The Umbrella Academy has halted multiple apocalypses, including a twist-filled blast and defeating their own extreme sibling rivalry, and the gang will soon be back for a fourth and final season. Naturally, their very existence sits in a shambles because that third season finale changed everything.

Super apocalypse was the name of the game, given that the Hargreeves siblings had to defeat the Sparrow Academy, and they eventually did solve the Kugelbliz issue by hitting “reset” on the world. Yet they ended up in an odd reality where their powers were taken away, and they were allowed to enter the world, seemingly unaffected, to experience life anew. Elliot Page’s Victor got the last (profane) word, and the show actually could have ended there without falling into unresolved mode like, say, Santa Clarita Diet suffered upon cancellation. After all, three seasons is sometimes enough for Netflix with contracts generally needing to be re-upped, etc., but good news did arrive.

Showrunner Steve Blackman was thrilled to announce that the show has “an amazing story ahead for season four, one that will have fans on the edge of their seats until the final minutes.”

Promises, promises. I kid, though. This is an excellent development, and viewers won’t have to wait much longer, so let’s discuss the final season.

Plot

Netflix has revealed the above image that might appear uneventful, but upon further examination, it’s clear that something is very amiss. For starters, Tom Hopper’s Luther is no longer a jacked partial gorilla after losing those “powers.” That might seem freeing, and being normal might have guaranteed a lovely future for these generationally-traumatized characters. However, think again. On Instagram, Blackman revealed that the season premiere episode is called “The Unbearable Tragedy of Getting What You Want.”

The siblings had largely gone their separate ways, but they couldn’t quit each other for real. For one thing, a lack of power means that there’s the serious problem of them being unable to halt any future apocalypses that come down the Bad Dad Hargreeves turnpike. You know that he wasn’t going to let the world slide without another civilization-threatening disaster, and somehow, their mother has been revealed to be alive again, too. Also, Allison will have to reckon with turning against her siblings and making a deal with Dad, which presumably reunited her with her decades-past husband.

That’s where a stumbling block occurs for plot predicting. The show will now move further (like Game Of Thrones did in regard to George R.R. Martin’s source material) past Gerard Way and Gabrial Ba’s The Umbrella Academy comics after The Sparrow Academy volume. In other words, we are now in the great Umbrella Unknown with Netflix issuing a vague season description:

Last season ended with a major twist: There’s a new timeline dictated by the family patriarch, Reginald (Colm Feore), and the siblings no longer have their powers. That’s not the only oddity in this timeline, where the stakes are higher than ever before — there are new enemies who want to see them wiped from existence, but how do they face them without their powers? And will the siblings ever get them back?

Yup, higher stakes, more siblings, and that sounds about right. Let’s keep going.

Cast

Beyond the mystery of who will play the new sibling rivals (maybe we’ll see another dance off), the fourth season will also include new characters portrayed by Nick Offerman and Megan Mullally as college professors. David Cross also joins the cast (“as a man desperate to reconnect with his estranged daughter”), and he recently told us that “it was a f*cking treat and an honor to be a part of that.”

Returning cast members will include the gregarious Robert Sheehan (Klaus Hargreeves), Elliot Page (Victor Hargreeves), Tom Hopper (Luther Hargreeves), Emmy Raver-Lampman (Allison Hargreeves), David Castañeda (Diego Hargreeves), Aidan Gallagher (Number Five), Justin H. Min (Ben Hargreeves), Ritu Arya (Lila Pitts), and Colm Feore (Reginald Hargreeeves).

Release Date

A fourth-season premiere date hasn’t been revealed yet, other than Netflix’s assurance that 2024 is the year, for sure.

Trailer

A tiny slice of footage appeared within Netflix’s most recent sizzle reel.

The best new hip-hop this week includes albums, videos, and songs from Icewear Vezzo, Lil Yachty, TiaCorine, and more.

It’s Grammys weekend, and you know what that means: It took me about a quarter of the time to write this column that it normally takes. Seriously, though, since more or less everyone in the music industry is converging on my hometown for the “biggest night in music,” we’ve all mostly been too busy schmoozing and connecting with acquaintances to manage the day-to-day logistics of putting new music out. Fortunately, that didn’t stop everybody from doing so, or this column might be even shorter than it already is.

This week, JT dropped her first new solo single in something like nine months, “Sideways.”

Lil Yachty got reflective on “A Cold Sunday,” continuing his hot streak of late:

And TiaCorine put her love for anime and video games on display in the video for “Bonnet” from her new EP, Almost There, which we cover a bit more in-depth below:

Here is the best of hip-hop this week ending February 2, 2024.

Albums/EPs/Mixtapes

ALLBLACK — Slow Motion Is Better Than No Motion

It’s an age-old aphorism but remains as true as ever — and nobody knows that better than the Bay Area indie hero ALLBLACK, who has kept up an impressively steady pace of new releases for the past four years, with no fewer than five full-length projects since 2020. On the latest, he titles the songs after a collection of his underrated heroes, from perennial NBA sixth man Jamal Crawford to ’50s doo-wop legend Frankie Lymon.

Icewear Vezzo — Live From The 6

With all the talents burbling up from Michigan’s loose-limbed, hard-nosed underground scene, I hear weirdly little about Icewear Vezzo from fans. Perhaps indie elitists gave up on him when he signed to Quality Control in 2022. They shouldn’t have; he remains as street-rooted and quietly clever as ever. If his rhymes are less hilariously unhinged as some of his compatriots, his observations are as sharp-eyed and delivered as deftly as ever. Like Babyface Ray (who’s featured here, along with YTB Fatt, Chuckie CEO, and sigh, DaBaby), Vezzo’s calling card is his consistency — which will pay off eventually, if there is any justice in this world.

TiaCorine — Almost There

While much of the attention this week was still being lavished on Nicki Minaj’s increasingly one-sided “beef” with Megan Thee Stallion, Winston-Salem’s own TiaCorine made one helluva play to swing the spotlight back in her direction. Almost There features a who’s-who of buzzy net-rap faves (Key Glock, Luh Tyler, ZelooperZ) but she controls the show, spitting with the slick-tongued, sharp-toothed ferocity of any of your starving 1990s boom-bap artists. “Bonnet,” which I cited above, is a standout, and would probably be as big on TikTok as her breakout “FreakyT” had UMG not pulled the plug on its music-sharing deal with the video platform. Hopefully, other avenues will bring in the ears it deserves.

Singles/Videos

Beatking — “Outside” Feat. Natalie Nunn

I’m sorry… featuring WHO!? We’re including this solely out of nostalgia for the early days of Twitter and the heyday of the Bad Girls Club. (Also, the beat knocks, and the baddies will almost certainly be turning up to this anytime get go … ahem … outside this summer.)

Don Toliver — “Bandit”

I covered this a bit earlier this week but feel it deserves a second look because it is marked by a notable improvement in the songwriting department on Toliver’s part. This might sound like shade, but this is the first time I actually felt engaged by a new Toliver single rather than just obligated to give it a fair shot. Dare I say, he’s grown on me a bit, and “Bandit” somewhat justifies that developing affection in a way that has me genuinely interested in what he might do this year.

Monaleo — “Don Who Leo”

One of my favorite things to drop this week was Monaeleo’s video for her new single, “Don Who Leo” (that’s a great title). While comparing her to fellow Houstonian Megan feels borderline gauche, I think it’s worth the possible faux pas because this reminds me of Meg at the height of her freestyle prowess, just before she broke out huge with “Big Ole Freak.” The energy is infectious, the punchlines are guffaw inducing, and the charisma is through the roof. I don’t know if I’ve said it before, but 2024 has the potential to be the year of the divine — and unapologeticaly ratchet — feminine.

Skilla Baby — “Plate”

Simple, straightforward, and with a surprisingly positive message. Not something I would have anticipated from Skilla Baby (usually, street artists wait until they’re on album three before doing their most uplifting material) but I should have known better. He’s made his name doing the unexpected and has always displayed the sort of self-awareness he shows here with lines like “Yeah, I see ’em, but I still pray / I’m a hypocrite for real, telling kids to stop the violence, out here slidin’ the same day.” BARS.

YFN Lucci — “Free Me”

The fact that Lucci can record and release this is fascinating — and not just because he will be eligible for parole in an eye-popping three months. The Atlanta rapper was indicted on racketeering charges in 2021 much like his rival Young Thug, yet because he’s accepted a plea deal, he could be back on the streets and regularly dropping new music by summer. Intriguingly, the streets have yet to accuse him of snitching like Gunna, despite taking a similar deal. Again, this is the stuff of bestselling cultural criticism — and if you beat me to it, I want 5 percent.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The best new hip-hop this week includes albums, videos, and songs from Icewear Vezzo, Lil Yachty, TiaCorine, and more.

It’s Grammys weekend, and you know what that means: It took me about a quarter of the time to write this column that it normally takes. Seriously, though, since more or less everyone in the music industry is converging on my hometown for the “biggest night in music,” we’ve all mostly been too busy schmoozing and connecting with acquaintances to manage the day-to-day logistics of putting new music out. Fortunately, that didn’t stop everybody from doing so, or this column might be even shorter than it already is.

This week, JT dropped her first new solo single in something like nine months, “Sideways.”

Lil Yachty got reflective on “A Cold Sunday,” continuing his hot streak of late:

And TiaCorine put her love for anime and video games on display in the video for “Bonnet” from her new EP, Almost There, which we cover a bit more in-depth below:

Here is the best of hip-hop this week ending February 2, 2024.

Albums/EPs/Mixtapes

ALLBLACK — Slow Motion Is Better Than No Motion

It’s an age-old aphorism but remains as true as ever — and nobody knows that better than the Bay Area indie hero ALLBLACK, who has kept up an impressively steady pace of new releases for the past four years, with no fewer than five full-length projects since 2020. On the latest, he titles the songs after a collection of his underrated heroes, from perennial NBA sixth man Jamal Crawford to ’50s doo-wop legend Frankie Lymon.

Icewear Vezzo — Live From The 6

With all the talents burbling up from Michigan’s loose-limbed, hard-nosed underground scene, I hear weirdly little about Icewear Vezzo from fans. Perhaps indie elitists gave up on him when he signed to Quality Control in 2022. They shouldn’t have; he remains as street-rooted and quietly clever as ever. If his rhymes are less hilariously unhinged as some of his compatriots, his observations are as sharp-eyed and delivered as deftly as ever. Like Babyface Ray (who’s featured here, along with YTB Fatt, Chuckie CEO, and sigh, DaBaby), Vezzo’s calling card is his consistency — which will pay off eventually, if there is any justice in this world.

TiaCorine — Almost There

While much of the attention this week was still being lavished on Nicki Minaj’s increasingly one-sided “beef” with Megan Thee Stallion, Winston-Salem’s own TiaCorine made one helluva play to swing the spotlight back in her direction. Almost There features a who’s-who of buzzy net-rap faves (Key Glock, Luh Tyler, ZelooperZ) but she controls the show, spitting with the slick-tongued, sharp-toothed ferocity of any of your starving 1990s boom-bap artists. “Bonnet,” which I cited above, is a standout, and would probably be as big on TikTok as her breakout “FreakyT” had UMG not pulled the plug on its music-sharing deal with the video platform. Hopefully, other avenues will bring in the ears it deserves.

Singles/Videos

Beatking — “Outside” Feat. Natalie Nunn

I’m sorry… featuring WHO!? We’re including this solely out of nostalgia for the early days of Twitter and the heyday of the Bad Girls Club. (Also, the beat knocks, and the baddies will almost certainly be turning up to this anytime get go … ahem … outside this summer.)

Don Toliver — “Bandit”

I covered this a bit earlier this week but feel it deserves a second look because it is marked by a notable improvement in the songwriting department on Toliver’s part. This might sound like shade, but this is the first time I actually felt engaged by a new Toliver single rather than just obligated to give it a fair shot. Dare I say, he’s grown on me a bit, and “Bandit” somewhat justifies that developing affection in a way that has me genuinely interested in what he might do this year.

Monaleo — “Don Who Leo”

One of my favorite things to drop this week was Monaeleo’s video for her new single, “Don Who Leo” (that’s a great title). While comparing her to fellow Houstonian Megan feels borderline gauche, I think it’s worth the possible faux pas because this reminds me of Meg at the height of her freestyle prowess, just before she broke out huge with “Big Ole Freak.” The energy is infectious, the punchlines are guffaw inducing, and the charisma is through the roof. I don’t know if I’ve said it before, but 2024 has the potential to be the year of the divine — and unapologeticaly ratchet — feminine.

Skilla Baby — “Plate”

Simple, straightforward, and with a surprisingly positive message. Not something I would have anticipated from Skilla Baby (usually, street artists wait until they’re on album three before doing their most uplifting material) but I should have known better. He’s made his name doing the unexpected and has always displayed the sort of self-awareness he shows here with lines like “Yeah, I see ’em, but I still pray / I’m a hypocrite for real, telling kids to stop the violence, out here slidin’ the same day.” BARS.

YFN Lucci — “Free Me”

The fact that Lucci can record and release this is fascinating — and not just because he will be eligible for parole in an eye-popping three months. The Atlanta rapper was indicted on racketeering charges in 2021 much like his rival Young Thug, yet because he’s accepted a plea deal, he could be back on the streets and regularly dropping new music by summer. Intriguingly, the streets have yet to accuse him of snitching like Gunna, despite taking a similar deal. Again, this is the stuff of bestselling cultural criticism — and if you beat me to it, I want 5 percent.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Hollywood was stunned on Friday by news that iconic screen actor Carl Weathers passed away at age 76. Best known for his roles in Rocky, Predator, and more recently, The Mandalorian, Weathers reportedly died peacefully in his sleep.

In the wake of his death, tributes have been pouring in on social media, starting with Adam Sandler who worked with Weathers in the 1996 comedy classic Happy Gilmore.

“A true great man,” Sandler wrote on Twitter. “Great dad. Great actor. Great athlete. So much fun to be around always. Smart as hell. Loyal as hell. Funny as hell. Loved his sons more than anything. What a guy!! Everyone loved him. My wife and I had the best times with him every time we saw him. Love to his entire family and Carl will always be known as a true legend.”

Jesse Ventura, who worked with Weathers on Predator, also paid his respect to the late actor.

“We lost an icon,” Ventura wrote. “Carl Weathers was a phenomenal talent, a true professional, and a dear friend. All my sympathies and love to his family. I loved working with him on Predator and then celebrating that film with him at various conventions in the ensuing years. Thank you, Carl.”

Thanks to joining The Mandalorian world in Season 2, Robert Rodriguez had the privilege of working with Weathers and spoke kindly of their time together.

“Will miss the great Carl Weathers who I was very fortunate to work with on several occasions,” Rodriguez posted. “A very kind and generous person. His performances were always electrifying and he was also a terrific director of both stage and screen.”

Magic Johnson, Leslie Jones, Jon Lovitz, and more also chimed in with tributes to Weathers for not just his acting talents, but his skills on the football field:

You can see more reactions to Carl Weather’s passing below:

(Via Adam Sandler on Twitter)

Hollywood was stunned on Friday by news that iconic screen actor Carl Weathers passed away at age 76. Best known for his roles in Rocky, Predator, and more recently, The Mandalorian, Weathers reportedly died peacefully in his sleep.

In the wake of his death, tributes have been pouring in on social media, starting with Adam Sandler who worked with Weathers in the 1996 comedy classic Happy Gilmore.

“A true great man,” Sandler wrote on Twitter. “Great dad. Great actor. Great athlete. So much fun to be around always. Smart as hell. Loyal as hell. Funny as hell. Loved his sons more than anything. What a guy!! Everyone loved him. My wife and I had the best times with him every time we saw him. Love to his entire family and Carl will always be known as a true legend.”

Jesse Ventura, who worked with Weathers on Predator, also paid his respect to the late actor.

“We lost an icon,” Ventura wrote. “Carl Weathers was a phenomenal talent, a true professional, and a dear friend. All my sympathies and love to his family. I loved working with him on Predator and then celebrating that film with him at various conventions in the ensuing years. Thank you, Carl.”

Thanks to joining The Mandalorian world in Season 2, Robert Rodriguez had the privilege of working with Weathers and spoke kindly of their time together.

“Will miss the great Carl Weathers who I was very fortunate to work with on several occasions,” Rodriguez posted. “A very kind and generous person. His performances were always electrifying and he was also a terrific director of both stage and screen.”

Magic Johnson, Leslie Jones, Jon Lovitz, and more also chimed in with tributes to Weathers for not just his acting talents, but his skills on the football field:

You can see more reactions to Carl Weather’s passing below:

(Via Adam Sandler on Twitter)

How would you like to feel superhuman? Not trying to blow smoke here but… that’s sorta what it feels like to be a long-distance runner. Remember that morning running scene from Captain America: Winter Soldier? How would you like to be Steve Rogers? There’s an amazing feeling that comes with being able to take off running for miles on end without gasping for air after a few minutes. This kind of running, also classified as endurance running, is one of the most effective and accessible ways to build real resilience in your body, as well as your mind.

If you’ve stuck to short runs in the past or if you simply use running as a warm-up, some tremendous benefits are waiting for you just a few more miles down the road. There is research that has found that long-distance runners feel relief from tension, improved self-image, a better mood, and improved happiness. Perhaps you’ve heard about the “runner’s high” Well, it’s real. Even if you’ve just got a taste of it, you know how powerful this moment can be on a run. And it only stands to reason that if you are running greater distances, then you are feeling a longer runner’s high. On the physical side, it’s an excellent way to supercharge the legs and the lungs.

If all of these benefits sound good to you, then there’s no reason not to kick off your long-running practice right now. Are there going to be hard moments on this journey? Definitely. But those challenges will be faced in the head, not the legs. Because contrary to what you may have heard or assumed, studies show that running for long distances properly can strengthen your knees, not damage them.

That being said, it’s always important to approach progression in the right way, to avoid unnecessary injury. Uproxx sat down with runner Dr. Scott Melamed of Progressive Foot Care to share strategies to kick off your new long-distance practice and keep you on track

GEAR UP TO GO THE DISTANCE

Shoes:

It should come at no surprise that for a runner, it’s important to find a shoe that fits your form and fashion. Finding a pair that makes you excited to lace up and go on that next run is huge. For shoes, the main thing that you are looking for is stability. Because your feet are going to take so many strikes against the ground, it’s important to make sure they are hitting the pavement the right way.

Dr. Melamed stresses that this is one instance where you should avoid the convenience of online shopping. “Go into the store and try them on to make sure they fit just right,” he says. It may be necessary to take them on a quick run before you fully commit. “Be sure to consider that your feet might swell a few miles into your run. You’re going to want to run to allow for that.”

Uproxx Pick: NOBULL Journey Runner+ ($150)

Socks:

The key here is comfortable and breathable. Depending on how big an issue swelling is for some people, you might want socks with some light compression. “Don’t go crazy with the padding and try to avoid wool socks,” says Melamed. “Your feet are going to sweat, there’s no avoiding that, and extra material can mean more friction, which can result in blisters.”

Be sure you pick up plenty of pairs, there’s nothing better than running in fresh socks and no reason to skimp on the protection.

Uproxx Pick: Features Elite Ultra Light Invisible ($18)

Shorts:

For short runs clothing may not be as big a focus, but when you are going to be putting in real miles there’s more potential for chafing. It should come at no surprise that you want to give your legs as much freedom of motion as possible. Of course, it’s also important to consider the conditions you are going to be running in, and as nice as it might feel to be unrestricted by long pants you don’t want to expose yourself to extreme weather. There are plenty of great run pant options like the one below that won’t restrict your quads.

Uproxx Pick: Patagonia Strider Pro Running Shorts ($85)

Uproxx Pick (Cold Weather Option): Lululemon Surge Hybrid Pant ($69)

Sun Protection:

For those runners who decide to enjoy the great outdoors on their run, protection from the sun is massive since you’ll be spending a little extra time under the rays. If you don’t want to wear a hat the whole run finding a nice and light moisturizer with some SPF that doesn’t feel too greasy is clutch.

Uproxx Pick: Every Man Jack Mineral Face Lotion With Sunscreen ($12)

Tracker:

There has been major strides in wearable fitness tech, and with all the insights they can bring, it’s worth investing here. These pieces can sync to your phone where you can track your heart-rate variability and your energy output during these runs. This kind of information can help when you start to increase your miles and want to know what kind of capacity you have available.

Uproxx Pick: Oura Ring ($300) + optional subscription

FIND THE RIGHT ROUTE

Long-distance runs are opportunities to explore new places in your neighborhood or just take in a nice view during your extended exercise. Find a route that is going to bring you joy, whether that means running along the water or through the woods. This is a good opportunity to get some time in nature, where studies show there are real psychological benefits. These days there are a lot of great running tracks in most local neighborhoods. But one way to motivate yourself to go further is finding how far you want to run, and then find a route that will take you half the way out. That way you are forced to go the full distance.

There are a lot of great resources for routes in almost every town on websites or apps like Strava or AllTrails. Getting into the habit of visiting and updating these sites can really help elevate your long-distance practice. Everyone on them, especially Strava, is obsessed when it comes to running — that kind of passion can be infectious. There’s also a lot of pride that can come with uploading your completed routes, especially new ones you’ve discovered for others.

FUEL UP FOR THE LONG RUN

Everybody is different, and there are a lot of differences when it comes to nutrition specifically. But there are a few easy guiding principles that you should consider.

Keep it simple:

Carbohydrates like bagels and oatmeal are the best way to get in calories before a long run.

Fill up the tank: I

t’s not necessary to get too fancy when it comes to hydration. Make sure you are getting plenty of water. There are great options to help with replenishing electrolytes, like LMNT, that don’t overdo it with the sugar.

Take it to go:

If you plan on your run taking longer than 45 minutes consider grabbing a bar or gel, I personally like the ones from BPN.

STRETCH FOR SUCCESS

Excited to hit the ground running?

As appealing as it can be to just take off on your run, stretching is essential when it comes to keeping a regular practice going. On top of that, getting a good stretch is a way to warm up the body in preparation for longer runs. The kind of stretching you’re going to want for that purpose is dynamic stretching, which involves your body staying in motion for a particular movement for a certain amount of time or reps.

Below are a few easy examples of dynamic stretches that are good before your run. It’s important to remember that despite legs being important in running, the whole body is used and should be stretched to allow for the best performance.

Arm Swings:

Stand with your feet at shoulder width apart. Once you are stable in your footing begin to windmill your arms forward forward for 30 seconds and then backwards for 30 seconds. Following that, swing both of your arms across your body for 30 seconds, then keep adjusting the range in which you swing your arms to stretch different parts of your upper body like your shoulders, back, and chest.

Leg Swings:

Stand perpendicularly to a wall with your right arm stretched out and touching the palm of your right hand to the wall for support. Bracing your body with your left leg begin to swing your right leg back and forth while keeping it loose and fully extended. If you want to target some different muscles with this stretch, do a little bending of the knees during the swings to recreate the running pattern. Do this for 30 seconds and then repeat the same with the opposite side.

Following your run, for the best recovery of the muscle you are going to want to do some static stretching, which means elongating the muscle for some time in a hold. Check out this perfect routine of static stretches in our stories here.

FOCUS ON FORM AND FUNCTION

Form is part of the running journey that is individualized as well. There are a lot of great resources online on finding your own running technique, but here are some guiding principles that become more important with these longer distances.

Don’t bounce around:

Because you are propelling yourself off of the ground with each step, it can be difficult to keep your momentum going in the right direction. Remember that the goal is to go forward, so keep that in mind when you find your stride.

Strike right:

Finding your stride has a lot to do with where your foot strikes the ground. Be sure that you are trying to go for the mid-foot area or the ball of the foot. Staying with the front of your foot will improve your pace and speed, meaning that you can go even further.

Breathe deep:

Oxygen is a huge factor in your performance and taking short, quick gasps isn’t going to take you far. Be sure that you are focusing on breathing through your nose and out of your mouth in a deep, sustained way. If necessary, stop listening to your music or podcast to give attention to your breathing pattern.

This also does a great job of relaxing you, as many people may start to feel tension later in their runs if their breath is staggered and not steady.

Stand straight:

Because most of the population spends so much time leaning over a desk or looking down at their phones, many people have developed a hunch in their regular posture. There is the risk of that posture slipping into your runs as well, which doesn’t make for a healthy running form. Be sure to keep your eyes straight and your head up, standing tall to get the most extension during your stride.

RECOVER RIGHT

Given the amount of impact that your feet are taking with the ground, they are going to take a beating. This is especially true when you are ramping up a running practice to go long distances. Dr. Melamed recommends doing regular foot checks, and that means before and after each run. “There’s an increased risk of blisters and nail injuries when you are putting in more miles,” says Melamed. “But don’t be discouraged by the threat of those. The cardiovascular and mental health benefits far outweigh the negatives.”

If you do happen to get a blister, allow it to heal itself. “Blisters are naturally sterile, so the worst thing that you can do it mess with it,” says Melamed. “The body is more resilient than you can imagine.” That being said, if something continues to aggravate you, don’t try to be a hero — if any issue remains a problem, go see a specialist.

Inflammation is a huge consideration when you are upping the miles on a run practice. There are a few ways to combat this, including having compression socks on during the run. Stepping into a cold plunge or a cold bath after your long run is a great way to bring down the inflammation quickly. This is a great way to save your body’s resources so that it can go straight to replenishing your muscles instead of bringing down the inflammation itself.

Lastly, the most effective way to be at your best is to take regular rest days and getting plenty of sleep. Studies show that regular running can have a huge impact on your REM sleep. So don’t be surprised if you find the data showing you got the best sleep after your longest run.

Teyana Taylor might have teased a potential return to music as recently as a month ago but it looks like movies remain her primary focus. According to The Hollywood Reporter, she recently secured a new role in Paul Thomas Anderson’s as-yet-untitled new movie along with pop-punk-singer-turned-Thomas-muse Alana Haim, who made her film debut in Thomas’ 2021 film Licorice Pizza.

Wood Harris, Shayna McHayle, and young Broadway actor Chase Infiniti were also added to the cast, which already included Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, and Regina Hall. Licorice Pizza co-producers Sara Murphy and Adam Somner are again co-producing here along with Thomas, who also wrote the script.

Taylor’s other recent films include Hulu’s White Men Can’t Jump remake with Jack Harlow and the crticially acclaimed A Thousand And One, which holds a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an 85% audience score. It looks like she’s certainly receiving the recognition in acting that she felt she wasn’t getting in music, which is both heartening (yay for recognition) and disappointing (she should have been praised before this).

Meanwhile, Alana and her sisters spent most of last year enjoying their leg of Taylor Swift’s Eras tour. Unfortunately, Haim has also had to face an unfair share of musical criticism, repeatedly refuting misogynistic claims that they don’t play their instruments live. Fortunately, no one can say Alana isn’t acting for herself when she appears in the film, which is already in production.

In The Know is funny. That’s the first and most important thing that you need to know about Peacock’s freshly released stop-motion animated workplace comedy that’s set in the world of public radio. The second most important thing that I want to call out is how well-crafted the show is. From the minds of actor/filmmaker Zach Woods, Mike Judge (Silicon Valley, Beavis And Butthead), Greg Daniels (The Office, King Of The Hill), and a vast team of puppeteers, animators, writers, actors, and artisans, In The Know looks gorgeous and feels utterly unique, mining the quirks and triggers of its dysfunctional work family for laughs while also saying something about the poses we throw.

I thought about the intricacies of pulling off a show like In The Know when I was going back over this interview with Woods, specifically when he paused for a moment to consider his answer to an early question about the intention of the show.

These kinds of interviews sometimes run on people’s ability and willingness to be front of mind and riff (having the charity of spirit to tolerate stupid questions helps too). There’s a fair bit of that here. But it’s wonderful when someone pauses to really think about a question so that they can deliver a thoughtful response, as Woods does, tying together the show, his childhood, the notion of fame, and our universal need to be seen. None of this is very surprising considering the show he’s promoting or my past conversations with the actor (The Office, Silicon Valley, Avenue 5) and filmmaker, but it’s a nice thing to advertise upfront before you dive in. So, you have that depth and clarity to look forward to. Also thoughts on the stop-motion process, the show’s use of live-action interviews, how Woods located his NPR vocal stylings, tote bags vs. cocaine, strangling Mike Judge’s balls, lazy, good-for-nothing sperm, and his condition for returning to a hypothetical reboot of The Office.

Where did your interest in using stop-motion for this come from?

The reason we chose stop-motion is because given that it is a show about fragile, slightly breakable, kind of precious little people who are being controlled by forces that are beyond their own awareness, puppetry seemed like a perfect medium to capture that. And then something we discovered as we were going is that because each character is animated by 30 different animators, there’s kind of a multifacetedness bred into each character as a result of that process because you have 30 different parents basically for each character. So there’s a very dynamic way of bringing a character to life, I think.

The idea of these characters, specifically Lauren, being sort of performatively interesting, is that mostly about what was right for that character, or is that for you, a larger comment on the social media age and how a lot of people are?

Wow, that’s a great question. I think when I was growing up, I was in a very verbal family. There was a degree of intellectual sparring and there was this sort of feeling that you had to have very sophisticated taste or something. I don’t know where it was from, but there’s just this, I don’t know, I guess I felt like I had to be eloquent. Sorry, I want to figure out a way to say this that really does justice to that question.

Here’s what I think: I think I, like many people, have spent large swaths of my life feeling like in order to be lovable, I have to be in some way remarkable or something. And I think that’s a dangerous and backward assumption. I think what makes us lovable is generally not our flashiest parts, but our most human parts. But it’s very, very hard to believe that about yourself. I find it very easy to believe about other people because you witness other people. And if I think about the people I love, sure, many of them are intelligent, many of them are smart, many of them are funny, but that’s not really what I love about them. What I love about them is some sort of mushy humanness that I could never really articulate.

I think that pressure is connected to what you’re saying about social media where you’re branding yourself or you’re performing yourself or you’re being branded by somebody else, or the kind of tyranny of a marketing approach to every aspect of human life is fucked up. It makes everyone lonely and inadequate feeling. I mean, I’m all for marketing when it’s marketing, but when you find yourself marketing yourself in intimate relationships or in your workplace when you’re with your colleagues who you’re ostensibly trying to do something meaningful with, that’s when it can start to feel like it’s a kind of slow-acting acid test on everything good about you. Does that make sense?

It absolutely does. To me, I suffer from people pleasing. I think when you don’t realize these ways that you kind of contort yourself to win people’s affection, I don’t know… It’s like being numb and not realizing the acid and then you just look down at your skeleton. That got dark.

No, I think you’re right. I agree. Now I’m going to become insufferable and long-winded as usual.

Please.

Here’s what I’ll say. I think a lot of people want to be famous because they’re lonely and they think if they’re seen, they will be known. But they are very different things. To be seen in a kind of literal way is very different from being known or understood or cared for. And I think it can be this kind of bizarre narcotic where people want to be seen so they feel less lonely, but then they’re seen and they still feel as lonely as ever. So then they need to be seen even more. And there’s this kind of addiction to it because you’re just hoping with one more view, with one more success, with one more award, that someone will actually know who you are.

But I don’t think that’s the right place to go looking for that, and that’s hardly a novel idea. But I think that’s one thing, and something that truly hadn’t occurred to me until this moment talking to you is that I guess each of the characters (in In The Know) is contorting themselves in some unnatural way. For Lauren, he’s trying to seem urbane and sophisticated and smart, and no pun intended, but “in the know.” For Fabian, I think she’s so vulnerable and feels so dismissed and marginalized that she’s sort of posturing as this sort of bellicose culture warrior when really I think she feels invisible in a way. And she’s screaming so much partly because I think she’s worried that no one gives a shit about her or the fact that she’s in pain or what she actually believes. Barb I think is shrinking herself down to the size of a thimble because she feels like that’s what’s expected of her and that’s how people value her.

How do you find the right combination in terms of these characters? What helps you balance Fabian versus Lauren? Each character is unique, but they all fit together, which is sort of the magic of a workplace comedy, and I feel like you guys really aced it here.

Thanks. Most shows have a family at the center of them. And in this case, it’s not a biological family, it’s not even a chosen family. It’s an unchosen, non-biological family that these people are all part of. And we would talk about them that way, where Barb is a kind of long-suffering self-sacrificing mother. Lauren is an indulged baby boy. Fabian’s an agro teen. Chase is the golden retriever. Sandy is the weird stowaway who rents a room above the garage. Carl is the soft-spoken, well-intended dad who is out in his workshop with his copies of Popular Mechanics all weekend, but who will pick you up from the airport even if it’s 3:00 AM.

Finding these kind of archetypes, familial archetypes, was helpful. I think another thing that’s helpful is to try to remember what each of their core kind of little kids are. It sounds a little facile, like inner child shit, whatever. But we try to enjoy the more obnoxious, outlandish behavior while simultaneously staying connected to the core vulnerabilities that results in that obnoxious behavior.

This is sort of like a who’s your favorite kid kind of question, but is it more fun for you when you’re doing the interviews on the show with someone that you’ve worked with before and who you have that built-in rapport with like Hugh Laurie, or is it more fun when you’re doing it with someone like Mike Tyson? And hey, I don’t know your life, maybe you and Mike Tyson go way back and hang out all the time.

Mike Tyson and I have a stitch and bitch where we get together and just kind of quietly crochet stuff, but it’s both. In other words, they’re different kinds of fun. So with Hugh Laurie, it’s like doing a scene together and it’s kind of playing off of each other. With someone like Mike Tyson, it’s just that I’m so fascinated by him, and he also is so smart and surprising and contradictory. So the pleasure of talking to Mike Tyson was more like what I would imagine it feels like to be an interviewer talking to an interesting subject. And the pleasure of working with someone like Hugh Laurie, is that it’s almost like doing an improv scene with someone you’ve worked with a bunch of times. So they tickle kind of different nerve centers. What a gross way of saying something was fun. They tickle nerve centers? It’s both creepy and bizarrely clinical.

Sounds moist.

I regret everything I’ve done that led me to this point in my life where I made that metaphor.

Lauren’s voice is somewhat close to your own, but there’s still that NPR voice. How did you get to the NPR place?

I think random pauses and a kind of puckish naughty quality. They always have this kind of intellectual naughty boy, like we were provoking, we’re challenging some sacred cows. And I always thought that that was kind of crazy and interesting. But unfortunately and fortunately, I am very close to Lauren Caspian.

Tote bags as a giveaway — useful or bullshit?

I mean, as far as swag goes, it’s pretty good. I got to admit.

I guess. There are better things.

Yeah, I mean, listen. Small vials of potent cocaine would be preferred, but barring that, I’ll take the tote bag.

Man, they really took care of you guys on Silicon Valley, huh?

They did a really nice job.

It’s not TV, it’s HBO.

(Laughs) That’s right, that’s right. You know what I’m talking about.

That was Mike Judge’s real voice at the end the In The Know season finale, right? His real singing voice. He’s like an angel.

(Laughs) Oh, yeah. Yeah, he’s an angel. We had to tie twine around his testicles until they lost circulation so that he could hit those notes, but it was worth it, for me at least. He’s a gamer. He doesn’t feel great about the process, but I was like, “Mike, it’s a really good 20 seconds.”

Yeah, so of course now he has passive sperm (just like Wood’s character on the show) because of that. May I overshare with you?

Please.

At this point, we’re such good friends… So I had to go through the whole process of getting (fertility) tested (like Lauren), and the word they used was not passive sperm. It was lazy.

Are you fucking kidding me?!

So when I was watching this, I was like, that must be just a much nicer doctor because mine was like, “It’s lazy.” I was like, all right, well, judgment.

It’s a character judgment. That’s fucking crazy that it’s like not only are they not doing what you want them to do, but it’s because of a deficit of work ethic.

Yeah. There’s no ambition.

Your sperm is potheads.

I may consult a urologist for this article. I’m wondering if there’s a clinical distinction between lazy and passive sperm.

(Laughs) I was told this was for the New England Journal of Medicine. Is this not?

I do have one last question and this allows me to put in the headline that I asked you about The Office. There’s been some talk about a reboot. If there was a chance to go back and play Gabe again, is that something you’d be interested in?

No. I will only play Erin. That is the only way I would agree, is if they’ll dye my hair red, put some freckles on my face and allow me to be the plucky source of optimism and good feeling in The Office.

The first season of ‘In The Know’ is available to stream on Peacock

If you’ve been dreaming of watching the Aurora Borealis do her thing and dance across the sky — this is your year! Expedia surveyed travelers and found that chasing the Northern Lights is the most sought-after travel experience of the year, with nearly half of travelers dreaming of catching nature’s shimmering technicolored light display this year — even more so than other bucket list experiences such as seeing Egypt’s Pyramids or walking along The Great Wall of China.

So why 2024 of all years? Where should you see the Aurora Borealis? Read on for the details!

Why 2024 Is For Aurora Chasing

2024 is gearing up to be the best year for majestic Aurora Borealis viewings across the Northern Hemisphere in over a decade. In the path of the Northern Lights, displays will be more frequent, longer, and brighter as we approach the solar maximum period at the end of solar cycle 25 between now and early 2025.

Basically, the Northern Lights follow an 11-year cycle of solar activity, with the middle period providing the most intense activity — which is what we’re witnessing now. The current cycle began in 2019 entering the solar maximum period in 2023 which should peak before 2026. A few years from now, the show will be over (for now) as there will be less activity from the sun.

Where To See The Northern Lights

To try your luck at catching the sulfurous green sheen ripple across the expanse of the night sky, you need to be in the Auroral Oval. It’s best to book your trip around the new moon for optimal dark skies — avoid the full moon and be sure to check weather conditions for the time of year you’re visiting.

Depending on the destination, the “aurora season” is generally from August to April. Winter is the best time of year for Aurora hunting as skies are typically clearer at night — but it will be frigid so be sure to pack cold-weather gear or rent it at the destination. Avoid places with light pollution which will reduce your chances of seeing the ribbons of light across the night sky.

Canada

Fortunately, those of us in North America don’t have to venture far to see the lights. While they can be seen from Norway and Finland — Yellowknife, Canada is the best place to watch the shape-shifting astronomical phenomenon in North America. I visited in January for three nights and got to see nature’s phenomenal performance two nights in a row. The Aurora, which appeared as a faint gray-green color to the naked eye, stretched across the sky like a wispy rainbow.

The Yukon is known for the shape-shifting Aurora Borealis across its vast expanses. Get front-row seats for the world’s most spectacular light show in Whitehorse or Dawson City. Churchill, Manitoba boasts plenty of iconic aurora sightings and is also an epic destination for wildlife as it’s home to polar bears, wolves, and Beluga whales.

Europe

Iceland is rich with incredible natural landscapes in the polar regions far away from cities to photograph with the Northern Lights above them. Before heading out after dark, check Iceland’s meteorological office’s aurora forecasts. The most impressive natural light shows are from September to March.

Lapland covers ground in Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia and is a hot spot for its display of Auroras as it’s in the Arctic Circle and tends to have 200 nights of visible light. Abisko National Park, Kiruna, and Luleå are the best places in Sweden for the light show. On the Finnish side, Utsjoki in the far north has the most displays.

United States

No passport? No problem. Americans can enjoy nature’s light show in the Northern states.

Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota is a certified International Dark Sky Park and a hotbed of brilliant green waves of light. The State’s Boundary Waters is recognized as an International Dark Sky Sanctuary and boasts prime views of the Aurora Borealis.

Given that Alaska is the most northern part of the States, the lights can be seen from late August through mid-April with Fairbanks being a popular viewing spot. The further north you go in Alaska, the more likely you are to catch the vibrant colors in the sky.

Maine has some of the clearest night skies in the country and has a few prime Northern Lights viewing spots including Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge on the border of Canada, where you can camp overnight and Schoodic Lake and watch the aurora’s breathtaking colors reflect on the lake’s surface.

If you’re seriously into whiskey, then you know never to skip the whiskey aisles at Duty-Free at Frankfurt, Heathrow, Narita, Sydney, Schiphol, and beyond while awaiting an international flight. You’ll find hidden gems, crazy deals, and you might even find something no one else has. Yes, there are tons and tons of bottles of whiskey lining shelves at good liquor stores like Total Wine, Liquor Barn, Spec’s, Binny’s, and so many more. But those stores are missing an entire sub-set of whiskeys from massive brands to smaller operators — the Traveler or “Duty-Free” whiskey expressions.

Duty-free shopping is one of the best places to score some of the best bottles of whiskey at any given time. Yes, this requires international travel. That is an extra expense. I get that. But if you’re traveling already, then not picking up a special bottle of whiskey from Duty-Free on the way home is leaving amazing whiskey behind (and money on the table). Especially considering that a ton of great whiskeys are only released for Duty-Free shopping. We’re talking about bottles you won’t see anywhere else (outside of the secondary or aftermarket for huge price hikes).

Plus, you’ll be able to buy standards tax-free (more on that later). A win-win!

Below, I’m calling out five hard and fast rules to live by when shopping at Duty-Free for whiskey. Before we dive in, I want to clarify something. I’ll be addressing buying bottles from standard Duty-Free shops in the terminal. Serval countries’ airports have Duty-Free on the exit side of things (usually after customs). Places like Iceland, Sweden, UAE, the UK, and so on do this so that you can buy alcohol to bring into the country as tourists/locals for consumption. This is a whole different thing and is more about exorbitant alcohol taxes in the country you’re visiting than scoring deals/special bottles. I’ll be specifically covering Duty-Free shopping in international terminals for travel to and from a place while you’re waiting for your flight.

Make sense? Let’s go!

• The 100 Best Bourbon Whiskeys Of 2023, Ranked
• The ‘Smoothest’ Bourbons Under $100, Blind Tasted And Ranked
• The 100 Best Kentucky Bourbons, Ranked
• The Absolute Best Tasting Bourbons Under $50, Ranked
• The Absolute Best Bottle Of Whiskey From Each Of The 50 States

Duty-Free Whiskey Rule 1 — Know The Laws

The biggest first step is educating yourself. There are laws that — if not followed — will cost you time and money. You can legally bring 1 liter of spirits/liquor into the U.S. from Duty-Free shopping. Hence, you’ll see that a lot of the bottles at Duty-Free are 1-liter bottles.

Here comes the “but”…

But each passenger can bring 5 liters of spirits/liquor into the U.S. if it’s checked in that passenger’s checked bags. Quick story: When traveling with a friend, we checked in, went through security, hit Duty-Free, and then exited back out and filled up a suitcase (that we left in a locker) with five 1-liter bottles and then dropped the bags at bag drop, and carried right on.

So there are ways to actually get a pretty large haul without breaking the rules. Traveling with buddies or family helps. Still, know the law. Stay within it. Otherwise, you might lose some bottles to a nosey customs agent.

Duty-Free Whiskey Rule 2 — Don’t Buy Obvious Bottles

This is the “no duh!” of it all. Don’t buy regular bottles of booze from Duty-Free that you can get at any old liquor store or corner shop at home. Yes, it’s “tax-free” at Duty-Free in the airports. But you’re not allowed to buy enough to have that really make a difference.

That bottle of regular-ass Jim Beam above is €13. That’s $14. And it’s a half-liter bottle (the standard is .75l…!). A regular .75l bottle of Beam at Total Wine is $15.

This applies to Scotch and Japanese whiskies too. If it’s a standard bottle that everyone’s heard of, it’s not worth your time or money to buy at Duty-Free. Sometimes, you’ll see 2-for-1 deals on standard bottles — two bottles of Jack or Jameson or Chivas for one — but even then it’s barely worth it.

Why? Because you have a specific amount of alcohol that you can travel with and you’ll be wasting the bounty available to you with something that you can get anywhere anytime for basically the same price (and sometimes even less).

Duty-Free Whiskey Rule 3 — “Traveler Exclusive/Edition” Is The Most Important Term

This is why we’re here. Yes, I buried the lede. These are the whiskeys that you want to buy. All the major brands release expressions — often stellar ones — that are only available at “Travel Retail”.

A great example of this last year was Jack Daniel’s American Single Malt Whiskey. It’s a “Traveler Exclusive” and is only available at Duty-Free shops in airports.

From there, the list runs deep. You can find high-age statement single malt Scotch whiskies that you might not have even heard of. You can find those impossible-to-find Japanese whiskies that everyone clamors for. You can find special barrel finishes that don’t see the light of day outside of airports. You’ll see bottles of your favorite brands that you’ve never seen on U.S. shores. It’s a true bounty. There’s a little something for everyone when it comes to Traveler’s Exclusive releases. The best part is that they’ll all be at MSRP without tax.

How do you find these hidden gems? They’ll be clearly marked either on the label or the price tag (or even aisle) as “Exclusives” — you can’t miss them. And if you do, simply ask. There are always super helpful people at Duty-Free whiskey shops with all the answers you’ll need answering.

Duty-Free Whiskey Rule 4 — Search For Deals/Sales

It’s also worth just having a stroll. Sometimes on side shelves, by cash registers, and hidden away in corners behind some glass, you’ll find sales, discounted items, and “must-go” prices. I’ve found a super rare Jack Daniel’s Gold Label marked down 60% at Edinburgh’s Duty-Free. I bought the last two.

I’ve also seen (and bought) some marked-down Bowmore’s, Taliskers, The Macallans, Ardbegs, and so many more from the previous year’s vintage that were taking up space for the incoming new vintages. In Heathrow, was able to buy a 30-year-old Bowmore for 50% off simply because it was a 2021 vintage and the 2022s had already arrived. I had to look for the bottle — it was sort of hidden on the far end of a glassed-in aisle — but finding it saved me over $1,000 off the original sticker price.

Admittedly, this is a rarer way to shop Duty-Free whiskey. It’s a sort of right place, right time vibe. Still, you could get amazingly lucky and find a true gem for an amazing price.

Duty-Free Whiskey Rule 5 — Plan Ahead And Win

Another great way to master Duty-Free whiskey shopping in 2024 is to use the Internet. Most huge airports have their Duty-Free shopping online now. You can “click and collect” on special deals, watch sales, and keep track of what’s coming in.

• Heathrow’s online Duty-Free shop pretty much gives you 10% off any bottle with some bottles marked down 20%. If you’re looking at a $1,000 bottle, that’s a significant savings.
• Frankfurt is another big online retailer that you can use beforehand and collect when you’re at the airport. They also deliver to addresses in Germany — like hotel rooms.
• Tokyo-Narita is another good online shop to peruse before you travel. There are a ton of super unique whiskies available there that you simply won’t see anywhere else at legitimately great suggested retail prices. Just make sure to have the currency converter pulled up on your phone.
• Schiphol (Amsterdam) has a cool “Shop & Collect” program where your purchased items will be waiting for you in a locker in the middle of the main terminal (once you pass security and immigration). You get a code, find the lockers, and voila! There’s your booze.

And look, it’s really easy, folks. Simply Google “(Airport name) Duty-Free shopping” and you’ll be taken to these online shops if they’re they exist. From there, you can figure it out pretty easily.