Speaker 1: Gilda.
Speaker 2: I'm Chelsea Daniels and this is the Front Page, a
Speaker 2: daily podcast presented by The New Zealand Herald. The world
Speaker 2: of pop culture fandom was once on the fringes of society.
Speaker 2: Comic books, anime and sci fi movies have historically been
Speaker 2: seen as the realm of nerds living in their parents' basements,
Speaker 2: but in recent years, the power dynamics have shifted, and
Speaker 2: what once was considered niche is now very much in
Speaker 2: the mainstream. Blockbuster movies are increasingly being dominated by superhero
Speaker 2: and fantasy genre, and that's seeping into the world of
Speaker 2: prestige television, and everything from La Booboos to the latest
Speaker 2: Nintendo Switch console are flying off the shelves in ways
Speaker 2: that are taking their makers by surprise. To unpack why
Speaker 2: this side of culture is proving so popular, we're joined
Speaker 2: today on the Front Page by the academic dean at
Speaker 2: SAE Creative Media Institute, doctor Lorna Piati Farnell. So, Lorna,
Speaker 2: I want to start with something that's close to my
Speaker 2: heart at least for now.
Speaker 3: That's Laboo Boos. For those who.
Speaker 2: Don't know what these actually are, how would you describe them?
Speaker 4: Oh La Boo boos absolutely well, La boobas are dolls,
Speaker 4: I suppose, or plushes, depending on how it wants to
Speaker 4: look at it. And they've been described as little Elvish
Speaker 4: creatures and they're definitely inspired a little bit by Nordic folklore.
Speaker 4: They are fluffy, and they come in a variety of
Speaker 4: colors and with they have intended associated personalities. Some of
Speaker 4: the key features that make them stand out are these
Speaker 4: big white eyes and mischievous smile and they've got very
Speaker 4: toothy rims which are very cute. They've been released in
Speaker 4: different collections and connect each collection is being characterized by
Speaker 4: various different outfits, different facial features, different accessories, and I
Speaker 4: suppose that's what makes this collection drop really unique. And
Speaker 4: what is also unique about them is that they're released
Speaker 4: in limited numbers, so they are highly collectable and to
Speaker 4: some extent that is actually what has made them popular
Speaker 4: over the years.
Speaker 1: And really what truly people go for is that that.
Speaker 4: Really hard to get, but that adds to the excitement
Speaker 4: for potential buyers, and there's definitely a layer of prestige
Speaker 4: that comes from owning the latest and being able to
Speaker 4: share pictures in places such as Instagram. This reflects positively
Speaker 4: on the identity of the owner and definitely gives.
Speaker 1: Them points in the community.
Speaker 4: But also one thing that is particularly important to me
Speaker 4: is that this labititin Dominine seems to transcend age.
Speaker 3: Well, They've just become such a sensation. In recent weeks.
Speaker 2: There have been reports of hours long queues overseas to
Speaker 2: buy them, and even here I've heard that you have
Speaker 2: to get to the Westfield really really early, and even
Speaker 2: reports of some fights breaking out in moles in the
Speaker 2: UK over who's going to buy these Laboo boos.
Speaker 1: We'll get this.
Speaker 5: In Britain, consumers are going crazy over the La Booboo
Speaker 5: plush dog. There's been crowd shoving and reports of fighting
Speaker 5: in the long lines waiting for the collectible. The distributor
Speaker 5: has since halted in store sales across the UK. Online
Speaker 5: purchases are still available. La Booboo has exploded in popularity
Speaker 5: since coming out in twenty fifteen. You're gonna get one,
Speaker 5: I mean, how.
Speaker 1: Can I not.
Speaker 5: I mean, if it's not piprolary, I might as well
Speaker 5: get in line. And I love seeing it, So that's
Speaker 5: a borus as well.
Speaker 2: What I think is interesting as well is that you
Speaker 2: buy them, and you don't know what color you're going
Speaker 2: to get, so there's that added mistake around it.
Speaker 4: Yes, absolutely they come in blind boxes, so truly, you know,
Speaker 4: it makes that whole collector's value even higher because you
Speaker 4: need to try and buy more and more and more
Speaker 4: to complete.
Speaker 1: The latest release collection.
Speaker 4: But then you know, like you don't know what you're
Speaker 4: going to get, so the possibility that you may get more,
Speaker 4: you know, of the same one is higher and higher.
Speaker 1: And you have to bear in mind that.
Speaker 4: The moment something becomes very collectible, the price goes higher too.
Speaker 4: And while they may retail at a reasonable price, so
Speaker 4: let's say reasonable, once they are open, and once they
Speaker 4: are a particular color or a particular facial expression, particularly
Speaker 4: if it's a rare one, then it gets resold and
Speaker 4: that's when the price really goes up.
Speaker 1: And that's where the collectibility.
Speaker 4: You know, a value gets higher and higher, and you know,
Speaker 4: like you can see like internationally, you know on platforms
Speaker 4: like eBay, you know, the Boobo dolls going for in
Speaker 4: credible prices. But that's part of the chase, and that
Speaker 4: is part of the prestige that comes with owning those
Speaker 4: red dolls that no one else has in the community.
Speaker 2: I was trying to explain this craze to my mum
Speaker 2: and she came back at me with, oh, so they're
Speaker 2: like beanie babies or tamagotchi's And I was like, yes,
Speaker 2: so these crazes they are cyclical, aren't they. They do
Speaker 2: happen over generations.
Speaker 4: Absolutely popular culture trends. They go in cycles, things go
Speaker 4: in and our popularity. They may be similar items like
Speaker 4: in this case splashes or dolls, or they may be
Speaker 4: completely different. You know, they reach a peak and then
Speaker 4: more often than not, they either flutter away completely or
Speaker 4: they become you know, part.
Speaker 1: Of sort of subcultures.
Speaker 4: They still have an interest in there, but the mainstream
Speaker 4: doesn't give them as much attention. Now, what these trends
Speaker 4: actually do. They tend to either both shall we say, reflect,
Speaker 4: but also shape people's expectations or what is fun and
Speaker 4: what they do for entertainment, and they often become very
Speaker 4: much associated with particular context and particular objects. Now, this
Speaker 4: can range from wearing certain clothes to owning certain items,
Speaker 4: to even playing certain games or even engaging in.
Speaker 1: Particular pastimes, etc.
Speaker 4: And bear in mind that as a side note, there
Speaker 4: is something to be said for personal preferences that don't
Speaker 4: necessarily have anything to do with popular cycles and trends,
Speaker 4: but sometimes the mix and merge in the middle. So
Speaker 4: there is an aspect of trends that has something to
Speaker 4: do with feeling included and doing what feels cool, shall
Speaker 4: we say, especially big global popular trends, including watching certain
Speaker 4: shows or eating particularly instagrammable foods, which is one that
Speaker 4: I definitely indulge in particularly. But at the same time,
Speaker 4: when it comes to trends, there is also an aspect
Speaker 4: that is connected, shall we say, to self expression, which
Speaker 4: sociopolitically and culturally often goes way you know, like beyond
Speaker 4: you know, popular culture practices. It's about how people see themselves,
Speaker 4: you know, in these objects and in these activities. Now,
Speaker 4: popular culture, especially in fandom spaces, does provide platforms for
Speaker 4: individuals to express their personalities, to express their interests and
Speaker 4: their values through owning particular objects, sharing particular pictures, playing
Speaker 4: particular games, you know, like listening to particular music and so.
Speaker 1: On and so on.
Speaker 4: So trends can be expressions of identity. That's why they
Speaker 4: continuously come back in different forms, regardless of they might be,
Speaker 4: including in the content creation space, which of course attracts
Speaker 4: a lot of viewers and generate a lot of engagement.
Speaker 6: There is a sort of infantialization to all of these
Speaker 6: things to sort of wanting something like that, I think
Speaker 6: in your twenties. And you know this is not I'm
Speaker 6: not saying this is a judgment. I've talked before about
Speaker 6: cosplay and how that sung up in Japan after the
Speaker 6: nineteen ninety financial crisis. That retreat in a world that's
Speaker 6: basically failed young people, and I really do believe it
Speaker 6: has the retreat into childlike things and to comforting things
Speaker 6: and little treat in the absence and being able to
Speaker 6: sort of have any wider purchase on society I think
Speaker 6: is linked.
Speaker 2: I was listening to another podcast about La Boo Boos.
Speaker 3: And they brought up the lipstick index.
Speaker 2: How in tough times we buy affordable luxury items or
Speaker 2: something that makes us smile in order to make ourselves
Speaker 2: feel better. Is that a bit of what's happening here?
Speaker 2: A labubu is a sign of economic turmoil.
Speaker 4: Well, that is a very interesting question, and the lipstick
Speaker 4: index is an interesting phenomenon in itself, or alleged phenomenon,
Speaker 4: And I wonder if perhaps we can give a little
Speaker 4: bit of background to this. The lipstick index is an
Speaker 4: economic theory suggesting that sales of are full luxury items
Speaker 4: like lipstick or other cosmetics increased during times of economics
Speaker 4: or political hardship of both.
Speaker 1: Now, the term I believe was.
Speaker 4: Coined by Leonard Lauder as he apparently observed that lipstick
Speaker 4: sales seem to rise during and around at the time
Speaker 4: the two.
Speaker 1: Thousand and one global recession.
Speaker 4: Now, this often has been discussed in terms of it
Speaker 4: being a happiness index, you know, like that you one
Speaker 4: buys in order to feel happy. But it's not quite
Speaker 4: straightforward as that. I don't think it operates in similar
Speaker 4: terms with what we said about, you know, owning.
Speaker 1: The La Boo boos or other you know.
Speaker 4: Particular you know, the beanie babies, other particular you know,
Speaker 4: trendy items. The idea that we can own something that
Speaker 4: is different and it is unique, and in terms it
Speaker 4: makes us feel unique, even for just a short period
Speaker 4: of time. It feeds you know, even cosmetics they can
Speaker 4: feed into a sense of well being by being being
Speaker 4: associated with ideas of beauty or maybe cuteness, which of
Speaker 4: course are culturally constructed ideas, but that's by the vibe,
Speaker 4: and those inevitably are connected once again to ideas of
Speaker 4: self expression and ultimately belonging and acceptability.
Speaker 1: And I think a lot of the.
Speaker 4: Time with these trends, that's what it comes down to,
Speaker 4: that idea, that feeling of belonging, of being part of
Speaker 4: a community, and of standing out or within the community,
Speaker 4: that inevitably is associated with a sense of happiness.
Speaker 2: How much does this have to do with escapism. I've
Speaker 2: been interested to see, actually the lineup of movies coming
Speaker 2: to cinemas this year. We've already had two Marvel movies
Speaker 2: and still have a Fantastic Four movie to come. We're
Speaker 2: also going to get a new Superman, a new Jurassic World.
Speaker 2: So are we just watching all these movies in order
Speaker 2: to not think about the world as it is? I suppose?
Speaker 2: Or is that just what the movie end Stry is
Speaker 2: landed on.
Speaker 4: Well, I would say that escapism certainly plays a significant
Speaker 4: role in many popular culture crazes and fads or viral
Speaker 4: practices or preferences, including for genres such as fantasy or
Speaker 4: sci fi, but it is not the only factor at play.
Speaker 1: Now.
Speaker 4: Escapism, like you rightfully say, can be a way to
Speaker 4: cope with stress in difficult times, and that does come
Speaker 4: into our current.
Speaker 1: Global situation for sure.
Speaker 4: But popular culture is often driven by a variety of
Speaker 4: complex interplays of social, economic, and even psychological factors. And
Speaker 4: then these include a desire for connection and for that
Speaker 4: sense of community, so we participate in these practices to
Speaker 4: feel part of the group. Now, on the note on
Speaker 4: genres such as sci fi and fantasy, which you know
Speaker 4: superheroes broadly belong to, they give us an opportunity to
Speaker 4: live in a different world for a while, to escape,
Speaker 4: to experience something remote from our everyday situations, and in
Speaker 4: so doing, I guess they stimulate our imagination but beyond
Speaker 4: what we know, and they're often highly entertaining, So the
Speaker 4: appeal is easibly easily explainable in those terms, and we
Speaker 4: can see why film and episode media producers have engaged
Speaker 4: with these genres even more in recent times. Now, sci
Speaker 4: fi and fantasy in particular are quite subcultural as well,
Speaker 4: but they have exploded into the popular culture scene and
Speaker 4: they can be sources of revenue beyond the media themselves.
Speaker 4: Avid fans of fantasy and sci fi are also well
Speaker 4: known to indulg in collectibles, in merchandise, and you know,
Speaker 4: in other activities connected to the movies and to the series.
Speaker 4: And this, once again, it really goes down to that
Speaker 4: feeling that we are owning a piece of our favorite
Speaker 4: films and our favorite series, of our favorite genres, and
Speaker 4: it makes us feel unique sometimes, it makes us feel different,
Speaker 4: it makes us stand out. Most importantly, there is an
Speaker 4: identity and community aspect that comes with that. A sci
Speaker 4: fi and fantasy are perfect examples of how the community
Speaker 4: can really give that sense of belonging through a media genre.
Speaker 2: And it's interesting as well, I think, because that's also cyclical,
Speaker 2: like Superman movies came to the big screen at the
Speaker 2: end of the seventies and Batman came back in the
Speaker 2: early nineties, and those genres are coming around.
Speaker 3: Every few years or so.
Speaker 2: I've actually also noticed how this trend has seeped into television.
Speaker 2: So the Hollywood Reporter is predicting that three of the
Speaker 2: Best Drama nominees at the Emmys this year will be Severance,
Speaker 2: The Last of Us, and and Or. So that's a
Speaker 2: trippy sci fi series, a video game adaptation, and a
Speaker 2: Star Wars prequel.
Speaker 3: Welcome to the Rebellion. So the studios must know that
Speaker 3: this is what people want right now.
Speaker 4: Well, absolutely, and bear in mind that, you know, especially
Speaker 4: sci fi but also fantasy. You know, they they tended
Speaker 4: it historically, they tended to be relegated sort of to
Speaker 4: the margins, you know, like of the popular culture scene.
Speaker 4: You had these avid followings that some people thought that
Speaker 4: were a bit weird, you know, not.
Speaker 1: Not very fair.
Speaker 4: But either that was the idea, or perhaps fantasy was
Speaker 4: seen as too much for children, you know, fairy tales,
Speaker 4: Disney movies, that kind of thing. But you know, in
Speaker 4: recent years, you know, like there's been a lottle bit
Speaker 4: of breaking of those boundaries and even something like superheroes that.
Speaker 1: Would have been just seen as well like sort.
Speaker 4: Of low level entertainment have really exploded into the big
Speaker 4: popular culture scene. And they have moved, you or from
Speaker 4: just the cinematic scene into television, into streaming episodic media,
Speaker 4: you know, and the audience has grown immensely. It used
Speaker 4: to be just to the side. Well now it's truly mainstream.
Speaker 4: So definitely there is an idea that that trend, those
Speaker 4: fantasy trends and those sci fi trends have gone beyond
Speaker 4: the confines.
Speaker 1: If you wish of.
Speaker 4: The cinem medium and truly spread across our popular cultural practices. Well,
Speaker 4: one thing that's allowed this to happen is definitely streaming services.
Speaker 4: You know, the fact that we can have so many
Speaker 4: different genres and you know, experiment with different genres is
Speaker 4: started with Netflix, and of course we have so many
Speaker 4: different ones now where truly there is a lot of
Speaker 4: experimentation and we can cater to so many different tastes
Speaker 4: across our audiences. So that availability and that accessibility has
Speaker 4: definitely allowed genres such as sci fi and you know,
Speaker 4: a fantasy to become a lot more popular in recent times.
Speaker 2: Bragging that you're all about the Marvel Universe is like
Speaker 2: boasting that your mother still pins your midness to your sleeves.
Speaker 5: You can, if you want, like the exact.
Speaker 3: Same things you liked when you were ten, but if you.
Speaker 1: Do, you need to grow up.
Speaker 5: I'm not glad stan Lee is dead.
Speaker 3: I'm sad you're alive.
Speaker 5: And by the way, if someone says you're being childish
Speaker 5: and you react by throwing a tantrum, you're not iron man.
Speaker 3: You're irony man.
Speaker 2: One of the criticisms of you know, buying La booboos
Speaker 2: or video games or going to watch the New Superman movie.
Speaker 2: Is that it is a bit childish. So the likes
Speaker 2: of Bill Maher would tell us to all grow up
Speaker 2: and act like adults. Is there a bit of regression here, Launa, like,
Speaker 2: do we need to grow up? Is it bad for
Speaker 2: the world that we're spending all of our money on
Speaker 2: these ugly little Chinese trolls.
Speaker 1: I see growing up? Who wants to do that?
Speaker 2: Well?
Speaker 3: You see?
Speaker 4: I think there is often arguably a misplaced belief that
Speaker 4: if something is entertaining, if something.
Speaker 1: Is engaging individually.
Speaker 4: Or as far as a group, if something is playful
Speaker 4: and it makes us happy, even for just a period
Speaker 4: of time, then it is childish, not proper to adult life,
Speaker 4: you know. But we need to be I think a
Speaker 4: little bit careful here because popular culture shows us you
Speaker 4: know that games and collectible and fantasy films, or you know,
Speaker 4: just fun and involved activities such as lapping. They are
Speaker 4: a great way for individuals to express themselves, to let
Speaker 4: them feel part of the group, to enhance their feeling
Speaker 4: of belonging, and to pass the time in terms of
Speaker 4: hobbies as well, and truly, in our post pandemic and
Speaker 4: hyper digital world. I think there is an ever growing
Speaker 4: need for connection, for feeling part of something you know,
Speaker 4: and you know, just not feeling alone. So you know,
Speaker 4: engaging in those activities or attending fandom events definitely.
Speaker 1: Can be part of that too.
Speaker 4: We still need to exercise a little bit of caution
Speaker 4: to make sure that everyone is safe and well being
Speaker 4: must always come first. It is central, I think to
Speaker 4: a knowledge how popular culture trends and practices, from watching
Speaker 4: fantasy and sci fi to buying laboos can be very
Speaker 4: meaningful to people. You know, they cannot be dismissed, especially
Speaker 4: in times of hardship. Well, you know, the support of
Speaker 4: the community and feeling like we belong and feeling part
Speaker 4: of something is very important.
Speaker 2: Well, I'm going to take my adult money and go
Speaker 2: buy myself a la booboo.
Speaker 4: Absolutely, you can all indulge in something that makes us happy.
Speaker 1: For a little while.
Speaker 3: Thanks for joining us, Lorna.
Speaker 1: Thank you so much. It's been a pleasure.
Speaker 2: That's it for this episode of the Front Page. You
Speaker 2: can read more about today's stories and extensive news coverage
Speaker 2: at Enzherrald dot co dot nz. The Front Page is
Speaker 2: produced by Ethan Sills and Richard Martin. Who is also
Speaker 2: our sound engineer. I'm Chelsea Daniels. Subscribe to the front
Speaker 2: page on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts
Speaker 3: And tune in tomorrow for another look behind the headlines.