What Pop Culture Stuff Are You Thankful For This Year?
Praise for a year that was stuffed.
Happy Thanksgiving!
This year, as with every year, I wanted to reflect a little bit about what I’m thankful for. In particular, I thought it might be worthwhile to think about what we are grateful for in pop culture. I have to head off to set the table shortly but here are a few things off the top of my head.
Star Wars Is Good Again - After years of disillusionment with what Star Wars has become, it took the guy who made Michael Clayton to come in and save it for me. Andor is the best show on TV. It’s an anti-establishment, anti-prison-industrial-complex, anti-cop manifesto that still manages to be a character-driven thrill ride. It’s a miracle that it exists and was released by Disney. I haven’t felt this way about anything Star Wars-related in years and I’m grateful to have it in my life.
Dragons Are Back, Baby - Game of Thrones ended in such a divisive and polarizing way. As someone who had a long-running podcast about it, it was difficult to unpack how I felt about it, and it certainly didn’t make me look forward to a prequel show. House of the Dragon could have gone wrong in a lot of ways but somehow showrunners Miguel Sapochnik and Ryan Condal threaded the needle, reigniting interest in the world of Westeros and delivering a lot of the same shocking moments that we’ve come to expect from this franchise. This was must-watch viewing every Sunday and probably the only show this year that generated “water cooler moments.” A true achievement.
Better Call Saul Ended Well (no spoilers here) - There was no show whose final season I was looking forward to more than Better Call Saul. Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould already created Breaking Bad, one of the best TV shows of all time (with a great series finale to boot). With Better Call Saul, they had a tall order: Satisfyingly tie up loose ends for a guy who had previously been known as a comic relief side character. Somehow, Better Call Saul also stuck the landing with a series finale that honored the show’s main throughline about a decent guy who kept trying (and mostly failing) to do the right thing.
This Year In Horror - This really feels like the year where horror films not only kicked ass at the box office but showed they could continue to innovate and terrify in equal measure. Smile, Barbarian, The Black Phone (and Halloween Ends, if you’re into that sort of thing) all dominated and reminded us that movie theaters are great places to get (safely) frightened with a bunch of strangers.
A Bunch of Movies NOT Made By Major Hollywood Studios - RRR is one of the greatest action films of all time but the online community that’s sprung up around it has been equally fun and delightful. And it’s cliche to say but Everything Everywhere All At Once made me feel seen.
Severance Season 1 - As someone who’s spent years working in the corporate world, I found that Severance perfectly captured the bizarre contradictions and indignities that come with modern working life. Talk about a show that came out of nowhere, Severance was Apple TV+’s first show that I binged in two days. Ben Stiller (who directed many of the episodes) has been quietly doing excellent TV work for years but the way he and showrunner Dan Erickson built the world of Lumon was visually arresting. And the season 1 finale was an all-timer.
Kind Folks On The Internet Letting Me Do What I Do - Finally, I want to conclude by saying: I’m lucky. I’m lucky I get to make a living doing what I do, talking about fun and interesting stuff that happens in our culture with amazing co-hosts. If you’ve enjoyed what I do, there are three ways to support my work: Through my personal Patreon, through The Filmcast Patreon, or through a paid membership at
. I literally wouldn’t be able to continue my work without the support of folks on those pages. If you’re one of them, thank you very much. And if you’re not, and if it’s within your budget, please consider supporting me. Thanks all!Feel free to share what you’re thankful for with everyone in the comments. Hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving!
Stuff I’ve Made
[PAID ONLY] On my personal Patreon page, I do a podcast called “Dave on Dave,” where David Cho helps to provide me business advice on my many online ventures. The latest episode is available now.
[PAID ONLY] Also on my personal Patreon page, I posted a quick reaction to Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.
Over on Decoding TV, Siddhant Adlakha and I discussed the first couple episodes of Welcome to Chippendales on Hulu. Listen/subscribe here.
Also on Decoding TV, Andor concluded its first season this week and Patrick Willems and I have thoughts about it.
I’m thankful that you and your partners in crime have been able to make a go of this listener-supported model and that the great podcasts will keep flowing!
First off, Dave, a big thank you for all your work...especially The Filmcast, which has been a mainstay listen of mine for years now. (No other pod about the movies has quite the combo of intelligent analysis, heartfelt passion for film, and genuine cameraderie among Those Who Talk. You guys are the BEST!)
It’s been a tough goddamn year, in some personal ways for me and some universal ways for all of us who have been living through the ongoing hellishness of our country’s multiple crises. I mean: it’s been a LOT. I try to stay engaged politically (doing what I can to fight for what’s right and good), and to take care of myself and my loved ones as I do my regular job. But I’ve NEEDED to lose myself at times, in watching or listening to stuff...often stuff that I find out about through your recommendations, or things I hear about from from friends, or reviews that I read. I suppose my consumption rate of TV and movies has gone up in alignment with my levels of stress, and I try to be forgiving of myself for this. Frankly, art (both high and low) has kept me going during these perilous times, and I shouldn’t apologize for this.
So here’s a short list of pop culture stuff that has moved me of made me laugh or just gotten me through:
TV - THE LEFTOVERS (I was late to this), DERRY GIRLS S3, BARRY S3, THE DROPOUT, BETTER CALL SAUL S6, STATION ELEVEN, JULIA, THE OLD MAN, THE PATIENT, THE REHEARSAL, THE BABY, reruns of LAW AND ORDER
Movies - EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE (a movie hadn’t knocked me out like that in a long time), PREY, THE WOMAN KING, NOPE, BARBARIAN, FIRE ISLAND, X, TAR, EMERGENCY, THE MENU, and...my annual re-watch of MURIEL’S WEDDING.
Music - new albums from Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello, Weyes Blood, Carsie Blanton, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Miranda Lambert, Big Thief, Samara Joy, Joan Armatrading, Wilco
Thanks again, Dave. Good wishes to you and yours for the year ahead, with many cultural riches yet to be explored.
Matthew in Boston
Twitter (for now): @cdmatthewmurphy
Hive Social: @CDMatthew