#the hotel podcast

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Fiction/Audio Drama Podcasts You Might Not Have Tried Yet: Part 1

aka, some favorite podcasts of mine that are varying levels of obscure, but for one reason or another I want to put more attention on them. (I promise less than half of them are horror.)

I was going to make a huge post with all my recommendations in it, along with descriptions, notable aspects, CWs etc. Then I realized that was way too much so I’m breaking it into five(?) parts.

In this post I’m recommending Midst,The HotelandWooden Overcoats. Details for each under the cut.

Midst

Genre:Vaguely Western Scifi/Fantasy

Completion Status: Ongoing, nearing the end of its second season.

Premise:On an otherworldly frontier where the night brings monsters and reality-warping storms, there is a loner with a dark past, a shady businessman with a strange secret, and an eager-to-please lackey wound tight enough to snap. These three have little in common, save that their lives will be upended on the day the moon falls out of the sky.

Why It Stands Out: There’s a lot that stands out about Midst. The production value is great. The cast is colorful and endearing (Moc Weepe in particular is a delightful little bastard.) The worldbuilding is interesting and the website has (entirely optional but fun) in-universe documents expanding on the world and characters.

All that said … the real stand out aspect of Midst is its unique narration style. The whole story, voices and all, is told by three narrators who switch back and forth, sometimes interacting with each other and building on each other’s momentum. It’s genuinely hard to communicate just how well this works, how insanely fun it is and how much it keeps the energy of the story high. You’ll just have to listen to an episode and hear it for yourself.

Content Warnings: Several episodes contain moderate violence and mild body horror, as well as some generally scary situations. One episode (S1E18) involves an act of police brutality, (from a weird scifi/fantasy police force.)


The Hotel

Genre:Horror

Completion Status: Ongoing, in its fourth season.

Premise:Someplace beyond time and space is The Hotel. Guests are checked in and taken to a room where they meet a terrible, violent end. Facilitating these nightmares is the hotel staff, only ever referred to as the Manager, the Owner and the Lobby Boy.

Why It Stands Out: This is the sort of “chill horror podcast” I’d file next to I Am in Eskew, where you’re listening to a very soothing narrator describe very horrible things. The first two seasons are still good but fairly straightforward (and with 6-10 minute episodes, very short – all of S1 can be listened to in just a little over 2 hours, S2 in about an hour.) A guest is introduced, they die horribly, boy that was fucked up huh anyway I’m Rod Sterling. We get a hint of flavor with the staff but it’s not at the forefront.

S3 is where it reallystarts to stand out, and S4 is the best one yet in my opinion. This is because both S3 and S4 have the staff at the forefront. The weird, interesting, often funny interplay between these absolute monsters who are all trapped in hell together is what really makes this podcast great. It’s a recurring nightmare that turns into an office comedy so gradually you almost don’t notice.

Content Warnings: Plenty of violence, death, body horror and dark themes in every single episode. Many episodes involve bugs and being chased or attacked, S2E1 and S2E5 contain child death. Also, this story is set in a hostile universe where powerlessness is a major theme, and the main characters are all very evil and do morally awful things. If those concepts aren’t good for you, this may not be your bag.


Wooden Overcoats

Genre:Comedy

Completion Status: The finale just aired, and it was great.

Premise:Rudyard Funn runs a funeral home on the island of Piffling Vale. It used to be the only one. It isn’t anymore. Eric Chapman, the charismatic newcomer has set up a competing business right across the square from Funn funerals, and the whole town seems absolutely taken with him. Obviously, this means war.

Why It Stands Out: First off, the comedic writing and acting is unbelievably good. They’ve got great character actors who do an amazing job of bouncing off one another. All the residents of Piffling Vale are charming and funny – the place has a great sense of character via its population. It’s such a silly, fun show that when it swerves and hits you with a gut punch of earnest emotion you almost don’t know what to do with yourself.

The characters are great – from the gloomy Funn twins Rudyard and Antigone, to their up-for-anything assistant and enabler Georgie, to the many lovable and wacky residents of Piffling Vale (Chapman starts out a bit flat being the antagonist, but he really gets good by the end.) And they grow and develop in a wonderfully natural way over the series.

Basically, it’s an excellent sitcom-style dark comedy with some real heart behind it.

Content Warnings: Themes of death, both as a source of black comedy and sometimes taken very seriously. (The finale for S3 in particular has a very earnest, serious look at grief.) Gross stuff occasionally happens with dead bodies. (i.e., embalming mishap leading to formaldehyde explosion.) Several comments imply that the Funn’s parents were pretty bad, though it’s generally very cartoonish (i.e., “my father took me fishing and used me as bait.”)

I do love a pathetic little man in my media consumptions

thinking about… the hotel podcast.. and the Lobby Boy

I like how the bonus episodes of The Hotel (The Mall, The Carnival, The Road Trip) let the characters imagine their coworkers in other situations and it’s like:

Lobby Boy: The Owner is terrifying and chasing me and I just want to find my Manager.

Manager: The Lobby Boy is my capable minion and the Owner isn’t here which is ideal.

Owner: These two are my family and I fucking hate them.

“I know it will take a long time. I know I will watch the whole time… I will seeI will see.”

The Hotel podcast is an episodic horror podcast about a hotel where guests check in, but no one checks out. I cannot recommend it enough!
(Midnight Disease)

(Google Podcasts)

(Spotify)

thinks about season 3 and goes fucking insane

thinks about season 3 and goes fucking insane


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welcome to hell guys let it rain blood and bones!!!!!!!!!welcome to hell guys let it rain blood and bones!!!!!!!!!welcome to hell guys let it rain blood and bones!!!!!!!!!welcome to hell guys let it rain blood and bones!!!!!!!!!

welcome to hell guys let it rain blood and bones!!!!!!!!!


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dirtboy2000:

karaoke night based off the affirmation acct and some funny shit the hotel dmed me on ig

no one is turned away. and no one checks out.

no one is turned away. and no one checks out.


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normal employees of a normal hotel

normal employees of a normal hotel


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back of my train ticket

tbh I love living in the hotels basement and having the lobby boy speak to me through the pipes

ANYWAYS I just want to gush on how much I love working for the hotel as their official episode artist it’s so much fun more to come in the future so keep listening!

https://twitter.com/thehotelpod/status/1537087506574848000?s=21

HI!!!!! season 4 has come to a close BUT do you want to own hotel merch + official art + my art ? check out the hotel Etsy :3!!! They r selling these beautiful prints!!!

SPEAKING of the hotel… new official episode art to be posted soon :) and while we wait inbox me hotel pod drawing requests I’ll probably do them

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