Podcast Portal: Everything's Coming Up Podcast

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: Everything's Coming Up Podcast
HOSTS: Allie Goertz, Julia Prescott 
NETWORK: None
EPISODE BEING DISCUSSED: "Bart's Comet"

One of the interesting recent trends in the TV recap podcasting business is the amount that have popped up in the past year. The two notable ones are The Simpsons Show and Worst Episode Ever. Together, they cross a wide spectrum that focus on dissecting episodes in detail on a weekly basis. For the most part, they're pretty straightforward episodes that will likely be easy to consume, especially since both have a ranking system that ends each episode. However, there's a new one that was just released and it is going to take The Simpsons admiration one step further by not discussing episodes in detail, but how episodes have influenced us as fans.

The two hosts are seasoned fans. There's Allie Goertz, whose music career has spawned five songs dedicated to the show, and Julia Prescott, who runs a monthly trivia content in Southern California. With the first guest Alex Hirsch (Gravity Falls), they discuss the unlikeliest of episodes by focusing on the unlikeliest of topics: "Bart's Comet" as it relates to death. In the case of Hirsch, he discovered it at a young enough age where impending doom caused him to become existential and wonder about the fragility of Earth. While the episode is discussed in detail, it serves more as  a jumping off point that is to talk about all things The Simpsons.

I am unsure if it is right to properly assess the first episode because it contradicts its announced format just a little. It is both about an episode, but is more about the broad reasons why the show influences us. There's plenty of substances in both halves of the podcast, but it also feels like the show is slowly discovering what it will be. Thankfully, the talk of potential tattoos and why sentiment on the show is important are topics that don't lose their muster. Part of me likes the jumping off idea of the show, though I do wonder if this pilot will serve more as most first episodes do as a rough sketch.

Don't let this mislead you. The show is still fun to listen to provided you love the show as much as Prescott and Goertz, the latter of whom also appeared on The Simpsons Show a few times. Still, it gets by on charm and the references abound as they chronicle the episodes through their bulky guide books. It is especially refreshing that the show, which involves guests bringing personally selected (but never repeated) episodes to the table, doesn't have to stick to a specific format. I am curious to see where things go with the podcast and hope that it will add to the trilogy of great shows about a great show.

OVERALL RATING: 4 out of 5

WORTH A SECOND GO?: Yes. It is quite something if you're into The Simpsons to have three differing recap shows discussing it right now. There's very little chance of overlap (so far), so this will make for another worthwhile addition to your Springfieldian listening.