No Story Is Sacred

In this episode we discuss the 1992 film Bram Stoker’s Dracula. You can stream it from Netflix, or rent it from YouTube, or Amazon Prime. 

Content warnings for strong language, sex, violence, blood, drinking blood, murder, consent issues, sexual assault and metaphors for sexual assault, sex-shaming, Catholicism, discussion of suicide and references to certain religious views on suicide, vampiric wiles, vomit, Keanu Reeve’s hair, truly awful head puns, crimes against ADR, and spending the whole time thinking Van Helsing dies in the end when he doesn’t actually.

We reference or spoil: Bram Stoker‘s Dracula (1897), The Matrix, Van Helsing (2004 film), Nosferatu, Le Fanu‘s Carmilla, Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode “Buffy vs. Dracula”, Carmilla (2019), Lord Byron‘s The Vampyre, Emily Gerard‘s Transylvania: The Land Beyond the Forest, Keanu Reeves is a vampire meme, the Bram Stoker’s Dracula video game, the Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein video game, the Star Trek Comedy Album, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Loki (television series), Upstairs/Downstairs, “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” by The Beatles, Ghostbusters (1984), Mean Girls, the horror trope of “final girls”, Annie Lennox cover of “Every Time we Say Goodbye”, the Victorian “New Woman”, Bill & Ted, John the Baptist, Pietà, “Love Song for a Vampire” by Annie Lennox, found footage film, The Lord of the Rings, Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021), Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, Bela Lugosi, Joss Whedon’s general terrible-ness, Buffy episode “Innocence”, Castlevania (video game and cartoon), The Mummy, Black Widow, Pacific Rim, Gypsy (musical), Cher’s song “Gypsies, Tramps, and Thieves”, Nancy Drew novels, Peter Whismy novels, Romeo and Juliet, “Hungry Like the Wolf” by Duran Duran, His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman, “women in refrigerators” trope, X-Men, and Mortal Kombat: Annihilation

Also check out Kat’s The Minor Hours and Small Thoughts Magazine and Bren’s Select Start improv shows benefiting Arcade Comedy Theater.

Don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and, if you’re so inclined, contribute to our Patreon.  

The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com.

The post Episode 104: Bram Stoker’s Dracula first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.

In this episode we discuss the 1984 film Ghostbusters. You can rent it from Youtube, Apple TV, or Amazon Prime. 

Content warnings for strong language, references to sex toys, bad Boston accents, a lot of theorizing in the absence of data with regard to the academic history of the parapsychology lab of Columbia University, middle-aged adults being distracted from their podcast by the dream of rent-controlled apartments, completely specious arguments regarding the legal process behind the receipt and enforcement of warrants, potential heresies, queer monster theory, Kat stepping on Alex’s lines multiple times, so much ghost/demon/monster sex, and what is probably the full script of Ghostbusters but quoted entirely out of order.

We reference or spoil: the Ghostbusters media universe, The Mummy, How I Met Your Mother, The Mythopoeic Scholarship Award in Myth & Fantasy Studies, IRB, Stanford Prison Experiment, Zener cards, St. Jerome’s hagiography, Harry Potter universe, No Story Is Sacred’s “No Ethical Ghosts Under Capitalism”, EPA, Troy Baker, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Lil Nas X‘s “Montero” music video, BuzzFeed Unsolved, Puppet History, The Try Guys, Mythbusters, Jackass, Tom Stoppard‘s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, The Other Guys, and Wordle

Also check out Kat’s The Minor Hours and Small Thoughts Magazine and Bren’s Select Start improv shows benefiting Arcade Comedy Theater.

Don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and, if you’re so inclined, contribute to our Patreon.  

The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com.

The post Episode 103: Ghostbusters first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.

In this episode we discuss a story idea by Brendan about doing heists in space! 

Content warnings for strong language, references to bugs/insects, saying spice way too much, and politics in science fiction.

We reference or spoil:  “Dick in a Box” by The Lonely Island, Dune by Frank Hebert, Critical Role “Do you spice?”, Mystery Science Theatre 3000, Star Trek universe, Leverage, No Story is Sacred episodes “A Body in the Void” and “The Orphaned Light”, Inception, Ocean’s Eleven cinematic universe, himbos, Troll 2, A Bit of Fry and Laurie, Scott Lynch‘s Gentleman Bastard series, Firefly, Alien, Get Out, Avatar, Five-Man Band, Intergenerational Friendship, Back to the Future cinematic universe, Léon: The Professional, Tavern Brawl, The Nemesis Weapon, Star Wars, Laplace transform, No Story is Sacred episode “Spaceman 2: Electric Boogaloo“, Debra Doyle and James D. Macdonald‘s The Price of the Stars, “What Does Sus Mean” Merriam Webster article, the Star Trek Comedy Album, and Captain Jack Harkness from Doctor Who and Torchwood

Also check out Kat’s The Minor Hours and Small Thoughts Magazine and Bren’s Select Start improv shows benefiting Arcade Comedy Theater.

Don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and, if you’re so inclined, contribute to our Patreon.  
The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com.

The post Episode 102: A Space Heist first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.

In this episode we discuss the 2004 film The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement. You can watch it on Disney+, or rent it from Youtube, or Amazon Prime. 

Content warnings for strong language as well as discussions of misogyny, colonialism, American imperialism, multiple succession crises, a distressing number of off-the-cuff revolutionary speeches, and over-the-top “rich villain” accents.

We reference or spoil: Mortal Kombat, Princess Diaries franchise, Dungeons and Dragons (2023 film), Harry Potter books, Christmas Prince cinematic universe, Frozen, Lord of the Rings, Aladdin, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Mary Poppins film, Star Trek reboot, The Dark Knight Rises, New Girl (“let me help you with that” clip), Austin Powers, My Fair Lady, That’s So Raven, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Clueless, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern (Hamlet and/or Stoppard play), She’s All That, Les Miserables, Machiavelli‘s The Prince, The Hunger Games, A Song of Ice and Fire series, WandaVision, Avatar the Last Airbender, Natalie Imbrulia‘s “Torn“, Red White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, Ocean’s Eleven, and How I Met Your Mother “Murder Train”

Also check out Kat’s The Minor Hours and Small Thoughts Magazine and Bren’s Select Start improv shows benefiting Arcade Comedy Theater.

Don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and, if you’re so inclined, contribute to our Patreon.  

The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com.

The post Episode 101: Princess Diaries 2 – Royal Engagement first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.

In this episode we discuss the 2013 film Star Trek Into Darkness. Again. Just in case something changed after we watched it for our very first episode. You can watch it on Paramount+, or rent it from Youtube, or Amazon Prime. 

Content warnings for strong language as well as discussions of racism, facism, and OSHA violations

We reference or spoil: Star Trek (2009), The Hobbit films, Cabin Pressure, No Story Is Sacred episode 1 “Star Trek Into Darkness”, Airplane!, Viable Paradise, No Story Is Sacred episode “Space Jam”, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, The Simpsons episode “You Only Move Twice”, Star Trek franchise in general, the Star Trek Comedy Album, Persona 4, Hamilton, The Martian, Silent Hill, Jupiter Ascending, films Sean Bean doesn’t die in, Iron Man 3, Planet of the Apes (1968), The Music Man, No Story Is Sacred episode “Shell Game”, Doctor Who, Galaxy Quest, The Task essay, The Orville, Terry Pratchett‘s Small Gods, James Bond cinematic universe, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Heroes, Til Death Do Us Blart podcast, and National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)

Also check out Kat’s The Minor Hours and Small Thoughts Magazine and Bren’s Select Start improv shows benefiting Arcade Comedy Theater.

Don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and, if you’re so inclined, contribute to our Patreon.  

The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com.

The post Episode 100: Star Trek – Into Darkness, Revisited first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.

In this episode we discuss the 1986 film Labyrinth. You can watch it on Netflix, or rent it from Youtube, or Amazon Prime. 

Content warnings for strong language, kidnapping, implied inappropriate-age-difference romance, discussion of horror tropes, discussion of lost children and child death, Kat’s youthful badfic fantasy novel parody, David Bowie’s tight pants, terrible owl impressions, and Brendan persistently summoning goblins

We reference or spoil: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992), Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Lonely Island‘s “I’m On a Boat“, David Bowie‘s “Dance Magic Dance“, Tough Guide to Fantasyland, No Story Is Sacred minisode 01: “Fantasyland Bugout Bag”, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Eyes Wide Shut, fantasy artist Brian Froud, poem #123 from 365 Days of Haiku by wherechalkwhitearrowsgo (deactivated), Disney’s Robin Hood, Zootopia, The Iron Giant, xkcd ballpit cartoon, Jenna Guillaume’s “Proof the Beast was Actually 11 When He Was Cursed in ‘Beauty and the Beast’“, “look at it, it’s got anxiety” tweet, The X-Files, the “two cakes” cartoon, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog, college AU, coffee shop AU, daemon AU, Brooklyn 99

Also check out Kat’s The Minor Hours and Small Thoughts Magazine and Bren’s Select Start improv shows benefiting Arcade Comedy Theater.

Don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and, if you’re so inclined, contribute to our Patreon.  

The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com.

The post Episode 99: Labyrinth first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.

A new Matrix movie is coming out in December. In light of that, here is the episode where we discuss the original 1999 movie. You can watch it online on HBOMax, Amazon, or Youtube.

Content warnings for strong language, discussions of transphobia, and an unfortunate number of Catholic jokes

We reference or spoil: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Joseph Campbell‘s “The Hero’s Journey“, the Bible, Lewis Carroll‘s Through the Looking Glass, The Wizard of Oz, The Lord of the Rings, Priscilla: Queen of the Desert, Cabin in the Woods, Wachowski‘s Speed Racer, Sinfest (“The Sisterhood 7“), Wheaton’s Law, “soft apocalypse“, Parks and Recreation; John Wick; so so much queer theory

Further reading about transness in The Matrix: 

“How The Matrix universalized a trans experience — and helped me accept my own” by Emily Sandalwood

“Why ‘The Matrix’ Is Actually About Being Trans” by Tiffany Berruti

“Some thoughts and disagreements on The Matrix as a trans allegory” by Jennifer Harrison

“The Matrix As Transgender Metaphor” by Adam Pilfold-Bagwell

The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com.

Don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and, if you’re so inclined, contribute to our Patreon.

The post Re-Run 3: The Matrix first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.

In this episode we once again play a game of our own devising called “Wheel of Tropes.” We use random TV Tropes and entries from Diana Wynne Jones‘s The Tough Guide to Fantasyland. 

Content warnings for strong language, reference to netorare, numerous instances of people saying “bifurcation”, and an absurd number of anime references just to annoy Kat.

We reference or spoil: “Runaway Train” by Soul Asylum, Quad City DJ‘s “C’Mon ‘N Ride It (The Train)“, Captain America, Marvel’s What If…?, Outlaw Star, Lex Luthor Stole 40 Cakes, Rick and Morty, Austin Powers, the entire Final Fantasy series, Critical Role, No Story is Sacred episode “Spaceman 2: Electric Boogaloo”, Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, Rage Against the Machine, Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, “All About That Bass” by Meghan Trainor, Welcome to Night Vale, Bioshock, Avatar the Last Airbender, Dealing with Dragons by Patricia Wrede, Eureka 7, Peter Pan, Black Panther, and Godzilla

Also check out Kat’s The Minor Hours and Small Thoughts Magazine and Bren’s Select Start improv shows benefiting Arcade Comedy Theater.

The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com.

Don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and, if you’re so inclined, contribute to our Patreon.

The post Episode 98: Wheel of Tropes 5 first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.

It’s the fifth Wednesday minisode! In this shorter episode we talk about some sketches Brendan wrote!

Content warnings for strong language, discussion of horror movie tropes, and dunking on Kat

We reference or spoil: Saturday Night Live, The Nightmare Before Christmas, The Great Food Truck Race, Great British Bake Off, E. E. Cummings, Blue’s Clues, The Omen, Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th series, Rosemary’s Baby, Halloween, The Ring, Silence of the Lambs, NBC’s Hannibal, The Baby-Sitter’s Club, Eat Pray Love, What To Expect When You’re Expecting, Carl Jung, Kids in the Hall, The Mummy, “Apologize” by Timbaland, The Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe, Daredevil, “Content” by Bo Burnham, and Avenue Q

The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com

The post Minisode 16: Sketches first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.

In this episode we discuss an original story idea by Kat called “Partial Transcript: Shell Game”. 

Content warnings for strong language, general horror, body horror, and mentions of Donald Trump and Elon Musk

We reference or spoil: It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, P.T. Barnum, Penn & Teller‘s Shell Game, Serial podcast, Kuleshov Effect, Nathan Fillion discussing soap opera acting, Criminal podcast, Furby, Leverage, Quasi the robot, Reeti robot, Big Hero 6, Battle of Thermopylae, Boston Dynamics dancing robots, Boston Dynamics police dog, GamerGate, Blade Runner, “Shell Game” episode of Criminal, DEMON FIGHTER SUCKS by Kat Crighton, The Cell (2000), Metroid series, and Majora’s Mask

Also check out Kat’s The Minor Hours and Small Thoughts Magazine and Bren’s Select Start improv shows benefiting Arcade Comedy Theater.

Don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and, if you’re so inclined, contribute to our Patreon.  

The transcript will be available soon on nostoryissacred.com.

The post Episode 97: Shell Game first appeared on No Story Is Sacred.