Overthinking It Podcast

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Peter Fenzel, Jordan Stokes, and Matthew Wrather keep Christmas well with a reading of Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, making sense of its economics, its religious convictions, its supernatural qualities, and its convictions about the meaning of Christmas. God bless us, every one!

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Episode 704: Why Do Bad Christmases Happen to Good People? originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]

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Peter Fenzel and Matthew Wrather consider Spider Man: No Way Home, where Peter Parker grows from a spider into… John Wayne. Or something. There is a false Downton Abbey moment to which the actual themes of the movie–that hurt people hurt people–give lie.

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Episode 703: Who’s Gonna Ride ‘Em? You? originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]

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Peter Fenzel and Matthew Wrather watch the Kenny G documentary Listening to Kenny G, now streaming on HBO Max. To deal with an artist that inspires such strong, polarized reactions, we discuss our complex relationship to Mr. G, and try to puzzle out the discursive framework around his music and identity, and discuss what surprising things the documentary reveals about the man behind the phenomenon.

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Episode 702: G-tente originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]

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Peter Fenzel, Mark Lee, and Matthew Wrather continue their occasional practice of watching old films on HBO Max. This week, it’s The Matrix, directed by the Wachowskis and starring Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne. Time has deepened our understanding of the film in ways that are not all good.

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Episode 701: Aww Man, They All Had Wives and Families originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]

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Ben Adams, Matt Belinkie, Peter Fenzel, Mark Lee, John Perich, Ryan Sheely, Jordan Stokes, and Matthew Wrather gather to commemorate 700 episodes of the Overthinking It Podcast. We still got it.

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Episode 700: FIRE TRUCK FIRE TRUCK FIRE TRUCK FIRE TRUCK FIRE TRUCK originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]

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Matthew Belinkie, Peter Fenzel, Mark Lee, and Matthew Wrather overthink three albums released within the last couple weeks but looking back a decade or more. After a talk about the aesthetic and business rationales for “Red (Taylor’s Version),” they dive into Silk Sonic’s “An Evening with Silk Sonic” and how you can make a carrot soup taste more like a carrot than a carrot.

Also they mention ABBA, who apparently are fans of Andrew Lloyd Webber. Or do I have that backwards?

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Episode 699: I Kept the Receipts, You Kept the Scarf originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]

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Peter Fenzel and Matthew Wrather are paralyzed at the deli counter trying to choose a side dish for their sandwich. They spend the episode overthinking chips, which are a stranger food—and one with a more interesting history—than their popularity and ubiquity would suggest.

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Episode 698: Really It’s the Chips That are Extra originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]

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Matthew Belinkie, Peter Fenzel, Mark Lee, and Matthew Wrather overthink Netflix’s hit Squid Game, examining the dual structure of the story, the connections Korean history and culture that American viewers may miss, and the various roles social commentary and satire play in the series.

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Episode 697: Mollusk Ex Machina originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]

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Peter Fenzel and Matthew Wrather celebrate Halloween with a viewing of Disney’s 1993 live-action animal adventure movie Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey. Matt finds it more upsetting than any Halloween horror movie Pete could have subjected him to.

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Episode 696: I’m from the Dogs, And I’m Here to Help originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]

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Peter Fenzel goes to a stand-up comedy show, and Matthew Wrather is there to ask questions about it. They tackle how current circumstances change the production and content of live entertainment, but also how they change the basic logistics and experience of a night on the town.

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Episode 695: Do We Go This Way, or Do We Go That Way? originally appeared on Overthinking It, the site subjecting the popular culture to a level of scrutiny it probably doesn't deserve. [Latest Posts | Podcast (iTunes Link)]