You Are Good

Clarice Starling was a revelation while the portrayal of "Buffalo Bill" became a bane for many trans people coming of age. The impeccably constructed film is the gold standard of copaganda. We unpack The Silence of the Lambs' complicated legacy with Harmony Colangelo! We made a playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of songs that come to mind when we all think about this movie. You can Harmony's essay A Reluctant Defense of Silence of the Lambs' James Gumb here. You can find Harmony on Twitter here. You can find A Year of Queer Cocktails here. You can find This Ends at Prom here! Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. You can find producer and music director Carolyn Kendrick's music here. She's also on Twitter. Fresh Lesh produces the beats for our episodes. Abigail Swartz of Gray Day Studio designed our logo!

A few Halfling hippies assemble an eclectic fellowship and go on the adventure of a lifetime. Dads and daddies abound. We talk Hobbits, fan fiction, thirsting for Viggo, and The Lord of the Rings with our pal Talia Lavin. You can find Talia's book Culture Warlords here. You can find Talia on Twitter here. We made a playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of songs that come to mind when we all think about this movie. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. You can find producer and music director Carolyn Kendrick's music here. She's also on Twitter. Fresh Lesh produces the beats for our episodes. Abigail Swartz of Gray Day Studio designed our logo!

One time in the 1990s a scary litigator melted the hearts of millions of kids by reminding his daughter that "you divorce wives, not kids." We discuss Mel Horowitz—the loveliest shouty dad in popular cinema—Cher, Josh, Tai, Murray, Travis and the rest of the Clueless gang with our pal Kristofer Thomas. You can Kristofer on Twitter and on TikTok! We made a playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of songs that come to mind when we all think about this movie. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. You can find producer and music director Carolyn Kendrick's music here. She's also on Twitter. Fresh Lesh produces the beats for our episodes. Abigail Swartz of Gray Day Studio designed our logo!

It's a movie about a big, messy sweetie who can't get out of his own way and all of the folks who suffer as a result. We talk The Wrestler, alcoholic dads, and more with the wonderful Gaby Dunn. You can Gaby on Instagram and on TikTok! We made a playlist to accompany this episode! It's comprised of songs that come to mind when we all think about this movie. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. You can find producer and music director Carolyn Kendrick's music here. She's also on Twitter. Ethan Hawkins of Corner House accompanied her on her rendition of The Wrestler. Fresh Lesh produces the beats for our episodes. Abigail Swartz of Gray Day Studio designed our logo!

An effervescent dark comedy that addresses the crushing nature of patriarchy while also paying tribute to ABBA on a number of levels? We gushed about Muriel's Wedding with the endlessly marvelous Laura Lippman. You can find Laura's books here, and you can find Laura on Twitter here! Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. You can find producer and music director Carolyn Kendrick's music here. She's also on Twitter. Fresh Lesh produces the beats for our episodes.

A bunch of men have competing views on how best to parent their city, though they all agree the task of dadding around is a thankless, back-breaking, and secretive operation. A lovable anarchist literally tells the Bat Dad that they complete each other. We unpack the plethora of dad issues presented in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight with the delightful Aubrey Gordon. You can find Maintenance Phase here. And you can find Aubrey's book What We Don't Talk About When We Talk About Fat here. You can find Aubrey on Instagram here! And on Twitter here! Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. You can find producer and music director Carolyn Kendrick's music here. She's also on Twitter. Fresh Lesh produces the beats for our episodes.

We're putting last week's episode of Shootin' the Shit w. Why Are Dads [our Patreon bonus series] over here on the main feed because it sounds like a lot of y'all are dealing with some of that heavy-heavy and a few folks said it was helpful for them to hear and think about. Also, it's not just heavy stuff! We also talk about Oceans 11 and Crash Bandicoot. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon.    

10 Things I Hate About You is Shakespeare seen through a 90s teen comedy lens and it remains such a treat. Along with special guest Sanpriti Ireland, we talk about Kat, her over-protective dad, Heath Ledger, and teen movies that don't treat their protagonists like scary humping machines. You can find Sanpriti on Instagram here! And her Patreon here. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. You can find producer and music director Carolyn Kendrick's music here. She's also on Twitter. Fresh Lesh produces the beats for our episodes.  

A group of men have some feelings, don't know what to do with them, and get everyone around them into a big mess. Sound familiar? We discuss Fargo, what me mean by "straight men", and the great Marge Gunderson with Clementine Ford. You can find Clementine on Instagram here! And here is Big Sister Hotline! Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. You can find producer and music director Carolyn Kendrick's music here. She's also on Twitter. Fresh Lesh produces the beats for our episodes. Our Liz Climo "You Are Good" merch can be found here!  

Is it possible that sometimes folks get so carried away in representing their causes that they overlook the humanity of the people about whom they purport to care? We discuss the criminally underrated Citizen Ruth, the abortion debate, and the heavenly Laura Dern with our wonderful friend Candace Jane Opper. You can find Candace's book Certain and Impossible Events here! You can find Candace on Twitter. Why Are Dads is a show in which hosts Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed attempt to understand what the hell it means to be the grown children of dads and other dad-like figures. And, as they do with all difficult subject matter, they do so by looking through a pop culture lens. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. You can find producer and music director Carolyn Kendrick's music here. She's also on Twitter. Fresh Lesh produces the beats for our episodes. Our Liz Climo "You Are Good" merch can be found here!