The Worst of All Possible Worlds

Josh Boerman, A.J. Ditty, and Brian Alford

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. 208 - Bar Rescue (feat. Slowpuke)

    6 DAYS AGO

    208 - Bar Rescue (feat. Slowpuke)

    Slowpuke (SlowpukeLIVE) and the lads stake out a bar and scream in the faces of undiagnosed alcoholics as we cover Jon Taffer’s hit reality-television show: Bar Rescue. Topics include Taffer’s self-aggrandized past, the ethics of robot performers, and what it means to watch a man transform a bar from terrible to an entirely different kind of terrible.   Slowpuke: Twitch // Bluesky // Instagram   Media Referenced in this Episode: Bar Rescue S02E01: “Yo-Ho-Ho and a Bottle of Dumb” S03E11: “Don’t Mess with Taffer’s Wife” S02E22: “Punch-Drunk and Trailer-Trashed” S04E25: “Sticky Situation” Bar 702 (Sand Dollar) From Bar Rescue Has Been Sold by Matt. Barrescueupdates.com. June 22nd, 2014. Breaking News - Spike TV Picks Up New Original Series, "Bar Rescue" and "Repo Games" | TheFutonCritic.com. January 1st, 2011. Council Bluffs police investigating shooting at O'Face Bar by KMTV News. 3 News Now. February 27th, 2021. Domestic Violence Case Dismissed by Staff Consortium. The Virgin Islands Consortium. March 19th, 2021. How "Bar Rescue" host Jon Taffer helped changed the way we watch the NFL by Aaron Torres. Fox Sports. January 7th, 2014. jon taffer spaceship robot story Second arrest made in connection to weekend shooting outside Council Bluffs bar by First Alert 6 Staff. First Alert 6. March 25th, 2025. Wilkes Assault Lawsuit TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com   Interstitial: “Bar Rescue Jr.” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Feat. Josh Boerman as “Aggressive Narrator”, Slowpuke as “Mrs. Cunningham/Molly Cunningham”, and A.J. Ditty as “Jon Taffer/Customer”

    2h 29m
  2. 207 - Newgrounds and Flash Games

    17 SEPT

    207 - Newgrounds and Flash Games

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall The lads boot up Newgrounds and take The Impossible Quiz as they dive into the bizarre and labyrinthine world of the bread and butter of the Web 2.0: Flash Games. Topics include the origins of Newgrounds, the boundless creativity (and trolling) of the flash scene, and what it means to be the lead gay technician of one of the most influential flash games of all time. Media Referenced in this Episode: The Games: Pico’s School by Tom Fulp SimGirls by sim-man N by Metanet Software The Crimson Room by Toshimitsu Takagi Bloons TD by Ninja Kiwi The Impossible Quiz by Splapp-me-do Nanaca Crash! By Unknown Canabalt by Adam Saltsman Robot Unicorn Attack by Spititonin Media Games Newgrounds Wiki - TomFulp From the IAmA community on Reddit: Tom Fulp Newgrounds Wiki - History How Flash games shaped the video game industry by Jonas Richner. Flashgamehistory.com. Flashpoint Archive TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Pages 13-21 of ‘The Hidden Enemy’” // Written and Performed by Josh Boerman // Music by Wendy Carlos

    31 min
  3. 206 - Eugene: Monk (feat. Joe Kassabian) [Whit’s Endless Summer 46]

    10 SEPT

    206 - Eugene: Monk (feat. Joe Kassabian) [Whit’s Endless Summer 46]

    Joe Kassabian (Lions Led By Donkeys) joins the lads in Odyssey for further adventures in monastic life, missionary work, and the dreaded attraction between cousins. Topics include evangelical views of Catholicism, the blatantly political work of missionaries, and why cruelty begetting cruelty is at the heart of the Evangelical project.   Joe Kassabian: Bluesky // Twitter   Lions Led by Donkeys: The Lions Led By Donkeys podcast is a military history podcast for laughing at the worst military failures, inept commanders, and crazy stories from throughout the history of human conflict. Patreon // Youtube // Spotify // Apple Podcasts // Instagram   STREAMING TICKETS FOR LIONS LED BY DONKEYS LIVE FROM GLASGOW   Media Referenced in Episode: Adventures in Odyssey #366: “Solitary Refinement” #377: “Just Say Yes” #384: “Amazing Grace” #91: “A Mission for Jimmy”   TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com   Interstitial: “Thirteen Madmen for Twenty-One Monks on the Nineteenth of April at the End of the 20th Century” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Feat. A.J. Ditty as “Estragon Estragonov/Melvin Mulligan/Phoebear”

    2h 12m
  4. 205 - Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown

    3 SEPT

    205 - Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall The lads take a walk through this beautiful world and feel the cool rain on their shoulders as they cover Anthony Bourdain’s award-winning CNN travelogue: Parts Unknown. Topics include Bourdain’s rise to prominence, his successes and failures as a documentarian, and the complex legacy of one of the most prolific observers of the modern world. Media Referenced in this Episode: Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown Season 2, Episode 2: “Jerusalem” Season 2, Episode 9: “Detroit” Season 6, Episode 7: “Borneo” Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations Season 1, Episode 4: “Malaysia: Into the Jungle” Kitchen Confidential: Adventure in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain. Bloomsbury Press. 2000. Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook by Anthony Bourdain. Ecco. 2010. “Anthony Bourdain obituary” by Tim Hayward. The Guardian. June 9th, 2018. Bourdain’s Tumblr Post “Fighting Mad” “Don’t Eat Before Reading This” by Anthony Bourdain. New Yorker. April 19th, 1999. “New Yorker Editor David Remnick on Anthony Bourdain” by Matt Buchanan. Eater. June 8th, 2018. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Anthony Ditty: Parts Known: Escondido, CA” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Featuring A.J. Ditty as “Anthony Ditty/Producer/Dustin Bendin”

    23 min
  5. 204 - Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

    27 AUG

    204 - Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

    The lads throw back some drinks and bray the night away as they cover Edward Albee’s 1962 nightcap from hell: Who’s Afraid of Virignia Woolf? Topics include Albee’s traumatizing childhood, the music of his dialogue, and the boomer mentality of being afraid of Virginia Woolf.   Want more TWOAPW? Get access to our full back catalogue of premium/bonus episodes by subscribing for $5/month at Patreon.com/worstofall!   Media Referenced in this Episode: Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? By Edward Albee. 1962. “Edward Albee, The Art of Theater No. 4” Interviewed by William Flanagan. The Paris Review. Issue 39. Fall 1966. Edward Albee: A Singular Journey by Mel Gussow. Applause Books. 2000. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The Original Cast Recording. Columbia Records. 1963. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Dir. Mike Nichols. 1966.   TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com   Interstitial: “The Autograph Theatre Company’s Season Announcement: The Unproduced Plays of Edward Albee” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Feat. Josh Boerman as “Daddy/Albee”, Anne Huston as “Mommy”, David Armstrong as “Irish Priest”, Eleanor Philips as “Mrs. Wife/Sea Monster”, and A.J. Ditty as “Announcer/Tiniest Alice/Mr. Husband”

    2h 15m

  6. 22 AUG

    EMERGENCY POD - Dobson Died, Dead Dobson

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall Well, the dude croaked. https://jamesdobsonmemorial.com

    5 min
  7. 203 - The Sweatbox/The Emperor’s New Groove

    21 AUG

    203 - The Sweatbox/The Emperor’s New Groove

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall The lads grab their pencils and go back to the drawing board as they cover the never released behind-the-scenes documentary on the making of The Emperor’s New Groove: The Sweatbox. Topics include the history of Disney animation, the similarities between the animating and acting life, and what it means to make art while walking the llama-llama and taking in the panorama. Media Referenced in this Episode: The Sweatbox. Dir. Trudy Styler. 2000. The Emperor’s New Groove. Dir. Mark Dindal. 2000. “An Oral History of Disney’s ‘The Emperor’s New Groove’” by Bilge Ebiri. Vulture. July 26th, 2024. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Sting: The Kingdom of the Sun Sessions” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Featuring A.J. Ditty as “Sting/Announcer”

    25 min
  8. 202 - Steven Spielberg’s The Dig

    13 AUG

    202 - Steven Spielberg’s The Dig

    The lads grab their engraved rods and play with some loose bones as they cover the LucasArts’ 1995 xenoarchaeologist point-and-click adventure: The Dig. Topics include the gaming prowess of Steven Spielberg, the incredibly fraught production process, and what it means to have have a point and click adventure imprint upon you as a child that requires you to turn a turtle into a bomb. Want more TWOAPW? Get access to our full back catalogue of premium/bonus episodes by subscribing for $5/month at Patreon.com/worstofall! Media Referenced in this Episode: The Dig. LucasArts. 1995. A Conversation with Gary Brubaker. Tech Talk with Daniel Albu. April 6th, 2025. “The Dig is a weird LucasArts adventure dreamed up by Steven Spielberg” by Andy Kelly. PC Gamer. May 15th, 2020. The Dig by Jimmy Maher. Digital Antiquarian. July 23rd. 2021. “Exclusive Interview with Noah Falstein” by Santiago Mendez. The Dig Museum. December 27th, 2004. “Interview with Brian Moriarty” by Paco García. Aventura y CÍA. March 2006. “LucasArts Secret History #11: The Dig Bills Tiller and Eaken”. The International House of Mojo. “LucasArts Secret History #11: The Dig Sean Clark’s Recollections of Joy”. The International House of Mojo. Original Design Document for The Dig “So, a Giant Asteroid is Heading for Earth…Again…” by Luke Plunkett. Kotaku. November 2nd, 2011. “Steven Spielberg Apparently Won’t Play Uncharted Because He’s a Big PC Gamer and Only Likes Mouse and Keyboard” by Kat Bailey. IGN. October 2nd, 2024. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Brink” // Written by A.J. Ditty // Featuring A.J. Ditty as “Professor Ludger Brink”

    2h 24m
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Hosts & Guests

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
    226
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2021-22 TWOAPW. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Worst of All Possible Worlds

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