Dreamland Podcast

Melinda and Conrad put the Dreamland spin on Christmas and review three decidedly dark 80s Christmas specials featuring the dark spectre of death: The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (1985, Rankin-Bass), The Snowman (1982, John Coates), and The Christmas Toy (1986, Jim Henson Productions).

Vampira and Elvira definitely didn't get off to a good start with each other, but they definitely changed the televised landscape for horror and instigated some of our favorite B-movie anthology shows.

Conrad and Melinda discuss the onslaught of charity singles in the 80s: the concept, the dramas, and the impact.

Conrad gets Melinda to watch THREE 80s movies she's never seen before to get her reaction to the 80s vision of our artificial intelligence future. Will she guess their plots correctly? Will she like any of them? Can Conrad predict her reactions? Movies watched: 2010: The Year We Make Contact, D.A.R.Y.L., and Electric Dreams

This month we're discussing the child safety panic of the 80s in the US and UK, the funny and the terrifying.

Melinda and Conrad discuss DeLorean: the man, the car, the myth - and what it's actually like to be in one!

When Melinda discovered Conrad hadn't seen any of Sylvester Stallone's classic filmography, she had to take action. What will Conrad think of Rocky, Rambo, and Over The Top? Find out in our latest show!

Melinda and Conrad remember two fairy tale anthology shows from the 80s- Faerie Tale Theatre with Shelly Duvall and The StoryTeller by Jim Henson - and analyze the history of fairy tales in general. They also discuss their new obsession with the work of well-known Harvard folklore expert Maria Tatar.

Growing up in the 80s for many of us meant a constant awareness and fear of nuclear war, along with everything that would follow. We explore the media of the decade and how it reflected these fears, with a focus on The Day After (US, 1983) and Threads (UK, 1984) - TV movies with a big message.

We discuss Ty Warner, Beanie Babies, and the lasting impact to the collecting world.

Melinda and Conrad explore the trailblazing teen shows Degrassi Junior High and Grange Hill.

Melinda and Aaron take a journey back to 1989 and take a deep dive into the Abyss (pun very much intended) with special guests Conrad and Dan from Movie Oubliette. They may or may not be saved by benevolent aliens, but they're guaranteed to spend longer underwater than they intended.

We travel from the comic books of the 70s to George Lucas and Willard Huyck's vision to Marvel's current cinematic universe to discover Howard the Duck - trapped in a world he never made.

Join Melinda and Aaron as they dive deep into the dumpster containing the Garbage Pail Kids- they discuss the cards, the film, the cartoon, and more!

Melinda and Aaron dive deep into the swirling vortex that is the history of Alien Autopsy, that crazy special from the mid-1990s.

Dreamland goes goth and delves into the witchy world of The Craft from 1996.

Melinda and Aaron recall a memorable remake of the classic Twilight Zone series from their childhoods... that scared them intensely.

Join Melinda and Aaron as they descend into the somewhat cringey fever dream that is 1980's Xanadu. Where roller skating, disco, and big Hollywood musicals crash head-on into Greek mythology and romance, you'll find… Xanadu.

We delve into the seedy underbelly of American suburbia, look at our neighbors' house and ask, "What's he building in there?" And we talk about the cult classic 80s film starring Tom Hanks.

Melinda and Aaron have fought through the COVID-19 malaise and are each back with a surprise topic. Melinda delves into what makes a great cover song, with a handful of interesting examples, while Aaron recalls our hopeful visions of space travel from the 80s.

In another fun foray into Australian pop culture, Melinda gets Aaron to watch one of her all-time favorites, Dot and the Kangaroo. Is it really as sad as she remembers? Does the Bunyip actually exist and is it coming for us? Will there be a special mention of Dead Can Dance? Listen and find out.

Michael joins Aaron and Melinda to discuss his favorite Christmas special, the Life and Adventures of Santa Claus by Rankin-Bass from 1985. Based on the 1902 book by L. Frank Baum (you know, the author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz), it adds a pagany, Tolkien-esque, Dickensian feel to the holiday in an animagical way.

Melinda and Aaron delve into their favorite anthropomorphized cartoon animals in this 50/50 episode. First we reveal the origins and backstory of the groundbreaking animation classic The Secret of NIMH, followed by a discussion of themes in the 90s' Rocko's Modern Life.

We're still in 1986, this time with TerrorVision directed by Ted Nicolaou. This B-movie is filled with slimy space monsters, swinger parents, and machine guns. Melinda and Aaron ask the question, is there more to this 80s cult classic, or is everything exactly as it seems?

Melinda and Aaron revisit 1986, but a very different film this time! They discuss Crocodile Dundee - the good, bad, ugly, and possibly true story. Put on your teeth hat and grab your knife, we're going back to the Bush!