Bad Pilots

We're back! It's been another trip around the sun, which can only mean one thing: more bad TV (also an increasingly dire pandemic with no end in sight, rampant climate change mercilessly and indiscriminately laying waste to communities everywhere, and the alarmingly rapid/dumb collapse of western democracy). So make yourself a hearty cocktail and join us on the couch for another annual round up of the 10 worst new shows to premiere in the past year! Also please forgive the intermittent rattling sound—the microphone wasn't fully secured to the stand.

The Hilarious House of Frightenstein is a gleefully twisted kids show responsible for terrorizing generations of children and stoners alike throughout the 70s and beyond. All 100+ episodes of the horror-themed series were shot in Hamilton, Ontario, in the span of just 9 months — and it shows. Special guest Quincy Raby joins us on a journey back in time, looking at schlocky, (probably) coke-fuelled basic cable programming.

SpooOOOoooky szn is upon us! For the entire month of October, we'll be looking at spooky bad pilots, kicking things off with A&E's attempt to capitalize on the success of their flagship paranormal series, Ghost Hunters, with a similar yet far worse imitation: Paranormal Cops. Post production supervisor and horror buff Mark Ellis joins us to discuss a show that answers the question: what if extras from The Sopranos had their own ghost hunting show?

William Shatner is 90 years old! Wild, right?? That means he was 80-ish when he made 2010's forgettable Twitter-inspired sitcom, Shit my Dad Says (or $#*! My Dad Says, since CBS is squeaky clean). Fittingly, our special guest this week is none other than Dan's father & longtime television critic, Bill Brioux. We discuss the role that professional critics have in the cultural conversation, how Bill inspired Dan and Aidan to start Bad Pilots, and William Shatner's incredible cover of Pulp's classic Britpop hit, Common People.

High Fidelity is actually a really good show with a strong pilot. So why are we talking about it? Well, Hulu cancelled it after just one terrific season, so it qualifies for the pod. Special guest Alexa Serrano joins us to discuss Zoe Kravitz’s take on Rob, a character that John Cusack originally perfected as the blueprint for the modern day fuckboi.