The Watchers

This week on The Watchers, Jodie and Andrea are back in the kitchen for our full Season 4 recap of The Bear . From standout episodes to side character gold, we’re breaking down what worked, what wobbled, and what we’re still thinking about. Plus, we hand out our Season 4 Superlatives, including Best Richie Line, Best Fak Moment, Biggest Cry, and more. And of course, we share our hopes, dreams, and...

This week on The Watchers , Jodie and Andrea are talking about Harold and Maude, Hal Ashby’s unconventional romance that’s become a cult classic, an aesthetic touchstone, and (maybe?) the origin story of the manic pixie dream girl. We get into: why Maude might be the blueprint for the trope, and why she also transcends it. Why Harold is relatable to those of us who might delight in our melancholy,...

A show where two from Jersey’s distant ends watch goonies, girls, class presidents unglued. From clueless cliques to matricidal friends, now 90s Romeo comes neon-hued. We trace the plot through fish tank, fire, and storm, sing praises for our queen, Mercutio, who dances on the screen in perfect form. No man more grave than Harold Perrineau. Our tragic teens, Danes and DiCaprio, a letter meant to s...

This week on The Watchers , we’re heading to True Directions and diving deep into the 1999 cult classic But I’m a Cheerleader. We talk about Jamie Babbit’s queer filmmaking roots, RuPaul out of drag, and the Barbie dreamscape of repression and resistance. Plus: what But I'm a Cheerleader can teach us about camp, queer longing, and the limits of satire. Don’t miss next week’s episode on Baz Luhrman...

This week on The Watchers , Jodie and Andrea revisit Election , Alexander Payne’s dark, hilarious, and deeply cynical take on high school democracy. We get into the film’s multiple narrators, shifting POVs, and why it still feels so sharp 25 years later. From Tracy Flick’s overachieving rage to Jim McAllister’s petty unraveling, we trace how the film breaks down ambition, morality, and why, in 202...

This week on The Watchers , Jodie and Andrea are heading to North Shore High to take on Mean Girls , a defining entry in the canon of girlhood, but one we both struggled with more than expected. We get into what makes the movie mean , what it gets wrong that Clueless gets so right, and how it lands in 2025, when girlhood is messier, more public, and more scrutinized than ever. Next week, we’re rev...

This week, Jodie and Andrea are covering Amy Heckerling’s 1995 teen rom-com, Clueless . It’s the hyperstylized, deceptively smart, deeply girly ’90s take on Emma that shaped a generation. We get into makeover culture, some casual narratology, teen magazine aesthetics, ska music, why Cher’s makeover actually fails, and how Wallace Shawn is honestly perfect. Plus, Andrea gives a breakdown of the elu...

This week, Andrea and Jodie are talking Dazed and Confused , Richard Linklater’s attempt at an anti-nostalgia movie about the last day of school. We get into the vibes, the music, what makes the meandering plot work, and why, as adults, the hazing hits a little harder and the movie feels meaner than we remembered. Still, it’s a hangout classic with killer needle drops and a cast full of future sta...

Hello, you’ve reached the winter of our discontent. Andrea and Jodie watched Reality Bites . Written by Helen Childress and directed by Ben Stiller, it’s the 1994 Gen X anthem that follows a group of post-college friends trying to figure out life, love, and how to afford rent in Houston. We dig into Gen X authenticity, that killer soundtrack, and the irony (we know it when we see it) of a movie ab...

This week, Andrea and Jodie are watching Party Girl . It’s got Parker Posey at her most iconic, inspirational '90s fashion, and a soundtrack that still holds up. We’re talking about the New York City club kid scene, the film’s matter-of-fact diversity, and why it feels so good to see libraries treated with the respect they deserve. Next week, we’re watching Reality Bites . It’s a little more strai...

This week, we’re heading underground with The Goonies , a film that defined childhood adventure for a generation. Andrea and Jodie revisit the 1985 classic to talk about why it still resonates, what it gets right about the danger and chaos of being a kid, and how its genre-hopping captures the wild, rule-breaking energy of childhood itself. We’re also unpacking some of the more complicated stuff,...

Jodie and Andrea are kicking off our new movie series with Heavenly Creatures , not just Melanie Lynskey’s film debut, but a true crime story that’s full of themes that Yellowjackets keeps circling: queerness, violence, fantasy, and the messy emotional world of teenage girls. It’s also directly referenced in the show’s original pitch deck, making it the perfect place to start. Next week, we’re div...

Well, that’s another season of Yellowjackets under our belts. Now that we’ve had a little time to digest the finale, Andrea and Jodie are back to wrap up Season 3. We’re clarifying some of the more complex moments from “Full Circle,” breaking down cast reactions, sharing some of our listeners’ comments and questions, and finally (finally!) Andrea takes us to Theory Corner for her long-threatened b...

Shuffle up and deal! Jodie and Andrea watched “Full Circle,” the Season 3 finale of Yellowjackets , and the hunt, as they say, is officially on. In the wilderness, it’s a hazy shade of winter, Van’s got a long way to go if she wants to be the next Ricky Jay, and we say goodbye to a real one. In the present, Tai prioritizes a protein-rich diet. Callie must have been absent the day everyone else lea...

The Watchers recently hit the 100-episode milestone. For two years, Jodie’s been covering the North Jersey angle, and Andrea’s been holding it down for South Jersey. So we figured it was finally time to bring in someone to represent Central Jersey. In this bonus episode, Jodie and Andrea had the absolute honor of sitting down with Yellowjackets co-creator Ashley Lyle (I know, right!?!), a proud Je...

So long, Astoria. Jodie and Andrea watched “How the Story Ends” episode nine of season three of Yellowjackets. Let's get into it. In the wilderness, Travis is setting booty traps. Hannah feels like she’s babysitting, except she’s not getting paid. And Kodiak gets his One-Eyed Willy on.  In the present, it’s our time down here (i.e. Virginia). Shauna’s in the clouds and Tai is in a basement. A...

You better chow down, or it’s gonna get cold. Andrea and Jodie watched “A Normal, Boring Life,” episode eight of season three of Yellowjackets , and we’re ready to dig in. In the wilderness, we won’t have to go back if we never leave. Our soccer team makes some new friends, and Travis proves he’s a true feminist. In the present, Jeff throws his wife under the bus. Tai unleashes every Jersey girl’s...

Hop to it, folks! Jodie and Andrea watched “Croak,” episode seven of season three of Yellowjackets , and there’s a lot to talk about. In 1996, someone gave Jeff Winger a crossbow, and thank the dirt for that. The girls play “The Most Dangerous Game” (which just so happens to be their favorite game), and Lottie makes a new squishy friend. In 2021, it’s time for another road trip, and we’ve got all...

This episode of The Watchers is a meaty one, but we just had so much to sink our teeth into. Check the timestamps down below if you want to know what we talk about when. Jodie and Andrea watched “Thanksgiving (Canada)” episode six of season three of Yellowjackets , and we really get into it. In 1996, it must be sweeps week because Ben’s Pen Friends gets a major cast shake-up. There’s a wild new ep...

Got any cheeeese? Jodie and Andrea watched “Did Tai Do That?” episode five of season three of Yellowjackets , and we’re here to break it all down. In 1996, Van helps Tai embrace her wild side. For Akilah, though, it’s just another night, another dream, another vision of Ben, he’s here to . . . be the bridge? Hey, call Weird Al if you want a perfect parody. In 2021, Mr. Matthews gets a visit from t...

All rise! Jodie and Andrea watched “12 Angry Girls and One Drunk Travis,” episode four of season three of Yellowjackets , and we’re breaking it all down for you. In 1996, the whole damn soccer team is out of order. Misty makes a lucid, intelligent, well thought-out objection. And Shauna can’t handle the truth. In 2021, Tai and Van go on a big city adventure, Shauna visits every food service worker...

Okay, so one time Andrea promised to never release an episode of The Watchers longer than the episode of Yellowjackets we’re reviewing. But if this show has taught us anything, it’s that women from Jersey simply can’t be trusted. Jodie and Andrea watched “Them's the Brakes,” episode three of season three of Yellowjackets , and we’ve got a lot to say about it. In 1996, Ben and Mari star in our new...

Jodie and Andrea are kicking off Yellowjackets season 3 with a major deep dive into the first two episodes, “It Girl” and “Dislocation.” In the wilderness, we’re talking about Akilah’s Emotional Support Duck, Lottie’s questionable psilocybin therapy credentials, that age-old game, “capture the bone,” whether the DHARMA Initiative left a hatch out in the Canadian woods, and a lot more (like, a LOT...

Jodie and Andrea are back for part two of our Yellowjackets season 3 catch-up. Last week, we looked back at what we know so far. This week, we’re looking ahead. We dive into the trailer, round up the wildest theories, and make our predictions for what’s coming next. Plus, as has become customary, we’re manifesting our dream needle drops for the new season—because what’s Yellowjackets without a kil...

Jodie and Andrea are getting back to our roots as Jersey’s most dedicated Yellowjackets podcast! With Season 3 premiering on February 14th, it’s time to refresh our memories on all the wild ongoings from Seasons 1 and 2. We break down each character’s journey in the teen and adult timelines, recap the biggest reveals, and remind ourselves where things left off in that divisive Season 2 finale. Nex...