Marvelous! Or, the Death of Cinema

Fun fact: not only was the 1987 He-Man movie Masters of the Universe largely responsible for bankrupting the already flailing Israeli cultural institution that was Cannon Films, but it was also directed by an (alleged) serial gay pedophile.

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"It’s about a fucking doll!" - Amy Taubin

This week, the Marvelous! crew sets their sights on the hot pink pop cultural phenomenon that is Barbie, a billion-plus dollar (post-)feminist object/Mattel rebrand strategy grappling with the fraught, symbolic legacy of the world's most famous doll by giving her a kitschy existentialist crisis. We talk about how the film's priorities as an officially licensed commercial product limit its purportedly feminist politics, its 2016-internet conception of masculinity, how camp aesthetics and self-effacing humor disavow the specter of capitalism, and think a little too deeply about the metaphysical relationship between Barbie Land and the real world. Plus, Nicole gives a lesson on post-feminism, commodified Girl Power, and how Barbie signaled a consumerist end to Fourth Wave feminism as a meaningful political project.

(This episode is dedicated to the life, memory, and herstory of famed Barbie-critic and CIA asset Gloria Steinem.)

"After 'Barbie,' Mattel is Raiding its Entire Toybox" by Alex Barasch

"This Barbie Has Melancholy Feminism: Framing Empowerment and Grievable Lives" by Scarlette Nhi Do

"#Feminism: The Internet’s Facilitation of the Fourth Wave” by Nicole Veneto

Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves by Sophie Gilbert

Feeling Cynical About Barbie by Broey Deschanel

An extra special thanks to our $10 Executive Producers: JetChiclete, GalaxyPeaBrain, squishward, JayJeffrey, Walt Lewellyn of The Black Casebook, Tropical Doves, jprestonpoole, Lohik, bernventers, and Owen2.

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The flailing DCEU runs at light-speed into a brick wall with this misbegotten penultimate pre-reboot entry. Ugly and unfunny, even the film's sole interesting element - Ezra Miller's weird and hysterical performance - is ultimately abandoned for Batman nostalgia and a failed, flat attempt to launch an (immediately recast) Supergirl. It's a bad, bad movie, but at least we had a lot of fun talking about it. Plus: Cole's pot-history of the character and defense of the CW tv show!

 
An extra special thanks to our $10 Executive Producers: JetChiclete, GalaxyPeaBrain, squishward, JayJeffrey, Walt Lewellyn of The Black Casebook, Tropical Doves, jprestonpoole, Lohik, bernventers, and Owen2.
If you can, please lend some support to these organizations:

Gaza Funds

PCRF (Palestinian Children's Relief Fund)

MAP (Medical Aid for Palestinians)

National Networks of Abortion Funds

If you enjoy the show please consider:

Subscribing to our Patreon, where you can enjoy exclusive episodes, commentary tracks, and more.

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As the DC Extended Universe nears its inevitable reboot, filmmaker Chris Bell (Failed State, Attention Shoppers, The Winds That Scatter) joins the pod to dissect one of its last offerings in the form of Blue Beetle, a comparatively decent entry from a franchise that's still got another very expensive bowel-movement or two waiting for us. We once again debate the merits and limitations of Hollywood progressivism with this rather earnest if not by-the-numbers origin story for the Jaime Reyes incarnation of Blue Beetle, who according to SOME third mics is more popular than Iron Man if you're going by children's' lunchboxes. More importantly, what is a Blue Beetle and what's his relationship to the School of the Americas? Why did it take until the DCEU was about to be scrapped for parts for a Latino-led superhero movie to get released? Do Toyotas speak to an authentic Latino cultural experience? Did mother Susan Sarandon relish the opportunity to play her mortal enemy Hillary Clinton?
 
If you'd like to see Chris' newest film, Failed State, send him an email at christopherjasonbell@gmail.com. And check out Attention Shoppers and The Winds That Scatter on Means TV. Use promo code CHRISBELL to get 10% off an annual subscription.
 
An extra special thanks to our $10 Executive Producers: JetChiclete, GalaxyPeaBrain, squishward, JayJeffrey, Walt Lewellyn of The Black Casebook, Tropical Doves, jprestonpoole, Lohik, bernventers, and Owen2.
If you can, please lend some support to these organizations:

Gaza Funds

PCRF (Palestinian Children's Relief Fund)

MAP (Medical Aid for Palestinians)

National Networks of Abortion Funds

If you enjoy the show please consider:

Subscribing to our Patreon, where you can enjoy exclusive episodes, commentary tracks, and more.

Like, comment, rate, and review as the algorithm demands.

A sample from our latest patrons-exclusive TVChat, wherein Cole and our long time friend and recurring guest Seqarts continue their retrospective on the 2000s superhero-monster-of-the-week-teen-melodrama Smallville. 

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