Supercontext: an autopsy of media

This 2015 Indian romantic comedy uses a meta-narrative to deconstruct expectations about identity and everyday life. We question the assumptions writer/director Imtiaz Ali makes about gender roles, while wondering how much the real infidelity between the lead actors complicated the film's big theme. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through...

This 2012 experimental noise record was heralded as an important moment in musical evolution. We look at how the band approaches their process while unpacking their relationship with major label Epic Records. And we ask, how do noise, magick, and defecation contribute to the future of music?   Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our a...

This collected comic is about a victim of child abuse, while also serving as an homage to the work of storyteller Beatrix Potter. We discuss Talbot's approach to representing such difficult subject matter, while also crafting a book that was more user friendly to non-comics readers. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate st...

This HBO television show about a standup comedian going through divorce attempts to tackle three big themes: sex, religion and the importance of comedy. We look into Pete Holmes and Judd Apatow's motivations behind-the-scenes, while also asking, "What is its point of view beyond self absorption?" Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through ou...

This 1996 novella is about the dark history of Chilé, merged with a detective story about poets. We look at Bolaño's career, while taking into account criticisms of his authenticity and his representation of Chileans from the vantage of his security in Europe.   Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Distant Star Add...

This 1957 Japanese samurai film is a postwar adaptation of Shakespeare's MacBeth, but we learned that it's also tapping into historical theatrical techniques and criticisms of nationalistic self-destruction. We turn to other writers and scholars for help unpacking these symbols we don't know much about, while learning just how universal this critically acclaimed movie actually is. Interested in th...

This 2006 comic by Brian K. Vaughn and Niko Henrichon is about lions escaping the Baghdad Zoo during the Iraq War. We look at how the creators approached this subject matter, why it's been challenged in libraries and how it represents people in the Middle East. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Pride of Baghdad...

This 1977 record seems to mythologize a certain version of New York, so we look at how it was made to get to the core beneath its poetry, guitar solos and critical success. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Marquee Moon Additional Resources: Television's Principles How Television Made 'Marquee Moon,' the Best Pu...

This 1996 comic-book-based-cartoon aired on MTV in 10-minute bursts of weirdness. We discuss its themes of tragedy and trauma, together with how it represents feminism, while still objectifying the female body. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: The Maxx Additional Resources: The Maxx -- The Only Thing MTV Never...

This book attempts to redefine the novel by combining narrative with an imagined anthropological record. We discuss Le Guin's background and mission, as well as larger questions about cultural misappropriation and utopianism. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Always Coming Home Additional Resources: Future Ethno...

This 2009 psychological thriller pretends to be a found footage horror film, when it's actually a dramatic exploration of grief. We discuss writer/director Joel Anderson's process, as well as the funding, distribution and historical themes in the movie. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Lake Mungo Additional Resources:...

It's our third annual Christmas ghost story episode and we're looking into this 2011 debut of the popular horror anthology series by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. We discuss Murphy's mission, the show's popularity and its contrast of trashy excessive violence and sex, with themes of mainstream, heteronormative patriarchy. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show b...

This 3-disc debut by an accomplished saxophonist was universally acclaimed as a sea change in music. We discuss how Washington was influenced by friends, family, history and dreams, while trying to challenge his listeners with genre-defying sounds. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: The Epic Additional Resources:...

This long-form essay by one of the hosts of On the Media  argues that our current sociopolitical conflicts stem from a dissolution of facts and reality. We look at Gladstone's manifesto for producing her radio show to unpack her project here, while considering her advice for bolstering our own personal realities. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchas...

This 12-part comic series seems like a fan's homage to Carl Bark' Disney stories, but we uncover how the values of "hard work" within (and the corporate machinations of many publishers) led Rosa to quit making comics out of frustration and resentment. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: The Life and Times of Scroo...

This 1987 filmed monologue changed the way mainstream media considered autobiographical performance art. We discuss how Gray made the film with director Jonathan Demme and the emotional themes throughout that resonate after his suicide. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Swimming To Cambodia (film) Swimming To Ca...

This influential 1979 album combined art education with working class political activism to play with the meaning of pop music. We discuss the production of the record and the band's conflicts (or lack thereof) with their record label and the BBC. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Entertainment! Additional Resou...

This horror comic by Grant Morrison, Chris Burnham and Nathan Fairbairn purports to act symbolically like our archetypes of myth. We ask whether it's successful in getting into our subconscious and if cosmic horror and lack of meaning even scare us anymore. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Nameless Additional R...

  We discuss Tom Hardy's television passion project and how he produced it with his father and a string of well-known storytellers. We also examine the show's symbolic demonization of corporations and what that says about historical accuracy and our present understanding of modern economics. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our aff...

This fantasy/horror novel about prep school boys and magical authority came in the middle of the genre paperback boom. We talk about Straub's concerns when writing it and how he walked the line between horror and "literature," while responding to the market pressures on his publisher. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate...

This movie had a tumultuous production, with constant fighting between writer Paddy Chayefsky and director Ken Russell. We discuss how their conflict influenced the end product... and the studios paying their bills. We also wonder if this movie unintentionally captures what we now refer to as toxic masculinity. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasin...

  This 1996 album is heralded as the critical apex for the "post-metal" sub-genre. We discuss the hardships and trauma the band members were struggling with while recording it and how it acts as catharsis for them and their listeners. We also spend a lot of time on meaning, genre distinctions and the inability of language to describe the identity we form with music. Interested in the media we disc...

This comic book about a private moon mission gone wrong is now lauded for launching the career of Walking Dead  artist Charlie Adlard. But, it was also responsible for Larry Young and Mimi Rosenheim's publishing house AiT/PlanetLar. So we discuss their approach to balancing commerce with art, and medium with story. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purch...

This dystopian television series presents a horrifying, totalitarian society that forces women to bear children as slaves. We discuss its streaming based production and reception, and then turn to multiple articles on representation, politics, religion and intersectionality to try to provide a perspective the two of us might not normally find. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Ple...

This crime novel follows a wandering problem-solver who always wins. We discuss why these books are so immensely popular and the vicarious consolation we get out of the hero, his nobility and his alienation. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: The Killing Floor Servant of the Shard The Authority Vol 1 (featuring M...