The Podiwan Review 19 - Judge John Hodgeman

John Hodgeman plays the elitist know it all with such easy and pleasing charm that it ain't hard to see why people think that he is just that way. From the republican manner in which he dresses (conservative grey suits and thin ties, short hair and black frame glasses) he could, at least visually, fit in on nearly any show on FOX. The genial condescension with which he addresses a crowd or a person is like that of a loving father towards a moronic child. He is never mean spirited per se' but nearly every comment is backhanded in some way. You'll be familiar with that aspect of Hodgeman if you've seen his eponymous segment "You're Welcome with John Hodgeman" on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. His bit on the Daily Show is to fix our worldly problems with easy and logic solutions. It doesn't matter that the solutions are ridiculous. His confidence in the solution is really all that matters.


For his Podcast "Judge John Hodgeman" confidence is again the key as Hodgeman oversees a 20 to 30 minute program wherein two litigants bring their argument to Hodgeman's court. The cases are frivolous, likely chosen by email and based on silliness and the litigants are sworn in to accept the result, no matter how poorly founded or nonsensical. Taking the role of courtroom announcer and bailiff is Jesse Thorn of the Jordan, Jesse, Go! podcast from the Maximum Fun podcast network that also hosts Hodgeman's show. The Judge John Hodgeman podcast grew directly from a bit that was done on Jordan, Jesse, GO! several times last year.

Though there is never a laugh out loud moment on any of the shows so far (and I've listened to all of them to date) every show is amusing, even pleasant. Judge Hodgeman listens to the complainants one at a time, asks probing questions. His questions usually try to pry more funny than truth out of the answerer but by the end the truth is pretty clear and the judge retires to chambers to consider his decision.
While the Judge is "in chambers" bailiff Jesse Thorn has a chance to speak with the litigants briefly. No further truths are revealed but sometimes a motivation can be sussed in a "So, what do you really want to happen here" sort of moment. When Hodgeman returns he hands down his decision and befitting the silliness of the argument being settled, the judge's decision usually includes some form of penance or act of contrition or even a recurring payment of goods or services. There is also the occasional court ordered hug.

All in all, it's a good gimmick; a familiar gimmick. I enjoy the show probably more because I like Hodgeman, but I also like the formula of exposition/investigation/resolution in a tight time frame and the fact that it is all kept light hearted and friendly. There are no heated debates, no rancor, no venom, no illiterates yelling incoherently at morons about "he my baby daddy" and the like. I'm surprised that no other podcaster did this sooner given that you can't turn on a TV in the afternoon in America without finding a litigant show of some kind on every third channel.

This show, Judge John Hodgeman, is on my weekly rotation of shows that I wait eagerly for. So far there are less than a dozen shows available, but I'm hopeful that Hodgeman, Thorn and the Maximum Fun Podcast Network will continue to produce the show for a long time.

My rating scale
Is this podcast entertaining? - yes, pleasantly so
Am I likely to listen to the next podcast? – yes, every week without fail
Do I recommend this podcast to friends? – big yes

The Podiwan Review 15 - Comedy Film Nerds

The Comedy Film Nerds are Graham Elwood (@grahamelwood) and Chris Mancini (@myopicprod).  They're comics and filmmakers and they do a podcast that involves both of those things.  Graham and Chris invite a (usually) well known comedian or new media personality and then they discuss movies (new and old), DVD releases, trailers, movie posters and pretty much all things movie.  Since the podcast runs about an hour, they also horse around a little and talk about friends, other stand ups, places they've worked and the state of comedy in general.  Though they aren't always funny (who among us is) they are generally good tempered, quick witted and willing to participate in bad puns, anecdotal meanderings and the occasional sidebar that could take a while to know if it will pay off or not.


There are only about 16 or 17 shows available for download at present so the show is basically new.  Based on that newness and without checking dates (or generally doing some homework) I'd have to say that this show is very much like Jordan, Jesse, GO! coming out of Canada.  JJG has over a hundred shows and Comedy Film Nerds is a near copy except that they discuss movies as a focus and JJG does so only occasionally.  Both shows are hosted by two stand up comics.  Both shows have guests from the stand up community.  Both shows feel very much the same in their conversational style (though you have to get used to the "ahboots" with JJG).  The biggest difference other than the focus is that Comedy Film Nerds is funnier and more entertaining.  I've laughed while listening to CFN but I have not done that with JJG.  And without making this review too much about Jordan, Jesse, GO! (too late) I would say that even if JJG isn't particularly bad, it isn't particularly good either. It's listenable and mild but not really engrossing.  You can listen to it on a drive and it won't draw too much of your attention away from driving, but it isn't so boring that you fall asleep and kill a family on vacation unlucky enough to be in oncoming traffic.


Back to Comedy Film Nerds.  OK, usually the best parts about most comedy podcasts are the guests. This is especially true of CFN.  Though Graham is consistently entertaining and funny, he's better with a funny guest to bounce with.  The show has hosted a fair number of big names in it's short run including; Paul F Tomkins, Doug Benson, Mike Schmidt, Chris Hardwick, David Feldman and Jimmy Dore.  That's a pretty nice list of friends and an impressive list of guests.


While reviewing movies, trailers, directors, and whatever else is connected to moviedom, they recognize no sacred cows which is a little strange given that they are also acclaimed film makers (Oscar nominated I believe as well as Smithsonian recognized).  You'd think that if they had hopes of getting something into production any time soon, they might be a bit more politic about the things they say, but, refreshingly, they are not. Either they don't care who hears it, or they're unaware of how many people DO hear it.  CFN has been, since its first episode, in the top downloads list on iTunes for comedy podcasts.  Some of that is due to the dismal pickings for new comedy podcasts, but also certainly, some of it is due to the show being entertaining.


I only have a couple of gripes about the show at this point in their development.  The first gripe is that it took them so long to figure out that they needed to have a guest.  Without a guest, they are just exactly as boring as Jordan, Jesse, GO! With a guest,.. funny.  Without,.. boring.  With, Funny.  That's a lesson to everybody else.  Know it now so you don't have to stumble on it later. 

But they know it now so let's judge them now.

First gripe and this is admittedly picayune; in every show so far there have been conversational strings or moments that just drag on and on  and on and on before they find a way out.  I feel their pain and understand that sometimes it is hard to recover from a dead end.  I would only suggest that they see it sooner and bail rather than sticking with it until the bitter end we all see coming.  Second gripe; the sound quality was a little poor until they just recently got a sound board  and some better mics in the "world headquarters and garage" studio.  If I was going to do a podcast with more than one person speaking, the first thing I might consider after I found a person to the be the "other", a guest for us to talk to and a place for us to do that, might be a decent sound recording set up including multiple mics, a multichannel board and a way to keep the outside noises,... outside.  Other than that, I have no complaints.  It ain't the funniest thing on pod, but it is worth listening to.  And the line up of guests puts it on my list of weekly "listen-tos".

My Rating Scale
Was I Entertained? Yes, usually.
Am I likely to listen to the next podcast? Yes, probably.
Will I recommend this podcast to a friend? Yes, most likely.