Other possible titles for this episode: Food and Fiction. Scumptious Stories. Delectable Dramas. Mouth-watering Myths. Belly-satisfying Books. Yummy Yarns. You get the idea. We all eat. Most of us every day, even several times a day. It’s understandable, then, that food shows up in the stories we consume (pun intended). But what is the role…
Read MoreThe Rom-Com. It’s boy meets girl. Or girl meets boy. Or hard-working single woman meets arrogant British chap. Or womanizing marine veterinarian falls for an art teacher with amnesia. Or…you get the idea. The romantic comedy is a genre with its own beats and its own fans. What makes rom-coms appealing? How have they changed…
Read MoreIt’s easy to complain about derivative plots and copycat characters, to want something fresh and new that doesn’t recycle the same old tropes. But this can obscure that fact that sometimes we like repetition–if it’s done well. I mean, who doesn’t want to see Lucy pull the football away from Charlie Brown one more time?…
Read MoreTable top games. Cosplay. Anime. Superheros. Star Wars. Conventions. These are a few of a geek’s favorite things. Those who love these things love to share them with others. Together, they make up geek culture. But behind these shared interests and hobbies are individuals who need the love and hope of Jesus Christ. In this…
Read MoreIt is true that the stories we consume can affect the sort of people we are. In this episode, however, hosts Timothy Deal and Nick Hayden examine the truth of the reverse. Do a culture’s stories reflect the sort of people we already are–both our virtues and our vices? In a wide-ranging discussion, they attempt…
Read MoreAll stories teach a lesson of some sort. Some lessons are very obvious and simple: Tell the truth. Kindness is best. True beauty comes from within. But what makes these morals resonate in a story? Why do they come off as maudlin and sappy in some stories and profound and deep in others? Hosts Timothy…
Read MoreNearly every long-running series has at least a few episodes that seem to be “killing time.” Sometimes they are unique one-off stories. Sometimes they are humorous character studies. And sometimes they are just plain weird. How are we to react to these filler episodes? To dig into this question, hosts Timothy Deal and Nick Hayden…
Read MoreNearly everyone has a story about that one cartoon or movie they watched as a child that gave them nightmares, whether it was an “Elephants on Parade” acid trip or a “Why’d I’d watch this when I was seven?” childhood trauma. But even as adults, there are stories that lodge deep in the psyche, that…
Read MoreThere’s a dead body in the isolated small-town bed and breakfast. All the weekend guests have been kept indoors because of the storm. Luckily, a famed detective is also a guest this weekend. It’s time to figure out whodunit! Everyone is familiar with some version of this setup. Mysteries are a well-loved and entertaining genre–but…
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