Thanks to MAINGEAR for speeding up everything for us. Check out the VYBE line that’s making up the core of Matt’s new studio -- and use code CREATE for a free additional year of warranty on desktops: https://maingear.com/ref/656/

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This week we kick things off with a truly cursed recommendation: a RoboCop TV show so strange, sanitized, and unintentionally hilarious it leaves us asking… how did this come from one of the most violent sci-fi films ever made? Along the way, we tease some big changes coming to the podcast, so STAY TUNED.

Then we take it all the way back to 1994 – A time when everyone seemed to be watching, referencing, and understanding the same things? We ask what happened between then and now, and how we went from shared touchstones to a cultural free-for-all where nothing feels foundational, which makes us wonder – was that really the cultural high water mark?

From there, we introduce the idea of “Unc-slop,” a freshly coined term describing content that looks informed on the surface but lacks any real grounding. What does it mean to be a fan of something if you’ve skipped the basics? And how much depth can you really have if your taste is built entirely by algorithms instead of by the people who actually lived with the medium?

We dig into why foundations matter, why classics still hit harder, why modern audiences are often shocked by competent storytelling, and why refusing to engage with the past is not the mold-breaking move you might think it is.

From there, we dive into the enormous loss that occurs when human curation disappears, when recommendations come from machines instead of mentors, and when students of a craft feel no obligation to study its history.

By the end, we’re left with some nagging questions: can culture even exist at all without these shared experiences? Can it function when building real connections requires more homework than some people might be ready for? The good news? Us two Uncs just might be ready to assign some.

Big thanks to our Patrons, we’ll be back soon!

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CREDITS:

Hosts: Kevin Lieber and Matt Tabor

Executive Producer: Ben Webster

Editor: Spencer Vann

"Created in the Unknown" theme by Basswaite: https://linktr.ee/Basswaite

Theme by Mega Drive → http://megadrivemusic.com

Opening Animation: Kidmograph

City Animation: Eric Langlay

"The Create Unknown" is produced by Unknown Media.

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