Episodes
Episode 71: Lori Morimoto
The fan studies scholar on transcultural fandom, contact zones, and bridging the fan/academic divide.
Latest
Episodes
Episode 70: “Our Most Passionate Fans”
What happens when brands sanction fans’ bad—even violent—behavior as “passionate”?
Episodes
Episode 69: Fan Tourism
From set visits to theme parks to retracing the steps of a fictional character.
Special Episodes
Special Episode 6: The Good Place
A conversation about the beloved sitcom inevitably turns into debate about morality and human nature.
Episodes
Episode 68: Stephanie Burt: Part 2
The poet (and X-fan) returns to discuss trans themes in fandom, publicly transitioning, and more.
Episodes
Episode 67: Stephanie Burt: Part 1
The poetry professor and critic talks about taste cultures, situating critical perspective, and more.
Episodes
Episode 66: The Humanizing Turn
A conversation on tropes, characterization, and what we want from stories, in canon and in fanfic.
Episodes
Episode 65: Fandom and Capitalism
How does transformative fandom disrupt the cycles of capitalism—and how does it reinforce them?
Special Episodes
Special Episode 5: Brooklyn 99
A conversation about the sitcom with a focus on the fandom-friendly episode “Return to Skyfire.”
Criticism
The Year of Loving Things Again
On giving yourself permission.
Episodes
Episode 64: The Year In Fandom 2017
Fandom mainstreaming, shipping and activism, and #MeToo: our annual year in review.
Episodes
Episode 63: Fanworks and Counterfeits
What counts as “acceptable fanart” in the eyes of The Powers That Be?