Like a mummy, or a vampire, or a ghost, or any number of monsters that rise from the dead at Halloween — WE’RE BACK!!! It’s Chelsea and Andy’s favorite time of year, and we couldn’t resist getting together for an impromptu surprise episode, specially for those of you who forgot to unsubscribe. Join us as we deep-dive into the cursed nonsense that i…

We’ve come to the end of the rainbow, friends and colleagues. It’s been a fantastic 101-episode-long ride, and we’re so happy that you came along. Before we ride off into the sunset (jk, it’s a pandemic, we never leave our apartments), we’d like to wrassle one last VSE with you — part two of the accurséd BICYCLE MAN. It’s got all the icky feelings …

The time has finally come. In this most cursed year of this darkest timeline, we must re-watch and re-evaluate one of the most cursed VSEs of all time. The one that started it all — which is apt, because after 100 episodes, we have nearly come to the end of the Hugging & Learning rainbow. Join Chelsea, Andrew, and Miles for the penultimate episode …

“Welcome to Hamilton High, where all the students major in drugs!” H&L is back with a real classic of the “Just Say No” genre. We’ve got an earnest protagonist, we’ve got grade-A freakouts, we’ve got future Oscar winners judo-kicking out of second-story windows. Will CARING SO MUCH triumph over indifference, drugs, and swimming? Or will yet another…

“Welcome to Hamilton High, where all the students major in drugs!” H&L is back with a real classic of the “Just Say No” genre. We’ve got an earnest protagonist, we’ve got grade-A freakouts, we’ve got future Oscar winners judo-kicking out of second-story windows. Will CARING SO MUCH triumph over indifference, drugs, and swimming? Or will yet another…

Won’t someone please hug Terry? The boy moves like a ghost through his own life; in the words of his own sister, “he’s just kinda there.” When Terry goes punk, it’s not so much a rebellion as an inevitability. But, wait! What does this mean for Mom’s big anti-punker conference?! Is this actually an afterschool special FOR MOMS?? Join Chelsea, Andre…

What’s the only thing more fun that a lighthearted came of Clue with friends? Only a high-stakes reality TV version of the game that strangers take way too seriously! Come with us on a journey back to 2013, when ABC turned a half-built mansion into CSI: Beverly Hills, at almost unfathomable cost and with mediocre results. The game… is murder! But s…

It’s a little wild and a little strange that this is our first HEY DUDE episode. And it’s a doozy of a debut — this is the LOST episode of the beloved Nickelodeon show. “Lost,” you say? Imagine if Sam Shepard wrote most of an episode of this light teen comedy, and you’ll soon figure out why. Join us for a deep dive into the fraught interpersonal re…

Have you ever heard of Gospel Bill? If not, let’s close that #blessed chapter of your life. Join Andrew, Chelsea, and the rest of the Dry Gulch Gang as we attempt to keep the devil out of our thoughts from way down deep inside God’s pouch. Confused? Don’t worry. We are, too. Show: THE GOSPEL BILL SHOW \\ “Control Your Thoughts,” Season 1, Episode 2…

What could be better than an episode of THE GOLDEN GIRLS in These Troubling Times™? How about an episode TGG that’s also THE WIRE, a rom/com, and a George Clooney vehicle all at once?! This week, we explore the twists and turns of a singular episode of sitcom television, and also launch our GoFundMe campaign to raise the $3MIL we need to purchase t…

The first time you do anything is complex — the first time you have sex, the first time you learn your boyfriend’s real name, the first time you’re low-key slut-shamed by the boarding school friends you are too old to still be living with in your 20s. Will Natalie navigate the choppy waters of this new life phase with grace and strength? Will Jo vo…

Y’all… did you know the Netflix SHE-RA reboot is like, really really awesome?! This week, we’re back on Etheria for a way more nuanced plot and character discussion than we’ve ever had about this world. It’s almost like this show isn’t a half-hour commercial for toys! Join Chelsea, Andrew, Adora, and the other Princesses of Power (one of whom is Fr…

Figuring out if most VSEs of DIFF’RENT STROKES did more harm or more good, requires a degree in advanced mathematics. This one is no exception. Did we learn something about street buskers with epilepsy? Sure. But at what societal cost? All this and more will be pondered at length. Show: DIFF’RENT STROKES \\ “A Special Friend” Season 7, Episode 24 A…

Ah, THE OFFICE. So lovable. So quotable. So still finding its footing in this episode (but that’s a great thing!). Come along with three perennial OFFICE re-watchers as we join the ultimate fan of hugging and foe of learning — Michael Scott — and the rest of our heart’s coworkers on Diversity Training Day. Buckle up. Show: THE OFFICE \\ “Diversity …

Welcome to Bonanza City, where a group of 40 children will be allowed to form their own society — as long as it adheres exactly to the parameters the producers have laid out for them. In the early days of reality TV, it was quite literally the Wild Welcome to Bonanza City, where a group of 40 children will be allowed to form their own society — as …

If you were going to spend an hour this week listening to Hugging and Learning, we’d like to encourage you to listen/subscribe to one of the following comedy/pop culture podcasts instead: Still Processing Minority Korner Why Won’t You Date Me? The Nod So Here’s What Happened Introverted Black Girl FruitLoops: Serial Killers of Color 2 Dope Queens C…

It’s 1991, PSA and VSEs are all the rage, but one show dares to be different: EERIE, INDIANA — TWIN PEAKS for TWEENS. If you remember this show (which ran for a single season and was a nearly-perfect ratings bomb), you probably remember it fondly. Join Chelsea, Andrew, and Very Special Guest Allie Fireel as we plumb the depths of this smart, layere…

We hate to break it to you, but if your childhood recollections of Gordon Shumway include character traits like “loveable,” “caring,” or “friendly,” you might want to rewatch ALF. Preferably with a good snack or a stiff drink close at hand. Join your hosts, Ronald Reagan (not really), Harry Shearer (yes really) and a very callus and unfeeling extra…

Can mythical anthropomorphic bears have sensitive, consent-filled filled relationships with the visually impaired? Don’t get your hopes up. Join Chelsea, Andrew, Miles, Tummi Gummi, Duke Igthorn, and (Ka)Trina the shepherdess on an adventure where we learn a lot about self-sufficiency and nothing at all about sensitivity. Show: GUMMI BEARS \\ “What…

This episode has it all: accidental wife-punching, a small drug overdose, thirty-five glorious seconds of verbal gymnastics, the Mary Tyler More Physical Comedy Spetacular — and that’s BEFORE we get to the special message about prescription drug abuse! They don’t make ’em like this anymore, folks. Come on in (and look out for that ottoman)! Show: T…

Would you like to be on drugs right now, but you’ve run out, and your dealer won’t come within six feet of you? We have the solution: THUNDERCATS. Join Chelsea, Andrew, Miles, and all fourteen citizens of Third Earth as we test the drug tolerance of cat/human hybrids (very low) and our own ability to drag a moral kicking and screaming out of a cart…

The hypocrisy really stacks up like a layer cake in this meta anti-anti-drug-PSA episode of SAVED BY THE BELL. Let us break it all down for you: the unsubstantiated rumors, the real-life relationships, the bizarre writing choices, and that head-scratcher of an ending. After we delve into this, you’ll be saying, “Thanks, Guy.” And you’ll really mean…

It’s a world of song, dance, wonder, and a conspicuous absence of parents and child labor laws. It’s the world of KIDS, INC! But there is trouble in paradise — tiny new kid Robin is facing bullying by some local toughs. What can the other kids do to help? Why is Billy Blanks here? Who wrote this weird song we can’t find anywhere on the internet? Al…

It’s the end times, and all bets are off! Welcome to Season 4 of Hugging & Learning — the gas leak season. We’re kicking off this free-for-all with a discussion of a show near and dear to our hearts, and a premise that just hits a little different these days. Join Chelsea, Andrew, Miles, Leslie Knope, Anne Perkins, and the disease-ridden citizens o…

By Chelsea Marcantel and Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel and Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel and Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel & Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel and Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel & Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel & Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel and Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel & Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel & Andrew Grigg

By Chelsea Marcantel & Andrew Grigg

‘Tis the season to be re-watching our favorite holiday movies. You know, the ones we remember so fondly from childhood about Santa and his pet immortal lioness, his abduction by fairies, his tangles Gandalf, etc. No? Not ringing a (jingle) bell? Join Chelsea and Andrew as we make our merry way through the last (and best!) of the Rankin/Bass stop-mo…

When Roseanne finds the alleged pot stash of her daughter’s-live-in-boyfriend-except-her-daughter-moved-out, Chelsea and Andrew have more questions than just “what is this relationship even?” Do we inevitably turn into our parents, or were we never as cool as we remember being? Just how potent is 20-year-old toilet pot? Join us for an exploration o…

What happens if you join a cult, and then find out that it’s a scam? Do you turn the con artists into the authorities? Expose them as frauds? Try to get compensation for all their past victims? HEY HEY HEY — NO! You enact some sitcom justice with the help of a Broadway Star and a lot of what we sure hope isn’t pesticide. Join us as we probe the dar…

Must-See TV? We’ll be the judges of that. The Thanksgiving episodes of FRIENDS are legendary, and this is one of the most memorable of them all. But… does it have anything to teach us today? Besides the fact that we never deserved Phoebe Buffay? Put on your turkey-eating pants and let’s dive into this smorgasbord together. *clap*clap*clap*clap* Sho…

Feeling a little too cocky in 1970s Chicago? There’s nothing like an STI scare and a lecture on sexual health from Jay Leno to put you in your place. Join Chelsea, Andy, and the cast of GOOD TIMES as we confront the stigma around STI testing and treatment, in as much detail as Standards & Practices will allow. Show: GOOD TIMES \\ “JJ In Trouble” Se…

What are the Seaver kids up to this week? Why, a good old-fashioned 80s cocaine party! Join Chelsea, Andrew, Miles, Mike, Boner, and Michael Caine (in spirit) as we dive into what to do when you’re at a party and your dad’s much-younger fiancé dangles a vial of blow in your face. Show: GROWING PAINS \\ “Thank God It’s Friday,” Season 2 Episode 15 A…

Well this is a first — Chelsea and Andrew unwittingly watched two different episodes of Hannah Montana! Both of them are about Type 1 Diabetes. Join us on a sugar-fueled adventure through a world of secrets, soul patches, and Disney-Trained Child Actors (TM), where felonies are punchlines, twenty-somethings are tweens, and everyone has an extensive…

The Brady Bunch are in the (sanitized, Euro-American) Thanksgiving spirit! Join Chelsea and Andrew as they wade through a swamp of insensitivity, problematic nomenclature, revisionist history, and groovy slang to get to the heart of the Thanksgiving holiday itself: sight gags. Ad-libbing abounds on this trip down memory lane to an older, less-inclu…

How scary is TOO scary for children? It’s a question seemingly no one on the set of this infamous episode ever asked. Join Andrew, Chelsea, Miles, Mr. Pieces, Punky, Brandon (for your Emmy consideration) and the rest of the gang as we literally and figuratively fight our way out of a demon-haunted cave in definitely somewhere close to Chicago and n…

Like an angst-seeking missile, Angela Chase has gone from trailing after living phantom Jordan Catalano to actual phantom Nicky Driscoll in this Halloweeniest of episodes. We promise this is not a backdoor pilot for Chelsea’s spinoff MSCL podcast. Probably. Show: MY SO-CALLED LIFE \\ “Halloween,” Season 1, Episode 9 Air Date: October 27, 1994 Find …

Doogie Howser may be the youngest practicing surgeon in greater Los Angeles, but when the 1992 LA riots come rolling through his ER, he engages his black patients and colleagues with the moralizing and head-patting of a much older man. Will he learn to confront his white privilege in the face of a city on fire? Or just misquote MLK and call it a da…

Landfills are overflowing, the ice caps are melting, and the oceans are dying. What’s a 90s kid to do? The bare minimum, as it turns out. Join Chelsea and Andrew as we head back to Camp Ananwanna for litter, lectures, and one truly lame Environmental Party. Show: Salute Your Shorts \\ “ZZ Saves the Planet,” Season 1, Episode 13 Air Date: July 1, 19…

The title of this episode is a bit misleading, because Tootie actually finds FOUR BONGS over the course of 24 minutes. What is going on here? And who will take these wayward children firmly in hand? You can bet it won’t be Mrs. Garrett, so come along with us and Oscar-Winner Helen Hunt to plumb the depths of Eastland School — hotbed of crime. Show:…

Welcome back for Season 3! It’s time to confront the convicted rapist elephant in the room — Bill Cosby. Can we still watch THE COSBY SHOW and feel okay with ourselves? We’ve been avoiding it for two seasons, but it’s time to face this dracula head-on. Join Andrew, Chelsea, Miles, and Sammy Davis Jr. as we grapple with whether or not it’s ever poss…

Do you miss us?? Andrew, Chelsea, and Miles are here for a Season 2 recap and Q&A to tide you over until Season 3 drops! We’re ranking the eps (both awesome and awful), reminiscing about the guests, and answering your listener questions. Plus, we look ahead to ponder the deepest issue of this program — how do we up our snack game for Season 3? Snac…