Not Quite Great Books: a TV podcast

42. Artistic Choices, VFX, and Capitalism

Before diving into Season 3 of The Americans, and after a summer of some high highs (The Americans Season 2) and lower highs (their MCU jaunts), John and Danielle take a moment to reflect on the kinds of artistic choices that draw them into TV shows. In particular, they consider the recent controversies over Marvel and Netflix's uses of VFX artists and studios, and use it as a broader jumping off point to discuss visual effects in other shows (and the recent Jordan Peele film Nope), as well as how these choices impact their ability to enjoy shows. No Cave this week, but they make up for it with a fun chat about technology, television, capitalism, and unions.(Light spoilers for The Terror season 1, Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon through two episodes, and Nope) 

41. The Americans, Season 2 in review

Now that they’ve made it through two full seasons of The Americans, Danielle and John take a chance to step back and consider their reactions to different characters, relationship development, and really, the show overall. They compare season 1 to season 2, and dig into the new characters that this season introduced. They use an amazing spreadsheet developed by listener Mike to induct some predictions into the Danielle Dossier Hall of Fame. The journey is just beginning!

40. Art v. Content, Horkheimer v. MCU

We’ve got a treat for you this week - surprising no one, John’s Horkheimer deep dive in the final Moon Knight Cave went on a bit longer than we let on, and we’re serving you the entire debate in this bonus episode of NQGB. Listen in as John obliterates Marvel by thinking with Horkheimer himself. Don’t worry, Danielle doesn’t let them off scot-free, and gives her own analysis of the cultural production of the MCU and Marvel alike. Both your hosts are throwing heat in this bonus ep. Enjoy!

39. The Americans 2x13, ”Echo,” with Jon Keller

Strap in, folks, Jon Keller is back for the season 2 finale, “Echo,” and this is an episode you do not want to miss! Together, your hosts take the major reveals of the show piece by piece, starting with Fred’s mission in the cold open, Paige’s protest experience, and the impromptu family trip to a motel in the middle of nowhere before they (over?) analyze the Jared reveal and Nina’s removal. Jon and John debate Arkadii’s awareness about Oleg and Nina’s relationship, and then delight in a Gorbachev/Oleg comparison. In a shocking turn of events, Danielle is relieved, at least momentarily, by the return of Claudia, but this just offers further opportunity to reflect on the new recruit program and the fate of Paige. In the Cave, Keller is coerced (in a friendly way) into a wonderful analysis of Tocqueville’s relationship to The Americans, and all three offer some solid TheoryShips. What a doozy to end this season!

38. The Americans 2x12, ”Operation Chronicle”

On this week’s episode, “Operation Chronicle,” John and Danielle try to make sense of all the different forms of escalation taking place in the series. They first follow Larrick as his actions impact Philip and Elizabeth, Paige, Jared, and Fred, before shifting gears to think about the escalation between Arkadii, Nina, Oleg, and Stan. Though distinct, your hosts consider how spying both enables and limits the abilities of different characters to make connections. John logs some questions for Danielle in the Dossier, and your hosts come up with their own codes words/phrases to use in case of a spying-related emergency. To round out this intense episode, Danielle invokes Sophocles’ Antigone in the Cave before John introduces a new Cave-adjacent segment, TheoryShip.

37. Moon Knight 1x6, ”Gods and Monsters”

We did it - we made it to the end of our Marvel run!! For the final episode of Moon Knight, John and Danielle tackle the main plot points - Ammit/Khonshu and Layla/Marc/Steven/Harrow fights, the binding of Harrow, and the Jake Loughly reveal - before turning to a lengthy (understatement!) discussion of questions of binaries, expectations, and their overall enjoyment of this series and Marvel properties more generally. They offer some sweet and prickly roses and thorns from their experience chatting about Marvel and MK together. After subjecting John to multiple sessions with fellow-MCU lovers, Danielle clears space for John to quintuple down on complaint corner (with ample pushback of course) by bringing Horkheimer into The Cave. Join your favorite political theorists-turned-podcast hosts as they debate pop culture, art, and aesthetic judgment for one final time this season!

36. The Americans 2x11, ”Stealth”

Things are really coming to a head season 2 - Danielle and John work together to make sense of the rising levels of tension and intensity they see in The Americans Season 2 Episode 11, “Stealth.” They ask about Kate’s fate, her relationship to Jared, and how this all impacts Philip and Elizabeth’s relationship. They also marvel over the centrality of Nina’s role in everything, which of course includes a brief sojourn into depressed-Stan land, and a detour into Stan’s FBI comic books, and whether/how those are connected to MacGruff the Crime Dog (maybe only in Danielle’s brain). Focusing on Nina’s role more broadly, Danielle offers a brief gloss of Sharon Krause’s work on agency in The Cave. On a lighter note, we get a brief Harry Styles reference and John, as always, prompts a chat on the series’ aesthetic choices.

35. Moon Knight 1x5, ”Asylum”, with Nick Carnes

Buckle up, NQGB fans - John and Danielle are joined by the brilliant Dr. Nick Carnes. Nick is the co-editor of The Politics and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, along with former repeat-guest of the podcast, Dr. Lilly Goren. Together, they consider how the show helps us think about the hero/antihero divide before diving deep into how the show represents trauma, violence, and DID, and how the Egyptian setting/cosmology impacts the choices and representations. The discussion is wide-ranging and flush with takes, both on Moon Knight, but also on the broader MCU. Nick offers his favorite Marvel easter egg from this ep, and your three co-hosts chat about weird Marvel, marvel over Oscar Isaac (again, because why not?), and Nick shouts out the origin of Steven’s name. Then, John and Danielle clear the floor for Nick to lay out his grand-theory of the MCU before plugging the upcoming academic volume. And don’t worry, in this episode where some VERY traumatic stuff happens in a cave, your hosts seize the opportunity to find Plato in the Cave. It’s a jam-packed episode - enjoy!

34. The Americans 2x10, ”Yousaf”

This week, John and Danielle consider the fall-out of multiple series’ events as it unfolds in The Americans Season 2 Episode 10, “Yousef.” In this ep, the past is rearing back with a vengeance, resulting in some pretty serious consequences. Within this framework, they also think together about the relationship between sex and death, both in this ep and throughout the series, and especially how this manifests in the scenes with Annalise, Yousef, and Javid. John asks Danielle for some S2 predictions in the Dossier, and shouts out a few memorable Russian phrases, making his past Russian teachers proud! This ep celebrates the return of Wig Talk, with a lengthy detour into 80s fashion choices and hair in Borrowed Nostalgia. John rounds out their discussion with a stellar gloss of Rosa Luxemburg in the Cave. Come for the stories about waffles in the Hanley house, stay for the way your hosts weave together many threads in this loaded episode!

33. Moon Knight 1x4, ”The Tomb”

Back for another installment of their Moon Knight deep dive, John and Danielle go it alone this week. Together, starting at the end, they ask what is real, and contemplate what to make of the sanitarium scene. John offers some surprise entries for his own Dossier, and Danielle offers some Marvelsplaining about the god statues in the pyramid. Your hosts agree to disagree about the level of ridiculousness regarding the Alexander the Great reveal, and Danielle delights in bringing some JL Austin in the Cave. Of course, they can’t resist the opportunity to watch and react to Oscar Isaac singing his Hippopotamus song - though only tangentially related to the ep, a fun time all around in any case!