Call For Comments: The End of The Greatest Show on Television

From Mav: In a way, the CW’s Riverdale is sort of ingrained in the DNA of this podcast. We talked about it at length on the sixth episode and it has been a constant refrain that I have returned to ever since. I say “I”… not we… because the truth is, everyone else has bailed…

Call For Comments: The Theory Of The Band Of Theseus

From Mav: Time for a little thought experiment. Recently, I came across an article on the Guardian called “‘I’m the only one that can say I never quit’: meet the bands with no original members left”. In it, Michael Hann interviews long-standing members of old rock bands who don’t have any original members left. For…

e279. Is Sucker Punch a Bad Movie?

So the truth is, when we do our “is ____ a bad movie?” episodes, we expect that the listeners are going to be predisposed to say “yes, obviously it sucks. No one cares about that garbage movie” and we are attempting to do kind of a reparative reading of it. That’s what we were expecting…

e278. Hollywood is on Strike! (But, what does that mean?)

If you’re a fan of current American popular culture it’s pretty much impossible to not know that Hollywood is on strike right now. The Writers Guild of America (WGA) has been on strike since May 2, 2023 with the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) joining them on July…

e277. The VoxPopcast #Barbenheimer Double Feature Double Date

Every once in a great while an unprecedented unpredictable pop culture moment organically happens and takes the world by storm. This was the cast last week when, after an incredibly lack luster summer blockbuster season at the box office, two films Barbie and Oppenheimer dropped on the same day. We’ve known this was coming for…

e276. Old Heroes Never Die! (But Do They Even Fade Away?)

There’s a lot of roles for old guys in media these days. Or rather, not just roles for old guys, there’s a lot of roles for characters that we’ve seen grow older in their movies and TV shows. For instance, there’s an Indiana Jones movie floating around theaters at time of recording, as well as…

Call For Comments: Hollywood is on Strike

From Mav: I think it’s fairly safe to assume that pretty much anyone who listens to our show already knows the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild/American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) are on strike. You likely are also in favor of the workers who are on strike. I suppose…

e275. Concert Amnesia and the Power of Flashbulb Memory

If you live on planet Earth right now, you might have noticed that Taylor Swift is touring. Her concerts are selling out even though tickets prices are out of control. Is it worth it? that’s a whole different show! However, some recent articles have implied that many young Swifties are experiencing a weird phenomenon. Concert…

Call For Comments: Concert Amnesia and Flashbulb Memories

From Steph: Recently, news media has reported claims from many Taylor Swift concertgoers that they cannot remember large parts or even any of the 3-hour “Eras Tour” concert such as which songs Taylor performed. This so-called “concert amnesia” is particularly distressing for those paying the high prices of resale tickets. However, it is widely known…

e274. Indiana Jones and the Legacy of Pulp

Last week the fifth (and supposedly final) Indiana Jones movie, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, finally hit theaters to substantially mixed reviews and audience reaction. Some have complained that it isn’t really giving them the vibe they were looking for out of an Indiana Jones movie while others have said it was a…