This first installment in a series of toy-themed episodes provides a timeline of Barbie’s and Mattel’s career highs and lows, unpacks the complicated legacy Barbie dolls have, and looks at the impacts of the “Barbie vs Bratz” feud on consumers. Plus: the true story of the feud between two people who both insisted on getting sole credit for the creation of Cabbage Patch Kids.

Hope talks with Zoe Fraade-Blanar, one of the authors of Superfandom, about the evolution of fandom studies, what distinguishes fans from consumers, sources of tension among fans, and ultimately what it means to be in a fandom.

Each episode in the “Betrayals” series tells a story about a time when fans felt lied to and betrayed. From lip-syncing scandals to memoirs that turned out to be fiction to ordinary children made out to be child prodigies by their parents, each story breaks down a time fans felt disillusioned and why they did or did not remain a fan of the pop culture source of their sense of betrayal. Episode one tells the story of JT Leroy, the teen author who never actually existed.