Casually Obsessed

We’re talking about the prolific YA author, Sarah Dessen! Dessen published her first novel in 1996 and as of 2019 has published 14* novels (*in the intro to this episode I mistakenly say 20- apologies!). She’s won numerous awards for her work, had two of her novels combined into the film How to Deal, and in 2019 Netflix purchased the rights to adapt 3 of her novels (This Lullaby, Along for the Ride, and Once and for All) into film...

We're talking about Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn!  A few things we discuss in the episode: The incredible costume design, especially for Harley;  Comic book movies more broadly (we have some notes); Confusion around why people don't just move out of Gotham city! Bisexuality;  Misogyny (it's the villain);  Violence (there's a lot of it) This episode is a special cross over with The Bi...

We're back with more Orphan Black talk! In part two of this two-part conversation we go deep on a few characters and dig into the themes of the show. 

Some things we talk about in the episode are:

• Why can we forgive Helena but not Rachel?
• Bioethics and corporate interests
• What's the deal with Paul?
• The Castor clones & whether the ends justify the means
• Tatiana Maslany & Ari Millen
• The importance of Felix
...

We're talking about our favorite biological identicals and the people who love, created, and try to murder them! Returning guest Julian Lejbman helps me dissect the BBC America sci-f thriller Orphan Black. 

A few things we discuss in the episode are: 

• What we tell people who haven't seen Orphan Black before when we pitch the show to them;
• How Orphan Black transforms over time;
• Alison's existential crisis about be...

Part 2 of our Star Trek: Picard conversation has arrived! Allison and I dig into the characters from the series and the complex Star Trek universe.

A few things we discuss in the episode are: 

• Building the ship of fandom while you're flying it
• Romulans: from mustache twirling villains to sympathetic antagonists?
• The effects of forming cultures and personalities around fear and trauma
• Romulans & Vulcans -- same sca...

We're boldly going where no man has gone before and talking Star Trek!  Returning guest, Allison Arcos, joins me to talk about the CBS All Access show, Star Trek: Picard.

Here's a short summary for Picard: 14 years after his retirement from Starfleet, Jean-Luc Picard (Sir Patrick Stewart) is living a quiet life on his vineyard, Chateau Picard. When he is sought out by a mysterious young woman, Dahj (Isa Briones), in need of hi...

In the second part of our Veronica Mars conversation we dig into season 4 and the Veronica Mars movie! This is a spoiler-full episode, so if you haven't watched the latest (last?) season of the show we recommend just sticking with part 1 of our conversation. 

Some things we cover in the episode:

• Veronica grew up quickly, and then stopping growing at all
• How does the Veronica Mars movie fit into things?
• Did Rob Thomas ...

We’re talking smart mouthed teen detective, Veronica Mars! Bill Friday (poet, baseball enthusiast, noir know-it-all) and I had so much to say that we split this conversation into 2 parts. In this first part, we discuss the first three seasons of the show (we go into season 4 and the movie in part 2). 

A few things we discuss in the episode:

• The problem of ‘cinematic’ television
• The many threads that ca...

I asked listeners to call in and talk about a few pieces of pop culture that have been helping them cope with the stress and isolation of COVID-19. 

In light of the very necessary uprising happening in the United States and across the world, I wasn't sure that I should still release this episode. Black lives matter, and I believe that white people, like myself and many of the listeners of this show, should be prioritizing our ...

Magic might just want to murder you! 

Zan Romanoff and I are talking about Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo. This adult fantasy novel imagines that each of Yale’s Ancient Eight secret societies practice a different form of magic while a shadowy ninth house watches over them all. The main character Alex Stern is headed for anything but the Ivy League until she catches the university’s attention when she’s the sole survivor of a hor...

In this spoiler-free episode we gush about Casey McQuiston's Red White and Royal Blue and topics like: Avoiding things that are popular; Our theories on why straight women like content about gay men; Quintessential queer experiences; Why books like this matter (even when their covers are bubble gum pink); Writing about an identity other than your own; Author's we want to be friends with (and maybe date); Perfect nights with...

Tamora Pierce is kind of a big deal. She's the best-selling author of over 20 books set in her Tortall universe, as well as more than a dozen other books and comics.

Guest Allison Arcos joins our host, Chelsee, to talk about why Pierce's work has stuck with the both of them for nearly two decades. Chelsee and Allison also give their recommendations for things you'll like if you're a fan of Tamora Pierce.

Some conversation highlight...

Casually Obsessed is a new podcast of long form conversations about the pop culture we can’t stop thinking about. That book we want everyone to read, that television show we rewatch. It’s a podcast not about loving one thing, but loving many things — fervently and sometimes fleetingly.

You can expect a rotating roster of guests having in-depth conversations, giving thoughtful recommendations, and a hot take or two.

You can find the...