What's the current status of table-top role-playing games like Dungeons and Dragons in pop culture? Thanks to D&D's recent depiction in Stranger Things and the enormous popularity of fantasy properties like Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings, interest in elves and magic and such is no longer fodder for Satanic panic, but the idea of actively pretending to be a character … [Read more...] about PMP#96: Modernizing D&D w/ Amanda McLoughlin (Join the Party)
Episodes
PMP#95: “The Nevers” With a Side of Whedon
Mark, Erica, and Brian discuss the HBO Max show out Victorian-era super-powered feminine outcasts, helmed and now abandoned by the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly, etc. It's jam packed with steampunk gadgets, fisticuffs, social injustice, and far too many characters and plot threads to keep track of. Given that the season was reduced to a half season in light of … [Read more...] about PMP#95: “The Nevers” With a Side of Whedon
PMP#94: Psychology of Video Game Engagement w/ Jamie Madigan
Why do people play video games, and what keeps them playing? Do we want to have to think through innovative puzzles or just lose ourselves in mindless reactivity? Mark, Erica, and Brian are joined by Dr. Jamie Madigan, an organizational psychologist who runs the Psychology of Video Games podcast, to discuss what sort of a thing this is to research, the evolution of games, … [Read more...] about PMP#94: Psychology of Video Game Engagement w/ Jamie Madigan
PMP#93: Made for Love (and other Silicon Villainy)
The tech genius has become the go-to bad guy in recent films: They're our modern mad scientists with all imaginable resources and science at their command, able to release dystopic technology to surveil, control, and possibly murder us. Even Lex Luthor was made into a "tech bro" in Batman v. Superman. Mark, Erica, and Brian discuss the HBO Max series Made for Love starring … [Read more...] about PMP#93: Made for Love (and other Silicon Villainy)
Bonus: PMP#92 Aftertalk with Hello from the Magic Tavern’s Matt Young
After our collectibles discussion, Matt stuck around to answer a couple of questions about his podcast, talk a little more about collecting (including the memorabilia left by his late father), and answer Erica's question about lady geeks. Then, what are we conusming? We get into Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Suzanna Clark’s Piranesi and Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrel, the … [Read more...] about Bonus: PMP#92 Aftertalk with Hello from the Magic Tavern’s Matt Young
PMP#92: Collectibles and Colleting w/ Matt Young
What drives someone to collect Star Wars figures or Transformers or LEGOs or whatever else? Mark, Erica, and Brian are joined by guest Matt Young of the Hello from the Magic Tavern and Improvised Star Trek podcasts to talk about this potentially expensive and life-eating habit. Must we use the word "kidulting"? No, in fact we mustn't. For a little extra info, we can look at … [Read more...] about PMP#92: Collectibles and Colleting w/ Matt Young
PMP#91: Pet Culture w/ Trainer Hannah Branigan
What is with the weird relationship we Americans have with our pets? Many of us treat them as our babies, yet of course they're our captives. Dog trainer Hannah Branigan joins Mark, Erica, and Brian to talk about pets as entertainment, as hobby, and as pandemic companions. How can we make this relationship as beneficial as possible for all involved, and how can learning to be a … [Read more...] about PMP#91: Pet Culture w/ Trainer Hannah Branigan
PMP-Partially Examined Life Crossover: Neil Postman’s “Amusing Ourselves to Death”
Is TV ROTTING OUR MINDS? Marshall McLuhan famously said "The medium is the message," by which he meant that when we receive information, its effect on us is determined as much by the form of that information as by the actual content. Neil Postman, in his 1985 book Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business, ran with this idea, arguing that TV … [Read more...] about PMP-Partially Examined Life Crossover: Neil Postman’s “Amusing Ourselves to Death”
PMP#90: Godzilla vs. Kong vs. All the Kaiju!
Are gynormous monsters ("kaiju") stomping on cities just stupid fun, or do they channel deep fears of our own helplessness? Mark, Erica, and Brian reflect on the MonsterVerse films, plus the history of Godzilla in Japan from the 1954 original to 2016's award-winning Shin Godzilla. Do we care at all about the humans in these films? Are King Kong films too sad? Is there any … [Read more...] about PMP#90: Godzilla vs. Kong vs. All the Kaiju!
PMP#89: The Chicago 7 (and the Aaron Sorkinverse)
In lieu of an Oscars episode, we consider one of the nominated films, The Trial of the Chicago 7, and the career of its writer/director, Aaron Sorkin, which started with A Few Good Men through four TV series (most notably The West Wing), and films like The Social Network, Steve Jobs, and Molly's Game. Brian, Erica, and Mark consider Sorkin's stock recurring characters … [Read more...] about PMP#89: The Chicago 7 (and the Aaron Sorkinverse)
PMP#88: Indie Animation w/ Benjamin Goldman
In the perennial conflict between art and our corporate entertainment machine, animation seems designed to be mechanized, given how labor-intensive it is, and yes, most of our animation comes aimed at children (or naughty adults) from a few behemoths (like, say, Disney). Mark, Erica, and Brian are joined by animator Benjamin Goldman to discuss doing animation on your own, … [Read more...] about PMP#88: Indie Animation w/ Benjamin Goldman
PMP#87: Female Buddy Comedies w/ Erica’s Female Buddy Micah Greene
The buddy comedy is a staple of American film, but using this to explore female friendship is still fresh ground. Erica, Mark, Brian, and Erica's long-time friend Micah Greene (actor and nurse) discuss tropes and dynamics within this kind of film, focusing primarily on Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, the 2021 release written and starring Kristin Wiig and Annie Mumolo as a … [Read more...] about PMP#87: Female Buddy Comedies w/ Erica’s Female Buddy Micah Greene
PMP#86: What Irish Means w/ Black 47’s Larry Kirwan
Another St. Patrick's Day has passed, and this one probably without a lot of green-beer-at-the-pub-action. Let's talk about what sort of representation of Ireland we were supposed to get out of all that merriment, as it's certainly not akin to the stern, very religious ceremonies that we the growing-up experience of our guest Larry, who's written books, plays and many songs … [Read more...] about PMP#86: What Irish Means w/ Black 47’s Larry Kirwan
Bonus-PMP#85 Aftertalk w/ Rolando (And More TV You Are Missing)
Yanked from behind our paywall for your amusement, we continue with Marvel-related chat for a few minutes before moving to some media discussion with Rolando about The Brain that Wouldn’t Die, Eddie Murphy, and some of the properties his podcast Remakes, Reboots, and Revivals handles including Tom and Jerry, Sonic the Hedgehog, Walker, Space Jam, and Borat 2. Then (in … [Read more...] about Bonus-PMP#85 Aftertalk w/ Rolando (And More TV You Are Missing)
PMP#85: What the WandaVision!? w/ Rolando Nieves
The long-awaited debut Disney+ Marvel superhero series is... a tribute to classic sit-coms? Mark, Erica, Brian, and guest Rolando from the Remakes, Reboots, and Revivals podcast try to figure out what kind of storytelling this really is, whether this experiment was successful, whether you have to be a Marvel die-hard (or old enough to have watched those sit-coms) to get it, and … [Read more...] about PMP#85: What the WandaVision!? w/ Rolando Nieves
PMP#84: Musician Memoirs w/ Laura Davis-Chanin
There's been an explosion of rock and roll autobiographies in recent years, with pretty much every music legend (and many others) being invited by some publisher or other to write or dictate their story. What's the particular appeal of this kind of recounting, what's the connection between writing and reading these books on the one hand and producing and listening to the actual … [Read more...] about PMP#84: Musician Memoirs w/ Laura Davis-Chanin
PMP#83: Disabled and Other-Abled Representation w/ Kayla Dryesse
At least 20% of us have some sort of disability, yet such conditions are reflected by only tiny portion of TV and film characterizations, and what characters are portrayed typically get played by non-disabled actors. Depictions often focus on what it's like to live with the condition. This can of course be socially beneficial, but we don't want to essentialize people as their … [Read more...] about PMP#83: Disabled and Other-Abled Representation w/ Kayla Dryesse
PMP#82: Cobra Kai and the Karate Kids
Did anyone suspect that the beloved 1984 "Kid Rocky" karate film (and its decreasingly beloved sequels) would now be not just remade but revived as the YouTube-Red-turned-Netflix hit Cobra Kai? Is this new show actually good, or just living unhealthily on nostalgia and the fascination of watching teens and middle aged people fistfight and fall in love. Mark-san, Erica-san, and … [Read more...] about PMP#82: Cobra Kai and the Karate Kids
PMP#81: Radio vs. Podcasting w/ Jason Bentley
Jason was music director at KRCW, the LA NPR station, is also a DJ with a lot of experienced interviewing musicians, and now hosts a new podcast, The Backstory. He joins Mark and Erica to discuss the creative and business possibilities of podcasting in comparison to radio, what their futures may hold, and his own journey between the two media. Follow Jason @thejasonbentley. … [Read more...] about PMP#81: Radio vs. Podcasting w/ Jason Bentley
PMP#80: Reliving Groundhog Day (and Palm Springs, Russian Doll, etc.)
Time looping, where a character is doomed to repeat the same day (or hour, or longer period) is a sci-fi trope dating back more than a century, but really entered American consciousness with the 1993 Bill Murray film Groundhog Day. Since then, and especially in the last five years, there have been numerous iterations of this idea in various genres from racial police-shooting … [Read more...] about PMP#80: Reliving Groundhog Day (and Palm Springs, Russian Doll, etc.)