I don’t understand why anyone would pay for SirisXM when there are so many great podcasts out there for free. I don’t even listen to music anymore on my commutes to work. Podcasts have the benefit of talk radio without the downside of jumping in mid-conversation. You can probably find at least 10 podcasts on any subject so it’s a good idea to do some research and find out what worth listening to!
Here are my top 8 Podcasts (along with some bonus recommendations).
Hosted by Jack O’Brian and Michael Swaim.
Cracked.com is a humor site where any subject can be dissected and presented in funny intelligent essays in the form of easy to digest lists. When I was first exposed to Cracked.com I spent days going through their backlogs to read about insanely random stuff like “The 6 Most Gigantic Everything in the History of War” or “6 Inexplicably Hostile Interviews with Famous Musicians” or “6 Ancients Sports to Awesome for the Modern World“. The Cracked Podcast is an extension of that, usually tackling one subject and presenting it from the perspectives of . The podcast is like being a fly on the wall of an incredibly smart conversation and while a lot of what they talk about can be found in one of their articles there is still a lot of new information that they provide that is just as interesting.
This is one podcast that I will make sure to listen to every episode.
I also suggest anyone to check out their web-series called After Hours. It is like a much shorter scripted version of their podcast with video and it is hilarious.
2. Baldmove TV
Hosted by Jim and A.Ron
Baldmove is more of a network of podcasts than a particular podcast. They will do a podcast on various television shows and provide in-depth discussions on each episode as they are released. I began listening to them in the height of my ‘Breaking Bad’ obsession. I found that their discussions on the show gave me more appreciation for the show as they had noticed things that I had not. I have listened to their podcasts for Breaking Bad, Fargo, Game of Thrones, Orange is the New Black and highly recommend them. They also do Madmen, The Walking Dead, House of Cards, and a ton others. If I had the time to listen to them all I probably would, but I enjoy that there is a selection and can listen to the ones that really interest me.
I also listen to A Cast of Kings and The Ones Who Knock hosted by Dave Chen and Joanna Robinson on slashfilm.com
Hosted by Kevin Smith
The first podcast I ever listened to was Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier on Smodcast. Kevin Smith has become one of the most proficient podcasters on the interwebs. He is ironically talkative for someone who is famously known as Silent Bob. He is a natural story teller and even though he may dip into a blow job joke or self-deprecating fat humor a little too often I still enjoy his sense of humor and perspective. However, there is only so much about his personal life I can take and found myself much more interested in his other podcast called Fatman on Batman. Kevin Smith makes it no secret that his personal favorite superhero is Batman. He is so connected to the character that even talking about him will sometime bring him to tears. This his only ongoing podcast designed to feature different guests. The show will typically feature a guest from the industry who has worked with the character of Batman such as Jim Lee, Geoff Johns, Kevin Conroy, Bruce Timm, Mark Hamill, Adam West, and more. And while the general focus of the podcast is Batman it is always more about the guest and how their path in life has lead them to working with Batman. Smith also claims that Ben Affleck has agreed to be on the podcast when he has the time. Given that Ben Affleck has starred in many of Smith’s films and that Kevin currently lives in Affleck’s old home, I have no reason not to believe him. Being that Batman is also my favorite superhero this is definitely a podcast that I definitely keep up to date with. Another Batman-centric podcast I listen to is The Arkham Sessions. This podcast features an actual psychologist as one of the hosts who provides her profession analysis of all the characters in Batman: The Animated Series.
Hosted by Chris Hardwick
Tom Hanks, Morgan Freeman, Tom Cruise, Will Ferrell, Joss Whedon, Arnold Schwarzenegger, are just some of the huge names that have been interviewed on this podcast. And many of these interviews have me looking at these celebrities in a whole new light. Because the podcast is generally an hour long conversation you will get insight in these people’s lives that you won’t find anywhere else.
I don’t listen to every episode, because I am not always interested in every guest. But interesting guest do come by fairly often. Similar long-form interview podcasts I listen to include WTF with Marc Maron, The Adam Corolla Show, and Team Coco Podcast.
Hosted by Scott Auckerman
There’s no other podcast that makes me laugh harder than Comedy Bang Bang. Comedy Bang Bang is unique because it is an improvisational comedy podcast. They will usually have a real guest on the show along with a comedian acting as a character. For example, comedian Paul F. Tompkins is a regular guest who improvs as characters like Werner Herzog, Ice-T, Cake Boss, and Sir Andrew Lloyd Weber. Andy Daly is also a common guest with a wide range of characters. The popularity of the podcast managed to get the show spun-off into a television series on IFC and they are currently on their third season.
Some episodes are hit and-miss so I try to look out for guest that I am interested in. I look out for whenever Andy Daly and Paul F. Tompkins are on. They are just so quick and funny. Just from listening to the podcast I can honestly say that I regard them as comedic geniuses.
If you are interested in long-form improvisation. Andy Daly did an amazing podcast called ‘The Andy Daly Podcast Pilot Project’ where he improvs pilot “failed” podcasts pilot hosted by some of his popular characters on CBB.
6, 7, and 8. Slashfilmcast / Filmspotting / Filmspotting: Streaming Video Unit
Slashfilmcast is hosted by David Chen, Devindra Hardawar, and Adam Quigley
Filmspotting is hosted by Adam Kempenaar and Josh Larsen
Filmspotting: SVU is hosted by Matt Sing and Alison Willmore
It’s a three-way tie for 6th place. As a film critic and entertainment blogger I am naturally going to be interesting in the opinions of professionals. I’ve been a long time follower of slashfilm.com and would easily cite them as one of my main inspirations for beginning one myself. The Slashfilmcast will normal begin with short discussions about some of the biggest news stories of the week regarding the film industry followed by an in-depth conversation about a new movie release. Their multiple perspectives make listening to the podcast more enjoyable then reading a simple review.
Filmspotting is another great source of intelligent conversation about film. Along with a review of a movie they will normally feature a top 5 list of their choice such as “Top 5 Monster Movies” for example. This podcast has over 500 episodes and a spinoff podcast called Filmspotting: SVU
Filmspotting: SVU is exactly like Filmspotting only they focus on movies that are specifically available to stream whether from Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, or wherever. The fact that all the films they talk about is available online is a huge bonus. They often talk about films I haven’t heard about and I often find myself watching them after they hearing about them.
Comment below with your favorite podcasts.
NerdRageFilms 