It will shock absolutely no one that podcasts have exploded in popularity over the last few years – they seem to be almost inescapable now.
There’s one on nearly every conceivable topic now, including a lot on TV and Film.
It’s one thing to reminisce on the past, but it’s another thing to start a podcast where you dissect and debrief every episode of a TV show you starred in 10 years ago.
The TV recap podcast has really taken off recently; whether you were a fan of Boy Meets World, Gilmore Girls, The Office, Scrubs, The Sopranos or Parks and Recreation, you can watch hour-long episodes where your favourite actors from the show dissect the series.
Film News Blitz writer Jude Chisman asks the question: does every TV show need a recap, or is that market becoming oversaturated?
Why are people drawn to TV show recap podcasts?
Well, it’s the obvious answer really: when you’ve seen the series over and over, you want to discover new content from it.
They also gain popularity for airing alongside the show; they give audiences more media to consume between episodes airing, and clips get posted to social media where they look to bring in new audiences.
It’s also a smart move from these actors; they get to rehash their golden years and make more money from their past ventures while spending time with their co-stars.
Arguably one of the most successful of these is ‘Office Ladies’ by Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsley, where the co-stars recap episodes of the ever-popular The U.S. Office.
Currently on episode 302, the podcast is clearly popular amongst fans of the show and has been successful so far, but there’s only so much that these podcasts can cover.
When they run out of episodes to cover, and all the behind-the-scenes stories have been told, what is left for the huge amount of recap podcasts?
Will they rehash the same stories and hope that the listeners don’t notice?
If we continue with the ‘Office Ladies’ example, is The U.S. Office really a complex enough show to warrant a podcast discussing it?
It certainly has become a pop culture staple, but the storylines are typically very straightforward and, in classic sitcom fashion, resolve themselves by the end of the episode anyway.
Of course, these extra podcasts aren’t required viewing of these shows, and many fans just choose to skip them, but the sheer amount of recap podcasts does seem to make the market steer towards oversaturation, especially as more shows release; you can now almost guarantee an accompanying podcast.
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