As we close in on the end of the year, we reach that time when all pop culture podcasts do the tried and true tradition of reviewing the best content from the last twelve months. Well, here at VoxPopcast we do it a little differently. We’ve spent the last year talking about much of the…
Author: Wayne Wise
e345. Superpowers, Sex, and Science with Diana McCallum
For a show that was originally created in a comic book shop, we do surprisingly few episodes about comic books. Today is an opportunity to fix that. A few weeks ago, Mav was contacted by a publishing agent and asked if we could interview the author of a book that was all about comic book…
e342. Creepy Dolls and the Freudian Uncanny
Happy Halloween! As has been our tradition, we wanted to make sure we marked the season with a special episode or two highlighting the concepts of horror. On today’s episode, Mav, Wayne and Monica are joined by friend of the show and Director of University of California at Santa Cruz’s Center for Monster Studies, Michael…
e340. Reimagining Dracula: a Conversation with Matt Wagner and Kelley Jones
It’s October and we’re well into spooky season and like every year we like to spend that time diving into some of the more horror based pop culture we can find. A few years ago, we did an episode all about the varying film adaptations of Dracula and noted that Dracula himself was perhaps one…
e338. Fandom and Identity: The Evolution of Beloved Characters
What does it mean to be a fan of a character? There have been millions of different interpretations of Batman and the character of Wolverine as he appears in Marvel comics films bears surprisingly little in common with his original comic book impetus. In this episode, Mav and Wayne Wise are joined by guests recent…
e337. Umm… So, is this like a Reboot?!? Or Something?
A couple weeks ago, Mav was watching a football game and he saw a commercial for a new TV show, Rescue: HI-Surf. It appeared to be an action procedural about lifeguards. As he watched it, he was entranced, but couldn’t help thinking to himself “isn’t this just Baywatch?” But alas, the show seemed to want…
e336. So, Why Pop Culture?
In all the years we’ve been doing this show we’ve worked under a very basic assumption: Everyone involved as a host, guest, or listener presumes that the pseudo academic discussion of popular culture (with drinking and swearing) is an important activity. We certainly feel that way, and chances are if you’re a regular listener you…
e334. From DNC to SDCC: Comparing the Convention Experience
In the last couple of weeks in America we’ve seen both San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) and the Democratic National Convention (DNC). These are quite possibly two of the nerdiest gatherings that one can imagine but for different groups. Of course Mav is enough of a pop culture and politics addict that he watched them…
e332. The 4th Wall Bounce: The Reflexivity of Media and Culture
So here’s a weird question for you… in a TV show like Batman, do the regular people know the phrase “dynamic duo?” In the movie Amazing Spider-Man Peter Parker uses the theme song from the 1960s Spider-man cartoon as his ringtone… but what song does he think that is? If two TV shows cross over,…
e331. Understanding the Syllabus: Learning Frameworks and Inclusive Practices
We’re quickly running out of summer and as we do the new school year is even more quickly approaching. That means, for those of us who teach classes… or who take classes, we’re starting to get busy with preparations, hoping to get them all done before the last minute. If you’re a professor, like Mav,…