Some Like It Pop Patreon Exclusive: Best of October 2025

Summary

Podcast Summary: Some Like It Pop Patreon Exclusive: Best of October 2025

Podcast: BroadwayRadio
Episode: Some Like It Pop Patreon Exclusive: Best of October 2025
Date: November 3, 2025
Hosts: Matt Timine, Jennifer McQ

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Overview

In this episode of BroadwayRadio’s Some Like It Pop, hosts Matt Timine and Jennifer McQ look back at their favorite pop culture picks from October 2025. They each bring three recommendations, spanning TV, books, movies, and more, with plenty of banter, deep dives, and laughter. The discussion opens with Halloween traditions and transitions into a lively exchange about Only Murders in the Building, Slow Horses, book and baking picks, the Hallmark 'Countdown to Christmas' slate, a new horror film, and anticipations for November releases.

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Halloween Traditions & Setting the Scene

[01:10 - 04:12]

• Halloween Styles:

  • Jennifer shares her low-key Halloween routine: cozying up with her boyfriend and cats for scary movies, no costumes or trick-or-treaters due to her apartment.
  • Matt describes the madness of Halloween in Celebration, FL, where trick-or-treaters flood the streets, but his condo remains peaceful and untouched by the commotion.

• Quote:

  • Matt: “It is a nightmare getting around Celebration, but I am not bothered by people ringing my doorbell, so... Or I don’t have a doorbell. Actually, they would have to knock.” [03:34]

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Pop Culture Picks: Matt & Jen’s Top Three Each

1. TV: Only Murders in the Building, Season 5

[04:18 - 12:29]

• Matt’s Take:

  • Less invested in the central mystery, more thrilled by the character ensemble: “I am just excited to hang out with my friends in this show... that’s the joy of it. While I still thought that the mystery at the center of it was interesting...to me, the joy of Only Murders at this point is the hang and it’s the vibe.” [05:34]
  • Praise for the show’s guest stars (Bobby Cannavale, Paul Rudd, Jackie Hoffman, Christoph Waltz, Diane Wiest, Beanie Feldstein, and the judicious use of Meryl Streep).
  • Anticipates a change of scenery and mystery as the next season heads to London.

• Jen’s Take:

  • Agrees the whodunit is almost beside the point: “When the murderer was revealed, it was almost like, ‘oh right, that’s why we’re here.’” [06:55]
  • Loves expanded roles for secondary characters; highlights comedic moments (Paul Rudd, Jackie Hoffman).
  • Obsessed with the “five brothers” in the show, hopes for a podcast spin-off.
  • Shout-out to Richard Kind and the ensemble’s chemistry.

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2. Book: "Buckeye" by Patrick Ryan

[12:33 - 17:04]

• Jen’s Pick:
  • Historical fiction set in a fictional post-WWII Ohio town; focuses on two connected families rebuilding after the war.
  • “It is a beautiful novel about people post-World War II... It was really compelling.” [13:13]
  • Found via Jenna Bush Hager’s book club, which Jen now trusts for solid choices.
  • Recommends it especially to Matt for its “love letter to Ohio” vibes; Matt shares recent family trip to rural Ohio and plans to add this book to his reading list.

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3. TV: Slow Horses, Season 5

[17:17 - 23:56]

• Matt’s Take:

  • No spoilers as Jen is not caught up, but he notes Season 5 felt less character-driven than earlier ones; still loving the tight plotting and ensemble (Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas, Jonathan Pryce, Saskia Reeves).
  • Applauds the show for knowing exactly what it is: “It knows what it is and it is not trying to do too much.” [18:50]
  • Praises the show for its momentum, recurring ‘end of season, here’s the next trailer’ format, and the static (but fun) nature of the Slough House team.
  • Appreciates rare glimpses into Jackson Lamb’s backstory, but enjoys that the character remains “mean spirited” and undiluted.

• Jen’s Take:

  • Eager to binge the show, loves its strong propulsion and compact episode lengths.

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4. Social Media: Chigs & George from The Great British Bake Off

[24:06 - 29:02]

• Jen’s Pick:
  • Recommends following Chigs and George (GBBO alumni) as they recreate Technical Challenges on Instagram—either together or over Zoom.
  • “They're both hilarious and they just love each other so much and it's just an extension of how much we love that show.” [25:41]
  • Their chemistry, comic banter, and authenticity = must-watch for Bake Off fans.
  • Matt agrees Series 12/Collection 9 is possibly the best season, echoing praise for casting and narrative unpredictability.

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5. TV: Great British Bake Off, Season Impressions

[27:47 - 29:02]

• Both Discuss:
  • Jen: “There's been some real endearing characters... but to me, there's a clear winner...anything less than that would be shocking.” [28:06]
  • Matt notes the unpredictability, thanks to week-to-week judging, keeps the finale dramatic.

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6. Film: Hallmark "Countdown to Christmas" 2025

[29:07 - 36:38]

• Matt’s Pick:

  • Enthusiasm for this year’s slightly pared-back Hallmark Christmas offerings, highlighting stars (Fiona Gubelmann, Jenna Claire Mason, Janel Parrish, Jonathan Bennett, Laura Vandervoort, Lacey Chabert, et al.).
  • Identifies the formula: “Stereotypical Hallmark movie where she...runs into the owner’s son and they help each other make some realization about their life. It’s just lovely.” [31:00]
  • Notes crossovers (NFL collaborations) like "Holiday Touchdown: A Bill’s Love Story," featuring Bills players, Broadway names, and famous Hallmark actors.

• Jen’s Fun Fact:

  • Personal connection to Caroline Aaron; her university’s football stadium is named after Andre Reed, who cameoed in the Bills Hallmark movie.

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7. Movie: "Weapons" (Dir. Zach Cregger)

[37:06 - 39:21]

• Jen’s Pick:
  • Recent horror film on HBO Max, directed by “Barbarian” filmmaker. Standout performance by Amy Madigan; hopes for an Oscar nom despite genre bias.
  • Premise: Third graders vanishing in the night, switching between timelines to reveal causes and consequences.
  • “It is the same guy that did ‘Barbarian’—Zach Kreger—and he is a master at storytelling where he presents: here's what happened, now we're going to go back and show you why that happened.” [37:34]
  • Also stars Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Benedict Wong.
  • Matt, a horror skeptic, is intrigued—particularly for Amy Madigan.

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Anticipated Releases for November 2025

[39:21 - 44:33]

• Both Hosts Excited For:

  • Wicked: For Good (the movie adaptation)
  • Edgar Wright’s The Running Man remake (closer to the original Stephen King novel; starring Glen Powell, Lee Pace, Michael Cera, etc.)

• Matt’s Pick:

  • "Pluribus" (new Apple TV series from Vince Gilligan and Rhea Seehorn; praised for interactive promotions—Matt has been getting “creepy” preview texts/audio).
  • Quote: “Very creepy. Definitely has a weird, creepy vibe. So yeah, we'll see what that's all about here in a few weeks.” [43:57]

• Jen’s Picks:

  • Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein adaptation
  • Film "Hamnet" with Paul Mescal
  • A Man on the Inside S2 with Ted Danson
  • Stranger Things final season

• Matt:

  • “Frankenstein, one of my top five favorite books of all time. I cannot wait for that one.” [43:18]

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Notable Quotes

• Matt: “The hero of GBBO is whoever is in charge of casting, because they just get the best people.” [26:52]
• Jen on Only Murders in the Building: “When the murderer was revealed, it was almost like, ‘oh right, that’s why we’re here.’” [06:55]
• Matt on Slow Horses: “For the last couple seasons we haven’t gotten enough of the backstory on why Jackson Lamb is who Jackson Lamb is. And so the fact that we got a little bit of it is great. I hope that we get more of that.” [21:27]
• Jen on Chigs & George: “These two are so funny together...not only interesting to see their dynamic...but it’s fun to see a Technical Challenge broken down, not in real time, but slower and not edited for the episode.” [25:41]
• Matt on Hallmark Christmas movies: “They help each other make some sort of realization about their life, and it’s just lovely.” [31:07]
• Jen on "Weapons": “All I'm going to say is...the teacher comes into her class and there's only one student and the rest of her class is gone...and it takes off from there and it is, it is the same guy that did "Barbarian"—Zach Kreger—and he is a master at storytelling.” [37:23]

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Key Timestamps

| Segment | Timestamps | |----------------------------------|----------------------| | Halloween banter | 01:10 – 04:12 | | Only Murders in the Building | 04:18 – 12:29 | | Buckeye (novel) | 12:33 – 17:04 | | Slow Horses | 17:17 – 23:56 | | GBBO: Chigs & George | 24:06 – 29:02 | | Hallmark Countdown to Christmas | 29:07 – 36:38 | | Weapons (film) | 37:06 – 39:21 | | Anticipated November releases | 39:21 – 44:33 |

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Closing Thoughts

This lively episode blends TV, books, film, and personal stories with the familiar, friendly banter of two seasoned pop culture aficionados. Whether you watch for the comfort of beloved TV ensembles, crave book recommendations with a Midwestern heart, or secretly binge Hallmark movies on your holiday cruise, Matt & Jen have a recommendation for you—and a laugh along the way.

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For feedback, recommendations, or to share your own October pop culture picks, email [e-mail].

Transcript

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[Matt Timine]

Welcome to the October episode of Broadway Radio's pop culture podcast, Some like it Pop. My name is Matt Timine. As always, I am joined by the brains of our operation, Broadway Radio's Los Angeles bureau chief, Jennifer McQ. Jen, we are recording the day before Halloween. What is Halloween like for. For you? Do you and your boyfriend get dressed up? Do you put costumes on your cats? Do you get people trick or treating? What is it like for you in beautiful Pasadena?

[Jennifer McQ]

None of the above. We watch Scary movie. The cats are usually snug. Well, we've been. It's like been the month of October. In fact, I'm going to talk about one.

[Matt Timine]

Oh, scary. You mean a scary movie, not the movie Scary movie.

[Jennifer McQ]

Correct. Yes.

[Matt Timine]

Oh, okay. I thought you meant like I watched the Anna Faris vehicle.

[Jennifer McQ]

Scary movie.

[Matt Timine]

Got it.

[Jennifer McQ]

Scary movie as a genre, not as a film title. So we just curl up with the cats on the couch, watch scary movies and there's. It's a big neighborhood for trick or treaters, but I live in an apartment building, so we don't get any in the building, but if we went outside, we would see a lot.

[Matt Timine]

So no trick or treaters in the building would be the name of the TV show that you do with two elderly men. Okay, got it.

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah, there is a full bowl of candy, but not for anyone outside.

[Matt Timine]

It's just for you. It's for you and the boyfriend. Okay, got it. That's not dissimilar from my neighborhood, Celebration, where I live. If you're familiar with the town of Celebration, there are only two ways in and out of Celebration. And for whatever reason, maybe the density of houses or the perceived affluence of the community, we are inundated with trick or treaters. Every year. School doesn't get out here. Like K through 8 doesn't get out here until 4:25. By the time I usually go pick up my nephew from school on Halloween, there are already people out trick or treating. Even the trick or treating doesn't technically start till like 5:30. It is madness. You don't leave your house. Like you don't try to leave Celebration on Halloween because it is impossible to get in and out all day or all evening at least. But I live downtown, so if you're familiar with Celebration, I live right between downtown and the golf course, like smack dab a block and a half from each. And I live in a condo and nobody comes at all. So it is a nightmare getting around Celebration. But I am not bothered by people ringing my doorbell, so. Or I don't have a doorbell. Actually, they would have to kn like you like tons of people around. But I am fortunately not in the mix of that fray. But anyway, if you are unfamiliar with what we do here on Some Like It Pop, we look back at the past month of our pop culture consumption and pick out three things that we enjoyed the most and share them with you in hopes of you loving them just as much as we do. Jen, as we were talking, you and I are completely avoiding each other in terms of genres. Remind me the genres of yours.

[Jennifer McQ]

Movie, television and other.

[Matt Timine]

Oh, you do have tv. Okay, I have two TV shows.

[Jennifer McQ]

I'm live. Movie, book and other.

[Matt Timine]

I was gonna say, I thought we weren't overlapping at all. I have two TV shows and a television movie event. So I guess you can kind of qualify it as that we said before. Like, I have a pretty good feeling you could guess my two TV shows. So I wanna give you that opportunity to do it on air. If you had to guess what my two TV that I'm going to mention today are, what would they be?

[Jennifer McQ]

My guess is Great British Bake off and only Murders in the Building.

[Matt Timine]

Well, you are one for one or one for two. I'm not going to mention Great British Bake off because the finale is still coming up. So I'll save that. Yeah, so I'll save that. So my two are both Things that wrapped up over the past two days. In fact, one of them I just watched this season finale of a couple hours before we were recording. But let's start with the one that you got right and that is only Murders in The Building Season 5. And both of these two shows that I'm going to talk about, I think you watch both of them, but I want to kind of talk about them in larger concepts than just these into particular seasons because they are both through five seasons and with only Murders in the Building, like, I have become less and less interested over the years and this season included with the actual core mystery. I am just excited to hang out with my friends in this show because they all seem like, you know, old, old people that we love. Not old people in terms of age, but like just characters and people that I have a fondness for and I just like being around them. So the specific murders in this one, rip to Bobby Cannavale and Teddy Kaluka who plays Lester the doorman. But like, I didn't really care about those mysteries all that much. I just enjoyed being around Charles, Oliver, Mabel, Howard, Loretta, all of those different characters. And to me that was the joy of it. While I still thought that the mystery at the center of it was interesting, I liked the twists and turns. I liked all the guest appearances. To me, the joy of only murders at this point at least is the hang and it's the vibe. It's not necessarily the true crime nature of it anymore. I would love it to. To have that back a little bit and maybe it will. Spoiler alert. I guess that it is going to London next season, so maybe it'll have a little bit more of that. But like right now I'm just into the hang. Jen.

[Jennifer McQ]

I can't fully disagree with you. When the murderer was revealed, it was almost like, oh, right, that's why we're here. I love how they have fleshed out more characters than just the main three. You mentioned Howard. They sneak Paul Rudd in every season and his role this season made me laugh in so many ways. And I love.

[Matt Timine]

Did you know it was him right away? Because I didn't until I like looked it up.

[Jennifer McQ]

I did know it was him. And we replayed the robot falling off the building multiple times with him going, oh no. Oh my God. And what's the lady, the other lady that is miserable in the building with the big glasses.

[Matt Timine]

Oh, Jackie. Jackie Hoffman who is like that is. She's not act like that's Jackie Hoffman. That is just who she is as.

[Jennifer McQ]

A human Being her, just popping in every once in a while and saying something crabby is just makes my day.

[Matt Timine]

So follow her on social media. Follow her on social media because that is exactly who she is in real life.

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah, I just. So I have to agree with you. And I love Christoph Waltz. I thought that was a lot of fun. And I was obsessed with the five brothers and I would 100% listen to their podcast.

[Matt Timine]

Yes, I would not mind a spin off of them. They were very fun to me. The best. Not new for this season, but the best ancillary character, the one who made me laugh the most was. And this is not a surprise to anybody because he is one of the best, best comedic character actors ever is Richard Kind. Like, Richard Kind in the penultimate episode of the season, doing his peloton workout in the lobby of the Arconia was just hilarious. I love Richard Kind. Like, you know, you're. We're both old enough to like. I remember watching Spin City, which is where I first learned about Richard Kind. And so many great people were on Spin City. Obviously Michael J. Fox and then went to Charlie Sheen. But so many great folks on. Yeah, Alan Ruck, of course. But like, Richard Kind is just one of those guys who is never not great. Stage, screen, whatever. He is just a ball of love and enjoyment. And he brings that to this show. And I'm glad. Of all the characters from the East Wing that continued on from the previous season, like, it's him because he is perfect to fit in with this ensemble. And I really loved it. So great. You mentioned Christoph Waltz. We also had Diane Wiest, Renee Zellweger, someone named Logan Lerman, who I did not have any idea who the heck he was.

[Jennifer McQ]

Keegan Michael, stick with the tweens.

[Matt Timine]

Okay, well, there you go. You had Keegan Michael Key. You also had Caitlin Houlihan, who's a Broadway favorite currently starring in Not Ready for Primetime, the Saturday Night Live unauthorized show Off Broadway. But she was, like, his assistant, so she's great. She was a longtime dawn and waitress on Broadway. So, like, just, you know, lots of great people also love David Patrick Kelly as, like, the maintenance man, like, Broadway legend in his own right. Becky Ann and Dylan Baker, who showed up for, like, one episode. And, like, they always play a married couple, which is awesome because they're a married couple. So it's just like, I loved that we had Nathan Lane and James Caverly showing up as Teddy and Theo Demas. Like, it's just. I just love hanging out with these folks. And even if they are not giving Me the most compelling mystery anymore. I'm okay with that. Like, I'm just okay. And of course I forgot Beanie Feldstein as the which is I delighted at that. Like, I thought that was just a lot of fun. But you know, and she actually played quite a bit big role in the kind of the solving of the mystery this season, which I really enjoyed. But I do want to just mention, like, I love how judiciously they are deploying Meryl Streep and like the fact that whatever her and Martin Short's real life relationship is, it's like they just keep bringing her back. Not for the whole season. Like she's not in every episode but like in like 40% half the episodes. You're just going to have one of the three, in my opinion, greatest actors in the world show up and do crazy bits. Like she did like a crazy accent in one episode where she was trying to be like pretending to be a medium. I'm like, I just love how they use their characters. And like I said, hopefully. Now that I guess. Spoiler alert. That Cinda Caning, who is the TNFA character who kind of got this whole thing started with her true crime podcast now that she has been murdered, clearly she was coming back to ask Charles, Oliver and Mabel for help. That's why she was at the Arconia and how they got around the. The limitations of only murders in the building and then she just like put her hand in the gate was hilarious. So I'm hoping that like this next mystery that's going to take them to London gets back that aspect of it because from a character driven piece, it's still amazing. And if you can add back in that compelling mystery, like it really becomes one of the most enjoyable shows on.

[Jennifer McQ]

Television, I can't disagree.

[Matt Timine]

All right, Jen, so what is your first item on the list this month?

[Jennifer McQ]

Well, I wanted to tell you about a book because the title alone reminds me of you and I figured if there was anybody I could sell this to, it would be you.

[Matt Timine]

I'm nervous. I'm nervous now.

[Jennifer McQ]

And it is called Buckeye by Patrick Ryan.

[Matt Timine]

Okay, I'm in. I'm ordering it now. I don't even know what it's about, but I'm ordering.

[Jennifer McQ]

Is a historical fiction book set in Bonamy, Ohio. Does that sound familiar?

[Matt Timine]

It does not, no. How do you spell it?

[Jennifer McQ]

B O N H O M I, E. And I don't know if that's fictional or not. That's why I'm asking the Ohio Ohioan.

[Matt Timine]

It is a fictional Town. Yes.

[Jennifer McQ]

Okay. Well, this is a historical fiction, Post World War II, and the connections of two families as they recover from the war. It is a beautiful novel about people Post World War II, really, after any war, and how people put their lives back together and, you know, and have to help put the country back together and have to figure things out in a new world post war. It was really compelling. I found it. Jenna Bush Hager's book club picked it. And every once in a while, I, I, you know, I succumb to the celebrity book club picks because they're really good. And this book is great. It is a love letter to Ohio. So I figured, who would love that? And I, I read a lot of thrillers. I read a lot of mysteries. So everyone's in a while. It's really nice for me to get into literature and fiction, and this was just a beautiful book, and I really think that you would enjoy it. So maybe put your list for your next cruise.

[Matt Timine]

Well, my next cruise is in three days, but yes. Let me, let me ask you. Like, Jenna Bush Hager, like, she's a, she's a thing now. Like, I know she's been on the Today show forever, but, like, I would not have guessed that she would become, like, an actual person of consequence in pop culture, but I, I, I guess she is, right.

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah, I mean, I, I enjoy her a lot. I know Matt and Bowen worship her.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah. Matt's on all the time. Like, he's a guest a lot, and.

[Jennifer McQ]

She'S a line in one of his songs on his album, and she's in the video. But she started this book club, and at first it was kind of like another one, but honestly, I've read, like, five or six that she's picked, and they're really good, so I trust her taste and, and I feel like this is one that you would really enjoy for many reasons besides the Ohio connection.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah. So it looks like, so Bon Bonhomy, or if it's French, like, Bonhomie is a fictional town, but there is a place called Bonhome Acres, which is an actual like company in Knox County, Ohio, that sells maple syrup. Is that a thing? Is, like, maple syrup important in this book at all?

[Jennifer McQ]

It might be. I did read it at the beginning of the month, so I don't really remember, but I know that the author is also from Hawaii. He's a Bowling Green person.

[Matt Timine]

Ohio, not Hawaii. That's a very different state.

[Jennifer McQ]

Hawaii.

[Matt Timine]

You did.

[Jennifer McQ]

Oh, my goodness. Where's my mind today?

[Matt Timine]

That's all right. That's Right. Yeah. The company is in Fredericktown, Ohio, so I wouldn't be surprised if that's where Patrick Ryan is from. But nonetheless, I actually spent last weekend in Ohio. I was there for my grandmother's 90th birthday party. She doesn't turn 90 until December, but she wanted to do it on an Ohio State by weekend because otherwise we would all be focused specifically on Ohio State football, and we would talk. She didn't care about celebrating her. She just didn't want everyone crowded around a TV the whole weekend. But my mom is one of eight, so there was 33 of us in this house together. We didn't all sleep in the house, but we would come to this big Airbnb for. For the day Friday through Sunday, or actually Thursday. I got there Friday, but they did it Thursday through Sunday. So it feels like I don't know where Frederictown, Ohio is, but it feels like I was living that weekend in a town probably pretty similar to the one in this book.

[Jennifer McQ]

Well, I recommend it. I think you'll like it.

[Matt Timine]

Awesome. All right, my next show that I want to talk about. Do you want to have one last guest on what this other show is?

[Jennifer McQ]

I think we just finished up, like.

[Matt Timine]

Literally finished on Wednesday, season finale. Do I feel like you watch it? I think so. It involves lots of farting.

[Jennifer McQ]

Oh, slow horses.

[Matt Timine]

Slow horses. There we go. Yes.

[Jennifer McQ]

I am a season blind. We have to start. We have to watch season four.

[Matt Timine]

Oh, okay. A full season. So you're actually, like, two seasons behind now. Okay, got it, got it, got it. I won't do any spoilers here, but what I will say is it's similar to Only Murders in the Building. I feel like season four and then season five, the mysteries, to me, felt very. Well, I'll say about it. Season four is a little bit more personal, but season five was just kind of like the slow horses stumble on something, and somehow the collective morons of Slough House are smarter than everybody at the park combined. And it, you know, those are fun every now and then, but, like, because now we're in season five and we haven't seen a ton of, like, character development from a lot of these. They're pretty static characters. It left me a little wanting in terms of, like, the propulsion of the season until the end. So I won't go into any more detail about that. But when you get there or if you've watched it, if, you know, you know, what I love about this show is, is that it knows what it is and it is not trying to do too Much. It has the story that it wants to tell. And obviously these are all based off of novels by Mick Heron. And so they have a very tight story already there. The characters are already on paper, but like they're such interesting people, especially Gary Oldman as Jackson Lamb and Kristen Scott Thomas as Diana Taverner. Jackson Lamb is like the very unkempt, rude, sour, sarcastic, mean spirited, flatulent spy who has, because he nobody likes him, he gets pushed off to running Slough House, which is where they send all of the, you know, underwhelming spies that are bad at their job, but not bad enough that they can fire them. And then Diana Taverner, played by Kristen Scott Thomas is the. She's second death. So she's second in charge of MI5, yet she is far superior intellectually in an experience than her boss who is the. Who is first chair. And I just love seeing all of these people play out. I love that they kind of, because of the nature of this show, rotate through who is working at Slough House in the. In the time. And I don't want to give too much away because I know you're still watching it, but there was a moment in this season where you're just like, this is like one of the best two, three minute scenes that I've seen in television in a long time. And then it just kind of stopped. And you might not get this experience because you are. Are you going to watch it weekly or will you binge it when you do watch it?

[Jennifer McQ]

Well, the goal is always to watch it weekly because we're not bingers. But then we'll watch like episode one and we'll be like, all right, let's just watch one more like, yeah, yeah. Slow Forces is really hard to. To sparse out because it's so riveting and it's so short that once you watch two, you're a third of the way through.

[Matt Timine]

So yeah, it's interesting because I think this is one where I would like to binge it all the way through because I think it is so propulsive that you want to get into that next episode. But I realized that that scene that I thought they left hanging in the middle of the season when it showed up in the previously on for the season finale, I was like, oh, we're coming back to this. And I loved that because I think a lot of times with characters like Jackson Lamb, you know, is not dissimilar from like Walter Mathau in the Bad News Bears were like, you know, just an asshole and mean spirited. For the sake of Being mean spirited. But then you have, like, the little light shining of, like, oh, there's some sentimentality underneath there. You get none of that sentimentality with Gary Oldman in this part. But, like, that's so counterintuitive to every other character in popular culture like this. You expect him to, like, be secretly hiding an affection for the people that he picks on. You don't see that at all with this character. And I'm glad that they don't because I don't want them to water down the character. However, you do see a little bit of the rationale this season, very, very small of who he is. And I think we got some of that in the first couple seasons. And whenever he talks about his relationship with David Cartwright, who's the character played by Jonathan Pryce, who is amazing in this season, like, you see that. Like, I felt like for the last couple seasons we haven't gotten enough of the backstory on why Jackson Lamb is who Jackson Lamb is. And so the fact that we got a little bit of it is great. I hope that we get more of that. But another thing that I love about Slow Horses is when one season's done, they hit you with the trailer for the next season. Like, I love that you already know what's happening or you already know that it is happening. You know that it's going to be on a fairly consistent release schedule. It has been pretty much in the fall for the last four seasons. They started in the spring of 2022, then came back in December of 2022, then November 2023, then early September of 2024 and late September 2025, all six episodes. But I love that we don't know when season six is coming, but apparently it's going to be based on two books. So that should be interesting. But I love Slow Horses. It's another one of those, like, only murders where I just love spending time with the characters. And shout out to Saskia Reeves, who plays Catherine Standish. I really like her. I just love her and I love seeing her. And she just brings such an interesting dynamic to this show where she's somebody who actually cares about the people in Slough House despite the fact that nobody else seems to so love that love her. And looking forward to many, many more seasons of Slow Horses.

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah, I'm excited to catch up. We just needed to get through all this spooky stuff.

[Matt Timine]

Totally understood. Totally understood. All right, Jen, what's next up for you?

[Jennifer McQ]

My second one is Great British Bake Off Adjacent, and I would like to Recommend two alumni of this show. They became best friends on the show, and they were in, let me see, Series 12, Collection 9. Do you know who I'm talking about?

[Matt Timine]

I do not know.

[Jennifer McQ]

This is Chigs and George.

[Matt Timine]

Okay? I love chicks.

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah.

[Jennifer McQ]

Chicks came in second behind. Well, I don't want to spoil it. And George came in seventh. And Chigs and George became fast friends. And this season aired a couple years ago. They're still best friends, but the thing that they do now is every Tuesday, the Great British Bake off airs in Great Britain. On Wednesday and Thursday, Chigs and George do the Technical Challenge on their Instagram. And I don't watch them because we don't get it here until Friday. But on Saturday, after we know who's been eliminated, I watch their videos, and they crack me up. These two are so funny together. If they're together at the same place, they do it together. If they're not, they do it over zoom, or they record their own, and then they post each other's. But not only is it interesting to see their dynamic and their comedy, but it's also fun to see a Technical Challenge kind of broken down. Not in real time, but slower and not edited for the episode. They're both very talented bakers. They're both hilarious, and they're both. They just love each other so much, and it's just an extension of how much we love that show that these wild friendships happen. And. And this entertainment factor on their Instagrams makes me laugh every Saturday morning because they fully admit that they don't know what they're doing, and they. And they try and do it blind. Like, in the Technical Challenge, they follow the, you know, instructions they were given. They try to figure it out, and it's just so endearing and so fun, and I just wanted to recommend that to you because it brings me so much joy after living with the heartbreak of who's been eliminated.

[Matt Timine]

I love that. And I think that season, whatever series, Collection nine, whatever, I think it's the best. It has. Not only Chigs and George, you've also got Cristel, who I loved is in there. But then two of the best bakers I've seen in recent years, Jurgen and Giuseppe, like, both of them are. They're so good. And, like, I say this all the time, so this isn't like, something new, but, like, the hero of GBBO is whoever is in charge of casting, because they just get the best people. And, like, I love them all. We were texting about this most recent episode that Aired here in the US on the 24th. And like, we were like, oh, this seems like this has to be who's going to win. But remember season 12? And we were like, how things again, no spoilers, but like, you never know what's going to happen because crazy things can happen because they judge you based off of each individual week rather than the cumulation of the entire season. So I do think that this might be one of, if not the best season ever.

[Jennifer McQ]

This is the only season I've gone back and watched episodes.

[Matt Timine]

Oh, really?

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah.

[Matt Timine]

I don't go back and watch anything.

[Jennifer McQ]

I love this season.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah, it's for good. Obviously, by the time we do our next episode, the current season will be over. So I don't want to get into any of the specific, but what are your thoughts on this season so far? Because we're getting ready. We'll have the semi finals tomorrow as we're recording.

[Jennifer McQ]

I wouldn't say it's my favorite, but it's far from my least favorite. There's been some real endearing characters in there. One of my favorites just was eliminated, so I was a little upset, but I always get upset once you get past the. The top six. Every week is just like, oh, man. But to me, there's a clear winner. Like, like we had said, it's that person's game to lose, so anything less than that will be shocking. Not saying that the others aren't wonderful, but this person is just leagues above.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah, this person is clearly the best baker also might be the youngest of all the bakers in the entire season, I think. I'm not 100% sure if that's correct, but certainly one of the youngest and just really, really talented, but also, like, creative and a lovely person. They're all lovely people, but, yeah, I agree with you there.

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah. Well, I would check that out if I were you because it's really amusing.

[Matt Timine]

Definitely. All right. Speaking of lovely and heartwarming things, Jen, it's the most wonderful time of the year because we are now a few weeks in to Countdown to Christmas.

[Jennifer McQ]

I knew you were going to do this.

[Matt Timine]

It is Countdown to Christmas Season over on the Hallmark Channel. It's interesting because they have pared back a little bit from years past. Like last year, I think there was over 40 original movies not just on the Hallmark Channel, but also on what is now called Hallmark Mystery and Hallmark Family and then also on Hallmark. Plus they're just putting everything on the Hallmark Channel now this season. I think that had to do with a little bit of Change over in leadership, but also a little bit of realizing that their bread is buttered specifically on the cable channel rather than on the streaming. So even some things that aired on streaming last year are now getting a re release on cable. And then a new season is coming up. One of the shows that stars Sarah Drew called Mistletoe Murders was in. It was a streaming exclusive last year. They are currently running season one two episodes a week through. Actually it ended on Halloween and then season two will come up in November. But because I was traveling, I didn't get. I haven't. I'm not especially caught up. But I did watch the first of the Countdown to Christmas movies starring one of my favorites, Fiona Gobbleman. Are you familiar with her at all?

[Jennifer McQ]

I feel like you're making that up.

[Matt Timine]

Fiona Gobbleman. No, she is a real human being. She was also on the show the Good Doctor. I think she was like the Good Doctor's love interest maybe. I think. I'm not especially sure. Freddie Highmore, of course, played the Good Doctor. She was also on a show called Wilford. Do you remember Wilfred? That was on FX a decade or so ago.

[Jennifer McQ]

Was that with Elijah Wood?

[Matt Timine]

It was, yes, with Elijah Wood where he meets his next door neighbor's dog and it's actually played by a human being in a dog suit. She his love interest in. In that as well. But anyway, this was just a. A stereotypical Hallmark movie where she, Fiona, plays a princess of some nondescript European country that doesn't actually exist. She wants to get away from all of the rigors of royal life. So she goes back and visits a dude ranch that her father the king had taken her to when she was a child. She runs into the. To the owner's son who has kind of doing other things. He was actually a baseball coach, but he always comes back during the holiday season to help out and they help each other make some sort of realization about their life. And it's just lovely. But there's some great ones coming up. All of the icons of Hallmark movies are in there, including Jenna Claire Mason, who is a former Broadway Elphaba who has become like a regular in these Hallmark movies. She's great in there. Always like Janelle Parrish movies. Jonathan Bennett and Paul Campbell are our regulars in there. Laura Vandervoort, I think is how you say her name. She played Kara Zur el on Smallville. So I always like seeing her pop up. Then folks like Autumn Reaser and Rachel Boston and Ashley Williams and Nikki DeLoach and Rihanna fish and My friend Erin Cahill and so many others. Obviously, the queen of all Hallmark right now is Lacey Chabert. So she's got a couple movies this season. Lindsey Fanesca of How I Met yout Mother fame, Jesse Schramm, Brooke d', Orsi, Rachel King, Ali Liebert. Just some great stars mixed in there. And for the second year in a row, they are teaming up with an NFL team to do a film. The first one was set in Kansas City, which is actually the home of Hallmark. Hallmark is a Kansas City based company, so they did something with the Chiefs this year. It is Holiday Touchdown A Bill's Love Story, starring Holland Rhoden and Matthew Daddario, who is the brother of Alexander of Daddario. But this one, Jen, stars not only Caroline Aaron, who is, if you know who she is, she's in everything, but also two Sopranos alums, Joey Pantoliano and Steve Schrippa. Broadway favorite Patty Murin, who is a Buffalo area native and lifelong Bills fan, is in it too. So just a lot of great stuff. Tons of Bills cameos in their head coach Sean McDermott, DeMar Hamlin, Jim Kelly, Steve Tasker, Thurman Thomas, Scott Norwood, Andre Reed and more. So I love it. I've got to catch up a little bit. I'm going to download all of them for when I go into my cruise so I can catch up and make sure that I'm still getting my share of Countdown to Christmas movies while I'm away from home.

[Jennifer McQ]

Two very important comments on this one, do I know who Caroline Aaron is? Because her number's in my phone. I have worked with her before and I love her to death.

[Matt Timine]

And second, we've talked about her before. We've talked about her before.

[Jennifer McQ]

Second, Andre Reed is the most famous alumni of my university in Pennsylvania. And our stadium is named Andre Reed Stadium.

[Matt Timine]

I had no idea that that's where he went to school.

[Jennifer McQ]

It's town's most famous alumni.

[Matt Timine]

I mean, who's next?

[Jennifer McQ]

Well, there was another player. I want to say his name was John Mobley. He was with the Broncos and I was. I. He was in my jazz music class and I remember chatting with him. But Andre year, Andre Reed was way before my time. But the stadium is named.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah, Andre Reed is a. Yeah, Andre Reed is a legend. So let's see, who else do we have in here from Kutztown, University of Pennsylvania alumni? None of these people familiar? Yeah, John J. Kennedy. Not John F. Kennedy.

[Jennifer McQ]

That's funny.

[Matt Timine]

No idea who this is?

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah, it's. It's slim Pickens.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah, I, I, well, John Updike's mother.

[Jennifer McQ]

Well, John Optike is from Reading and his house is in Reading. And my college roommate, best friend, runs the museum and tours.

[Matt Timine]

Okay, that makes sense. His mother was an alum, Harry D. Cuts, who I'm assuming is related to the naming of that town, but. Oh, this is one that I bet you would not even clock. But Bill Demott was one of my favorite C level professional wrestlers in the 90s. He went by the name Hugh Morris. Humorous, obviously, if you get that. But he also had many other names, including General Erection. But he was also a trainer for the WWE for a long time. Yeah, exactly. That's the 90s pro wrestling. I loved, I loved me some good Bill DeMotte. Anyone else in here that I'm looking up? John Mobley, as you said, Denver Broncos. Andre Reed. Yeah, that's it. Okay, interesting. Ryan Vogel sang a Vogel song.

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah, he was a major league pitcher. Pitcher or something.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah, yeah, I recognize that name. So, okay, interesting. All right, I won't pull up. Ohio State's famous alums.

[Jennifer McQ]

Do you see now why Andre Reed's such a big deal?

[Matt Timine]

Yeah, well, I mean, Andre Reed is an NFL hall of Famer, I believe, so that makes total sense. And he's from Allentown, so, like, it's close. Like that's fairly close to Kutztown, right?

[Jennifer McQ]

Okay, yes, Kutztown is halfway between Allentown.

[Matt Timine]

And Reading Allentown, just to, to quote Jerry Orbach from 42nd Street. But anyway. All right, so Jen, wrap us up with what your third recommendation is for the month.

[Jennifer McQ]

I was going to talk about a scary movie that I doubt you would ever watch, and it's called Weapons.

[Matt Timine]

Okay, see, I do want to watch it because, like, this was huge a couple weeks or a couple months ago, and it's on HBO Max now. Is it on?

[Jennifer McQ]

Yes, it is. Wonderful. I am rooting for Amy Madigan to get an Oscar nomination. I know it's really difficult with horror movies, but, you know, you can hope. All I'm going to say is that the premise is, is one night at 2:17am 17 little children, third graders, wake up, put their arms out like they're going to fly and run away from their house and are never seen again. So the next morning, the teacher comes into her class and there's only one student and it's the rest of the class, of her class that's gone. So naturally she is questioned and so is the other student. And it takes off from there and it is, it is the same guy that did barbarian Zach Kreger and he is a master at storytelling where he presents. Here's what happened. Now we're going to go back and show you why that happened. And I love his storytelling. It also stars Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Benedict Wong, besides Amy Madigan. And just fascinating storytelling and very creepy. Really great Halloween watch, but also just a good movie to watch year round. I don't, I'll be interested to hear your thoughts. But I was, I, I really enjoyed it.

[Matt Timine]

I did not recognize that Amy Madigan was in that obviously. Field of Dreams is one of my favorite movies of all time. So the fact that she is in, in this makes me very happy. I also love her husband, Ed Harris. But okay, that's good. This is definitely on my list. I wanted to see it in the movie theater. I just ran out of time. But okay, interesting. Love that. And would love to see her get an Academy Award nomination at this point in her career for that.

[Jennifer McQ]

Such a good comeback role.

[Matt Timine]

Love it. All right, Jen, those were our October recommendations for November. There's some big ones obviously in the movies. I feel like we're probably both interested in Wicked Colon for good. I'm also very interested in this remake of the Running Man.

[Jennifer McQ]

I have that on my list too.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah, like here's the thing, it looks very different from the Arnold Schwarzenegger version of the Running Man.

[Jennifer McQ]

This is the Edgar Wright version. He's the director. He's one of my favorites. He based it on the book. And the Arnold Schwarzenegger one goes astray from the book.

[Matt Timine]

Okay. I was gonna say I don't know which is closer to the Stephen King novel, but the movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger is very much like a self contained American Gladiators type of game show where this movie with Glen Powell sends it out into the real world. It's still a game show and people watch it, but it's less self contained where you've got hunters with crazy names and leading to some of the best one liners in Arnold Schwarzenegger history. Like obviously he's got the I'll be back and Asta La Visa from the Terminator. But like it is so bizarre and goofy and silly that original movie. But yeah, this one takes it out into the real world. A guy who has to basically survive for 30 days while being hunted like to have enough money to pay for his sick daughter. So Glenn Powell in his action movie heyday, Emilia Jones is in there. Lee Pace, Michael Cera, I'm really excited about this one. Because I love Josh Brolin. Again, you mentioned him. Colman Domingo. Colman Domingo in both of these movies that I referenced. So excited about this one, like I said, because the original Running Man, I loved it because it was just so silly and goofy. So I'll be excited to see what this one is all about. And then the last thing I'm looking forward to in November is a new show on Apple TV called Pluribus. It is from Vince Gilligan, who created Breaking Bad, Rhea Seehorn, who worked with Gilligan on Better Call Saul. I didn't watch either of those shows, but everyone talked about how she was, like, under appreciated by the Emmys during her time on that show. And I've only heard incredible things about this show. It's going to premiere with two episodes on November 7th, so I'm very much excited to dive into this. I don't know, Jen, if you've been a part of this, but when they first started marketing this show, you could like text a phone number or call a phone number and it would subscribe you to like, you would get regular creepy updates. And so I've been getting them for, like, since late July. And I actually got one today that just said we feel like we're doing all the talking here. Carol. Carol is Rhea Seehorn's character name. So it's texting you as if it's Carol. Do you have any questions for us? I have not asked any questions, but. But I feel like I should text it something right now. So let's just see. I'm going to do this in real time. What is Pluribus all about? Question mark? Let's see. It hasn't respond. Let's see if it responds. Jen, why don't you tell me what you're excited about for November and if it gets a response, I'll update folks afterwards.

[Jennifer McQ]

Well, both of the things that you mentioned, Wicked and Running Man, I also wanted to throw in their Frankenstein thinking Del Toro movie. And a movie, Hamnet, starring Paul Mescal. It's based on a book that I read and I loved the book. I'm also very excited for season two of A Man on the Inside with Ted Danson and the final season of Stranger Things starts. So November is packed.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah, Frankenstein, one of my top five favorite books of all time. I cannot wait for that one. Hamnet is one of those books that, like, I started reading as an audiobook and I'm like, nope, I have to sit down and like, read this. Like, the language is so lush. I need to pay attention to it. And so I have that on my list. Maybe I'll take that on my cruise and try to get through it before the movie comes out. Okay. Pluribus responded, but it is an audio file so I'm going to listen to it and I'll tell you what it is, but I'll put the audio in to this episode. So let's see what it said.

[Dana]

We want so much to please you, Carol, but we, we can't answer questions like that.

[Matt Timine]

Very creepy. Definitely has a weird, creepy vibe. So yeah, we'll see what that's all about here in a few weeks.

[Jennifer McQ]

Getting so creative with promotions these days.

[Matt Timine]

Yeah, I mean like, but this isn't new. Like they've had phone numbers and stuff like this in the past and Internet like websites and stuff. But like it almost feels like it's gone out of style. But I love kind of this very personal interactive campaign is very interesting.

[Jennifer McQ]

Yeah, I like that. Thanks for the heads up on Pluribus. I just added it to my list.

[Matt Timine]

Good. Very good. All right, everybody, that is all that we have for this month's episode of Some Like It Pop. If you want to let us know what your favorite things in the month of October were or maybe what you were looking forward to in November, please feel free to send us an [e-mail] we really appreciate you supporting us on Patreon. I'm actually going to drop this episode in to the regular feed because I'm going to be gone for the next week and then we're going to rerun old episodes of Some Like It Pop so you can hear the last few months of our recommendations. So there are things that you can catch up on as well. Well, all right, everybody, have a wonderful November and we'll be back to talk to you next month.