This week, Dana and Julia are out but never fear, we’ve brought on two great guest host to join Steve: slate alumnus and NYT columnist Jamelle Bouie and senior editor at Slate, Sam Adams. First, the panel breaks down the moral quandaries of the socially unhinged HBO hit The Rehearsal. Then, the panel dips a toe into the dark side with the Aubrey Plaza-led film Emily the Criminal. Finally, the panel discusses the article “Why Do Rich People Love Quiet?” by Xochitl Gonzalez for The Atlantic.

In Slate Plus, the panel discusses the relationship between race and food, based on the article “What We Talk About When We Talk About ‘White People Food’” by Jenny G. Zhang for Bon Appétit.

Email us at [email protected].

Endorsements

Sam: The new New York City Center’s “Encore” production of Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods—now showing at the St. James Theater in New York City.

Jamelle: Inspired by his podcast Unclear & Present Danger: the 1992 Bill Duke film Deep Cover starring Laurence Fishburn and Jeff Goldblum, which is a great example of relatively modern neo-noir and a fascinating political artifact of the 1990s.

Steve: A previous endorsement update: Steve has finished and approves the 1980 novel The Transit of Venus by Shirley Hazzard. Steve’s real endorsement for the week: the album Crest by Swedish hip-hop artist Bladee, especially the songs: “Desire is a Trap” and “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.”  

Podcast production by Cameron Drews. Production assistance by Nadira Goffe.

Outro music is "What Do You Want From Me" by OTE.

Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts, a bonus segment in each episode of the Culture Gabfest, full access to Slate's journalism on Slate.com, and more. Sign up now at slate.com/cultureplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices