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Are you new to comedy podcasts, overwhelmed by the array of options, and wondering where to begin?
The last five years have been kind to Dax Shepard and Monica Padmans celebrity-interview podcast,Armchair Expert.
Given Shepardstabloid-fodder fame,Armchair Experts instant ubiquity was all but guaranteed.
But, at least at first, that worked against its reputation.
Such radical accountability helps an audience build trust, and with trust comes loyalty.
I just really like Anna, Shepard says during the opening segment.
I think shes so supremely talented as a comedian and an actor.
But eclipsing all that is her willingness to be vulnerable and honest.
Shepards adulation makes Fariss opening words in segment two What?Fuck you!
Thank you for my Red Bull, Faris sings teasingly.
Youve given me permission to have one, responds Shepard.
But can I text you tonight at 1 a.m. when Im regretting this decision?
Because youre constantly worried about being out of a job?
Or the sense of creation?
if I were listening to myself right now, Id be like, Fuck you, bitch!
Undeterred by Fariss self-abasement, Shepard digs further into his guests true artistic ambitions.
Im willing to do the jobs that the other actors wont.
Like what, he inquires?
It was definitely impressed upon me that I was replaceable onScary Movie 5, she says.
In fact, I wish theyd tried to replace you, Shepard responds.
Faris takes a beat:
Faris:… Shepard:Just because you didnt want to do it?
Because I wastoo old.
Well, yeah, youre very old.
Im glad they made that decision.
Then the topic turns to famous relationships.
You know what was hard?
Calling my parents to tell them Id gotten engaged.
(Shepard: Were you very different from one another?
Faris, muttering: Um, no.)
In a pinch, if Im bored in a town, sure, Id probably go again.
Padman:[Snorts.]
Shepard:HOW DID YOU FUCKING KNOW THAT?
Faris:Ive been to that one downtown.
Shepard:Well, theres two.
After a raucous hour and 25 minutes, Shepard concludes that they should end on a high note.
(Before I dig us down into a ditch?
And Im gonna come on yours again!
When Faris leaves, its Padmans opportunity to offer her corrections.
You saidScary Moviewasnt written by Lawrence Kasdan.
Do you know any of the movies Lawrence Kasdan wrote?
Jaws, Shepard declares.
I dont think he wroteJaws.
(He didnt.)
All in all, compared tootherinstances, its a gentle list of fixes befitting a gentle episode.
Fact-check: Podcastscanfeel like a warm hug.
