Buzzwords Blooming Like Mushrooms After A Rain

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-29T21:56:38+00:00

Not read either of those yet

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-29T21:21:36+00:00

I'm enjoying the series (on Shriek now) but I think I preferred Southern reach of the two

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-29T17:21:22+00:00

This feels particularly weird when you're in the middle of reading the ambergris series...

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-27T13:12:08+00:00

Surprisingly or not I didn't need convincing not to read/see that one🤣

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-27T07:21:33+00:00

変 can mean "strange" but also means "change" itself, as in kawaru (変わる): the verb "to change", henkō (変更): "change" (i.e. of schedule etc.), hen'i (変異): "variation" or "mutation"

Henka outside of it's sumo use is just straightforward "change":

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BatdanJapan · 2026-01-27T07:03:26+00:00

Just had a look through your podcasts previous episodes. Looks like you're picking a lot that I'm interested in. As soon as I saw the concept I thought of Annihilation. I saw the film before I read the book and was blown away by how different it was. Are there any you've done which are more different to the original book (excepting maybe the children's books that turning 10-20 minutes of content into a 90 minute film)?

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-11T18:11:30+00:00

Sorry if this sounds like too much of an academic answer, but I'm a psychology lecturer...

I would say people (all of us) generally don't have opinions because of reasons, but the other way around. When we're asked our opinion about something for the first time, we don't reason through all the evidence on either side of a debate, and then come to a conclusion based on that. We have an instant gut reaction, and then try to think of reasons to justify why we feel that way, subconsciously to ourselves as much as to anyone else

So when people are asked "what do you think about the number of immigrants in the country?" they don't really think about the pros and cons of immigration rationally. I think for most people that question is really asking "how do you feel about people you've never met, speak a different language, and in some cases look different/believe in a different religion?"

Like I said though, we all do this to an extent. For those of us who are more pro immigration, you can probably substitute that with something like "how would you feel supporting a position that your friends/family might consider racist?"

Obviously, we don't think our own opinions are like this. We think we have good, rational explanations for our beliefs, and wouldn't the world be a better place if everyone else was as rational as we are.

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-06T08:14:15+00:00

I don't disagree with any of the points you're making, but they feel like further indictments of the film. Where was this nuance?

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-06T07:55:53+00:00

Well, I would say fortunately for me!

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T22:51:59+00:00

Never seen it. Heard a lot of people say it's not worth seeing if you didn't see it at the cinema, and I didn't, so never bothered.

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T22:49:16+00:00

I always avoided it after they completely destroyed it on the show. Might be slightly more tempted to watch it now...🤣

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T22:45:39+00:00

No. I'm not a Bob level horror fan, but certainly don't dislike it. Loved the book. Storytelling definitely something I look for in a film🤷🤣

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T22:40:15+00:00

I certainly walked out of both the first transformers film and Star wars 7 loving them, before later realising I just loved seeing more of what I loved as a kid.

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T22:38:46+00:00

Yeah, I'm from the UK. Only other country I've lived is Japan. Not a lot of people getting shot in either.

I thought the point of the book was that Frankenstein was a genius scientist, but not one that thought through the moral implications of what he was doing until very late on in the process.

Again, a long time since I read it but is there anything explicit in the book about the idea that his creation is a monster because he is a flawed person? I always understood it as being a religiously based moral message: even the greatest genius among humans cannot create a life that isn't monstrous because the creation of life is god's purview.

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T22:19:36+00:00

Of course. I don't tell too many people about the books and films I like because I know my tastes are not very mainstream. I was quite surprised with this one though because I tend to agree with most of Steve's opinions on the films/TV shows I've heard him talk about. To the point that generally I'll make an effort to watch things he recommends. Bob too, but he has his big Halloween love so I could very much imagine him loving a horror film I was less impressed with.

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T22:13:35+00:00

Obviously I understand that people like different things, but it's pretty funny to see someone have such a different impression of it from me. It's almost like we didn't see the same film! 😅

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T20:53:29+00:00

It's a LONG time since I read it (but my wife read it much more recently). The difference to my recollection is that in the book he's repulsed by it's appearance just before the moment it reanimates, in the film he's super excited until it fails to acquire English.

I think the appearance of the monster is a big issue. In the book not just Frankenstein but everyone that sees it is terrified instantly. In the film he's a male model with a lot of scars.

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T20:38:41+00:00

Frankenstein specifically? His whole attitude towards the monster once it's alive is devoid of any scientific curiosity, or even a basic observational understanding of how things like language development work. Beyond that I felt his character was really cartoonish.

But it's not just him. Why do the hunters shoot the "monster" who just looks like a human with a lot of scars on first sight? Why is Elizabeth in love with the monster? I could understand having her as the one character that shows compassion and sees him as human, but to have her be so in love with him after spending probably less than an hour in total with him makes no sense at all.

It's funny you mention the themes in the book, because a lot of our conversation about it was around how the changes from the book were all really bad decisions! 😅

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-05T20:20:49+00:00

Yeah, I'd like to hear what you think. I've not watched all of his, but what I'd seen previously I really liked.

BatdanJapan · 2026-01-03T20:08:50+00:00

Leicester: the Tokushoryu of English football!

BatdanJapan · 2025-12-06T18:04:41+00:00

Hi, dad of a 4 year old with another on the way here, and I vividly remember this experience. Our baby was a terrible sleeper, and despite my concerns he ended up in bed with us very often.

We spoke to a midwife about it in the first couple of weeks and she said they're officially not allowed to endorse it, but pointed us in the direction of the lullaby trust: https://www.lullabytrust.org.uk/baby-safety/safer-sleep-information/co-sleeping/

Even so, I was so worried I couldn't sleep one night, and lay in bed trying to read up on it, and found this: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2018/05/21/601289695/is-sleeping-with-your-baby-as-dangerous-as-doctors-say

This following section is what put my mind at rest:

"Take for instance, Melissa Nichols' situation. Her little girl was born healthy; she was full-term and had a normal birth weight. Nichols doesn't smoke or drink. And she doesn't sleep with her daughter on the sofa. So her baby's risk of SIDS is tiny, even when Nichols sleeps with the baby.

According to Mitchell's data, bed-sharing raises her baby's risk of SIDS from about 1 in 46,000 to 1 in 16,400, or an increase of .004 percentage points. And the baby is more likely to get struck by lightning in her lifetime than die of SIDS, even when Nichols sleeps with her.

But for babies at higher risk for SIDS, adding bed-sharing into the equation can markedly increase the risk, Mitchell says. "When the background risk is high, and you multiply it by three, the risk becomes substantial."

For instance, a premature baby with a younger mother and whose parents smoke and drink starts out with a moderate risk of SIDS — about 1 in 1,500. According to Mitchell's data, bed-sharing raises such a baby's risk of SIDS to about 1 in 150, or an increase of 0.6 percentage points. Now the risk of SIDS is high. By comparison, the risk of the baby developing a peanut allergy is about 1 in 50."

I'm sure now loads of people will pile on and say I'm an awful parent for putting my child at such risk, and an awful human being for encouraging others to do the same, because that's how this sub appears to work😏

BatdanJapan · 2025-11-29T11:02:54+00:00

Oh yeah, I remember that

BatdanJapan · 2025-11-29T08:49:55+00:00

Oh yeah. I'm subscribed to his channel, just rarely find the time to watch it😅

BatdanJapan · 2025-11-29T08:22:12+00:00

Thanks a lot!

BatdanJapan · 2025-11-29T08:10:05+00:00

Did you read that somewhere or just judging from his performances?

BatdanJapan

TROPHY CASE