

Supercontext: an autopsy of media
Christian Sager and Charlie Bennett
A podcast autopsy of media: how we consume it and how it informs our everyday culture.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jul 31, 2025 • 4min
Another Short Message

Jul 31, 2025 • 1h 36min
Reservation Dogs, Season 3
This television show, created by Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi, ran from 2021 to 2023, taking on themes like grief and indigenous identity with humor, inventive storytelling, and touching reminders of coming of age within a compassionate community. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Track it down from here: Reservation Dogs Sources: https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/reservation-dogs-the-real-story-of-okern-oklahoma/ https://deadline.com/2024/08/reservation-dogs-dpharaoh-woon-a-tai-interview-emmys-1236033993/ https://variety.com/2024/tv/awards/reservation-dogs-producer-migizi-pensoneau-indigenous-storytelling-1236044429/ https://screenrant.com/reservation-dogs-original-5-season-plan-details/ https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-features/reservation-dogs-sterlin-harjo-series-finale-interview-1235607021/ https://www.huffpost.com/entry/reservation-dogs-authentic-native-moments_n_64c5771fe4b03ad2b898c325 https://www.npr.org/2023/08/02/1191671833/the-unassumingly-brilliant-reservation-dogs-is-back-for-its-third-and-final-seas https://variety.com/2023/tv/features/reservation-dogs-creator-sterlin-harjo-why-ending-season-3-1235686188/ https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/reservation-dogs-season-3-tv-review-fx-hulu-1235547845/ https://www.npr.org/2022/08/08/1115613218/reservation-dogs-indian-native-american-hulu https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/sep/01/why-reservation-dogs-is-the-funniest-and-most-groundbreaking-new-tv-show https://www.salon.com/2021/08/09/reservation-dogs-fx-hulu-taika-waititi-sterlin-harjo/ https://www.cbr.com/reservation-dogs-hot-chip-metaphor/ https://www.indiewire.com/features/interviews/reservation-dogs-finale-sterlin-harjo-interview-1234910461/ https://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episode-1489-taika-waititi

Jul 4, 2025 • 1h 49min
The Only Good Indians
This 2020 novel by Native American author Stephen Graham Jones mixes literary explorations of indigenous peoples' identity with slasher-film tropes, making it his first novel with mainstream success. Did Jones change something about his writing to get there, or did the literary world catch up to him? We discuss how history, symbols, and context fit into his project while asking, "Why did the literary establishment like this so much?" Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: The Only Good Indians Sources: https://blackfeetnation.com/ https://blog.nativehope.org/native-american-animals-the-elk-a-protector-and-relative https://academic.oup.com/isle/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/isle/isad056/7255951?redirectedFrom=fulltext https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/stephen-graham-jones-the-only-good-indians-interview/ https://ew.com/books/2019/08/08/only-good-indians-preview/ https://www.npr.org/2020/07/29/896840079/in-his-new-book-stephen-graham-jones-explores-the-idea-of-good-indians https://www.npr.org/2020/07/16/891433693/grief-and-guilt-spawn-horrors-in-the-only-good-indians https://www.jstor.org/stable/541345 https://journals.kent.ac.uk/index.php/transmotion/article/view/266/900 https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2020-07-15/the-only-good-indians-by-stephen-graham-jones-review https://blog.nativehope.org/native-american-animals-the-elk-a-protector-and-relative https://filmobsessive.com/film/film-news/film-interviews/interview-stephen-graham-jones-a-discussion-on-lost-highway-and-mapping-the-interior/ ERIC GARY ANDERSON, et al. “Demon Theory for Beginners, or The Intertextual Badlands of Stephen Graham Jones.” Postindian Aesthetics, University of Arizona Press, 2022, pp. 165-, https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv2c3k193.24. Washuta, Elissa and Warburton, Theresa. Shapes of Native Nonfiction: Collected Essays by Contemporary Writers, Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 2019. Schaak, Hogan D. "Bleeding All over the Shelves and Tracking It Out into the World: Theorizing Horror in the Indigenous North American Novels The Only Good Indians and Empire of Wild." Studies in the Fantastic, vol. 15, 2023, p. 94-126.

Jun 6, 2025 • 1h 48min
Repeater
Dive into the world of Fugazi and their influential album 'Repeater,' which still resonates today. Explore the band's DIY ethos and the personal interpretations of their themes by listeners across generations. Discover the intricate dynamics of their onstage chemistry and the unique soundscapes crafted through collaboration. Reflect on the socio-political messages in tracks like 'Greed,' while discussing the evolution of the indie music scene and the shift to more creator-driven platforms. Experience the powerful legacy of authenticity and community that defines Fugazi's work.

Jun 3, 2025 • 2min
And Now a Short Message
Christian and Charlie have a couple things to say.

May 1, 2020 • 2h 15min
Supercontext
This podcast ran independently from 2016 to 2020. We reflect on our goals in creating it and how successful those were while trying to be transparent about the ins and outs of podcast production, marketing, and monetization.

Apr 24, 2020 • 2h 23min
From Hell
This graphic novel by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell came out between 1989 and 1998, 100 years after the Jack the Ripper murders it's based on. We look at the meticulous research they put into this to try to understand how this story manages to be about true crime while indulging in deep themes like English identity, psychogeography, and the nature of time. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: From Hell Additional Resources: A Look Back at ‘From Hell’ by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell Delivering the Twentieth Century, Part 1: Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell’s From Hell Delivering the 20th Century, Part 2: Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell’s From Hell The Great Alan Moore Reread: From Hell, Part 1 The Great Alan Moore Reread: From Hell, Part 2 Eddie Campbell explains why he's coloring From Hell for the first time Michael J. Prince (2017) The magic of patriarchal oppression in Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell’s From Hell, Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, 8:3, 252-263 Vollmar, R. (2017). Northampton Calling. World Literature Today, 91(1), 28–34. The House That Jack Built – An Interview with Alan Moore (2002) From Hell And Back: The Eddie Campbell Interview Superhuman Cognitions, Fourth Dimension and Speculative Comics Narrative: Panel Repetition in Watchmen and From Hell Postimperial Landscapes "Psychogeography" and Englishness in Alan Moore's Graphic Novel"From Hell: A Melodrama in Sixteen Parts" Author(s): Elizabeth Ho Source: Cultural Critique, No. 63 (Spring, 2006), pp. 99-121 Published by: University of Minnesota Press

Apr 17, 2020 • 1h 40min
Heat
This 1995 film by Michael Mann is considered a quintessential cops-and-robbers epic. We look at Mann's attention to detail and his attempt at authenticity in light of the movie's influence on audiences, filmmakers, and real-life criminals. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Heat Additional Resources: Interview w/ Eliot Goldenthanl Michael Mann Launches Book Imprint; ‘Heat’ Prequel Novel A Priority Life imitates art in Colombia robbery The long warm-up to Heat Heat Crime in the emptiness of Los Angeles Why Is Heat So Great? Let’s Ask Michael Mann. What Michael Mann Changed, and What He Didn’t, for the Anniversary Edition of Heat Michael Mann’s ‘Heat’: A Complex, Stylistically Supreme Candidate for One of the Most Impressive Films of the Nineties The Loneliness Of Los Angeles In Michael Mann's 'Heat' 10 Intense Behind-The-Scenes Facts About Heat Michael Mann eyes 'Heat 2' film as book nears completion Decades Later, Viewers Still Feel The 'Heat' For Michael Mann's 1995 LA Crime Saga REVISITING THE L.A. OF ‘HEAT’ 24 YEARS LATER WITH THE ICONIC CRIME DRAMA’S LOCATION MANAGER La Story: The Making of Michael Mann’s “Heat” – by Tom Ambrose [Empire] Michael Mann on ‘Heat,’ 22 Years Later: What We’ve Learned from His Recent Interviews

Apr 10, 2020 • 1h 31min
Hounds of Love
This 1985 concept album by Kate Bush is split into pop songs and a suite of music about someone drowning. We look at Bush's career arc leading up to this record and how the support she received from those around her allowed to experiment and create this wholly unique music. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Hounds of Love Additional Resources: Kate Bush Kate Bush rules, OK? Hounds of Love Landmark Productions: Kate Bush – Hounds of Love Classic Album: Hounds Of Love – Kate Bush Cowley, J. (2005). The Wow factor. New Statesman, 134(4726), 38–39. Sinclair, D. (1994). Dear diary: The secret world of Kate Bush. Rolling Stone, 676, 13. Moy, R. (2007). Kate Bush and Hounds of Love. Ashgate.

Apr 3, 2020 • 1h 44min
Hyperion
Dan Simmon's 1989 science-fiction novel is acclaimed for its unique structure, references, and style. We take a closer look at how it interrogates our expectations of genre to explore a complex host of themes. Thank you to Chris Marlton for coproducing this episode. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Hyperion Additional Resources: Throwback Thursday: The Mind-Altering Scope of Dan Simmons’ Hyperion Cantos Better to travel hopefully: Dan Simmons’s Hyperion Dan Simmons World-class maker of worlds Dan Simmons. By: Shindler, Dorman T., Writer (Kalmbach Publishing Co.), 00439517, Feb2001, Vol. 114, Issue 2 THRALL, J. H. (2014). Authoring the Sacred: Humanism and Invented Scripture in Octavia Butler, Kurt Vonnegut and Dan Simmons. Implicit Religion, 17(4), 509. Shea, B. (2015). Evolution and Neuroethics in the Hyperion Cantos. Journal of Cognition & Neuroethics, 3(3), 139. The one huge problem with Dan Simmons’ sci-fi mystery Hyperion Eschatology and Pain in Dan Simmons’ Hyperion Senior, W. (2012). Dan Simmons's Hyperion Cantos: The Fantasy Within. Hungarian Journal of English and American Studies (HJEAS), 18(1/2), 213-226.