Bad Pilots - Pod.casts

MILF Manor

February 11, 2023 10:00 - 52 minutes - 36 MB

IN THEORY, watching and discussing MILF Manor is a side-splitting romp full of memes and hilarious banter. IN PRACTICE, watching and discussing MILF Manor is an awkward, borderline nauseating experience that plumbs the depths of reality television and highlights the most grotesque fascinations of society at large. GILF (guest I'd like to...) Sasha Kalra helps us get through it.

That 90s Show

February 04, 2023 10:00 - 51 minutes - 35.1 MB

Hello Wisonsin!!! We were skeptical when Netflix announced they were bringing back (most) of the original cast from That 70s Show for That 90s Show, but it turns out it's not all bad — just don't talk about That 80s Show. Returning guest Katie Brioux joins us to discuss what works and doesn't work about the much anticipated reboot, how people weren't nice in the 90s, and we take a Buzzfeed quiz to determine what kind of 90s kid we were. (Also the thumbnail is of Aidan as a kid wearing a Kurt...

The Top 10 Worst Shows of 2022

January 19, 2023 16:00 - 1 hour - 52 MB

We're back! We're also really late! Is it still kosher to release a year-end countdown in late January? Who cares, we're doing it anyway. Bad Pilots is back babyyyy!! Please enjoy this rambling discussion in which we recap our favorite TV series of 2022 before digging into Metacritic dot com's annual top 10 worst shows of the year, including: First Kill, Monarch, The Terminal List, The Ultimatum, and many more.

How I Met Your Father

February 05, 2022 05:00 - 40 minutes - 28.1 MB

When the 2020 Lizzie McGuire reboot at Disney+ went awry due to "creative differences", Hilary Duff took her talents to another reboot: How I Met Your Father. Special guests Will Reid and Jorge Vasconez join us to discuss the surprisingly charming (and far less problematic) spiritual successor to HIMYM. Also discussed: Selena Gomez's celebrity kidney transplant and a runner who got caught cheating in a marathon in the most dumb way possible.

WB Superstar USA

January 29, 2022 05:00 - 50 minutes - 34.5 MB

It's American Idol from bizarro world — a singing competition show that aims to find the worst singer in America. Fittingly, our special guest is Kyle Wildfern, a musician and member of rap collective, Waycool. Together, we pick apart what is probably the most mean spirited show we've watched on Bad Pilots so far. We also discuss our favorite music conspiracy theories.

Space Force

January 22, 2022 05:00 - 44 minutes - 30.9 MB

Arguably the worst part about Donald Trump's presidency was when he unwittingly inspired Greg Daniels and Steve Carrell to collaborate on Space Force, a sadly unfunny stab at satirizing the newly created military branch of the same name. Special guest Alessia Musso blasts off with us as we hurtle toward the final frontier in search of jokes.

End of 2021 Awful TV Extravaganza

January 04, 2022 05:00 - 1 hour - 63.8 MB

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 rattl...

All Spooked Out: No Spooks Left to Give

October 30, 2021 07:00 - 1 hour - 43.4 MB

Trick or Treat! Halloween is upon us and that means Halloweens specials. We countdown our top 5 picks for scariest moments in TV. Highlights include: kids shows that were way scarier than they had any right to be, the X-Files episode that was pulled by FOX for being too disturbing, Dan's bizarre midnight walk, and the time Aidan thought he witnessed a cult ritual.

The Hilarious House of Frightenstein

October 23, 2021 04:00 - 45 minutes - 31.1 MB

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.

Blade

October 16, 2021 07:00 - 53 minutes - 36.6 MB

After Wesley Snipes but before Mahershala Ali, Kirk Jones (aka Sticky Fingaz) donned the black leather trench coat to play Blade on Spike TV's uninspired small screen adaptation of the hit comic book series. Special guest and fellow Blade fan, Yusef Dualeh joins us to talk about Marvel adaptations, the pros and cons immortality, and internet vampire poetry.

Scream

October 09, 2021 07:00 - 50 minutes - 34.5 MB

What do you get when you take one of the most iconic slasher movie franchises of all time, strip it of personality, inject it with generic YA tropes that perpetuate rather than subvert, while also adding as many cold cut sandwiches as possible for no discernible reason? This. You get this. Horror movie junkie Michelle Shelderup joins us to critique Netflix's 2015 TV adaptation of the popular Scream franchise. We forgot to mention this, but they also totally ruined Ghostface's mask.

Paranormal Cops

October 02, 2021 04:00 - 50 minutes - 34.6 MB

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?

One Year Anniversary Livestream

September 19, 2021 23:00 - 47 minutes - 32.5 MB

We're 1 year old! To celebrate our dumb lil pandemic hobby, we decided to host a livestream. Unfortunately, we didn't factor in that most people would be busy on a Saturday night. No worries, we rambled on anyway. Tangents include: shows we want to feature on the pod, Sopranos memes, the new Matrix movie, and of course, Nicki Minaj's cousin's friend's balls. We'll be back every Saturday in October with spooky new episodes!

Shit My Dad Says

September 04, 2021 09:00 - 55 minutes - 38.2 MB

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 cl...

Date my Mom

August 29, 2021 17:00 - 51 minutes - 35.2 MB

Sigmund Freud is shaking. Back in 2004, MTV created one of the most disturbing shows of all time: a reality dating series in which people go on dates with moms who are trying to set them up with their children. The rumor that this abomination is in fact scripted makes it all that much more disturbing. Luckily, we have special guest Laura Holtebrink to help keep us sane.

Neo Yokio

August 14, 2021 09:00 - 44 minutes - 30.3 MB

Neo Yokio is a Netflix anime and also quite possibly the most unlikely intersection of top-notch Hollywood talent to ever collaborate on a project. It was created Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig and features the voices of Jaden Smith, Jude Law, Susan Sarandon, Desus & Mero, Jason Schwartzman, and Richard Ayoade. It's also pretty boring. Or is it? Special guest Terry Obeng takes the stand to defend Neo Yokio's honor.

Scrubs (Bad Finales)

August 07, 2021 09:00 - 57 minutes - 39.4 MB

By its ninth and final season, Scrubs was basically on life support. But why? Why do sitcoms like The Office, That 70s Show, Two and a Half Men, Community, and so many others continue to run even after members of their core cast have departed for (usually) bigger and better projects? Video editor Sam Blake joins us as we go under the knife to figure out where Scrubs went wrong. Also discussed: Dan & Aidan share some gross medical stories. You can just skip those parts.

Rock of Love with Bret Michaels

July 31, 2021 09:00 - 1 hour - 43.2 MB

When VH1 launched their "Celebreality" programming block in 2005, they kicked off what we here at Bad Pilots would consider to be worst era of television history — a period saturated with exploitative reality series starring D-list celebrities trading in the last of their cultural currency for a few bucks. But hey, we also got some pretty sweet gifs out of it. Filmmaker and trash TV lover Jamie Hurcomb joins us for Rock of Love, a Bachelor-style dating show starring former Poison frontman, B...

Are You Hot? The Search for America's Sexiest People

July 10, 2021 04:00 - 53 minutes - 36.8 MB

This one needs no explanation. Not because it's super famous—but because the title of the show is also quite literally the premise. "Are You Hot? The Search for America's Sexiest People" is very much a product of its time (2003), a post American Idol primetime landscape in which networks were scrambling to find the next reality hit, however base it may be. Special guest and known hottie, Eddie Majnemer, helps us digest this nauseating shit-show.

Parks and Recreation

July 03, 2021 09:00 - 51 minutes - 35.7 MB

No show has been recommended with the caveat "but you should skip the first two seasons" more than Parks and Recreation. While we may remember it now as one of the most beloved and enduring sitcoms of the 2010s—with one of the most impressive ensemble casts ever assembled—it certainly didn't start out that way. Special guests Ally Cabrera-Aragon and Mark Foster join us as we take a sobering look at the NBC classic's awkward start.

Semi-Homemade Cooking with Sandra Lee

June 26, 2021 09:00 - 49 minutes - 34.2 MB

Sandra Lee is perhaps the most overlooked and utterly fascinating celebrity chef to come from the Food Network. Anthony Bourdain once called her cooking "a war crime on TV". You may also recognize her from the now infamous "2 shots of vodka" meme. Off screen, she's equally controversial. Aunty Sandy dated New York governor Andrew Cuomo for over a decade. Special guest & YouTube baker, Lauren McGowan, joins us as we chart Sandra Lee's unlikely rags to riches story. DISCLAIMER: preparing and ...

Eli Stone

June 19, 2021 09:00 - 54 minutes - 37.4 MB

Eli Stone is truly the cards against humanity of TV shows. It's about a Wall Street bro who gets a brain aneurysm that causes hallucinations of singer/songwriter George Michael, who then convinces Eli to become a religious prophet and take an anti-vaxxer stance against big pharma. We had no idea this show even existed, but our special guest, Tom Schenck, is still traumatized by it. Also included: we completely lose our minds while trying to figure out what color a fart is.

Game of Thrones (Bad Finales)

June 12, 2021 09:00 - 52 minutes - 36.3 MB

Like [redacted] plunging a dagger through [redacted]'s heart, the Game of Thrones finale felt like the ultimate betrayal to perhaps the most fervent television audience of all time. We are joined by news and culture writer Sharine Taylor, as we roast the GoT finale like Drogon himself. We also discuss the upcoming spinoff and fantasize about what we would do with the franchise (Dan gets ridiculed for wanting a steampunk GoT).

Jersey Shore

June 05, 2021 11:00 - 58 minutes - 40.3 MB

CABS ARE HERE!! It's time to take a trip to Seaside Heights, NJ, to revisit our favorite guidos and guidettes: the cast of Jersey Shore. Professional video editor & proud Italian, Becca LaFortune, joins us as we make sense of why the show became a global phenomenon, despite so many perceiving it as the lowest form of reality filth. We also discuss the tragic circumstances that have befallen the cast in the years since, particularly Mike "The Situation"'s appearance at the roast of Donald Tru...

Zach Stone is Gonna Be Famous

May 29, 2021 11:00 - 58 minutes - 40.4 MB

Long before Bo Burnham grew a quarantine beard, he had a TV show—a little known sitcom on MTV called Zach Stone is Gonna Be Famous. And although it only lasted one season back in 2013, it's pretty dang funny. We're joined by Steve Cooke, writer & host of the podcast Killed to Death, to discuss. Tangents include: the time Aidan smoked weed in his friend's nonna's wine cellar, our favorite vines (RIP), and television's troubled history with YouTubers.

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip

May 22, 2021 08:00 - 53 minutes - 37 MB

From the dialogue heavy mind of Aaron Sorkin comes a peek behind the curtain of a fictional SNL-esque sketch comedy show. The main issue? It isn't funny at all. Premiering the same year as 30 Rock, Studio 60 was handily beaten by its sitcom competitor. Special guest & fellow TV nerd, Cara Pomanti, joins us to break down Sorkin's influence, showbiz on screen, and her undying love for The Oscars™.

Keys to the VIP

May 15, 2021 08:00 - 57 minutes - 39.6 MB

Keys to the VIP is an infamously offensive Canadian hidden camera show in which cologne-soaked frat bros from the Toronto suburbs compete against each other by relentlessly hitting on unsuspecting women at bars—all while a panel of "experts" (grown-ass men wearing Tapout shirts) watch and critique their technique. We are joined by Sasha Kalra and Zac Adore, who reminisce about their club days, as well as Pat Maloney, who actually worked on the show as PA and has some insane stories to share.

Emeril

May 08, 2021 11:00 - 57 minutes - 39.8 MB

Days after the tragic events of 9/11, America was served a dish of exactly what it needed most: a network sitcom starring celebrity chef and noted spice entrepreneur, Emeril Lagasse. In our season 2 premiere, Mostafa Abd El Meguid turns up the heat and chats with us about the evolution of cooking shows, Popeyes biscuits, and the best food cities in America.

Bad Pilots presents: Duet

March 26, 2021 14:00 - 1 hour - 54.1 MB

In a very special season one finale of Bad Pilots, Dan and Aidan each talk about three shows that mean something special to them. As usual, the conversation goes completely off the rails. Tangents include: Aidan's childhood without wifi, how getting rejected from improv troupes can change your life, the greatest TV theme song of all time, and the time Dan and Aidan watched the season two premiere of True Detective while popping champagne and chilling in an infinity pool at a mansion in Yorkv...

Bad Pilots presents: Duet (Season 1 Finale)

March 26, 2021 14:00 - 1 hour - 54.1 MB

In a very special season one finale of Bad Pilots, Dan and Aidan each talk about three shows that mean something special to them. As usual, the conversation goes completely off the rails. Tangents include: Aidan's childhood without wifi, how getting rejected from improv troupes can change your life, the greatest TV theme song of all time, and the time Dan and Aidan watched the season two premiere of True Detective while popping champagne and chilling in an infinity pool at a mansion in Yorkv...

Escouade 99 (Québécois Brooklyn 99 remake)

March 20, 2021 12:00 - 54 minutes - 37.5 MB

"Like peeking through another dimension" said Melissa Fumero, aka Brooklyn 99's Amy, of the French language remake. Escouade 99 feels like an eerie echo of the beloved original. Between flagrant whitewashing, poor execution, bizarre casting, and a budget one tenth the size, the Queb imitation just doesn't cut it. Quebecker and Dan's sister, Katie Brioux, joins the show to discuss. We also go waaaay off topic and argue about bagels for longer than necessary.

Fate: The Winx Saga

March 13, 2021 14:00 - 52 minutes - 36.1 MB

Fairies, magic, evil beasts, house parties, genocide, and vaping. Fate: The Winx Saga has it all. Based on a cartoon from the early aughts, the gritty Netflix reboot fails to find its footing compared to similar schlock like CW's Riverdale. Special guest and Editor-in-Chief of demo magazine, Zain Ahmad, helps us discern when teen dramas embrace camp versus when they just flat out suck.

Joey

March 06, 2021 13:00 - 50 minutes - 34.4 MB

How you doin'??? Well since you asked, not great. Why? Because we just watched Joey, the Friends spinoff starring everybody's favorite meatball, Joey Tribbiani. Special guest & lifelong Friends fan, Dawsyn Borland, joins us as we struggle to figure out what went wrong between Joey's trip from NY to LA. We also discuss Matt LeBlanc's meta redemption arc with Showtime's hit comedy, Episodes.

Cop Rock

February 20, 2021 14:00 - 54 minutes - 37.4 MB

Imagine The Wire and Glee had a baby. Now imagine Randy Newman sang the theme song for that baby. Boom, you've got Cop Rock—a gritty police procedural with choreographed dance routines and Emmy Award winning musical numbers. Special Guests Ethan Krebs and Ben Kaplan help us make sense of this primetime fever dream while analyzing the place that musicals have in TV.

Valentine's Day Special: Dating Show Showdown

February 13, 2021 14:00 - 1 hour - 52.9 MB

Happy Valentine's Day, lovebirds! Whether you're boo'd up or not, if you listen to this podcast, you probably have an opinion on dating shows. Well so do we! In this very special episode, we are joined by panelists Sasha Kalra, Mackenzie Thomson, Manisha Krishnan, Tamara Khandakar, and Will Reid to answer one simple question: what is the greatest single season of any dating show ever produced? So pour yourself some Jackson Triggs, crack open those Dollarama chocolates, and come get cozy with...

I Wanna Marry Harry

February 06, 2021 14:00 - 51 minutes - 35.7 MB

In what is possibly the most bonkers dating show ever created, 12 American women are whisked away to a British countryside estate to compete for the love of a man pretending to be Prince Harry. It's insane. Filmmaker Sasha Leigh Henry joins us on our dark descent into this royal nightmare of a show. We also talk shit about The Crown for a little while and express our love of Family Feud.

The Mayor (w/ Catch Up)

January 30, 2021 14:00 - 52 minutes - 36.4 MB

In a very special crossover episode, Dan and Aidan are joined by James Rathbone and Jordan Sowunmi, the hosts of Catch up, a fantastic podcast about hip hop. Fittingly, they discuss The Mayor, a 2017 ABC comedy about a young rapper who haphazardly becomes the mayor of his hometown. Also mentioned: the pros and cons of holograms, bizarre rap appearances on The View, and the recipe for strong hip hop television.

High Fidelity

January 23, 2021 14:00 - 50 minutes - 34.6 MB

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.

Murder in Small Town X

January 16, 2021 14:00 - 41 minutes - 28.7 MB

It's the summer of 2001. The Mummy Returns is killing at the box office. Nelly's "Ride Wit Me" is playing on every radio station. You don't have homework, so you're up late on a Tuesday night watching Murder in Small Town X, one of the most original, intriguing, and poorly executed reality competition shows ever made. Or at least that was this episode's special guest, Justin Ling, an investigative journalist and author of Missing From the Village.

The Cleveland Show

January 09, 2021 14:00 - 47 minutes - 32.6 MB

One of the most unlikely spinoffs ever greenlit, The Cleveland show lasted a solid four seasons on FOX. But was it any good? Family Guy historian Terry Obeng joins Dan and Aidan to offer insight into the show’s off-kilter run. They also discuss representation in animation, the DNA of a good spin-off, and historical figures you didn’t know were actually nazis.

End of 2020 Awful TV Extravaganza!

January 02, 2021 01:00 - 1 hour - 68.6 MB

IT'S FINALLY OVER!!! 2020 was a trash year for so many reasons—but mostly because of Gwenyth Paltrow's Goop Lab. In this end of the year mega spectacular extravaganza, Dan and Aidan crack a few cold ones and countdown the 10 worst TV shows of the year, according to metacritic dot com. Without spoiling the order, they watch Marvel's Helstrom, The Duchess, Utopia Falls, Indebted, Broke, and more. Tangents include: Gritty's battle with covid, Dan's musical theatre career, NBA stars and their Ho...

Cashmere Mafia

December 26, 2020 14:00 - 49 minutes - 34.3 MB

After Darren Star wrapped up Sex and the City, but before he made Emily in Paris, there was Cashmere Mafia. Special guests Jorge Vasconez (videographer, editor, burgeoning TikTok star) and Krista Hessy (video producer, Aidan's girlfriend) join the fellas for an analysis of ABC's failed drama that quickly devolves into a conversation about SATC—and how it screwed up our expectations of dating.

Mulaney

December 19, 2020 13:00 - 44 minutes - 30.7 MB

It's called Mulaney. Like Seinfeld. They're both comedians. And they both have shows. Get it?? Special guest Ben Kaplan joins Dan and Aidan to figure out why a comedian they love so dearly couldn't crack the sitcom formula.

Kid Nation

December 12, 2020 15:00 - 38 minutes - 26.3 MB

It’s Lord of the Flies meets Survivor with a western twist. What could go wrong?? Well, a kid could drink bleach, that’s what. Tamara Khandaker, host of the Global podcast "Wait There’s More", helps Dan and Aidan unpack a series widely considered to be one of the most traumatizing and controversial reality shows ever created.

The Simpsons

December 05, 2020 15:00 - 40 minutes - 27.7 MB

For a show as enduring, hilarious, and universally beloved as The Simpsons, it has a pretty weak pilot. Make no mistake, it’s not bad—it’s just not great, especially compared to the show’s following eight seasons or so (season six being the pinnacle of television). Writer and Comedian Steve Cooke joins Dan and Aidan for a stroll down memory lane as they attempt to distill what made America’ favourite cartoon family so appealing in the first place.

The Mob Doctor

November 28, 2020 22:00 - 40 minutes - 27.6 MB

Your classic hospital drama with a hefty side of gabagool. Becca LaFortune joins the boys to discuss Italian stereotypes, Tik Tok trends, sexy mods for The Sims, and one of the most boring network medical procedurals of all time, The Mob Doctor.

Vinyl

November 28, 2020 21:00 - 44 minutes - 30.9 MB

If you have fond memories of cocaine fuelled benders set to Zeppelin while partying so hard that literal buildings collapse on you, then boy are you in for one heavy dose of nostalgia. Artists/producers Michael Powell and Michael Goldchain are in the figurative booth with Dan and Aidan to break down HBO’s massive Scorsese & Mick Jagger backed flop, Vinyl.

The Real Housewives of Toronto

September 29, 2020 16:00 - 45 minutes - 31.1 MB

Toronto. The 6ix. The place where Drake and Margaret Atwood are from. Aidan and Dan explore the city they call home through the lens of the short-lived Toronto installment of the massively popular Real Housewives reality TV franchise. Luckily, they are joined by longtime friend, producer at Entertainment Tonight Canada, and Real Housewives superfan, Will Reid.

New Amsterdam

September 19, 2020 04:00 - 38 minutes - 26.1 MB

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, the Kingslayer himself, plays an immortal Dutch pilgrim-turned-homicide detective in this 2008 primetime procedural from FOX. Aidan and Dan are joined by special guest Kira Charron, who once proudly studied media at Western University. Please note: there are two very different shows titled New Amsterdam—this is the one with an immortal Dutch homicide detective.

Sit Down Shut Up

September 08, 2020 22:00 - 34 minutes - 23.6 MB

From the creator of Arrested Development comes a surprisingly unfunny animated sitcom with an even more surprising all-star cast (Jason Bateman, Will Arnett, Maria Bamford, Nick Kroll, Will Forte, Kenan Thompson). After premiering early 2009, the show was yanked off the air by FOX after just four episodes. Special guest Sasha Kalra joins Aidan and Dan as they attempt to make sense of the highly offensive and undeniably different Sit Down Shut Up.