Decoding TV

In this Decoding TV bonus episode, David and Patrick are joined by  Jessie Earl  to discuss the second season of  Gen V . Was this show able to overcome some of the clunkiness of the earlier episodes? What did we make of the show’s biggest twists this season? And can this show really survive and thrive in a future without  The Boys ? Listen to hear us discuss these questions an...

In this Decoding TV bonus episode, David is joined by Kit Lazer to discuss the season finale of  Task. What made us love this show? Is it really too bleak for general audiences? What did the show do best? And what were some of its most memorable moments and characters? Listen to hear us discuss these questions and more. Links: Follow Kit on Tiktok Follow Kit on Instagram Follow Kit on YouTube...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the season premiere of  The Chair Company . Does Tim Robinson find hidden comedy gold in the cushions of  The Chair Company ? Will video podcasts be a big thing on Netflix? Will the Apple TV rebrand make sense by the time you download this week’s podcast? Listen to hea...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the season finale of Peacemaker . Is CBS News doomed or extra-doomed? How on earth are we going to cover the final season of Stranger Things ? And does the first trailer for Pluribus get us excited for Vince Gilligan’s newest show or not? Listen to hear us discuss all these ques...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the premiere of The Lowdown and the latest episode of Peacemaker . Where was the balance of power in the Jimmy Kimmel situation? What do we think of how Fallon handled the whole thing? And why is there a conservative campaign to cancel Netflix? Listen to hear us discuss all thes...

In this bonus episode of Decoding TV, David chats with Christie Bosch (AKA @ thatdocumentarygirl ) about the new Netflix documentary  aka Charlie Sheen . What were our biggest takeaways from this documentary? Why was the documentarian seemingly averse to experiencing human emotion? And is the documentary actually insightful or is it just a way for Charlie Sheen to rehab his personal image? Li...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the season finale of  Alien: Earth.  Later  Dan Gvozden from the Amazing Spider-Talk podcast  joins us to talk  Peacemaker . Homework for next week: Peacemaker  Season 2 Episode 7 (HBO) Bonus Episode:  aka Charlie Sheen  (Netflix) Bonus Ep...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the latest episodes of Alien: Earth and Peacemaker . What do we make of the (probable) cancellation of Jimmy Kimmel? Is Peacemaker just spinning its wheels these days? Will Alien: Earth end up being the show that was promised at the beginning? Listen to hear us discuss all these...

In this bonus episode, David and Myles McNutt from the Episodic Medium newsletter discuss the 2025 Emmy Awards ( you can watch our live broadcast on YouTube here ). Which shows came away with some of the biggest wins? What were some of the night’s biggest upsets? And did the winners deserve their awards? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more. Links: Subscribe to Episodic Medium Fo...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the latest episodes of  Alien: Earth  and  Peacemaker . In the future where all media is consolidated, will movies just be called disneys like they were in  Cloud Atlas?  Why do we think David Zaslav hasn’t begun his war against password-sharing yet? And...

Watch this conversation on YouTube. In this bonus episode of Decoding TV, David chats with Christie Bosch (AKA @ thatdocumentarygirl ) about the new Netflix documentary Unknown Number: The High School Catfish . What was our overall reaction to the movie? How did we feel the film handle its subjects? And what details did the documentary leave out? Listen to hear us discuss these questions and more....

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the latest episodes of Alien: Earth and Peacemaker . Did The Rehearsal actually make a difference in airline safety? Is it possible to make sense of HBO’s rebranding? And why is Tom Rothman the last person who should be talking about studio execs? Listen to hear us discuss all t...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the latest episodes of Alien: Earth and Peacemaker . Homework for next week: Alien: Earth Episode 5 (Hulu/FX) Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3 (HBO) Shownotes: 03:05 - TV News Duffer Brothers Deal at Paramount Streaming Access News: Amazon, NBCU Make Peacock Available Via Prime Vid...

In this Decoding TV bonus episode, David and Patrick discuss the season 2 premiere of  Peacemaker , “The Ties that Grind.” The first season of  Peacemaker  emerged in a totally different era of the DCU. This new season straddles the line between them. How well does it pull this off? How do the themes of the episode mirror what’s going on in the DCU? And do we think you should watch&...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the third episode of  Alien: Earth . What do we think of MSNBC’s rebrand to MS Now? Is it a bad sign that Ben Stiller won’t be directing season 3 of  Severance ? Can YouTubers like Mark Rober successfully make the move to Netflix? And how is  Alien: Earth  sh...

Watch the video version of this podcast. This podcast contains SPOILERS for  The Rehearsal  Season 2 on HBO. The Rehearsal  Season 2 chronicles Nathan Fielder’s attempts to understand why aviation accidents happen. According to Fielder, one major factor is that pilots are unwilling to communicate candidly with each other, especially when they disagree or have bad news to deliver. To...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Matt Goldberg discuss what we think of the Alien franchise is at this point in popular culture. Then, we review and recap the first two episodes of Alien: Earth on FX/Hulu. What did we think of the bold new premise for the show? Does it look like they spent $250 million to bring this to life? (Yes). What did we make of the fact that the show sp...

In this bonus episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David Chen and Sarah Marrs discuss  Untamed’s  first season on Netflix. What did we think of how this show handled its central mystery? Were we captivated by any of the characters’ side plots? How did the show take advantage of its unique setting? And where do we think the second season of  Untamed  should be set ?  Listen...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the first few episodes of  Twisted Metal  Season 2   on Peacock. What did we think of  South Park’s  provocative season 27 premiere? How excited are we for the possibility of a  Wolfenstein  TV show? And what do we make of the details about Vin...

n this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the first five episodes of Smoke on Apple TV+. Was the cancellation of the Late Show financially motivated or were political considerations involved? Are the price hikes at Peacock reasonable or out of control? And what do we think about how The Last of Us might wrap up? Listen t...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the fourth season of  The Bear . What is behind the President’s hatred of Rosie O’Donnell? Is  Squid Game: The Challenge  as abominable as it sounds? What were the biggest streaming shows in the first half of 2025? And did  The Bear  season 4 improve upo...

In this bonus episode, David and  Myles McNutt from the Episodic Medium  newsletter discuss the 2025 Emmy nominations ( you can watch our live broadcast on YouTube here). Which shows came away with some of the biggest nominations? Why do the “Guest Actor” categories continue to be a travesty? What were the biggest snubs? And was this overall a shameful year for the Emmys or did we experi...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the final season of  Squid Game . How is  Squid Game  Season 3 performing on Netflix? What did we make of the fact that Neil Druckmann has left  The Last of Us ? What’s going on with the creators of  South Park  and Paramount/Skydance? And are we ex...

In this bonus episode,  Dan Gvozden  joins the podcast to review and discuss the final three episodes of  Ironheart  on Disney+: Episode 4 - Bad Magic Episode 5 - Karma’s a Glitch Episode 6 - The Past is the Past How did the show handle the arc of Riri Williams? What did we make of that big cameo at the end? And what do we think is coming next for the MCU? Listen to hear us dis...

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the first three episodes of Ironheart on Disney+. Does the Showtime name still have any meaning in our current streaming environment? Did Andor season 2 get more viewers than season 1? And why did The Last of Us season 2 have fewer viewers? Listen to us discuss all these questio...