Episodes
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This month on a special episode of Unnatural Selection, join Emma and their partner Greg on a journey along the train tracks to find the adaptation process of Stephen Kingâs The Body. How did they get the film title Stand By Me? Why is this Emmaâs favorite movie? Would PokĂ©mon be the same as we know it today if the adaptation had kept more of the classic Kingian gross-outs? Content warnings for The Body include: death of a child, child abuse, death of a sibling, PTSD, fatphobia, leeches, vivid descriptions of vomit, and a very bitter narrator. Content warnings for Stand By Me include: all of the above, period-standard homophobia, heavy-handed 50âs nostalgia. Additional content warnings for this episode include: discussions of child actors and the common abuses they face, sexual misconduct in Hollywood, and references to drug overdose. The articles and interviews Emma references in this episode can be found here:https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2571820/adapting-stephen-king-the-body-reflecting-nostalgic-beauty-stand-by-mehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxOou0vBRf0https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2021/aug/09/how-we-made-stand-by-me-kiefer-sutherland-rob-reinerhttps://deadline.com/2023/12/kiefer-sutherland-stand-by-me-river-phoenix-1235681581/https://www.pdxmonthly.com/arts-and-culture/2021/08/why-stand-by-me-is-still-important-moviehttps://ew.com/movies/wil-wheaton-says-abusive-childhood-inspired-stand-by-me-performance/ You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. Greg can be found on tumblr at hedgeaugur and discord at Hamamelis. Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you like what youâve heard from Emma and want to support them, you can become a patron at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork
The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can check out more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Gear up for a romp through unincorporated Arkansas territory to talk about the 2010 adaptation of Charles Portisâ 1968 novel True Grit. Listen to Emma and Keifer recount their days as U.S. Marshalls and Texas Rangers to break down what makes Mattie such a good character, Matt Damonâs nincompoop era, the Coen brotherâs special little bear man, and much more. Content warnings for True Grit include: violence, gunfights, stabbings, sexism, some racism, confederates, claustrophobia, animal death, some child abuse, and a little girlâs threat of a lawyer on several occasions. The articles Emma references in this episode can be found here:https://deadline.com/2010/12/oscar-joel-and-ethan-coen-qa-on-true-grit-92517/https://www.awardsdaily.com/2010/12/awards-daily-interview-the-coen-brothers-true-grit/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-dec-26-la-ca-matt-damon-20101226-story.htmlhttps://www.politico.com/states/new-york/albany/story/2010/12/true-grit-what-the-coen-brothers-look-like-when-theyre-not-winking-068850https://www.seattlepi.com/entertainment/movies/article/interview-the-coen-brothers-talk-true-grit-915899.php You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. Keifer can be found @DannyVegito on twitter and bluesky and Keiferâs Corner on youtube. Both Unnatural Selection and Select and Start are part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you like what youâve heard from Emma or Keifer and want to support them, you can become a patron at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork
The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can check out more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Missing episodes?
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Itâs finally time to cover the adaptation that inspired this show! Set sail on the Orca with Emma and Marn for a nearly two-hour discussion about the beast known as Jaws. Bridge the brief gap between Benchleyâs 1974 hit novel and Spielbergâs inaugural summer blockbuster in 1975 with these two podcasters as Marn lets Emma gush about real-life shark footage, Hooperâs affair with Brodyâs wife, and mafia subplots. Content warnings for Jaws include: graphic shark attacks, child death, graphic descriptions of sharks being killed, infidelity, mentions of rape and rape fantasy, 70âs-pulp typical nudity and horniness, and insufferable rich scientists. The extra book Emma read for this episode is The Jaws Log by Carl Gottlieb. Emma read the 25th anniversary edition with introduction by Peter Benchley. You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. Marn can be found on most social media @corpserevivers. The web serial she writes with her wife can be found at https://prairiesongserial.com/
Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you like what youâve heard from either Emma, Marn, or the myriad shows they make together, you can become a patron at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork
The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can check out more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Kat and Emma return to the woods for their annual trek through the Twilight series. This year, listen along to their thoughts on Stephanie Meyerâs New Moon as they muse about terrible CGI, laugh at ridiculous teen behaviors, and restart Team Jacob discourse in the year 2024. Content warnings for New Moon include: depressive episodes, suicidal behavior, abandonment, the murder of a tour group, references to domestic violence, weird racism towards werewolves, insensitive depictions of the Quileute people, and an obscene number of references to Romeo and Juliet. The articles Emma references can be found here: https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2010/2/9/effects-CGI-new-moon/https://screenrant.com/twilight-new-moon-behind-scenes-details-making-trivia/ For more information on the Quileute people, visit https://www.burkemuseum.org/static/truth_vs_twilight/ You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca, Kat @StrawberrySiren, and the show @UnselectPod. Kat can be found on Instagram @swordsandsirens and her dog Walter is @WalterWednesdays. Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you like what youâve heard and want to support them, you can become a patron at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can check out more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Travel to Arrakis and venture out into the desert for spice with Emma and Tom as they discuss the two-part 2021 and 2024 adaptation of Frank Herbertâs Dune (1965). Neither Emma nor Tom have mastered the voice, so no need to worry about any Bene Gesserit tricks. Just listen along for their takes on adapting a behemoth of a book, Jessicaâs evil arc, and a firsthand account of the limited-edition Dune AMC popcorn bucket. Heads up that the audio for this episode has more background noise than usual because it was recorded in person on one microphone. Content Warnings for Dune include: mind control, colonization, violence, assault, religious fanaticism, death of a parent, death of a child, many other miscellaneous deaths, and a weirdly intelligent two-year-old. The articles Emma references in this episode can be found here:https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/making-of-dune-denis-villenueve-novel-adaptation-1235052084/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2021-10-21/dune-movie-book-changes-explained-denis-villeneuvehttps://screenrant.com/dune-2-denis-villeneuve-interview/https://www.ign.com/articles/dune-part-2-is-a-perfect-adaptation-because-of-one-key-difference You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. Tom does not wish to be found on social media, but if you would like to connect with him on a cosmic level, try getting really into Twilight Imperium. Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you like what youâve heard and want to support them, you can become a patron at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can check out more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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What is this, a crossover episode? Unnatural Selection host Emma joins forces with PB and CJ of the GaâHoolingans Podcast to talk about, you guessed it, Zach Snyderâs Legend of the Guardians: the Owls of GaâHoole (2010), an adaptation of the first three books in Kathryn Laskyâs Guardians of GaâHoole series! Join these three hosts as they go into the hollow of the GaâHoole tree to talk about egregious slow motion, uncannily detailed owls, and how amped we would have been as 10-year-olds witnessing this story about owl fascism. Content warnings for The Capture, The Journey, and The Rescue include: cult programming and deprogramming, white supremacy, fascism, child slavery, cannibalism, graphic depictions of owl feeding and digestion functions, PTSD nightmares, a lot of owl deaths, attempted fratricide, successful parricide, owl swears, and a weirdly racialized way of handling a real dynamic between owls and snakes. The articles Emma references in this episode can be found here: https://movieweb.com/exclusive-john-orloff-talks-legend-of-the-guardians-the-owls-of-gahoole/https://www.expandedcinematography.com/the-cinematography-of-legend-of-the-guardians.html You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. PB can be found on bluesky @paulyhedral and CJ @atypicalley. You can find PBâs ttrpgs at pauly3d.itch.io. Unnatural Selection and The GaâHooligans Podcast are both part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you want to hear more from Emma, PB, and CJ, check out the Moonshot twitch channel at moonshot.mov or support the network at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork. The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com
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Get ready to inhale some spores, step through the shimmer into Area X, and explore a ~~tunnel~~ tower with Emma and Jacqueline as they take a look at Jeff Vandermeerâs Annihilation and the 2018 film adaptation of the same name. Listen along as they dive into the creative use of repurposed visuals, the differences between a biologist and Natalie Portman, and overlooking scientific curiosity in favor of the military. Content warnings for Annihilation include: body horror, gun violence, memory loss, hypnosis, gore, medical horror, and being replaced by a doppelganger. The articles Emma references in this episode can be found at:https://www.theringer.com/movies/2018/2/23/17036466/alex-garland-annihilation-interview-ex-machinahttps://screen-queens.com/2018/04/06/the-dancer-behind-annhilations-epic-ending/ You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. You can find Jacqueline on tumblr at swampert.tumblr.com. You listen to her show Unwise Girls on a podcatcher of choice. If you want to hear more of Emma and Jacqueline together, check them out on the show Dead Teen House Party. Unnatural Selection, Unwise Girls, and DTHP are all a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you like what youâve heard and want to support them, you can become a patron at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork. The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Put on your VR headset and load up a CGI courtroom as Jory and Emma discuss the 1992 âadaptationâ of Stephen Kingâs 1975 short story The Lawnmower Man. Join them as they discuss how loose an adaptation can get before itâs just a different piece of media entirely, why Stephen King sued, and how sometimes a director is wrong even if theyâve put a quality monkey into a movie.
Content warnings for The Lawnmower Man (1975) include: animal death, descriptions of gore, public nudity, graphic lawnmower-based violence, and republican fathers.
Content warnings for The Lawnmower Man (1992) include: flashing lights, terrible cgi, monkey violence, gun violence, death of an animal, mental ableism, abusive fathers (both parental and religious), and an absolutely horrifying instance of cybersex.
The articles Emma references in this episode can be found at:https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/976/824/47250/https://collider.com/stephen-king-the-lawnmower-man-lawsuit/https://www.thecompanion.app/lawnmover-man-cyberpunk/
You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. You can find Jory on most sites @NoImJory and @jory.zone on Bluesky. Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you like what youâve heard and want to support them, you can become a patron at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork. Joryâs podcast We Are! Watching One Piece can be found on twitter @WeAreWatchingOP
The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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This month on Unnatural Selection, Andrew has volunteered as tribute to dive straight into the second book in the Hunger Games series, Catching Fire, without ever reading the first one! Listen along as they compare it to the 2013 film adaptation of the same name and talk about cut characters, the YA love triangle craze, why Katniss is stripped of her interiority, and what makes Hollywood think the death games are more interesting than the budding revolution surrounding them. Content warnings for Catching Fire include: police brutality, graphic depictions of violence, depictions of PTSD, torture, death of children, death in general, alcoholism, drug addiction, oblivious rich people, and fake dating. You can find Emma on Twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. You can find Andrew on X the Everything App @CohostSherms and at the same handle on Bluesky. You can hear more from Andrew on the Argonauts Podcast, The Podcast Mines, and Mild Manorâd. All of these shows, as well as Unnatural Selection, are a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you like what youâve heard and want to support them, you can become a patron at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork. The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Travel through Christmas past, present, and future with Emma and Juliet as they take on one of the many, MANY, adaptations of Charles Dickensâ holiday classic A Christmas Carol. This December they focus on 1992âs The Muppets Christmas Carol, which might genuinely be the most faithful adaptation even if Bob Cratchit is a loveable frog. Join them to gripe about dancing penguins, wax poetic about Dickensâ use of language, and talk about more Neopets than you would expect! Content warnings for A Christmas Carol include: hauntings, loneliness, death, death of a child (he gets better), violence against spirits, time travel, and the mortifying ordeal of listening to people talk about you when they think you arenât there. The articles Emma cites in this episode can be found at: https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2015/dec/21/how-we-made-the-muppet-christmas-carolhttps://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/making-of-muppet-christmas-carol/ You can find Emma on Twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. You can find Juliet on Cohost @folly and their show Iâll Be Pod for Castmas @christmas. Unnatural Selection and Iâll Be Pod for Castmas are both a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. Become a patron at patreon.com/moonshotnetwork to hear even more shows from the two of them! The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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This episode was originally recorded on August 8, 2023. Follow Blink and Emma through the Wall and into Faerie as they break down the differences between Neil Gaimanâs 1999 novel adaptation of his own 1997 comic series Stardust and the 2007 film adaptation of the same name! Join them as they talk about painfully 2007 treatment of female characters, a lack of little hairy men, and how sometimes a movie doesnât have to be good to be good, you know? Content warnings for Stardust include: Mid-2000âs misogyny, fantasy violence, and the use of the word âwhoopsieâ to describe Robert DeNiro in a dress. The article Emma discusses in the episode can be found at: https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/913568 You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca and the show @UnselectPod. Blinkâs a03 account can be found at username marquis. Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his music at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Emma and Oak become unstuck in time, hopping through the pages of Kurt Vonnegutâs anti-war sci-fi classic Slaughterhouse-Five and its 1972 film adaptation of the same name. Join them as they discuss how powerful a match cut can be, the sheer joy of watching a car being driven wildly by a panicked wife, and how it was a cowardâs choice to not show the Tralfamadorians on-screen. Content warnings for Slaughterhouse-Five include war, death, nazis, PTSD, some homophobia, nudity, inaccurate historical data, and being put in a human zoo by an aliens. You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca, Oak @OakAlexandrite, and the show @UnselectPod. This show is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. The podcast Oak edits can also be found on the Moonshot Network and @The3LWPodcast on twitter. The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Emma and Kat disappear into the woods in order to read Stephanie Meyerâs Twilight and watch the hit film adaptation of the same name. When they return to society, they debate whether the book was actually enjoyable, discuss why teenagers need to have friends, and applaud one of the best movie soundtracks of all time. Content warnings for Twilight include: grooming, bloodsucking, creeping on younger women, insensitive depictions of the Quileute people, gaslighting, and getting asked to prom. For more information on the Quileute people, visit https://www.burkemuseum.org/static/truth_vs_twilight/ You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca, Kat @StrawberrySiren, and the show @UnselectPod. Kat can be found on Instagram @swordsandsirens and her dog Walter is @WalterWednesdays. Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his music at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Jay and Emma ride around the beautiful landscapes of Hiroshima to talk about 38-page Murakami short story Drive My Car and its 3 hour long film adaptation of the same name. Listen along as they dive into multilingual storytelling, realize they missed some of the assigned readings, and accept that sometimes adding things in an adaptation rules. Content warnings for Drive My Car include: sexual assault, death of a loved one, death of a child, brief mention of pedophilia, child abuse, and Anton Chekhov. You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca, Jay @extremesalsaing, and the show @UnselectPod. Jayâs audio drama Additional Postage Required can be found on twitter @APR_Podcast. Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. If you want to hear more of Jay and Emma on the Moonshot Network, check out the Murder Mystery livestream VOD or become a patron and listen to Once Missed Wonders. The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his music at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Ariella introduces Emma to Torah studies in this episodeâs dive into academy award-winning animated feature The Prince of Egypt and the many-times-translated Book of Exodus that inspired it. Spoiler alert: itâs good! Join them as they talk about animation as a medium, big frogs, how brutal the story is while staying PG, and why Hollywood needed to make Moses hot.
Content warnings for The Book of Exodus and The Prince of Egypt include: slavery, antisemitism, infanticide, deaths of children, murder, discussion of religion, and realizing your whole life has been a lie.
The translation of Exodus used for this episode can be found at: https://www.sefaria.org/Exodus.1.1?ven=The_Contemporary_Torah,_Jewish_Publication_Society,_2006&lang=bi&aliyot=0
The article Emma quotes can be found at: https://web.archive.org/web/20030329004351/http://assistnews.net/strategic/s0000023.htm
You can find Emma on twitter @ematsca, Ariella @AriShua36, and the show @UnselectPod. Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network.
The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. You can find more of his music at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Emma and Cole take a look at the 1925 novella Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and its 1953 film counterpart while completely ignoring the 3 adaptations that came in-between. Tune in to find out if diamonds really are a girlâs best friend, why Marilyn Monroe should be allowed to commit murder, and what led to leading man and future husband Henry Spoffard being remade into a 10-year-old boy (hint: itâs probably the Hays code). Content warnings for Gentlemen Prefer Blondes include a brief mention of sexual assault, getting stuck in a porthole, and the mortifying ordeal of hearing grown men called âDaddyâ and âPiggieâ. The articles Emma promised to put in the show notes are here:https://themarilynreport.com/2022/08/18/gentlemen-prefer-blondes-on-the-page-stage-and-screen/https://igetakickoutofyou.me/2012/02/06/dresses-and-controversy-in-gentlemen-prefer-blondes/ You can find Emma on Twitter at @ematsca, Cole at @greedmammon, and the show at @UnSelectPod! Unnatural Selection is a part of the Moonshot Podcast Network. The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. Check out more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com/
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Episode Description
Emma and Marn dive into the recent Amazon film adaptation of My Best Friendâs Exorcism, analyzing how the movie doesnât understand female horror the same way cis man Grady Hendrix does, why Gleeâs allergic to peanuts now, how Brother Lemon is the most AND least accurate depiction, and how much better the adaptation would be if it were just half an hour longer.
Content warnings for My Best Friendâs Exorcism include body horror, discussions of sexual assault, tape worms, the dog dying, religious private school, and the fear of losing your best friend.
You can find Emma on Twitter at @ematsca, Marn at @corpserevivers, and the show at @UnSelectPod! You can also find Marn and Emma on the Dead Teen House Party podcast and other projects on the Moonshot Network.
The music for this show was commissioned from and composed by Jake Loranger. Check out more of his work at https://amaranthine.bandcamp.com
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Coming soon to the Moonshot Network: A podcast about adapting works to the screen and all of the things that go right and wrong in the process!
