*IN SYNC Podcast Episode: First Impressions About The Last Of Us

 So many --and too many -- podcasts advertise themselves as the intersection of two discrete arts, media, or cultural habits. You know the drill. 

"Podcast X is the intersection of TV and pop culture."

"Podcast Y is the intersection of movies and cultural values."

Podcast  Z is the intersection of movies and TV." 

So when the *IN SYNC podcast debuted in April with a tagline that it was the intersection between music and TV /movies, I fought the urge to yawn.

I am glad I didn't because *IN SYNC is one of those podcasts that can surprise, stimulate (come on, don't's giggle), and spark neural connections that lay fallow due to our numbed over culture.

 *IN SYNC is marketed as "a podcast for anyone who loves a perfect on-screen needle-drop. With their extensive experience in music and podcasting, cultural critic Rachel Brodsky and filmmaker/podcaster Aviv Rubinstien have joined forces to create the brand-new *IN SYNC Podcast.

The show launched April 11 via Gotham West Studios. The first episode centered around Sia’s “Breathe Me” closing out cult TV show, Six Feet Under. 

 Each episode looks at one great song-to-screen sync and breaks down the cultural impact. 

In the recent The Last Of Us episode, Brodsky and Rubinstien strike narrative gold. Their 64-minute episode traverses so many different and engaging topics that the show is like traveling from theme park to theme park inside Florida's Disney World. In the course of the episode, the co-hosts discuss:

• Craig Mazin, co-creator of The Last Of Us, began his career as a screenwriter, penning schlock comedies like Scary Movie 3&4, and The Hangover, Parts 3 & 4. 
• Mazin was the college roommate of Texas Senator Ted Cruz, ad he never misses an opportunity on social media to take a jab at the always pandering Cruz.
• In 2011, Mazin and fellow screenwriter John August began Scriptnotes, a weekly podcast on the craft of screenwriting and the film industry. The show was highly regarded by aspiring scriptwriters, and Rubenstien shares how he and a writing partner submitted a script to be reviewed on the show as part of an ongoing segment. The co-host admits Mazin did not find the script funny. 
• Mazin's career took a hairpin turn when he created, wrote, and produced the Emmy-award TV series Chernobyl in 2019.
• The episode of The Last Of Us that includes the Ronstadt Long Time song was essentially a stand-alone episode. 
• The Linda Ronstadt hit, Long Long Time, was written by Gary White and was included on her 1970 hit album, Silk Purse.
  

The episode follows the narrative from the original video game to the 2014 movie concept, and how the Ronstadt song mirrors the plaintive, ironic, and touching quality of the episode.

Check out the May 9th episode, The Last Of Us / Long, Long Time by Linda Ronstadt.

Co-hosts Rachel Brodsky Aviv Rubinstien