Entertainment
Vic Michaelis on masterminding Brennan Lee Mulligan quitting Dropout for American Girl Dolls
Dropout fans know Vic Michaelis as a mastermind of cringe comedy, whether they are badgering Sam Reich for a dollar on Game Changer, playing a fictional version of themselves for the interview improv show Very Important People, or joining Dimension 20 as a death-focused “dusty do-gooder” in Gladlands. But with Michaelis’ role on the new Peacock series Ponies, they take their sharp wit to 1977 Russia, playing the frustrated office manager for the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.
Michaelis visited Mashable’s Say More couch to talk all of this and more with Entertainment Editor Kristy Puchko. In the video above, they dig into Vic’s pitch for Game Changer‘s version of Shark Tank. In the episode, called “Fool’s Gold,” contestants are pitched videos that could go viral. While some involved goofy animation and breast milk taste tests, Michaelis pitched that Brennan Lee Mulligan quit Dropout to make American Girl Doll shoes.
“You take the thing people love most and the thing they fear most,” they said of the pitch, noting, “Sam said pitch three to five ideas. And I said, ‘I have one, and if you don’t want to do it, then I don’t want to come on the show.'”
The resulting video didn’t just make waves on TikTok and Instagram, where fans were frantic about the joke and whether or not it was real. News of the fake resignation hit Google in the form of an Easter egg, which rained little shoes when you googled “Brennan Lee Mulligan.”
In the full episode of Say More, available on YouTube, Michaelis speaks more on that particular moment of internet breakery. Above, they also reveal that it was either going to be American Girl Dolls or the Sylvanians (aka Calico Critters). “I ended up doing a bunch of research on what brand was most likely to interact with the video,” Michaelis explained. “I had narrowed it down to Sylvanian dolls and American Girl Dolls.”
We all know what went down with the Sylvanian dolls, right? A content creator called Sylvanian Drama went viral for using the dolls to create scandalous stories for TikTok, and then was sued by the toymaker in July of 2025.
“That lawsuit against that amazing Sylvanian Drama creator happened immediately after the episode dropped,” Michaelis recounted, “or like right before it was supposed to come out. So, I was like ‘Thank God’ [I went with American Girl Dolls].”
Michaelis also touches on how their gag about Evelyn Tucci, who they claimed on Game Changer is the actor Stanley Tucci’s paternal grandmother, has found new life online. Plus, they told Mashable about how their real-life background in martial arts came into play on Ponies. OK, so a kick-to-the-throat attack was cut from Season 1. But could we see Michaelis’ black belt skills in Season 2? Here’s hoping.
For more from Michaelis on Very Important People, Dimension 20, and the unexpected connection between Game Changer, Heated Rivalry, and Ponies, check out the full Say More episode on YouTube.
Ponies is now streaming on Peacock. Game Changer, Dimension 20: Gladlands, and Very Important People are all streaming on Dropout.
Entertainment
The gorgeous yet budget-friendly Samsung QN70F Neo QLED TV is the cheapest its ever been
SAVE $300: As of April 21, you can get the Samsung 55-inch QN70F Neo QLED 4K TV for only $597.99 instead of $897.99 at Amazon. That’s 33% in savings and the lowest price on record.
$597.99
at Amazon
$897.99
Save $300
We’re in peak sports season, y’all. Besides the action of the Stanley Cup playoffs and NBA playoffs, there’s a fresh MLB season taking shape. If your TV is looking dull or lagging, it’s a prime time to upgrade — especially since you can find some epic deals on 2025 models.
As of April 21, the Samsung 55-inch QN70F Neo QLED 4K TV is on sale at Amazon for only $597.99. That’s 33% or $300 off its current list price, as well as its lowest price to date.
As Mashable’s TV expert Leah Stodart explains, “Neo QLED is really just Samsung’s proprietary term for QLED paired with Mini LED.” So, the QN70F features a panel of quantum dots over a bunch of tiny LED bulbs instead of a basic LED panel. The result? A stunning display with impressive color accuracy, deep blacks, and spectacular contrast. All the little details will look good no matter the lighting conditions in your room.
This TV uses an NQ4 AI Gen2 processor to upscale content and enhance the quality of anything you’re watching. So even those old episodes of Friends will look more impressive on the QN70F. And thanks to a 144Hz variable refresh rate, gaming and sports will look noticeably smoother and less laggy than your old set.
Mashable Deals
If an upgrade is in order, but you don’t want to spend a ton of money, the Samsung QN70F Neo QLED 4K TV is an excellent value at full price. At $300 off, it’s a steal.
Entertainment
The secret to faster AI output is better prompts
TL;DR: If writing prompts slows you down, VibeFarm helps you build, save, and reuse them for a one-time $39.99 for lifetime access.
Anyone using AI regularly already knows the real bottleneck isn’t the tools — it’s the prompts. Getting them just right can take longer than the actual work, and once you do land on a great one, it’s usually buried in chat history or lost in a notes app somewhere.
This is the issue VibeFarm aims to eliminate. It’s not another AI generator — it’s a prompt composition workspace designed to help you stay in the flow.
Mashable Deals
Instead of starting from scratch every time, you can build structured prompts using layered fields, refine them with built-in tools, and save them as reusable “VibeCards” for future use.
With access to 10,000+ premium prompts and a system built for remixing and iteration, you can turn one successful prompt into a repeatable asset. Whether you’re working on visuals, writing, video, or something in between, everything stays organized and easy to reuse.
It also plays nicely with the tools you already use. You can export clean prompts directly into platforms like ChatGPT, Midjourney, or other AI tools — no formatting headaches. And with version control and rollback options, you can experiment without losing what worked.
This platform helps you cut wasted time from your AI workflow while keeping your best ideas working for you long after you’ve created them.
Mashable Deals
Get lifetime VibeFarm Lite access on sale for just $39.99 (reg. $179) for a limited time.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
Topics
Artificial Intelligence
Entertainment
How to watch Lakers vs. Rockets in the NBA Playoffs (Game 2) online for free
TL;DR: Live stream Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets in the NBA Playoffs for free on YouTube. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
The NBA is rolling onto the next round of playoff games, with the Los Angeles Lakers looking to go 2-0 in their first-round series with the Houston Rockets. LeBron James and Luke Kennard inspired the Lakers to win the opening game in the absence of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. The big question is whether 41-year old LeBron James can keep it going.
If you want to watch Lakers vs. Rockets in the NBA Playoffs for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Lakers vs. Rockets?
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets in the NBA Playoffs starts at 10:30 p.m. ET on April 21. This game takes place at the Crypto.com Arena.
How to watch Lakers vs. Rockets for free
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets in the NBA Playoffs is available to live stream for free on YouTube.
Mashable Top Stories
This free live stream is geo-restricted to India, but anyone can secure access with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in India, meaning you can access free live streams of the NBA from anywhere in the world.
Stream the NBA for free by following these simple steps:
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Subscribe to a VPN (we tested ExpressVPN and it worked great)
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Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
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Open up the app and connect to a server in India
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Visit YouTube
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Watch the NBA for free from anywhere in the world
$12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but they do tend to offer money-back guarantees or free trials. By leveraging these offers, you can watch NBA live streams without actually spending anything. This clearly isn’t a long-term solution, but it does mean you can watch select games from the NBA before recovering your investment.
What is the best VPN for the NBA?
ExpressVPN is the best service for accessing free live streams on platforms like YouTube, for a number of reasons:
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Servers in 105 countries
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Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
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Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
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Fast connection speeds free from throttling
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Up to 10 simultaneous connections
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30-day money-back guarantee
A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).
Live stream the NBA for free with ExpressVPN.
The gorgeous yet budget-friendly Samsung QN70F Neo QLED TV is the cheapest its ever been
The secret to faster AI output is better prompts
