January 7, 2020
SOMETHING NEW
“The internet doesn't have all the answers. But that doesn't mean we can't find them.” So goes the conceit of the new(ish) podcast Underunderstood. It’s a little bit of an antithetical pod to Reply All, a show about the internet that is really about the world from the perspective of two fairly entrenched internet users. Moreso, Underunderstood actually reminds me a bit of Endless Thread, Reddit’s initial voyage into podcasting. In fact, an episode of ET ended up in the UU feed between season 1 and 2...something I swear I didn’t know before noting the comparison. There is plenty of quirk to go around, but the question I’m left with after completing all episodes is whether there is enough worthwhile substance to sustain listeners who stay the course.
If I had never heard a podcast before, I might be more intrigued by this show. The reporting feels very thorough; my problem is that it is too “random facty” for me. More than that, I think the variance of stakes is what throws me. Some episodes are mildly amusing (“The Complex Underworld of Lost Baggage Delivery”) while others have serious ramifications at a large scale (“Recorded for Awesomeness”) and others land somewhere in between (“The 9/11 hoax that wasn’t”). Each episodes is framed with a central question near the top, and I suppose that provides enough evidence to determine how compelling the story will turn out to be.
Season 2 stabilizes a bit, and it contains my favorite episodes to date. “What happened to the McFlurry?” tracks both deep and wide with an inherent comedic arc, complete with a call for listeners to log whether or not their McFlurry was mixed. “The Incredible Shrinking Cap’n” is grandiose, silly, and buttoned with a celebrity guest reading a message from the Cap’n himself. The whole feel of the show is that of hanging out with a bunch of studious journalist friends who are looking to have some serious fun and maybe land on some big reveal. And I do like the quartet of hosts, all of whom seem to be great people. Sometimes the unknown is just not worth a 25+ minute investigative deep dive.
If I had never heard a podcast before, I might be more intrigued by this show. The reporting feels very thorough; my problem is that it is too “random facty” for me. More than that, I think the variance of stakes is what throws me. Some episodes are mildly amusing (“The Complex Underworld of Lost Baggage Delivery”) while others have serious ramifications at a large scale (“Recorded for Awesomeness”) and others land somewhere in between (“The 9/11 hoax that wasn’t”). Each episodes is framed with a central question near the top, and I suppose that provides enough evidence to determine how compelling the story will turn out to be.
Season 2 stabilizes a bit, and it contains my favorite episodes to date. “What happened to the McFlurry?” tracks both deep and wide with an inherent comedic arc, complete with a call for listeners to log whether or not their McFlurry was mixed. “The Incredible Shrinking Cap’n” is grandiose, silly, and buttoned with a celebrity guest reading a message from the Cap’n himself. The whole feel of the show is that of hanging out with a bunch of studious journalist friends who are looking to have some serious fun and maybe land on some big reveal. And I do like the quartet of hosts, all of whom seem to be great people. Sometimes the unknown is just not worth a 25+ minute investigative deep dive.
From: Standalone
Recommended for: Anyone with an appetite for a longread regardless of the subject matter's importance.
Drop Schedule: Tuesday, Seasonal:Weekly
Average episode length: 30 minutes
Rating: Make It Work
THE LIST
Chris Molanphy is Slate's resident music expert/human encyclopedia of Billboard charts, and his show Hit Parade parses pop music through a critical lens. This decade retrospective is essential listening for music fans, or really for anyone who has listened to the radio since 2010. It pairs wonderfully with my own year-end reckoning with music, which features very little crossover with the pop charts.
I cannot believe that anyone would ever pledge their allegiance to a fast food restaurant. But it happened in France with McDonalds and it got a little out of control.
When I get a personal podcast rec, I tend to pursue it. When a show is recommended by a peer and by my mom, I put the show on ASAP. I'll admit I'm only one episode in, but I am definitely intrigued to see where this thing goes.
HONORABLE MENTION
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