Claim OwnershipWhat's Eating Chuck? A Podcast with His #1 Phan
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Every now and then, Chuck needs to talk things through with his "#1 Phan." Equal parts therapy and indulgent absurdity, "What's Eating Chuck?" is a podcast about race, culture, politics, art, family - often all in one episode.
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We, um, really seem to be into Wednesday Addams, especially Christina Ricci's iconic performance in the early 90s. Yet does the new Netflix series featuring a new actress hold up enough for us to support the latest adaptation into everyone's favorite goth family? Apparently it was enough for us to finish the first season. Chuck and His #1 Phan talk about their love of Wednesday and whether they'll be back for Season 2.(snap snap)Photo credit: @hanavbara
To put it bluntly, Chuck and His #1 Phan are not into crypto. To them, the tech might be cool, but the culture and recurring downfalls all resemble the chaotic, destructive cycles of multi-level marketing (MLMs), targeting susceptible people who are all looking to get rich quickly. Somehow, this episode goes pretty deep into Chuck's confusing experiences with Asian women on dating apps and their apparent obsession with crypto. We hope you invest wisely out there. If you are a "crypto bro," enjoy and come fight us later. You can find us on the blockchain or whatever. Crypto is suck.
There's no simple way to put it: Chuck is a football ("soccer") fan, so much so that he got his #1 Phan to become one, too. This year's World Cup in Qatar, however, has left them both with a uncomfortable feeling, even pushing them to the point of refusing to engage beyond the bare minimum of highlights and score updates. How did these ball-kicking fanatics go from live matches and even practice sessions to ... an overdeveloped sense of wokeness to the corruption of FIFA and its partnering nations? This episode is for football fans ... but also for those who ascribe towards a better standard for humanity. Enjoy!
After two months, Phan finally finishes playing the FINAL FANTSY VII: REMAKE on PS5, and ... he has a lot of questions. Turns out, Chuck is a FF7 since it first came out in 1997, and he wants to know what his #1 Phan thinks about the latest endeavor to grab cash in exchange for a presumably upgraded experience. This episode is for Final Fantasy fans of all generations and whether the future looks bright for the franchise.They pretty much talk about Tifa Lockhart the whole time. Enjoy! Content references:What's Eating Chuck #16FF7: Advent ChildrenThe Cloud Song
Is it time for Chuck and His #1 Phan to grow up? As one of us are "42 going on 24," we contemplate our tendency to act young and foolish over resign ourselves to boring, bitter adulthood. This episode is entirely done in cosplay in honor of Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings. We're really planting our feet into this issue."The wind may howl all it wants, but the mountain cannot bow to it." - A wise Asian dude
Chuck & His #2 Phan started this podcast during a difficult time in the world, but now that things are returning to "normal" - what does life look like for each of them? Will it ever be the same again, or are they going to have to figure out ways to move on. Nor more bowling alleys and arcades? The end of buffets? The rise of pickleball (and diva attitudes that come with it?)Many callbacks to past episode here. The train is never on the rails, so we'll just have to suplex it into shape. Some people get it.
Food is very important to Chuck and His #1 Phan (technically, it's important to everyone, but bear with us). Despite raised by families who pride themselves in excellent, carefully prepared healthy meals, they were raised on fast food as well. In this episode, the two reminisce on their respective experiences with fast food over the years, what impact it had on their young adulthood, and how they've grown out of it. Until, of course, the sleeper cell late-night craving kicks in....Note: this episode is not sponsored by any fast food corporation (or anyone for that matter). Our thoughts are our own, asinine as they may be.
... or have we become too much like those spoiled brats in the West? In a rather deep and sentimental episode about guilt and entitlement, Chuck and His #1 Phan recall the moments where their parents asked them for what could easily be considered forms of "child labor," from carrying heavy objects to dangerous roof cleanings, from legal and financial counsel to ... even medical procedures? Also, after all these years, where is our lì xì (red envelope) money and our alleged "returns on investment"?Stick around to the end of the episode: there's a surprise for one of us. =)
Chuck and His #1 Phan made it to 50 episodes ... technically. They look back to the beginning, see how much they've grown, and look forward into the future of the podcast.Theoretically. What plays out is radically different, full of derails, interruptions, and straight up accusations on whether the co-hosts are actually up to the task of doing a podcast in this day of age. Special thanks to Chuck's parents for "guest starring." Apologies for our lack of filial piety in that moment.
Work. Career. Success. How did ... Chuck and His #1 Phan seem to miss the mark so egregiously here? On this special episode of "What's Eating Chuck?" the old boys discuss their parents' expectations, their own aspirations, and, well, the synthesis of the two in an ongoing quest for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. If you've ever wondered what it's like to disappoint your family but somehow make it out all right - this episode will appeal to you.With apologies to the following groups: doctors, lawyers, side hustlers, our fanbase, our family members, and well ... even ourselves. All people who know the struggle.
Sports. We played them. We are fans of them. We have complicated relationships with them as well. Prompted by watching THE LAST DANCE on Netflix two years after it came out, Chuck and His #1 Phan reminisce about the sports they played, being the rare Asians out on the court or the field, and whether they have that "competitor's mindset" that makes other people so successful (and at what cost). In the end, how would they change the culture of sports for others to thrive and grow?TW: some discussions of self-harm, suicide, and mental health.This episode is hopefully brought to you someday by a short shorts-providing sponsor.
On this special episode of "What's Eating Chuck?" Chuck and His #1 Phan talk about their similar journeys growing up in the same state, wanting to get out and explore the world, and eventually returning ... likely for good. Their stories of assimilation, individualism, obligation, Californication, and opportunity as much like their ancestors' own journeys as well as the past residents of their lands ... except with a lot less dysentery.Also, they say a lot of things in this episode that aren't exactly ... accurate. Please take their silliness in stride, especially near the end.
Chuck & His #1 Phan grew up loving the X-Men, in particular through the animated series, the arcade games, and the comics. However, looking back there was something rather ... silly and perhaps even campy about this superhero universe. Does it all hold up now, and what of the future of the X-Men in the cultural zeitgeist. We hope you listen to this episode (it appears only one of does so on a consistent basis).
K-pop is now an unstoppable force in the global cultural stage, but Chuck and His #1 Phan have been aware of it for over three decades. Now they are fans, though the #1 Phan may have gone a little far down the rabbit hole. However, what does K-Pop mean for the general Asian American experience? Does it do much to advance representation and empowerment? What about the more problematic aspects of the industry? For those concerned about the length, well, we are sorry, sorry, sorry sorry.
Chuck and His #1 Phan wrap up AAPI Heritage Month, but it's kind of a whole deal. #1 Phan admits feeling awkward when people want to talk about it. Who started this tradition? What are we supposed to do during the month? Are we doing it properly? As educators, artists, and activities, it's a time for a lot of things, but should it only be during the month of May?Note: one person who certainly did it right, regardless of time and place: Kiyoshi Kuromiya. More on this legend here.
Chuck and His #1 Phan take a pause every year to think about all things Vietnamese on 4/30. (On this day i 1975, the American embassy in Vietnam was overrun by North Vietnamese troops, effectively ending the years-long civil conflict while starting a long, difficult process for all parties, to say the least. A day with a complicated history (less so for Chuck), they question the burden that's on their shoulders to remember and respond effectively.TW: war, trauma, refugee, memory, Trojan horses.
The #1 Phan recently attended Sakura-Con in Seattle, where it's been It's been over 4 years since he attended with Chuck and started a new phase of "never growing old" together. Chuck and His #1 Phan reminisce on their experience against together in cosplay, their first panel, and the "jealously" expressed when one would get more attention or go more "extra." It's a friendly competition, we hope, as the plan for their next big thing.See you at the next con!
The #1 Phan just saw a documentary on a Canadian multi-sexual, deranged comedy troupe from the 1980s that's pure "punk rock" and shaped the humors of Chuck and special guest Kelvin in the late 1990s. What begins as a trip down memory lane turns into a deeper understanding of the Dr. Seuss Bible, the pointlessness of alien anal probing, and whether they'd do well on a Dutch game show involving identifying objects using only oven mitts.The Kids in the Hall are legendary.
Chuck's #1 Phan wanted to share about his recent journey away from social media after decades of living a social life online. The two share their current status of our social media practices, what social media was like back in "the day" (rotary phones were mentioned at one point), and where they'd like social media to be in the future: a space where morals and ethics are considered over metrics and engagement.
John Carpenter's BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA - a tour-de-force in the very narrow category of Asian American fantasy action horror comedy - has provoked a lot of serious thought about its place in the cinematic zeitgeist among Asian Americans. Chuck and His #1 Phan grew up seeing this film repeatedly throughout their lives, yet there's always been an unsettling feeling of whether this is an artifact of cultural misappropriation ... or a misunderstood pro-Asian American masterpiece that has a lot of similarities to a story set "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away."Special shout-outsThe Pig and the LadyAnderson LeIsaac Halasima"Kelvin"
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