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Pretty Much Pop: A Culture Podcast

A philosopher, an actor, and a sci-fi writer talk about media and how we consume it.

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Comedy

PMP#87: Female Buddy Comedies w/ Erica’s Female Buddy Micah Greene

April 1, 2021 by Mark Leave a Comment

The buddy comedy is a staple of American film, but using this to explore female friendship is still fresh ground. Erica, Mark, Brian, and Erica's long-time friend Micah Greene (actor and nurse) discuss tropes and dynamics within this kind of film, focusing primarily on Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, the 2021 release written and starring Kristin Wiig and Annie Mumolo as a … [Read more...] about PMP#87: Female Buddy Comedies w/ Erica’s Female Buddy Micah Greene

PMP#74: Micro Comedy w/ Tiffany Topol

December 22, 2020 by Mark 1 Comment

What has the Internet done to comedy? Does removing gatekeepers mean a more distributed comic landscape, or does it inevitably end with a small number of comics dominating the world? The Internet means that people can and do judge comics based on very short clips, but also makes it easy to follow the activities of someone you discover that you like. Tiffany comes not from … [Read more...] about PMP#74: Micro Comedy w/ Tiffany Topol

PMP#71: Rap Battles w/ Sacrifice (Tyler Hislop)

December 2, 2020 by Mark 3 Comments

Mark, Erica, and Brian are rejoined by our audio editor Tyler to discuss a form of entertainment close to his heart: Priming the rhymes to deliver the crimes: an attack on the character, caring not what-you-wear, anywhere, hug-a-bear... man, battle rap is difficult! So what are the rules? How does modern battle rap compare to free-styling and the beefs aired on rap albums … [Read more...] about PMP#71: Rap Battles w/ Sacrifice (Tyler Hislop)

PMP#70: RISKy Confessional Comedy w/ Kevin Allison

November 24, 2020 by Mark 3 Comments

Kevin was in the infamous sketch comedy group The State but has since channeled his energies into giving, curating, and coaching personal stories via his stage show and podcast RISK! He joins your hosts Mark, Erica, and Brian to discuss this idiosyncratic form: Do the stories have to be funny? Can you change things? What's the relation to autobiographical, humorous essays a la … [Read more...] about PMP#70: RISKy Confessional Comedy w/ Kevin Allison

PMP#67: Borat Pod Show! Very Nice! With Aaron David Gleason

November 4, 2020 by Mark Leave a Comment

Let's stop obsessing about election matters and consider instead a clown who brings out racism in rubes. Mark, Erica, Brian, and musician/actor Aaron consider the comedy of Sacha Baron Cohen, especially the new Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, which you should definitely go watch before listening, unless it's the kind of thing that so repulses you that you'll never watch it, in … [Read more...] about PMP#67: Borat Pod Show! Very Nice! With Aaron David Gleason

PMP#65: Cosmic Satire w/ “Bill & Ted” Writer Chris Matheson

October 21, 2020 by Mark Leave a Comment

Chris Matheson has written a bunch of comic movies and has converted religious texts into funnier books on three occasions, most recently with The Buddha's Story. Mark, Erica, and Brian talk with him about what unifies these projects: Why the big ideas of science fiction, fantasy, religion, and philosophy are begging in a similar way to be made fun of.  We get into the … [Read more...] about PMP#65: Cosmic Satire w/ “Bill & Ted” Writer Chris Matheson

PMP#54: The Genius(?) of Rick and Morty

July 29, 2020 by Mark Leave a Comment

Mark, Erica, and Brian address the 4-season 2013 Adult Swim show (which has 94% on Rotten Tomatoes). What kind of humor is it, and how are we supposed to take its sci-fi and family drama elements? While its concepts start as parody, with an anything-goes style of animation, they're creative and grounded enough to actually contribute to multiple genres. How smart is the show, … [Read more...] about PMP#54: The Genius(?) of Rick and Morty

PMP#47: Sitcom Premises: Genius, Bonkers and Otherwise

June 9, 2020 by Mark Leave a Comment

Sitcoms provide a form of escapism that doesn't take one to a magical world of possibility, but instead to a basically unchanging, cozy environment with relatable characters engaged in low-stakes conflicts. So what are the limits on the type of premise that can ground a sitcom? While most of the longest lasting sitcoms have simple set-ups involving friends or co-workers, … [Read more...] about PMP#47: Sitcom Premises: Genius, Bonkers and Otherwise

PMP#45: Film Riffing with MST3K’s Mary Jo Pehl

May 27, 2020 by Mark 1 Comment

We live in a commentary culture with much appreciation for camp and snark, but something special happened in the early '90s when Mystery Science Theater 3000 popularized this additive form of comedy, where jokes are made during a full-length or short film. Mary Jo Pehl was a writer and performer on MST3K and has since riffed with fellow MST3K alums for Rifftrax and Cinematic … [Read more...] about PMP#45: Film Riffing with MST3K’s Mary Jo Pehl

PMP#31: Robin Williams’ Celebrity Struggles w/ Dave Itzkoff

February 12, 2020 by Mark Leave a Comment

Dave the New York Times culture reporter joins Mark, Erica, and Brian to consider issues raised by his 2018 biography Robin: What is with our f'ed up relation to celebrity, and what are strategies that celebrities use to deal with that asymmetric relationship to the world? While Robin Williams tried, in gratitude, to share himself with random fans, and was very anxious about … [Read more...] about PMP#31: Robin Williams’ Celebrity Struggles w/ Dave Itzkoff

PMP#20: Improv Comedy w/ Tim Sniffen

November 19, 2019 by Mark Leave a Comment

What role does improv comedy play in popular culture? It shows up in the work of certain film directors (like Christopher Guest, Adam McKay, and Robert Altman) and has surfaced in some of the TV work of Larry David, Robin Williams, et al. But only in the rare case of a show like Whose Line Is It Anyway? is the presence of improvisation obvious. So is this art form doomed to … [Read more...] about PMP#20: Improv Comedy w/ Tim Sniffen

PMP#17: Comedy as Philosophy w/ Daniel Lobell

October 29, 2019 by Mark Leave a Comment

Are stand-up comedians the Modern Day Philosophers? This claim forms the premise of Daniel's podcast where interviews some of our best known and loved comedians, but really, only some comedians are trying to express original views on the world instead of just telling a good joke. Even so, do the words of comics telling their truth or pronouncing sentence on the world count as … [Read more...] about PMP#17: Comedy as Philosophy w/ Daniel Lobell

PMP#3: CONFORM w/ Yakov Smirnoff

July 23, 2019 by Mark 2 Comments

Is media trying to brainwash us into being ALL THE SAME? Are the excesses of the mob scaring us into conformity? And does this in turn keep us from being actually creative, with healthy relationships? Mark, Erica, and Brian muse on cultural homogenization and a few sci-fi takes on forced sameness and then bring out our first celebrity guest, beloved comedian and now … [Read more...] about PMP#3: CONFORM w/ Yakov Smirnoff

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What is Pretty Much Pop?

On Pretty Much Pop, a philosopher, an actor, and a sci-fi writer (often with entertainment industry guests) talk about media and how we consume it: TV, film, music, novels, games, comics, comedy, theater, podcasts, and more. Most of what (other) people like is pretty weird when you think about it, so thinking about it is what we do.

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