A Very Special Episode

Christmas coverage continues this week as David and Austin, like a pair of hunky wandering Greek heroes, discuss an episode of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys in which the title character participates in a thinly-veiled riff on the Nativity Story and seemingly witnesses the birth of Jesus. Join them as they try to figure out exactly how that's possible for a character from a time that was once re...

Merry (?) Christmas! We are kicking off our holiday coverage this year with arguably the most depressing episode of King of the Hill ever! Join Carolyn, David and Austin as they discuss Hank Hill's butt, Carolyn's penchant for finding joy in other people's misery, and David's surprisingly deep love of iguanas.  So grab and beer and head out into the alley, then download and listen  here...

  For Thanksgiving this year, David chooses violence with How I Met Your Mother 's "Slapsgiving", an episode in which the threat of a looming slap hangs over Barney's head while also inviting rants aplenty from Austin and David about the ultimate legacy of HIMYM . Meanwhile, Carolyn ponders whether puns are the hand jobs or blow jobs of comedy, and all three question how much sex is too much...

Welcome, boys and ghouls , to a Very Special Spooktacular Episode as we review Tales from the Crypt season 2 episode 10, "The Ventriloquist's Dummy", in which ventriloquism is suggested to be the height of theater and a tremendous source of fame, and also a good cover for hideous conjoined hand monsters. Join Carolyn, David and Austin as they discuss puns, wade into the debate over which is scarie...

We are back with a timely new episode, in which we discuss The West Wing 's "Isaac & Ishamel", a Very Special episode released twenty years ago this week in the wake of the September 11th attacks. Join internet dumbasses Carolyn Main, David Bitzenhofer, and Austin as they tackle topics like religious fundamentalism, racism, and terrorism while doing their best not to get cancelled. Also, they...

Our summer of TV Crossovers comes to a close this week, and we finish things off with one of the most requested crossover episodes: Full House 's "Stephanie Gets Framed" aka the one with Urkel. And of course, we couldn't talk Full House or Urkel without the internet's foremost Full House scholar and Steve Urkel aficionado, Ryan Alexander-Tanner! So join the OG AVSE gang as they once again discuss...

Cowabunga dudes! Our summer of "TV Crossovers" continues with a radical mashup of two of the 90s biggest martial arts themed kids action-adventure characters, Power Rangers and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! Join Austin, Carolyn and David as they talk Turtle Boobs, Splinter's tastes as an art critic, and how the Aluminum Four compare to the Ninja Turtles!  So throw a punch while flying thr...

Our 2021 Summer Theme Marathon kicks off with a Very Special Crossover Episode of ALF , in which everyone's favorite (?) alien puppet runs into the Gilligan's Island crew (or, at least 4/7ths of them). Join Carolyn, Austin, and David as they discuss whether or not they've ever reviewed an ALF episode before (a lengthier discussion than should be necessary...), ponder how much Alf weighs, and bemoa...

In our latest episode, we return to the sunny shores of California & the sadly-evergreen topic of gun violence with "The Next 50 Years", the Very Special Episode of Beverly Hills, 90210 in which David's gooney friend Scott accidentally shoots himself, thereby freeing up David to complete his integration into The Cools. Join Austin, Carolyn, and David as they discuss the proper way to host a bi...

In our episode this week, we pay tribute to the recently-departed Jessica Walters by reviewing "Pier Pressure", a Very Special episode of Arrested Development about the importance of not teaching your kids lessons. Join David, Carolyn & Austin as they tackle one-armed men, the importance of leaving notes, and Hot Cops, the cousins of the Muzcle Hunkxxx.  So earn yourself a crocodile, then...

  This week we stick around in the 90s with an episode from one of the formative TV shows of a certain type of person of a certain age, Daria, in which Daria finds herself mildly perturbed to be the person everyone seeks out to help deal with their misery following the death of a beloved high school alumnus. Join Carolyn, Austin, & David as they talk MTV, the dangers of goal posts, and gr...

Arr arr arr arugh ? What time is it? Time for more Home Improvement , as Carolyn, Austin, and David grunt their way back to the seminal 90s sitcom for a Very Special Episode in which Tandy Randy thinks he might have cancer and Tim & Jill are really shitty at handling it. Join them as they discuss their favorite pies, the sitcom spouse attractiveness ratio, and the dangers of WebMD and/or IMDB....

 Hello Wisconsin! We are back in the New Year with a Very Special episode set on the last day of the 1970s, That '70s Show series finale! Join Carolyn, Austin, & David as they talk Green Bay Packers tickets, weather-appropriate clothing, and the bizarre turns this show took once its main cast members decided to pack it in. Plus, a look back at the year that was in pop culture with a mini...

  Pip pip, Happy Christmas guv'nor! This week we're traveling across the pond to merry ole England for our final Christmas episode of this holiday season, Peep Show 's "Seasonal Beatings", in which Mark's family is coming over for Christmas lunch and Jeremy is a bit over-excited for the holiday. And if none of that makes any sense to you, don't worry, because Anglophile Carolyn is there to he...

Whatcu talking 'bout, everyone? The AVSE Holiday's continue this week with a Very Special Christmas episode of The Simpsons , in which Bart, Lisa & Homer team-up with special guest Gary Coleman to save Christmas from toy-murdering robots. Join Austin, Carolyn & David as they discuss the stunning longevity of the show, reveal which Bart Simpson t-shirts they wore back in the day, and point...

"For the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, the return of a prodigal podcast host!"  That's right, we are kicking off our annual holiday coverage with a Very Special reunion, as Ryan Alexander-Tanner returns in order to reunite the Aluminum Four just in time to review the first episode of the brand new Saved by the Bell series! He joins Carolyn, Austin, and David as they discuss...

Gobble gobble everyone! Since Thanksgiving is all effed up this year anyway, we figured we'd lean into the curve and celebrate with a Very Special non-Thanksgiving episode from the annals of classic TV and dive into the seminal I Love Lucy for the very first time by discussing the episode in which Lucy has to tell Ricky she's pregnant without saying the word "pregnant" because the 1950s! Join Caro...

Happy Halloween everyone! This year we are celebrating the holiday with a Very Special episode of Punky Brewster , you know, the infamous one in which Punky and the gang go camping and find themselves lost in a cave filled with horrific nightmare fuel that will take root in your brain and haunt you forever! Join Austin, Carolyn, and David as they join Punky for her trip of horrors and encounter di...

This week, we celebrate one hundred episodes of A Very Special Episode with a Very Special episode about one of our favorite subjects: TV theme songs! Listen in as Carolyn, David, and Austin rank their favorite theme songs from decades of TV, celebrate the 80s as the Golden Age of TV theme songs, and ruminate on the slow death of the theme song over the last twenty years. Also featuring some terri...

"Must See TV" summer concludes with a Very Special Thanksgiving episode of ER!  Included on the holiday menu is turducken, French toast, and DEATH BY HELICOPTER. That's right, as much as this episode might seem like a Very Special episode about the fertility of HIV patients, or marijuana use, or PTSD, it's really about the cold, unceasing bloodlust of helicopters. Join Carolyn, Austin & D...

Our 2020 Must See TV marathon continues, as we tackle one of the most successful spinoffs of all time, Frasier , with an episode that sees Niles undergo open heart surgery and a hospital spill its guts! Join Carolyn, Austin and David as they rank iconic city skyline buildings, dig into some old candy bars, and discuss Dr. Bitz's tips for ripping off vending machines! So toss a salad and scramble s...

Our 2020 Summer Theme marathon kicks off this week, as we begin reviews of episodes plucked from NBC's "Must See TV" lineup of the 90s! Things kick off with a Very Special episode of Mad About You , the Diet Coke of sitcoms, in which Paul & Jamie attempt to Ferberize their baby in one continuous shot. Join Carolyn, Austin, & David as they discuss parenthood, make some contributions to the...

In this week's sax-tastic episode, Carolyn & Austin are joined by Carolyn's husband & returning AVSE guest Aaron Walker to discuss an eerily prescient episode of Night Man , the superhero show you've never heard of but still technically counts as one of the earliest Marvel characters to get his own TV show, in which the titular hero has to battle an evil business magnate determined to win...

Pour yourself a big tall glass of Vanilla extract and warm up your clarinet, cuz it's time for another Very Special Episode. This week, Austin, David & Carolyn are tackling one of those standard-bearing VSEs, Family Ties ' "Say Uncle", in which Tom Hanks rolls into the Keaton household and promptly drinks everything in sight. Join us as we discuss our favorite Tom Hanks' roles, the background...

Happy Pandemic everyone! We are back, and piggybacking on the zeitgeist, with a Very Special episode about the dangers of disease, asymptomatic carriers, and poor social distancing from The George Carlin Show , in which the sheer filth of George's apartment births a virus that soon causes everyone he comes into contact with to get sick. And if all that is hitting too close to home right now, don't...