Want to Try 'Blank Check'? Start Here.

The latest in pop-culture news, recaps, and reviews, plus close reads, profiles, interviews, and more from Vulture.com. [Brand Logo]( start here [Want to Try Blank Check? Start Here.]( Highlighting the best episode of Griffin Newman and David Sims’s movie-review podcast. Photo: Arin Sang-Urai On the podcast [Blank Check With Griffin & David](, reply guys turned hosts Griffin Newman and David Sims have invented and perfected a system for delivering their sometimes idiosyncratic verdicts about movies without coming across as mansplaining douchebags. In each episode of [the Patreon-funded show](, Newman, a comedian and actor best known for Amazon’s The Tick reboot, and Sims, a culture writer for The Atlantic, examine a film made by a director whom Hollywood afforded a proverbial “blank check.” Each examined filmmaker’s full filmography becomes the subject of a different miniseries: [“Podward Scissorcast”]( for the complete works of Tim Burton, [“Podback Mountcast”]( for Ang Lee, or [“The Pod Knight Casts”]( for … well, you get it. The hosts, known to longtime listeners as #TheTwoFriends, share a complex but riveting chemistry. For one, their dynamic is often more prickly than congenial. With his critic’s training, Sims brings to the podcast a focused, even-keeled approach compared to Newman, whose more gonzo persona toggles between elastically silly and sincere depending on the film. Even when they agree on something, Sims often spends much of each episode’s runtime warning his clownish counterpart to stay on track. [Read The Story »]( Devour pop culture with us. [Subscribe now](for unlimited access to Vulture and everything New York. The Latest TV Recaps • Reservation Dogs: [Indians Never Die]( (Ep. 1), [Free Fallin’]( (Ep. 2) • The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills: [Wine and Moan]( • The Resort: [Aural Leakage]( • Harley Quinn: [Hootin’ and Hollerin’]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Stories We Think You’ll Like 1. [How Nimesh Patel Made Friends With the TikTok Algorithm The former SNL writer discusses performing stand-up on- and offline.]( By Jesse David Fox 2. [Angelica Ross Will Fosse Her Way Into Chicago This Fall The long-running show’s first openly trans star.]( By Jackson McHenry 3. [The Best Part of Prey Is What It Doesn’t Do In jumping backward in time, Prey frees itself from having to build out more of the mythology of its mandibled alien antagonists.]( By Alison Willmore 4. [Melissa Bank, Author of The Girls’ Guide to Hunting and Fishing, Dead at 61 Remembered for her sharp writing about women’s lives.]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( [Today’s Crossword]( 10-Across and 10-Down: Animated pair getting a reboot on Paramount+, because the ’90s are back. Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Vulture Festival, Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Keys Soulcare, and Noam Galai/Getty Images [Vulture Recommends]( We consume it all so you don’t have to. Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photo Courtesy of A24 In the latest episode of Into It, Sam chats with Vulture’s Alison Willmore and Nate Jones about the rise of A24. Listen now [on Apple Podcasts.]( [Read more from Vulture]( A Saturday newsletter from the people who make New York Magazine. [Sign up]( to get it every week. [logo]( [facebook logo]( [instagram logo]( [twitter logo]( [unsubscribe](param=vulture-daily) | [privacy notice]( | [update preferences]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Was this email forwarded to you? [Sign up now]( to get this newsletter in your inbox. [View this email in your browser.]( You received this email because you have a subscription to New York. Reach the right online audience with us For advertising information on email newsletters, please contact AdOps@nymag.com Vox Media, LLC 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, 12th Floor Washington, DC 20036 Copyright © 2022, All rights reserved