For our new listeners, here’s are some of our top episodes, entirely unscientifically compiled from our own faves, fan faves, and most-listened to episodes.
Politics in the Culture
We’re contractually and spiritually obligated to discuss Taylor Swift and Beyonce‘s monster years and whether it’s ever possible for capitalism to = feminism.
Best Friend of the Pod Guy Branum joins us to talk Steven Spielberg and internalized Jewish self-hatred; and the history of straight actors playing gay as Oscar Bait.
Julia Sweeney ruins the Catholic Church with all the inside ball on Pope Francis, Opus Dei, and why there are so many damn Catholics on the Supreme Court.
We connect My Little Pony to the January 6 Insurrection.
How do we feel about the “Trauma Porn” documentaries turning abuse into prestige television?
Is #MeToo feminism’s “Red Pill” moment?
We’ve ruined 90s Alternative Rock, Poor Things, Oppenheimer AND Barbie, Hot Labor Summer, White Lotus, Dark Brandon, British Monarchy, Lesbian Dance Theory, Top Gun, Wordle, Succession, Cheap Old Houses, Ted Lasso, Baby Yoda, Cobra Kai, Tiger King, Bernie Memes, Adam Driver, our favorite 80s sex comedies, Watchmen, Quentin Tarantino, the World Cup, South Park, the Great British Bake Off, sex positivity, Top Gun, and of course, Christmas.
We launch our series of “Problematic Faves” by taking on the Mother of Them All: Gone With the Wind.
Our Origin Story–How Rebecca and Maya met over high school horniness and romance novels.
Culture in the Politics
Israel/Gaza: We face our fears and say difficult things in Part 1. In response to overwhelming listener feedback, we keep going in Part 2.
Trump: We show how mafia narratives led to Trump’s rise in the two-parter Mob Boss Trump; we bid farewell to his presidency with a two-parter comparing the lessons of recent cult documentaries with the Trump Cult; more recently, we enjoy TFG’s recent legal, political, and financial troubles.
The Right Wing: We explore right-wing performances in pop culture, from attacks on higher ed to the troubling re-emergence of Anti-Semitism; online male supremacy and the roots of the “incel” phenomenon; how “trolling the libs” uses conservative grievance to produce All American Fascism; what conspiracy theorists reveal about the right-wing mindset; and how the self-identified “cancelled” perform bullshit rhetorical moves around academic free speech. We also dive into the decades-long right wing project to capture The Supreme Court and what it reveals about our own dated expectations of what justice should look like.
Critical Race Theory: We dive into the history of Critical Race Theory, and the far right’s temper tantrum over what it means to teach children about America’s difficult racial history.
The Plague Year: We made sense of COVID by watching pandemic movies, breaking down how mask-resistance connects to toxic masculinity, dissecting dancing doctor Tik Toks, assessing Anti-Vaxxers, and diving into the Plague Archives.
Our favorite guest on all things politics, Kaitlyn Byrd, helps us all understand everything that’s wrong with Bernie Sanders, Joe Biden, and Pete Buttigieg; takes us through VEEPSTAKES; and breaks down Biden’s 100 Days.