I'm giving the pod two stars only because there are a few, albeit minor, takes. However, after listening to all six episodes I can safely say that there is little to no substance in the discussion of the show. I get the sense that the hosts feel obligated to not be critical of the show as they have actors from it in the second half of each episode. Thus, anytime they do have anything critical to say (which is not very often) they follow up with something along the lines of "but I'm okay with that" or "it's for style anyways" instead of actually judging the show. Furthermore, one of the hosts (I don't want to attack anyone personally) is clearly not of the same caliber as the other two.
I love this show. Hey team - I think the Oedipal read is a very wrong interpretation of this! I think Danvers has a motherly attachment to Peter as she has with so many. Gruff caretaker at heart.
The only person who has called this out as Oedipal/sexual is Hank! He’s gaslighting this because he can’t handle that his child is pushing him away. He reminds Peter several times to choose him: he is a manipulative abuser.
Meanwhile Danvers lost a son; recognizes a kid without parents and true potential in his smarts. And I think reducing this to the Mrs Robinson trope is following Hank’s lead.
I was hoping for insight into the imagery & Easter egg clues throughout the first four episodes, but this podcast is just nonsensical babbling. It was so bad- you could tell they don’t think about the plot and this podcast was a waste of time.
Updating my review for True Detective, this is such a deeper and more fun show than any other re-cap podcast. I also love the predictions and interviews. The hosts prepare, offering a ton of context and background that add so many layers to “just” watching the show.
I don’t know how old he is but he comes across as such a kid. Doesn’t seem to know anything that happened at all before 2000, has no context to base his opinions, and has a total over woke Gen Z perspective on everything. Which I guess is fine, but he just comes across as such a kid with no taste. And I hate the way he speaks. Try not saying “like” in every single sentence.
Just heard his glowing review of Night Country and how amazing it is and I just cannot with him anymore. Unsubscribing.
…the hosts are so poorly prepared and apparently not embarrassed by it. It’s okay to say that you’ve never heard of Mustique (although it’s not that off the grid) but to say it in the same breath as “I’ve heard and been everywhere” (or something to that effect) shows a lack of self awareness and sophistication. Both are things that are needed on a podcast like this. They’re in short supply.
The hosts discussing the final season of “The Crown” seemed to really not like the show. I don’t mind a critical reading but I’m not sure why they even watch the show, they seem to dislike everything. Also it probably helps when all the hosts have actually seen the whole series or at least a good chunk of it. There was one host who said he’d only seen a few episodes before the latest season. Was no one else available?
How exactly does a cleaning lady dress? If you’re going to spend time, considering fair representation of everyone, maybe you should include class in that discussion and show more respect for people who spend their days cleaning up after you.
I cannot bear the thought of watching AJLT (I just don’t think it’s as good a show as SATC was) but I don’t have to because my friends at VF do such a great job recapping each episode with excellent, insightful commentary and humor.
I loved listening to you guys every Thursday right after I watched the lasted episode. It was like discussing the show I’ve loved for years with old friends who love it just as much as me.
The female cohost is starting to get on my nerves. AJLT is in no way perfect, but being happy to be annoyed by something is weird. Why are you covering this show if you don’t like it? And all her complaints about the Aidan/Carrie relationship basically come down to being against Carrie showing growth. Carrie should not be attached to an apartment at her big age with her big money. Being able to move forward is actually a good thing.
Every episode is “negative” with attempts at funny banter amongst the 3 hosts & it feels like they never come into these episodes with any positives most of the time. Being negative & mean to seem interesting with your review on the episodes is tiring.
The female commentator is such a downer. She even stated she was excited to find something in the episode to be annoyed about.
Sigh.. don’t get me wrong it’s not like I think this reboot is perfect or even close to it but every episode I’ve heard with her it’s pretty negative.
Enjoyed the two episodes discussing the top five, nice to hear your viewpoints. Two things: some one asked if BED was a real place and the reply was no; there was an actual club called BED NY opened circa 2004. Also, you guys wondered about why the writers didn’t present viagra as an option for Trey. They did. Trey’s excuse to Charlotte for not taking it was that he was a doctor and he was very aware of the implications of heart failures/issues associated with the drug so he declined it.
Hi cast - really enjoying your AJLT recaps so far, just wanted to submit a head up on Che’s pronouns. They yes they/them, heard you misuse some on the July 27, 2023 episode.
Enjoy hearing another view. Sometimes it makes me consider and appreciate a different take on the episodes. However, what I can’t take is the constant preface of “sort of”. Often several times in 1 sentence. Do you ever listen to your own podcast? It is beyond annoying. It’s clear you have no idea you’re doing it. Had to stop listening. It was too painful, sort of.
I enjoy this show, although predictions like “Connor will be elected President!” are beyond silly, yet hosts seem to take such absurd takes seriously. Somebody really wanted that shark jump.
All the recent one star reviews from the Red Pill brigade seem orchestrated. I don’t write reviews of Ben Shapiro because upon reading his tweets, I know he is a racist, misogynist douchecanoe and I am thus not his audience. If it offends you that the writers of Succession and the hosts of this podcast think Alternative Facts media like Fox is a toxic carcinogen to politics and democracy, then turn it off and recruit Ravenhead to host one that doesn’t hurt your tender feelings.
While I think these young folks ( the hosts) are smart and ambitious, they are so laser focused on the concept of succession being only who inherits the reigns of the business as the only valuable prize.
Lost on them is that the Roys are named so because Roy means “royal”. And in royal succession the bloodline is the most valuable asset to the path to power. While there may be failed generations of kings and queens, the successor provides hope for the future.
When the Roy children decide to anoint Kendal in Barbados, Shiv is still thinking of Tom as an interloper. If it can’t be her, because she doesn’t have the votes (thanks misogyny) then, at that moment she only sees Kendal as their only option to preserve the Roy dynasty.
But- It isn’t just a cruel insult when Roman points out that Shiv is the only TRUE bloodline and that Kendal’s kids are not “real real”. It’s a fulcrum.
It is that moment Shiv realizes that it’s is not her generation that will be the successors- it is the hope her “real” child promises even while in her womb. The calculation is that Tom is be King Regent, and she will be queen mother, and one day in a short few decades, her child will be the heir apparent in the direct line of Succession.
I think this very smart twist was lost on the ambitious young hosts without children who only see succession as the relationship and inheritance of themselves from their parents. They do not yet see the fullness of the bloodline’s value. And they are a bit short sighted about the future being only tied to the money and politics of the moment.
Shiv isn’t being selfish with plots of future take overs from Tom. At Roman’s revelation that Kendal has no “real” (also another word based on Royal) heirs, Shiv see the only true path to family preservation comes from the unappreciated power of her womb. An unquestioned heir of the family no matter the father. The successor.
Listening to the succession finale recap and oh my god these people are unbearable without Joanna. So many sports and godfather references, and very little insightful analysis of the show. Bill simply impresses me with how bad his takes are. Also lots of random inaccuracies this episode. I so wish there was any analytical commentary, but this episode was basically the two hosts trying to remember everything that happened in the episode and stumbling through their notes.
Coverage of season 4 episode 9, with Lawson out, was terrible. No insight, just simplistic talk about of which characters are the most “bad” due to their ideological stances. This show is so much richer than that and you people know it!
I love listening to these guys, with one caveat - keep the personal political views to yourselves, please! It’s very preachy and sanctimonious to anyone that isn’t liberal. Newsflash, some of your listeners are conservative and aren’t actually evil…
I find it funny that the hosts don’t even pause for a minute to consider that some of their listeners might also be conservative. I suspect they live in this Vanity Fair echochamber where all they know is liberal groupthink. But you may want to reflect on all the Fox News bashing. They have good ratings because real people tune in. No need to alienate half of the country with your politics. That is all.
The podcast has been slowly going downhill since COVID. I stuck around for Succession recaps. I never expected a spoiler in the title!!!!! I couldn't even avoid it, and I am on high alert for spoilers!
The only podcast I know who either doesn’t know or doesn’t care that the unspoken rule of recaps, that spoilers are alerted. It’s very unpolished to put a spoiler right in the title.
I enjoy listening to these White Lotus recaps but can we watch it on saying “sort of” and “kind of” in front of everything, it’s a verbal tic that people have started doing over the past decade. One host does it more than the other. It’s very noticeable. Just bringing it to your attention.
Tanya says Greg insisted on the trip to Sicily in ep 2, when he says he leaving early... it's all Greg, he is in on everything with Quentin. That's why he didn't want Portia there. Tanya and Portia get killed, Greg/Quentin behind it. Maybe Jack tries to stop it? Tbd but something is going to connect Greg and Quentin.
The show is rendered almost unlistenable with the incessant overuse of the filler word like. I would give it 5 starts as an honest grade of content with the hope that the hosts take the feedback and try to modify an admittedly accepted speech pattern that is nonetheless very distracting and annoying.
I used to LOVE this podcast, but it’s suffering since Joannna left. I like Richard, but he’s not always on and I don’t care for Josh. He sounds like a cheerleader, not a critic/analyst to provide additional insight.
This podcast used to be must listen for me, but no longer.
The content is fun and interesting to listen to, but I honestly don’t understand how a company as large as Vanity Fair has such TERRIBLE audio! They need to put more effort into the audio quality. I can hear background noises throughout and the interviews don’t seem to even get a once over from any sort of audio engineer.
I would love to hear a podcast about the startup which is really good but I can’t listen to this podcast because you have combined with shows I don’t watch. Why? Than worse than that you don’t even separate them so i can listen to the part i am interested in. I tried to listen but found it aggravating, so, had to stop listening. It is a shame because i want to hear your opinions on ONE show. Thanks.
I have loved this podcast for a long time. I miss Joanna, but Sonia is an adequate replacement. I do wish, like others, that the laugh wasn’t so frequent and long-lasting. I know it’s terrible to be annoyed with someone for laughing, but a lot of the time it’s over something that’s not even meant to be funny. It almost seems like a nervous tick that she does after everything she says.
I used to love listening to this show and I hate having to say this because i am not a mean person. So let me start off nice. Sonia, while I love your energy and excitement, the laugh coupled with the sucking in of air at the end of it, is super irritating to hear. It makes me not want to listen even though I want to hear what you guys have to say. By now I would have thought the editors would have picked up on it and attempted to mute it out. Other than that overall I enjoy listening and I don’t want to give up. I just don’t know how much longer I can take.
