In Case You Missed It: March 20 – April 2, 2016–The Site That Wouldn’t Die

By Less Lee Moore

You can’t kill us; we’re already undead.

At Popshifter, sometimes shit happens. And when it does, we soldier on.

We’re sad to lose one of our favorite writers, Laury Scarbro, this week. She’s just got too much going on in her non-Internet life and must take a hiatus.

We’re also sad to see another one of our fave writers take a hiatus: Jeffery X Martin has a new writing job (Yay! Congratulations!) that’s taking up most of his time these days and so he won’t be around as much as he used to.

These two departures mean that some of our content will be disappearing: the daily Today In Pop Culture column and our weekly recaps of Outsiders. I thought it best to let you know what was going on in case you wondered why they suddenly disappeared.

That said, if anyone would like to pick up the mantle of Today In Pop Culture or finish the rest of the season of Outsiders (four more episodes), I would gladly welcome your contributions.

And now, to the news!

Brad Henderson went to SXSW and all he got was a case of food poisoning. OK, he also saw some good movies, too, one of them being the Hicksploitation throwback My Father, Die. Not so good was recent home video release Intruders, which was a missed opportunity that I wish I had missed. You can always go back to 1977 and watch Count Dracula, the BBC production of Bram Stoker’s Dracula starring Louis Jourdan, though, which I revisted in this month’s Frightful Flashback on Rue Morgue. You can also read my examination of the nature of evil as told through three different interpretations of witches on Everything Is Scary, those being Penny Dreadful, The Witch, and The Devils. By the way, happy one-year anniversary to Everything Is Scary where we do the responsible thing and contemplate the void every week.

The small screen is exploding these days! Besides new episodes of The Walking Dead, Broad City, and WGN’s Outsiders, Netflix has just premiered the second season of Daredevil, which Tim gives high marks, and Trailer Park Boys’ tenth season, which Tyler will be covering over the next week or so.

Whenever someone complains that there isn’t any good music these days, you just send them over to Popshifter, OK?

Besides the latest (and hopefully not the last) Iggy Pop album Post Pop Depression (which is awesome); there’s also Robbie Fulks’s Upland Stories, which Melissa describes as “exquisite;” West Of Here, the sophomore release from The Currys; and a trio of excellent—and very different—albums from women-fronted bands: Davina and the Vagabonds, Margo Price, and Bleached.

HHBTM has been putting out some quality music lately, including the punky Versus album from Eureka California and the retro yet timeless Crystal Café from Witching Waves. But if you enjoy “kick-ass, groove-heavy, instrumental synth-rock unit inspired by 1970s and ’80s horror movie soundtracks,” you might enjoy Wolfmen of Mars’ latest, DANGER! PERIL! THREAT!

Tim takes a look back at Sepultura’s Roots album, while I take a look forward at a couple of new videos: “Phantom Freighter” from the sci-fi, industrial-influenced Pop. 1280 and “Hey Girl (I Wanna Be Your Man)” from shoegazers Dirty Sidewalks.

Finally, Brian Baker chatted with actress Karen Allen at the recent Toronto ComiCon and she had some things to say about that upcoming Indiana Jones movie.

Until next week, Popshifter fans!

TV Review: Broad City S3 E06, “Philadelphia”

By Sachin Hingoo

Philadelphia, or rather the suburb of Wayne, is the hometown of both the on-screen and the real-life Abbi and is our setting for the episode. Broad City has always couched its identity in its portrayal of New York, as viewed through the weed-haze of Abbi and Ilana’s misadventures, as a character in and of itself. It leans heavily on urban culture—city-specific concepts like pop-up shops, pretentious art shows, and bodega breakfast sandwiches.

Well, not this time. Broad City’s journey into West (of) Philly manages to be a bizarre little slice of Abbi’s suburban life, and also somehow a twisted, and one might say unnecessary, dressing-down of JonBenet Ramsey. Uh, let’s circle back to that last thing.

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TV Review: Broad City S3 E05, “2016”

By Sachin Hingoo

“Abbi. Hello. Proud Demo-crat. College. Aquarius. I pegged.”–Abbi

It’s one of the biggest weeks in Broad City’s entire run so far, and one that’s unlikely to be topped for quite some time. In addition to the announcement that the show will have an entry in the Tribeca Film Festival’s TV section, this week’s show features their most high-profile guest star yet, even in an episode packed with cameos. All eyes are on our girls, and these kweens won’t leave us hanging.

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In Case You Missed It: March 6 – 12, 2016–Divorced Dad & Deadly Whales

By Less Lee Moore

Iggy Pop has a new album out March 18, along with Northless, Lust For Youth, and Soft Fangs. There’s also the Wayfaring Strangers compilation and a reissue of Haircut 100’s Pelican West.

It’s time to spring forward with pop culture news.

Tyler Hodg has finished watching all 13 episodes of Fuller House on Netflix and we’ve got the reviews to prove it. What’s the verdict? Is the show good, bad, or somewhere in between? You’ll have to read to find out.

Sean S. Baker’s film Tangerine, filmed on an iPhone and focusing on the life and struggles of a transgender sex worker, is currently on Netflix, but you should also check out his short film Snowbird.

Divorced Dad may not be on Netflix (yet), but it’s something you should see. Here’s the problem: it’s not available yet! The new webseries from the Astron-6 collective (Manborg, Father’s Day, The Editor) is still seeking funding to finish the series, but for now, here’s a teaser trailer. (P.S. I’ve seen the rough cuts of a couple of episodes and I laughed until I thought I was going to throw up. It’s that weird and funny.)

At Popshifter, we watch TV so that we can talk about it, then you can read about it, and you can then feel better about all those thoughts you’re having and feelings you’re feeling. This week, we’ve got two episodes of Broad City, and while “Rat Pack” may not be as tight as “Game Over,” the show continues to be one of the funniest on TV. Outsiders finally gives us the character development we’ve been waiting for, while The Walking Dead gives us welding, crying, but still no sign of Negan.

New music reviews this week include the deep freeze of Northless’s Cold Migration EP, the emotionally raw yet gorgeous Let A Lover Drown You from Penny & Sparrow, a preview of Soft Fangs’ The Light (out on March 18), and one you might have missed: Voivod’s Post Society EP.

There were lots of movies to think about this week. Ron Howard’s tribute to Jaws and Moby Dick, In The Heart Of The Sea, hit home video this week and while Jeffery thought it was a beautiful waste of time, I had more positive thoughts on the film. Arrow Video’s American Horror Project Volume One, however, left no doubts in Tim’s mind: it’s a must-see, must-own box set.

We all have that one friend who hasn’t seen those iconic classic films that everyone else has already seen. At Unicorn Booty, that person is Matt Baume. Witness his reaction to his first viewing of Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure. You might also enjoy his liveblog of the first time he watched Hackers.

It’s OK to admit that you are a fan of Archie Comics. If you haven’t been keeping up with the students at Riverdale High out of a lack of time or fear of public shaming, there has been some news. Did you know that Jughead came out? He’s not gay, but… well, you should read about the full details for yourself. Also on the Archie news front is this fascinating podcast called Radio Free Riverdale hosted by Torontonians Lucy Cappiello and Evan Munday. This week’s episode features the podcast’s first ever special guest, comedian Adam Wilson.

In other comics news, Marvel seems to be making greater strides towards gender inclusion. Here’s our own Laury Scarbro with some thoughts on what this might mean for the future of comics.

What happened this week on Today In Pop Culture? Frankenstein, The Incredible Hulk, Barbie movies, The Fillmore, and songs about telephones.

TV Review: Broad City S3 E04, “Rat Pack”

By Sachin Hingoo

“The Rat Pack! With Fred Sinatra! And they’d sing acapella and watch each other fuck!”–Ilana

A rat infestation in your apartment is certainly both a common and disgusting problem to have, but Broad City treats this as a catastrophic event that upends Ilana’s entire life and serves as the catalyst for a medium-sized and hilariously low-rent party. Though we see our titular rodent stealing weed, ruining Lincoln’s masterpiece of a sandwich, and chewing through Jaime’s clothes, ultimately Ilana learns that she has more in common with her unwanted visitor than she realizes.

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TV Review: Broad City S3 E03, “Game Over”

By Sachin Hingoo

“Total transparency: I spent most of the day coloring in my tummy.”–Ilana

There’s been no more enduring question on Broad City than, “What would it take for Ilana to get fired from her job?” This week, that question was finally answered. The first two seasons of the show had Ilana managing to miraculously hold onto her job at an online group deals business, mostly thanks to her ability to steamroll Todd, her meek and easily-cowed boss. Though it seems that Ilana can’t possibly get fired for any of her behavior, regardless of how outrageous, it seems wearing a dog hoodie to the office and tweeting out a hardcore bestiality video on the company’s Twitter account seems to have finally done the trick.

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In Case You Missed It: February 21 – 27, 2016–Cults, Conspiracy Theories & More

By Less Lee Moore

Let’s get things started with some OMGWTFLOL and a short history of women throwing their tampons at you.

Do you like Charles Manson? Sure, we all do! Popshifter’s latest podcast is available now and it’s full of commentary on The Veil, The Sacrament, Lana Del Rey, and other cult-related ephemera.

Check it out here.

The tenth season of The X-Files ended this week and the Internet hivemind was not exactly pleased. Read what Jeffery X Martin thought of each of the six episodes.

Still not satisfied? FINE. Here’s my take on Season 10.

Full House is back! Well, sort of. Tyler takes on the first three episodes of Fuller House, the reboot that everyone/no-one wanted. Commiserate with Laury on The Walking Dead and Outsiders, and laugh with Sachin about Lucha Underground and Broad City.

The Oscars air on Sunday and while everyone’s been buzzing about #OscarsSoWhite, let’s not forget that they aren’t exactly queer-friendly, either. Here are 5 unfortunate truths about LGBT diversity in Hollywood, plus a scathing assessment of the industry’s transphobia from nominee and transgender musician Anohni.

There is a lot of music news this week, and Unicorn Booty has you covered on NOW HEAR THIS! Learn all about the need for the #FreeKesha movement, Santigold’s latest album, and more.

Looking for some new music? May we suggest Santigold, Emitt Rhodes, Bill Carter, Golden Daze, or Wolfmother?

On the movie front: Tim Murr wonders why 1988’s Alien Nation doesn’t have a proper Blu-Ray edition, Jeffery X Martin wanders down the darkly humorous path of disenfranchisement with Criterion’s new release of The Graduate and calls Creed “one hell of a movie.” If you live in Canada, you can check out the new CBC documentary Girls’ Night Out, which discusses the sobering personal cost of binge-drinking.

What happened this week on Today In Pop Culture? The RMS Britannic, Lawrence Welk, Nazis, Tootsie Rolls, and clones.

TV Review: Broad City, S3 E02, “Co-Op”

By Sachin Hingoo

“Each [butthole] has a soul. An ass soul.”–Ilana

Do I even need to go on?

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TV Review: Broad City S3 E01, “Two Chainz”

By Sachin Hingoo

It takes approximately zero minutes for the third season premiere of Broad City to scream, with all the unhinged joy of a Kelly Ripa girls night, that BFFs Abbi and Ilana haven’t missed a beat and that the shit is on.

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Top 10 Things That Made Me Happy In 2015: Melissa Bratcher

By Melissa Bratcher

As it is every year, my Top 10 is a mix of things: music, TV, movies and one experience that rises above all others. While 2015 isn’t quite over, and awesome things might still happen, these are things I keep coming back to.

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