Episode 022: Once More with Kendra Monk

It's usually pretty easy to become a fan of thing . Something grabs our attention and appeals to us on a gut level - whether it's a show,a sport, a movie, a book, a type of art., gardening

When you love something, you can usually weather small disappointments - a bad season, a bigg loss, an ill conceived spinoff, some poor casting, or difficult technique that you just can't seem to master

But what if the disappointment is much more profound?  What if it has to do with the actions, behaviours, or opinions of some key person in whatever it is you love? When a creator, founder, player, writer, actor has been accused of some criminal or immoral behaviour , predatory practice, hate speech. How does that impact your ability to identify as a fan of something.  Does being fan mean you have to ignore such accusations or charges? Do such charges or accusations mean you have to stop being a fan of something? Is it ever cut and dry?

Today we're talking to Kendra Monk. Kendra is the organizer and brains behind the annual Sing Along with Horrible Feeling, Once More, the  Buffy/ Dr Horrible Sing along event here in Winnipeg. She's a huge fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and has had to navigate her fandom through some pretty damning accusations made against Buffy creator, Joss Whedon.

If you're in Winnipeg and are curious about attending or just experiencing the magic of the Sing Along with Horrible Feeling, Once More, which will be held at the newly renovated Park Theatre, you can follow the event on on their Facebook page Instagram @wpgdrbuffy or Twitter @wpgdrbuffy Also, follow #WPGDRBUFFY  to see people's posts about past events.

And if you listen on Apple Podcasrt, please consider leaving a 5 Star Review. It helps other people be able to find the show. Thank, geeks.

Epsiode 021: Daoist/Buddhist Space Buddy Cops

In this episode, I’m taking with my friend and Star Wars geek  Jason Dueck about the Jedi. Jason's a fellow former writer for Area of Effect and spearheaded their podcast, Infinity Plus 1.

Jason describes what he thinks many fans get wrong about these most famous of Star Wars characters. We talk about characters who live by strict codes and how that functions narratively.  Jason gets into the prequel representations of Jedi, Luke's reformation of the Jedi in the now non-canonical Star Wars Legends, and the portrayal of Luke in Rian Johnson's controversial The Last Jedi.

You can follow Jason on Twitter @vorpaljason

I respectfully acknowledge that I live in and work on Treaty One Territory and in the traditional homeland of the Métis nation.

Episode 020: I Wish My Brother George Was Here

This week, I'm sharing the audio of an interview I did with my friend and mentor, George Toles. Those of you familiar with the structure and style of my interviews will notice that this one is different. George invited me to record a conversation for his Hitchcock class about two of my favourite Hitchcock films, The 39 Steps and North By Northwest. So he's interviewing me. It’s a huge honour to have been asked. and it was a delightful conversation. We talked for almost three hours - only an hour of which we recorded. I'm grateful he's allowed me to use the audio for Geek 4.

George is an academic, a teacher, a screenwriter, director, actor. He is Distinguished Professor in the English, Theatre, Film and Media Department at the University of Manitoba. To some, people he’s best known for his collaborations with filmmaker Guy Maddin. George wrote or co-wrote the screenplays for such films as Archangel (1990), Careful (1992), Twilight of the Ice Nymphs (1997), The Saddest Music in the World (2003), and Keyhole (2011). He also wrote the dialogue for Guy’s docu-fantasy, My Winnipeg (2007). He wrote the screenplay for Neil Burns’ stop motion film, Edison and Leo (2008). He’s published dozens of scholarly essay and two books on film, A House Made of Light and the book on Paul Thomas Anderson for The University of Illinois Press’s director series.

George Toles as Countess Knotkers In Guy Maddin’s Careful (1992)