On this week’s show, Dana, Steve, and Julia step into the gothic, visually rich world of Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein. It’s been years in the making, gorgeously rendered, and stars the always compelling Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi, but it’s up for debate if something like a soul emerges from del Toro’s mad machinations.
Next, author and journalist Stefan Fatsis joins the logophilic panel to talk about the uncertain fate of dictionaries as chronicled in his new book <a href="https://groveatlantic.com/book/unabridged/">Unabridged: The Thrill of (and Threat To) the Modern Dictionary</a>. Finally, the hosts talk about the sonically and narratively layered new podcast <a href="https://www.audible.com/pd/Fela-Kuti-Fear-No-Man-Audiobook/B0FRCQHHXN?srsltid=AfmBOoqH0EtMQCvuoSUrtTC8CUa2YZVZocbHbnjGDVYjztRZDxKs3DB6">Fela Kuti: Fear No Man</a> about the legendary Nigerian musician and activist— its acclaimed producer Jad Abumrad joins to discuss.
 
In an exclusive Slate Plus bonus episode, Jad sticks around to pepper the Gabfesters with questions about how we make our own podcast week after week.
Email us your thoughts at <a href="mailto:culturefest@slate.com">culturefest@slate.com</a>. 
Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch. Production assistance by Daniel Hirsch.
Endorsements
Steve: Jad Abumrad's new podcast <a href="https://www.audible.com/pd/Fela-Kuti-Fear-No-Man-Audiobook/B0FRCQHHXN?srsltid=AfmBOoq1vZe13pHtOWUoHk2zDlNZ03QUynLGOaY6SEbJQvTrv8YYKhN1">Fela Kuti: Fear No Man</a> (yes, the one covered in this very episode— it's that good). Also, Ben Lerner’s essay “<a href="https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2025/11/06/cardiography-ben-lerner/">Cardiography” in the New York Review of Books</a>.
Jad: The dark Macedonian fantasy <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8296030/">You Won’t Be Alone</a>. 
Julia: “<a href="https://harpers.org/wp-content/uploads/HarpersMagazine-2001-04-0070913.pdf">Tense Present: Democracy, English, and the Wars over Usage</a>,” David Foster Wallace's classic essay originally published in Harpers.Dana: Adam Gopnik's recent piece <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/10/27/what-do-we-want-from-our-child-stars">"What Do We Want from Our Child Stars?"</a> in The New Yorker. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

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