Hot and Bothered

While we're between mini-seasons, we wanted to bring you this special conversation with Kathy Tu. Kathy is the co-creator of the queer podcast Nancy and the Executive Producer of 99% Invisible . She's also obsessed with reading WLW romance novels. We brought her on to reflect on queer romance, spread the gospel, and give us some recommendations. Books mentioned: Count Your Lucky Stars by Alexandri...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Avery Trufelman analyze the ending of The Devil Wears Prada. They discuss the film's relationship to the time-space continuum and whether Andy should get back together with Nate. Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follow us on Instagram --- If we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon ! On Patreon...

Vanessa Zoltan and special guest Avery Trufelman meet at Paris Fashion Week to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about The Devil Wears Prada. This week we defend Miranda Priestly, learn about the truths and fictions of the fashion industry, and analyze Andy's makeover. We finish the episode by talking to Deborah Jermyn about Meryl Streep and aging women in Hollywood. --- Hot and...

We started our mini-season on 2008 with a question: why were chick-flicks so popular that year? To close out our season, we’re calling up one of our favorite cultural critics, Stephen Metcalf, to get some answers. Stephen Metcalf is the host of What Rough Beast and Slate’s Culture Gabfest . He talks to us today about the economic and idealogical forces at play in 2008.  Hot and Bothered...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Helen Zaltzman analyze the ending of Sex and the City! They continue to feel depressed by the film and discuss the 'compromise' of the final wedding scene. Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follow us on Instagram --- If we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon ! On Patreon we have more great roma...

Vanessa Zoltan and special guest Helen Zaltzman meet at a resort in Mexico to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about the Sex and the City movie . This week we discuss the politics of Carrie's wedding dress, the flatness of Louise's character, and the use of bird feathers in historical fashion. We finish the episode by talking to Janet McCabe about the phenomenon and legacy of th...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Hannah analyze the ending of Mamma Mia! They discuss Rosie crawling after Bill, Harry coming out as gay, and Sophie's shifting relationship to the concept of fatherhood. Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follow us on Instagram --- If we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon ! On Patreon we have m...

Vanessa Zoltan and Hannah McGregor meet-up on a fictional greek island to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about Mamma Mia! This week we discuss melodrama, the female gaze, and Susan Sontag's Notes on "Camp." We finish the episode by calling Carl Magnus Palm to talk to us about ABBA. --- Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follow us on Instagram I...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Hannah analyze the ending of Forgetting Sarah Marshall . They discuss Peter's puppet musical, Rachel's academic future, and Sarah's future as a pet psychic. Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follow us on Instagram --- If we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon ! On Patreon we have more great rom...

Vanessa Zoltan and Hannah McGregor meet-up at a Hawaiian resort to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about Forgetting Sarah Marshall. This week we discuss cool girls, beta males, and Girl's Gone Wild. We finish the episode by calling Dr. Jeffrey Geiger to talk to us about the US imagination of Hawaii in cinema. --- Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Sophie Gilbert analyze the ending of 27 Dresses . They discuss Jane's wedding dress, her skill as a bridesmaid, and her chemistry with Kevin. Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follow us on Instagram --- If we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon ! On Patreon we have more great romance content in...

Vanessa Zoltan and special guest Sophie Gilbert meet at a dive bar in upstate New York to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about 27 Dresses. This week we discuss Katherine Heigl's career, the wedding industrial complex, and the way this movie treats race and queerness. We finish the episode by talking to Sophie about her new book Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Hannah analyze the ending of Twilight . They chat about Bella's ambivalence about prom, Edward's superstrength, and the cultural power of the gazebo. Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follow us on Instagram --- If we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon ! On Patreon we have more great romance co...

Vanessa Zoltan and Hannah McGregor meet-up in Forks, Washington to play vampire baseball and record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about Twilight This week we discuss chivalry, cultural appropriation, and our new theme: movies of 2008. We finish the episode by calling Dr. Joseph Crawford to talk to us about the history of vampires in paranormal romance fiction. --- Hot and Bothered i...

While we’re in-between season, we wanted to share with you an episode of another Not Sorry podcast, The Real Question .  The Real Question is a show that holds space for life’s tough questions. Each episode, a guest brings a personal question they’re grappling with, and Chaplain Mauricio Bruce helps them find an answer. This season, our focus is on future-oriented questions – those that...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Ronald Young Jr . analyze the ending of She's All That . They chat about what makes a proper grovel and the narrative reasons for heroines to be motherless. This is our last movie in our series on teen adaptations of classic literature! We're taking two weeks off and will be back on April 15th with Twilight and other movies of 2008. But if you fin...

Vanessa Zoltan and special guest Ronald Young Jr. grab their hacky sacks and meet at a performance art show to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about She's All That. This week we deep dive into toxic beauty norms, fatphobia, and popularity. We finish the episode by calling sociologist, Amy Best , to talk to us about the history of the high school prom. --- Hot and Bothered is a...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Hannah analyze the ending of Easy A . They chat about intertextuality, grand gestures, and virginity. Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follow us on Instagram --- If we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon ! On Patreon we have more great romance content including a bonus close scene analysis of...

Vanessa Zoltan and Hannah McGregor meet at the Lobster Shack in Ojai, California to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about Easy A.  This week we discuss what makes a 'rom-com' a 'rom-com', male writers' depictions of female friendship, and Nathaniel Hawthorne. We finish the episode with an interview with Professor Megan Hunt about the depiction of Christianity in this film....

We have a special treat for you today! Vanessa recently guested on Hannah's other pop-culture podcast, Material Girls , to talk about The Notebook with Hannah and Marcelle. It was so good, we wanted to make sure you knew about it. And if you love hearing Vanessa, Hannah, and Marcelle in conversation – good news, there's another episode out there! Vanessa was on Material Girls last year to tal...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Kristen Meinzer analyze the ending of Cruel Intentions . They chat about Cecil's moment of 'growing up' and whether death is enough of a punishment for Sebastian. In this week's episode we promote our Mary Oliver writing retreat, you can check out more about that trip here . Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follo...

Vanessa Zoltan and special guest Kristen Meinzer meet at their aunt's mansion in the Hamptons to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about Cruel Intentions. This week we discuss female desire and villainy, the male gaze, and the dangers of a bored teenager. We finish the episode by calling scholar of French literature, Catriona Seth , to talk to us about Les Liaisons Dangereuses. -...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Hannah analyze the ending of Clueless . They chat about why young women love dreaming about their weddings and why they find bouquet tosses a little uncomfortable. Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry Production Find us at our website | Follow us on Instagram --- If we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon ! On Patreon we have more gr...

Vanessa Zoltan and Hannah McGregor meet at a mall in Beverley Hills to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about Clueless.  This week we discuss the charitable-industrial complex, popularity, and age-gap relationships. We finish the episode with an interview with Deidre Lynch about Austen and her adaptations.  Also on this episode, Hannah mentions this episode of Articles...

For this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Hannah analyze the ending of She's The Man . The talk hairstyles, they talk gender politics, and they talk about our favorite 'freak' character, Eunice. --- If we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon ! On Patreon we have more great romance content including a bonus close scene analysis of She's The Man with Vanessa and Hannah. H...