99% Invisible

One of the best ‘start from the beginning’ shows. Most aren’t connected, but these stories dont get old.

OK, so stomaching Roman Mars’s smarminess was always part of the package. Which was fine – the storytelling really did make up for it (for the most part) However, shortly after the end of the “fiercely independent” era (he sold it to SiriusXM), it rapidly went downhill. More re-airings of past eps or airings of other podcasts – basically a lot of filler content. And as others have noted, the ad lengths have really gotten out of hand. There are still some fine eps – about 1 in every 4 are keepers – but it does feel like it’s being phoned in at this point. It’s a shame. But, hey, Roman still retains his upper-middle class smarm – so there’s that.

Check out this podcast. You won’t regret it. My favorite episode is curb cuts. Now I see unintended benefits everywhere!

I appreciate the unique perspective of this show, which presents topics from unconventional angles, enabling me to perceive the world and its elements in a fresh and different light.