Modern American culture loves the Middle Ages, especially when it's wrapped up in glitzy high-end fantasy like the Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones. Academics, of course, love to debate what it all means, and point out the ways in which these representations are or (more often) are not accurate. But what happens when the medieval shows up in memes and TikTok videos, fast-food advertising campaigns, roadside motel architecture, and other fragments of popular culture? This talk explores what this dirtbag medievalism can tell us about ourselves, the Middle Ages, and the love affair between them. This talk explores what this dirtbag medievalism can tell us about ourselves, the Middle Ages, and why we can't stop dreaming about the past.