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The podcasting world has been a charitable selection of entertainment for me. Like a free buffet spread, it has the benefits of being a purely indulgent, delicious venture where you’re guaranteed to find at least one thing you like.
But with excess cause excessiveness and no matter how delectable a buffet may be, the fear of missing out on a selection of delicacies or investing in something just not worth the space on your plate is equally probable. So as a connoisseur of all things cute and cakey, here’s some of my favorites that might tickle your tastebuds.
1. Brimstone Valley Mall
As a soda-chugging, pizza-munching, Twitter-account-owning degenerate who feels entitled to the kind of liveable wage a part time mall job simply can’t provide, a black comedy podcast about demons in a rock band working at a suburban shopping mall during the late nineties is a little too up my alley.
Though my Goth phase is long past me, a show that encompasses Goth aesthetics is such a rare and incredibly welcomed facet to the considerably less Goth podcasts lying around. No time for prissy preps here, Brimstone Valley Mall is truly the epitome of what old people think rock music does to the youth-Satan worshipping and a sudden taste for leather included.
2. The Godshead Incidental
(Disclosure: Cole Burkhardt, who plays Lorem Ipsum, is a Discover Pods contributor.)
It usually doesn’t take much to impress me so The Godshead Incidental passing the test within a mere few seconds of its first episode is actually high praise. In this urban fantasy that’s a nice combination of The Wicked and The Divine and an episode of Parks and Recreation, comes one of the most unique takes on modernized mythology I’ve heard in years.
Get to know advice columnist Em as she tries to find her missing sister after a sudden run in with the God of Memory, throwing her into a risky partnership with the charmingly mysterious Lorem Ipsum. Witty dialogue, fantastic world building, and solid acting chops makes for a one of a kind experience.
3. The Magnus Archives
As the kind of person who still gets startled by bread coming out of a toaster, I’m probably not the kind of person who should be getting personally invested in horror shows. Too bad The Magnus Archives has already sunk its teeth into me and hasn’t let go for the better half of last year.
What starts as a loosely connected compilation of one-off horror stories becomes a densely personal psychological horror peppered with just the right amount of existential dread and body horror galore. If you can stomach what it has to offer, it’ll prove to be as satisfying as it is scary.
4. The Long Hallway
Perhaps blame my short attention span or growing fondness for Black Mirror, but there’s something I inevitably enjoy about anthologies. There’s definitely an art to be appreciated in the nature of a short story, how quickly we’re introduced to characters and ideas until we’re forced to jump to another one with the fate of our last gallery of heroes left completely abandoned.
Anthology shows are in no short supply in audio drama but there’s just something about The Long Hallway that really caught my attention. Its methodical pace, its slightly eerie atmosphere, and its love for twists and subtle theming all packed in episodes that never go over eleven minutes makes it an excellent entry level podcast.
5. The Theatre of Tomorrow
While still on the topic of anthologies, the first collection I found myself smitten by was easily 2017’s The Theatre of Tomorrow by Midnight Disease Productions. There’s just something so fun about shows that are wacky for wackiness sake and it takes a delicate hand to make these kinds of shows charming instead of obnoxious.
The Theatre of Tomorrow is silly but inspired by its love of retro, old-timey radio plays, granting it a sort of 1950’s aesthetic pleasantness. It’s random but never incoherent which is helped by some positively solid casting and editing, making it as hilarious as it is fabulously put together. Nothing quite tickles my fancy the way a good scripted comedy does and The Theatre of Tomorrow is a severely underappreciated relic.
6. Fuck Humans
Audio-fiction erotica is in itself quite a rare genre. Not that podcasts can’t talk about or include sex or sexually active characters, but many of which can hardly call themselves legitimate smut. And for the lonely adults in the world in need of some more sizzly soundbytes comes Fuck Humans, a fantasy romance for the eighteen and older audience.
Fuck Humans manages the art of combining both smut and story and doing so with expert consistency. All around, it’s the kind of show you can enjoy with a bit of privacy…or out in the open if you’re into that sort of thing. What could have been a mere monster mash is a rather simple tale about overcoming prejudices with a sexy twist.
7. The Penumbra Podcast
Be it you’re tuning in for the suspenseful cyber noir of private eye Juno Steel or the medieval misadventures of many a dreamy knight at The Second Citadel, The Penumbra Podcast is one of the more popular selections to have come out in years but has certainly earned its position among the greats. Excellently crafted with great characters and even greater mysteries to uncover, any path you choose guarantees hours of wit, whimsy, and wonderful angst.
8. Dark Dice
I personally feel like I’m still barely toddling into the realm of DnD podcasts which is a shame given how incredibly popular they are. An easy format thanks to the improvised storytelling aspects and the wholesome company of good friends with wild imaginations, but it takes far more than just setting up some sound equipment in your mother’s basement to make a session podcast worthy.
That’s why I highly recommend Dark Dice, a grim fantasy adventure following a lovably flawed party banding together to find the missing children of a nearby village while being pursued by a shapeshifting monster. Fool and Scholar Productions creates a solid atmosphere with the kind of interesting creatures, mysterious lands, and high stakes you find in the likes of Thrilling Adventure Zone and Critical Role. So roll for initiative and check it out.
9. Rover Red: Alone in the Apocalypse
As someone so hung up on their own nostalgia that they still have Adobe Flash installed on their computer purely out of spite, it’s no wonder I’m still not over Rover Red: Alone in the Apocalypse, a gloriously short-lived science fiction thriller that debuted in 2017 and, much like a sentient implant drilled into my ear canal, hasn’t left my mind since.
In this rather intense show we follow the adventures of Leah as she navigates the ruined remains of a post-apocalyptic world with only an artificial intelligence and the motivation to find her brother pushing her through increasingly difficult trials that a mysterious council, i.e. listeners, were able to vote on.
Even if there’s only so few episodes to spare, it’s worth a peak regardless for its iron hard tension, excellent world building, and blend of psychological horror and science fiction adventure that makes Ender’s Game look like Little Einsteins.
10. THE INFINITE NOW
As far as non-linear, artsy shows go, THE INFINITE NOW is a short and sweet but certainly fun little detour. To describe the show’s premise is a bit of a tall order as it’s more or less a random selection of spacy monologues narrated by the show’s creator Richard Penner. But if you have a taste for surrealism, existential horror, and some atmospheric music, it’s an excellent selection to backtrack your next blunt rotation with some close friends.
11. The Meat Blockade
High-brow surrealist comedy with singing pirate frogs and lamb scrotum isn’t the kind of thing you’d be bragging about in your next book club but somebody’s gotta break the ice, especially if you’re in the similar company of Kafka enthusiasts.
The Meat Blockade by the Hennesy brothers is a thrillingly absurd look into the unlucky life of Karl Berenger as he desperately tries to crawl his way back home after one single choice lands him in the gaping maw of Nighttown. Gorgeously edited, fabulously acted, and never slacking in surprises, it’s a wonderfully bizarre romp that wears its inspiration on its sleeves.
12. SAYER
A favorite, always going to be a favorite, and is still a favorite to this day. SAYER is the science fiction horror audio drama debut of Adam Bash who has weaved a positively fascinating if terrifying futuristic dystopia. And it’s through the eyes of the titular SAYER, as well as a number of other equally dysfunctional artificial intelligences, that we learn about the dark secrets and darker tragedies befalling the citizens of Typhon.
13. Hadron Gospel Hour
Hadron Gospel Hour is the kind of show your dad would like, maybe even my dad would like, but that hasn’t stopped teenage me or adult me from being insanely fond of easily one of my favorite audio drama sci-fi comedies.
With its wacky dimension hopping, reality bending mishaps, and chaotic duo of a mad scientist and average joe, Hadron Gospel Hour was Rick and Morty before Rick and Morty was cool, so it’s worth a listen simply for that level of hipster street cred.
14. Return Home
Small towns with big secrets is common ground to tread for many fiction series with varying levels of success. There’s something just so oddly humble about the hidden secrets of an average community being brought to the forefront and it’s things like Return Home that reminds me of the potential they have to be fun, wonderfully bizarre experiences.
Though it may not be for everyone, Return Home is one of those shows that has a little bit of everything: comedy, strange supernatural forces, and romance all wrapped up in a package that’s so unashamedly authentic. With a loveable trio as the leads and an interesting slew of monsters to pick from, this long trip to Melancholy Falls is a nice blend of creative and campy.
15. Adventures in New America
Night Vale Presents is nothing short of a seal of quality around these parts so it’s no wonder that shows like Within the Wires and Alice Isn’t Dead are such beloved audio drama favorites that still have just the slightest DNA of our favorite desert town in its veins. And though those shows are darling to me, Adventures in New America feels like a truly unique entity.
Branching off from the more Americana-esque vibes of Night Vale Presents other works, this show decides to walk in the pond of political satire with a cyberpunk twist. In this “Afrofuturistic buddy comedy”, tag along with best friends IA and Simon Carr as they wind up in increasingly more absurd heist missions on the dangerous streets of New New York City for the deliberate goal of landing in jail for the benefit of free health insurance.
Be it you’re in the mood for social commentary or foul mouthed and funny exchanges, you’re bound to be seeing things in neon after one listen.
I literally never use this app anymore, unless I’m searching for something specific .🤔 Whoops. Sorry. 🙃🙃
Does anyone use this tag anymore? On the off chance we do... did y’all see that the books based on the podcast started coming out! (The adaptation of the show, and then Rover Universe, etc etc.) Different titles and such, but.
https://beamsfiction.com/furiosa
And this is completely selfish, but I did the formatting for them, so I’ve read them already... and things happen. Boy the fuck do things happen.
So I’m gonna need some of y’all to hop over and check those out so when we get to those... I can yell at y’all. And you’ll get it. 😂
This is a list of some of my favorite podcasts. They include a brief description and a star rating from me
Welcome to night vale
Basically the gate way drug to podcasts. a fictional podcast about a weird town in the middle of the desert. It’s very gay and basically the first podcast everyone listens to. You’ll want to listen to it in order. It may seem long but it goes by fast.
*****
Alice isn’t dead
Another fictional podcast by night vale presents. It’s follows the story of a women in a shipping truck looking for her wife. It gets a little creepy but not very bad. A very gay podcast
*****
Within the wires
Another podcast by night vale presents. A fictional podcast. Not many people really understand the first season but it was calming and Relaxing to listen to. The second season is easier to follow Thant the first. Also very gay.
****
It makes a sound
Another night vale presents podcast. A fictional podcast that’s kinda hard to explain what it is but the first episodes aren’t very interesting but lately it’s been getting better. Not sure how gay it it but I have hopes.
****
The orbiting human circus (of the air)
Another podcast by night vale presents. It’s one of my favorite podcasts ever. A fictional podcast about a radio show on top of the Eiffel Tower. It’s pretty gay towards the end of the first season.
*****
Conversations with people who hate me
Another podcast by night vale presents. It’s a nonfiction podcast by Dylan marron. He’s a voice actor on welcome to night vale. He Skypes the people that send him hate comments and had a conversation to see what their side of the story is. It’s very interesting and a good way to expand your view on people.
***
What’s the frequency
It’s a fictional podcast with only a few episodes out but it’s probably the creepiest podcast I’ve listened to. It’s hard to describe the plot because there are so few episodes but definitely worth a listen if you’re in the mood for something creepy.
*****
Wolf 359
One of my favorite podcast. It’s set in the future on a space station orbiting the star wolf 359. The voice acting and audio are very good and it’s very well written. There’s a gay character revealed revealed later on.
*****
Ars paradoxica
A fictional podcast. It starts in the future but it goes back to the 1940’s because of a time travel accident. It gets kind of hard to follow but definitely a good podcast. Pretty gay later on.
***
The bright sessions
A fictional podcast. About a therapist for a group of people with superhuman abilities. It’s kinda angsty and very gay. There’s also a crossover episode with ars paradoxica
****
The penumbra podcast
A fictional podcast that has a few different story arches but mainly follows the story of Juno Steele. It’s VERY VERY gay
****
The far meridian
A fictional podcast made by the same people as ars paradoxica. It follows the story of an agoraphobic girl that lives in a light house that moves location everyday.
****
The Magnus archives
A fictional podcast. It’s a podcast that can get pretty spooky. It is the recording of the head archivist of the Magnus institute. Mentioned gays
*****
The bridge
It’s a fictional podcast set in the future on a bridge that spands over the Atlantic Ocean. Nothing much more I can say about it without spoiling anything
***
Rover red
It’s a fictional podcast set in a post apocalyptic future. You follow a girl trying to find her brother that was taken from her. It’s not very original and kinda reminds me of divergent and the main character is pretty dramatic and angsty but still worth a listen.
***
Otherverse
It’s a fictional podcast I just started and there aren’t many episodes so I can’t really say much about it but there are aliens trying to take over the earth. So... yeah.
***<rating may change as I listen to it more>
RABBITS
It’s a looooong fictional podcast. There are only ten episodes but the episodes are long. It’s about a girl looking for her friend that was playing a mysterious game and went missing. Mentions of gay
Enjoy the month of love with some female driven-audience participation based audio dramas with a little more emphasis on the drama department. These upcoming shows are all about suspense and high stakes so tune in next week for my review of @roverredpodcast, followed up by a review of @oakpodcast. Fall in love under the cherry tree with me.
I'm so good with names, guys. Anywho, the Rover Council is very organized and, as you'd expect, super professional. Don't believe me? Read for yourself.💜👌🏼 Happy Halloween, guys. Hope you enjoy!
