Strange Days, Here We Come: Pop Culture, Dystopia & Collapse

Vehicle Living and the Future of the American Dream: NOMADLAND vs. Real Life

The film NOMADLAND portrayed Americans turning to vehicle living as a way to survive increasing economic instability. In this episode, my guests Lauren and Noah share their real-life story of transitioning away from traditional housing, converting an old bus into their home, and traveling across an America that's under strain from multiple systemic pressures. They speak candidly about the many challenges, logistical hurdles, and unexpected moments of beauty and joy they've encountered along the way.
We also explore the deeper themes of collapse awareness, community resilience, and how their lived experience overlaps with, or diverges from, what NOMADLAD depicts.Topics we discuss include:
The rising unaffordability of housing
What it means to be "collapse aware"
Community resilience and lessons from surviving the destruction of Hurricane Helene
The tensions of ecological values vs. the realities of life on the road
All the times they considered quitting
The surprising, unexpected joys of simple living
How their experiences compare with NOMADLAND
Helpful stories vs. unhelpful stories amid transformational change
Signals of hope and building parallel structures
Plus: a surprise cameo from Indy the cat 😸 
 
⚠️ Spoilers: Nomadland (only from the 40:45 to 55:15 timemark, no spoilers at any other time even if the movie gets mentioned)
✅ No Spoilers: All other fictional works mentioned (Station Eleven, Dimension 20, Dropout TV, Marvel movies) 
 
Books mentioned by Lauren or Noah:
The Limits to Growth by Donella H. Meadows, Dennis L. Meadows, Jorgen Randers, and William W. Behrens IIIhttps://www.clubofrome.org/publication/the-limits-to-growth/
The Art of Frugal Hedonism: A Guide to Spending Less While Enjoying Everything More by Annie Raser-Rowland and Adam Grubbhttps://frugalhedonism.com/
Work Won’t Love You Back by Sara Jaffehttps://www.betterworldbooks.com/product/detail/work-won-t-love-you-back-how-devotion-to-our-jobs-keeps-us-exploited-exhausted-and-alone-9781568589374/new
 
Creating a Life Together: Practical Tools to Grow Ecovillages and Intentional Communities by Diana Leafe Christianhttps://www.betterworldbooks.com/product/detail/creating-a-life-together-practical-tools-to-grow-ecovillages-and-intentional-communities-9780865714717/new
 
Resources mentioned by Lauren:
otherWisehttps://otherwise.one/
 
Resources mentioned by the Pop Mythologist:
Institute for the Futurehttps://www.iftf.org
 
Foresight Essentialshttps://www.iftf.org/foresightessentials/for-individuals
 
Urgent Optimistshttps://urgentoptimists.org
 
Outro music: "It’s the end of the world… shhh don’t tell the kids" by Shy and the Fight  — licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
 

BLADE RUNNER 2049 and ELYSIUM: AI, Technology, Oppression, and the Fight to Stay Human

SFX makeup artist & creative influencer Aleena Averly joins me to discuss two films that portray dystopian futures against a backdrop of ecological collapse, Blade Runner 2049 and Elysium. We talk about how technology, AI, surveillance, inequality, and class oppression—but also pockets of heroism and sacrifice—are portrayed in both films, how the real world is racing alarmingly fast towards both futures, and why the fight to stay human in an increasingly inhuman world matters more than ever.
Topics include:
  • Class divides and structural oppression
  • Immigrant scapegoating as a way to maintain class oppression
  • "Are you a replicant?"
  • AI, AI companions, and the illusion of "realness"
  • The erosion of empathy, humanity, and authenticy
  • Echoes of Philip K. Dick’s ideas
  • Outward rebellion vs. inner awakening
  • Staying real and human in an increasingly unreal and inhuman world
⚠️ Spoilers: Blade Runner 2049, Elysium
✅ No Spoilers: All other works mentioned
Find Aleena Averly:
YouTube: @AleenaAverlyhttps://www.youtube.com/@AleenaAverly
Instagram: @aleena.averlyhttps://www.instagram.com/aleena.averly/
 
Opening quote: From a 1979 interview w/ Philip K. Dick, edited for brevity and clarity, accessed via Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/PhilipK.DickRAWInterview
Outro music: "Replicant Love" by Francesco Berta, licensed via AudioJungle Read more about the real-life lessons of Blade Runner 2049 and the fiction of Philip K. Dick on PopMythology:• The Blade Runner 2049 Replicant's Guide to Being Human in an Inhuman Worldhttps://www.popmythology.com/blade-runner-replicant-guide-becoming-human/• Be a Dick-Head: The Philip K. Dick Way of Spiritual-Political Resistancehttps://www.popmythology.com/philip-k-dick-way-of-political-resistance/
 

NIGHTBREED and A QUIET PLACE: Surviving the Horror of Fascism

Horror has always mirrored our real-world fears—and important socio-political issues. In this Halloween double feature, host The Pop Mythologist and special guest Sapient, from the blackened death metal band Abomnium, explore NIGHTBREED (1990) and A QUIET PLACE (2018) as dystopian allegories of fascism, oppression, survival, and strategic resistance. From Clive Barker's underground outcasts of Midian to John Krasinski’s silent survivors, the two films reveal how horror can expose the machinery of fascism—and the courage and ingenuity it takes to survive and resist it.
⚠️ Spoiler Warning⚠️
*Spoilers for: Nightbreed (1990), A Quiet Place (2018)
Lyrics for excerpt of "The Machine Awakens" by Abomnium:
BrokenCrateredImpact scarredEon dust layersHidden
Photon cascadeElectron displacementSensors flickerThe machine awakens[...]For the rest of the song, go find Abomnium on Bandcamp or the streaming service of your choice!
Links:
Abomnium on Bandcamphttps://ukemrecords.bandcamp.com/album/of-time-and-dying-stars
Bridge 11 on Bandcamphttps://bridge11.bandcamp.com/
Sapient / Abomnium on Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/abomnium/
10/27 EDIT: Congratulations to Sapient / Abomnium for winning Metallica's #GetTheLoadOut cover song contest this week! https://www.instagram.com/p/DQSI3BBj4Sh/
 
 
 

SHIN GODZILLA vs GODZILLA MINUS ONE: Disaster, Bureaucracy, and Failed Leadership

In this episode of Strange Days, Here We Come, we dive into SHIN GODZILLA and GODZILLA MINUS ONE to explore their themes of collapse by way of bureaucracy, inaction, war, and failed leadership—comparing the films' depictions of effective and ineffective governance and the power of direct civilian action amid crisis (e.g., natural disasters, climate change, pandemics, war, and nuclear devastation).  
 
⚠️Spoilers: Shin Godzilla (2016), Godzilla Minus One (2023)
✅ No Spoilers: Godzilla (1954), Don't Look Up (2021), Black Panther (2018), Lost (2004-2010), All Quiet on the Western Front (2022), Enemy at the Gates (2001), Jacob’s Ladder (1990), Joker (2019) 
Links:
"Pacific Rim, Godzilla, and the Balance of Nuclear Power" by Jess Kroll

STRANGE DAYS: Police Brutality, Altered History, and AI Fake Memories

We discuss Kathryn Bigelow’s Strange Days (1995) to explore its chillingly relevant themes of police brutality, surveillance, and AI-created fake memories. Drawing parallels to our real world — from the L.A. riots to Midjourney — we ask why this dystopian sci‑fi noir feels more relevant and unsettling than ever and how its ideas connect to today’s anxieties about over-policing, propaganda, and the way AI technology may soon reshape both our private memories and public histories. *This episode contains spoilers for Strange Days.*Read Jess Kroll's film reviews HERE.Contact the podcast HERE. 

Strange Days, Here We Come: A New Title and a New Start

(This podcast was formerly titled THIS IS THE END: POP CULTURE & COLLAPSE.)
Well, it's been... a while. In this, the first new episode in over two years, I share a bit of the personal story behind why this podcast has been dormant for so long and how it relates to what I call "personal collapse." But just as with societal collapse, personal collapses don't necessarily have to be a permanent end state. I also share why I've decided to give the show a new title. Going forward it will no longer be called "This is the End: Pop Culture & Collapse." The new title is "Strange Days, Here We Come: Pop Culture, Dystopia & Collapse," and a slightly broader focus to include discussions of dystopian stories in addition to collapse-related ones. But don't worry, there will still be plenty of collapse-related material. :)Even if you are not interested in, or familiar with, concepts surrounding societal collapse, if you are a caregiver or know someone who is, you might find this episode interesting as it goes into how the individualized burdens of caregiving can result in a "personal collapse."  A shoutout to the r/CaregiverSupport subreddit on Reddit. They know what I am talking about. https://www.reddit.com/r/CaregiverSupport/Here's to new beginnings. Strange days, here we come. 

10 Films About Societal Collapse - Part 2

(Note: This episode was originally released under the old podcast title "This is the End: Pop Culture & Collapse." As of July 2025 the show is now titled, "Strange Days, Here We Come: Pop Culture, Dystopia & Collapse.")NOTE: This episode was recorded in Dec. of 2022 but I've only gotten around to editing it now. Since then I've become much better acquainted with ChatGPT and so, yes, I know its name (whereas at the time of this recording I still didn't).
LINKS:
Jess Kroll's film reviews  https://www.popmythology.com/author/jmskroll/
Jess Kroll author page on Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/jesskrollauthor
'The One' series by Jess Kroll (as J. Manoa)https://amzn.to/3DaKuuJ
'The Werewolf Council' series by Jess Kroll (as J. Manoa)https://amzn.to/3Xz1u63
 
'Land of Smiles' by Jess Krollhttps://amzn.to/3JlRIjk
 
LIST OF FILMS (and spoiler time stamps)
 
-----------------------------------
 
WALL-E
5:08 - 5:53 (possible minor spoiler)
8:44 - 9:07 spoiler
13:23 - 13:36 spoiler
15:13 - 15:36 spoiler
17:42 - 18:32 spoiler
DON’T LOOK UP
22:50 - 23:05
26:55 - 27:02 (possible minor spoiler)
29:44 - 29:54 (possible minor spoiler)
30:34 - 31:10 spoiler
32:37 - 36:23 (possible minor spoilers)
37:09 - 38:47 spoiler
40:07 - 41:13 spoiler
44:14 - 45:03 spoiler
46:12 - 48:02 spoiler
53:50 - 54:10 spoiler
1:02:45 - 1:03:00 (possible minor spoiler)
 
THE ROAD
56:43 - 56:53 spoiler
59:25  - 1:03:03 spoiler
 
MENACE II SOCIETY
No Spoilers
 
THE GRAPES OF WRATH
No Spoilers

10 Films About Societal Collapse - Part 1

(Note: This episode was originally released under the old podcast title "This is the End: Pop Culture & Collapse." As of July 2025 the show is now titled, "Strange Days, Here We Come: Pop Culture, Dystopia & Collapse.")
 
PopMythology.com film critic and novelist Jess Kroll joins me to have a conversation about 10 different movies that depict collapse in some way. In this episode, Part 1, we discuss the first five. 
Scroll all the way down below to see the titles of the films discussed and during which timestamped moments that spoilers or semi-spoilers of these films are mentioned.
LINKS:
Jess Kroll's film reviews  https://www.popmythology.com/author/jmskroll/
Jess Kroll author page on Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/jesskrollauthor
'The One' series by Jess Kroll (as J. Manoa)https://amzn.to/3DaKuuJ
'The Werewolf Council' series by Jess Kroll (as J. Manoa)https://amzn.to/3Xz1u63'Land of Smiles' by Jess Krollhttps://amzn.to/3JlRIjk
 
 
LIST OF FILMS (and spoiler demarcations)
-----------------------------------DONBASS (7:32 - 16:42)  • No spoilers
 
THREADS (16:57 -28:02)  • Spoiler 21:45 - 22:05  • Spoiler 23:36 - 24:18  • Spoiler 26:49 - 27:14
 
CONTAGION (28:02 - 44:13)    • Spoiler 32:38 - 34:16  • Spoiler 35:23 - 35:45  • Spoiler 38:48 - 41:15  • Spoiler 41:29 - 42:23  • Spoiler 42:34 - 44:13 
 
CHILDREN OF MEN (44:13 - 1:01:05)  • Spoiler 51:40 - 52:14  • Spoiler 52:35 - 54:23  • Spoiler 55:21 - 55:46  • Spoiler 56:25 - 57:54  • Spoiler 58:17 - 1:00:14
 
IDIOCRACY (1:01:05 - 1:16:12)  • Spoiler 1:04:40 - 1:05:34  • Spoiler 1:11:23 - 1:12:14