The Pod Piper

THE LIST 1. The Allusionist  -  "Survival part 1: Second Home" What happens when a group of Welsh settlers is bamboozled into immigrating to a desolate swatch of land in Argentina? A weird subculture flourishes. 2. Hidden Brain  -  "Romeo and Juliet in Kigali" What happens when a radio drama is set with the immense task of healing the wounds of a war-torn nation? People get obsessed. 3. The Cracked Podcast  -  "All The Baffling Ways America Misunderstands The Middle East" What happens when Americans reserve all of their bandwidth for caring about the middle east for the conflict in Israel/Palestine? We forget that there is a whole lot of other stuff going on. HONORABLE MENTION Still Processing  -  "We Watch Whiteness" Showcase from Radiotopia  -  "Errthang #5 - How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America" Reply All  -  "No More Safe Harbor" SOMETHING NEW Whether it's the shocking...

THE LIST 1. Showcase from Radiotopia  -  "Errythang #4 - The Good Guy Myth" This is probably the best thing I've listened to all year. Al Letson conveys the inescapable horrors of masculinity that have manifested in countless headlines, all in a novel and deeply personal way. Rarely does an episode manage to experiment with form and tell an absolutely chilling story.  2. Hang Up And Listen  -  "The Not Michael Jordan Edition" Musical theatre, basketball, sports talk radio that manages to be mostly not about sports, and the creator of Parks & Recreation all make an appearance on one of the most delightful editions of HUAL ever to grace the podwaves. 3. 99% Invisible  -  "The Hair Chart" Kudos to 99PI for delivering something totally unexpected to my listening queue. I know that hair is both deeply personal and potentially political, but the role design played in the evolution of style is nothing I've ever pondered.  HO...

THE LIST 1.  Radiolab  -  "Border Trilogy Part 2: Hold The Line" Occasionally a podcast introduces a significant chunk of history to folks beyond a certain age. Sometimes this is a clandestine character or event that understandably missed the cut off for a civics curriculum (hey there,  the entire back catalog of  Futility Closet !). Other times it entails breathing new life into a story whose impact couldn't be fully felt until we bathed in the afterglow of perspective-birthing hindsight (R.I.P.  Undone , long live  Backstory ). Since the issue of secure borders in this country is long running and (seemingly) far from settled, it can be hard to discern a watershed moment from flash in the pan coverage - especially in this crazy Tweet-fueled-possible-missile-strike climate in which we find ourselves. Be that as it may,  Radiolab  lands a revelatory blow with the story of the El Paso blockade in the second installment of their "Border...

Another short edition of  The Pod Piper , but no lack of stellar content! With any luck, we'll be back to form next week. THE LIST 1.  The Cracked Podcast   -  "4 Mind-Blowing Truths About America (Made Clear By Baseball)" Baseball and I have a weird relationship. Despite being one of the premier sports of my youth, my attention to the sport has been waning since I departed for college. But every April a surge of nostalgia overtakes me and I have a brief flicker of hope of reconnecting with the great American pastime. The long-running season inevitably wears me down, though my track record never prevents me from hoping to rekindle that spark. All that said, this episode from  Cracked  is accessible to die-hard fans or the baseball agnostic. 2.  Showcase from Radiotopia  -  "Errthang #1 - 808s and Three Heartbreaks" The Al Letson-helmed variety show  Errthang  returns for it's second season nearly 3 years after...

We've got a short edition this week, as I'm dealing with a death in the family. I hope you dig the brief episode descriptions, and feel free to browse the archives at  http://podpiperreview.blogspot.com   if you're itching for a lengthier dive into something new . Enjoy! THE LIST 1. Invisibilia  -  "The Pattern Problem" Can people break away from adhering to a pattern portended by past behavior? 2. Ear Hustle  -  "Dirty Water" An intimate (and explicit) look at restorative justice. 3. This Is Love  -  "What Are We Going To Do?" A delightful couple deals with a crazy twist of irony in this season finale. HONORABLE MENTION It's Been a Minute with Sam Sanders   -  "Zach Braff and Alex Blumberg on 'Alex, Inc.' " Endless Thread   -  "The GOAT"