The Pop Break – Details, episodes & analysis

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 the first four seasons of Agents of SHIELD, the entire Netflix Defenders Saga, Fox’s X-Men,  Fantastic Four, and Daredevil films, the Blade trilogy, a few Punisher films, Ang Lee’s Hulk, and, most recently, Marvel’s Modern Animation line up of shows.

This month, Alex & Bill kick things off with a quick check in on Spider-Noir, the new Spider-Man live action MGM+ and Amazon Prime Video series starring Nicolas Cage as Ben “The Spider” Reilly. Then, they finally make it back to the MCU after nearly a year away, as they give their thoughts on the latest entries into Marvel’s Phase 6: Wonder Man, Daredevil: Born Again S2, and The Punisher: One Last Kill.

Come back next month for their grand finale of this season of Bill vs. The MCU as the Marvel returns to the big screen with Spider-Man: Brand New Day, in theaters everywhere July 31st, 2026!

This year, The Pop Break is excited to bring you some very special programming during those extra long months when your favorite Pop Break podcasters are taking a rest. Pop Break staffer and host of the Media/Lit Podcast Randy Allain is your master of ceremonies as we take some creative journeys down the corridors of popular culture. 

This month, we gather to celebrate a jam-packed summer movie slate with a couple of cinephile podcasting duos. So far, horror has reigned supreme at the box office, so Hannah Ayars and Matt Hanna of Horror Hour With the Hannas are here to help us unlock the blood, gore, and chilling existential mystery of the summer. It’s also a big summer for Hollywood’s top power couple, so we had to invite the hosts of It’s Tom-plicated: A Tom Holland Podcast: Pop Break Podcast director Alex Marcus, and Manish Mathur!

Join us as we decide what was hot, what was not, and what we anticipate from the rest of the cinematic summer.

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 TV 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.

It’s a terrifying new release as Allie and Tyler break down the 2025 movie “Obsession” at the height of its theatrical dominance. Join them as they discuss writer/director Curry Barker’s masterpiece and cover everything from Inde Navarrette’s shockingly impeccable and horrifying performance, Barker’s not-so-humble YouTube beginnings and (for some reason) shout out their favorite pasta place in NYC. Is “Obsession” worth the obsession? Listen and find out. 

Special thanks to Mallory Johns for the introduction music.

Please don’t forget to follow our hosts on Twitter @ANelRetentive & @TylerMcCarthy and Instagram @ANelRetentive and to check out Tyler’s writing at USA Insider and Allie’s at Parade and Business Insider!

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, all 14 films in Fox’s X-Verse, and a collection of Marvel Films from the 2000s.

Welcome to Season 7 of Bill vs MCU, Marvel’s Animated Adventure! During the next few months, Alex and Bill will be catching up on all the major animated series Marvel has put out over the last four years. This includes two shows that Hulu’s MODOK and Hit-Monkey as well as Marvel Animated Studio’s productions such as What If…?, I Am Groot, Eyes of Wakanda, Marvel’s Zombies, and Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man!

If you are looking for coverage of X-Men ‘97, please check out Alex’s weekly coverage of the series from the spring of 2024, including the episode where he assigned Taylor Swift songs to all the lovelorn X-Men Characters.

This month, Alex and Bill kick things off by breaking down the short-lived Hulu Offenders-Verse plans before reviewing MODOK Season 1 and Hit-Monkey Season 1 and Season 2. 

In their opening act, Bill and Alex dive into all the latest production news surrounding Avengers: Doomsday and Spider-Man: Brand New Day, as well as brief updates on Daredevil: Born Again and VisionQuest!

Come back next month as they count down their top ten What If…? episodes with some special guests. What a refresher on the series? Check out all three seasons, now streaming on Disney Plus!

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 of TheCineMaverick.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 twelfth official episode of the season, Chris, Justin, Randy, and music journalist/author Daniel Bukszpan discuss the final Sabbath album and the band’s reunion with Ozzy Osbourne. They dig into what constitutes “raw” production values, elucidate an extended metaphor about the “Black Sabbath piñata,” and propose a counterpoint to Iron Man with “Zinc Man.” 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 – God Is Dead?

Daniel – Methademic (bonus track)

Justin – Age of Reason

Randy – Damaged Soul

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

Chris – Live Forever

Daniel – N/A

Justin – Live Forever (chorus)

Randy – Loner

Words That Glow (A Favorite Lyric)

Chris – Dear Father

Daniel – Dear Father/Methademic

Justin – Dear Father

Randy – Zeitgeist

Occupy My Brain (A Favorite Musical Moment)

Chris – Age of Reason

Daniel – Age of Reason

Justin – Zeitgeist

Randy – End of the Beginning

Other Artists We’ve Been Listening To:

Chris – Mastodon

Daniel – Iron Maiden

Justin – Obituary

Randy – Natalie Bergman

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is a family sitcom created by Andy and Susan Borowitz. It premiered on September 10, 1990 on NBC. The show ran for six seasons and a total of 148 episodes. The series ended on May 20, 1996.

The show follows a fictionalized version of Will Smith as he moves from Philadelphia to Bel-Air to live with his Aunt Vivian (Janet Hubert, Daphne Maxwell Reid) and Uncle Phil (James Avery). Will’s hip hop attitude clashes with their upper-class lifestyle. 

Living with them are Will’s cousins Carlton (Alfonso Ribeiro), Ashley (Tatyana M. Ali), and Hilary (Karyn Parsons), as well as their butler Geoffrey (Joseph Marcell). Later, Will’s cousin Nicky (Ross Bagley) is born.

Other characters include Will’s mom Vy (Vernee Watson), his friend Jazz (DJ Jazzy Jeff),his ex-girlfriend Jackie (Tyra Banks), and his fiancé Lisa (Nia Long).

The show is a mainstay in syndication and spawned a dramatic reimagining on Peacock called Bel-Air.

Aaron and Josh talk about their experience with the show, its pilot, the characters, and its humor. They also discuss the reunion special and Will Smith’s career after he slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars. 

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is streaming on Hulu.

In this episode of Blerd Watchers, hosts Marshall and Courtney return with a packed agenda. They kick things off with updates and trailers in the entertainment world, including reactions to Marvel Zombies, Alice in Borderland Season 3, and more. The duo dives into ongoing series Kaiju No. 8 and Gachiakuta, analyzing character arcs and animations. They also review Sandman Season 2, highlighting its complex mythological elements, and explore the dynamic storytelling of Eyes of Wakanda. The show wraps up with a heartfelt discussion on the life examinations presented in Netflix's The Four Seasons. Also, the hosts promote a special fundraiser in collaboration with St. Jude Children's Hospital.

00:00 Introduction and Welcome

01:20 Entertainment Highlights and Updates

03:45 K-Pop Demon Hunters Review

05:31 News and Rumors Lightning Round

16:00 Snap Trailer Reactions: Marvel Zombies

35:34 Blue Eye Samurai S2 Speculations

36:23 Fallout S2 Trailer Reaction

39:15 Kaiju No. 8 Episode Breakdown

49:21 Gachiakuta: New Anime Spotlight

01:09:35 Sandman S2 Review

01:34:33 Eyes of Wakanda Review

01:42:22 The Four Seasons Review

01:59:49 Final Thoughts and Fundraiser

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 TV 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, Allie and Tyler dive into the extremely popular 2017 Netflix original movie that you’ve definitely heard of, “You Get Me” starring Bella Thorne, Taylor John Smith and Halston Sage. Join them as they instruct high school boys how to not crash out at learning their girlfriend lived a life before meeting them, stumble through the career of Thorne up to this point and, of course, make reference to the Scream TV series. What happens when Swimfan meets Fatal Attraction in a glass of melted ice? Nothing good!

Special thanks to Mallory Johns for the introduction music.

Please don’t forget to follow our hosts on Twitter @ANelRetentive & @TylerMcCarthy and Instagram @ANelRetentive and to check out Tyler’s writing at USA Insider and Allie’s at Parade and Business Insider!

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. 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!

Join us as we test the results of our Pop Break Hashira training arc with The New Jersey Hashira Bill Bodkin, the Editor-In-Chief of The Pop Break, and The Podcast Hashira Alex Marcus, Podcast Director and wrangler of all the podcast cats on our network.

Our enthusiasts take a stroll through the anime content minds to discuss favorite series they’ve been watching recently, including Amanda’s recommendation of To Be Hero X, Bill’s recommendation of My Hero Academia, Alex’s anime adjacent recommendation Hit Monkey, and Josh’s recommendation of Campfire Cooking in Another World with My Absurd Skill.  All recommendations, except for Hit Monkey, can be found on Crunchyroll. Hit Monkey, Demon Slayer and My Hero Academia are available on Hulu/Disney+ and Netflix subscribers can also stream Demon Slayer and My Hero Academia.

In Anime News, they discuss the official trailer for Spy x Family Season 3 and whether the Grogu of the Anime World still has her magic in a very competitive anime space.

In their feature review section, our enthusiasts discuss the highly anticipated Demon Slayer Infinity Castle Arc movie, Part 1 including their history with the series, their overall thoughts on the story, pacing, action, and whether we really will have to wait two more years for Part 2.

Stay tuned next month as we review the third seasons of Spy x Family and One Punch Man.

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 Hulu’s Alien: Earth and Demon Slayer Season 2 through Season 5, HBO Max’s Peacemaker Season 2, and ParkerGetAJob on YouTube & TikTok.

Newsbreak – This month, they are discussing the news that Comcast has struck a deal with Amazon to allow Peacock to be sold as an add on channel to Prime Video, furthering Amazon’s goal to become the default access point for digital streaming, with users treating their Prime Video launch screen as their TV’s home page, where all their services can be easily accessed in one place and with most of them subscribed as channels inside their ecosystem. 

New Series Spotlight – This month they are shining the spotlight on Netflix’s new Adult Animated Series Long Story Short. This series comes from BoJack Horseman creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg and stars Ben Feldman, Angelique Cabral, Abbi Jacobson, Nicole Byer, Max Greenfield, Lisa Edelstein, and Paul Reiser, and is described by IMDb.com as “A dysfunctional family's shared history, inside jokes, and old wounds are explored in this adult animated comedy spanning multiple years.”

Program of the Year (2025 Emmys Edition) – Alex, Bill, & Josh each selected the eight series they would nominate for Program of the Year, based on all the series nominated at this year’s Emmys. After discussing what went into their nominations they announced their winners with Bill giving the honors to Disney Plus’ Andor, Josh handing it to AppleTV Plus’s Severance, and Alex crowning Netflix’s Adolescence as his top show.