Back in 2012 I recommended some of my favorite TV podcasts, well it’s been a few years and I’ve found some new ones. Whether you’re looking for some show-specific podcasts or more broad entertainment and pop culture ones, here’s a few you should listen to.
Phantastic Geek
As the ‘unofficial official voice of the Marvel Cinematic community’, Matt and Spoiler Pete have no fewer than five podcasts including one for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Daredevil, Agent Carter, Jessica Jones, and a general Pop Culture Podcast. The typical format for each show podcast is a breakdown / recap of the latest episode’s plot followed by a discussion of overarching storylines, and a rundown of the shady characters. Depending if anything is in their ‘mailbag’ they’ll also share tweets or emails that fellow fans have sent them.
Overall, the Phantastic Geek family of podcasts are thorough and offer a good balance between being critical and simply nerding out. Also, as someone who has little to no knowledge of the Marvel comic book canon I’ve found their podcasts to be inclusive for fans with all levels of knowledge.
Must Listen: The Clark Gregg Interview: Coulson Speaks (Feb. 20th 2014)
Artist Alley
In the Artist Alley podcast Merrill Barr sits down one-on-one with a variety of creative types including comedians, writers, and showrunners. His easygoing conversational style makes this podcast especially appealing. It’s not a stuffy interview, but rather an organic dialogue between himself and the guest. Artist Alley is also more focused on the process of creating something rather than just talking about the finished product. It’s a fascinating look into what it’s like to make something (hopefully for a living) within the entertainment industry.
Must Listen: Michael Jacobs (June 18th 2015)
Clone Club
Merrill Barr also co-hosts Clone Club: An Orphan Black Podcast with Perri Nemiroff. Together they dissect each episode, tackling the ever complicated plot threads, conspiracies, and growing list of clones. New entries drop after each new episode and run a cool 20-30 minutes, which is just the right amount of time to get into the nitty gritty of the episode without beating a dead horse. It’s also the perfect length if you want to give it a listen during lunch, on the treadmill, or on your commute.
Extra Hot Great
Previously.tv’s Extra Hot Great podcast comes in two sizes: regular and mini and vastly range in topics covered. The regular Extra Hot Great podcasts are like a smorgasbord of television talk, usually about a handful of shows. New mini podcasts appear much more frequently and are generally centered around a posed question, TV theme or trope, or an aspect of watching television like parallel universes, crossovers, and DVR etiquette.
Bonus: Firewall & Iceberg Podcast
Sadly I was super late to the party and only found Hitfix’s Firewall & Iceberg Podcast mere weeks before they recorded the finale, but I’m still including it on this list because it’s so damn good. Plus the entire archive is available online, on iTunes, and all the other regular spots so if you have a hankering to hear Alan Sepinwall and Daniel Fienberg talk about the last five years of television, this is your ticket. Besides getting the lowdown on the latest crop of new fall TV shows, I’ve also enjoyed just going back to hear what they had to say about shows I loved but are no longer on the air like Fringe, Happy Endings, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
What podcasts are you currently listening to? If you have any recommendations, share them in the comments section below.
