The Pop Break

Alex Marcus

The Pop Break is a collection of podcasts executive produced by Pop Break Director Alex Marcus, featuring the very best conversations about television, film, music, anime, wrestling, and more! This includes weekly pods like Roses & Rejections on Wednesdays, providing coverage of the best of reality dating, as well as new episodes of monthly podcasts like The Anniversary Bros, TV Break, Not Couple Goals, Blerd Watchers, Anime x Pop, Batman By The Numbers, & Bill vs. The MCU every Monday and Friday!

  1. 21 HR AGO

    The Anniversary Brothers Podcast: Static Shock 25th Anniversary

    Aaron and Josh Sarnecky are here to talk about Static Shock for its 25th anniversary. Static Shock is a superhero cartoon based on the Milestone Comics/DC Comics character Static. It premiered on Kids’ WB on September 23, 2000. It ran for 52 episodes and ended on May 22, 2004. It was the first broadcast animation series with an African American as the titular superhero. The series follows high schooler Virgil Hawkins (Phil LaMarr), who through an accident involving mutagenic chemicals gains electromagnetic powers. Also gaining powers are the numerous “Bang Babies” across the city of Dakota, most of which are villainous. As Static, Virgil takes down the Bang Babies, alongside his friend Richie (Jason Marsden), who later becomes to the superintelligent hero Gear. Static’s adversaries include Ebon (Gary Anthony Sturgis) and Hotsteak (Danny Cooksey), as well as Rubberband Man (Kadeem Hardison), who later reforms. The series was nominated for two Daytime Emmys for Outstanding Special Class Animated Program and composer Richard Wolf won an Emmy for the show’s music. Aaron and Josh talk about their past with show before going into the plot, characters, animation, and crossovers with the wider DC Animated Universe. They also discuss the show’s legacy and the possibility of a new cartoon or Static movie.  For another podcast on a superhero cartoon, listen to Aaron and Josh’s podcast on Teen Titans. Static Shock is available for purchase on Prime Video.

    1h 7m
  2. 4 DAYS AGO

    Anime x Pop: Demon Slayer Dominates, Spy x Family Returns, and My Hero Academia Ends

    There’s never a dull moment in the world of anime and Pop Break is diving right into the action! Join anime enthusiasts Amanda Rivas and Josh Sarnecky as they geek out monthly with dedicated experts and special guests on exciting anime news, trending anime in TV and/or movies, and anime recommendations spanning different genres that everyone should be watching. If you are a lifelong anime lover or taking the initial leap into the genre that has something for everyone, this is the podcast for you! Join us as we assume our secret identities and meet with Pop Break TV Editor Avani Goswami to take on a classified mission that will protect world peace.  Our enthusiasts take a stroll through the anime content minds to discuss favorite series they’ve been watching recently, including Amanda’s recommendations of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes and Betrothed to My Sister's Ex; Josh's recommendations of The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity, My Dress Up Darling, and Perfect Blue; and Avani's animated series recommendations of The Owl House, Over the Garden Wall, and Knights of Guinevere. Avani also shares her tradition of rewatching Death Note during spooky season.  Amanda's recommendations and My Dress Up Darling are found on Crunchyroll, Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity and Death Note are found on Netflix, Knights of Guinevere on Glitch/YouTube, Perfect Blue on YouTube, Amazon Prime and Apple TV, Over the Garden Wall on Amazon Prime, and The Owl House on Disney +.  In Anime News, they discuss the continued success of Demon Slayer, the future of the franchise, and what this means for anime becoming more mainstream. In their feature review section, our enthusiasts discuss the premiere episodes of Spy x Family Season 3 and the final season of My Hero Academia. They talk about their histories with each anime, thoughts on whether these premieres were successful, how My Hero Academia could have generated more buzz entering its final season, and more.

    1h 49m
  3. 6 OCT

    TV Break: October 2025 - Reviews of House of Guinness, The Great British Baking Show, Alien: Earth, & Peacemaker + Who's Buying Warner Bros?

    Welcome to TV Break, where Pop Break’s Podcasts Editor Alex Marcus is joined by editor-in-chief Bill Bodkin, and TV Columnist Josh Sarnecky to talk about the happenings in television. Here’s the format of the show: The Best Thing I Saw on TV Last Month – Alex, Bill, & Josh talk about a show/episode/event they liked from the last month including Hulu’s Alien: Earth, Netflix’s The Great British Baking Show, Roku’s Celebrity Halloween Baking Special, and HBO Max’s Peacemaker Season 2. Newsbreak – This month, they are discussing the news that Warner Bros. Discovery is for sale. They discuss all the potential bidders and consider the wider industry implications of a potential sale.  Streaming Wars– Alex, Bill, & Josh each selected their top streamer of the month. Josh went with crunchyroll on the back of an exciting fall anime slate plus their upcoming theatrical release of Chainsawman and their worldwide box office champ Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle. Meanwhile, Bill showed some love to Peacock now that the NFL is back in season and it has also successfully launched a Love Island spinoff and renewed The Paper for a second season. Finally, Alex gave it to Netflix on the back of a successful fall film festival season, the debut of the second half of Wednesday S2, and Stranger Things hype reaching critical mass. New Series Spotlight – This month we are shining the spotlight on Netflix’s new historical drama The House of Guinness. This series comes from Peaky Blinders’ creator Steven Knight and stars Anthony Boyle, Louis Partridge, Emily Fairn, & Fionn O’Shea as the newly orphaned heirs of the Guinness family brewery dynasty. The series is set in 19th Century Ireland amid social unrest following the death of brewery mogul Sir Benjamin Guinness.

    1h 36m
  4. 4 OCT

    Batman By The Numbers: Peacemaker Season 2 Check In

    There’s arguably no superhero in existence that has been reimagined, redefined, or reinterpreted more than Batman.  No matter how many times he’s been rebooted, audiences are always willing to come back to Gotham City’s greatest defender.  With so much Bat content out there, there’s plenty to dissect, analyze, and of course, rank!  This podcast is dedicated to a surgical evaluation of Batman’s history, with a focus on ranking several topics in the world of Batman, among other classic Bat themes and characters. Join hosts Daniel Cohen, Pop Break’s former Film Editor, and Kris Ingersoll, co-host of the Media/Lit podcast, as they bring on several guests every month to share their passion for the one and only Dark Knight.  From Adam West to Robert Pattinson, no bat stone will be left unturned.  Bottom-line: If you’re a Batman fan, this is required listening. The DCU continues to roll on, as the bat crew turns to TV this month to discuss the return of PEACEMAKER for Season 2!  This is a unique one, as the show still had ties to the old DCEU, or does it???  Yes, we discuss all that, as we break down all first six episodes of this phenomenal show.  FULL SPOILERS! Daniel and Kris are joined by first time guest, Bill George, host of the Should I Go See It Podcast.  They discuss that first episode recap, obviously the new dance sequence, favorite moments, praise John Cena’s performance, and where the show goes from here with two episodes left at the time of recording. The crew also go on plenty of tangents, discussing all things James Gunn and the DCU, and the momentum this universe has right now as a whole. If you’re a fan of this show and need more hype going into the last two episodes, this is the perfect conversation!

    1h 1m

About

The Pop Break is a collection of podcasts executive produced by Pop Break Director Alex Marcus, featuring the very best conversations about television, film, music, anime, wrestling, and more! This includes weekly pods like Roses & Rejections on Wednesdays, providing coverage of the best of reality dating, as well as new episodes of monthly podcasts like The Anniversary Bros, TV Break, Not Couple Goals, Blerd Watchers, Anime x Pop, Batman By The Numbers, & Bill vs. The MCU every Monday and Friday!