But the premise of the "rape panic" joke still fundamentally seems to be that the character's masculinity is being contaminated and degraded. It's still a "fear of contamination" joke. And those are only funny if they play off of some inherent prejudice. Some of those prejudices are nearly universal (such as seeing…

That's a good definition, but "gay panic" is also used — especially on this site — in a broader sense that I think is still valid. It's also used when either the idea of being perceived as homosexual or having homosexual "close encounter" is assumed to be humiliating or stigmatizing (and therefore a funny joke).…

Yeah, except a decade ago many people would have said the same thing about Newt. I could see Grandmamma Grizzly coming back in the next wave of reactionary conservatism in the 2020s.

Well, if you complete the thought that you only half typed out there's a perfectly helpful and cogent argument there. Tasha says that part of the appeal for original readers of AS was the novelty of the subject matter. But today, there is no novelty in autobiographical comics. So that aspect of the form can't be…

"But it kinda sounds like you're saying people without disposable income aren't entitled to great art or performances…"

I'm a regular listener to the podcast. I'd rate it a couple of points below the Pop Culture Happy Hour, and many points above the Slate Cultural Gabfest.

In answer to one of your objections, Pitt doesn't see Doe in an "alleyway" — that's a rooftop (in a tenement-style central shaft). Notice all the ducts and such.

If I didn't think I'd get into some mild trouble for the T&A in that movie, I'd love to teach it in a Freshman Comp class. It's no philosophical masterpiece, but it offers up so many great, easy hooks for big ideas to explicate.

I never realized how much Candace Bergen looks like Rebecca Romijn until watching that clip. It's uncanny.

Ah, Worthington's Law…
http://www.youtube.com/watc…

I wonder, was this special the inspiration for the arcade classic "Joust"?

This game — http://www.parapluesch.de/w… — is definitely for everyone who feels for Dolly. It's both hilarious and deeply upsetting (the turtle's case is utterly heartbreaking).

I think the parody is fine just as a situation and for the line "white poet-warlord." It works seeing Peterman in that setting and in the basic costume. It's funny in its broad strokes. The direct parodies of lines from "Apocalypse Now" — the "errand boy" bit and "the horror, the horror" — are groaners, in my opinion.…

Is that not the very definition of "hacky" though? A hack is someone who aims to please the lowest common denominator — i.e., "most people."

Yeah, my understanding was that most behavioral "addictions" were, in essence, dopamine addictions. The mechanism that hijacks the rewards system differs, but the end effect is still all about attempting to self-regulate one's neurochemistry.

Yep, that was pretty much my experience, too. I was six when RotJ came out in theaters and probably watched it most from the ages of 8-12 on VHS. I liked the Ewoks just fine. I even liked the Ewok Adventure movie (also recorded off of TV on VHS, commercials and all).

Better still would be "Celebweate," a Survivor-style show in which fans have to consume the flesh of their favorite washed-up celebrity in order to stay alive on a desert island.

I was always surprised at how frequently I heard Farscape put down for having main characters that are puppets. That criticism seems to come from a kind of self-hating sci-fi fan — someone who has to reject the franchise that has the kinds of elements that non-fans think makes sci-fi dorky or childish because they…

So, as per the lyrics of The Smiths' "Paint a Vulgar Picture," is the reissuing, repackaging, etc. not "sickening greed" if the star in question isn't dead?

Kids in the Hall go unrepresented. What about Shirling: