Supercontext: an autopsy of media

This 1992 album is celebrated as one of the best of the era but we look at the dysfunctional, toxic relationships between the five band members, and we find that the pressures of the music business, touring, and getting older, led to internal conflicts that made it harder for Faith No More to just be a group of goofy weirdos. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Angel Dust Additional Resources: THE POWER OF NEGATIVE THINKING Talking music and zoning with Roddy Bottom of Faith No More Faith No More - Making Of Angel Dust (Full) Faith No More: 'We’ve made bad decisions our whole career. That’s why the English champion us' 26 YEARS AGO: FAITH NO MORE RELEASE ‘ANGEL DUST’ 10 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT FAITH NO MORE’S ‘ANGEL DUST’ HEAVY METAL HOMO

This 1967 British TV show is revered as a cult classic that was radical and countercultural, while symbolizing philosophical arguments about individualism vs. collectivism. We take a deeper look at star Patrick McGoohan and the commercial interests behind the show to ask if it's ultimately more conservative than pop culture likes to remember. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: The Prisoner Additional Resources: A Spy Trapped in a Nightmare of Psychedelia GEORGE MARKSTEIN interviewed by Chris Rodley Number Six At 50: The 50th Anniversary Of 'The Prisoner' How did The Prisoner ever get made? Patrick McGoohan Explains The Meaning Of The Prisoner, A TV Cult Classic Alan Moore Remembers Patrick McGoohan’s “The Prisoner”: Part 1 What on earth was The Prisoner all about? McGuire, J. T. (2014). A Mentor-Protégé Relationship?: Orson Welles, Patrick McGoohan, and The Prisoner Television Series. Quarterly Review of Film & Video, 31(7), 647. Hanna, E. (2014). Be Selling You: The Prisoner As Cult and Commodity. Television & New Media, 15(5), 433. Woodman BJ. Escaping Genre’s Village: Fluidity and Genre Mixing in Television’s The Prisoner. Journal of Popular Culture. 2005;38(5):939

This 1979 collection of essays attempts to reveal the 1960s and California as stories without narratives. We discuss how Didion's work was branded because of her gender, class, and lack of politics, despite her insistence that writing was only an attempt to make sense out of chaos. Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: The White Album Additional Resources: The Top 10 Essays Since 1950 Joan Didion’s Style Joan Didion: Staking Out California There's a reason Joan Didion's work endures: she changed the way we wrote We Tell Ourselves Stories: Didion’s “White Album” Takes to the Stage From literary heavyweight to lifestyle brand: exploring the cult of Joan Didion The White Album, by Joan Didion

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 our affiliate store: Tamasha Additional Resources: ‘Tamasha’ not autobiographical, says Imtiaz Ali Anushka Sharma Rejected 'Tamasha' Because The Role Wasn't 'Meaty' Enough For Her 'Tamasha' is about choosing your own story: Imtiaz Ali An inspiration, a formula, a discovery— filmmaker Imtiaz Ali breaks down ‘love’ Love aaj kal Watch Imtiaz Ali Talk about This Iconic Tamasha Scene Where Deepika Cried for Real Ranbir, Deepika break down on sets of 'Tamasha' Ranbir, Deepika's Personal History Doesn't Bother Tamasha Director Censor Board beeps saali in Imtiaz’s film 2 years of Tamasha: I meet people who tell me that the film changed their life, says Imtiaz Ali Here's why Imtiaz Ali's Tamasha is more than just a movie Why Imtiaz Ali Movies Are Beautiful And Most Of All Tamasha Tamasha Was Made With a View the Audience is Not Stupid, Says Imtiaz Ali  

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 affiliate store: The Money Store Additional Resources: Suspicious Minds - The Resolute Mission Of Death Grips Death Grips Implode Punk and Rap Borders on New LP Band of the Year: Death Grips Death Grips: “There's a lot of recycling and destruction in the making of our music” Who Are…Death Grips

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 store: The Tale of One Bad Rat Additional Resources: The Tale of One Bad Rat homepage The Rat's Whiskers The Tale of One Bad Rat (Graphic Medicine) The Tale of One Bad Rat, or, thoughts on teaching adults to read comics Still Relevant Today: The Tale of One Bad Rat #metoo stories. Library Journal; 4/1/2018, Vol. 143 Issue 6, p53-53, 1/3p Donna R. White (2018) Finding Beatrix Potter: Bryan Talbot’s The Tale of One Bad Rat, Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, DOI: 10.1080/21504857.2018.1533484

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 our affiliate store: Crashing, Season One Additional Resources: How Pete Holmes Morphed His Despair Into Comedy With Crashing The Tao of Pete Holmes: HBO’s ‘Crashing’ Creator on Comedy, Sex and God How HBO’s ‘Crashing’ Star Pete Holmes Found Salvation — And Judd Apatow ‘Crashing’: Pete Holmes and Judd Apatow on Their HBO Stand-Up Comedy Series Pete Holmes Opens Old Wounds in HBO’s ‘Crashing’ Pete Holmes on Crashing and Finding God in Filthy Jokes Small Screen: Apatow, Holmes offer raw look at HBO’s Crashing Finally, somebody is updating Crashing for current day I'm Sorry But HBO's Crashing Sucks

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 Additional Resources: A Chilean Writer’s Fictions Might Include His Own Colorful Past Valdes, M. (2008). His Stupid Heart: Robert Bolaño’s Novels Were a Love Letter to His Generation, But What He Had to Say Many Chileans Didn’t Want to Hear. Virginia Quarterly Review, 84(1), Corral, W. H. (2006). Roberto Bolaño. World Literature Today, 80(6), 50–54. The Best Bolaño Book is 'Distant Star' What Roberto Bolaño Can Teach Us About Making Art Under Fascism

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 the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store: Throne of Blood Additional Resources: 1957: When Akira Kurosawa's 'Throne of Blood' Was Ahead of Its Time Parker, B. (1997). Nature and Society in Akira Kurosawa’s “Throne of Blood.” University of Toronto Quarterly, 66(3), 508. Catherine Russell. “Men with swords and men with suits: The cinema of Akira Kurosawa” Cineaste. Winter2002, Vol. 28 Issue 1, p4. 10p. 9 The Chilling Effect of Noh Theater on Akira Kurosawa's 'Throne of Blood' ‘Throne of Blood’: The Value and Meaning of Kurosawa’s Fog-Drenched Masterpiece

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 Additional Resources: US troops kill Baghdad lions 15 YEARS AGO, A LION PRIDE ROAMED THE STREETS OF BAGHDAD Revisiting ‘Pride of Baghdad’s’ Haunting Iraq War Allegory The Joy of Pride: Vaughan talks "Pride of Baghdad" BANNED BOOKS WEEK: PRIDE OF BAGHDAD The Pride of Baghdad CBLDF Discussion Guide: Pride of Baghdad