Episodes
Welcome back, boos and ghouls! This week, the Pop Culture Historians dive into the first two classic Dracula sequels! First up, it’s the sapphic DRACULA’s DAUGHTER. We fawn over Gloria Holden and question over how much of its subtext was intentional. Next, Lon Chaney is Alucard in SON OF DRACULA. Can he hold a candle to Bela Lugosi? Listen along and find out! In between, we rank our favorite Halloween creatures in our Intermission Special!
Published 10/16/23
This week, we dig into the first two MUMMY sequels. First, we discuss the tonal change in 1940’s THE MUMMY’S HAND from its predecessor, even if it doesn’t have Boris Karloff anymore. Then, in our Intermission Special. We rank our top movie villains! Finally, we wrap it all up by lamenting the state of THE MUMMY’S TOMB, an hour-long movie that has FIFTEEN minutes of flashback clips in the beginning. Does it ever recover? Listen and find out!
Published 10/09/23
This week, another spooky Universal Monster Sequel Double Feature! First up, THE INVISIBLE MAN RETURNS swaps out Claude Rains for Vincent Price. Does it…actually make the follow-up superior? Next, during our Intermission Special, we break down our favorite Halloween costumes we’ve ever worn! Finally, we struggle to find something, anything at all to say about the screwball comedy THE INVISIBLE WOMAN.
Published 10/02/23
This Halloween, the Pop Culture Historians are tackling as many Classic Universal Monster sequels as we can! This week, the two follow-ups to THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON. Is there anything left to mine from one of the last Universal Monsters? Or should these have stayed six feet under? Listen along and find out! Also, in a new Intermission Special, we rank our top three Halloween decorations!
Published 09/25/23
This week, we return to the gothic nightmare of the Crow franchise by digging into the much maligned sequel, 1996’s CROW: CITY OF ANGELS! Iggy Pop sure is doing…something, but beyond that, is there anything salvageable about this barely-feature length follow-up? We also explore the filmography, for better or for worse, of David S. Goyer. Finally, we announce our Halloween programming for 2023. Listen along with us!
Published 09/18/23
This week, a returning champion is covered on the pod! 1996’s THE PHANTOM marks the return of Lee Falk’s most famous creation to the silver screen after the 1943 film serial. And…look, it’s competent, you get some good old-fashioned stunt work, you get a classic weird Billy Zane performance. But…this is basically an episode all about Treat Williams and the villainous Xander Drax. Listen along and enjoy!
Published 09/11/23
This week, the Pop Culture Historians return to the 90’s to put on their capes and cowls and work their way through the superhero movie genre. However, they’re faced with an immediate crisis: does 1996’s BARB WIRE even count as a superhero movie? Also, was this the only year Pamela Anderson could have possibly starred in this? Finally, is this…is this movie just a trashy CASABLANCA? All this and more will be answered this week!
Published 09/04/23
This week, let’s take a look back at the season that was with another round of awards all about Classic Doctor Who Season Four! Best moments from each serial are chosen. We also determine the Best Guest Star, Best Villain, Best and Worst Serial and, as always, we crown an MVP. Bonus: we rank the first six Dalek stories.
Published 08/21/23
This week, the Pop Culture Historians break format ever so slightly by reviewing something from the past ten years! It’s the BBC Original AN ADVENTURE IN SPACE AND TIME! Now that our show has completed the William Hartnell era of Doctor Who, this seemed like a great time to watch this TV movie all about his time as the titular time lord. With a star studded cast (David Bradley! Jessica Raine! Brian Cox!), this sentimental flick has its heart on its sleeve. But can it’s somewhat corporate...
Published 08/14/23
This week, it’s a series wrap on the Daleks…for now. Ryan (a Doctor Who novice) and Jimmy (a Doctor Who expert) break down THE EVIL OF THE DALEKS, the mostly incredible (and mostly missing) seven-part serial that closed out Classic Doctor Who Season Four AND was meant to spin off the Daleks permanently. Would this have sufficed as a finale? Listen along and decide for yourself!
Published 08/07/23
Welcome back to The Pop Culture Historians and their Classic Doctor Who Watch/Rewatch! Ryan is a Who novice and watching for the first time, and Jimmy is the expert, and rewatching once again! This week, they meet THE FACELESS ONES and are impressed that this six part story set in Gatwick Airport could be so effective. And, of course, we discuss Ben and Polly taking a departing flight off the show. You can find the Anneke Wills interview referenced here:...
Published 07/31/23
This week, the Pop Culture Historians face THE MACRA TERROR! This four-part, completely missing story all about denying the evil that lives below is potent, timely, and contains just enough goofiness to make this a Season Four highlight. Plus, it’s the first story to genuinely give Jamie something to do! What’s not to like? Check this episode out…it’s a gas!
Published 07/24/23
This week…you want the moon? The Pop Culture Historians will give you the moon! This time, we’re on THE MOONBASE, a four-part, partly missing Classic Doctor Who story. It marks the return of a popular villain, it’s tight and to the point, the animation’s pretty good. Yet, did it leave one of us a little wanting? We also discuss the Second Doctor era’s penchant for “base under siege” stories. Reminder: Jimmy is a Doctor Who expert, while Ryan’s never seen the show. Between the two of...
Published 07/17/23
Welcome back to our watch-through of Classic Doctor Who Season Four! Ryan has never seen the show, while Jimmy has seen it all, making this a perfect show for both Who novices and experts alike! This week, we go under the sea to meet THE UNDERWATER MENACE! Not an especially beloved serial, do the camp elements, paired with Joseph Furst going completely off the rails, enough to salvage some of it? Listen along and find out! You can also find the Furst interview mentioned in the episode...
Published 07/10/23
This week, we’re grabbing our passports and heading to Scotland to hang with THE HIGHLANDERS! This completely missing four-part story both marks an ending (of the purely historical Doctor Who stories, at least for some time) and a beginning (of the Jamie McCrimmon era). Does the utilizing of Patrick Troughton’s physical comedy skills get neutered in the present due to the fact that we can’t see it? Listen along and decide for yourself!
Published 07/03/23
This week, a new era begins. We break down the very first Second Doctor story, THE POWER OF THE DALEKS! How do our companions deal with this massive change? Heck, how do we? Also, do the Daleks seem a little…docile to you? What’s going on there? Listen and find out! Plus, we formally introduce Patrick Troughton to the history of Doctor Who.
Published 06/26/23
This week, a special bonus episode all about the First Doctor! Now that we’ve reached the end of William Hartnell’s run as the titular Doctor Who, we take a look back at his time on the show. We determine his best companion, we rank our favorite First Doctor stories and discuss the actor’s legacy on the program. All this and more!
Published 06/21/23
This week…perhaps the most important serial in terms of DOCTOR WHO’s history. It’s THE TENTH PLANET, and with it comes the end of an era. We both gain a new recurring villain (the Cybermen), but we also lose our main star for the first time. We discuss the Doctor’s first regeneration, the history behind the decision to recast William Hartnell and the weird lucky breaks that recoded the show’s DNA forever.
Published 06/19/23
This week, the Pop Culture Historians return to the TARDIS to kick off our coverage of Classic Doctor Who Season Four! Ryan has never seen Doctor Who, while Jimmy has seen it all. Together, they’ll tackle THE SMUGGLERS! The Ben and Polly era begins in earnest, but does the completely missing status of this four-part story hurt its quality? Listen and find out!
Published 06/12/23
This week, we take a look back at the season that was with The Blinkies! Named after our favorite superhero character, Blinkie McQuade, this semi-annual awards ceremony determines the best and worst of the movies we covered the past few weeks. Most Dated Reference, Best Use of Superpowers, Best Villain, Best and Worst Movie and Season MVP are all up for grabs! Also…is BIRDMAN a superhero movie? Thanks to all for listening along with us this season. We’ll be back in a couple of weeks with...
Published 05/22/23
This week, we’re diving into a movie so huge we needed a third person to help us out. From the SCENE AND HEARD podcast and the Arroyo Film Club, Greg Kleinschmidt joins the Pop Culture Historians to deconstruct 1995’s BATMAN FOREVER! Does Jim Carrey almost take over the film? Did Bono really try to sneak himself into the movie? Is there a single funny line in this entire thing? Finally, despite all this, is Joel Schumacher’s first Batflick secretly…pretty good? All this and more will be...
Published 05/15/23
This week, the Pop Culture Historians enter the world of 90’s comedy with BLANKMAN! We both agree that Damon Wayans’ way too broad performance sinks the whole thing, but does this Batman riff have anything to offer? How do David Alan Grier and Jon Polito fare? Also, another original credits song! All this and more!
Published 05/08/23
This week, we’re diving deep into 1994’s THE SHADOW! For the first time in awhile, the Pop Culture Historians are deeply split on a movie. Is it a unexpected visual marvel? Or is it a star-studded cast elevating a very weak script? Can it be both? Only The Shadow knows!
Published 05/01/23
This week, the Pop Culture Historians rise from the dead to review THE CROW! A monumentally difficult movie to assess, both because of the tragedy that inspired the source material and the horrible accident that happened on set, they do their best to sift through both the good and the bad of what this Alex Proyas action film has to offer.
Published 04/24/23
This week, we return to the world of Bruce Wayne with 1993’s BATMAN: MASK OF THE PHANTASM! We discuss our histories with the animated series it spawned from, we go into the making of the film (with a little assist from Thom Pinto, one of the voice actors on this project, who you can find at www.thompinto.com) and finally…does it live up to his reputation as secretly the best Batman movie of all?
Published 04/17/23