The Pop Break

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 host Daniel Cohen, Pop Break’s former Film Editor and Resident Bat-Maven, as he brings on several guests every month to share his 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.

As 2023 comes to an end, so does potentially the DCEU as we know it!  In what has been bookmarked as the last produced film of the DCEU/Snyderverse, Daniel and crew review and discuss the sequel to the highest grossing DC film of all time, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.  Spoiler Alert!

Daniel is joined by podcast editor of the pop break, Alex Marcus, as well as co-host of the Not Couple Goals podcast, Allie Nelson, making her second appearance on pod!  The three delve deep into the ocean discussing all things Aquaman, including its underwhelming box office.  But despite that, did we like the film??  Well, it’s varying degrees of “eh,” but which of our panelists called it the worst movie in the DCEU?!?!?!  You’ll have to listen to find out!

Aside from the quality of the movie, the bat crew revisit what they thought about the first film from 2018, chat on where Patrick Wilson’s Orm ranks among other DCEU villains, and Jason Momoa’s legacy as Aquaman.

But as this is the last Batman by the Numbers podcast of 2023, that’s not at all!  Moving beyond Aquaman, the crew discuss the future of DC on film, and whether Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is truly the last movie of the Snyderverse.  They chat on which actors have the best chance at making a return, if any, and determine just how much pressure there is on James Gunn’s Superman: Legacy in 2025.

Are we optimistic?  Pessimistic?  Medium??

Listen right here for a jam-packed Aquaman/DC-centric episode!  If you love DC on film talk, you can’t miss this one!

There's never a dull moment in the world of anime and Pop Break is diving right into the action! Join anime enthusiasts Amanda Rivas and Josh Sarnecky as they geek out monthly with dedicated experts and special guests on exciting anime news, trending anime in TV and/or movies, and anime recommendations spanning different genres that everyone should be watching.

This month they are joined by the Podcast Director of The Pop Break, Alex Marcus.  If you are a lifelong anime lover or taking the initial leap into the genre that has something for everyone, this is the podcast for you!

First, they provide a brief Anime Year in Review recap as 2023 was a busy time for new seasons of existing anime such as Demon Slayer, My Hero Academia, Jujutsu Kaisen, Dr. Stone, etc. They also discuss new anime that took the anime community by storm such as Frieren Beyond Journey's End, Undead Murder Farce, Hell's Paradise, Blue Lock, and more. And they touch on news in 2023 to include the announcement of Dragonball Daima, the anime remake of One Piece by WIT Studios and Netflix, and the delay of the four-episode Naruto specials. 

They take a stroll through the anime content minds to discuss favorite series they've been watching recently, including The Apothecary Diaries and Suzume, with Alex also surprising Josh and Amanda with the big news that he watched all of Spy x Family and loves Anya and Bond as much as they do. 

In their feature review section, our enthusiasts deep dive into the hit Netflix series Blue-Eyed Samurai and the latest Studio Ghibli film The Boy and The Heron. 

Stay tuned next month for their next episode on the highly anticipated anime series Solo Leveling!

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!

This month, our dynamic duo ring in the new year by taking a look back at the year in pop culture! They rank their most hated TV characters. They list off their favorite trailers, documentaries, game shows, and best episodes of the year. They run through the 2024 shows they are most looking forward to. And they even crown their show of 2023, plus so much more! 

Topics:

Blerd Life with My Wife -⁠ ⁠⁠John Wick 4⁠

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.

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

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 they spent most of 2023 covering ⁠Netflix’s The Defenders Saga⁠, and the first four seasons of ⁠Marvel's Agents of SHIELD⁠.

Now it is finally time again to check in with the MCU Phase V. That’s right, Bill & Alex are covering the Disney Plus original series Secret Invasion and Loki S2 and the theatrical film The Marvels. 

If you are looking for larger commentary on the “is the MCU over?” discourse that has been going viral online recently, you won’t find it here, as the guys focus their attentions exclusively to these three projects this month. However, if you would like to hear more on the bigger picture, past guest Derick McDuff had Alex on his podcast ⁠Infinity Stone & Dragon Bones⁠ last month talking about just that, and you can subscribe to Bill’s ⁠Socially Distanced⁠ podcast, where he has covered Marvel fatigue headlines and episode by episode deep dives with his co-hosts and special guests on a weekly basis.

Secret Invasion & Loki S2 are available to stream on⁠⁠ Disney+⁠⁠. The Marvels is available in theaters now.

Aaron and Josh Sarnecky are here to talk about The Powerpuff Girls for its 25th anniversary.

The Powerpuff Girls is a superhero cartoon created by Craig McCracken. Starting as McCracken’s project at CalArts, The Powerpuff Girls later ran as two shorts on Cartoon Network. The official series debuted on the channel on November 18, 1998. The show ran for 78 episodes until March 25, 2005.

The Powerpuff Girls are a trio of superpowered kindergarteners created by Professor Utonium (Tom Kane). The team is composed of Blossom (Cathy Cavadini), Bubbles (Tara Strong), and Buttercup (E.G. Daily). Together, they fight crime and defend the city of Townsville from supervillains like Mojo Jojo (Rojer L. Jackson).

One of Cartoon Network’s most popular shows, The Powerpuff Girls has spawned a theatrical film, an anime, and a 2016 reboot. The CW scrapped a live-action adaptation in 2023. Ace of the villainous Gangreen Gang temporarily served as bassist for the band Gorillaz.

Aaron and Josh talk about the show’s characters, humor, and action. They also discuss its legacy and the second reboot in the works.

For more classic cartoons, you can listen to Josh and Aaron’s podcasts on Dexter’s Laboratory and Rugrats.

The Powerpuff Girls is streaming on Max

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 spending all fall reviewing both The Golden Bachelor & Bachelor in Paradise.

It's the finale of the Golden Bachelor! This week, Michelle and DJ cover all everything that happened, and give their takes on how Gerry handled the breakup with Leslie. They give a final review of the season and give some guesses on what might be in store for this franchise moving forward.

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!

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:

New Series Spotlight Rewind – Alex, Bill, and Josh check back in on all the series they covered in their New Series Spotlight segment this year to see which shows they actually kept up with and which fell by the wayside.

News Break – Alex, Bill, and Josh discuss the single story that they each believe was the biggest for the world of TV this past year. Bill & Josh both opted with the October news that the WGA strike was finally over, while Alex handed it over to June’s news that the WGA strike had begun. Either way you slice it, Hollywood’s strike season was center stage.

Streaming Wars – Alex, Bill, and Josh check in on the standings for the past year of who won the most months in streaming before giving their own picks for who won the year, where they all agreed that Netflix, like a phoenix from the streaming wars’ ashes, rose again to dominate all comers in 2023.

The Beast Series of 2023 – Bill, Josh, and Alex each give their favorite series of the year, and two honorable mentions, which you can check out below!

Finally, the hosts close out 2023 by circling back to their Most Anticipated Series of 2023 from this past January to see how their collective optimism and enthusiasm paid off.

There's never a dull moment in the world of anime and Pop Break is diving right into the action! Join anime enthusiasts Amanda Rivas and Josh Sarnecky as they geek out monthly with dedicated experts and special guests on exciting anime news, trending anime in TV and/or movies, and anime recommendations spanning different genres that everyone should be watching. 

This month they are joined by aspiring wrestler Alyssa out of the Hybrid School of Wrestling and fitness guru Adriana Anger. If you are a lifelong anime lover or taking the initial leap into the genre that has something for everyone, this is the podcast for you!

First, they take a stroll through the anime content minds to discuss favorite series they've been watching recently, including Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts, the latest season of Dr. Stone, Devil May Cry, and Shangri-La Frontier. 

In Anime News this month, they discuss the trailer for the highly anticipated live adaption of Avatar: The Last Airbender scheduled for February 2024 on Netflix. 

In their feature review section, our enthusiasts deep dive into the series finale of Attack on Titan where they talk character development for the core cast, how the finale release timeframe was handled, Eren Yeager - hero or villain, whether the ending lived up to the hype, and whether this is really the end for Attack on Titan. 

Stay tuned next month for their next episode on the upcoming Studio Ghibli film: The Boy and the Heron! 

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 spending all fall reviewing both The Golden Bachelor & Bachelor in Paradise.

This week Michelle and DJ cover The Golden Bachelor Fantasy Suites. They give their predictions for who will win, and what is in store for the finale. They also give some advice on how to better schedule now that we have 4 Bachelor franchise shows. They wrap up with some Bachelor in Paradise talk.

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 host Daniel Cohen, Pop Break’s former Film Editor and Resident Bat-Maven, as he brings on several guests every month to share his 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.

We’re back with another rankings episode!  Last year, the panel ranked the Bat allies we’ve seen in movies, but now the crew rank who they want to see join Batman in his fight against crime that we have NOT seen yet in a live action film.  We’ve got all the iconic Robins on the table, but that’s not all!  If you’re a diehard comic book fan, this is the episode you’ve been waiting for.  We go deep into the Batman rolodex on this one.  Daniel had to do a lot of Wikipedia reading for this one.

To help Daniel out, he brought in a couple comic book experts.  We’ve got frequent contributor and podcast editor of the popbreak.com, Alex Marcus, and making his triumphant return, not seen since Episode 2 of this podcast, it’s co-host of the Blerd Watchers Podcast, Marshall Stevensen!

This is a lively discussion as the panel jump around all corners of Batman’s history, discussing who they most want to see in a film, debating all the Robins, how much they value Batman Beyond, and discuss the pros and cons of such characters as Stephanie Brown, Kate Kane, Jean Paul Valley, and Luke Fox.  Like I said, we got some deep cuts on this one!

Also, if you ever wanted to get the definitive HARVEY BULLOCK discussion in a podcast, this is it.  We promise, this is the most in-depth Harvey Bullock debate you will ever hear on the internet, as Daniel nearly loses his mind on this episode.  Who will stand tall as the #1 ranked Batman ally we most want to see on film, find out who got last (it’s a shocker, trust us), find out why Ace the Dog was sadly excluded from the list, and listen to Marshall and Alex absolutely pile on Daniel’s pitch for a gritty Nightwing movie.It's a jam-packed, comics filled rankings episode.  You DO NOT want to miss this one!