Who would have thought a biopic adaptation of a 1000-page tome would become a summer blockbuster? Author Daniela A. Mera and returning guest Conor Hilton join us for a discussion of Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer. How did we as Latter-day Saints wrestle with the film's ambiguous messages about the development of the atomic bomb as well as the portrayal of sexual infidelity? We think about the meaning of truly seeking for truth in difficult historical facts and a film with a messy message.

Show Notes: https://www.popcultureapricottree.com/post/oppenheimer

We're back from our summer break. Here's what we've been watching this summer and what we're planning to talk about in the second half of this season.

00:00:00 Intro

Join us as we delve into season three of Disney's The Mandalorian and Din Djarin's quest to be redeemed from his apostacy. Jacob Hess and Jared Esselman join us to discuss the latest and most religious season of the Star Wars spin-off show. We start with the overall unsatisfying religious arc of Star Wars up to this point and how this season turned that around by using a Jewish template for the Mandalorian culture. The show is a great example of how members of the same religious tradition with different practices and beliefs can get along. And Jared shares with us the story of his excommunication and rebaptism into the church and how Din Djarin's journey paralleled his experience.

Show Notes: https://www.popcultureapricottree.com/post/mandalorian

Video editing by Liz Busby; Audio mastering by Liz Busby

Associate Links: Links to products may be associate links, which means a small part of your purchase goes to Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree. We appreciate your support.

Join us as we dive into Bluey, the super popular children's television show from Australia. Bluey superfan Cassandra Hedelius explains why she loves this show's realistic portrayal of the special brand of humor that comes with raising kids. And BYU-Idaho education professor Ben Pacini tells us how he uses the show to teach his students about educational psychology. We talk about the positive and negative aspects of the educational and parenting philosophies inherent in the show. Finally, we ask the question everyone is asking: does Bandit make us all look like bad parents?

Show Notes: https://www.popcultureapricottree.com/post/bluey

In this episode, we delve into the many ways mothers are portrayed in the pop culture. Our guests Carol Rice and Tiffany Hales help us explore the complexity and variety of moms in television, from Tami Taylor in Friday Night Lights, juggling motherhood with her career as a principal, to Marge Simpson's tireless commitment to her family's well-being. Of course, non-biological mother figures like Kala from Tarzan and Leanne Tuohy from The Blindside show that the strengths of motherhood transcend genetic relationship.From Regina's infamous 'cool mom' to the powerhouse Mrs. Incredible, negative maternal figures like Mother Gothel to motherhood in reality TV, join us as we uncover the triumphs, challenges, and the often-unseen facets of motherhood as portrayed by movies.

Show Notes: https://www.popcultureapricottree.com/post/ep-28-mothers-in-the-media

Video editing by Liz Busby; Audio mastering by Carl Cranney

Associate Links: Links to products may be associate links, which means a small part of your purchase goes to Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree. We appreciate your support.

Dungeons and Dragons is a popular hobby among Latter-day Saints, so we rounded up some dungeon masters for this episode. Shannon Oler and Parker Sappington join us to discuss D&D: Honor Among Thieves, the new movie starring Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez. This fantasy adventure comedy has us asking how similar are paladin oaths to temple covenants. We also talk about how D&D can be used to build empathy and community among people. And of course, the chubby dragon makes an appearance!

Join us as we get our feet wet in the North Carolina marshes to discuss this adaptation of the popular novel. Guests Jamie Lewis Holt and Shelby Thayne help us discuss how we might use Kya's experiences with Tate and Chase to talk about warning signs of dating violence with our teenagers and young adults. Is Kya justified in seeking justice outside the system when there's little hope it will protect her? Plus Jamie turns our rating system into a hilarious extended analogy that you won't want to miss.

Show Notes: https://www.popcultureapricottree.com/post/crawdads

Show Notes: https://www.popcultureapricottree.com/post/thewhale

Video editing by Liz Busby; Audio mastering by Carl Cranney

Associate Links: Links to products may be associate links, which means a small part of your purchase goes to Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree. We appreciate your support.

Do we understand God as clearly as we think, or do we have to fight through as many difficulties as Louise does when conversing with the heptapods in the film Arrival? Our guests Paul Williams and Michael Davenport have a lot to say about this and other questions. We delve into Louise as a type of Eve and nature of her choice to bring a child into the world in spite of certain death, including meditating on our own fallen mortality. Join us for this special one-year anniversary episode of the podcast!

Show Notes: https://www.popcultureapricottree.com/post/arrival

Video editing by Liz Busby; Audio mastering by Carl Cranney  

Associate Links: Links to products may be associate links, which means a small part of your purchase goes to Pop Culture on the Apricot Tree. We appreciate your support.