hardcastle and McCormick.

Music and podcasts

Both hosts share what they’ve been listening to:

  • Hit That Perfect Beat: The London Records Story — a music docuseries Paul recommends.
  • Fela Kuti: Fear No Man — a deep documentary podcast about Fela Kuti that Paul praises highly.
  • Music recommendations from Jason include:
    • McKinley Dixon
    • Fabiano do Nascimento’s Vila
    • new Boards of Canada
    • Beth Orton
    • Alabaster DePlume
    • Mama
    • Alice Costello
    • Montveils

Personal asides

  • Jason mentions his first full watch-through of The X-Files, which he compares to Star Trek: The Next Generation and says has set the template for much of modern genre TV.
  • He also talks about getting deeply into anime, including:
    • Frieren
    • Jujutsu Kaisen
    • Witch Hat Atelier
    • Sentenced to Be a Hero
    • Hunter x Hunter

Show News and Announcements

Paul closes out the episode with a few important updates:

  • A memorial shirt for Avril Halley is available, with 100% of proceeds going to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
  • June Diane Raphael has a guest appearance in Mating Season on Netflix.
  • Black Monday is streaming on Netflix and getting renewed attention.
  • The next live show in LA at Largo is sold out, but the movie has already been announced online.
  • Upcoming Del Close Marathon appearances in New York will also be livestreamed.

Ways to contribute

Paul encourages listeners to:

  • Submit alt taglines and songs via the show’s Discord and HDTGM website
  • Leave corrections using the new SpeakPipe voicemail system
  • Rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

Next Week’s Movie: The Manitou

Paul reveals the next film: The Manitou (1978), a supernatural horror movie starring Tony Curtis, Susan Strasberg, Michael Ansara, and Burgess Meredith.

Premise

A psychic’s girlfriend discovers a growing lump on her back is actually the reincarnation of a 400-year-old demonic Native American spirit.

Why it’s notable

Paul frames it as a sharp tonal shift from skydiving action to supernatural horror, and the trailer promises a very strange, highly watchable disaster of a movie.

Key Takeaways

  • Drop Zone inspired a strong round of corrections, especially around realism, skydiving culture, and hidden details.
  • The episode doubles as a fun summer preview, with Paul and Jason excited about a surprisingly rich slate of blockbusters, oddball comedies, and comic-book adaptations.
  • Their conversation also highlights how much they value standalone storytelling, creative weirdness, and music discovery.
  • The episode closes by steering listeners toward community participation: voicemails, Discord, live shows, and the upcoming The Manitou episode.