Episode 360 - “The Last of Us,” “The Studio” plus Carrie Preston from “Elsbeth."

·55 min·3 clips

The hosts say Pedro Pascal is gone in episode two of The Last of Us.

1. Culture Pop Podcast centers this episode on The Last of Us, Adolescence, The Studio, and Carrie Preston from Elsbeth. 2. Steve Mason and Sue Kalinske host the show, and Carrie Preston joins as a guest because she plays Elsbeth on CBS. 3. The episode asks what these recent TV shows are actually doing on screen and why each one stands out. 4. The Last of Us season two comes up first, with Mace reacting to Pedro Pascal being gone by episode two. 5. Sue says she had no warning about Joel's exit, and Mace says the show changes completely once Ellie becomes the lead. 6. Mace connects the show's second episode to Mark Mylod, who also directed Game of Thrones and Succession. 7. He says the episode is "beautiful, cinematic, powerful, sad" and links the giant infected attack to the White Walkers. 8. Catherine O'Hara's therapist character gets singled out as "wise," "an alcoholic," and one of the best parts of the season. 9. The discussion of Adolescence identifies Jack Thorne and Stephen Graham as the creators and Stephen Graham as Jamie's father. 10. Mace says each episode was rehearsed and filmed in a single take, with the camera following the family through cars, hallways, and rooms. 11. The hosts say Stephen Graham's idea came from reading about teenage knife crimes in London. 12. Andrew Tate, the "manosphere," and the term "incel" are explained as part of the show's social context. 13. Mace says the show's school conflict turns on whether Jamie fits that label, and Sue responds by comparing the performance to Bates Motel. 14. Mace points out that Owen Cooper had no previous acting experience, which makes Jamie's performance more striking. 15. The Studio gets framed as Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg's satire of studio life, with Bryan Cranston playing Griffin Mill and pushing a Kool-Aid movie idea. 16. Mace and Sue discuss the Jonestown/Kool-Aid angle, the one-take Sarah Pauly episode, and the Johnny Knoxville episode about studio executives versus surgeons. 17. Carrie Preston describes Elsbeth as a blend of writing and instinct, and says Robert King and Michelle King imagined her as a female Columbo. 18. She and Mace talk through the show's style, including bookshelves, pauses, mixed patterns, and the Vera Bradley bags that function as character clues. 19. Viewers who like TV craft, actor process, and streaming-series breakdowns would get the most out of this episode. 20. Viewers who want one topic and no industry talk may want to skip it.

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