The Worst of All Possible Worlds

Josh Boerman, A.J. Ditty, and Brian Alford
  • 4.7 (157)
  • SOCIETY & CULTURE
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

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. 236 - American Psycho (feat. JP Brammer)

    3D AGO

    236 - American Psycho (feat. JP Brammer)

    HEADS UP: TICKETS ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR OUR MAY 24 LIVE SHOW IN BROOKLYN, EXCLUSIVELY AT PATREON.COM/WORSTOFALL JP Brammer (¡Hola Papi!) and the lads throw on their raincoats, dance to Huey Lewis and the News, and commit some mild homicide as they cover both Bret Easton Ellis’ original book and Mary Harron’s film adaptation of the trials and tribulations of Patrick Bateman: American Psycho. Topics include Ellis’ rage-bait politics, Christian Bale’s hardbody, and what it means when a significant portion of a population aspires to be Patrick Bateman. JP Brammer: Substack // Bluesky // Instagram Media referenced in this episode: American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis. Vintage. 1991. American Psycho. Dir. Mary Harron. 2000. “An 'American Psycho' Drama : Books: The flap surrounding Bret Easton Ellis' third novel flares again. NOW is seeking a boycott of his new publisher. Other observers raise questions of censorship.” by Elizabeth Venant. Los Angeles Times. December 11th, 1990. “Bret Easton Ellis on American Psycho, Christian Bale, and His Problem with Women Directors”. Movieline. May 18th, 2010. "Bret Easton Ellis on Talking Porn With Kanye, a New Novel, and (Yes) Trump" by Corey Seymour. Vogue. April 16th, 2019. “On Adapting American Psycho” by Mary Harron. London Review of Books. February 28th, 2024. “Phil Collins webchat – your questions answered on prog rock, self-doubt and Miami Vice.” The Guardian. October 19th, 2016. Music/audio used in this episode: Martha Reeves & The Vandellas - Dancing In The Street 緑茶：日本の伝統茶道 - Nhạc Jazz Không Lời Huey Lewis & The News - Hip To Be Square Phil Collins - Sussudio Genesis - In Too Deep Genesis - Mama Genesis - That's All Genesis - Home By The Sea LilMati - Air Conditioner Fan Hum.wav jzielke011 - Urban Rain 01.wav TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Salve & Salve” // Written and Performed by A.J. Ditty

    2h 37m

  2. 5D AGO

    ANNOUNCEMENT: LIVE SHOW IN BROOKLYN SUNDAY MAY 24TH

    Presale for PATREON MEMBERS ONLY goes live April 15th, 2026 at patreon.com/worstofall General Sale goes live Wednesday April 24th, 2026 $25 for seated, $20 for standing. 6pm doors/7pm show. Littlefield, 635 sackett st, brooklyn 11217 Join us as we get to the bottom of the gay agenda once and for all.

    3 min
  3. 235 - Beast Games from MrBeast Season Two: StrongSmart (feat. Kill the Computer)

    APR 8

    235 - Beast Games from MrBeast Season Two: StrongSmart (feat. Kill the Computer)

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall June and Caleb from Kill the Computer meet the lads for another round of stacking blocks in Beast City as they cover the second season of MrBeast’s nightmare of a game show: Beast Games: Strong/Smart. Topics include the improvements to the games themselves, the professionalism of Jeff Probst, and what it means to model yourself as a philanthropic savior while actively taking money from some of the worst people on the planet. June: Twitch // Patreon // Bluesky Caleb: Bluesky Kill the Computer: June and Caleb talk about the ways in which internet culture spills out into the real world; good and bad. Patreon // Apple Podcasts // Spotify Ill Conceived: A podcast about natalism. Hosted by Josh Boerman (The Worst of All Possible Worlds, Traditional Scrench) and June Sternbach (Western Kabuki, The Onion) Patreon // Spotify // Apple Podcasts Media Referenced in this Episode: Beast Games: StrongSmart. Amazon Studios. 2026. “Gov. Stein approves $15 millions grant for filming Beast Games second season” by WITN Web Team. WITN First Alert. September 11th, 2025. “In 'Beast Games,' contestants get buried alive before heading to Saudi Arabia” by Jim Halterman. LA Times. February 11th, 2026. “MrBeast ‘Beast Games’ Hits 50 Million Viewers in 25 Days, Amazon’s Biggest Unscripted Show Ever” by Selome Hailu. Variety. January 16th, 2025. “MrBeast: If You Want To Be Liked, Don’t Help People! I Lost Tens Of Millions on Beast Games…But I’m Worth $1 Billion!” The Diary of a CEO with Steven Bartlett. February 20th, 2025. North Carolina Department of Commerce Film Industry Grants “Prime Video Gives Two-Season Renewal to Global Hit Competition Series Beast Games.” Amazon Press Release. May 13th, 2025. “The REAL Tea on Beast Games (with Michelle the Human Calculator)”. Wait, Say More with Eric Cheng. January 15th, 2026 TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “2 People Play Hopscotch for $2,000,000” // Written by A.J. Ditty // feat. David Armstrong as “MrBeast”, Eleanor Philips as “Contestant 1/Chandler”, and A.J. Ditty as “Contestant 2/Young Jimmy/Planet Jimmy”

    31 min
  4. BONUS - Kill The Computer: The Smile Merchant feat. TWOAPW

    APR 6

    BONUS - Kill The Computer: The Smile Merchant feat. TWOAPW

    Those of you who have been listening to our show for a while might remember last year when we did a cross-over collaboration with our friends at Kill The Computer to celebrate the work of Jimmy “MrBeast” Donaldson. We called it Beast Week. And now, Beast Week is back. In this episode of Kill The Computer, we talked with June and Caleb about a number of videos MrBeast released in 2025. Then we dug into his theme park Beast Land, a temporary pop-up in Riyadh that was open for 45 days as part of the annual Saudi entertainment festival known as Riyadh Season. Next up, on Wednesday, June and Caleb will be joining us on The Worst of All Possible Worlds Patreon for a premium episode about season 2 of Beast Games. Finally, on Friday, we’ll conclude Beast Week on the Kill The Computer Patreon with an in-depth conversation about what Jimmy’s been up to so far this year and where we think he might go next. Thanks for listening. Cool Voltaire loves you!

    1h 48m
  5. 234 - Bernard After Reading (feat. Brooke from I Hate James Dobson) [Whit’s Endless Summer 51]

    APR 1

    234 - Bernard After Reading (feat. Brooke from I Hate James Dobson) [Whit’s Endless Summer 51]

    Brooke from the I Hate James Dobson podcast joins the lads in Odyssey for further adventures in local access television, getting boils in the land of Uz, and the increasingly diabolical schemes of the Novacom Corporation. Topics include the questionable accent choices, the dubious ethics of Whit’s latest invention, and what it means to craft a serialized plot where you rail against the evils of teaching kids about pollution. I Hate James Dobson: Join therapists Jake (a former Evangelical) and Brooke (who knows almost nothing about Evangelical culture) as they read and tear apart Dobson’s works. Get ready to laugh, cry, and rip your hair out as we explore the very many reasons why I Hate James Dobson. Spotify // Apple Podcasts // Twitter // Instagram Media Referenced in this Episode: Adventures in Odyssey #317: “B-TV: Envy” #419: “Another Man’s Shoes” #399: “Bernard and Job” #460: “Nova Rising” “The Disturbing Views of God and Suffering in the Book of Job” by Bart D. Ehrman. Misquoting Jesus Podcast with Bart D. Ehrman #75. April 23rd, 2025. “The Historical Context of the Book of Job” by Edward L. Greenstein. Yale University Press. August 5th, 2020. “Speaking Truth to Power, Job Accuses God of Being Unjust” by Edward L. Greenstein. The Torah.com. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com

    2h 36m
  6. 233 - Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 [Part 2] (feat. Joe Kassabian)

    MAR 25

    233 - Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 [Part 2] (feat. Joe Kassabian)

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall Joe Kassabian (Lions Led by Donkeys) rejoins the lads in their fight against the Paintress they cover the final two acts of Sandfall Interactive’s hit 2025 grief simulator: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Topics include the importance of le family, Monoco’s feet collect-a-thon, and what it means to use art as a balm for one’s grief and, more importantly, when to let that art go. Joe Kassabian: Bluesky 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 Media Referenced in this Episode: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Sandfall Interactive. 2025. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Expedition 32 ½: Tatienne” // Written by A.J. Ditty // feat. Eleanor Philips as “Tatienne”, David Arsmstrong as “Gaston”, and A.J. Ditty as “Esquie/Verso”

    29 min
  7. 232 - Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 [Part 1] (feat. Joe Kassabian)

    MAR 18

    232 - Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 [Part 1] (feat. Joe Kassabian)

    Joe Kassabian (Lions Led by Donkeys) and the lads throw on their expedition armbands and make for the Paintress as they cover the first act of Sandfall Interactive’s hit 2025 French simulator: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Topics include the AI controversy, Ubu Roi, and what it means to make a game that finds the clair in the obscur. Preorder Joe’s Upcoming Book The Highlands Burn here!!! Joe Kassabian: Bluesky 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 Media Referenced in this Episode: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Sandfall Interactive. 2025. “After GOTY pull, Clair Obscur devs draw line in sand over AI: 'Everything will be made by humans by us'” by Patricia Hernandez. Polygon. December 24th, 2025. “Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Lead Writer talks Story, Ending, and More” by Game Maker's Notebook Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - Sandfall Interactive Q&A by Sushi “Interview Clair Obscur Expedition 33 : ‘On ne s'attendait pas à une réception aussi énorme’” by Par Kelma. Gamekult. August 28th, 2024. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Gaston Garbageman’s Gommage-Proof Garbage Can” // Written by A.J. Ditty // feat. David Armstrong as “Gaston” and A.J. Ditty as “Citizen of Lumière”

    3h 3m
  8. 231 - Perfect Blue

    MAR 11

    231 - Perfect Blue

    THIS IS A PREVIEW. FOR THE FULL EPISODE, GO TO Patreon.com/worstofall The lads cast off their pop idol personas and get caught up in the murderous world of Japanese procedurals as they cover Satoshi Kon’s first animated feature: Perfect Blue. Topics include the Aranofsky drama, the podcaster’s persona, and what it means to exist in a world that necessitates breaking yourself into many different personalities just to survive. Media Referenced in this Episode: Perfect Blue. Dir. Satoshi Kon. 1997 Satoshi Kon: The Illusionist. Dir. Pascal-Alex Vincent. 2021. “Interview with Satoshi Kon” by Bill Aguiar. Tokyo Pop. April 25th, 2007. The Real History of 'Perfect Blue' and 'Requiem for a Dream'. Animation Obsessive. March 20th, 2022. “Satoshi Kon Interview for Perfectblue.com”. September 4th, 1997. TWOAPW theme by Brendan Dalton: Patreon // brendan-dalton.com // brendandalton.bandcamp.com Interstitial: “Two-Step Verification” // Written and Performed by A.J. Ditty

    26 min
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Hosts & Guests

4.7
out of 5
157 Ratings

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 - 2026
  • Episodes
    263
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2021-22 TWOAPW. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Worst of All Possible Worlds

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