Pop Culture Diner

It may be bleak in Bacheor nation, but hey, we have a JILLY BOX to open! It's a summer of pickleball and us figuring out what topics we'lll cover next. Tune in soon, we have SOME plans, we swear! 

Is this the last episode of Rose Plate Special ever? Tune in to find out! We talk Taylor Fankie Paul, the Mormon wives, a little Bravo news, and compare the TFP situation with what Rachel Lindsey covers in her book, Miss Me With That.

We're back! Did you miss us!  Another season of The Bachelorette is looming on the horizon (and it's MORMON and on SUNDAYS), but until that arrives, we have something else to share with you - our latest Jilly Box!  Join us on YouTube to see the box in all its glory, or just listen to us and imagine what the items are. We'll be back soon with a talk about Rachel Lindsay's book, Miss Me Wi...

We've got another special episode for you, this time featuring the Winter 2025 Jilly Box! That's right, tariffs be damned, we got the Jilly Box! This one will be better in video form, so if you usually give us a listen, seek us out on YouTube or something, why don't you?  Next week, we'll be covering at least 2, if not more, Christmas Carol-related movies. Did you know there are 247 of them?&...

Another crossover episode and another gentle reminder that we will be publishing some episodes like this with other friends as well on thehorrors.co in the coming months. Keep an eye on that space and we will send more details as we have them! Thehorrorsdotco on all social media pages as well!  If you want to hear us babble, start from the beginning. For The Network overview, start at 30 min...

Quick edit: At 28 min, Sammi says "The Sound of Music." She meant "Singing in the Rain."  In light of the recent censorship on behalf of ABC/Disney, we decided it was a good time to talk about some important movies and other pieces related to censorship and the media. Yes, we will likely return to Bachelor Nation, but not right now! For the time being, consider this a crossover episode into a...

We are just as messy with our notes (OK, Sammi is) as the Mormon Wives are with their friendships. We talk about the middle of the second season of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives while we unbox the last (for now) Jilly Box from Fall 2025. Sad days, but warm vibes from that scalloped baking tray. 

This one sat in the drafts for a second, friends. SO sorry! Blame Sammi and her first week back to school.  So, not all our predictions were correct, but one thing is for sure: Nobody on this show thought much about game theory. OR, maybe they think more about being perceived as a villain in this age of social media scrutiny? Well, either way, we're onto the new season in just a few short wee...

Believe it or not, we recorded this a couple of days ago, but Sammi is still in recovery mode, getting back into the swing of things after her surgery, so be PATIENT! If you are curious about the cozy games Sammi talks about, they are available here: Discounty Tiny Bookshop  Also here's more info on Sean's dad, you can look it up yourself . We didn't get too much into the ALLEGED scandals.&nb...

We've done lots of yapping, per usual, so let's cut to the chase. If you want to start witih the episode recap itself, go to that 10-minute mark.  Here are some of the things we talk about this week:  Alexe's statement What rendezvous means   Clayton's cringe post  The origin of his cringe post (we don't really get into, but it obviously came from what Rachel said)  We als...

What will happen now that the tables have turned and the couples are playing for love or money? We sure hope something juicy, because that's why we're here!   This episode, we cover Jonathon in the perpetual friendzone with everyone, Jeremy getting a bad edit (or maybe just making really bad choices), and Brian just being the worst.   Some random things we bring up in the episo...

OMG, officially Season 20 of the show! Did you think we'd miss it? We cover the first four episodes of Paradise, so you get a LOT of disjointed content. Here are the TikToks Sammi talked about in the episode. For the payoff, you'll have to listen all the way to the end! Have You Ever Had a Krispy Kreme?  Krispy Kreme Explainer

So sorry to be so late on this, so we'll make it brief! Paradise is coming and so are more episodes, but Sammi's computer epically failed in this episode, so you're going to hae to wait a little bit, OK? But enjoy this for now! 

We're back before Paradise with some special episodes!! You loved our Season 1 recap of the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, so all summer, we're gonna give you a recap, two episodes at a time. Here are some of the videos and channels Sammi mentioned during the episode, for people who like deep dives into Mormonism and Christian fundamentalism:  Fundie Fridays - honestly the best channel on YouT...

Nights like this don't come around too often! We are locked in and ready to talk about the Bachelor finale. How did we feel about Litia's parting words? What's our take on the upcoming Bachelor in Paradise season? Tune in to find out! Some resources from the video: The Vulture article , attachment styles video , and Grant's guilty counts . Enjoy! 

Listen, this episode is more unhinged than normal. Sammi's got a cold and just finished speaking for four hours straight, only to come to this jam-packed episode. We've got The Women Tell All, the Fantasy Suites, and a very delayed JILLY BOX! You won't want to miss Sammi's coughing fit as Steve throws her for an absolute loop when suggesting what nail designs she should get next. 

We're in hometowns already, and there were some clear standouts, and one...not so much. We take a lot of off-ramps on this episode, including warning our audience against accidentally falling into alt-right pipelines, how Sammi was right about Hannah Berner (VINDICATION), and teasing a fturue store review!  For those following along at home, the Jilly Boxes are still delayed in transit. Sniff...

We're in Scotland! Adn the outlook is perhaps dreich (am I using that right?). The women are focused on their enemy of the last two weeks, Carolina, but we think she's 100% in the right. Controversial opinion? Maybe!! But at least she isn't promoting her music career.  Check out the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPujIV2irvs  

This week, we get confirmation from Sammi's mom about all of her wild stories, plus we talk about this week's episode, I guess. It was a frustrating watch for both of us, mainly because we can't figure out what the drama is about, exactly. Carolina being honest? We just need a villain, huh? Anyway, go follow us on Bluesky so we have more than 3 followers, k love you byeee

Is there drama in the house, or is everyone just tired and dealing with GI issues? Someone will have to write a tell-all like Courtney for us to know for sure, but what we DO know is that for these women, emotions are running high.  We talk about kid logic, appendectomies, Daytrader, and you know, whatever else we want, like normal. Stick around until the end for our take on Tyler Cameron's l...

Are they crisis bangs or just cute bangs? You'll have to watch our video to know for sure! On this episode, we talk about the one-sided beef between Allie Jo and Zoe, the continued domination of Chloie and Zoe, and how Grant is maybe the best singer so far in Bachelor Nation!

We are SO back! This may be the very first season with all unique first names, no last initial required, and we are loving it! In this episode, we talk about Insomnia Cookies, our ongoing beef with Illinois, body glitter, and the Jane Goodall of hot girls.  Here's an old Jane Goodall of Hot Girls article , and the Tell the Bees take on the Matt & Rachael breakup. (Also, to be fair, we had...

Before we hit the next season of The Bachelor, we give you one more bonus episode: Season 1 of the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. First off, for more great LDS commentary, check out Jordan and McKay , the best in the game. In this episode, we talk about the season, Nickelodeon, weird Wisconsin stuff, our desire to try Swig, and more. Are we team Whitney or team Taylor? You probably already know, bu...

It only took us 2 years, but we finally did it! Here's our long-awaited, VERY deep dive of Courtney Robertson's book, I Didn't Come Here to Make Friends . It is jam-packed, but we  strongly recommend reading the book and revisiting the season for more context.  And, here's Ben's Cream Dream video . Watch at your own risk.

Another season has wrapped, and the first Golden Bachelorette season is behind us! While it was a very obvious episode, it was still nice seeing Joan get a happy ending. We hope it continues for many years to come. We talk a little bit about some future special episodes coming, news from The Onion, and how we feel about Grant's season. See you a few times over winter break and then again in late J...