Open World Chat

From Nosferatu to Angel to Lestat and Blade and - oh yeah, that Dracula guy. What is our obsession with vampires?

Mark and John look at the ways fears of "the other" have informed the horror genre in the context of immigration - and it's a lot more than you think!

Dr. Leigh McKagen joins John and Mark (and puts up with some major audio issues) to talk about the sometimes inspiring and sometimes cringe-worthy history of women across the Star Trek franchise.

OPEN WORLD CHAT RETURNS! A little late to the convo, sure, but John and Mark still have a lot to say about the obnoxious disrespecting of Marvel films - and superhero films in general - levied by the mighty threesome of Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, and (sadly) Quentin Tarantino.

From the vault - Writer and Independent Film Actor (Emanation, Broken Compass) Zena Marie Therrien, MSW,  on where Latinas stand in Hollywood's move toward diversity (in genre and non-genre films and TV alike). Zena shares her thoughts on roles, on the invisible nature of Latinas in the industry, how studios treat Latin culture and filmmakers, and more.

It's geek bingo folks. We touch on an absurd number of sci fi movies, TV series, and comics discussing the nature of war in the "progressive" mediuym of science fiction with Dr. David Kyle Johnson of Kings College, author of Sci-Phi: Science Fiction as Philosophy and many more geek tomes.

AHOY Comics’ latest anthology is  PROJECT: CRYPTID, featuring writer Paul Cornell (and others). Jim (sans John) talks this and other projects (such as the Secret Invasion - the original comics story - novelization) with Paul. Very very fun interview. John is a real loser for missing it.

In our final rerun, John and Liane talk with then-guest Jim Dandeneau (Den of Geek) comparing and contrasting cinematic universes before spending a little time discussing the inherent political nature of superheroes. See you in two weeks with fresh content!

It's another blast from the past as the OWC summer break goes on. In this oldie,  Liane and I have a conversation with Alexander Dunst, Assistant Professor of American Studies at the University of Paderborn in Germany, in which we discuss "libertarian anarcho-pacifist" Philip K. Dick. Alex is a PKD scholar and edited the book of essays The World According to Philip K. Dick.  PKD's  work has, of course, been adapted into several Hollywood films (for better and for worse). and our discussion of the impact and implications of his work brings us to topics such as Artificial Intelligence and the stigma of mental illness.

In a repost of OWC's most controversial episode, John and Leanne spoke with Sean Branney and Andrew Leman of the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society about the classic "art vs. artist" debate. There is no way this episode can sit 100% well with anybody, because... well... it's complicated. We talk Lovecraft, Joss Whedon, and an RPG too (you know the one). Tune in now and yell at your smart speaker!