Great Pop Culture Debate

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our episode devoted to the best TV pilot episodes -- the first episode of a series -- and walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, April 8, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: https://www.greatpopcu...

Weird Al Yankovic emerged from the wild and wacky underground music scene of the 1970s and 1980s to become one of the world’s most successful musical-comedy artists. Initially breaking into the mainstream with his parodies of mega-hit pop songs by Michael Jackson, Madonna, Nirvana, Coolio, and more, Yankovic has had astonishing pop-culture staying power. His lane may be comedy, but the facts are n...

Just in time for April Fool's Day, Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our episode devoted to the best "Weird Al" Yankovic songs and walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, April 1, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: And if you love...

Hollywood stars: they don't make ‘em like they used to. While there are still many fine actors and actresses working in film and television today, very few have the megawatt star power that used to bring audiences to the theaters from the mid- to late 20th Century. And as we move further and further away from the Golden and Silver ages of Tinseltown, the Great Pop Culture Debate podcast wants to d...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our episode devoted to the best old-school movie stars -- actors and actresses who broke into Hollywood prior to 1969 -- and walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, February 25, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any up...

Since the basic cable debut of The Disney Channel in April 1983, the House of Mouse has used its family-oriented network to feature its best movie ideas that weren’t quite ready for the silver screen. At first the films were released under the name “Disney Channel Premiere Films,” but since 1997, they have been released under the banner Disney Channel Original Movie – or DCOM – up until 2022, when...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our episode devoted to the best made-for-TV films released under the Disney Channel Original Movie banner, as well as walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, February 18, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming...

When Hamilton premiered off-Broadway on February 17, 2015, it created an instant sensation, making American history genuinely exciting for modern audiences, and transforming Broadway with his color-blind casting. Creator Lin-Manuel Miranda built on the blending of hip-hop and traditional Broadway musical styles that he brought to bear on In the Heights to tell the story of American founding father...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our Patreon-sponsored episode devoted to the best song from Lin-Manuel Miranda's Broadway music, "Hamilton," as well as walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, February 11, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcomin...

While mainstream comic books largely focus on exciting stories of good versus evil, over the decades comics have also given us a host of truly iconic romantic couples. From the pulps of the 1920s to the manga of today, comic books have featured inspiring – and sometimes tragic – tales of heroes – and even villains – in love. So for our 2025 Valentine’s Day special, the Great Pop Culture Debate is...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our Valentine's Day special devoted to the Best Comic-Book Couple, as well as walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, February 4, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: https://www.greatpopculturedeba...

The WWE – formerly known as World Wrestling Entertainment, and before that, the World Wrestling Federation – is the largest professional wrestling promotion in the United States. Since its founding in the the 1950s, the WWE has been home to hundreds of performers, and launched the careers of more than a few bona fide Hollywood superstars. It’s also big business; via its Smackdown, Raw, and NXT shi...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our Patreon-sponsored episode devoted to the Best WWE Champion (1990-Present), as well as walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, January 28, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: https://www.greatpo...

Fox’s Melrose Place was intended to be an introspective drama about young adult life in 1990s L.A. But by Season 2, the show leaned into its soapy elements, with ever-shifting love triangles, backstabbing office rivalries, and more than a few iconic villains stealing babies, faking pregnancies, and even blowing up the apartment complex. At its height, the show reached nearly 15 million viewers, an...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our Patreon-sponsored episode devoted to the Best "Melrose Place" Character, as well as walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, January 21, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: https://www.greatpopc...

Since 1927, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has awarded the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role 97 times, to 86 actors – as of 2024, when we are recording this. The collective winners of the Best Actor Oscar are a Who’s Who of Hollywood, legendary performers who have defined what acting and arguably even manhood look like on screen. After debating the Best Film and Best Actress...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our Patreon-sponsored episode devoted to the Best Oscar Winner for Best Actor, as well as walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, January 14, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: https://www.greatpo...

The late 1970s were a fascinating time for music. Where else could you have country songs, heavy rock, disco, r'n'b, electro-pop, jazz, and even novelty songs top the charts? Only the 70s, baby! Now, as we hurtle toward 50 years after their release, the Great Pop Culture Debate wants to determine the Best Songs of 1978. Songs discussed: “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor, “Le Freak” by CHIC, “Just...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our Patreon-sponsored episode devoted to the Best Song of 1978, as well as walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, January 7, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: https://www.greatpopculturedebate.c...

Most holiday pop songs tend to be joyful, energetic, or heartwarming, summoning nostalgia for the season and evoking what top scientists have defined as “feeling that gingerbread feeling.” But the holiday music canon is also peppered with bizarre little tunes that play up the ridiculous traditions we largely take for granted, or mock the treacly emotionalism of Christmas. While we have covered man...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our 2024 Holiday Special devoted to the best novelty or parody songs about the end-of-the-year holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, Chanukah, etc.), as well as walk you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, December 10, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the...

2024 marks the 35th Anniversary of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation , the third installment in Chevy Chase’s Lampoon films. While the film was initially met with mixed reviews when it was released in December 1989, it has gone on to be considered a holiday classic, delighting audiences from multiple generations. A big part of the appeal is the laugh-a-minute script by 80s cinema icon John Hug...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our 2024 Holiday Special devoted to the best quote from 1989's National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation , and walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, December 3, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: ht...

Bluey , the lovable animated series that debuted in 2018, has captured the hearts of audiences worldwide with its charming characters, heartfelt storytelling, and delightful humor. Recently, the Australian import went on a hiatus of undetermined length, but Bluey fans of all ages are waiting excitedly for the show’s inevitable return. While we wait for new episodes, the Great Pop Culture Debate wa...

Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our Season 10 episode devoted to the best Bluey episode, and walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, November 26, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: https://www.greatpopculturedebate.com/subscribe...