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Pop culture in high spirits
The theatre kid energy is strong with 'tick, tick...Boom!'

Andrew Garfield as Jonathan Larson in tick, tick...BOOM! Macall Polay /Netflix hide caption

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Macall Polay /Netflix

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

The theatre kid energy is strong with 'tick, tick...Boom!'

The Netflix movie tick, tick...BOOM! is the story of composer Jonathan Larson and the musical he wrote a few years before he wrote Rent. The film marks the directorial debut of Lin-Manuel Miranda, and stars Andrew Garfield as Jonathan. It's set in 1990 and takes place over a few days leading up to Jonathan's 30th birthday.

The theatre kid energy is strong with 'tick, tick...Boom!'

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With '30,' Adele unleashes another blockbuster

Adele's fourth studio album 30 finds the singer reflecting on her divorce. Columbia Records hide caption

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Columbia Records

Pop Culture Happy Hour

With '30,' Adele unleashes another blockbuster

Adele is one of the most successful artists of her generation. Her last two records combined sold more than 25 million copies and both won Album Of The Year at the Grammys. Now, the U.K. pop star has put out her fourth studio album 30, which finds Adele reflecting on her divorce with songs that don't shy away from emotional vulnerability or deep melancholy.

With '30,' Adele unleashes another blockbuster

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'Encanto' is a Disney film filled with charming visuals and lackluster songs

Stephanie Beatriz voices Mirabel in the new Disney film Encanto. Disney hide caption

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Disney

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Encanto' is a Disney film filled with charming visuals and lackluster songs

Encanto is the latest animated Disney musical that tells the story of the Madrigal family, whose members are tucked away in the mountains of Colombia. The film is stuffed with characters who wield magical powers and perform lavish musical numbers written by Lin-Manuel Miranda. But for all its magical realism, it's also a fairly simple story about a family whose bonds need healing.

'Encanto' is a Disney film filled with charming visuals and lackluster songs

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House of Gucci is a spicy meatball

Adam Driver, Jared Leto, and Lady Gaga in Ridley Scott's House of Gucci. Fabio Lovino/MGM hide caption

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Fabio Lovino/MGM

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

House of Gucci is a spicy meatball

Ridley Scott's House of Gucci is a whole lot of movie. Adam Driver plays the wealthy Mauritzio Gucci, and Lady Gaga plays his wife Patrizia. Al Pacino and Jared Leto play Mauritzio's uncle and cousin, who eventually battle Mauritzio for control of the Gucci empire. It's got fashion, it's got tragedy, and it's got terrible accents.

House of Gucci is a spicy meatball

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King Richard is Will Smith at his Oscar-iest

Aunjanue Ellis, Mikayla Bartholomew, Will Smith, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton and Danielle Lawson in King Richard. Warner Bros. hide caption

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Warner Bros.

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

King Richard is Will Smith at his Oscar-iest

King Richard is a sports movie about the early days of superstar tennis champions Venus and Serena Williams. But, as its title suggests, the film focuses on their demanding and ambitious father, Richard Williams. Directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, the movie stars Will Smith as a man who'll do anything to get his daughters from Compton to Wimbledon.

King Richard is Will Smith at his Oscar-iest

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Will you dig 'Cowboy Bebop'? Anime-be so, anime-be no

John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, and Daniella Pineda in Netflix's Cowboy Bebop. Geoffrey Short/Netflix hide caption

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Geoffrey Short/Netflix

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Will you dig 'Cowboy Bebop'? Anime-be so, anime-be no

The new Netflix series Cowboy Bebop is a live-action remake of the wildly popular Japanese anime about bounty hunters in a neo-noir future. Stylish and satirical, violent and cynical, the show is a bold mashup of genres – western, crime, science-fiction, buddy comedy, melodrama, thriller, and martial arts. It stars John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, and Daniella Pineda as bounty hunters with dark pasts. But does the series hold up to the original?

Will you dig 'Cowboy Bebop'? Anime-be so, anime-be no

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Ghostbusters: Afterlife - Who you gonna call? And should you?

Actors Mckenna Grace and Logan Kim in a scene from Ghostbusters: Afterlife. Sony hide caption

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Sony

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Ghostbusters: Afterlife - Who you gonna call? And should you?

Ghostbusters: Afterlife reconnects with the original timeline of the Ghostbusters films from the 80s while introducing a bunch of new characters. Carrie Coon, Mckenna Grace, and Finn Wolfhard play a family who teams up with Paul Rudd to fight a new supernatural threat. The movie is directed by Jason Reitman — son of Ivan Reitman, who directed the first two Ghostbuster films.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife - Who you gonna call? And should you?

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Celebrating Petra Mayer's legacy and the joy she brought to NPR
Allison Shelley/NPR

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Celebrating Petra Mayer's legacy and the joy she brought to NPR

There's no good way to share terrible news. Pop Culture Happy Hour panelist and NPR Books editor Petra Mayer died suddenly on Saturday of what is believed to be a pulmonary embolism. We take some time to remember our friend and colleague, and revisit some of our favorite episodes featuring Petra.

Celebrating Petra Mayer's legacy and the joy she brought to NPR

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Silk Sonic is the opposite of sexy, but still fun

Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars comprise the R&B superduo Silk Sonic. Harper Smith/Atlantic Records hide caption

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Harper Smith/Atlantic Records

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Silk Sonic is the opposite of sexy, but still fun

Silk Sonic is a new musical showcase for two familiar faces: Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak. Their soulful collaborations started trickling out this past March, when the duo released the single "Leave The Door Open." Now they've dropped the album An Evening With Silk Sonic, which features classic funk and soul updated for the present day.

Silk Sonic is the opposite of sexy, but still fun

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In 'Below Deck,' life on a yacht meets reality TV

Captain Sandy Yawn leads the crew on Below Deck Mediterranean. Laurent Basset/Bravo hide caption

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Laurent Basset/Bravo

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

In 'Below Deck,' life on a yacht meets reality TV

If you've always wondered what it would be like to see the world while making espresso martinis for the super-rich, you might already be watching the Below Deck franchise. For the past eight years, the Bravo reality series and its many spinoffs have been showing viewers the world of deckhands and chefs, housekeeping and party planning, as young hot people work on luxury yachts chartered by people who have too much money.

In 'Below Deck,' life on a yacht meets reality TV

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