{"podcast":{"title":"Pop Culture Happy Hour","slug":"pop-culture-happy-hour-755082","podcast_index_feed_id":755082,"rss_url":"https://feeds.npr.org/510282/podcast.xml","website_url":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510282/pop-culture-happy-hour","image_url":"https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2022/09/23/popculture-happyhour_tile_npr-network-01_sq-8f7dd7b8b06bf1f4d5c063f3752b7b60979624b4.jpg?s=1400&c=66&f=jpg","author":"NPR (podcasts@npr.org)","episode_count":300,"summary":"Trying to keep up with the latest in pop culture? We’ve got you covered. The Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast helps you find the best new binge-worthy tv shows, movies, music, and videogames. Join hosts Linda Holmes, Aisha Harris, Stephen Thompson, and Glen Weldon four episodes a week - plus a rotating cast of guest pop culture enthusiasts. It’s your fix for reviews, recommendations, and recaps of the pop culture everyone is talking about. From lowbrow reality TV to Oscar-winning movies to the stuff in between, we take it all with a shot of cheer. On the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast, we watch everything so that you never miss anything. Make your happy hour even happier with Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus! Your subscription supports the podcast and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/happyhour","last_synced_at":"2026-07-06T14:21:10.681112+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/pop-culture-happy-hour-755082"},"episode":{"title":"Minions & Monsters and What’s Making Us Happy","slug":"minions-monsters-and-what-s-making-us-happy","published_at":"2026-07-03T07:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/pop-culture-happy-hour-755082/minions-monsters-and-what-s-making-us-happy","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/pop-culture-happy-hour-755082","url":"https://www.npr.org/2026/07/03/nx-s1-5877885/minions-monsters-is-oddly-enough-a-love-letter-to-old-hollywood","audio_url":"https://tracking.swap.fm/track/XvDEoI11TR00olTUO8US/prfx.byspotify.com/e/play.podtrac.com/npr-510282/npr.simplecastaudio.com/f75261d2-0860-4d61-91c1-a78a2b997ff2/episodes/1d843636-a15f-4557-af5e-c88972ac1fe3/audio/128/default.mp3?awCollectionId=f75261d2-0860-4d61-91c1-a78a2b997ff2&awEpisodeId=1d843636-a15f-4557-af5e-c88972ac1fe3&feed=QGMNw0q1&t=podcast&e=nx-s1-5877885&p=510282&d=1320&size=21134173","summary":"Minions & Monsters is the newest addition to the Despicable Me franchise, but this prequel set the minions loose in 1920s Hollywood. They naturally become superstars in the age of silent film. But, as talkies take over, they struggle to stay relevant — until one of them ends up conjuring some cute but deadly monsters using a dead wizard’s old spell book. After many films featuring the hijinks of the yellow pill-shaped oddballs, does this minions feature give off any old Hollywood charm? If you need more animated hijinks, check out these episodes: In 'Toy Story 5,' playtime's over and screentime's in 'The Wild Robot' is grand and gorgeous, with big feelings Is 'Kung Fu Panda 4' a worthy entry in the fun and thoughtful franchise? Connect with Pop Culture Happy Hour: Letterboxd / Facebook Our weekly newsletter Support Pop Culture Happy Hour+ See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy","meta_description":"Minions & Monsters is the newest addition to the Despicable Me franchise, but this prequel set the minions loose in 1920s Hollywood. They naturally become…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1320,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/pop-culture-happy-hour-755082/episodes/minions-monsters-and-what-s-making-us-happy/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/pop-culture-happy-hour-755082/minions-monsters-and-what-s-making-us-happy.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}