Episodes

  • HOT TAKE: Best Whitney Houston Song "So Emotional" vs. "Star-Spangled Banner"

    HOT TAKE: Best Whitney Houston Song "So Emotional" vs. "Star-Spangled Banner"
    Aug 5 2025
    No new episode this week, but we didn't want to leave you lonely. Enjoy this "hot take" argument from our Season 8 episode Best Whitney Houston Song, in which Amma Marfo, Derek Mekita, Gary Jackson, and Eric Rezsnyak debate Whitney's "So Emotional," and her performance of "The Star-Spangled Banner" from the 1991 Super Bowl. Want to hear more from this episode (originally released September 11, 2023)? Click here to listen to the whole thing. Whitney Houston performing "The Star-Spangled Banner" Whitney Houston "So Emotional" music video "RuPaul's Drag Race" Season 9 Finale Lipysnch, Sasha Velour vs. Shea Coulee "So Emotional" For more episodes, blogs, Top 10s, and more, visit our website by clicking here. Make sure to SUBSCRIBE to the show so you don't miss any upcoming episode. CREDITS: Editor: Bob Erlenback Intro/Outro Music: "Dance to My Tune" by Marc Torch #whitneyhouston #whitney #music #popmusic #90smusic #soemotional #nationalanthem #superbowl #rupaulsdragrace #sashavelour #sheacoulee Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    9 mins
  • Best Drinking Song

    Best Drinking Song
    Jul 29 2025
    Musicians have been inspired by alcohol since the days of traveling troubadours. Booze is a loosener of lips, a loosener of hips, and a shared experience for many adults – although respect to our sober brothers and sisters, especially in these challenging times. The summer months in particular have long been associated with adult beverages. Margaritas on the deck. Wine on the beach. A nice cold beer at a barbecue. So for the second of our 2025 Summer Specials, we want to look back at popular songs dedicated to alcohol, or about consuming it, as we debate the Best Drinking Song of all time. Songs discussed: “Red Red Wine” by UB40, “Tubthumping” by Chumbawumba, “Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks, “Shots” by LMFAO feat. Lil Jon, “Tequila” by The Champs, “Margaritaville” by Jimmy Buffett, “Raise Your Glass” by Pink, “Gin & Juice” by Snoop Dogg, “Brass Monkey” by Beastie Boys, “Fireball” by Pitbull, “All I Wanna Do” by Sheryl Crow, “Closing Time” by Semisonic, “Escape (The Pina Colada Song)” by Rupert Holmes, “Rehab” by Amy Winehouse, “TiK ToK” by Kesha, “There’s a Tear in My Beer” by Hank Williams Jr. Join host Eric Rezsnyak and GPCD panelists Andrea Guerrero, Jonny Minogue, and Zack Derby as they discuss 16 of the most popular songs about booze. Play along at home by finding the listener bracket here. Make a copy for yourself, fill it out, and see if your picks match up with ours! For the warm-up to this episode, in which we discuss even more songs about alcohol and drinking that didn’t make the bracket, become a Patreon supporter of the podcast today. Looking for more reasons to become a Patreon supporter? Check out our Top 10 Patreon Perks. Sign up for our weekly newsletter! Subscribe to find out what’s new in pop culture each week right in your inbox! Vote in more pop culture polls! Check out our Open Polls. Your votes determine our future debates! Then, vote in our Future Topic Polls to have a say in what episodes we tackle next. Episode Credits Host: Eric Rezsnyak Panelists: Andrea Guerrero, Jonny Minogue, Zack Derby Producer: Derek Mekita Editor: Eric Rezsnyak Theme Music: “Dance to My Tune” by Marc Torch #summer #drinkingsong #music #popmusic #country #countrymusic #hiphop #garthbrooks #kesha #pitbull #LMFAO #liljon #beastieboys #tequila #wine #pinacolada #fireball #tubthumping #90smusic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    50 mins
  • PREVIEW: Best Drinking Song

    PREVIEW: Best Drinking Song
    Jul 28 2025
    Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our 2025 Summer Special devoted to the best drinking song -- songs about drinking, or about specific alcohols -- and walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, July 29, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes. And if you love pop culture, sign up for our weekly newsletter to keep up on all the new movies, music, and TV shows dropping every week! Click here to learn about all the great perks our Patreon subscribers receive! CREDITS: Intro/outro music: "Dance to My Tune" by Marc Torch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    4 mins
  • Best Summer Blockbuster Movie

    Best Summer Blockbuster Movie
    Jul 15 2025
    Somewhere around the mid-1970s, Hollywood studios realized that the summer months were the perfect launching point for their most-expensive, highest-profile projects. With kids out of school, families needed something to do. The prestigious Oscar-bait timeframe was half a year away. And people welcomed an opportunity to get out of the sun and into a dark, air-conditioned room to watch grown men get eaten by dinosaurs whilst using the toilet, and countless cars exploding for no discernible reason. Billions of dollars have been made by summer blockbusters, and even a few awards have ben won by them. So for the first of our 2025 Summer Specials, we want to look back at those mega-grossing pictures and try to determine the best Summer Blockbuster Film of all time. Movies discussed: Jurassic Park, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Ghostbusters, Grease, Shrek, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, The Dark Knight, The Lion King, Twister, Barbie, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jaws, Independence Day, Iron Man, Back to the Future. Join host Eric Rezsnyak and GPCD panelists Karissa Kloss, Kate Racculia, and Michael Schwarz as they discuss 16 of the most-loved, most-successful movies of all time. Play along at home by finding the listener bracket here. Make a copy for yourself, fill it out, and see if your picks match up with ours! For an extended version of this episode, featuring 20 more minutes of movie discussion, as well as the warm-up in which we discuss even more summer blockbusters that didn’t make the bracket, become a Patreon supporter of the podcast today. Looking for more reasons to become a Patreon supporter? Check out our Top 10 Patreon Perks. Sign up for our weekly newsletter! Subscribe to find out what’s new in pop culture each week right in your inbox! Vote in more pop culture polls! Check out our Open Polls. Your votes determine our future debates! Then, vote in our Future Topic Polls to have a say in what episodes we tackle next. Episode Credits Host: Eric Rezsnyak Panelists: Karissa Kloss, Kate Racculia, Michael Schwarz Producer: Derek Mekita Editor: Eric Rezsnyak Theme Music: “Dance to My Tune” by Marc Torch #blockbuster #movies #summermovies #jurassicpark #jaws #starwars #barbie #thedarkknight #ironman #ghostbusters #twister #thelionking #backtothefuture #independenceday #piratesofthecaribbean #grease #et #ettheextraterrestrial #indianajones #raidersofthelostark #shrek #popcornmovies #boxoffice Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 2 mins
  • PREVIEW: Best Summer Blockbuster Movie

    PREVIEW: Best Summer Blockbuster Movie
    Jul 14 2025
    Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our 2025 Summer Special devoted to the best blockbuster movies released between Memorial Day and Labor Day, from 1975's "Jaws" through 2023's "Barbie" -- and walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, July 15, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: https://www.greatpopculturedebate.com/subscribe And if you love pop culture, sign up for our weekly newsletter to keep up on all the new movies, music, and TV shows dropping every week! CREDITS: Intro/outro music: "Dance to My Tune" by Marc Torch ⁠⁠⁠https://www.greatpopculturedebate.com/blog/top-10-reasons-to-join-great-pop-culture-debate-patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    4 mins
  • Best John Waters Film

    Best John Waters Film
    Jun 24 2025
    Writer, director, actor, and artist John Waters has been making avant-garde cinema since the 1960s. His movies have pushed boundaries and shocked audiences with their wild characters and surreal storylines, even as they offer piercing insights into popular American culture and society. While he experienced mainstream crossover success by the 1980s and into the 2000s, and has been embraced by many in the entertainment industry, John Waters is inherently an outsider –- and he wouldn’t have it any other way. He is a unique, visionary queer voice in American cinema. So for one of our 2025 Pride specials, the Great Pop Culture Debate looks back on 8 of The Pope of Trash’s most notable movies and attempts to name the Best John Waters Film. Movies discussed: Hairspray (1988), Serial Mom (1994), Pink Flamingos (1972), Cry-Baby (1990), Female Trouble (1974), Mondo Trasho (1969), Polyester (1981), Pecker (1998). Join host Eric Rezsnyak, GPCD panelist Jonny Minogue, and special guests Erin Marlow from the It’s a Fandom Thing podcast, and Joshua Grannell AKA Peaches Christ, alternative drag icon and host of the Midnight Mass podcast, as they discuss 8 of the most notorious John Waters films. Play along at home by finding the listener bracket here. Make a copy for yourself, fill it out, and see if your picks match up with ours! For more exclusive content, including the warm-up in which we discuss the other John Waters films that didn’t make the bracket, become a Patreon supporter of the podcast today. Looking for more reasons to become a Patreon supporter? Check out our Top 10 Patreon Perks. Sign up for our weekly newsletter! Subscribe to find out what’s new in pop culture each week right in your inbox! Vote in more pop culture polls! Check out our Open Polls. Your votes determine our future debates! Then, vote in our Future Topic Polls to have a say in what episodes we tackle next. Episode Credits Host: Eric Rezsnyak Panelists: Jonny Minogue Guest Panelist: Erin Marlow, It’s a Fandom Thing podcast Guest Panelist: Joshua Grannell AKA Peaches Christ Producer: Bob Erlenback Editor: Eric Rezsnyak Theme Music: “Dance to My Tune” by Marc Torch #johnwaters #johnwatersfilm #johnwatersfilm #movies #pinkflamingos #hairspray #serialmom #femaletrouble #pecker #crybaby #mondotrasho #polyester #divine #divinedragqueen #70smovies #80smovies #90smovies #podcast #moviepodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    49 mins
  • PREVIEW: Best John Waters Film

    PREVIEW: Best John Waters Film
    Jun 23 2025
    Great Pop Culture Debate host Eric Rezsnyak explains how we created the bracket for our 2025 Pride Special episode devoted to the best John Waters film -- and walks you through the Round 1 match-ups. The main episode will release on Tuesday, June 24, wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any upcoming episodes: https://www.greatpopculturedebate.com/subscribe And if you love pop culture, sign up for our weekly newsletter to keep up on all the new movies, music, and TV shows dropping every week! CREDITS: Intro/outro music: "Dance to My Tune" by Marc Torch ⁠⁠https://www.greatpopculturedebate.com/blog/top-10-reasons-to-join-great-pop-culture-debate-patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    3 mins
  • Best LGBTQ Super Hero

    Best LGBTQ Super Hero
    Jun 17 2025
    While comic books have traditionally been defined by heroes that reflect the extremes of masculinity and femininity, and aimed at a primary straight-male audience, a notable shift has happened over the past 20 or so years. Where queer characters were once merely hinted at, or when included portrayed as grotesque stereotypes, since at least the 2000s comics have become increasingly more inclusive. Now it’s common for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, asexual and other gender nonconforming characters to be featured in even the biggest comic-book franchises, and to even helm their own solo books. So join us for our 2025 Pride Month Special as the Great Pop Culture Debate attempts to name the Best LGBTQIA+ Super Hero. Characters discussed: Batwoman, Black Cat, Midnighter, Wiccan, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, Green Lantern (Alan Scott), Miss America (America Chavez), Northstar, John Constantine, Apollo, Deadpool, Mystique, Iceman, Dreamer, Superman (Jon Kent). Join host Eric Rezsnyak, GPCD panelists Bob Erlenback and Brendan Hay, and special guest Steve Orlando, prolific comic-book writer for Marvel, DC Comics, and other publishers, as they discuss 16 of the most-popular out super-heroes in comics. Play along at home by finding the listener bracket here. Make a copy for yourself, fill it out, and see if your picks match up with ours! For more exclusive content, including the warm-up in which we discuss even more gay super-heroes that didn’t make the bracket, become a Patreon supporter of the podcast today. Looking for more reasons to become a Patreon supporter? Check out our Top 10 Patreon Perks. Episode Credits Host: Eric Rezsnyak Panelists: Bob Erlenback, Brendan Hay Guest Panelist: Steve Orlando Producer: Derek Mekita Editor: Bob Erlenback Theme Music: “Dance to My Tune” by Marc Torch #comics #comicbooks #comicbooksuperhero #lgbt #marvelcomics #dccomics #batwoman #midnighter #northstar #mystique #iceman #jonkent #dreamer #deadpool #poisonivy #harleyquinn #blackcat Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 1 min