Plop of The Week: The Long Shot #509

Another week. Another onslaught of new comedy podcast episodes. Another great episode of The Long Shot. I'm fully in the tank for The Long Shot's ragtag foursome. Episode #509 is a particular thrill because it reveals new group dynamics and points of entry for the funny. Here's my recap for the Splitsider "Week In Comedy Podcasts" post:

The Long Shot Episode #509 seamlessly switches gears throughout – from some healthy behind-the-scenes live comedy talk to hilariously mundane and personal anecdotes. One of the show’s key winning elements is its four distinctly different hosts’ interplay. That’s always been true in a basic sense, but this week’s episode was a revelation on how much more laughs The Long Shot can squeeze out of their group dynamic. The hosts, Sean Conroy, Amber Kenny, Jamie Flam and Eddie Pepitone, create a crazy fun grab bag of honest recaps, on-the-spot sketch work, agitated and meandering storytelling and the holy grail of top-notch fucking-with-each-other hijinks. Their guest, comedian Zach Sherwin, superbly tags a few of the “checking in” stories and manages to keep adding to the fun. The episode is pretty dense in terms of its specifically silly moments worthy of highlight. There’s the comes-too-easy image of Flam working as senile Pepitone’s elderly caretaker. Pepitone’s doctor visit recap leads to the creation of poor old Mrs. Timonarro forever sitting in life’s proverbially waiting room. Pepitone also creates a firestorm of laughter with his unintentionally ridiculous and meandering recap of War Horse. Kenny is on Pepitone’s case throughout. It’s a delight to see the show’s ray of sunshine take repeated aim at Pepitone’s winning combo of boldness and confusion. Conroy remains on top of his host game. His feisty demeanor from past episodes is still there, adding yet another layer to the awesome group dynamic. And, yes, they all find yet another way to torment Flam with repeated mocking call backs. Phew. It’s a true Long Shot classic – a grand reward for both long time and first time listeners.

The rest of the Splitsider comedy podcast crew gave shout-outs to a quality crop of episodes/shows this week, including a stellar debut episode of the new show from Long Shot host, Sean Conroy. Check it out:

International Waters #3 - Andy Daly, Erin Gibson, Humphrey Kerr, Margaret Cabourn-Smith
Ari Shaffir’s Skeptic Tank - Ralphie May (Part 1)
improv4humans #26 – Jon Glaser, Brett Gelman, Joe Wengert
The Long Shot #509 “The Eddie’s Said Too Much Episode" – Zach Sherwin
The J.V. Club #10 – Jen Kirkman
The Nerdist #206 – Tina Fey
Sean Conroy Presents: The Flabbergast #1 – The Crazy Dance

Honorable mentions include Comedy Bang! Bang! #158 (Jordan Peele, Gillian Jacobs), Improv Obsession #17 (Billy Merritt), Left Handed Radio #16 (Rue Britannia), Sklarbro Country #94 (Jon Hamm) and You Made It Weird #49 (Bo Burnham).

Plop of The Week: The Bugle #193

The Splitsider comedy podcast crew offered up an ecclectic mix of shows this week in the "This Week In Comedy Podcasts" column. It's always great to highlight the mix of perspectives and comedic approaches in the comedy podcast realm. My pick celebrated the full-force anger and satire approach of The Bugle. Sure, there's not a shortage of angry comedians ranting on comedy podcasts (or stages for that matter). Few comedians have the knack or the willigness to bottle up their natural anger and share it as biting political and cultural satire. The Bugle hosts, comedians John Oliver and Andy Zaltman are masters of satire. Catching any given week/episode is another opportunity to indulge in good ol' fashion burn 'em all satirical skewering. Here's my write-up for the Splitsider post:

It’s a Presidential election year, which means paying attention is like taking a daily punch in the face. Lucky for me, I have The Bugle, the best stupidity antidote – especially for these politically inane times. John Oliver and Andy Zaltman continue to push ahead with the quality riffing, even while recording the show from different continents. This week out, Oliver provides a bit of behind the scenes Daily Show insight with some fun George Clinton (The Funk) anecdotes. The guys quickly dive head first into the best Bin Laden Assassination Anniversary comedy workshop, lambasting the greeting card industry, Bin Laden’s excesses and anyone making political hay from the Bin Laden assassination. The Bugle is the best kind of angry humor – nothing is sacred. The freedom Oliver and Zaltman exercise allows the funny to walk the yard, freely picking fights with whoever’s unlucky enough to make eye contact. Oliver and Zaltman get a lot out of the released Bin Laden documents. Zaltman even sneaks in a bit of sketch humor with an overly honest Bin Laden final recording. Pretty sure the intellectually devoid election year politics are going to keep handing out daily face punches. Thankfully, we have The Bugle to help fight back.

Here's the complete list of episode picks from the Splitsider crew:

The Long Shot #508 – Matt Knudsen
Making It with Riki Lindhome #42 – Pete Holmes (Part 1)
Doug Loves Movies – Paul F. Tompkins, Ice-T, Cake Boss
The Bugle #193 "Happy Deathiversary!"
My Brother, My Brother and Me #103
Cashing In with TJ Miller #9
Pod F. Tompkast #17 – John Hodgman, Jen Kirkman
The Dork Forest #115 – Lizz Winstead

Honorable mentions from the group this week include Smartest Man in the World "Sazeracs," You Made It Weird with Pete Holmes #46 (Harris Wittels) and Your Mom's House #57 (Rory Scovel).

Beginnings Makes It 50 With A Stellar Live UCB Show

The Wrestling Team, AKA comedy duo Mark Bisi and Andy Beckerman, reached 50 episodes of their slow burning and loose weekly podcast, Beginnings. To mark the occasion, the show is recording its 50th episode live at UCB East tonight in New York City. The live show features a stellar lineup of guests, including Rachel Dratch, Jon Glaser, Leo Allen and musician James McNew. Quite a lineup and definitely worth checking out for those in the area. The duo have a few live podcast recordings under their belt and continue to push their show to new formats and audiences - always great to see (and hear!).

Click here for tickets to the show at UCB East.

You can check-out their site for more information and past episodes.

Plop of The Week: Guys With Feelings #105

After a week off, I caught up on some comedy podcasts. Luckily, I caught the recent Jason Nash and Jeff Bumgarner loosey-goosey Guys With Feelings episode. The always feisty and fun Mary Lynn Rajskub makes for a particularly loose and interesting offering. The laid back interview show recently took the video plunge offering up an edited video version of its weekly show. Different ways to take in the comedy. I'm guessing the kids are into this. Big time. Let's leave the audio versus video podast conversation for another day. Here's my write-up for the Splitsider "Week In Comedy Podcasts" recap post:

Recently, Jason Nash and Jeff Bumgarner upgraded the digital offerings for their long-running Guys With Feelings. Now with a video segment, the interview show adds even more of a casual and behind-the-scenes intimacy to their low key interviews. Nash and Bumgarner always keep things funny and honest (code for slight awkwardness), no matter the subject matter. Mary Lynn Rajskub guests is a great guest, both honest and playfully difficult when the conversation goes wayward. Not sure there’s a show that seamless slides back and forth between daily life talk and Hollywood behind-the-scene revelations. Nash’s comedy is at its best when he throws out crazy theories to see what sticks or just plain confuses. There’s also some special bonus clips of Rajskub on Nash’s killer online series, Jason Nash Is Married. Plus, there’s some talk about Rajskub in a hot dog costume. The always clever and fun comedy writer, Alec Sulkin, stops by later in the show. Sulkin adds to the weird/casual mix of Guys With Feelings. It’s great to see Nash and Bumgarner continue to push their show format into new territories while keeping the overly honest and playful approach.

Here's the complete podcast picks from the Splitsider comedy podcast crew:

Improv Obsession Podcast #15 – Matt Besser
WTF With Marc Maron #274 - Bob Zmuda
Comedy Bang! Bang! #156 – St. Vincent, Zach Galifianakis, Paul F. Tompkins, Harris Wittels, Nick Kroll, Brett Gelman, Jessica St. Clair
Guys With Feelings #105 – Mary Lynn Rajskub, Alec Sulkin
Who Charted? #74 – Rob Delaney
The Dead Authors Podcast, Appendix B: Friederich Nietzsche & H.P. Lovecraft – James Adomian, Paul Scheer
Totally Laime #117 - Jon Daly

This week the Honorable Mentions from the Splitsider comedy podcast group include Mohr Stories #49 (Ralph Garman), The Best Show on WFMU, The Long Shot #507 (Natasha Leggero), The Todd Glass Show #42 (Brendon Walsh, Daniel Kinno) and You Made It Weird #45 (Shelby Fero).

A Bit of Catch Up

Travels and other projects took me away from Plop List for a bit but we should have a new batch of shows added to the directory very soon. You can stop the Comedy Podcast bum rush.

Here's the list of podcast picks from the Splitsider "Week In Comedy Podcasts" crew from April 26th:

The Mike O'Meara Show #562 "Jalapeno & Cheese Flavor"
Thrilling Adventure Hour #68 "Beyond Belief, 'Nuns The Word'" – James Urbaniak, Kate Micucci, Janet Varney, Jeri Ryan
The Todd Glass Show #41 - Eddie Pepitone, Daniel Kinno
Walking The Room #100 – Patton Oswalt, Karen Kilgariff
Probably Science #17 - James Adomian
The Duncan Trussell Family Hour #16 - Natasha Leggero

Honorable mentions include Girl On Guy #44 (Jay Mohr), Who Charted? #73 (Natasha Leggero) and You Made It Weird #43 (David Koechner).

Check-out their full recaps and episode links over at Splitsider.

Plop of The Week: The Crab Feast

There can be a lot of meandering and neurosis scattered throughout the dense podcast wilderness. Comedian Ryan Sickler offers up a weekly show light on self-doubt. Instead Sickler's show, The Crab Feast, is a quick-hitting comedian hangout full of fun stories with a glympse of the riffing comraderie shared between funny people. My pick for favorite episode this week is The Crab Feast featuring comedian Retta. Here's my write-up for Jesse Fox Splitsider "Week In Comedy" podcast round-up:

Comedian Ryan Sickler doesn’t mess around and his weekly show. The Crab Feast, is packed with great stories and fun riffing. There’s not a lot of filler here. The latest episode featured guest comedian Retta joining Sickler and his fellow co-hosts and comedians, Jay Larson and Matt Fulchiron. Sickler is a laid back but skilled host, always keeping some sense of order while also setting everyone up for great stories and fun conversations. Retta is a great fit for the show bringing a bunch of Duke Basketball stories to the fold and equal amounts of outlandish travel stories. Larson, one of the best comedic storytellers, doesn’t disappoint with his get-in-a-stranger’s-car story. Fulchiron via phone is again ready to play the obnoxious and aloof foil with his own travelling with strangers' anecdotes. The Crab Feast is a great example of funny people hanging out and sharing fun stories that build off of one another. Not a lot of filler or misguided angst. Just Sickler and pals trading the funny.

Here's the complete list of episode picks from the Splitsider crew, again a nice bit of variety offered up:

Nerdist #194 - Tenacious D
You Made it Weird #41 "Live from NYC" - Jim Gaffigan, Michael Ian Black, Jessi Klein, Matt McCarthy, Chelsea Peretti
The Crab Feast - Jay Larson, Retta, Matt Fulchiron
WTF with Marc Maron #271 - Stephen Merchant
The JV Club #6 - Natasha Leggero
You Had To Be There #59 - Kurt Braunohler
Get Up On This #37 - Neil Mahoney

Honorable mentions this week out from the group include: Comedy Bang! Bang! #154 (Lennon Parham, Jessica St. Clair), Girl on Guy with Aisha Tyler #43 (Retta), Shotgun Story Worthy Live!, The Long Shot #505, This Better Be Funny #19 (Sean Patton, Dave Stone) and Who Charted #72 (Elizabeth Laime, Andy Rosen).

Plop of The Week: The Long Shot #504

When does "this week" become "last week" but still written from this week? When you're sharing some podcast love a few days late. I'll continue to be in charge of The Long Shot  fan committee and after a few weeks of others in the Splitsider comedy podcast rounder-uppers stealing my Long Shot thunder, I chose the personality overload show as my Splitsider comedy podcast pick. No Eddie Pepitone this week but the three remaining hosts and guest Beth Stelling more than make up for it. Lots of fighting, shooting-of-the-perverbial shit and awkward moments. Just how I like my audio entertainment. My write-up for Jesse Fox Splitsider "Week In Comedy" podcast round-up:

This week out, The Long Shot foursome is missing their angry clean-up hitter, Eddie Pepitone. No need to fret, the M.I.A. co-host ends up making way for a particularly raw and loose edition. The best host in podcasting land, Sean Conroy, along with his eager cohorts, Amber Kenny and Jamie Flam, welcome sarcastic but earnest guest, comedian Beth Stelling into the fold. Stelling’s an easy match for the group, sliding right in with the over-sharing and fun bouts of self-hate. Her aloofness and playful prodding of a particularly feisty Conroy is all charm. Honesty is always one of the greatest feats of The Long Shot crew. Long running inter-group commentary and back-and-forth between the hosts is also special stuff. Both are in full effect thanks to a delightful Conroy/Flam dust-up over “enchantment” of all things. Both Kenny and Flam continue to bring life to proceedings with their dual threat of youthful sincerity and ridiculousness. It’s a treat to hear the gang’s animated talk of lottery winnings and much more. The now long-running series is really beginning to benefit from its longevity and camaraderie, showing off a lived-in charm and a willingness to engage with each other in both familiar and new ways. It’s like hanging out with a great group of friends, albeit a slightly messed-up group. It’s podcasting, we should have it no other way.

Here's the complete list of episode picks from the Splitsider crew, lots of new off-beat shows this week:

Beginnings #46 – Dan St. Germain
Here's The Thing with Alec Baldwin - Kristen Wiig
How Was Your Week? #57 – Chris Parnell, Jon Daly
The Long Shot #504 "Enchantment vs. Football" – Beth Stelling
Throwing Shade #24
WTF with Marc Maron #269 – David Cross
The Dana Gould Hour # 5 "Conspiracies!"  - Eddie Pepitone, Matt Weinhold, Mike Murphy
The Mutant Season #24 – Pete Holmes

Honorable mentions from the group include: Best Show on WFMU (Chris Elliott, Jason Woliner, Jim Gaffigan, Marc Maron), improv4humans #21 (Stephanie Allynne, Allan Mcleod, Joe Wengert), It's That Episode # 13 (Adam Pally), Mike and Tom Eat Snacks #54, WTF with Marc Maron #268 (Jon Glaser) and You Had To Be There #58 (Jim Gaffigan).

Plop of The Week: This Better Be Funny #17

It's good to remember the messy stuff. It's not all polished radio-lite in podcasting. Sometimes people hit the street - literally - press record and share a little bit of themselves with the world. It's not high art or that sophisticated but I'm not sure comedy is always supposed to be. Thus, this week I threw one to the comedy streets with my Splitsider and Plop List episode pick, going with the messy but honest This Better Be Funny, featuring a few of my local Los Angeles comedy pals doing what I often hear on non-recorded nights. Thinking it was pretty fun for a little bit of it to go out to the internet. In these times and all that BS...  My write-up for Jesse Fox Splitsider "Week In Comedy" podcast round-up:

I’m learning comedy isn’t always a clean process. This Better Be Funny is a high quality proof of this edict. While the show is certainly a member of the meandering conversation group, hosts Jake Kroeger and Jeremy Paul seem to double-down on the looseness, revealing a literal on-the-street riffing version of comedians hanging out. I have ties to the show and this episode from knowing Jake Kroeger and their guest Andy Peters, plus my own affinity for my local comedy scene, the slew of performers, open mics and independent shows. It’s a treat to have a show reveal such an honest reflection of comedians hanging out, pushing each other’s buttons and generally being ridiculous. The show positions Kroeger and Paul as two down-and-out comedians exploring various topics, searching for the comedy and possible on-stage bits. One of the Los Angeles’ best on-stage riffers, Andy Peters’ pop culture knowledge and knack for the absurd keeps the funny coming throughout the episode. Kroeger is full of random facts – that may or may not be true – such as the current shortage of Spam. Peters’ faux anger and continual push-back to Kroeger and Paul’s ridiculousness serves as a welcome foil to the many inappropriate topic turns. Peters’ attempt to rename the podcast as “Two Sad Dudes” isn’t too far from the truth, revealing the fun to be had in the honest and maybe even a little sad conversations among comedians.

Here's the complete list of episode picks from the Splitsider crew, lots of new off-beat shows this week:

The Best Show on WFMU – Ted Leo
Bullseye with Jesse Thorn – Bob Newhart, Mister Rogers and Me
Earwolf Presents: Jon Daly’s Rafflecast #2 – Rob Huebel, Megan Amram, Brandon Johnson
This Better Be Funny #17 – Andy Peters
It's That Episode with Craig Rowin #12 - Jeff Rubin/Saved By The Bell: “Graduation”
Tiny Odd Conversations #42 - Clementine Ford
The Long Shot #503 – Anthony Jeselnik
Fitzdog Radio #193 – Lennon Parham, Jessica St. Clair

Honorable mentions from the group include: Dylan Brody’s Neighbor’s Couch "Dylan Brody Talks Indy," improv4humans #20 (Lauren Lapkus, Seth Morris, Brian Huskey), Judge John Hodgman #54 "Die Flederhaus," Sklarboro Country #88 (Taran Killam, James Adomian, Dan Van Kirk), The Champs (Hannibal Buress), The Little Dum Dum Club #79 (Kyle Kinane) and WTF with Marc Maron #267 (Carrie Brownstein).

Guys With Feelings Get Visual

Last week Jason Nash and Jeff Bumgarner launched their first video episode of their long running podcast, Guys With Feelings. No word on the schedule or how it'll work with the regular audio show. It's okay to let the Internet gods take care of that and just enjoy the fun.

Plop of The Week: The Dana Gould Hour #4

It's rarer than you think for creative endeavors to come out ahead of the pack from the get-go but Dana Gould's first batch of episodes for his hourly endeavor, The Dana Gould Hour, is already one of the more top notch online comedy offerings. I finally stopped being a dipshit and chose the show for my Splitsider pick and pick of the week. My write-up for Jesse Fox Splitsider "Week In Comedy" podcast round-up:

Only a few episodes in, The Dana Gould Hour, is already starting to set the pace for production value and sophistication in the comedy podcast race. At the forefront of the show, Gould shares his ample entertainer gifts with listeners – easy conversation, playful comedic tangents, a nerd-riffic detailed passion for pop culture and history along with his masterful approach to comedic sketches. The show calmly skips among segments, using a masterful fade-in/fade-out technique. We only get the awesome bits of the conversations and sketches. Eddie Pepitone and Matt Weinhold visit with Gould for an unhealthy amount of apocalyptic talk, including comparing disaster memories and preparedness notes. Gould’s charm and wide net of knowledge gives the show sense of pace and general likeability. It’s quite easy to melt right into the quickly paced hour. Following the Apocalyptic theme, Gould shares his extended thoughts on The Omega Man and Charleton Heston. The audio commentary comes complete with killer audio clips. There’s also a bunch of fun audio sketches – complete with chicken breeding theories. Long live A.D.D.! It’s also a treat to have still-on-edge Pepitone be in a genial easy going mood. Despite all the “adult” window dressings, The Dana Gould Hour, still veers off into the silly territory quite a bit.

Here's the complete list of episode picks from the Splitsider crew:

The Long Shot #502 "The Mailbag Episode #4"
The Champs – Keegan-Michael Key
Who Charted? #69 – Ronna & Beverly
The Dana Gould Hour #4 "Apocalicious" – Eddie Pepitone, Matt Weinhold
Comedy Bang! Bang! #150 "Time Bobby" – Bobby Moynihan, Paul F. Tompkins
improv4humans #19.5 "Bonus Tebow Episode" - Chad Carter, Sean Conroy, Anthony King
Making It with Riki Lindholm #36 – Adam Pally

The Splitsider comedy podcast crew, myself included, also shared a few honorable mention picks: Big O and Dukes "Snacks of the Round Table," Cashing In with T.J. Miller #3, Pop My Culture #73 (John Hodgman, Aimee Mann, John Roderick), The Morning After Podcast #67 (Jacky Joy, Anthony Jeselnik) and Thrilling Adventure Hour #64 "War of Two Worlds, part 2."