Welcome to Podcast Portal: a spontaneous column that will highlight podcasts of all genres that are lesser known or new shows that are worth giving a listen. With the medium continuing to grow, it is hard to acknowledge all of them. However, I am going to try and find as many noteworthy titles as possible to share and hopefully expand your mind to the greatest growing medium out there. If you have any podcast that you feel is worth adding to the Podcast Portal, please make sure to inform me whether through the comments or through an e-mail (information in sidebar).
SHOW: I Was There Too
HOSTS: Matt Gourley
NETWORK: Wolfpop Network
EPISODE BEING DISCUSSED: "There Will Be Blood with Paul F. Tompkins"
HOSTS: Matt Gourley
NETWORK: Wolfpop Network
EPISODE BEING DISCUSSED: "There Will Be Blood with Paul F. Tompkins"
*Note: For the next week (or until completion), I will be covering every single NEW podcast on the Wolfpop Network. I will not be covering older shows such as U Talkin' U2 to Me or How Did This Get Made.
If you are into podcasts, you'll likely know the names of Matt Gourley and Paul F. Tompkins at this point. Both are deeply rooted in the medium that it almost serves as a right of passage to have them featured on your show. With both having an impressive array of shows already, this one doesn't feel nearly as fresh or essential as other Wolfpop shows. However, it does have a great angle that host Gourley hasn't really tackled before and serves as a potentially exciting concept in general when less familiar guests swing by. The show revolves around a performer who was in a film and is there to share his stories about being on the set. It makes sense to start with Tompkins.
For most, he isn't an actor that has an impressive array of films to his name. However,he does make cameos where it counts. In this case, the episode focuses on his one scene in the iconic There Will Be Blood. For most cinephiles, it is one of the best films of the decade and rivals the best in history (myself included). With Daniel-Day Lewis at his peak, it is definitely worth any story out there to hear somebody talk about it. Is Lewis really that mysterious in person? Is Paul Thomas Anderson as much like Stanley Kubrick as the rumors claim? These topics are explored in great detail.
Anyone familiar with the candor that the two have shown in the past will easily fit into the episode. For those familiar with Tompkins' stand-up album "Laboring Under Delusions," there's parts that will be familiar, as he went into great detail there. However, where that bit was only a few minutes, this is spanned to almost an hour running time and gets more in depth and candid. If nothing else, hearing the two veteran comedians talk about a time before they knew each other is a little fascinating.
It is hard to discuss anything further without just verbatim talking about the episode. However, it seems like a great concept through and through. Even if I could listen to actors just talking about Anderson or Lewis all day, this one episode will suffice. It is fun and brings to life something that isn't too frequent in podcasts: a behind the scenes look from the actor's perspective. At best, there have been countless shows dedicated to craft. Still, somehow Gourley knows how to ask the questions and makes it work. The only question is if he can be this engrossing with guests that he is less familiar with.
Rating: 4 out of 5
WORTH A SECOND GO?: I liked the episode and really like the concept, but it doesn't quite have the immediacy for me as the other ones. It could just be that I am familiar with Gourley and Tompkins' shtick, but I felt like the episode was too familiar at times. Not in a bad way, but I wondered if there was anything to get out of the show. I may check it out again, provided that there's an interesting topic at hand.
If you are into podcasts, you'll likely know the names of Matt Gourley and Paul F. Tompkins at this point. Both are deeply rooted in the medium that it almost serves as a right of passage to have them featured on your show. With both having an impressive array of shows already, this one doesn't feel nearly as fresh or essential as other Wolfpop shows. However, it does have a great angle that host Gourley hasn't really tackled before and serves as a potentially exciting concept in general when less familiar guests swing by. The show revolves around a performer who was in a film and is there to share his stories about being on the set. It makes sense to start with Tompkins.
For most, he isn't an actor that has an impressive array of films to his name. However,he does make cameos where it counts. In this case, the episode focuses on his one scene in the iconic There Will Be Blood. For most cinephiles, it is one of the best films of the decade and rivals the best in history (myself included). With Daniel-Day Lewis at his peak, it is definitely worth any story out there to hear somebody talk about it. Is Lewis really that mysterious in person? Is Paul Thomas Anderson as much like Stanley Kubrick as the rumors claim? These topics are explored in great detail.
Anyone familiar with the candor that the two have shown in the past will easily fit into the episode. For those familiar with Tompkins' stand-up album "Laboring Under Delusions," there's parts that will be familiar, as he went into great detail there. However, where that bit was only a few minutes, this is spanned to almost an hour running time and gets more in depth and candid. If nothing else, hearing the two veteran comedians talk about a time before they knew each other is a little fascinating.
It is hard to discuss anything further without just verbatim talking about the episode. However, it seems like a great concept through and through. Even if I could listen to actors just talking about Anderson or Lewis all day, this one episode will suffice. It is fun and brings to life something that isn't too frequent in podcasts: a behind the scenes look from the actor's perspective. At best, there have been countless shows dedicated to craft. Still, somehow Gourley knows how to ask the questions and makes it work. The only question is if he can be this engrossing with guests that he is less familiar with.
Rating: 4 out of 5
WORTH A SECOND GO?: I liked the episode and really like the concept, but it doesn't quite have the immediacy for me as the other ones. It could just be that I am familiar with Gourley and Tompkins' shtick, but I felt like the episode was too familiar at times. Not in a bad way, but I wondered if there was anything to get out of the show. I may check it out again, provided that there's an interesting topic at hand.
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