People ask me questions all the time, because they understand that I’m one of the few people with the knowledge and intelligence to answer their questions. I’m often asked deep questions like “Who are you?”, “Why are you here?” or “Is that a medieval flail in your hand?” But the most important question I’ve grappled with in the past 7 years is this: “What makes a film or television show popular?” I spent the longest 23 years of my life trying to find a thematic commonality in popular programming, and eventually decided to compare two of the most heralded works of their time. Now, I present my findings: