My queue is like a box of chocolates
celebrating trailers, sisterly love, AI companions, plastic's crimes, formula for successful athletes, how to rom-com, stuck in space.
What’s better than chocolate on Valentine’s Day? SO MANY new podcasts launching in the last week! Seriously, did I miss the memo about mid-February being primetime for new releases? Yes, there are always lots of podcasts launching, but this week it was a lot from creators I know and love, highly anticipated returns, and new ones I never knew I needed so badly. I am overwhelmed in the best way.
I know I can’t keep up with all the brilliant illustrations Erik Jones is cranking out lately, but every time I think of a way to podcast-ify a phrase, I wish I could. So this is my simple Canva version… because my queue really does feel like a box of chocolates! Full of tasty treats, each a little different, but all satisfy my craving for great audio.
New for your queue
Trailer Park: The Podcast Trailer Podcast - "Neuroversity" Podcast with Jessica Kidwell
Movie trailers get a lot of hype and are always so much fun to watch, where’s that level of hype for podcast trailers? It’s here! Arielle Nissenblatt and Tim Villegas are bringing it. I love the way they open the first episode by poking fun at classic movie trailer tropes because podcast trailers don’t necessarily follow those! Sure, there are some common styles, but they can vary a lot and I think we’re going to get a great sense of that variety through this show. Arielle and Tim are sharing a different trailer every episode, doing a brief discussion about that trailer, and teaching us more about trailers in general. I love that we get to hear from Jessica Kidwell, the creator of the trailer featured in this episode. Hearing about the creative decisions that go into making a trailer are what make this concept so intriguing. I can’t wait to hear what else we learn! (transcript)
The Heart - SISTERS: Chapter One-isode
This is a show that caught me off guard and captivated me enough to just sit and listen, which is rare for me. It’s the culmination of two years of writing between two sisters, but years of moments of their lives that have been captured on mic or reenacted. It explores the unique bond between sisters and female friendships. There’s an intro montage with a heartbeat sound playing underneath that begins just after the four minute mark and it is one of my favourite kinds of moments in audio storytelling. It’s like a little peek into what’s coming and shows just how dynamic the story is going to get. Since the first episode covers a lot of their childhood, they’ve incorporated archival recordings and those always hit on a deeper level. They give you that fly on the wall experience that gives podcasts their “intimate” reputation. I only wish I could string words together as well as the Prest sisters and the narration is beautifully supported with music, especially piano, which plays a big part in the episode. As much as this is a show that will obviously resonate with sisters, I think it can also appeal to anyone with siblings, people who are sisters by choice, and parents (not necessarily only ones raising sisters). Just wait till you get to the second half, where the parallels of the story gave me chills.
Radiotopia Presents: Bot Love - Looking for a Friend
The first episode of Bot Love left me a little speechless… but in the best way! If you ever watched Black Mirror, you might know that feeling where it makes you sit back and think about what’s going on in the world, and that’s what this episode did to me. You’re introduced to the new world of imaginary friends, where the imaginary friends are actually AI bots. Sometimes they’re friends, but sometimes it feels much more intimate. As you listen to a woman talk to and about her AI companion, you start to understand why people would become attached to these bots. They fill a void and give a sense of connection. And that’s also part of the bigger question this series hints at. What is happening with our connections to each other? Who are the businesses that are profitting off of this and our data from it? Does having a companion like this have a psychological impact on the ways we start to expect people to act too? I desperately want to know everything they find out. I’m so confused about how to feel about any of it! And on top of the absolutely gripping subject matter, the sound design is filled with some bot narration and some excellent music choices to make for a dynamic listening experience. Plus, a moment of appreciation for the fact that this episode is only 25 minutes long!! They use those 25 minutes so well and prove that a good story doesn’t need to be long.
I don’t think it’s groundbreaking to talk about how reliant we’ve become on plastic. It’s really hard to go a day without using any plastic. But conversations about plastic are usually about using less of it and changing that dependency because it lasts for sooo long and we’ve got too much of it piling up on this planet. I didn’t actually know much damage is done by the production of plastic materials. Discarded takes us to a small community in Louisiana with the nickname “cancer alley” and investigates just how bad the impact is. Residents of the area talk about why they don’t want to leave or why they just simply can’t. You get a taste of how much corruption has made this happen for MANY DECADES and I absolutely need to know what else they find out in the next three episodes. It’s investigative journalism and it’s not true crime, but the stakes feel just as high.
Good Sport - Something in the Water: Where Do Great Athletes Come From?
When it comes to sports, if you only think about scores and stats, Jody Avirgan is here to show you the deeper stories you’re missing out on. He believes that curiosities about small questions in sports, actually reveal bigger points about the world and as Ted Lasso says, “that’s when sports and art combine”. In the first episode of this series, Jody and sports journalist Bomani Jones discuss the nature vs nurture of who makes it big in sports and who is given more chances to succeed. When certain pockets in the US produce more high level athletes than others they become known as talent hotbeds, but what is really causing that? There might be a formula to it and that’s what Jody’s hoping to figure out. Exploring the first part of the formula is done through a tale of table tennis and an Olympic-level coach. I was already hooked with this first episode, but Jody’s Ratatouille quote at the end was a delightfully perfect cherry on top. I’m all in. (transcript)
Let’s Make a Rom-Com - What’s Love Got to Do With It? (feat. Billy Mernit + Addison Duffy)
The concept of Let’s Make a Sci-Fi was so great, I’m so glad they brought it back for another genre! This time Maddy, Mark, and Ryan are attempting to write a rom-com and they’re taking us along for the ride again. The first episode let’s us listen in while they pitch their various ideas for a rom-com and it’s not as easy as you might think. Even though they seem more comfortable with the genre, they quickly realize that there is still a trick to it. To help with that we learn a bit about the formula that makes for a great rom-com. They land on an idea by the end, which feels fast! I’m excited to hear who else they talk to as they develop the idea and I hope there’s lots of fun research to come, that was one of my favourite parts of the first season. If you love rom-coms, I think you’ll love this behind-the-scenes venture into the creative process.
Imagine being up in space when you learn that your country is falling apart? To the point where the space program you’re a part of doesn’t really know what to do with you because of all the uncertainty? This was the reality for Russian Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev and I learned about him from… Lance Bass. Yes, that Lance Bass. But this isn’t a podcast using a celebrity as a host just for clout, because the plot twist also involves Lance Bass’ personal history with the Russian space program. Who knew?! Turns out being in a boy band was his second biggest life dream… going to space was number one. To understand Sergei’s decision, we learn about the Soviet space program and how they were racing to explore space. If the show For All Mankind hadn’t already convinced me of this, space does not sound like a fun time! The training program is a true test of human endurance, physically and mentally. But it makes sense, they just had no idea what could happen to people up there. The first episode helps bring you up to speed on the history of the space program, how it would’ve inspired Sergei, and hints at what we’ll learn about Lance’s own experience. I love the storytelling Kaleidoscope is doing and the different stories they’re covering. They really great at making you want the next episode immediately! If you like history, space exploration, and a documentary full of twists, you’ll like this.
More sweet treats
I’m throwing in some quick links to other things I enjoyed this week.
4 Black Podcasting Creatives Making Black Podcasting History — A Love Note
The comments on a NY Times article about the podcast industry
I feel like there was another thing I was going to add here, but I didn’t save it
Thank you for reading! If you listened to something this week that made your heart sing, your imagination wander, or your brain ponder, I’d love to hear about it!
Thank you so much for including TPP!