Podcast, anyone?* More like Podcasts, everyone! What I’m trying to say is, it seems like everyone in the whole entire world is making a podcast nowadays. Or at least listening to them.

I’ve certainly been listening to dozens, if not hundreds**, in the past year. So without further ado, (and instead with further adon’t), here’s my roundup of my biggest takeaways from listening to podcasts in 2022, organized by category.

(*-Like “Tennis, anyone?” but replace “tennis” with “podcast.”)

(**-I guess it depends on if you count by the show or by the episode. Or how kooky you’re feeling.)

The New Arrivals: “Well, hello there.” “And hello to you, to!” That’s the conversation I had with my favorite podcast debuts of 2022. So what was my favorite new podcast of 2022? I’m sorry, that should be:
“This was jmunney’s favorite new podcast of 2022.”
“What is Inside Jeopardy!?”
Yes! I now have control of the board!
It’s the straight scoop from the team behind “America’s favorite quiz show,” so how could I say no? … I’ve heard of this Sam Sanders fellow in his previous gigs, and then when he teamed up with Vulture for Into It, well, you could color me “Into It” as well … You know what’s one of my favorite TV shows in recent history that I love thinking about? If you guessed “Old Lady,” just flip it around. Yes, indeed, Zooey Deschanel, Lamorne Morris, and Hannah Simone teamed up to recap New Girl on the wholesome Welcome to Our Show … I dipped my toe into Marvel’s podcasting ventures a bit with Squirrel Girl and Wastelanders: Wolverine; Milana Vayntrub does voice the former’s title character, after all … And then at the very end of the year, I discovered that my favorite Icelandic queen has a podcast! It’s called Björk: Sonic Symbolism; she talks about her albums.

If I Haven’t Listened Before, It’s New to Me: I’ve been logging films on Letterboxd for several years at this point, but it was only in 2022 that I finally started also listening to The Letterboxd Show on the reg. Specifically the “Weekend Watchlist” episodes. (Although occasionally I venture into “Four Favorites” if the guest strikes my fancy) … Speaking of movies, I really dove in behind the paywall of “Comedy Bang! Bang! World,” particularly Scott Hasn’t Seen. So now Scott HAS seen, and I HAVE listened … Speaking of even more movies, I checked out the Erotic 80s season of You Must Remember This … I love horror movies, and I love hearing people talk about horror movies, so what a thrill that I stumbled upon Ruined … I also dipped my toes into the NSFW deep end, via Girls on Porn and Holly Randall Unfiltered.

Still Podcasting After All These Years: Then there are those veteran podcasts that still have my undying loyalty, particularly Blank Check, Comedy Bang! Bang!, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, Doughboys, How Did This Get Made?, Judge John Hodgman, Pop Culture Happy Hour, and Pop Mom … Plus, special mention goes to Dead Eyes for finally reeling in its big fish!

Community Update: By last count, there are more podcasts devoted to rewatching Community than there are students at Greendale. I’ll spotlight a few of them here, including one that matriculated in 2022 (actually late 2021): However, I Wish You Luck, which does a mighty fine job of veering off-topic; and one that graduated in 2022: You Can’t Disappoint a Podcast. You can disappoint your podcast listeners … but they didn’t! And finally, Six Seasons & a Podcast landed an interview with the head honcho himself.

So Auntertain-ting: And in my own corner of the podcast universe alongside my Aunt Beth, highlights included getting sporty, diving into musical legends, and finally watching one of the best movies of 2004.