I'm a Fan of That!

By Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard

In I'm A Fan of That, pop culture writer Holly Swinyard and pop anthropologist Vivian Asimos talk about the wonderfully complicated worlds of fandom through the objects we love. From what the D20 tell... more

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FAQs about I'm a Fan of That!:

How many episodes does I'm a Fan of That! have?

The podcast currently has 44 episodes available.

I'm a Fan of That! episodes:

August 24, 2025 Ghibli Studios
That's right, folks! We're finally spending some dedicated time to the ultimate anime film studio: Studio Ghibli. Topics include: the nature of evil in Ghibli films, the plot structure of Kishotenketsu, the Chthuluscene, and even some Moomins.

Note: we pronounce Ghibli with the hard G sound. Get over it.

Some Links
Video essay on the Chthuluscene
Video essay on No Face
Video essay on Kiki

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Buy Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
Logo by Moira Daykin, @mecha_moira on instagram
This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
46min
August 10, 2025 Flanderization
Inspired by our previous episode on genres, we decide to chat today about a thing that happens, particularly in fan spaces. Flanderization is the process of a character being distilled to the point of removing many deeper aspects of their character. Topics include: definition of the term and its history of Ned Flanders, Stardew Valley's flanderized characters, and how classic novels are subjected to this through replications.

Some Links
Goffman's work on identity
Fiona Sangster on YouTube

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Buy Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Logo by Moira Daykin, @mecha_moira on instagram

This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
46min
July 27, 2025 K-Pop Stans!
Today, Olly and Vivian take the plunge into the world of K-Pop! We chat about BlackPink, Vivian's personal favs, and theorise on what makes it so gosh darn fun. Topics include: stan political activity, the misogynistic view of the teenage girl, Vivian's like of watching cute girls dancing (in no way connected to that misogynistic view), and how K-Pop feels so different to other pop.

Some Links!
V&A - KPop Fandom
The Guardian - Trump "played" by K-pop fans

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Buy Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
Logo by Moira Daykin, @mecha_moira on instagram
This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
55min
July 13, 2025 Crossing Genres
This episode is all about the nature of crossing genres - romantasy, urban fantasy mysteries, satirical fantasies, romance monster movies. You name two genres, we love to see how they combine. But things can be more complicated then they appear. Really, Vivian and Holly just wanted to chat about all the things they love.

Some of the Media Mentioned
C.J Sansom
Stuart Turton
Shape of Water
Micky 17
Psalm of the Wild Built

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Buy Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Logo by Moira Daykin, @mecha_moira on instagram

This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
54min
June 29, 2025 True Crime Fandom

Today, Vivian and Holly are diving into a slightly uncomfortable fandom for them - true crime! Inspired by the very unmarked CDs of case files Vivian received for a maybe-project, we're diving into the world of true crime. Topics include: why we love crime, the fascination and allure of crime, why Vivian hates journalists, and how true crime fandom isn't really new... like at all.

Some Stuff to Check Out!
Gangster
Do Go On
Drunk Women Solving Crime
Ruth Penfold Mounce - a sociologist of crime whose amazing and lovely and wonderful
The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female Detective
The Bravo Docket

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Buy Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Logo by Moira Daykin, @mecha_moira on instagram

This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
46min
June 15, 2025 Ru Paul's Drag Con
Today, we're stepping into the world of Drag Con, the drag-based convention of Ru Paul's Drag Race. Ru Paul has brought drag to a mainstream stage, but what does that mean for us, for drag, and for the development of a drag fandom? Topics include: what is drag, the history of drag, the role of drag kings, and the way drag may actually not be as subversive as it seems.

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Buy Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Logo by Moira Daykin, @mecha_moira on instagram

This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
53min
June 13, 2025 Taylor Swift bought her masters, and Swifties are pissed
Today, we've got some breaking fandom Swiftie news, and Vivian comes with notes on all the drama.

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Buy Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Logo by Moira Daykin, @mecha_moira on instagram

This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
25min
June 01, 2025 Coffee Fandom
This episode comes from one of our Patrons. Thanks!

We're chatting about coffee fandom, coffee culture, and coffee shop culture today. And a splash of tea because its hard to talk about one without the other, especially for Vivian and 'Olly. Topics include: coffee shops vs diners in the United States, history of coffee in the UK vs the US, how food and drink show us our culture, and what a British tea ceremony looks like.

References
You're Dead to Me epsiode on the history of coffee
Vivian's Writing Vlog around Coffee Shops
Food and Culture: a Reader (for anyone interested in the anthropology of food and culture)

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Buy Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Logo by Moira Daykin, @mecha_moira on instagram

This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
55min
May 18, 2025 South of Midnight and Representation in Video Games
We're back for Season 3, and we're starting off with a topic voted on by our Patreons! Today, we're talking about representaiton in video games, primarily through our object of the day: South of Midnight, by Compulsion Games. We chat about some of the folklore behind it, the history of the colour haint blue, and 'Olly explains why representaiton matters so much.

VIvian's Southern Gothic References
Fiction writers: William Faulkner and Flannery O'Connor
Music: the Dead South
Movies: O Brother Where Art Though? and Sinners

Video Games Referenced
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
South of Midnight
Kingdom Come Deliverance
Split Fiction (Hazelight Studios)
Stardew Valley

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Preorder Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Logo by Moira Daykin, @mecha_moira on instagram

This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
47min
February 17, 2025 PATREON UNLOCK | Olly's Bracket Challenge
This is a Patreon Unlock. Our Patreons at the Associate Producer level or above get access to bonus episodes during our season break. This episode was initially released to our Patreons on January 13.

Vivian has come back from Christmas break with a fun game for 'Olly to play. Well, fun for her. For 'Olly, it's a source of fandom-wracked identity questioning dread.

Our Socials
Vivian's Instagram
Holly's Instagram
The Pod's Instagram

Buy Our Books!
Buy Holly's Book!
Buy Vivian's Book!

Fan Of That is now on Patreon!
Go support us over there!

Music for this episode was Nowhere Land by Kevin MacLead Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

This episode was produced by Vivian Asimos and Holly Swinyard

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
50min

FAQs about I'm a Fan of That!:

How many episodes does I'm a Fan of That! have?

The podcast currently has 44 episodes available.