{"podcast":{"title":"Marvelous! Or, the Death of Cinema","slug":"marvelous-or-the-death-of-cinema-4770023","podcast_index_feed_id":4770023,"rss_url":"https://feed.podbean.com/marvelousdeath/feed.xml","website_url":"https://www.marvelousdeath.com","image_url":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/13348760/img313b_-_Copy9irzy.jpg","author":"Nicole Veneto, Tyrell James, and Cole Netscape","episode_count":183,"summary":"A critical, tongue-in-cheek look at the bleak landscape of the modern IP-driven Hollywood blockbuster. Hosted by Tyrell James (aka Discourse Stu), Nicole Veneto, and Cole Netscape. Audio production by Miguel Tahni. Art by Zoe Woolley, Kly and Johanna Hermeer. Discord: https://discord.gg/7vRmbRJDgs Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/marvelousdeath","last_synced_at":"2026-09-25T12:28:04.076408+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/marvelous-or-the-death-of-cinema-4770023"},"episode":{"title":"Barbie, or Life in Plastic","slug":"barbie-or-life-in-plastic","published_at":"2026-09-04T01:13:38+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/marvelous-or-the-death-of-cinema-4770023/barbie-or-life-in-plastic","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/marvelous-or-the-death-of-cinema-4770023","url":"https://www.marvelousdeath.com/e/barbie-or-life-in-plastic/","audio_url":"https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/2irgtmmhkdfwbep5/PODBEAN_COPY_Marv_Barbie_FINAL9ktd4.mp3","summary":"\"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. 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 consid…","meta_description":"\"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 billi…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":9537,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/marvelous-or-the-death-of-cinema-4770023/episodes/barbie-or-life-in-plastic/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/marvelous-or-the-death-of-cinema-4770023/barbie-or-life-in-plastic.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}