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QUOTES OF THE WEEK
“They used to call it the jungle gym, but now they call it ‘the apparatus.’” —Molly Ringwald on the vocabulary of modern schooling, The Moth
“Why a hamburger gotta be round, yo?” —Matt Belknap on 7-Eleven’s Cheeseburger Bites, Never Not Funny
“My next book is called Ann Coulter Is A Bitch… [Pause] And Other Observations.” —James Adomian’s micro-impression of Al Franken, WTF With Marc Maron
“I have eaten a bird in rough times and in good times for celebration.” —John Mulaney as George St. Geegland, Comedy! Bang! Bang!
“There’s nothing wrong with Americans… sometimes.” —Jane Stanton, Stop Podcasting Yourself
“You know how dogs have been on the earth for millions of years but they still don’t understand thunder? They get terrified by it, and so you have to buy them a special garment that makes them think they’re being hugged when there’s thunder out. Get it together, dogs.” —Paul F. Tompkins on Thundershirts, Doug Loves Movies
NEW (TO US)
Wrestling With Depression
Like The Mental Illness Happy Hour, Wrestling With Depression manages the tricky feat of being a podcast about depression and mental illness that’s consistently uplifting rather than being, well, depressing. It helps that the host, comedian and wrestling super-fan Marty DeRosa, has a soothing, comforting presence that implicitly suggests that everything will be all right, as well as a strong intuitive sense of when to interject humor and when to allow his guests the time and space to really reveal themselves.
Wrestling With Depression explores the intersection of mental illness, comedy, and DeRosa’s obsession with wrestling, though the wrestling element doesn’t come into play as often as the title might suggest. That’s less true of DeRosa’s interview with Gary Lee, a friend and sometimes producer on the podcast with a sideline dressing up like a more corpulent “Macho Man” Randy Savage. As that hobby suggests, Lee is a big, goofy dude, but his ebullient exterior masks regular battles with depression, a sickly childhood, and a surprisingly colorful and dramatic romantic history. DeRosa has mostly interviewed twentysomething and thirtysomething peers and colleagues in the Chicago comedy community (as well as the occasional wrestler) so far, but his guests tend to have smart, nuanced perspectives on relationships, drinking, drugs, and depression that belie their relative youth. Wrestling With Depression refreshingly depicts depression and anxiety as an everyday component of contemporary life and not some deviant aberration, and should appeal to anyone whose life has been touched by mental illness in some form or another, which is to say just about everyone. [NR]
OUTLIERS
Lou Reads The Internet For YOU!
An aspiring voiceover artist, Lou Fernandez began podcasting as a way to improve his speaking voice and reading skills, creating a portfolio of his work in the process. For material, Fernandez eschews conventional scripts and opts for content far more interesting: the Internet, and all its gloriously demented fringes. By scouring the cesspool of forums and idiot aggregator Something Awful, Fernandez gives an emphatic voice to those whose all-caps ramblings would otherwise be rightfully ignored.
Depending on the theme, this can be comforting (“Election Nonsense From Tea Party Nation”), nauseating (“From The Forums Of CumOnFood.net”), or just plain weird (“From TheHoodUp.com, A Place For Gangsters To Trade Tales And Recipes”). Most episodes fall into those three categories, but some feature personal tales, similar to PostSecret or The Moth, which is a better entry point for the faint of heart. Three years and 75 episodes in, it’s unclear what effect the show has had on Fernandez’s professional voiceover career, but live versions of the podcast have been a hit around New York City, and Fernandez’s skills have vastly improved. By delivering the most fucked-up stuff he can find in a calming, cadenced tenor, Fernandez has turned a simple exercise into potentially limitless (and maybe even profitable) work for himself. [SM]
THE BEST
The Best Show On WFMU
Best Show returns from hiatus with a slew of special guests this week. Actor James Urbaniak calls in early to discuss his new podcast before Tom Scharpling goes on an epic screed about out-of-touch comedians, instigated by a recent Twitter feud with Garry Shandling. Prior to that, Kelsey Grammer’s off-putting rich-guy persona is discussed at length. Later in the show, Rob Delaney calls in to talk about his new stand-up special, unwittingly becoming the latest guest on celebrity puppet Gary The Squirrel’s podcast Comedians Are Nuts. Even with a few duds in between, classic callers Julie From Cincinnati and Spike manage to round out an excellent return to form for Best Show. [AF]
Comedy Bang! Bang! #174: Series Regulars: Lizzy Caplan, John Mulaney, Nick Kroll
John Mulaney and Nick Kroll begin the latest Comedy Bang! Bang! as their eminently charming, hilarious selves before slipping into character as Gil Faizon and George St. Geegland, New Yorkers of a certain age who specialize in genial insanity. Mulaney and Kroll have been perfecting these characters on podcasts and in live appearances for years and quickly slip into a wonderfully relaxed, fruitful groove in which they discuss pitching an extremely racist prank show called Black Shenanigans, raising money to buy crack for Aaron Sorkin, a traumatic encounter with Robert Evans, Tony Bennett’s politeness to inanimate objects, and getting kicked out of The Weathermen for being both too subversive and too intent on discussing weather. Faizon and St. Geegland completely overshadow guest Lizzy Kaplan, who nevertheless proves a game and amusing straightwoman. Scott Aukerman can’t resist giggling throughout the podcast, and his palpable delight in Kroll and Mulaney’s antics is both infectious and justified. [NR]
Doug Loves Movies: Ken Jennings, Brian Posehn, Kumail Nanjiani, Jen Kirkman and Kurt Braunohler
Doug Benson and Co. have to stick to a strict one-hour time limit on this, the first of this week’s three Bumbershoot-recorded episodes, which moves along at a steady clip that still allows ample time for multiple games. Much of that efficacy is due to the all-around game-playing aptitude possessed by a certain Jeopardy champion who’s on this week’s panel, though Brian Posehn is an established DLM pro as well. Jen Kirkman and Kurt Braunohler, not so much, but their casual relationship with movie trivia and history at least makes for some good riffs. [GK]
Doug Loves Movies: Paul F. Tompkins, Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael And Jason Mantzoukas
In many ways, this is a perfect episode of Doug Loves Movies. The conversation achieves a natural rhythm, with each guest contributing something fun. This is a relief given DLM’s recent tendency to feature spotlight hogs like Pete Holmes, T.J. Miller, and Jeff Garlin. In fact, the chat portion is so much fun that it’s almost a disappointment when it gives way to the games. Plus, Scheer turns the process of disobeying the directive from FX’s PR department to keep The League’s première date a secret into a fun bit with the help of Paul F. Tompkins. [MS]
Doug Loves Movies: Cake Boss, Jesse Ventura, Rhett Miller, And Jackie Kashian
It’s always fun when characters make guest appearances on Doug Loves Movies, and it’s especially fun when those characters are voiced by Paul F. Tompkins and James Adomian. In fact, the whole podcast could just be an exchange between Tompkins’ Cake Boss (Cake Boss!) and Adomian’s Jesse Ventura. It’s hard not to feel a little bad for Jackie Kashian and Rhett Miller, who are overshadowed by the two high-impact characters. Fortunately, they’re good sports about it, and Kashian wedges in a funny assessment of the movie It’s Complicated and helps a baby in the audience get a jumpstart on learning some swear words. [MS]
The Flop House #109: Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
Sometimes the films covered on The Flop House are more frustrating and boring than entertainingly bad, and those films seem to eat away at the hosts’ souls, producing humorous but understandably aggravated analysis. Once in a while, though, the gang touches on films that are harmlessly silly, unambitious, and unassuming, and this year’s Journey To The Center Of The Earth sequel Journey 2: The Mysterious Island falls into that category. As such, it inspires a spirited and relatively cynicism-free discussion among Elliott Kalan, Stuart Wellington, and Dan McCoy. And why wouldn’t it, when it not only features the entire cast riding (and inexplicably steering) giant bees, but also a prolonged sequence in which Luis Guzmán and The Hunger Games’ Josh Hutcherson flick berries off of Dwayne Johnson’s “dancing” pecs? As usual, the mailbag segment is a treat, and the episode as a whole is quite funny. [CG]
Hang Up And Listen: The Miles To Go Before I Cheat Edition
The NFL season has begun, meaning that Hang Up And Listen must devote at least some time to the juggernaut sports league. The replacement ref non-controversy is a non-starter, but the second and third stories are reasons to listen this week. The panel discusses the London Paralympic Games, and why NBC has idiotically chosen to provide absolutely no coverage in spite of holding broadcast rights. And the final segment brings in New Yorker contributor Mark Singer, who recently wrote a story about Kip Litton, a Michigan dentist who methodically and pathologically cheated in marathons over the course of the past decade. It’s a fascinating conversation that feels more like a segment on This American Life than part of a long-form sports discussion show. [KM]
How Was Your Week #78: “Girls Named Heather Fixing Their Skirts”: Max Read, Kurt Metzger
In a sequel of sorts to her prior chat with Buzzfeed’s Katie Notopoulous, Julie Klausner sits down with Gawker’s Max Read to further explore the weirder corners of the Internet. The majority of Klausner’s interview with Read focuses on communities that have grown on Tumblr and in message boards. A discussion of the Otherkin community—those who believe they are animals trapped in human bodies—is fascinating and touches on how identities are managed and legitimized online. As the conversation turns to secret societies like the Illuminati and the Masons, Read recounts the responses to Neil Armstrong’s death and the varying degrees of absurdity of moon-landing deniers, as well as some insane Olympic-related conspiracy theories. The episode is rounded out by an interview with comedian Kurt Metzger that struggles to find a direction. [DF]
The J.V. Club#26: Grey DeLisle
Janet Varney’s interview with voice actress Grey DeLisle is much more of a family affair than most episodes, with cameos from DeLisle’s grandmother and son making an already delightful conversation even better. DeLisle’s difficult upbringing leads to an inspiring talk that manages to address tough topics without getting too dour, and like last week’s guest, her positivity is infectious. DeLisle puts her vocal talents on display as she impersonates her grandmother, who loved to brag about how beautiful she was in her youth in comparison to her granddaughter. The only real Avatar: The Last Bender/Legend Of Korra discussion comes when DeLisle and Varney discuss how their cartoon voices differ from their own, but it’s a packed episode nonetheless, with an in-depth exploration of the Mennonite faith, a discussion about how DeLisle’s personal struggles are helping her teach her son how to cope with his own problems, and even a game of M.A.S.H. at the end. [OS]
Judge John Hodgman: Gavelbangers Ball
A man wants his girlfriend to appreciate the music he loves. Sounds simple, but not when the genre is metal, and the girlfriend’s taste skews toward pop music, with some dabbling in mainstream metal like Black Sabbath or Alice Cooper. John Hodgman asks precisely the right questions, like why the guy feels the need to force his music on the girl, but the best insights come from expert witness and A.V. Club favorite John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats, who skillfully articulates the subtleties of metal subgenres (black, speed, thrash, heavy, etc.). And as if he didn’t seem hyper-literate enough already, Darnielle sneaks in a Shakespeare reference toward the end. Man, that guy is the coolest. [KM]
The Mental Illness Happy Hour #76: Kerri Kenney-Silver
One of the draws of The Mental Illness Happy Hour is learning about the sources of darkness that make their way into the performances of the show’s guests. Kerri Kenney-Silver, who has played several characters with severe psychological issues, admits on this episode that Deputy Trudy Wiegel, her unstable Reno 911! character, displays only slightly exaggerated versions of the worry and hypochondria she regularly deals with. During a getting-to-know-you chat with Paul Gilmartin, Kenney-Silver also delves into her childhood struggles with her parents’ divorce, her adult difficulty with ending an unhealthy relationship with a drug addict, and how those issues of separation plagued her at one time in her life, though they now seem to be comfortably in her past. The conversation with Kenney-Silver, who is not a regular on the podcast circuit, is interesting and almost breezy by Mental Illness Happy Hour standards. [TC]
My Brother, My Brother And Me #118: Celebrity Dream Date
As a rule of thumb, the McElroy brothers tend to steer clear of “gross” humor—pretty much anything revolving around bodily fluids, parts, and functions—apart from a one-liner here or there, and that generally suits them well. Once in a while, however, they reluctantly dive headfirst into a repulsive question that’s just too weird to pass up, and it’s surprisingly fun to listen to. That’s exemplified this week by a Yahoo! Answers question about the consumption of celebrity scat, which produces a rather inspired riff about How I Met Your Mother. That’s far and away the zenith (and, in terms of taste, simultaneously the nadir) of this episode, which as a whole can’t live up to last week’s exceedingly strong installment. As a standalone piece of comedy podcasting, though, it’s still pretty terrific. [CG]
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The Moth: Molly Ringwald: Mothering In Captivity
There are a lot of ways in which Molly Ringwald’s Moth entry could trip itself up: The story is about problems Ringwald’s daughter faced adjusting to school, but never reveals just what the problem was; Ringwald has a way of hurrying herself into little tangents; and being relatively famous and a mom could lead to a storm of self-importance—but it doesn’t. What redeems this story is that Ringwald’s big enough to admit to feeling overwhelmed, and comes through this admittedly vague tale not exasperated, but with a newfound respect for her kid. [SG]
Nerdist #252: Harry Shearer
Covering a career that encompasses some of comedy’s most important works—The Simpsons and This Is Spinal Tap being obvious inclusions—Harry Shearer’s appearance on Nerdist offers up plenty of insight and one-liners to keep the episode moving. It doesn’t hurt that the Nerdist hosts are familiar enough with Shearer’s work to be able to elicit anecdotes that feel fresh, instead of merely rehashing his impressive résumé. Shearer comes off quick-witted and humble while discussing his musical career and his new album Can’t Take A Hint, and he fits in well with the hosts. [DA]
Nerdist #253: Mike Birbiglia 3peat
Hot on the heels of the release of Sleepwalk With Me, his feature film based on his book and one-man show of the same name, Mike Birbiglia makes his third trip to the Nerdist podcast. From the get-go, it’s obvious that Birbiglia gels with the three hosts, and even on his third visit their chemistry has yet to become stale. The episode puts most of its focus on the film, but it also allows for rather open discussion about past relationships and how Sleepwalk With Me portrays the dissolution of one. But even as the conversation occasionally leans toward serious topics, the hosts and guest effortlessly mix in jokes that are as effective as they are necessary. [DA]
Never Not Funny #1111: Walking On Coals With Dave Anthony
If there’s a theme to this week’s discussion with Walking The Room’s Dave Anthony, it’s “to each their own, however crazy.” Following a half-serious idea to have Bruce Vilanch as a guest, Anthony and Jimmy Pardo talk comedy shop, and a mention of comedian Emery Emery, host of The Ardent Atheist podcast, leads to a heavy, propulsive discussion of extremist attitude that also wraps in fans’ opinions of Never Not Funny and WTR, a hilarious bit on Tony Robbins’ recent hot-coal-walking fiasco, Patton Oswalt and Pardo’s heated debate on razors, and of course, religion vs. atheism. The show is rarely as good as when strong opinions are in lockstep with the jokes, and the meat of the first half is a case example. The second half cools into a more free-form conversation, touching on children’s entertainment, the musical game SongPop, and some WTR-esque gross-out bits on Infested and Hoarders. (Note: It’s Dan Katz’s last show before he starts a new job as a teacher’s aid. Best of luck, Dan!) [SM]
Sklarbro Country Sklarbro County #15: Michael Kosta, Jason Nash, Dan Van Kirk
A guest like Michael Kosta can be a game-changer on Sklarbro Country: He’s both a stand-up comedian and a former professional tennis player, giving him experience, not just fandom, in both fields. His story winds from collegiate tennis at the University Of Illinois to bumming around the pro-tennis circuit to busting into the equally difficult ranks of professional comedians. He makes some great comparisons between a rash of police citations at a tractor-pull festival in Terra Haute, Indiana and the St. Patrick’s Day Parade on the South Side of Chicago, and the whole panel has a litany of one-liners to go with the story of a bridesmaid pulled over for drunk driving after a wedding. [KM]
Sound Opinions #353: Elephant 6 Revisited, Dead Can Dance Review
In the wake of the death of Olivia Tremor Control member Bill Doss, Greg Kot and Jim DeRogatis offer a heartfelt tribute to and overview of the Elephant 6 collective. This largely consists of digging up an old interview with Robert Schneider of The Apples In Stereo, which ends up being a lot more about Jeff Mangum than it does about Olivia Tremor Control. Still, it’s worth going back over this subject matter: Elephant 6 is a name that gets tossed around a tad carelessly, and one thing Kot and DeRogatis do well is to shore up the chatter with context and background. [SG]
Stuff You Missed In History Class: Codes! Axis Cryptography In World War II
Jonathan Strickland of TechStuff slides in as a guest tech guru, though it’s a bit odd that regular co-host Deblina Chakraborty’s absence isn’t acknowledged. Strickland brings a welcome dose of encoding expertise to the already brainy podcast, giving a quick explanation of codes, keys, and ciphers at the top of the show before he and Sarah Dowdey get into the Axis and the enigma machine. On the downside, this podcast already speeds through the historical details, almost to the point of being alienating, so adding tech-speak makes it nearly impossible to catch your breath. On the plus side, it’s all pretty awesome, and if you pay attention, you’ll suddenly feel like a WWII spy—albeit for the wrong side. [DT]
Stuff You Missed In History Class: The Radium Girls
Ottawa, Illinois’ Luminous Processes Factory was the central location of a multi-city situation where glowing radioactive paint poisoned women who used it to paint watches. They were instructed to lick the paintbrushes—“Radium will make your cheeks rosy,” they were told—which led to everything from anemia to necrosis that caused all their teeth to fall out. As workers began dying, the survivors became true symbols of the naiveté of the atomic age, and the tale of their fight for justice is incredibly compelling. Hosts Deblina Chakraborty and Sarah Dowdey ace the human elements as well as the legal details, making this a not-to-be-missed episode. [DT]
Stuff You Should Know: Can You Test A Nuclear Weapon Without A Fallout?
Learning just how many nuclear weapons we’ve already detonated is a bit distressing, not to mention the fact that there’s been a “lost” one floating around the coast of Savannah, Georgia, for more than 50 years. Almost every segment here is introduced as “the scary part,” then proceeds frighteningly as promised. Desert, underground, and underwater tests still destroy massive amounts of wildlife, erase entire ecosystems, and displace human populations. It’s likely that folks listening will already be skeptics, but what testing we’ve already done has proven that wildlife becomes both mutated and inedible. As the podcast suggests, The Atomic Cafe is a great movie to check out for more on the Bikini Atoll. [DT]
The Todd Glass Show #62: Graham Elwood
Anyone listening to the podcast knows that Todd Glass can be a cranky guy. Fortunately, he’s funny when he’s crabby, especially when he’s ranting about mundanities like the air conditioning in a comedy club or his ongoing obsession with the cleanliness of hotel blankets. Once he gets his rants out of his system, Glass has some fun with the soundtrack from an old short from the ’50s warning about the dangers of homosexuality, as well as a commercial for an “As Seen On TV” brand of indestructible pantyhose. Return guest Graham Elwood is on board with both Glass’ crankiness and silliness, but he really shines when he unveils a cranky old hausfrau character named Libby and engages Glass in a bit involving her high-maintenance travel demands. [MS]
Walking The Room #119: Hamburger Stars And Sideways Baby
With Greg Behrendt’s band The Reigning Monarchs at the top of the Bandcamp charts—for punk, as there’s no ska/surf category—Behrendt and Dave Anthony begin to investigate the success rate of late-career popularity, touching on Billy Bob Thorton, Lewis Black, and Rodney Dangerfield. Before finding any sort of insight, though, the two take off on “Hamburger Stars” like Rodney Allen Rippy and Stephen Tobolowsky, and spiral into a riff on Paris Hilton as a gazelle with ALS. It’s a scattershot opening that favors absurd hypotheticals over logical premises, and with the exception of a heavy amount of plugging and an argument over clothing on pets, things more or less remain that way throughout talks of auditions, mascots, and what makes a classy podcast. But what keeps the many threads tied together, and highly entertaining, is Anthony and Behrendt’s giddy awareness of their nonsensical behavior, best evidenced by their opining of what the Rat Pack would think of entertainers today, and what “The Pod Rats” podcast would be like. [SM]
WTF With Marc Maron #309: Todd Snider/Aaron Freeman
Nothing lends an air of suspense to an episode of WTF like Marc Maron admitting up front that he knows very little about his interview subjects. Maron obviously does some research on his guests, but without the personal history he has with some comedians, an episode with notable strangers can fall flat if the host doesn’t bring any energy. Thankfully, while interviewing singer-songwriter Todd Snider and, later, Aaron Freeman—better known as Gene Ween—Maron comes across jovial and genuinely interested. Snider gives some funny and poignant anecdotes about his family history and being in the same rehab group as Phil Hartman’s wife, while Freeman reminisces about encountering standoffish crowds while opening for Fugazi and working with legendary Nashville musicians on Ween’s 12 Golden Country Greats. [KM]
WTF With Marc Maron #311: Mike Doughty
Mike Doughty, formerly of Soul Coughing, is not the kind of guy to keep quiet about the turmoil of his old band. Marc Maron draws out the venom effortlessly and with a lot of laughter, as he and Doughty rehash the Soul Coughing days that contributed to Doughty’s drug addiction, subsequent rehab, and quietly successful solo career. But that’s not the most intriguing part of his interview with Maron; that would be the part devoted to his childhood as the son of a lifetime army father who advised a South Vietnamese tank unit and became a West Point professor. His insights into living among the PTSD-riddled neighborhoods around the military academy, and the effects it had on him and his brother—now homeless, but a gifted chess player—are surprisingly affecting. [KM]
You Made It Weird #80: Jason Mantzoukas
Perhaps the only positive thing that can be said about Jason Mantzoukas’ life-threatening allergy to eggs—which plays a significant role in almost every aspect of the comedic actor and improviser’s life—is that it gives his sit-down with Pete Holmes a cohesiveness that’s rare for You Made It Weird (at least after a lengthy but not unwelcome Doug Benson drop-in). Mantzoukas is candid, energetic, and pretty terrific at telling stories, so the conversation—which touches on relationships, personal and professional backstories, God, and, recurrently, his egg allergy—is lull-free, and the episode as a whole is engaging, interesting, and funny. [CG]
THE REST
Doug Loves Movies: Bill Burr, Pete Holmes, And Jeff Davis
Pete Holmes has a pretty strong batting average when it comes to ruining episodes of Doug Loves Movies with his compulsive interrupting. Fortunately, Bill Burr fires off some good jokes about comic-book movies before Holmes can dominate the panel. [MS]
Monday Morning Podcast
Bill Burr has a fair amount of funny lines throughout this week’s episode—particularly near the beginning and the end—but unfortunately they’re often buried in a mass of riffing on topics that feel well-worn, most especially a chunk on the Catholic Church. [CG]
Sklarbro Country #110: Badgering The Hoochie: Jason Biggs, Dan Van Kirk
Dan Van Kirk’s Steven Seagal gets some chuckles in an episode-closing call where he kibitzes with the Sklar brothers about being excluded from Expendables 2 while returning flip-flops to J.C Penney, and Jason Biggs proves a genial guest, but otherwise this episode is a little short on inspiration. [NR]
The Smartest Man In The World #174: Masters
Greg Proops’ constant exasperation with Scotland is still amusing, but it’s now been three straight weeks of episodes starting with that theme. [SG]
Stop Podcasting Yourself #233: Jane Stanton
Comedian Jane Stanton returns to the Canadian Comedy Awards’ Best Podcast, where travel stories are bland, wedding-cake ideas are delicious, and backlogged “Overheards” aren’t worth the wait. [DXF]
Stop Podcasting Yourself: Bonus Episode: Live From the Canadian Comedy Awards
Canadian Comedy Award winner Debra DiGiovanni proves “loud and hyperactive” can translate into “funny” if you’re present to witness it, but the highlights are “Overheard” segments about DIY condiments, misidentified musical references, and animal-directed animosity. [DXF]
Stuff You Should Know: How Flesh Eating Bacteria Work
This episode functions like a rough visit to WebMD: You might learn something, but it’s more squirms than information. [DT]
The Thrilling Adventure Hour #86: Sparks Nevada, Marshal On Mars, “Mercy Killing”
This latest installment of Thrilling Adventure’s space-western earns its laughs but makes its current storyline (our hero in exile) feel dragged-out. [SG]
Uhh Yeah Dude: #337
A near-excellent episode starts and ends strong with (another) disconcerting look at millennials and (another) brutal tale of Jonathan Larroquette’s humiliation. [CW]
Who Charted? #92: Malibu Mustard: Dave Anthony
Comic Dave Anthony doesn’t bring much to the table in this edition, but you have to give Howard Kremer and Kulap Vilaysack credit for trying their damndest to get some blood from this comedic stone. [MS]
WTF With Marc Maron #310: James Adomian
Comedian and master impressionist James Adomian’s chat with Marc Maron is mostly interesting and funny, but it’s so consistently surface-level and lacking in insight that it’s ultimately kind of frustrating. [CG]
You Made It Weird #81: Howard Kremer
Pete Holmes warns that the Howard Kremer episode will be mellow, but there’s a thin line separating mellow from sleepy that this episode crosses many times. [NR]