Pop Culture Role Call
by Smizmar Studios
Pop Culture Role Call is a weekly podcast that reviews television and movies from different characters' perspectives. Each week our geek panel (panel of hosts) watches the same TV episode or movie each assigned their own character role. They will only watch scenes that their character is present in, leaving them with only part of the bigger picture.
Episodes
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The Magicians Season 5 Wrap-Up
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 wrap-up! How did they stick the landing? Did they land with poise and grace, or, did they roll their ankle a bit there at the end? Lots to discuss so thanks for listening! Next week we wrap-up the entire show AND announce the next universe we are going…
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Bye Forever, Fillory - The Magicians S05E13 - Fillory and Further
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 13! Or, as it's known in the business, the series finale! How DO we manage to save Fillory? Is the moon going to be mad at us forever? Who, if anyone, gets a happily ever after? Any brave personal sacrifices for the greater good? All great...
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Snozzberry Guy - The Magicians S05E12 - The Balls
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 12! This week we have another heist! Oh, and another musical... you know, the classic heist/musical episode that every show does at some point? Yeah, me neither. The only two not involved are Penny and Julia. They are out having a very un-silly,...
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He's a Pervert… Stop - The Magicians S05E11 - Be the Hyman
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 11! This week, we get the "Fillory is doomed" talk from some familiar, horned and godly faces. Or, the emanation of some familiar, horned and godly faces that is. But when HASN'T Fillory been doomed? Meanwhile, something about "The Couple"? Not...
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Time Pension - The Magicians S05E10 - Purgatory
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 10! This week, everyone is doing a little bit of their own thing. Elliot is trying to scare an unborn child into a magical fight or flight response. Margo is being turned into a human film projector with the clever application of eye shaped...
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That's Not the Title - The Magicians S05E09 - Cello Squirrel Daffodil
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 9! This week, Penny goes on an unexpected trip back in time to the Brakebills of old. Unfortunately, the further back in time you go the more...uhh..well, racist, honestly. The more racist it gets. God speed, sir. Meanwhile, back in Fillory, the...
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Admittal - The Magicians S05E08 - Garden Variety Murder
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 8. This week, we decide to finally make our move against the Dark King. Our intelligence might not be perfect, but doing nothing isn't in the cards. Meanwhile, back on earth, Penny is dealing with a zombie infestation. Wait...really? Yep, that's...
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Real World: Fillory - The Magicians S05E07 - Acting Dean
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 7. This week, with the moon situation "resolved", Margo and Elliot head back to Fillory to pick back up that plot line. Is the hot king evil? Are the takers related in any way to the subjugation of the fairies? All good questions. Meanwhile…
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De-Narc-Ation Line - The Magicians S05E06 - Oops!... I Did It Again
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 6! This week, we REALLY have to figure out the whole "we destroyed the moon" thing. Turns out, destroying the moon means the earth is also in for a bad time. But you know, lets spice things up even more. What if we also do a time loop! Not spicy...
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St. Lunartics - The Magicians S05E05 - Apocalypse?! Now?!
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 4. This week, we break the moon! Oh, the shenanigans sure are strong in season 5. Maybe a little too strong? Regardless, it's convergence time and the group needs to infiltrate the "apocalypse party" of an eccentric dot-com era billionaire who…
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Writers are Bored - The Magicians S05E04 - Magicians Anonymous
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 4. Penny misses the entire episode only to wake up nerf'd?? Plus, Fillory's Dark King may or may not be living up to his reputation. Thanks for listening! Here's the aforementioned Garfield strip for those looking to correct me:...
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Could Be Canada - The Magicians S05E03 - The Mountain of Ghosts
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 2 episode 3! This week, Elliot and Alice spend some time working out their Quentin issues-while climbing the Filorian equivalent of Mount Doom and with it's Dark King. Thanks for listening!
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The Bee Plot - The Magicians S05E02 - The Wrath of the Time Bees
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 2 episode 2! This week, Elliot and Margo are still hard at work trying to save their LONG dead Fillorian friends. Hopefully Elliot's box of unethically acquired time mcguffins holds the key. But my guess is shenanigans are more likely than solutions.…
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Magical FEMA - The Magicians S05E01 - Do Something Crazy
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 5 episode 1! Yep, Quentin is still dead...no shenanigans. So what is Brian going to do now? Come find out. Meanwhile, Penny (begrudgingly) takes a job teaching young travelers at the newly reopened Brakebills University. Margo and Elliot are back in…
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The Magicians Season 4 Wrap-Up
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 wrap-up! Thank you everyone for listening along and a special thank you to everyone who submitted questions. We talk favorite episodes, what to do with Brian now that Quentin is (supposedly) very dead, and of course, we speculate wildly about season 5.
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Two Italian Beefs - The Magicians S04E13 - No Better to Be Safe Than Sorry
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 13! This week, we say goodbye to season 4, but more importantly, we say goodbye to a dear friend. The plus side? Elliot is back, the brother+sister monster demon things are handled and magic appears to be back on the menu. We were one bad break...
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Herbrarian - The Magicians S04E12 - The Secret Sea
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 12. This week, Quentin and Alice finally have "that talk"...you know the one. Meanwhile, Margo's definitely NOT boyfriend Josh is turned into a Werefish after touching some magic nonsense and Monster Elliot finally gets his Monster Sister back!...
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Speaking Common - The Magicians S04E11 - The 4-1-1
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 epiosde 11! This week, Quentin hops back in time to visit Brakebills South from season 1 in hopes of unlocking the secrets behind a particularly important spell. Meanwhile, Penny, Margo and friends free a librarian trapped in an ancient text, only to be...
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Worst Escape Room Ever - The Magicians S04E10 - All That Hard, Glossy Armor
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 10! This week, Margot goes on her own little drug induced musical side-quest out in the desert. Turns out, licking random reptiles can really cause things to spiral quite quickly. Meanwhile, Penny and Quentin and crew finally track down the...
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Competent and Thorough - The Magicians S04E09 - The Serpent
Hello and welcome the The Magicians season 4 episode 9! This week, Margo is deposed with a teargul hug rather than a dagger in the back. Count your blessings. Meanwhile, Penny helps Monster Elliot explore repressed memories of his violent past and we all just kind of hope that won't blow up in…
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Looks(mad)maxxing - The Magicians S04E08 - Home Improvement
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 8. This week, we really dig into the magical world of dragonic mating practices. Lots of...interesting lore implications and maybe even a salacious illustration or two. Meanwhile, Margo is out with Fen on her quest to save Fillory, but Fen might...
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The Sword in the Stoner - The Magicians S04E07 - The Side Effect
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 7! This week...uhh. Fen probably goes on a quest. It's probably a really fun quest and Josh maybe even goes with her. Who knows. Not us! Thanks for listening!
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Magical PPE - The Magicians S04E06 - A Timeline and Place
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 6! This week, Penny goes on a whirlwind adventure through time and space after his park bench abduction at the end of last episode. For the eagel-eyed viewer, you might even catch sight of an old (very) familiar face. Meanwhile, Margo is playing...
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Lvl. 20 Baja Man - The Magicians S04E05 - Escape from the Happy Place
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 5! This week, Elliot (not dead) takes a trip down memory lane while locked in his own mind. As expected, the trip is mostly just trauma. Meanwhile, out in the real world, Alice is back and awkwardly helping the group to firm up a new plan to…
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Are You a Flat Orber? - The Magicians S04E04 - Marry, F&@!, Kill
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 4! This week, some of us are getting sexy and some of us are dealing with severe trauma. So, a pretty standard episode all things considered. Margo puts her personal health and safety on the line to save a close friend. "New Penny" gets looped...
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I'm the Trolley - The Magicians S04E03 - The Bad News Bear
Hello and welcome the The Magicians season 4 episode 3! This week, the posessed Elliot monster person finally kills his first god when he snuffs out the literal life of the party. Meanwhile, the crew goes on their 3rd heist mission (4th? eh, who's counting). But we aren't after money, we are…
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Frog Coded - The Magicians S04E02 - Lost, Found, F$&!ed
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 2! This week, we lift the glamor (somehow or another) and say goodbye to our alternate personas. But not after meeting a debonair frog King, poisoning our ex-Dean, and flaying a godly messenger in Greece. Lots of puzzle pieces, but who the heck...
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Street Fest Amulet - The Magicians S04E01 - A Flock of Lost Birds
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 4 episode 1! This week it's all new names, new faces, and new places. Can we get our ducks in a row before the big bad thing eventually happens? What is the big bad thing? Who knows. Thanks for listening! Watch a video version of this pod here:...
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The Magicians Season 3 Wrap-Up
Hello! It's time to wrap-up The Magicians season 3! A huge thank you to all of the lovely listeners who sent in questions/topics. We talk favorite episodes, character coverage, and try to get a lay of the land for season 4. Is it the last season? Who knows. Thanks for listening!
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Talebook - The Magicians - S03E13 - Will You Play With Me?
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 13! It's the season finale this week, y'all. That's right, the quest for the keys has come to a close. The gang is all back together and we are trotting off to a spooky old castle full of godly magic and unspeakable evil. But would you believe…
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Bear Naked - The Magicians S03E12 - The Fillorian Candidate
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 12! This week, we get a bit of a lore dump that helps clarify why Julia still seems to be minorly magically inclined. Our shiney new alt-Penny is trying his best to integrate into our timeline, and it's not going great. Meanwhile, Eliot and…
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50¢ of Pennies - The Magicians S03E11 - Twenty-Three
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 11! This week, timelines are getting twisted, yet again. Penny is here, but...wait, why do his hands look normal? Why isn't he at his purgatory book club building an eternal community of peers? Why are all of these main characters dying?! Oh,...
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Growing Astroturf - The Magicians S03E10 - The Art of the Deal
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 10! This week, we are continuing our quest for a handful of magical keys. But we just can't seem to keep the party together. Eliot and Margo are back in Fillory playing diplomat for a Kingdom that tried to have them killed. Quentin is at...
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Josh Culture Role Call - The Magicians S03E09 - All That Josh
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 9! This week it's time to save Josh from party purgatory. But this isn't your standard exfiltratation operation. We have to dance, sing, and party our boy to safety. Thanks for listening!
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Such a Cassandra - The Magicians S03E08 - Six Short Stories About Magic
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 8! This week, Penny finds himself in the underworld along with his BEST friend and a prophetic Alice lookalike. He came for a few answers and he he left with an exposition dump the size of a small moon. Pour one out for Mike as he puts this...
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¡Ay Poppy! - The Magicians S03E07 - Poached Eggs
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 7! This week, it's another heist attempt for everyone's favorite criminal masterminds (plus Felicia Day). Maybe Quentin and Penny will have more luck extricating a willing hospital patient. Meanwhile, Elliot and Margo finally play their trump…
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Prince Ess of… - The Magicians S03E06 - Do You Like Teeth?
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 6! This week, Elliot agrees to chaperone Margo and her pubescent groom on a little romantic getaway. However, this is all a ploy to go do some reconnaissance in the far north, where the invasive fairy horde has set up some kind of mushroom...
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Business Tutting - The Magicians S03E05 - A Life in the Day
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 5! Margo, Eliot, and Quentin get to dive into our favorite television trope, alternate timelines! Penny on the other hand, is not having fun on the surviving timeline. Thanks for listening!
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Classic Hyman Problem - The Magicians S03E04 - Be the Penny
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 4! After Penny's untimely demise at the end of last weeks episode leaves his spirit detached from his corpse, he find himself in a race against the clock. Can his incorporeal form manage to communicate his new situation to his grieving friends...
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Tubular Meats - The Magicians S03E03 - The Losses of Magic
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 3! This week, Elliot needs an assist after a band of pirates takes his sentient ship and crew hostage. Luckily, Margo is able to smooth talk the fairy queen into lending her a hand. Meanwhile, Penny is undergoing supernatural surgery from a…
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Cheertocracy - The Magicians S03E02 - Heroes and Morons
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 3 episode 2! This week, we recover the first of the keys we need to complete the vague "great quest" that kicked off this season. Back on Earth, magic doesn't seem gone as much as it seems diminished and sporadic. We just don't have enough information…
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Ear Hole Poll - The Magicians S03E01 - The Tales of the Seven Keys
Hello and welcome to the first episode of The Magicians season 3! Our Fillory homestead is still blighted by the recent fairy invasion and we just can't shake em. It doesn't help that they can seemingly hear and see everything, everywhere. We would ask for help, but Penny is a bit preoccupied by...
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The Magicians Season 2 Wrap-Up
Hello and welcome to the season 2 wrap-up for The Magicians! Thank you to all of the lovely listeners who submitted questions. Do we fully understand every plot point and story arc now? HAH...no, not at all. But we had a lot of fun. That's something! We are back next week with season 3! Watch a...
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Niffinication - The Magicians S02E13 - We Have Brought You Little Cakes
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 2 episode 13. It's a season finale week, y'all! We have all of the standard cliffhanger goodies. Dead gods? Check. Rekindled romances weighed down by copious amounts of emotional baggage? Check. An army of fae with a penchant for boddy horror? BIG check....
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Russarctica - The Magicians S02E12 - Ramifications
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 2 episode 12! This week, Quentin and Eliot find themselves in Canada talking exposition with the missing Fillory god, Umber. Turns out, he is a much better host than his chaotic foil who relieved himself in the source of all magic. Meanwhile, Penny is...
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xXx_dante_xXx - The Magicians S02E11 - The Rattening
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 2 episode 11! This week, Fillory's problems keep stacking up as the whole kingdom is being bombarded with an homage to the biblical plagues. Meanwhile, Quentin gets to meet a dragon, which is pretty sick. In the less sick department, Penny is still locked...
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Book 'Em - The Magicians S02E10 - The Girl Who Told Time
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 2 episode 10! This week, Fillory is buzzing at the prospect of another royal wedding. Some good buzzing, some treasonous buzzing. Meanwhile, Penny begins his 1 billion year temp assignment at the library out of time. But if the remaining nine-hundred...
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Jennifer Like Hewitt - The Magicians S02E09 - Lesser Evils
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 2 episode 9! This week, Eliot decides to try and save his subjects from the pains of war by agreeing a 1v1, king to king! Bonus points for making him look like a bad a** in the process. Maybe get a sick statue in his honor? Meanwhile, Quentin and Penny…
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Incel Wolves - The Magicians S02E08 - Word As Bond
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 2 episode 8! This week, Quentin and his niffin sidekick Alice are fighting for a majority stake in controlling Quentin's flesh. Meanwhile, Margo is holding it down the best she can in Fillory and Penny is trying to work out a tenuous new normal with Kady....
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Theoretical Bank Heist - The Magicians S02E07 - Plan B
Hello and welcome to The Magicians season 2 episode 7! This week, we are all taking a little break from our normal daily drama to do some good old fashioned crimes. What's the point of having a group of powerful magicians if we aren't going to rob a bank or two? The only twist is that banks…
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About this show
Pop Culture Role Call is a weekly podcast that reviews television and movies from different characters' perspectives. Each week our geek panel (panel of hosts) watches the same TV episode or movie each assigned their own character role. They will only watch scenes that their character is present in, leaving them with only part of the bigger picture.
Hosted by
Smizmar Studios