Material Girls

Welcome back to Pitty Party! Marcelle is back, baby! There’s so much to talk about in this episode, from various workplace disease hazards to some juicy dynamics between our favorite characters. Plus, they dig into some medical terminology 101…and a tragically suspenseful cliffhanger. We’ll be back next week to talk all about season 2, episode 6, 12:00 PM.

And an update: We have returned to our regularly scheduled Material Girls episodes (released on Tuesdays!). That means the Pitty Party fun has moved over to Patreon! If you join our Patreon at any tier (http://patreon.com/ohwitchplease) in the month of February, you’ll get 50% off your first month with the code RINGWATCH. This support is HOW we are able to continue producing the show and paying our team. We've already seen a huge influx of supporters and it means soooo much to us to be able to finish out this recap season strong — so thank you! And... we have some very fun stuff planned if we hit 1200 paid supporters (we're only 75 away!) — so spread the word about Pitty Party and make the leap to a paid Patreon tier today!

Support the Show!
Follow us on Instagram at instagram.com/ohwitchplease and become a free or paid Patreon supporter at patreon.com/ohwitchplease.

Music Credits:
“Shopping Mall”: by Jay Arner and Jessica Delisle ©2020
Used by permission. All rights reserved. As recorded by Auto Syndicate on the album “Bongo Dance”.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We had to go to the cottage!!!

In this episode, Hope Rehak, (writer, educator, and the mind behind beloved Substack "Obsessions This Week") joins Hannah and Marcelle for a giddy and downright delectable conversation about the Canadian television hit, Heated Rivalry. The episode begins with us holding space for everyone's personal relationship to the series (*spoiler: we love it*), then promptly jumps into a rundown of how the show materially came to be! We discuss the popularity of MLM (men-loving-men) fiction written largely by women and trans men — and the correlated rise and mainstreaming of the romance genre. Hope introduces us to the idea of the androphillic gaze (listen to learn!) and offers a quick rundown of the state of fanfiction today. Hannah then offers some theory through Carlee Gomes' 2023 article, “The Puritanical Eye: Hyper-mediation, Sex on Film, and the Disavowal of Desire." What follows is a rich conversation about the myth of political perfection in media, the desire for escape under late capitalism, the perceived notion that consumer habits are the last site of autonomy and the very real pleasure of watching men be masculine, sexy, and tender. If you're interested in Heated Rivalry as its popularity relates to shadow politics, moral panics and the puritanical eye, then this episode is for you. If you just thought it was a horny and fun show, this episode is also for you.

Helpful Re-Listens That Relate to This Episode:
Wicked: For Good x Femslash with Leena Norms
Fourth Wing x the Author Function
Bridgerton x Reading the Romance with Vanessa Zoltan

***

Works Cited
Gomes, Carlee. “The Puritanical Eye: Hyper-mediation, Sex on Film, and the Disavowal of Desire.” Lo Specchio Scuro 25 November 2023. https://specchioscuro.it/the-puritanical-eye-hyper-mediation-sex-on-film-and-the-disavowal-of-desire/.
Keshavarzi, Yalda. “Heated Rivalry and the erotics of equality.” Shado 14 January 2026. https://shado-mag.com/articles/opinion/heated-rivalry-and-the-erotics-of-equality/.
Kurzius, Rachel. “What happens when your gay hockey smut becomes a global phenomenon?” The Washington Post 5 December 2025. https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/tv/2025/12/06/heated-rivalry-hbo-series-rachel-reid/.

Additional Shoutouts In This Episode:
Imani Barbarin (@crutches_and_spice)
Janice Radway

Support Material Girls
To learn more about the show, head to our Instagram at instagram.com/ohwitchplease! Or check out our website ohwitchplease.ca (you can also find transcripts here!). Want to support the podcast and our tiny, hard-working team? Check out all the content we have on our Patreon at Patreon.com/ohwitchplease. Bonus episodes, bloopers, merch, watch-alongs, and more! Need a last minute gift for a friend or family member? You can gift a Patreon subscription at this link: https://www.patreon.com/ohwitchplease/gift!

Music Credits:
“Shopping Mall”: by Jay Arner and Jessica Delisle ©2020
Used by permission. All rights reserved. As recorded by Auto Syndicate on the album “Bongo Dance”.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Pitty Party! In this episode, Gaby and Zoe run rogue without Marcelle to recap season 2, episode 4 (10:00 AM) of The Pitt. They dig into the show’s treatment of Black women this season, the trauma of being hospitalized without health insurance, the reveal of “Dr. J,” and much more.

And an update: We’re moving the Pitty Party fun to Patreon! If you join our Patreon at any tier (http://patreon.com/ohwitchplease) in the month of February, you’ll get 50% off your first month with the code RINGWATCH. See you there!!

Support the Show!
Follow us on Instagram at instagram.com/ohwitchplease and become a free or paid Patreon supporter at patreon.com/ohwitchplease.

Music Credits:
“Shopping Mall”: by Jay Arner and Jessica Delisle ©2020
Used by permission. All rights reserved. As recorded by Auto Syndicate on the album “Bongo Dance”.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back from our January hiatus! We pick up with a Material Concerns episode hosted by Hannah and Coach — oops all Hannahs! In this episode, we begin with a check-in that largely focuses on the incredible anti-ICE community-organizing in Minneapolis and beyond. We then jump into an Apocalypse Toolkit (because of course!) and a Fixation Station (where Coach asks "Is our fixation still Heated Rivalry?" Tune in and you'll learn what next week's episode is all about!!!!!!

Head over to Part II for a Mailbag Sampler and Creature Report! And more chatter about how we're getting through this rough days of winter! To listen, join our Patreon for as little as $54/year! You'll get ad-free episodes, bloopers, a backlog of content and part two of all Material Concerns episodes! Go to patreon.com/ohwitchplease now to join a tier that works for your budget!

Music Credits:
“Shopping Mall”: by Jay Arner and Jessica Delisle ©2020
Used by permission. All rights reserved. As recorded by Auto Syndicate on the album “Bongo Dance”.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Pitty Party! In this episode, Gaby, Marcelle, and Zoe recap season 2, episode 3 (9:00 AM) of The Pitt! They dig into the many cases of the episode and discuss everything from the Pennsylvania Crimes Code, to patients playing drug roulette, to the many forms PTSD can take. And of course, they end with some power rankings and predictions for the next episode.

(Note: This episode contains spoilers for season 8 of ER.)

Next week we'll be back with episode 4, 10:00 AM.

Support the Show!

Follow us on Instagram at instagram.com/ohwitchplease and become a free or paid Patreon supporter at patreon.com/ohwitchplease. You'll find hours of bonuses — and bloopers for THIS episode — over there!

Music Credits:

“Shopping Mall”: by Jay Arner and Jessica Delisle ©2020
Used by permission. All rights reserved. As recorded by Auto Syndicate on the album “Bongo Dance”.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.