Some Like It Pop Patreon Exclusive: Best of August 2025

Summary

BroadwayRadio – Some Like It Pop Patreon Exclusive: Best of August 2025

Date: November 5, 2025
Hosts: Matt Tamanini & Jennifer McHugh

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Episode Overview

In this “Some Like It Pop” Patreon exclusive, Matt Tamanini and Jennifer McHugh recount their most loved pop culture experiences from August 2025. Covering everything from animated movie phenomena and Netflix adaptations, to sports, sci-fi, YouTube oddities, and standout live theater, the episode is a whirlwind tour of how diverse and vibrant this past month's pop culture offerings were. The hosts dive into their personal highlights, trade witty banter, and offer thoughtful insights into what made each recommendation special.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Rules of Fall & Pop Culture Picks (01:09–02:56)

• Matt pays homage to September as the beginning of "months ending in 'ber'," playfully pondering if it counts as fall yet.
• Jennifer asserts, “I’m old school. September 1st. Man, I changed my watch band. I got my pumpkin spice latte. I only want to talk about spooky season.” (01:41)
• The hosts explain the episode format: their three favorite pop culture items from August, ranging across all media.

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2. Movie Favorites

K Pop Demon Hunters – The Animated Smash (03:07–09:04)

• Matt gushes about Netflix’s “K Pop Demon Hunters,” the biggest original film in Netflix history:
  • Describes it as an animated spectacle featuring a K-pop girl group moonlighting as demon hunters, with their boy-band rivals revealed as literal demons.
  • Applauds the music: “I hadn’t really seen it until my nephew started dancing to ‘Soda Pop’ on YouTube. The songs are incredible … the best pop songs in 25 years.” (03:48–04:54)
  • Cast includes Daniel Dae Kim, Joel Kim Booster, Ken Jeong, Liza Koshy, and the “great” Lea Salonga as a former demon hunter/K-pop idol’s voice.
• Jennifer emphasizes the film’s deeper message:
  • “I really liked that the ending wasn’t, like, everyone lives happily ever after. The fight is ongoing … not a lot of kids movies address that.” (06:30)
  • Praises the cross-generational appeal: “It’s really cool that it’s bypassing generational bias because the kids are enjoying it and people my age are enjoying it. And it’s just good music.” (08:36)
• Both agree the phenomenon is justified and eagerly anticipate the sequel and sing-along version.

The Thursday Murder Club – Cozy Sleuths with Heart (09:09–12:23)

• Jennifer selects Netflix's adaptation of the beloved book:
  • Star-studded cast: Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley, Celia Imrie, David Tennant, Jonathan Pryce, and Richard E. Grant.
  • “It’s just a fun romp, I would say, with some of the best actors on the planet … emotional because they are in a retirement community and they are losing their friends.” (09:17–10:05)
• Matt notes he found the original book slow, asking if the movie is “a little bit crisper, a little bit more tight?”
• Jennifer assures: “It goes by really fast. It’s under two hours, and it’s just really fun. It’s just a good time.” (11:40)

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3. Sports & TV

The Return of College Football (12:23–14:24)

• Matt’s annual tradition: loving the start of college football. Emotional connections run deep:
  • “There is no sport like it … there’s just something truly special and unique, and … heartwarming about football.”
  • Personal connection to Ohio State: “That’s where my parents went to school. It’s where they met. It’s just different.” (12:23–13:24)
  • Ohio State’s win over the #1 team makes this season particularly sweet.

Alien Earth – Sci-Fi TV Excellence (14:36–17:53)

• Jennifer recommends FX's “Alien Earth”:
  • “It is so tense. It is scary. It is intriguing. It is taking place in a world where they’ve abolished all governments and five billionaires run the world. I know that’s hard to even fathom …” (15:18–15:52)
  • Highlights star Sydney Chandler and Timothy Olyphant, praises Noah Hawley’s writing and direction.
  • “You don’t need the movie knowledge to enjoy it. There are definitely Easter eggs … but you don’t need that to understand it.” (17:05)
• Matt drew parallels to Noah Hawley’s previous work, “Legion,” and “Fargo,” appreciating the accessibility for newcomers.

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4. Unexpected Pleasures: YouTube Slot Machine Videos (18:06–22:46)

• Matt’s most bizarre pick: Watching Vegas Matt gamble on YouTube.
  • “My brother … used to watch people play video games. But he now watches people play slot machines … [Vegas Matt] puts out a different video every day at 2:45 p.m. … and we would watch that video every day.” (18:45–19:10)
  • Details the wild sums lost: “Year to date, they are at minus $448,676 … if you gamble, you’re going to lose.”
  • Adds: watching for entertainment isn’t costly, and Vegas Matt’s dry humor and camaraderie add charm.
• Jennifer admits to similar YouTube “reactor” rabbit holes, finding these vicarious joys both inexplicable and delightful.

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5. Theater Highlights

Touring: Some Like It Hot & Shucked (23:34–25:47)

• Jennifer details recent touring shows:
  • Some Like It Hot: “I’m a sucker for an old-fashioned musical. I love tapping, and there’s a scene at the end that blew my mind … Highly recommend it.” (24:15 –24:28)
  • Shucked: “The hardest I have laughed in a show in a very long time … literally one character who’s just delivering one-liners … we were bent over laughing.” (24:28–25:53)
• Both rave about the enthusiastic Florida audiences, especially for “Shucked.”

Once-in-a-Lifetime: Jesus Christ Superstar at the Hollywood Bowl (25:48–30:36)

• Jennifer recounts seeing Cynthia Erivo, Adam Lambert, Philippa Soo, and Josh Gad:
  • “I’ve never been at a show where people have given five-minute standing ovations after one song, let alone two … It was seriously one of the best things I’ve ever seen. Jesus Christ Superstar is my favorite musical. Gethsemane is my favorite song. And she tore the house down with it.” (27:02–27:58)
  • Crowd included nuns, children, and seniors, radiating “a night full of joy.”
  • Shares touching story of the Bowl usher who played Simon, who returned to his day job the following week.

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6. Looking Forward to September – Anticipated Returns & Live Experiences (30:36–35:00)

• Matt’s picks:

  • The Great British Bake Off returns (September 5).
  • Only Murders in the Building Season 5 (September 9).
  • Slow Horses Season 5 (September 24).
    “Gary Oldman has said he will do this show as long as they want to, for as long as he is alive, just makes me happy because it is such a incredibly smart, fun show that I just want this to always to be something that is available to watch.” (32:24–32:38)

• Jennifer’s adds:

  • “I’ll add in shows you don’t watch, which are Wednesday, The English Teacher and Gen V. And … the US Open. Movie coming up: Spinal Tap 2.” (33:01)
  • Foremost: seeing Oasis in concert at The Rose Bowl.
    • “I finally get to see an Oasis in concert!” (33:31)
    • Anticipates the Gallagher brothers’ dynamic: “My theory is they went to therapy. Because they’ve been coming out arm in arm and hugging each other and praising each other. Either that or their accountant said, guys, shut up for a year and a half, you’ll make all the money you need for the rest of your lives and you never have to talk to each other again.” (34:36–35:00)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Jennifer McHugh:
  “It’s not easy to write a good pop song. And these are great. They’re so fun.” (08:36)
• Matt Taminanian:
  “I love the pageantry. I love the marching bands. God, I cry every time I see the Ohio State marching band.” (13:24)
• Jennifer McHugh:
  “There was a whole group of nuns … little kids, elderly bus with canes and scooter razzies, and it was amazing. And I will brag about that forever.” (28:09)
• Matt Taminanian:
  “Vegas Matt on YouTube … they lost $448,676 so far this year. If you gamble, you’re going to lose.” (21:25)
• Jennifer McHugh:
  “I don’t know if they’re real or not, but it’s inexplicably enjoyable watching someone discover something new. So, yeah, no judgment here.” (22:37)
• Jennifer McHugh on Oasis:
  “It is going to be a survival of the human spirit, but it is a once in a lifetime thing.” (34:23)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:09 – Show format & “fall” discussion
• 03:07 – K Pop Demon Hunters movie deep dive
• 09:09 – Thursday Murder Club and adaptation talk
• 12:23 – College football kicks off
• 14:36 – Alien Earth (FX) sci-fi TV recommendation
• 18:06 – Vegas Matt and YouTube slot machines
• 23:34 – August theater recaps: Some Like It Hot, Shucked, Jesus Christ Superstar
• 30:36 – September TV returns: GBBO, Only Murders, Slow Horses
• 33:31 – Anticipating Oasis at the Rose Bowl
• 35:00 – Closing remarks and Patreon thanks

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Tone & Style

• Warm, witty, and conversational; the hosts' genuine enthusiasm for their picks is infectious.
• Pop culture deep dives are sprinkled with relatable asides and friendly debates.
• Occasional light sarcasm and good-natured ribbing, especially around YouTube habits and music preferences.

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Takeaways

• August 2025 was a wildly eclectic month for pop culture with huge animated hits, beloved book adaptations, intense TV, sports, digital oddities, and theater triumphs.
• The hosts’ chemistry and honest reactions create an inviting atmosphere for both seasoned fans and new listeners (even if you missed the content the first time around!).
• September promises even more excitement with anticipated TV returns and a landmark music reunion.

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For more, follow the hosts on social media @BroadwayRadio, and stay tuned for future Patreon exclusives plus upcoming travelogues from New York theater.

Transcript

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[Matt Taminanian]

Hello everybody and welcome to this month's edition of the Something Like a Pop podcast, Broadway Radio's pop culture show. My name is Matt Taminanian. As always, I am joined by the brains of our operation, Broadway Radio's Los Angeles bureau chief, Jennifer McHugh. Jen, it is September, the beginning of months that end and burr, which coincidentally or not, is the sound that people make when things get cold. I know things don't actually get cold for us in the two warm climates that we live in. But like, you're a fall girl, does this count as fall or do you have to wait until like the autumnal equinox?

[Jennifer McHugh]

No, I'm old school. September 1st. Man, I put my. I changed my watch band. I got my pumpkin spice latte. I only want to talk about spooky season.

[Matt Taminanian]

Okay, well, I don't. Well, I guess I kind of. One of my things this month is kind of spooky. So I mean in a kind of tangential way. So maybe we will have something spooky to talk about here. Maybe we'll overlap on something. But if you are new here to Something like a pop. What we do is every month we go through the three things from the previous month that we enjoyed in the pop culture realm the most. Whether that is movies, TV shows, music, podcasts, theater, literally anything that could fall under a pop culture umbrella. And Jen, I Told you before we started talking that, you know, we've been doing podcasts together now for 10ish years and we've been doing this format for a couple years now. I think this might be the weirdest collection of things that I am going to recommend ever. And I don't know how I could possibly top it in the just bonkers, disparate, you know, kaleidoscope of randomness that we're gonna throw together here, but I think it'll be fun. But do you want me to go first then, or do you want to go first?

[Jennifer McHugh]

Yeah, why don't you go first?

[Matt Taminanian]

All right, well, I'll do the one that I think there is a possibility for us to overlap on again. Very slight possibility, but I think there is a chance.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Okay.

[Matt Taminanian]

That we could overlap. It's a movie. Do you have any movies on your list?

[Jennifer McHugh]

I do.

[Matt Taminanian]

Okay, this is the biggest movie in the world is this.

[Jennifer McHugh]

I knew you were going to talk about it, but I haven't seen it yet.

[Matt Taminanian]

Okay, this is the biggest movie in the world. It is also the biggest, like, soundtrack in the world. This movie in just. What?

[Jennifer McHugh]

Okay, I thought you were talking about something else, but now I know what you're talking about.

[Matt Taminanian]

And what did you think I was going to talk about?

[Jennifer McHugh]

Weapons.

[Matt Taminanian]

No, I have not seen weapons. I have not seen weapons. That's not what I'm talking about.

[Jennifer McHugh]

But now I think that we're going to gush over, like, some of the best pop songs in 25 years.

[Matt Taminanian]

That's correct. Is this your. Is this your movie?

[Jennifer McHugh]

It's not, but I am very excited to talk to you about it.

[Matt Taminanian]

All right, so. So my movie is the biggest original film in Netflix history, despite the fact that it's only been available for just over two months. It had a two day window in movie theaters and was the biggest movie of that weekend. It also, as of last checking, I haven't checked. I saw this last week, had four of the top 10 songs on the Billboard charts and I had like tangentially seen people post about it, but I first really, like, said, oh, I need to watch this. When I watch my nephew in the morning before school and on YouTube, some of the songs popped up and he started singing them and doing the dance to them. And this movie is K Pop Demon Hunters. Jen, you have seen it. You enjoy this movie.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Yes, and yes, I have the soundtrack literally on pause right now.

[Matt Taminanian]

So I was right. So we aren't overlapping. But I wasn't completely wrong to think that there was a possibility that we could overlap here.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Yeah, yeah.

[Matt Taminanian]

So K Pop Demon Hunters is an animated film. It is about a group of a K pop girl group that is really a disgu. Or, you know, an undercover Persona for this group of women who are literal demon hunters. And it turns out that like their boy band equivalent. Equivalent, the new hot boy band group on the scene are actually demons. And they have to kind of go up against them in, you know, I guess the best version of singing and dance battles that you have ever seen in your life. Because as Jen said, the music is incredible. Like the songs that this film has turned out already. The one that I first saw my nephew dancing to was Soda Pop, which is one of the ones from the boy band. But there's also. I think the one that was actually number one on Billboard chart is golden. And all of the songs are great. You know, that I don't really listen to a lot of modern music, but like, these songs are excellent. And it was just really enjoyable. It's like 90 minutes. It's just fun. It's kind of silly. You don't really have to know anything about the K pop world, but it was. It's pretty incredible.

[Jennifer McHugh]

I also appreciated the message for the kids. You know, like, it's kind of shrouded in all this fun and pastels and, you know, gem tones and music. But there's a really good message in it. And I don't want to give anything away, but I really liked that the ending wasn't like, everyone lives happily ever after. It was the fight is ongoing kind of a thing, which I think is important that not a lot of kids movies address.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah, I mean, we often have these messages woven in to animated stories. But you're right that generally, because they are Disney, like the bad guys are vanquished and everybody lives happily ever after. That is not what this is. And it. I mean, they've already greenlit a sequel. They've already released a sing along version on Netflix. It's a phenomenon and it really does live up to the hype. Like, when I saw it, like, I'd heard about it since it was released. I work in streaming, but it's not something that I would ever purposely go out and watch. I'm not an animated movie fan, no matter what, but when I first. When I saw my nephew dancing to Soda pop, I was like, okay. Like, that's pretty good. I like that. I don't really know. There's a few names that you might know in the cast that you will know. You will find people like Daniel Dae Kim, Joel Kim booster Ken Jeong is in there. Liza Koshy. Also, the great Lea Salonga provides the singing voice for a K pop idol who is a former demon hunter as well. So, like, there are some names, but most of them are not anyone that I've ever heard of before, which I think is pretty awesome that, you know, it's this new group of stars obviously in animated form, but, you know, this is something that could launch careers. And, and I'm pretty excited about this. Like, I didn't expect to be like super gung ho about it, but I really, really am.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Yeah, it was. I'm, I'm a big fan of the finale song. The what it sounds like and. But golden seems to be all that the kids are talking about. So it's really cool that it's going like bypassing generational bias because the kids are enjoying it and people my age are enjoying it. And it's just good music and it's, it's not easy to write a good pop song. And these are great. They're so fun.

[Matt Taminanian]

Okay, so that was my movie. What was your movie?

[Jennifer McHugh]

Well, this is going to sound like a giant Netflix commercial, but I watched the Thursday Murder Club.

[Matt Taminanian]

Oh, okay. I've read the book.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Yes, I read the book too. And I thought the cast was just so intriguing. It stars Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley, Celia Emory, along with David Tennant, Jonathan Price, Richard E. Grant, and it goes on and on and on. But it's a really cute adaptation of this book. And one of the things I love about this story is that it takes place in an old age home. We don't say that anymore. A retirement community. And these four retirees have this Thursday Murder Club where they just decide to try and solve cold cases. And, you know, their pasts are unfolded little by little. But it's just, it's really sweet. But also it's really emotional because they are in a retirement community and they are losing their friends. And, you know, it just speaks to not letting people just because they get older, disregarding them. And they form this club and they're helping out with these cases and they're trying to save their community. And it's just a fun romp, I would say, with just some of the best actors on the planet. And I personally love when David Tennant plays a bad guy. He just looks like he's having the best time. And it's Chris Columbus. So it's like old school, you know, popcorn movie. It's just really sweet. It's fun. And I hope they keep on with the series because none of them are getting any younger. And there's a bunch of books, and it's really cute. And it's nice that they aim, you know, some movies at that generation instead of always being for the coveted youth market.

[Matt Taminanian]

Now, I read the book, and I have to be honest with you, I didn't love it. I liked was a little slow for me. It's 400 pages. It's a long book, and it didn't really do it a whole lot for me. You think that the movie is a little bit crisper, a little bit more tight? I guess I do.

[Jennifer McHugh]

And also, you know, these performers are, like, fascinating to watch. Ben Kingsley is this little old stuffy professor, and he's just the cutest thing, and you could watch Helen Mirren do anything, and she's fascinating. And I think they round out the characters more. There's also, like, I mentioned these touching topics like dementia and, you know, labor trafficking, you know, things that get actually really deep for a minute or two. But they. They provide levity with the comedy. And these performers are just so good. It goes by really fast. It's under two hours, and it's just really fun. It's just a good time.

[Matt Taminanian]

Okay. All right. I will have to check that one out. All right, so this next one is something that will not be a surprise. Like, this is very different than the other things, but this is probably something that I talk about every year. Jen. Last week, the college football season started, and I am in heaven. I've got my three TVs completely lined up, so I watch all of the games at once. I know that sports are not really everybody's thing, but I just love the pageantry, the excitement, the chaos of college football. There is no sport like it. I know you and I love all sports. We're big baseball fans. You know, we. We love all of that. But to me, there's just something truly special and unique and, you know, just. Just heartwarming about football. It. Because I think it is such a regional sport. You are tied so closely to the teams that you root for, either because that's where you grew up, or that's where you went to school, or that's where your parents went to school or whatever. It is such a more personal thing to me than anything else. Even though I grew up a Cincinnati Reds fan, and I will be a Reds fan for the rest of my life, it was ingrained in me because both my parents were Reds fans. It's not the Same as Ohio State. That's where my parents went to school. It's where they met. It's where I went to school. It's just different. So I love college football. I love the pageantry. I love the marching bands. God, I cry every time I see the Ohio State marching band. I love the fact that it's 150 years old and there's all these traditions, and I love that it just means so much to people. So I love the fact that it's college football season. It means that my work schedule is infinitely more busy than it was a month ago. But I love it. And I couldn't be more excited to dive into it. I'm certainly even more excited because Ohio. Ohio State, the defending national champions, beat the number one team in the country in week one and is now the number one team in the country again. So that makes me happy. But even beside that, even if Ohio State would have lost, I still would have been just tickled pink and thrilled that the college football season is back.

[Jennifer McHugh]

This is becoming a tradition.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah. A tradition unlike any other. So, all right, what masters do you have on your. That's a master's. Yeah. Thank you, Jim Nance. All right, what else do you have, Jen?

[Jennifer McHugh]

I have a TV show called Alien Earth. I don't know if you're into this whole sci fi horror franchise. I watched Alien the movie for the first time last Halloween, and I really loved it and then saw Alien 2. This series takes place two years before the events of the first film, and it stars the a Nepo baby, the daughter of Kyle Chandler. Her name's Sydney Chandler. She does a lot of acting. She's very good. And the only other person I recognize is Timothy Oliphant, and I'll watch anything he does. But other than that, I don't really recognize a lot of people. And like you had mentioned with K Pop Demon Hunters, I love seeing that more and more. I want to see new faces. I want to see different faces. I want to see diverse casts, and especially in sci fi, where things like that don't matter because it's not America. So I love this show. It is so tense. It's on fx. It is scary. It is intriguing. It is taking place in a world where they've abolished all governments and five billionaires run the world. I know that's hard to even fathom that something like that could happen, but here we are, and it is such a good show, and it is really well written, really well acted, and shot beautifully. Noah Holly from Fargo, he directs and writes and he has quite a vision for this world. And there's only eight episodes, I think five have aired. And it's just a really good watch if you like that kind of genre.

[Matt Taminanian]

I have never seen any of the Alien movies, but this is one that has been recommended to me as well. And I love Noah Hawley, not only from Fargo, but also from his X Men adjacent show on FX called Legion. I loved that show as well. I think he is brilliant. So it's on my list of things that like I should probably watch it, but I haven't gotten into it yet. So having you recommend it is certainly incredibly exciting and we'll definitely move it up the list.

[Jennifer McHugh]

It's really great. And you don't need the movie knowledge to enjoy it. There are definitely Easter eggs and rewards for people who do know the film series, but you don't need that to understand it.

[Matt Taminanian]

Great. I certainly appreciate that. And that's like Fargo and Legion. Both of those things are built on existing ip. But you don't need to know anything about the Fargo movie. You don't need to know anything about the X Men to really appreciate these movies. Because especially. Or these TV shows, especially Legion is so different than anything else in the superhero canon that it is just you. The fact that it is even connected to Marvel would make your head spin when you watch that show.

[Jennifer McHugh]

But I love that show.

[Matt Taminanian]

It is so good. So, so good. And so weird too. Like there's been very few shows I ever feel like are as trippy as Legion.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Yeah, you just have to surrender to it.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah, you really, really do. All right, now in the immortal words of Monty Python. And now for something completely different because Jen, are you familiar with the phenomenon of people watching other people play video games?

[Jennifer McHugh]

Yeah. Twitch. Twitch. Is that what it is?

[Matt Taminanian]

Twitch on YouTube, all of this stuff. Now that's not what I'm doing. That's not what I'm recommending here. But my brother, who is only two years younger than me, used to do that like fairly recently. In the past couple years he would watch other people play video games.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Games.

[Matt Taminanian]

But he has since grown up and stopped doing that. Instead what he does now is he watches people play slot machines. And my brother Ryan and I went on a cruise, a four night cruise in August. And while we were in our room not at the casino because we did go to the casino every night, he would pull up this YouTube channel, his favorite slot machine gambling YouTuber who puts out a different video every single day at 2:45pm Eastern time. And we Would watch that video every day. And I have since carried on that tradition. And I am now a devoted fan of Vegas Matt, no relation, and his merry band of gamblers as they lose unbelievable amounts of money every single day on YouTube for our enjoyment. Some days they actually. They actually do win. But it is this guy who's in his early 60s. He has just way, way, way too much money in his life. He's retired. Obviously, he's got plenty of money. But he goes out to a casino, usually the El Cortez in Las Vegas, and plays slot machines. Sometimes will play table games. His son videotapes it, and then they have two friends that are with them as well. So it's these four guys. Usually, sometimes they're not there, and sometimes Vegas, Matt's wife is there and they'll, you know, do slot machines for like 50, 75, $100 a spin. And there it's not unusual to see them lose 10, $15,000 in a day. Sometimes they'll head over to a bacharach table or a blackjack table. I haven't seen them do any ultimate, ultimate Texas hold', em, but I know they do. And they go back and forth with that. They always post year to date what their results are. Year to date, they are at minus $448,676. So they are very open about the fact that if you gamble, you're going to lose. That's how these casinos are, as big and as flashy as they are, because you are always going to lose. But as I said, he's got a lot of money. And also, as they have been doing this for six years, he now has 1.3 million followers on YouTube and he has sells merch, and he gets invited to casinos all across the country to do, like, special slot tournaments and meet and greets. So he's making money off of this. The gambling losses, I'm sure, are just business expenses for him at this point. But it's a lot of fun. Like, I enjoy slot machines. I enjoy poker more, but I enjoy slot machines. And I get a lot of the same emotional feelings from playing as I do watching this. Although I am not spending any money at all, Jen, so I really enjoy it. It's something to put on in the background. You know how much I love that stuff, the soap operas, the hallmark stuff. I enjoy having something that I can kind of like semi pay attention to while I'm working. But Vegas, Matt, on YouTube, I really just kind of love these stupid little videos from these four guys who they'll play, and then they'll have these little jokes, and they're very kind of dry senses of humor. And there's. There's ongoing inside jokes that if you hear it the first time, you don't actually realize it's a joke. But once you kind of listened enough, you, like, realize, oh, they're making a. That's. That's a joke. That's a reference to this. So probably the most random thing I've ever recommended on this show, Jen, but I. It's like something I look forward to every day now is watching the new Vegas mat video on YouTube.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Well, you told me at the beginning this was your strangest month, and I. I'm gonna have to give it to you, but I'm not gonna judge you because I. I love watching reactors on YouTube. I watch young kids watching movies or songs or whatever.

[Matt Taminanian]

Okay.

[Jennifer McHugh]

I don't know if they're real or not, but it's inexplicably enjoyable watching someone discover something new. So, yeah, no judgment here.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah. Vegas Matt on. On YouTube, if you want to check him out. Like I said, 1.29 million followers when he. So when he got to 1 million followers, he gambled $1 million in a day. When they get to 2 million, they're going to do the same thing. They're going to gamble $2 million in a day. So just absolutely way too much money. But I've learned a lot about the slot machines, especially because, like, some of the ones that they play are ones I see on cruise ships all the time. So, like, I've learned, you know, about them there's no way to, like, beat them. There's no strategy on how to, like, win more money. But. But I really enjoy it and I know what games to keep an eye out for when I'm on cruise ships and in casinos now. So. All right, Jen, what are you going to wrap us up with? With your 3rd and final recommendation for the month of August.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Well, I hope you didn't think we were going to get out of this podcast without me talking about it, but I got to see some theater this month, right?

[Matt Taminanian]

Was it Corny Theater?

[Jennifer McHugh]

Two. Two of which are still touring, so that's where I'm going to recommend. And the other one was a once in a lifetime thing that I'm going to rub in.

[Matt Taminanian]

Oh, was that in August still? I guess it was. It was the first weekend of August. I forgot about that. It feels so long ago. Yeah. Yeah. Okay, good.

[Jennifer McHugh]

So to start with, I saw some Like It Hot and Shucked on tour now. I think I liked Some Like It Hot way more than you did.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah, I didn't really care.

[Jennifer McHugh]

I'm a sucker for an old fashioned musical. I love tapping and there's a scene at the end that blew my mind and I had to watch it again on YouTube. YouTube When I got home. It's really fun and I enjoyed it. Highly recommend it if it's in a city near you. Shucked was probably the hardest I have laughed in a show in a very long time. And I'm. I'm. I'm swell since o' Mary, but since I. I just wish I could have. They sold a script. Like I bought the script at Omari because I knew I missed so many lines. And I wish Shucked did because there's literally one character who's just delivering one liners like that's his job. And they're all so corny and stupid. And we were bent over laughing. What I was gonna ask you was, how does this show play in Tampa?

[Matt Taminanian]

I mean, I saw it in Orlando and people were freaking out of their minds.

[Jennifer McHugh]

I figured it was either gonna be a huge hit there or they wouldn't.

[Matt Taminanian]

Get it, which is no, freaking loved it. I've never. I have. I've seen not every touring show that's come through the Dr. Phillips center, but pretty close, because the only ones I've missed have been if I've been out of town. I've never heard reactions, like even Book of Mormon. Multiple times Book of Mormon has come to town. Like, the. The reactions have been great there, especially because of the Orlando song in there. But I think the Shucked laughs were even bigger than Book of Mormon.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Well, there's. There's a section in Schect that talks a lot about Tampa and they rag on them a lot. So.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yes.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Anyway, it was a great time. I liked the music even. I liked it before I saw it, and I liked it even more now that I have context. But it was really fun. So I do recommend seeing those two shows, if you can, on tour. But I did get to see Jesus Christ Superstar at. At the Hollywood bowl starring Cynthia Erivo. Are you just humming and ignoring me?

[Matt Taminanian]

No, I was like, yes, I've heard of it. Yes, I'm familiar with this. With this concept of this show. Yeah.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Adam Lambert, Philippa Sue, Josh Gad by the skin of his teeth.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah, because you went on Sunday and you actually had him back because. Because the John were not. Oh, he was. Okay. The John Stamos videos were not giving me a whole lot of good vibes. So I'm glad that you got to see. See Josh.

[Jennifer McHugh]

No, I guess he confirmed he was going to be there for Sunday and then Saturday when they revealed. What's his name?

[Matt Taminanian]

King Herod.

[Jennifer McHugh]

King Herod. Jesus. Not Jesus. King Har.

[Matt Taminanian]

No, that's the other character. Yeah.

[Jennifer McHugh]

The audience went crazy because they didn't know who they were getting. So my. I had friends there Saturday night and they were like, oh, my God, he's back. Anyway, as you've seen online, it was an A night unlike anything else. I've never been at a show where people have given five minute standing ovations after one song, let alone two. It was just an unbelievable night. And the seething jealousy from people in New York is just something we never get to experience in la because New York gets everything they should. That's the home of theater, that's Broadway. You know, London gets a ton of stuff. We never get stuff like this. And I am so glad I got to see it and rub it in everyone's faces and. But it was seriously one of the best things I've ever seen. Jesus Christ Superstar is my favorite musical. Gethsemane is my favorite song. And she tore the house down with it. And it was so beautiful and so moving and. And everyone was in good vibes. Like, it was just a night full of joy. Everyone was smiling, people were walking around. There was a whole thing, like, group of nuns that were there.

[Matt Taminanian]

Oh, wow.

[Jennifer McHugh]

There was little kids. There was an elderly bus with canes and scooter razzies, and it was amazing. And I'm so, so glad I got to see it. And I will brag about that forever.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah. What an unbelievable experience. Just truly, truly one of the most incredible things I think we've ever seen. And for those of us that didn't get to be there, like, you did. Like, I cannot. I probably watched the equ of the show three or four times just in videos from social media, because it is. They were everywhere. And it was absolutely remarkable.

[Jennifer McHugh]

It was. And I just learned who Milo Manheim was.

[Matt Taminanian]

Oh, you didn't know Milo, huh?

[Jennifer McHugh]

Well, I saw him in American Idiot last year, right.

[Matt Taminanian]

For the great.

[Jennifer McHugh]

And then he was on the marquee for this. He was playing Peter and we took a teenager with us and he was like, oh, I'm here for Milo Mannheim. I'm like, oh, so he's like a thing. And then I looked him up. I'm like, wait a minute.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah, Cameron's son.

[Jennifer McHugh]

So, yeah, that was pretty cool.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah. And well, he played Seymour off Broadway in Little Shop of Horrors as well recently opposite Lizzy Gillis and a lot of us who are around young kids. Both my niece and nephew enjoy the zombie series which is like one of the big Disney Channel movie series that he is the star of and he is great in that. I guess. I only watched the first two. There was a recent third one that I never watched. But yeah, I think he's really good. I'm interested to see what he does with his career because he is a very talented tall drink of water.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Also, there's a lot of hubbub about all the stars that were there and they were great. But there was a guy that played Simon and he is an usher at the bowl and there was a fascinating article about him in the LA Times about how his day job is ushering at the bowl and he auditioned and he got Simon for that performance and then the following weekend he had to go back to handing out programs and.

[Matt Taminanian]

Cushions like Simon zealots like the big.

[Jennifer McHugh]

He was amazing.

[Matt Taminanian]

Wow.

[Jennifer McHugh]

I'll send you the article. Maybe you could put it in the show notes or something. But it's pretty fascinating to see what people do to survive just so they can keep doing what they love.

[Matt Taminanian]

That's amazing. Absolutely awesome. All right, Jen, those were the things that we loved in the month of August. Now let's take a look at the month of September. And I'm going to start because basically all of my favorite shows are back in September and I'm just going to run through them because I know you're going to talk about the same things, but I want to get to them first. Coming up this Friday, our shared favorite something that you only watch because of some like It Popped returns on Friday. It actually already returned on Tuesday in the uk but on Netflix on Friday we have the great British baking show, Great British Bake off returning for season 13, collection 13, whatever you want to call it, could not be more excited to get back into this show. It is the absolute best of not only television, but humanity as well. And I am a tickled pink to be able to watch this show again. Then coming up on Tuesday next week, September 9th. By the time this episode comes out, GBBO has probably already been out. But Nonetheless, on Tuesday, September 9, season five of Only Murders in the Building is back. Jen, when you were most recently in New York, I know you went to whatever the name of the building actually is that stands in for the Arconia and you. Yeah, it's not. That's not what it's actually called. I forget what it's called, but nonetheless, I know it was covered in scaffolding, so you didn't get all the pictures that you would like. But cannot wait to see what that crew gets into again this season. And then coming up later in the month on September 24, which is a Wednesday, is season five of Slow Horses. I love this show. I was just talking about this show with my friend Janie the other day earlier this week. Just talking about how much we love the fact that it's like a solid, tight, whatever, eight, ten episodes. But then you get the trailer for the next season. Season five premieres later this month. They are currently shooting season seven. And the fact that Gary Oldman has said that he will do this show as long as they want to, for as long as he is alive, just makes me happy because it is such a incredibly smart, fun show that I just want this to always to be something that is available to watch. There's a ton of other new shows that I'm interested in watching coming up throughout the month, but it's really, for me, all about my favorites coming back.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Yep, they were all on my list as well. I'll add in shows that you don't watch, which are Wednesday the English Teacher and Gen V. And currently really enjoying the US Open. I don't know, tennis fans out there. Movie coming up. Spinal Tap 2 the end continues. Very excited about that. But the most important thing probably in my life coming up this Sunday, I finally get to see an Oasis in concert.

[Matt Taminanian]

Oh, yeah.

[Jennifer McHugh]

So, wow.

[Matt Taminanian]

Where are they playing?

[Jennifer McHugh]

The Rose Bowl.

[Matt Taminanian]

Oh, God. Yeah. Okay.

[Jennifer McHugh]

So I literally told my partner a couple years ago. I was like, I don't think I ever need to go to a big arena concert again. It's so much trouble getting in and out, and it's so exhausting. And he's like, nobody ever. And I said, well, unless, you know, the Gallagher brothers reunite and tour, and I swear to you, a year later to the day they announce, I was like, you've got to be kidding. The Rose is like four miles away from me. It'll probably take us an hour and a half to get there and more than that to get out. So it is going to be a survival of the human spirit, but it is a once in a lifetime thing. They're only doing five US Shows, and we're going to the very last one, so we'll see how it goes.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah. Liam and Noel together again on stage. How has it been going? Like, has it been, like, has there been any punches thrown between the brothers. Like how?

[Jennifer McHugh]

No, my theory is they went to therapy.

[Matt Taminanian]

Oh.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Because they've been, like, coming out arm in arm and hugging each other and praising each other. Either that or their accountant said, guys, shut up for a year and a half, you'll make all the money you need for the rest of your lives and you never have to talk to each other again. So I don't know.

[Matt Taminanian]

Yeah. And now.

[Jennifer McHugh]

And now I'm gone.

[Matt Taminanian]

And now here's Wonderwall. Yeah. Amazing. Well, that's great. I can't wait to hear all about that. So very cool. All right, well, everybody, thank you so much for supporting us here on Patreon and thank you. Please reach out on social media at Broadway Radio and let us know what you have enjoyed throughout the month of August, what you are looking forward to in the month of September. I am not going to New York in September, but I am going in October and probably November and probably December as well. But currently have plans for October. Making plans for November, actually, Jen making plans with my aforementioned friend Janie, because we are going to go up and see Ari DeBose in the Baker's Wife at Classic Stage Company. So we're going to do that in November. Probably so. Looking forward to those trips. So I will have lots more travelog episodes and stuff like that starting in October here in Patreon, but we thank you for all of your support and we look forward to sharing all of our thoughts with you again next month.

[Jennifer McHugh]

Sam.