Pop Culture Historians

This week, we reach new heights with Sam Raimi’s 2002 SPIDER-MAN! It broke box-office records in 2002 and set the stage for superhero cultural dominance for decades to come, but how does Tobey Maguire’s first run in the suit stack up in 2024? Spoilers: SPIDER-MAN is still spectacular. Listen along as we break down the winding production history as well as explore the question: has anybody done it...

This week, our favorite half-vampire returns in BLADE II and he’s brought Ron Perlman and Guillermo del Toro with him! Topics in this episode include: del Toro’s approach to guiding this sequel, the pros and cons of the action-first ethos, and the Crystal Method.

This week, we begin our next season by diving into the superhero movies of the 2000’s. We start with M. Night Shyamalan’s UNBREAKABLE, a movie that seemed like a relatively big deal in 2000, and somewhat forgotten now. Topics include: the weird peaks and valleys of Shyamalan’s career, the legacy of Bruce Willis and the weird power of the twist ending.

It’s award season over on the Pop Culture Historians this week! Let’s take a look back at Classic Doctor Who Season Five and determine the best and worst it had to offer. Best Guest Star, Worst Special Effect, Best Villain, Season MVP…they’re all up for grabs. Who will win? Listen and find out!

This week, the Pop Culture Historians watch as Classic Doctor Who Season Five ends not with a bang, but with a whimper. Is THE WHEEL IN SPACE as bad as its reputation? Why do the Cybermen hatch from eggs now? Why don’t people just drop-kick those Cybermats? All these questions and more will be explored in this episode!

This week, the Pop Culture Historians find themselves underwater with FURY FROM THE DEEP! Topics include: the relatively recent animation and how the serial loses something in the translation, the departure of a companion and Jimmy’s 2012 Halloween costume.

This week, the Yeti return in THE WEB OF FEAR! Topics include: the awful animation of the missing Episode 3, the joy of seeing Deborah Watling reunite with her father, and the emotionally complicated resolution. Plus…Colonel Lethbridge-Stewart enters the chat!

This week…no, you’re not seeing double. That’s TWO Patrick Troughtons in the six-part THE ENEMY OF THE WORLD. Topics discussed include: Troughton’s double role as the Doctor and the villainous Ramon Salamander, the chilling ending, and the serial’s overall re-evaluation since its episode recovery.

This week, the Pop Culture Historians keep their snow suits on to review THE ICE WARRIORS! Topics include: Peter Barkworth’s incredible guest role, the thematic pull between man and machine, and the serial’s weird cliffhangers.

This week, bundle up because we’re breaking down THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMEN! Is this mostly-missing six-part story better or worse in animation form? How many ways can we mispronounce the name Padmasambhava? Also, can some great stuff at the end mask the fact that much of this serial is…kind of boring? Listen along and find out!

It’s been a bit, but finally the Patrick Troughton Era continues on Pop Culture Historians! We’ve finally reached Season Five, which begins with a classic: the Cybermen have returned! What did we think of this well-regarded four part serial? What makes a Cybermen story different from the Daleks? Did Frazer Hines hit on the producer’s wife? Listen along and find out the answers!

We’re back! Before we dive into Classic Doctor Who Season Five, let’s take a look back at one of the most unique stories of Season Four, THE UNDERWATER MENACE! Topics include: the pros and cons of the new animation, what we can glean from a second watch, the campy brilliance of Joseph Furst, and which version of the story we would recommend to a first time viewer.

This week, we return to reflect on the season that was and hand out awards for our favorite and least favorite moments from the superhero movies of 1996 to 2000! Topics include: the best villain, the most dated reference, the MVP of the back half of the 90’s and…is Pamela Anderson dead? Who are we thinking of?

This week, we conclude our walk through the superhero movies of the 90’s by entering the new millennium! The original X-MEN is lean and narrow in focus, but the themes it explores might be even more relevant now than they were twenty-five years ago. What music star really wanted to be Professor X? Also, who else would have wanted to see a Kathryn Bigelow directed version of this starring Bob Hoski...

This week, we’ve reached 1999’s superhero comedy MYSTERY MEN! A bomb upon its release, this Ben Stiller-led ensemble has become somewhat of a cult classic. But how good is it? Is it too long? Does its mix of comedic styles help or hurt? Who’s the real MVP of this movie? All this and more will be discussed on this week’s episode! Remember: all that glitters is gold.

This week, the Pop Culture Historians reach the top of the fuckin’ food chain! We have reached 1998’s BLADE, arguably the movie that kicked off the current wave of superhero movies that is only now beginning to crest. We discuss Wesley Snipes’ input in the role, some alternate castings for Blade, the show Terriers, as well as the state of vampires in the late 90’s. We promise we don’t even make on...

This week, the Pop Culture Historians put on the suit and break down the pseudo-Spielberg STAR KID! Joseph Mazello jumps from Jurassic Park to Waverly Street to learn all about facing your fears with the help of an alien suit named Cy. We discuss this movie’s aggressive average-ness and decide: is this even a superhero movie?

This week…CAN YOU DIG IT? 1997’s STEEL features Shaq as a metallic Superman, Annabeth Gish as a paraplegic, Judd Nelson in full on autopilot, and Richard Roundtree as a man who lives in a junkyard. What’s not to love? Well…the Pop Culture Historians will definitely let you know.

This week, the Pop Culture Historians go to hell! It’s SPAWN week here, in all its 1997 screensaver CGI glory. Topics include: does John Leguizamo have one funny line? Why did they use real maggots for that pizza scene? How cute is the dog? And, seriously, what happened with the visuals on this one? Make the descent with us!

This week, the day has come. We cover the movie that Kevin Feige has called the most important superhero movie ever made, 1997’s BATMAN AND ROBIN. Is this legendary bomb as bad as its reputation suggests? Is Arnold Schwarzenegger secretly pretty good in this? How checked out is George Clooney? Was Coolio really going to play the Scarecrow in a theoretical BATMAN 5? All these questions and more wil...

Happy Halloween, boos and ghouls. Tonight, in our special bonus episode, we take this All Hallows’ Eve to take a look back at the season that was. We reflect on the higher-than-expected quality of the twelve movies we reviewed this season, we rank them, then decide…should any of them be Essentials?

It’s werewolf week here on Pop Culture Historians as we wrap up our look back at the Classic Universal Monster Sequels! First up, Henry Hull is the WEREWOLF OF LONDON. Does the first werewolf movie of note hold up after all these years? Then, the main event, the crossover event of the 20th century: FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN. Lon Chaney. Bela Lugosi. Who will win? Listen and find out! In betw...

This week, we welcome Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi back to the Universal Monster party in our Frankenstein Sequel Series! First up, SON OF FRANKENSTEIN must live up to the lofty expectations of the previous BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN and must do it without James Whale. Bela Lugosi shines as Ygor but does the rest of the movie live up? Next, we rank our favorite Halloween commercials during our Intermi...

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 Hallo...

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...