Estradiol Illusions

Frosty's Winter Wonderland

We are back in the Rankin/Bass cinematic universe for the first Frosty sequel, Frosty's Winter Wonderland. Essentially just a riff on Bride of Frankenstein, the special has next to no plot. Jack Frost makes his first Rankin/Bass appearance, decidedly at odds with his next two appearances in Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July and Jack Frost, but when has Rankin/Bass ever cared about continuity? Ian tries to make sense of the chaos.
This will be our final holiday episode for 2025! Be sure to check out all our other holiday episodes. Happy Holidays everyone!

Cricket on the Hearth

We are back in the Rankin/Bass cinematic universe with the Cricket on the Hearth. One of the earliest specials in their canon, Cricket is a bit of a mess. The animation is somewhat solid, but the characters are a bunch of morons and the music is awful. What else is new?
This special is pretty awful and should be avoided by everyone other than Rankin/Bass completionists. No wonder it's taken us this long to cover it! Watch at your own risk. 

Frosty the Snowman

We're back in the Rankin/Bass cinematic universe. Ian covers the classic Frosty the Snowman, the most normal of the hand-drawn animated holiday specials. Ian unpacks Professor Hinkle's villainy, and the beauty of Frosty's existential musings. Hinkle's tracking abilities don't make a lot of sense, but at least we have a Santa Claus who isn't completely worthless for once.

The Leprechaun's Christmas Gold

Ever wonder what a St. Patrick's Day special would look like if it suddenly became a Christmas show?
The Leprechaun's Christmas Gold is easily the worst stop-motion Rankin/Bass Christmas special, twenty-four minutes of nonsense with practically no redeeming qualities. Ian does not recommend this show at all, but we at Estradiol Illusions are nothing if not Rankin/Bass completionists.
Watch this garbage at your own risk! We tried to do it justice on the pod. We're sorry that any of this exists.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Our Christmas coverage begins! Ian revisits the 1964 special Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer for an episode that's more stylistically in line with our Rankin/Bass episodes than the first one we did in 2020.
Ian still has a lot of complex feelings about this special, namely it's Axis of Awful (Santa, Donner, and Coach Comet). It's definitely problematic, but there's a reason people love this one so much.
Be sure to check out all of EI's Rankin/Bass holiday episodes. 
EI's original Rudolph episode: https://ianthomasmalone.podbean.com/e/rudolph-a-transgender-perspective/
Ian's original Rudolph article: https://ianthomasmalone.com/2017/12/a-transgender-perspective-on-rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer/

Mad Monster Party?

We are back, not only with our first episode of the year, but in our beloved Rankin/Bass cinematic universe. ITM covers the bizarre Halloween film Mad Monster Party?which features plenty of classic monsters, an horror icon Boris Karloff himself.
Did Mad Monster Party? succeed where Universal's Dark Universe fails? Maybe not.
Does this film have plenty of non-sequiturs that make no sense and cheap, borderline offensive humor? Of course.
ITM also addresses the pod's long hiatus and is very excited for the return of Christmas programming in a few weeks.

The Snowman

Our holiday coverage continues with an ITM personal favorite, and not just because she bore a resemblance to the boy as a young child. The Snowman is a beautifully animated special that tugs at all the right heartstrings. Ian unpacks her relationship to the special and its themes.
Note: Ian spends the first five minutes talking about EI's 200th episode milestone. Listeners looking just for Snowman are recommended to skip the first few minutes. Happy holidays everyone! 

Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July

We are back in the Rankin/Bass cinematic universe! Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July is in many ways a prototype to the Avengers-style team-up modern audiences are used to, a convergence of beloved heroes such as Rudolph, Frosty, Big Ben, Jack Frost, and Mickey Rooney's Santa. It is also a terrible movie, the only feature-length Christmas release in the Rankin/Bass catalogue.
 
ITM's sister Barbara returns to the show to unpack this trainwreck. Where are Milton's laughs? What's up with the Caves of Lost Rejections? Find out as we take one of our last adventures into this bizarre world. 

Miracle on 34th Street

It’s time for holiday coverage! ITM takes a look at the 1947 classic Miracle on 34th Street and its 1994 remake. While the remake boasts an impressive cast, it's hard to top the magic of the original. ITM examines the peculiarities of the beloved film, particularly its preoccupation with ethical consumption under capitalism and the trial that soaks up much of the narrative.

Vote Kamala Harris & 2024 Senate Analysis

It's that time again! ITM makes her appeal for you to fill out a ballot. The stakes are too high, something we're used to hearing, but the threat of another four years of Trump is simply unfathomable for our country. Too many people's rights are on the line. The Senate map is very tough for Democrats, and every vote counts.
 
Please take a moment to check your voter registration status, and be sure to make plans to vote in this election. Thank you.

Pride, Surgery, Relationships, Stress

ITM has a bunch of updates, including a lip implant removal procedure that kept her away from the microphone during Pride Month. It's been a stressful time for many LGBTQ people. Ian shares her own struggles with stress, and talks about her new relationship. It's a weird time to be LGBTQ in the world. It's okay to not be okay 100% of the time (or any of the time). Be good to yourselves, fam.

Madame Web

Her web connects us all! Or does? Absolutely not.
Ian is joined by Ed Carroll for a discussion on Sony's Spider-Man Universe's latest disaster. Ian and Ed break down the odd narrative decisions, like the bargain bin Terminator chase to the odd application of clairvoyance powers to the puzzling absence of spider powers in a film with three Spider-Girls/Spider-Women. What a mess! 
 
Disclaimer: Sony sent Ian a copy of the 4K/Blu-ray release for the purposes of recording this episode.  

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace

Ian has a lot of feelings about The Phantom Menace on its 25th birthday. She already wrote an article about the film a few years ago, so naturally her only recourse was to make a podcast film about it. Why do we care about a children's movie that somehow straddles the line mediocre and underrated? I guess you'll have to listen to find out! 
 
Ian's old article on The Phantom Menace (rescued from the Wayback Machine): https://web.archive.org/web/20200408092924/https://fansided.com/2019/12/16/star-wars-phantom-menace-best-prequel/

Staying the Course

Five year Estradiol Illusions anniversary! Ian talks about what she's been up to this year, mostly writing and trying to get over yet another breakup. Life is a tricky game. Best to keep a stiff upper lip and get on with things.
Thank you to everyone who's listened to the show over the past half-decade! We don't do as many new episodes as we used to, but it's always fun to catch up. 
Ian is far more active on her two preferred platforms, Facebook and Threads

The Long Game

ITM just celebrated a three-month anniversary of her new relationship. She's really excited to be in love again. So excited, in fact, that she recorded a whole episode on how her emotions represent the culmination of her whole transgender journey, even years removed from the end of her medical transition. For all the nonsense the world throws at trans people, there's a lot of joy out there too. 

The Little Drummer Boy Book II

Did The Little Drummer Boy need a sequel? Absolutely not. Is Book II worth watching? Ian unpacks the short film's surprisingly strong anti-capitalist message. For a special that's running on fumes, Aaron's second act is one of the better lesser-tier Rankin/Bass specials. 
 
EI's coverage of the original Little Drummer Boy: https://ianthomasmalone.podbean.com/e/the-little-drummer-boy-1639166205/
 
EI's full holiday slate: https://ianthomasmalone.com/2023/12/holiday-podcast-rankin-bass-muppets/