The Worst of All Possible Worlds

Josh Boerman, A.J. Ditty, and Brian Alford
The Worst of All Possible Worlds

The first and only podcast bringing you weekly case studies in the pop culture of a dying empire. Every Wednesday, co-hosts Josh, Brian, and A.J. dissect an artifact of popular culture, breaking down how its narrative choices reflect or subvert the reactionary political project. From video games to movies to theater to an apparently infinite supply of evangelical Christian radio drama, we expose the machinations of the worst of all possible worlds in order to figure out how to build a better one. Also, we have bits.

  1. 172 - AOL Whitstant Messenger (feat. Colette Shade) [Whit’s Endless Summer #41]

    6 HR AGO

    172 - AOL Whitstant Messenger (feat. Colette Shade) [Whit’s Endless Summer #41]

    Colette Shade [Y2K: How the 2000’s Became Everything (essays on a future that never was)] joins the lads in Odyssey for some eXtreme adventures in cliques, Y2K paranoia, and the Odyssians’ forever war with the people of Rakistan. Topics include Y2K aesthetics, being jumpscared by John Avery Whittaker, and what it means to have nostalgia for an optimistic techno future that never came to pass.   Colette Shade: Website // Instagram // Twitter // Bluesky   Y2K: How the 2000’s Became Everything (essays on a future that never was) (CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR COPY!): In Y2K, one of our most brilliant young critics Colette Shade offers a darkly funny meditation on everything from the pop culture to the political economy of the period. By close reading Y2K artifacts like the Hummer H2, Smash Mouth’s “All Star,” body glitter, AOL chatrooms, Total Request Live, and early internet porn, Shade produces an affectionate yet searing critique of a decade that started with a boom and ended with a crash.   CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO A MUTUAL AID IN LOS ANGELES TO HELP THOSE AFFECTED BY THE WILDFIRES   Media Referenced in this Episode: Adventures in Odyssey #427: “Something Cliqued Between Us” #429: “The Y.A.K. Problem” #458: Red Herring #514: “Room Enough for Two” “A Peek Inside Chatrooms” by Bob Smithouser. Breakaway: A Focus on the Fmaily Magazine for Teen Guys. 1999. Citations Needed: Episode 177: Popular Anti-Union Talking Points and How to Combat Them by Nima Shirazi and Adam Johnson. Tacky: Love Letters to the Worst Culture We Have to Offer by Rax King. Vintage Books. 2021. Time Bomb Y2K. Dir. Brian Becker and Marley McDonald. HBO Documentary Films.   TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com   Interstitial: “Alistair Adelman” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Featuring Brian Alford as “Alistair Adelman”

    2h 45m
  2. 171 - Left Behind World At War

    8 JAN

    171 - Left Behind World At War

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall The lads dive once more into the apocalyptic mind of Jerry B. Jenkins, as they cover the unintentional finale of the Kirk Cameron Left Behind trilogy: LEFT BEHIND WORLD AT WAR. Topics include the acting bona fides of Lou Gosset Jr., the importance of colons in titles, and how strict adherence to evangelical Christian eschatology will eventually lead you to blowing out the candles of a sad bundt birthday cake in the backroom of a church ministry in Bellflower, California. Media Referenced in the Episode: Left Behind World at War. Dir. Craig R. Baxley. 2005. “See a Very Sad Photo From Kirk Cameron’s Birthday Party” by Amanda Dobbins. Vulture. October 14th, 2011. The dinky apocalypse of Left Behind: World At War by Nathan Rabin. The Dissolve. July 24th, 2014. The Real Meaning of the Term “Help Meet” by Heather Farrell. Woman in the Scriptures. November 9th, 2010. Tribulation Force: The Continuing Drama of those Left Behind by Jerry B. Jenkins. Tyndale House Publishers. 1996. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “A Brief Chat with TWOAPW’s Lawyer” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Feat. A.J. Ditty as “A.J.“, David Armstrong as “Canadian Cashier”, and Tony Ditty as “Tony Ditty, Lawyer and A.J.’s Actual Father”

    25 min
  3. 164 UNLOCKED - God’s Not Dead 2

    1 JAN

    164 UNLOCKED - God’s Not Dead 2

    The lads dare to speak about Christ in the classroom and face the wrath of Ray Wise as they cover Harold Cronk’s 2016 evangelical propaganda film: God’s Not Dead 2. Topics include the horrendous filmmaking, the deeply-flawed rhetoric, and what we can learn about the future of America from a film that posits a world in which the masses will be subjugated by the most annoying people alive.   Media Referenced in this Episode: God’s Not Dead 2. Dir. Harold Cronk. 2016. God’s Not Dead (2014) - Financial Information God’s Not Dead 2 (2016) - Financial Information ‘God’s Not Dead’ Producer Pure Flix Launches Theatrical Distribution Arm God's Not Dead 2: The Escalation of Christian Propaganda | Big Joel   TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Harold Cronk Presents: The Vagina Monologues” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Featuring Brian Alford as “Brian Alford” and A.J. Ditty as “Harold Cronk”

    2h 46m
  4. 170 - 2024: A Year in Review

    25/12/2024

    170 - 2024: A Year in Review

    As has become tradition, we fielded a bunch of calls from you about what The Worst of All Possible Worlds meant to you in 2024 and stitched them together with highlights from the show. Merry Christmas and thanks for being part of our year. We also put out an extra-special Whit's Endless Summer bobus to the premium feed; check it out over on Patreon.com/worstofall! This episode includes clips from the following episodes, in order of appearance: 120 - 2 Left 2 Behind 2 Tribulation 2 Force 121 - Donkey Kong Country 122 - Far Cry 5 feat. November Kelly 124 - Alan Wake II 125 - Airplane feat. Bernie Wagenblast 128 - Supermarket Sweep 129 - Blackgaard Begins feat. Devon 130 - Heaven is for Real feat. Radio Free Tote Bag 134 - The Dutch Knight feat. Trevor Strunk 135 - The Boss Baby feat. Patrick Willems 142 - Gerbert feat. Traditional Scrench 145 - Dragon Ball Z feat. Alex Ptak 146 - Shrimp Jesus and the Death of Facebook 147 - Chrono Trigger feat. Anime Sickos 150 - The Worst of All Possible Parties (WAPP): The 150th Episode Spectacular LIVE from Colorado Springs! 151 - Moneyball 155 - Who Framed Roger Rabbit? feat. Mattie Lubchansky 156 - The Magic School Bus 157 - Blasphemous II feat. Tom O'Mahony 161 - Silent Hill 2 feat. Aysha U. Farah 162 - Skibidi Toilet 163 - Blair Witch 164 - God's Not Dead 2 168 - The Nostalgia Critic 169 - Frank Capra's It's A Wonderful Life

    2h 9m
  5. 169 - Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life

    18/12/2024

    169 - Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life

    The lads do battle with Mr. Potter for the heart of Bedford Falls as they cover Frank Capra’s 1946 Christmas classic: It’s a Wonderful Life. Topics include the pernicious myth of “Capra-corn”, the art of the Jimmy Stewart impression, and what it takes to be a George Bailey in a system designed to turn you into a Henry F. Potter.   REMINDER: SUBMISSIONS FOR OUR ANNUAL CALL-IN EPISODE ARE OPEN! Call +1 347 857 9523 and leave us a voicemail letting us know what the show meant to you this year and/or what your favorite moments were. We look forward to hearing from you!   Media Referenced in this Episode: It’s a Wonderful Life! Dir. Frank Capra. 1946. 'Young George Bailey' Took Some Hard Hits by Stephen Cox. Los Angeles Times. December 15th, 1996. What ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’ Shows Us About The Weird History Of Building & Loans by John Wake. Forbes. December 31st, 2021.   TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com   Interstitial: “Jimmy the Raven” // Written and Performed by A.J. Ditty.

    1h 59m
  6. 168 - The Nostalgia Critic

    11/12/2024

    168 - The Nostalgia Critic

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall   Hellloooooo, we’re The Worst of All Possible Worlds, we remember it so you don’t have to! We all remember Doug Walker, you know, that guy with the glasses, the tie, and the plain white background because they clearly couldn’t afford a better set? Well, wouldn’t you know it, he created a character called the Nostalgia Critic, a loud, obnoxious, Looney Tunes-adjacent blowhard who got famous for being very mad about Batman having a credit card. But does he have anything to say about our current critical landscape or do his over-the-top antics make him look like a groundhog on meth? Let’s take a look at: The Nostalgia Critic.   Media Referenced in this Episode: Nostalgia Critic Transformers Batman and Robin Quest for Camelot The Review Must Go On - Demo Reel Finale Nostalgia Critic’s The Wall Channel Awesome Indigogo Campaign “I Don’t Known James Rolfe” by Dan Olson “Recession breeds accidental Entrepreneur” by Chicago Tribune. Chicago Tribune July 21st, 2009. “The Nostalgia Critic and the Wall” by Dan Olson   TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com   Interstitial: “Foobies.com” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Featuring Brian Alford as “Sexy Brian” and Josh Boerman as “Phineas Foob” // Music: “Careful Shouting” by Highway Superstar

    31 min
  7. 167 - Frank Capra’s “Why We Fight”

    04/12/2024

    167 - Frank Capra’s “Why We Fight”

    The lads get drafted and give Mussolini the ole One-Two as they once again remember Pearl Harbor by covering Frank Capra’s series of WWII propaganda films: Why We Fight. Topics include the language of propaganda, the shittiness of fascist art, and what it means to watch your country become the thing it once stridently vowed to fight. Media Referenced in this Episode: Why We Fight. Dir. Frank Capra. 1942-1945. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Too Big Roosevelt” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Feat. A.J. Ditty as “Olde Timey Announcer” and Josh Boerman as “Too Big Roosevelt

    2h 18m
  8. 166 - Wicked

    27/11/2024

    166 - Wicked

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall The lads grab their broomsticks and defy gravity as they cover Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman’s megahit musical: Wicked. Topics include the twisted mind of Gregory Maguire, the highs and lows of Stephen Schwartz, and how to reckon with a show that is simultaneously trying to tackle the horrors of fascism and the inherent melodrama of wanting to kiss a hot Winkie. Media Referenced in this Episode: Wicked. Book by Winnie Holzman, Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz. Dir. Joe Montello. 2003. Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire. ReganBooks. 1995. Before 'Wicked' was a smash, it was stumbling in San Francisco by Jenny Singer. The San Francisco Standard. November 23rd, 2024. "Defying Gravity": Queer Conventions in the Musical "Wicked" by Stacy Wolf. Theatre Journal, Vol. 60, No. 1 (Mar., 2008). The John Hopkins University Press. “Gregory Maguire on Wickedness Post-Bush” by Erika Milvy. Clamour. February 27th, 2009. “John Bucchino and the Origins of Wicked the Broadway Musical” Still Popular: Chenoweth and Menzel Talk ‘Wicked’ by Jackson McHenry. Vulture. October 24th, 2023. “THEATER REVIEW; There’s Trouble in Emerald City” by Ben Brantley. NYTimes. October 31st, 2003. “‘They changed my ending, I felt aghast’: how we made Wicked” by Chris Wiegand. The Guardian. September 27th, 2021. “Wicked Review” by Charles Isherwood. Variety. October 30th, 2003. “Wicked Review” by David Finkle. Theatremania. October 30th, 2003. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Baritone” // Music by Stephen Schwartz // Lyrics by Dr. Samuel Bultch, D.D.S. // Featuring Dr. Samuel Bultch, D.D.S. as “Dr. Samuel Bultch, D.D.S.” and David Armstrong as “Stephen Schwartz”.

    20 min
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About

The first and only podcast bringing you weekly case studies in the pop culture of a dying empire. Every Wednesday, co-hosts Josh, Brian, and A.J. dissect an artifact of popular culture, breaking down how its narrative choices reflect or subvert the reactionary political project. From video games to movies to theater to an apparently infinite supply of evangelical Christian radio drama, we expose the machinations of the worst of all possible worlds in order to figure out how to build a better one. Also, we have bits.

Information

  • Creator
    Josh Boerman, A.J. Ditty, and Brian Alford
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2025
  • Episodes
    183
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2021-22 TWOAPW. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Worst of All Possible Worlds

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