Make Me A Nerd with Mandy Kaplan

If there was ever an episode that proves how deeply a movie can tattoo itself onto someone’s soul, it’s this one. Mandy is joined by beloved TruStory FM collaborator and film analyst Steve Sarmento, a man whose heart has apparently been shaped like Devil’s Tower since 1977. Together, they dive into Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Steven Spielberg’s symphonic ode to curiosity, obsession, government lies, blinking lights, and questionable parenting. It’s a conversation equal parts nerdy reverence and incredulous side-eye.Steve opens by explaining why this film imprinted on him. He recalls watching space capsules dock overhead in the actual sky (because he is deeply old by his own admission) and feeling the first spark of fascination with what might be “out there.” From there, 7-year-old Steve was primed for Spielberg’s grounded sci-fi portrait of ordinary people caught in extraordinary encounters. For him, Barry had the same toys he did. Roy looked like every dad in the Midwest. The entire film felt possible in a way that forever marked his imagination. Mandy, meanwhile, approaches the movie as an adult for the first time and has… questions.A lot of questions.They unpack a lot... and of course, they talk aliens—spindly little dancers in silhouette, equal parts eerie and endearing—and what it meant to young Steve to finally see them emerge from that overwhelming light. For him, it was pure awe. For Mandy, it was: “Wait, did they just kidnap a kid and everyone’s cool with this?”In the end, what emerges is a conversation about joy. How a film can be full of fear, family collapse, government conspiracies, and chaos, and still somehow leave you feeling hopeful. Steve calls Close Encounters one of his top five films of all time, and by the time the mothership lifts off, you can hear why. It’s a story not just about aliens, but about longing, wonder, and the hunger for connection in a chaotic world. Mandy may have arrived late to the party, but by the end, she understands exactly why this movie meant—and still means—so much.Make Me a Nerd:Website: makemeanerd.com/joinInstagram: @mandy_kaplan_klavensTikTok & Bluesky: @mandymiscast---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

This week on Make Me a Nerd, Mandy Kaplan welcomes back certified nerd-whisperer Kyle Olson—creator of The Swashbuckling Ladies Debate Society and co-host of Craft and Chaos—to induct her into the gloriously absurd and deeply inventive world of Game Changer on Dropout TV. And if you’ve never heard of Game Changer, think of it as Whose Line Is It Anyway? if it were run by a slightly deranged Willy Wonka with a subscription model and a vendetta against YouTube algorithms. And also: there’s a lot of butthole jokes.Kyle walks Mandy through the origin story of Dropout—the phoenix that rose from the ashes of CollegeHumor—and how Sam Reich, comedy’s least threatening puppet master, created a game show format where the rules change every single episode.¹ We start with Sam Says, where Mandy finds herself increasingly charmed by the players, increasingly unnerved by the absence of a studio audience, and deeply offended by a COVID gag that hits a little too close to home. But then we get to Original Cast Recording, where Mandy goes full musical nerd as Zach and Jess (of Off Book fame) improvise an entire musical that’s so good you’ll want to buy the cast recording and name your next child Mountport. And finally: we Beat the Buzzer in a full-blown improv escape room where contestants sprint through studios, flirt with witches, and try not to break into someone’s bedroom to slam a buzzer.Along the way, we talk about pandemic-era creativity, low-budget brilliance, the science of contagious yawns, the economics of performer equity, and how Kyle’s daughter Zoe is singlehandedly enriching the family’s streaming diet. Kyle also reveals which Game Changer episode was his gateway drug (thanks, Zoe!), which one he’d totally fail at (spoiler: Sam Says), and which cast members he’d happily run from studio to sidewalk for. And Mandy? She makes a strong case for climbing into bed with two strangers in the name of game show victory. Naturally.Whether you’re already deep in the Dropout fandom or just learning what a “game samer” is, this episode will make you laugh, cringe, and maybe—just maybe—subscribe. No cap. Low key. We have the riz.Links & Notes🎥 Game Changer on Dropout TV🎙️ The Swashbuckling Ladies Debate Society🎨 Craft and Chaos Podcast🎧 Off Book: The Improvised Musical Podcast🧙‍♀️ Dimension 20 (D&D on Dropout)📚 Station Eleven – HBO Max🎮 Erika Ishii – Ghost of YoteiMake Me a Nerd:Website: makemeanerd.com/joinInstagram: @mandy_kaplan_klavensTikTok & Bluesky: @mandymiscast¹ Yes, Sam Reich is the son of economist and former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich. So while his father spent a career fighting corporate greed and income inequality, Sam opted to fight butthole jokes and buzzer-based chaos. Honestly? Same energy. ---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

You might think figure skating is all glitter, grace, and emotional piano music — but Yuri!!! on Ice says, “Oh no, my friend, this is a blood sport with sequins.” This week, Mandy Kaplan is joined by actor and voice powerhouse Zehra Fazal (Borderlands 3 & 4, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, The Chosen Adventures) to unpack the cult anime that somehow manages to combine Olympic-level athleticism, emotional breakdowns, and gay hot tub scenes.Mandy, bless her open heart, has only recently dipped her toe — or skate — into anime. Zehra, meanwhile, is the kind of person who can tell you the real-life skater each character is based on, and yes, she knows the choreographer’s name. Together, they untangle Yuri!!! on Ice’s tangled triple-axel of meaning: Is it a sports anime? A love story? A metaphor for crushing self-doubt wrapped in butt shots and ice shavings?They talk about everything from the meticulous realism — real skaters performed every routine for animators to trace — to the quietly radical queerness at its core. They also cover anime’s emotional shorthand (why everyone screams), its strange obsession with mid-scene “fake ads” for imaginary Hot Pockets, and how Yuri!!! on Ice makes body image, pressure, and perfectionism part of its storytelling language. By the end, Mandy admits she’s still a little confused, but also a little bit moved — and possibly a little bit hot for Victor.This episode has everything: 80s training montages, screaming siblings, existential self-doubt, and the most loving debate about anime crotch shots ever recorded. So lace up your skates, pour yourself some sake, and prepare for a deeply emotional deep dive into nerd culture’s iciest corner.Links & NotesYuri!!! on Ice (2016 anime series) — Crunchyroll“History Maker” by Dean Fujioka, the Yuri!!! on Ice theme songFollow Zehra on InstaMake Me a NerdWebsite: makemeanerd.com/joinInstagram: @mandy_kaplan_klavensTikTok & Bluesky: @mandymiscast---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

You know how some documentaries just happen and others ignite a cultural revolution in a cone bra? This week, Mandy reunites with her former roommate, award-winning author, screenwriter, and Madonna scholar-in-chief Abdi Nazemian, to talk about the pop documentary that practically reinvented fame itself: Madonna: Truth or Dare.Abdi literary résumé is already Hall of Fame (Only This Beautiful Moment, Like a Love Story, Exquisite Things)— and he returns to Make Me a Nerd to nerd out about the film that shaped him, inspired his art, and very nearly ruined his high-school Spanish play. (That’s right: the man skipped Madonna for drama club.)Together, Mandy and Abdi dissect the film’s legacy with the obsessive joy of two grad students armed with eyeliner. They talk about Madonna’s audacity, the film’s accidental queerness that became very intentional, and the moment every gay teen of the early ’90s realized: “Oh, so this is what freedom looks like—with backup dancers.” Abdi recounts how the documentary cracked open his world, how its fearless visibility still echoes in his own banned-book-era storytelling, and why he’s still chasing that mixture of defiance and grace three decades later.Along the way, they tackle everything from Warren Beatty’s “human raincloud” energy to Madonna’s evolving accent to the question that divides all fandoms: “Can you be both bratty and brave?” The answer, obviously, is yes—if you’re Madonna. Or Abdi Nazemian.Links & NotesMadonna: Truth or Dare (1991), dir. Alek KeshishianStrike a Pose (2016)Like a Love Story, Exquisite Things, Only This Beautiful Moment by Abdi NazemianDick Tracy soundtrack (I’m Breathless)Blonde Ambition Tour / Like a Prayer albumMadonna’s Nightline interview on Justify My Love (1990)Make Me a NerdWebsite: makemeanerd.com/joinInstagram: @mandy_kaplan_klavensTikTok & Bluesky: @mandymiscast---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

This week on Make Me a Nerd, Mandy Kaplan straps on her metaphorical codpiece and dives headfirst into the sword-swinging, land-grabbing, god-invoking world of The Last Kingdom with guest Matt Boren¹—actor, author, screenwriter, and senior prom date emeritus. And if you’re wondering how the man who wrote Folded Notes from High School and Minister of Loneliness became obsessed with decapitations, Danish warlords, and subtitles thick with blood and Old English vowels—well, Mandy is too. But it turns out: it’s all just General Hospital with furs and beards.Matt lays out the appeal of The Last Kingdom not as a history lesson (God no), but as an ongoing saga of trauma, identity, and—most crucially—soap-operatic betrayal. We learn that he came to the show late, post-Game of Thrones awakening, and stayed for the storylines that feel pulled directly from daytime TV: surprise siblings, secret lineages, and more brooding than a Shakespeare festival in the rain. Mandy, meanwhile, is just trying to keep track of who’s who, why everyone is named Uhtred, and whether “Sieges are for Turds” is historically accurate or just someone’s idea of a bumper sticker.Together, they cover three episodes: the brutal pilot, the climactic battle of season three, and the series finale disguised as a prequel to a disappointing movie. Along the way, they debate teenage kings, historical trauma, and whether The Last Kingdom is actually just The Princess Bride with more fire and fewer laughs. Mandy confronts her own aversion to violence (there’s so much head stuff), and Matt admits he watches most of the beheadings out of the corner of his eye—because, like most writers, he’s here for the emotional subtext, not the arterial spray.Plus: the quiet horror of teenage monarchs, the eternal trauma of land disputes, and why Mandy wants everyone to just share the damn land already. Also: Matt confesses he may in fact be a “quotationist,” and Mandy delivers her thesis on why all television—yes, even this—is basically Friends with fewer coffee mugs and more impalings.Links & Notes⚔️ The Last Kingdom on Netflix⚔️ The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die📖 Minister of Loneliness by Matt Boren📚 Folded Notes from High School by Matt Boren📖 Brackish Waters by Matt Boren🎥 Matt Boren on InstagramMake Me a NerdWebsite: makemeanerd.com/joinInstagram: @mandy_kaplan_klavensTikTok & Bluesky: @mandymiscast¹ Matt Boren may not identify as a “nerd,” but any man who quotes General Hospital while explaining 9th-century Anglo-Saxon land disputes is at least a Level 12 Soap Mage. That’s canon.---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

Dracula is a book where the title character shows up for roughly four chapters and then just... leaves. It's like if "Jaws" spent most of its runtime following insurance adjusters filing claims about boat damage. And yet, somehow, this 1897 novel created pop culture's most enduring monster. That's the central mystery Mandy and guest Lester Ryan Clark tackle in this Halloween extravaganza.Lester teaches Dracula to high schoolers every year (and gradually transforms into Gary Oldman's Dracula throughout Halloween week because he's clearly the best kind of teacher). He confirms what Mandy discovered reading the novel for the first time: Bram Stoker committed the bizarre act of writing a vampire book and then immediately getting bored with his vampire. After a genuinely creepy opening with Jonathan Harker trapped in a Transylvanian castle with a mustached count who climbs walls like a lizard and definitely doesn't eat dinner, the book pivots to diary entries, newspaper clippings, and an excessive amount of Victorian-era day drinking. It's an epistolary novel where characters somehow recall four pages of precise dialogue from memory for their journal entries, which—and stay with me here—doesn't really track.But here's where it gets interesting: Stoker's failure might have been his greatest success. By giving us almost nothing, he forced everyone else to fill in the blanks. We got Bella Lugosi's suave count without a mustache (sorry, Bram), Christopher Lee's menacing aristocrat, the Lost Boys' leather-jacketed vampires, and yes, even Twilight's sparkling immortals. Dracula survives by adapting to whatever each generation finds sexy, which is apparently the most vampire thing possible. The conversation explores why there are so many characters named John/Jonathan/Harker/Hawkins (looking at you, Stoker), why Mina is the book's actual hero despite Victorian men having feelings about her man-brain, what's going on with Renfield eating progressively larger animals, and why the climactic battle happens from a distance through binoculars.They also discuss how Dracula represented Victorian anxieties about foreigners, disease, and women with agency (witches used to be scary because they were "women with power and their own transportation system"), and why the novel works as proto-found-footage horror. Plus: the drinking. So much drinking. Brandy as medicine, brandy to stay awake, brandy to celebrate, brandy to mourn. It's a wonder anyone in Victorian England remained vertical.The episode ends with both agreeing that every film adaptation correctly identified the problem and added more Dracula scenes, because giving people what they want is occasionally good business. Who knew?Links & NotesLester Ryan Clark's Podcasts:Every Minute of Everything Everywhere All at OnceThe Devil's DetailsFind Lester on Social Media:All platforms: @LesterRyanClarkMake Me a Nerd:Website: makemeanerd.com/joinInstagram: @mandy_kaplan_KravensTikTok & Bluesky: @mandymiscastMentioned in the Episode:Francis Ford Coppola's "Bram Stoker's Dracula" (1992)"Renfield" (2023) - starring Nicolas Cage and Nicholas HoltJanice Hallett - British mystery author who writes in epistolary format---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

What happens when you take the most toyetic franchise of the 1980s, hand it to the kings of schlock at Cannon Films, and tell them to make the next Star Wars? You get Masters of the Universe—a movie so gloriously confused that it can’t decide if it’s fantasy, sci-fi, or just an over-extended toy commercial. Mandy Kaplan is joined by returning guest Krissy Lenz and first-time guest Nathan Blackwell to revisit Dolph Lundgren’s He-Man, Frank Langella’s unexpectedly Shakespearean Skeletor, and Courtney Cox’s denim-skirted grief arc.Krissy admits she was more of a She-Ra kid than a He-Man fan, Nathan reveals how his early nerd DNA was written by toy catalogues and VHS rentals, and Mandy discovers that her new haircut may have made her look more Eternia than she ever bargained for. Together, they marvel at Billy Barty’s sweaty “space gnome” Gwildor, dissect the bizarre mashup of swords and laser guns, and debate whether Dolph Lundgren’s dubbed dialogue or Evil-Lyn’s parenting-by-imitation scam is the bigger cinematic crime.And of course, Frank Langella steals the show as Skeletor—chewing scenery, rewriting dialogue, and turning what should’ve been a paycheck gig into one of the greatest villain performances of the decade. It’s camp, it’s chaos, it’s nostalgia, and it’s a reminder that sometimes the best way to watch a movie is with tacos, two beers, and friends who know how to laugh at laser-pew-pews projected from a rainbow mist.Links & NotesMasters of the Universe (1987) on IMDbKrissy & Nathan’s Most Excellent 80s Movies PodcastGank That Drank: A Supernatural Drinking Game PodcastSquishy Studios – Nathan Blackwell’s films---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

Look, I need to tell you something about a children's television program featuring animated dogs, and I need you to stay with me here because this is going to sound absolutely bananas. There exists—right now, in this timeline, on this increasingly nightmare-inducing planet—a show called Bluey that has achieved what can only be described as "weaponized wholesomeness," and somehow, somehow, it's making grown adults weep into their throw pillows while their children ask them why they're crying about a cartoon dog going camping.This week, Mandy sits down with actress, writer, and content creator Kelly Vrooman—a woman whose professional credentials include talking to a chicken puppet on morning television, which is either the most or least qualified you can be to discuss children's media, I genuinely cannot tell—to explore why this Australian import has become a global phenomenon. Kelly, who has actual human children (her own, she specifies, which is a concerning clarification but we'll let it slide), walks Mandy through three episodes of this seven-minute existential comfort food. They watch "Magic Xylophone" (teaching sharing through possibly-real magic and parental commitment to the bit), "Camping" (featuring Jean-Luc, a French dog who GHOSTS Bluey without saying goodbye and makes you feel feelings you didn't consent to about animated dogs), and an episode about dad desperately trying to watch sports while his daughter stress-cleans her pretend house using beer koozies as babies.And here's where it gets weird. Because Bluey isn't just good—it's disturbingly, almost suspiciously good. Created by one man, Joe Brum, who writes every single episode himself (which should be a red flag for quality but somehow isn't), the show manages to be both an accurate documentary of parenting's soul-crushing exhaustion AND a joyful celebration of childhood imagination. It's animated "on the ones"—meaning twice as many frames as normal animation, which costs twice as much money—and the child voice actors are kept completely anonymous to protect them from fame, which, AMERICA, ARE YOU LISTENING? Kelly reveals the show has actually made her a better parent, not because it sets impossible standards, but because it reminds adults that play doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to be present. Even Joe Brum responded to complaints about unrealistic parenting by essentially saying, "They're dogs. Dogs love to play. Calm down."But what makes Bluey genuinely fascinating is how it operates on multiple levels without condescending to anyone. Kids get silly games and talking dogs. Parents get jokes about hangovers and wanting to watch the game. Everyone gets emotional moments that hit like a truck carrying feelings. The show depicts single parents, same-sex parents, and families of all configurations without ever stopping to collect applause for being inclusive—it just is inclusive while telling stories about magic xylophones and camping trips. Mandy describes it as "being coated in caramel that is sugar-free and cannot make you gain weight," which is either perfect or evidence that Bluey has broken her brain. In a world that feels increasingly designed to make us miserable, Bluey offers consistent, high-quality comfort—not escapism, but a reminder that goodness and creativity and family connection still exist, even when everything else is on fire.The conversation takes delightful detours (Kelly admits to crushing on the animated dog dad, they debate whether Jean-Luc is a dick for leaving, they're briefly joined by Kelly's three-year-old who wants to talk about monster trucks), but ultimately lands on something important: this is a show where the main characters are all female and nobody cares because they're just kids having adventures. It's medicinal. It's necessary. And if you don't feel moved by it, well, Kelly insists you might not have a soul—which Mandy clarifies is just her being a dick and not the official position of TruStory FM, though they both stand by the sentiment. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go question why a podcast about cartoon dogs has made me feel more hopeful about humanity than any news broadcast in the last five years.Links & NotesMandy Kaplan on Instagram (@mandy_kaplan_klavins)Join Make Me A Nerd for Bonus ContentKelly Vrooman on social media: @KellyVrooms (Instagram/TikTok)Kelly Vrooman's YouTube: Kelly VroomanBluey on YouTube---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

This week on Make Me a Nerd, Mandy Kaplan asks the big, baffling question: how does a grown man in his forties, with a child, a career, and a functioning brain, become obsessed with Twilight? Enter Ben Raffle—software executive by day, nerd savant by night, and unapologetic devotee of sparkly vampires. What follows is a gloriously chaotic conversation about Stephanie Meyer’s cultural juggernaut, the film that launched a thousand “Team Edward vs. Team Jacob” T-shirts, and the angsty blue-filtered fever dream that made Forks, Washington, a tourist destination.Mandy and Ben cover it all: Robert Pattinson’s “did he just poop his pants?” acting choices, Kristen Stewart’s mayonnaise-adjacent performance as Bella, and why Jasper—yes, Jasper!—is the true hero of the saga. They dissect why teenage girls everywhere believed they could “fix” the bad boy who wants to murder them, how Catherine Hardwicke’s low-budget direction gave the film its signature mood, and why vampire baseball is somehow the franchise’s high point. Along the way, they veer into bison make-outs in Port Angeles, Grease 2 supremacy, and the existential question of whether anyone, anywhere, would actually choose Forks as a vacation spot.It’s silly, it’s biting, it’s surprisingly affectionate—and by the end, you may find yourself agreeing with Ben that Twilight is the Sour Patch Kids of cinema: nutritionally worthless, wildly addictive, and impossible not to binge. ---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

This week, Mandy Kaplan discovers that “family road trip” in Japan doesn’t mean stopping at a rest area for gas and Funyuns. No, it means your parents turn into pigs and you’re suddenly employed at a haunted bathhouse run by a chain-smoking witch with the voice of Suzanne Pleshette. And who better to guide Mandy through the bewildering fever dream of Spirited Away than returning guest, film professor, and actual delight, Kynan Dias?Together they unpack everything: how Disney’s doe-eyed Snow White accidentally inspired anime’s giant eyes, why a sludge monster is secretly about environmentalism, how “No-Face” manages to be both terrifying and adorable, and why Miyazaki’s entire vibe can be summed up as “life is fleeting, please cry into your ramen now.” Mandy, of course, raises the obvious questions: is this secretly a cult film, why does it feel like a divorce metaphor, and how is any of this for children? Kynan, patient as ever, explains concepts like mono no aware while Mandy wonders if this movie is just better enjoyed while high.It’s chaotic, hilarious, and unexpectedly moving—basically the cinematic equivalent of a fever dream where origami tries to kill you. And honestly? You’ll come away realizing that maybe being “spirited away” isn’t such a bad thing… provided you survive the pigs.Links & NotesFind Kynan on his shows: Every Minute of Everything Everywhere All At Once, The Devil's Details, Sitting in the Dark---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

This week on Make Me a Nerd, Mandy is joined by the magnificent, the glamorous, the slightly crop-top-obsessed Patrick Gomez—yes, that Patrick Gomez, the Editor-in-Chief of Entertainment Weekly. Together they dust off the spell book, step into a suspiciously San Francisco-looking Paramount backlot, and dive headlong into the world of Charmed.Patrick confesses his original entry into the fandom was less about WB primetime devotion and more about syndicated reruns sandwiched between USA High and “some other show whose title he swears is real.” What followed was a lifelong affection for the Halliwell sisters, midriff tops, and the idea that maybe, just maybe, witchcraft was a safe place for a Texas teen trying to figure out who he was.From Lori Rom’s mysterious disappearance from the unaired pilot to Aaron Spelling’s tyrannical hair rules (no updos for six episodes, thank you very much), Mandy and Patrick relive the highs, the spell-casting lows, and the “why is there suddenly so much blood” shocks of the series. Along the way, they geek out over soap opera casting crossovers, Julian McMahon smoldering in the underworld, Rose McGowan’s fierce arrival, and that whole “season seven was secretly the finale, season eight is just a glamour we all politely ignore” situation.It’s nostalgia, it’s camp, it’s actual tears at Shannon Doherty’s swan song. Plus: paparazzi tangents, Britney theories, and the eternal truth that if you’re not hot for Alyssa Milano, you probably don’t have a pulse.So light a candle, chant “The Power of Three Will Set Us Free” approximately 9 billion times, and join Mandy and Patrick as they prove that sometimes being a nerd means admitting you cried at Charmed. ---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

This week on Make Me a Nerd, Mandy is joined by someone who has been part of her life nearly forever—voiceover legend and dear friend Tara Sands. You might know Tara from her work bringing Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and countless anime characters to life, but today she’s here to get properly nerdy about Black Mirror. Yes, the series that makes you both fascinated and slightly horrified about the future of technology, also known as “Tuesday” in Silicon Valley.Together, Mandy and Tara dive into some of Black Mirror’s most unforgettable episodes: the pastel-colored nightmare of “Nosedive,” the darkly hilarious “USS Callister,” and its follow-up “Into Infinity.” Along the way, they debate whether fake niceness is better than no niceness, confess to cyberstalking sins (don’t pretend you haven’t done it), and admit that VR gaming makes them feel like toddlers lost in a Best Buy. It’s a conversation about friendship, fandom, and how being a nerd isn’t about what you love—it’s about how much you love it. Also: Tara may or may not call Mandy perfect. Several times. We’re still fact-checking.By the end, Mandy has officially made Tara a nerd… or at least made her watch Black Mirror without hiding under the blanket. And if that isn’t cultural progress, I don’t know what is.Links & NotesMandy Kaplan on Instagram (@mandy_kaplan_klavins)Join Make Me A Nerd for Bonus Content---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

This week on Make Me a Nerd, Mandy Kaplan welcomes actor, drummer, writer, and all-time Blue Man Grouper Jeffrey Nicholas Brown—yes, an actual Blue Man.The two dive headfirst into Freaks and Geeks, the show that lasted only one season but somehow altered the DNA of television comedy forever. Jeffrey confesses he was both a freak and a geek in high school—which is really just a polite way of saying “I was constantly confused and occasionally sticky”—while Mandy proudly claims her kinship with Millie, the choir-loving buzzkill who warns that French kissing too soon will send you straight to hell. Together they relive dodgeball terror, disastrous crushes, and the eternal question: how much would you need to be paid to do the “blender challenge” now? (Spoiler: more than scale.)They don’t shy away from calling out the show’s one-note characters or its lack of diversity, but they also revel in Martin Starr’s deadpan, Linda Cardellini’s flawless sincerity, and Jason Segel’s gloriously mediocre drumming. Along the way you’ll get behind-the-scenes tidbits about Busy Philipps’ billing, Franco’s inexplicable accent, and why Freaks and Geeks is still considered to have filmed the most accurate Dungeons & Dragons scene in television history. It’s nostalgia, it’s critique, it’s two grown-ups confessing their teenage traumas on mic—and it’s glorious.Links & NotesMandy Kaplan on Instagram (@mandy_kaplan_klavins)Join Make Me A Nerd for Bonus Content---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

This week on Make Me a Nerd, Mandy welcomes fellow TruStory podcaster and kaiju enthusiast Riki Hayashi for a dive into one of the most critically acclaimed monster movies in decades: Godzilla Minus One. If you’ve ever thought Godzilla was just a big lizard with anger issues, think again.Riki brings his lifelong passion for Japanese nerd culture to the table, from his days as a Magic: The Gathering judge to his Twitch battles in Pokémon Go. But it’s his love for Godzilla that takes center stage here. Together, he and Mandy break down how Godzilla Minus One is not only a triumph of visual storytelling and emotional depth, but also a sharp departure from the campy traditions of kaiju past. Mandy, entering the Godzilla-verse for the first time, is floored—not just by the monster’s expressive eyes or bejeweled back spikes—but by the profound humanity at the movie’s core.The conversation covers everything from the history of the Godzilla franchise and its shifting eras, to the film’s subtle criticism of wartime nationalism and kamikaze legacy. Mandy and Riki explore how Minus One balances terrifying spectacle with unexpected tenderness, including a found-family storyline and a main character who’s more haunted than heroic. They celebrate the film’s quieter moments—the Spielbergian tension on the open sea, the war-torn melancholy of post-1945 Tokyo, the critique of institutional cruelty—and gasp together at that final chilling neck bruise (yes, they talk theories).It’s a rich discussion full of history, heartbreak, and atomic breath, peppered with rom-com ethics and a pitch-perfect Rock impression. And if Riki has his way, Mandy’s next nerdy adventure might involve tear-jerking anime and body-swapping teenagers.Links & NotesMandy Kaplan on Instagram (@mandy_kaplan_klavins)Join Make Me A Nerd for Bonus Content---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

What happens when comedy meets ethics, performance art meets aviation safety, and a TV host decides to build an airport just to see what happens? This week, Mandy is joined by her brilliant and ever-curious friend Megan Parlen to dig deep into The Rehearsal — Nathan Fielder’s surreal and provocative HBO series that defies easy categorization. Is it satire? Is it social commentary? Is it trauma with a laugh track? Mandy isn’t sure, but Megan has some thoughts, and the two wrestle through their opposing reactions in a wildly entertaining exploration of cringe, consent, creative license, and the cost of curiosity.From $60 million airplane sets to uncomfortable experiments on unsuspecting hopefuls, the conversation pulls back the curtain on what Fielder’s strange vision might really be saying about humanity, neurodivergence, and our need to feel in control. Bonus: Mandy coins the term “disgustipating,” and Megan wins a metaphorical mic drop with a Game of Thrones budget comparison. This is not a rehearsal — it’s a must-listen.Links & Notes📖 Bloomsbury Books – support Megan’s Bookstore!Mandy Kaplan on Instagram (@mandy_kaplan_klavins)Join Make Me A Nerd for Bonus Content---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

Mandy Kaplan has never seen Jurassic Park. We know. Breathe. She’s finally corrected this cinematic sin, and to walk her through the prehistoric magic, she’s joined by Pete Wright, Andy Nelson, and Tommy Metz III—three full-grown nerds whose love for Spielberg’s dinosaur masterpiece borders on religious. This is the movie that changed blockbuster filmmaking forever, and the guys are here to help Mandy understand the science, the spectacle, and the T. Rex-sized cultural impact.They dive into Stan Winston’s groundbreaking effects, John Williams’s unforgettable score, and the tightrope Spielberg walks between horror and adventure. Mandy confesses what really scared her (spoiler: it was the car), learns what the deal is with Sam Neill’s accent, and discovers a whole new appreciation for Jell-O quivering in fear. Whether you’re team Velociraptor or ride-or-die for the Triceratops, this episode is your guided tour through the park. And yes—hold on to your butts.Find the Guests!Pete Wright (Headstone, Sitting in the Dark): trustory.fm/headstoneAndy Nelson (CinemaScope, The Next Reel): trustory.fm/cinemascopeTommy Metz III (Sitting in the Dark): trustory.fm/sittinginthedarkLinks & Notes📖 Bloomsbury Books – support Megan’s Bookstore!Mandy Kaplan on Instagram (@mandy_kaplan_klavins)Join Make Me A Nerd for Bonus Content---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

What do you get when you cross Elizabeth Berkley, a pile of glitter, and the worst pool sex scene ever committed to film? Showgirls, of course — and this week, Mandy dives headfirst into the chaotic, cringe-glittery mess with TV producer and camp connoisseur Jessica Jimenez. Jess has seen the cult classic more times than she can count (or admit), while Mandy might have lost a small piece of her soul watching it for the first time. What follows is a cocktail-fueled breakdown of the film’s misguided ambition, baffling dialogue, and bizarre legacy as both a Razzie-sweeping disaster and beloved queer cult staple.The two unpack every absurd plot twist, every sequined meltdown, and yes — even Penny’s from Heaven. Is it empowering? Is it exploitative? Is it secretly genius? (No.) Is it fun to yell “Versayce” in public? (Yes.) Whether you’re a die-hard fan or a horrified first-timer, this episode is a campy celebration of a movie so bad, it’s iconic.Links & NotesWatch Storage Wars!Mandy Kaplan on Instagram (@mandy_kaplan_klavins)Join Make Me A Nerd for Bonus Content---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

Jimmy Aquino is back and brings K-Pop Demon Hunters, the surprise Netflix hit that blends idol culture with demon-fighting destiny and music bangers that have conquered the Billboard charts. Mandy and Jimmy break down the film’s animation style, Buffy-meets-BTS premise, Korean cultural foundations, and the epic vocal range of EJAE (seriously, a D3 to an A5 in one breath?).Jimmy dives deep into the 10-year journey to production, the real K-pop industry legends behind the soundtrack, and how the film’s creators brought sincerity, slapstick, and subversion to every glitter-drenched frame. The two gush about Derpy the tiger, decode the chibi-inspired gags, and debate the film’s third-act shift into emotional territory. Is it an instant classic? According to Rotten Tomatoes (96%) and Jimmy’s soul (100%), yes. And Mandy may or may not be working on a cover of “Golden” as Derpy. You’ve been warned.Links & NotesMandy Kaplan on Instagram (@mandy_kaplan_klavins)Jimmy Aquino’s Comic News Insider PodcastJoin Make Me A Nerd for Bonus Content---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

He’s back and nerdier than ever! Mandy welcomes voice actor, activist, and self-proclaimed snappy dresser JP Karliak to discuss X-Men (2000)—the film that helped launch the modern superhero era and still sparks passionate debate among comic fans, queer viewers, and nerdy newcomers alike. JP, who now voices Morph in X-Men ’97, breaks down the emotional legacy of the franchise, its deep ties to marginalized identities, and what makes a mutant story resonate decades later.The conversation bounces from childhood toys (Floam and Gak, anyone?) to ASMR triggers, to how comic book metaphors land differently for trans and queer communities in 2025. They unpack Rogue’s controversial casting, Mystique’s unapologetic nudity, and why every fight scene feels a bit like a prelude to kissing. Oh, and they definitely play a round of “F-Marry-Kill: Wolverine vs. Cyclops Edition.”Links and Mentions:Join the Nerd Herd for Bonus ContentX-Men ’97 on Disney+JP Karliak’s InstagramAdam Pascal performing in Hawkeye’s in-show musical---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.

In this delightfully nerdy episode, Mandy Kaplan welcomes actor and host Lisa Arch to discuss The Big Bang Theory, the show that launched Mandy’s “nerdification” and hooked Lisa over time with its layered friendships, character arcs, and perfect comedic timing. From dissecting the show’s legendary pilot to marveling at Sheldon’s emotional growth in “The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis,” Lisa and Mandy revel in how a sitcom about theoretical physicists managed to become deeply human—and deeply hilarious.They tackle the show’s depiction of neurodivergence, its cautious navigation of LGBTQ+ tropes, and the impressive way it integrated new characters like Amy Farrah Fowler and Bernadette into an already thriving ensemble. Lisa brings emotional insight to Amy’s evolution and drops expert-level takes on sitcom chemistry, all while fielding urgent commentary about Trader Joe’s discontinued items and her mom’s housecoat game.Stay tuned until the end for a tribute to the show’s genius writing, an ode to Zach the lovable himbo, and a bonus members-only segment where Lisa and Mandy recreate that scene from Legally Blonde. Spoiler: coitus is mentioned.Links & NotesJoin the Nerds – Become a MemberLisa Arch on IMDbFollow Mandy on InstagramFollow Mandy on BlueSky---Learn more about supporting this podcast by becoming a member. It's just $5/month or $55/year. Visit our website to learn more.