The Pop Break

Conspicuously absent on last month’s Better Call Saul podcast, Josh Sarnecky returns to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Avatar: The Last Airbender with his brother Aaron.

Avatar: The Last Airbender is an animated action-adventure series created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. The series premiered on Nickelodeon on February 21, 2005. It ran for three seasons and 61 episodes, finishing on July 19, 2008.

The series takes place in a fantasy world where “benders” can manipulate the elements of water, earth, fire, and air.  The world fell out of balance when the Fire Nation invaded its neighbors. Protagonist Aang (Zach Tyler Eisen) is the last surviving Airbender and the Avatar, who can control all four elements. He must defeat the Fire Lord (Mark Hamill) to end the war. Aiding Aang are his Water Tribe friends Katara (Mae Whitman) and Sokka (Jack DeSena), as well as Earthbender Toph (Michaela Jill Murphy).

Other characters include the Fire Lord’s banished son Zuko (Dante Basco), Zuko’s ruthless sister Azula (Grey DeLisle), and their Uncle Iroh (Mako, Greg Baldwin).

Many critics regard Avatar: The Last Airbender as one of the greatest animated series of all time, praising it for its blend of lighthearted comedy, deep themes, character growth, mythology, and martial arts-based action. The series won one Primetime Emmy for Individual Achievement in Animation and was nominated for another for Outstanding Animated Program.

The cartoon spawned a sequel series, The Legend of Korra, as well as multiple comics and books. More shows and movies are in the works, including a movie following Aang and a sequel to The Legend of Korra called Avatar: Seven Havens.

Aaron and Josh talk about their history with Avatar: The Last Airbender before going into the show’s plot, characters, animation, and legacy. They also discuss the show’s live-action adaptations and the new projects coming from Avatar Studios.

For more Nicktoons, you can listen Josh and Aaron’s podcasts on SpongeBob SquarePants and Rugrats.

Avatar: The Last Airbender is streaming on Netflix and Paramount+

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, are back talking about Season 29 of The Bachelor & Season 8 of Love is Blind!

This week Michelle and DJ bring a mega sized podcast featuring the Love is Blind S8 finale and reunion, The Traitors S3 finale and reunion, and The Bachelor Women Tell All. Michelle and DJ give their thoughts on a less than stellar Love is Blind season that didn't leave the "feel good" that they are used to. They talk about how Traitors didn't deliver but still didn't live up to Season 2. Finally, they give a quick recap of the Women Tell All, and why they are glad Grant's season is almost over.

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!

Welcome to Blerd Watchers! ThePopBreak.com's monthly podcast about TV shows with a Blerdy twist! Come hang out with Courtney & Marshall, two married Blerds, as they navigate all the dopeness on TV and share insights and opinions on the monthly show topics!

In this March edition of Blerd Watchers, Courtney and Marshall dive into a variety of current and upcoming TV shows, providing previews and in-depth discussions. They kick off with a trailer reaction for the upcoming Cartoon Network show 'Iyanu', a child-focused animation with African influences. The duo then delve into the latest episodes of 'Reacher' Season 3, appreciating its smart writing and action-packed scenes. They also explore 'Solo Leveling', detailing the progress of Jin-woo's character and his battles in recent episodes. 'Invincible' Season 3 is discussed next, with a focus on character development and upcoming arcs. The hosts conclude with an analysis of 'Severance' Season 2, especially Episode 7, highlighting its emotional depth and storytelling. Upcoming shows and previews for next month are also teased, including 'Daredevil Born Again', 'The Last of Us' Season 2, and continued coverage of ongoing series.

The Rundown

• 00:00 Welcome to Blerd Watchers!

• 01:01 Trailer Reaction: Iyanu

• 04:55 Review: Reacher Season 3

• 21:01 Review: Solo Leveling Episodes 7-9

• 31:33 Upcoming Previews and Exciting Announcements

• 32:09 Invincible Season 3: Episodes 4-6 Breakdown

• 48:51 Severance Season 2: Episodes 5-7 Overview

• 58:49 Final Thoughts and Upcoming Coverage

Follow Courtney on⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠ &⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ and Marshall on⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠,⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠,⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitch⁠⁠⁠⁠,⁠⁠⁠⁠ Youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠,⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠.⁠⁠⁠⁠ Merch⁠⁠⁠⁠ now available!

Make sure to check out their other podcast,⁠⁠⁠ Blerd Life with My Wife⁠⁠⁠ on your favorite podcasting app and on⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠ &⁠⁠⁠ Instagram⁠⁠⁠.

⁠⁠⁠Blerd Life with My Wife Archives!⁠⁠⁠

And head on over to their⁠⁠⁠ Patreon page⁠⁠⁠ for extra content.

Welcome to “Not Couple Goals” where co-hosts Allie Nelson and Tyler McCarthy do a deep dive into a different ridiculous romantic thriller from the vantage point of their long-term relationship.

Allie, a writer/producer and actress, has an affinity for romantic thrillers, the more salacious the better. Tyler, an entertainment reporter and critic, often finds himself drawn in despite his better judgment. Join them as they explore all the ways it’s possible to love too hard… like WAY too hard.

In this episode, our favorite movie duo are shocked to discover a movie staring Oscar Isaac and Viggo Mortensen that Allie had not heard of in “The Two Faces of January.” Join them as they discuss this noir-leaning psychological thriller and ask tough questions about travel, conning people, faking their own deaths and the thankless career of the brilliant Kirsten Dunst. 

Special thanks to Mallory Johns for the introduction music.

Please don’t forget to follow our hosts on social media:

Allie Nelson: Instagram, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, and BlueSky

Tyler McCarthy: Threads and BlueSky

 And check out Tyler’s writing at USA Insider and Allie’s at Parade!

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, are back talking about Season 29 of The Bachelorette & Season 8 of Love is Blind!

Once again Michelle and DJ deliver a full sized episode of Roses and Rejections. It's hometown week for Grant, and it's mostly underwhelming and predictable. Michelle and DJ focus mostly on the latest Love is Blind Season 8 episodes (10-12). They give their final predictions ahead of the altar as we go into the finale. Finally they discuss the Traitors and give some brief thoughts on the Oscars.

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!

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 Max’s The Pitt, HBO’s White Lotus, Disney Plus’s Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, and AppleTV Plus’s Severance, Prime Video’s Invincible, and AEW Collision & Dynomite. 

Newsbreak – This month, they discuss a recent interview between Deadline’s Mike Flemming and Lucasfilm’s Kathleen Kennedy, regarding her potential retirement and the future of Star Wars in the movies and on television.

Streaming Wars – Alex, Bill, & Josh pick a streamer they think “won the month” based on new shows airing/upcoming shows announced etc. Bill went with Disney Plus, thanks to the hype around Andor and Daredevil, the positive response to Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, and sister streamer Hulu’s live Oscar stream. Meanwhile, Josh hands it to Amazon’s Prime Video thanks to its successful run of shows from Invincible to Reacher to Wheel of Time, plus the news that they now have full creative control of the James Bond franchise. Finally, Alex gives it to Max for their stellar work with The Pitt, White Lotus, Last Week Tonight, and Harley Quinn, not to mention trailers for The Rehearsal, The Last of Us, and The Righteous Gemstones, and the recent James Gunn press conference updating the media on DC Studios.

New Series Spotlight – This month, the guys review NBC and Peacock’s hotly anticipated spin off of Suits, Suits: LA starring Arrow’s Stephen Amell. They get into their history with the Suits franchise, and why this latest attempt shocked them with how poorly it was put together.

This is Pod of Doom, a podcast dedicated to the British band Black Sabbath! The hosts of Every Pod You Cast return to discuss all things Sabbath: Justin Mancini ofTheCineMaverick.com &Cinema Joes, Chris Mancini, and Randy Allain of Media/Lit will be covering the Ozzy Osbourne and Ronnie James Dio eras of the metal pioneers.

In the sixth official episode of the season, Chris, Justin, and Randy sit down to discuss the band’s 1973 barnstormer. They bask in the band’s New Age hippie-dippie tendencies, name the Sabbath song they think would fit best in the God of War video game, and express their gratitude for Bill Ward’s red tights. And of course, they recommend other artists they’ve been enjoying for your listening pleasure.

Host Picks:

We Know That It Is Good (A Song We Think Is Underrated or Just Really Like)

Chris – Megalomania

Justin – Megalomania

Randy – Symptom of the Universe

Nobody Wants Him (A Song We Don’t Like So Much)

Chris – Am I Going Insane (Radio)

Justin – Am I Going Insane (Radio)

Randy – Am I Going Insane (Radio)

Words That Glow (A Favorite Lyric)

Chris – The Writ

Justin – Thrill of It All

Randy – Megalomania

Occupy My Brain (A Favorite Musical Moment)

Chris – Symptom of the Universe

Justin – Symptom of the Universe

Randy – Supertzar

Other Artists We’ve Been Listening To:

Chris – Puscifer

Justin – Electric Light Orchestra

Randy – Flight of the Conchords

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, ofMostly Nitpicking, are back talking about Season 29 of The Bachelorette!

This week, Michelle and DJ cover Love is Blind S8 Episodes 7-9. They talk about some of the drama going on outside the show regarding some of the contestants. They follow up discussing the Deadline news regarding The Bachelor franchise and discuss this week's episode. Michelle and DJ wrap up with more Traitors Season 3 and Ru Paul's Drag Race.

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!

There’s arguably no superhero in existence that has been reimagined, redefined, or reinterpreted more than Batman.  No matter how many times he’s been rebooted, audiences are always willing to come back to Gotham City’s greatest defender.  With so much Bat content out there, there’s plenty to dissect, analyze, and of course, rank!  This podcast is dedicated to a surgical evaluation of Batman’s history, with a focus on ranking several topics in the world of Batman, among other classic Bat themes and characters.

Join hosts Daniel Cohen, Pop Break’s former Film Editor, and Kris Ingersoll, co-host of the Media/Lit podcast, as they bring on several guests every month to share their passion for the one and only Dark Knight.  From Adam West to Robert Pattinson, no bat stone will be left unturned.  Bottom-line: If you’re a Batman fan, this is required listening.

Love is in the air!  On the heels of Valentine’s Day, it’s time to rank the women who’ve stolen the Dark Knight’s heart, as we rank every cinematic Batman love interest!  What other podcast has a rankings list that includes Talia Al Ghul, three Catwomen, Miss Kitka, and Dr. Chase Meridian.

As this is a Valentine’s Day themed list, we had to bring in a pop break power couple.  You know them from the Blerd Watchers podcast –Marshall Stevenson makes his third appearance, and making her debut, it’s Courtney Stevenson!

The panelists discuss and debate everyone from Miss Kitka, played by Lee Meriwether in the 1960s, all the way to Zoe Kravitz in 2022’s The Batman.  We break it all down.  All the Catwomen.  Vicki Vale.  And of course, it wouldn’t be a Batman by the Numbers rankings episode without Daniel getting bent out of shape on at least one ranking.

This is one you don’t want to miss, as the conversations on all these characters spiral into great discussions about these movies, and the overall world of Batman, which is what this podcast is all about! 

Hello and welcome to Bill vs the MCU! Each month your hosts⁠⁠⁠ ⁠Pop Break Podcasting Director Alex Marcus⁠⁠⁠⁠ and⁠⁠⁠⁠ Pop Break Editor in Chief Bill Bodkin⁠⁠⁠⁠ are taking another step into the wider Marvel Multiverse as the MCU dives deeper into their Multiverse Saga.

Bill & Alex spent all of 2022 rewatching the first four phases of the MCU, and, in the years since, they have covered all of Netflix’s The Defenders Saga, the first four seasons of ABC’s Agents of SHIELD, and all 14 films in Fox’s X-Verse.

Now they are back doing what they do best, making sense of Phase V of the MCU! 

This month, they are taking a cue from Hollywood’s award season and celebrating their 2024 by belatedly handing out their own awards. That’s right, it is their third annual Fieges, where they will be taking a look back at all the MCU and MCU adjacent movies and series they discussed in 2024, including films from their X-Treme X-Watch series, seasons of television from their Defenders Disassembled series, and MCU’s Phase 5 highlights and lowlights like Deadpool & Wolverine, Echo, and Agatha All Along. 

Before all that, however, they will be closing out their Phase Five update from last month with an in depth review of Captain America: Brave New World, a movie that Alex & Bill liked a lot more than they expected to! Tune in to find out why!

Come back next month for their new season, Marvel’s Zombie Era, which will kick off with a March episode feature reviews of 2003’s Hulk (available on VOD), 2003’s Daredevil (available on Disney Plus), and 2005’s Elektra (available on MAX)!