Pop Culture Happy Hour

The buzzy fantastic new TV drama Sterling Point has it all. A mysterious inheritance. A teen love triangle. Secrets and lies that echo across generations. The Prime Video series has twists, turns, and heart. You won’t want to miss it. 

Want more Gen Z drama? Check out these episodes: 

‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ has drama, romance and the music of Taylor Swift

Gen Z awkwardly transitions into 'Adults'

'I Love LA' reinforces our love for Rachel Sennott

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Millions of us play little daily games on our phone. But if you’re looking to expand the horizons of your morning distractions beyond Wordle and Connections, we’re here for you. Today we’re recommending some fun daily online games, including MapTap, Catfishing, TimeGuessr, The Loop, and Clues by Sam.

Looking for more conversations about fun games? Try these episodes:

Wordle is a daily dose of delight, despair, and sometimes smugness

In 'The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom' the open world is wide open

Best Video Games of 2025

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Have you ever been on a road trip that feels like it goes on forever and things started getting a bit existential? That’s the whole deal with the chewy new film It Ends. The horror-meets-psychological thriller follows four friends who just graduated college, as they turn onto a road through a dense forest and the road just keeps going. Directed by Alexander Ullom, It Ends is both chill and chilling, and a lot of fun to talk about. 

Chasing down your next horror fix? Check out these episodes: 

'Backrooms' brings YouTube horror to the big screen

In ‘Weapons’, the kids aren't at all right, not in the slightest, nope

Should you give 'Presence' the ghost of a chance?


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In the new post-apocalyptic film The Dog Stars, a virus has wiped out most of humanity and the survivors eke out a meager existence trying to stay alive. Sound like an oh-too-familiar tale? What if it featured stars like Jacob Elordi, Margaret Qualley, and Allison Janney? And was directed by Ridley Scott and based on a best-selling novel? Would it be enough to pull you in? Should it be? 

Want more action from Hollywood’s biggest directors? Check out these episodes: 

Spielberg revisits aliens and alienation in ‘Disclosure Day’

'Gladiator II': Are you not entertained? Still? Again? Some more?

‘The Odyssey’ is an ancient tale on a modern budget

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The movie Coyote vs. Acme comes with some buzzy lore: it was famously shelved, and almost didn’t see the light of day. But it’s here now, and it’s good and looney! It follows Wile E. Coyote when he decides to sue the Acme Corporation for manufacturing crappy, ineffective products. The cast includes Will Forte, John Cena and Lana Condor. We also talk about our favorite Dolly Parton musical performances. 

If you want more animated capers, check out these episodes: 
'Minions & Monsters' is, oddly enough, a love letter to Old Hollywood
In 'Toy Story 5,' playtime's over and screentime's in

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Every generation gets its own version of a “20-somethings hang out and make mistakes” sitcom. And Gen Z’s got Adults, a silly series about a group of friends cohabitating in Queens, New York – and it makes for fun and all-too-relatable TV fodder. Adults is back for its second season on Hulu, so today we’re revisiting our episode about the series. 

If you want more bingeable comedies, check out these episodes:

‘The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins’ is (30) Rock-solid

Meg Stalter shines in the rom-com 'Too Much'

‘Widow’s Bay’ is an island in the scream

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It’s back to school season, which has us thinking about our favorite teachers. The ones who really saw us, changed our points of view, or set us on new paths. But of all the teachers we've seen in TV and movies, which of them do we wish we'd had to educate us in real life? Today we’re talking about fictional on-screen teachers from My Girl, My So-Called Life, Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit and Dune: Part One.

If you like want more episodes like this one, check out:
The reality TV show I'd like to judge
The TV show I'd like to live in
The American dream according to ‘The Wire,’ ‘Apollo 13’ and more

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HBO’s new DC superhero show Lanterns is not the show you think it is. It’s about a couple of space cops: Kyle Chandler plays Earth’s Green Lantern, Hal Jordan, a grizzled, impulsive old-timer reluctantly training up his backup, John Stewart (Aaron Pierre). Yet the story avoids cosmic sweep and spectacle in favor of a character-driven mystery and a grounded setting. Does this series thread the needle to appeal to comics nerds and newcomers alike?

If you need more superhero stories, check out these episodes: 
'Supergirl' has a solid hero but could use a better villain
Marvel’s ‘Wonder Man’ is a low-key, low-stakes buddy comedy

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In the new film Tony, we meet chef and author Anthony Bourdain before he was in the public eye. He was a wayward, overconfident young guy, and, as played by Dominic Sessa, kind of a piece of work. The movie focuses on a pivotal summer in 1975, when Tony worked in his first kitchen, a tiny hole-in-the-wall in Provincetown. But does the film break out of the familiar biopic formula to tell a compelling story?

Do you like biopics about complicated artists? Check out:
‘Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere’ is better than your average biopic
In 'A Complete Unknown,' Timothée Chalamet captures the idea of Bob Dylan

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We're traveling way back in time to 1971 -- when Richard Nixon was president, the Beatles were newly broken up, and Fiddler on the Roof was one of the biggest movies at the box office. Today in this encore episode, we’re revisiting a special edition of What's Making Us Happy, recommending pop culture from the 1970s – including Isaac Hayes’ Shaft soundtrack, Carol King’s Tapestry, Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On, and The Monster at the End of This Book.

Looking for more pop culture from the past? Check out these episodes:

The American dream according to ‘The Wire,’ ‘Apollo 13’ and more

‘Jaws’ is still stuck in our teeth, 50 years later

'Shrek' – a weird, flatulent and beloved franchise – turns 25


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