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Pop Heist

Connor Lightbody (he/him) is a Scottish film critic, programmer and writer. He is an avid film festival attendee that you can find sipping aperol on the Venice Lido each year while ranting about how good Magic Mike XXL is.

Connor Lightbody

Movies

‘The Mastermind’ Is a Bum-Numbing Pastiche of Better Heist Flicks

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 Jackson

Member Exclusive

‘Hannibal’ 1×05 Recap: Ethical Butchery

Lan Pitts (he/him) is an Atlanta-born writer based in Baltimore, Maryland. He learned to read from mini-comics that came with action figures and video game instruction manuals. He&#8217;s been writing professionally for almost 20 years and doesn&#8217;t think that&#8217;ll end anytime soon.

Lan Pitts

Culture

Godzilla, Inc.: When Brand Deals Keep a Monster Relevant — Or Turn Him Into a Mascot

Paul Montgomery (he/him) writes from Philadelphia.

Paul Montgomery

‘It: Welcome to Derry’ 1×02 Recap: Pucker Up for Pickle Daddy

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.

Sean T. Collins

Prestige Prehistory

‘I, Claudius’ Finale Recap: Bye, Claudius

Heistoween

The Boo Box: Graveyard of Lost Toys

Grace Leeder (she/they) has spent years cultivating her passion for storytelling, from TV shows to movies. Since entering the podcasting world in 2020, Grace has established herself as a trusted voice in pop culture, offering in-depth insights and recommendations that resonate with audiences. She began podcasting in 2020 on the award-winning Rob Has A Podcast, sharing her love for various TV series and films with listeners.
In the spring of 2024, Grace began co-hosting The Tastemakers, a podcast designed to provide curated reviews and recommendations. Throughout her podcasting journey, Grace has covered acclaimed series like Succession, The Last of Us, House of the Dragon, and many more. She has also expanded her scope to conduct engaging interviews with a diverse range of industry professionals, including actors, writers, directors, and costume designers, delivering an inside look at what goes into making some of the most popular shows and movies.

Grace Leeder

Survivor contestants pushing wooden thing

‘Survivor’ 49×06 Recap: “The Devil’s Shoes”

Melody Esme is a music, film, and TV writer, based in Portland, OR. In addition to her writing about art and pop culture, she has also published a novel and released riot grrrl music.

Melody Esme

Geeks on bikes walking down street at night

‘Freaks and Geeks’ Episode 12 Recap: Good Times Roll

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.

Latonya Pennington

Digimon, Kiss of the Spider-Woman and Glee

Queerly Nerdy

Queerly Nerdy: Things Giving Me Glee

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.

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