The Pop Break

Welcome to TV Break, where Pop Break’s Podcasts Editor Alex Marcus is joined by editor-in-chief Bill Bodkin, and TV Columnist Josh Sarnecky to talk about the happenings in television. Here’s the format of the show: The Best Thing I Saw on TV Last Month – Alex, Bill, & Josh talk about a show/episode/event they liked from the last month including Hulu’s The Bear, Disney Plus’s Ironheart, and crunchyroll’s Demon Slayer, andAMC’s Nautilus. Newsbreak – This month, they discuss shocking news that the mind behind The Last of Us, Neil Druckmann, will be leaving the HBO series to focus on a new game, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet [https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/neil-druckmann-exit-hbo-the-last-of-us-1236304898/], which is currently in development. The guys also review the backlash around the divisive second season of the series and wonder how much that controversy informed Neil’s decision. Streaming Wars – Alex, Bill, & Josh pick a streamer they think “won the month” based on new shows airing/upcoming shows announced etc. This month, everyone backed a different streamer, with Josh giving props to Netflix on the back of its breakthrough Korean content Squid Game and KPop Demon Hunters, as well as strong returning numbers for Ginny & Georgia and Quarterback. Meanwhile, Bill gave some love to Peacock on the strength of viral hit Love Island USA, and Alex gave it to Apple TV Plus after their box office success with F1: The Movie and the recent news that Jennifer Aniston would be starring in and co-showrunning for an adaptation of the hit memoir I’m Glad My Mom Died. New Series Spotlight – This month we are shining the spotlight on Apple TV Plus’s fire crime drama Smoke [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdX456spjeA]. This series stars Taron Egerton as a local arson investigator on the hunt for not one but two serial arsonists and Jurnee Smollett as a metro detective who is called in to assist his stagnant investigation. Safe Spall, Greg Kinnear, and John Leguizamo also star. The series was created by acclaimed crime novelist Dennis Lehane, based on the podcast Firebug, about arsonist John Leonard Orr, and is directed by The Falcon and The Winter Soldier director Kari Skogland.

This is Pod of Doom, a podcast dedicated to the British band Black Sabbath! The hosts of ⁠Every Pod You Cast⁠ [https://thepopbreak.com/2024/01/06/every-pod-you-cast-episode-0-walking-in-their-footsteps/] return to discuss all things Sabbath: ⁠Justin Mancini⁠ [https://letterboxd.com/thecinemaverick/] of⁠ TheCineMaverick.com⁠ [http://thecinemaverick.com/] &⁠ Cinema Joes⁠ [https://anchor.fm/CinemaJoes], Chris Mancini, and Randy Allain of ⁠Media/Lit⁠ [https://open.spotify.com/show/5OA7Ebp8ySxtItPbf9e2kx] will be covering the Ozzy Osbourne and Ronnie James Dio eras of the metal pioneers.   In this special episode of the podcast, Chris, Justin, and Randy sit down with award-winning music journalist and author Gary Graff to discuss his recent book, 501 Essential Albums of the 80s. They cover rock and metal in the 1980s, the powerful pull of nostalgia, and of course, the legacy blazed by Black Sabbath. ⁠Buy Gary’s book here!⁠ [https://www.quarto.com/books/9780760393369/501-essential-albums-of-the-80s]

Welcome back to another episode of our podcast all about the ABC reality series The Bachelor and its many spin-offs. ThePopBreak.com's Michelle Coraci, who has been recapping all things Bachelor for The Pop Break for years, and co-host DJ Chapman, of Mostly Nitpicking [https://mostlynitpicking.libsyn.com/], are taking a trip to Love Island USA while The Bachelor is on hiatus! This week things get spicy and Michelle and DJ discuss Casa Amor and the Villa reuniting. They discuss all the craziness with the Hearts on Fire Challenge, and what implications the Standing on Business Challenge will have for the Villa moving forward. They discuss who they think are favorites to win, and which couples they've had enough of. If you have thoughts or suggestions for what you’d like Michelle and DJ to cover during the offseason or opinion about all things Bachelor & Bachelorette, be sure to reach out via twitter @Roses&Rejections [https://twitter.com/rosesrejections]!

Aaron and Josh Sarnecky are back for a bonus podcast this month to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Pixar’s Inside Out. Inside Out is an animated comedy film directed by Pete Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen. The directors co-wrote the original story and penned the script with Meg LaFauve and Josh Cooley. Michael Arndt and Simon Rich wrote additional story material while Amy Poehler and Bill Hader added dialogue. Inside Out opened in theaters on June 19, 2015. In the film, a pre-teen girl named Riley (Kaitlyn Dias) is struggling with her move from Minnesota to San Francisco. In the world of the movie, everyone’s feelings are decided in a control room inside their head. Riley’s emotions are Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Bill Hader) and Disgust (Mindy Kaling).  Other characters include Riley’s mom (Diane Lane) and dad (Kyle MacLachlan), as well as Riley’s former imaginary friend, Bing Bong (Richard Kind). Inside Out opened to critical acclaim, winning Best Animated Film at the Oscars while also earning a nomination for Best Original Screenplay. In addition, the movie was a major box office success, making $859 million on an estimated $175 million budget. It was the seventh highest-grossing film of 2015. Inside Out has spawned a short film, a theatrical sequel, and a four-episode limited series on Disney+ [https://thepopbreak.com/2024/12/30/dream-productions-review-a-love-letter-to-the-inside-out-universe/]. For a brief period, Inside Out 2 [https://thepopbreak.com/2024/06/19/inside-out-2-review-the-perfect-sequel-for-these-tension-filled-times/] was the highest-grossing animated film of all time (not adjusted for inflation). A third Inside Out is in the works. Josh and Aaron talk about their histories with Inside Out before going into the plot, characters, themes, and animation. They also discuss the movie’s legacy and the state of Pixar today. For more Pixar, you can listen Josh and Aaron’s podcast on the original Toy Story [https://thepopbreak.com/2020/12/03/anniversary-brothers-toy-story-25th-anniversary/] and read Tom Moore’s review of Pixar’s latest film, Elio [https://thepopbreak.com/2025/06/20/review-elio-is-one-of-pixars-most-visually-imaginative-deeply-emotion-films/]. Inside Out is streaming on Disney+

Welcome back to another episode of our podcast all about the ABC reality series The Bachelor and its many spin-offs. ThePopBreak.com's Michelle Coraci, who has been recapping all things Bachelor for The Pop Break for years, and co-host DJ Chapman, of Mostly Nitpicking [https://mostlynitpicking.libsyn.com/], are taking a trip to Love Island USA while The Bachelor is on hiatus! This week, Kylie and Michelle dive into episodes 15–20 of Love Island USA, and it’s a wild ride! Megan Thee Stallion drops by to flex her new swim line, two sizzling bombshells shake things up, and we witness the most stomach-turning challenge in reality dating TV history. Plus, Casa Amor is in full swing — the women? Absolute goddesses. The men? Well… bless their hearts, they’re trying. If you have thoughts or suggestions for what you’d like Michelle and DJ to cover during the offseason or opinion about all things Bachelor & Bachelorette, be sure to reach out via twitter @Roses&Rejections [https://twitter.com/rosesrejections]!