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About Us

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This Is Pop Heist

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Pop Heist is a worker-owned, reader-funded pop culture news and journalism website, and we're here to rock your world.

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Pop Heist

John DeQuadros (he/him) is a professional toy photographer and versatile freelance writer with a keen focus on popular culture. He contributes a weekly column to ToyTales.ca and his work regularly features on platforms like StarTrek.com and 8-Bit Pickle. Additionally, his articles frequently grace the pages of esteemed publications like Smarter Than Jack, Kaiju Ramen Magazine, ToyCollectr, The Toy Book and Retro Format Magazine. When not crafting compelling content, John enjoys immersing himself in retro video games, enhancing his diverse toy collection, taking leisurely walks with his dog, and cherishing moments with family and friends.

John DeQuadros

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Fantastic Plastic

Fantastic Plastic: The Best Toys of November 2025

Brett White (he/him) is a pop culture journalist and editor-in-chief of Pop Heist. Prior to this, he was a senior reporter/producer for Decider for seven years. Prior to joining Decider, he covered pop culture for Comic Book Resources, Marvel.com, and MTV News. His areas of expertise include Marvel Comics, Star Wars, Drag Race, classic sitcoms, Sam Neill, unexpected thirst traps, and unlikely menswear icons.
In his spare time, he cohosts the podcast Must Have Seen TV and is writing his first book: a biography of <a href="https://www.haydenrorke.com/">Hayden Rorke</a>.
He also lives out his feminine fantasy as <a href="https://www.barbhardly.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Barb Hardly</a>, his drag queen alter ego.
His hobbies include spending way too much money on action figures, swimsuits, and fashion accessories. He currently lives in Queens with his handsome husband and two large, orange cats.

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Brett White

MAS – 4

Hallmark Hit-or-Miss

Hallmark Hit or Miss: ‘Christmas Above the Clouds’ Is the Air Travel ‘Christmas Carol’ Romcom We Never Knew We Needed

Paul Montgomery (he/him) writes from Philadelphia.

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Paul Montgomery

IT: WELCOME TO DERRY – 5

‘It: Welcome to Derry’ 1×05  Recap: Twisted Cistern

Latonya &#8220;Penn&#8221; Pennington (they/them) is a prolific freelance pop culture critic who has written for publications such as Into More, Popverse, Comics XF, and more. They are also a poet and have been published in Videodame, The Daily Drunk, and Sage Cigarettes, to name a few.

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Latonya Pennington

queerly nerdy angels, aces, magical girls

Queerly Nerdy – 1

Queerly Nerdy

Queerly Nerdy: Angels, Aces, and Magical Girls

Matthew Jackson (he/him) is a writer, critic, podcaster, and nerd-for-hire who&#8217;s been writing about pop culture for more than 15 years. He lives in Austin, Texas, and when he&#8217;s not writing he&#8217;s usually counting the days until Christmas.

Matthew author photo cropped

Matthew Jackson

HANNIBAL – 8

Member Exclusive

‘Hannibal’ 1×08 Recap: A Poet and a Psychopath

Sebastian Deken (he/him) is a writer and musician originally from St. Louis, Missouri. He is the author of <a href="https://bossfightbooks.com/products/final-fantasy-vi-by-sebastian-deken">Final Fantasy VI</a> (Boss Fight Books, 2021), a critical exploration of the music from the 1994 game of the same name. He received his BA in music and French language and literature at Washington University in St. Louis and his MFA in creative nonfiction writing from Columbia University. He currently lives in Queens, New York, with his husband and two cats.

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Sebastian Deken

GIVING – 1

Heistgiving

Let’s Watch the Thanksgiving Day Parade! And Post About It Live!

Eva, Smitty, Martin, Kat, Tomas in family tree

Beyond the Gates family tree

‘Beyond the Gates’ Family Tree Explained: Who’s Who in Fairmont Crest

Sean T. Collins is a freelance TV critic for the New York Times, Vulture, Decider, and elsewhere. He is the author of Pain Don&#8217;t Hurt: Meditations on Road House, available at <a href="https://www.mutualskies.com/">mutualskies.com</a>. He and his wife, the cartoonist Julia Gfrörer, live with their children on Long Island.

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Sean T. Collins

TWIN PEAKS – 3

Prestige Prehistory

‘Twin Peaks’ 1×03 Recap: Red Rooms

The Belcher Family Holiday Trilogy, Part 2: ‘Bob’s Burgers’ Thanksgiving Episodes, Ranked

Ethan Kaye (he/him) is a writer/editor/book hoarder. He is scared of the Loch Ness Monster.

Headshot – Kaye, Ethan

Ethan Kaye

Saturn eating child with pilgrim hat on in front of leaves

Goya’s “Black Paintings” Ranked by How They’d Ruin a Thanksgiving Dinner

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