<p>The original trio Steve, Dana, and Julia convene for a right cracker of a Gabfest as they discuss <em>How to Get to Heaven from Belfast,</em> the new comedic mystery from <em>Derry Girls </em>creator Lisa McGee. In the Netflix series, three longtime Belfast friends must revisit their childhood trauma to unravel the mystery of a fourth friend’s disappearance— raucous Northern Irish hijinks ensue.</p><br><p>Next, they step into the unhinged dystopian Los Angeles of Gore Verbinski’s new film <em>Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die</em>. In it a beleaguered time traveler played by Sam Rockwell must visit the same Norm’s diner 117 times to save the world from the menace of A.I..</p><br><p>Finally, they welcome Slate senior writer Christina Cauterucci to unpack her recent piece “<a href="https://slate.com/life/2026/02/gun-range-safety-gay-lesbian-lgbtq-trump.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">My Gun and Me</a>” about her unlikely journey towards gun ownership during Trump 2.0—and how she’s not alone in doing so in her left-leaning, queer community.</p><br><p>In an exclusive bonus episode for Slate Plus subscribers, they determine if there are indeed <a href="https://slate.com/life/2026/01/body-books-reading-position-posture-pain.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">no comfortable reading positions</a>, as a recent Slate essay by Luke Winkie attests.&nbsp;</p><br><p><strong>Endorsements</strong></p><br><p><strong>Dana</strong>: The latest <a href="https://www.todayintabs.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Today in Tabs</em></a><em> </em>entry from Rusty Foster "<a href="https://www.todayintabs.com/p/a-i-isn-t-people" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A.I. Isn't People</a>."</p><br><p><strong>Julia</strong>: In lieu of an endorsement, a gripe: the much-hyped <a href="https://www.nytco.com/press/new-york-times-games-introduces-first-2-player-word-game-crossplay/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>New York Times </em>two-player<em> </em>word game Crossplay</a> is just Scrabble! (If only there were a German word for this specific form of disappointment...)</p><br><p><strong>Steve: </strong>Rereading J.D. Salinger with some distance from one’s own adolescence— particularly <a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/franny-and-zooey-j-d-salinger/ef8d93299bc67248?ean=9780316769495&amp;next=t" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Franny and Zooey</em></a><em> </em>and the short story "<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1950/04/08/for-esme-with-love-and-squalor" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">For Esmé—with Love and Squalor</a>." And for a good critical reassessment, read Janet Malcolm's <em>New York Review of Books </em>essay "<a href="https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2001/06/21/justice-jd-salinger/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Justice to J.D. Salinger</a>."&nbsp;</p><br><p>--</p><br><p>Email us your thoughts at <a href="mailto:[email protected]" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[email protected]</a>.&nbsp;</p><br><p>Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch. Production assistance by Daniel Hirsch.</p><br><p><br></p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>