TV Break: February 2023 - Poker Face Delights, The Last of Us Devastates, & Netflix Defies Expectations

Welcome to TV Break, where Pop Break’s Podcasts Editor Alex Marcus is joined by editor-in-chief Bill Bodkin, and TV Columnist Josh Sarnecky to talk about the happenings in television. Here’s the format of the show: The Best Thing I Saw on TV Last Month – Alex, Bill, and Josh talk about a show/episode/event they liked from the last month including HBO’s The Last of Us, The Roku Channel’s Great American Baking Show Celebrity Holiday Special, ABC’s Abbott Elementary, and AppleTV+’s Shrinking. News Break – Alex, Bill, and Josh discuss the impact of the recent scandals around adult animation creator and voice actor Justin Roiland on the legacies and long term viability of the series he helped create and star in, including Rick & Morty and Solar Opposites. Streaming Wars – Alex, Bill, and Josh pick a streamer they think “won the month” based on new shows airing/upcoming shows announced etc. This month, Bill & Josh agree that Netflix kicked off 2023 on top, thanks to a strong Q4 ad tier launch, an exciting 2023 movie sizzle reel, All Quiet on the Western Front’s status as second most nominated film at the Oscars, and the news that Netflix original series dominated the Top 15 Most Streamed Shows list. Meanwhile, Alex gives it up for Apple TV+ after a month that saw them debut the Harrison Ford starring sitcom Shrinking (from the creators of Ted Lasso), make a big splash at the Sundance Film Festival (where they beat Amazon in a bidding war for film Flora And Son and debuted Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie), helped Bryan Tyree Henry earn a surprise Best Supporting Actor nomination for his work in the film Causeway, and debuted that amazing Timothee Chalamet ad. New Series Spotlight – Alex, Bill, and Josh review Poker Face, Peacock’s case of the week murder mystery written and directed by Knives Out & The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson and starring Natasha Lyonne as a former poker player who can always tell when someone is lying, Benjamin Brett as the casino fixer trying to hunt her down, and a slew of special guest stars every episode.