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Glen Weldon has a new book out about Batman — perhaps he's mentioned it? A few years ago, he even wrote a book about Superman.
So we couldn't possibly pass up a chance to discuss Batman v. Superman: Dawn Of Justice, the gigantic new superhero-crossover blockbuster that's supposed to launch a zillion likeminded juggernauts in the coming years. And, as we so often do when we talk about movies in which buildings get knocked over, Linda Holmes and I called on our pal Chris Klimek to join us; after all, Chris was our staunchest defender of BvS's Zack Snyder-directed predecessor, Man Of Steel, and we like to showcase a wide range of opinions on this show as much as possible.
Unfortunately, that whole "wide range of opinions" thing didn't work out so well this time around, as we figured out pretty quickly. But we did pull together a whole mess of thoughts on not only Batman v. Superman, but also blockbusters in general — namely, what do we look for in a big-budget action movie? What makes the great ones stand out? Die Hard, Jaws, Mad Max: Fury Road, Close Encounters... we have thoughts.
Then we run down our answers to a question every geek should consider at least once: If you could own just one pop-culture object — the Batmobile, for example, or Excalibur — what would it be? I maintain that places count as objects, but ultimately narrow a couple of youthful fantasias down to a single Rube Goldberg device. Glen runs through a laundry list of possibilities before picking a single item in Batman's collection. Chris decides on a briefcase — not just any briefcase, mind you — and Linda has designs on pulling into the NPR parking garage with a conversation-starter for the ages.
Finally, as always, we close with What's Making Us Happy this week. I'm psyched about an unlikely shout-out to NPR Music's Tiny Desk, and about this truly sublime inspirational video. Glen, naturally, has experienced some joys surrounding the publication of his new book, and praises a long-awaited sequel that's near and dear to both of our hearts. Chris loves a pair of goofy videos: one with the great Rachel Bloom, and one with a magnificent military band. And Linda mentions a special, limited-time-only incentive to listen to Pop Culture Happy Hour on NPR One, and also praises a recent episode of the wonderful podcast 99% Invisible.
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