Read It And Weep

The sun AKA the Evil Day Star AKA Sky Daddy. It shapes our days and burns our noses. There's nothing more powerful in our solar system (except maybe Emma Thompson). But is it the best thing? Find out as we give a complete history of the sun, a complete future of the sun, and a series of fun facts about the sun that will have you saying "I have to wear sunscreen those facts are so fun. 

What is the best thing ever? We’ve got 8 new nominees forged in the fire of a topic draft. Okay, it was more a friendly discussion but I think it was really interesting. Watch now to find out what the next era of BTE will look like.

What do you bench, bro? Can you dead lift me? If I'm dead? It's powerlifting and it's good for you body and mind, apparently. At least Rachel likes it, and she's here to tell us why. Learn the history of powerlifting, learn about a few cool powerlifters including a nine year old who can lift 3x her body weight, and learn about our new funding idea: a brain supplement called Triple Blind where you don't know if you're getting the real supplement or a placebo and we don't know if we own the company or not. Triple Blind Supplements: Bust a Nut In Your Cortex.

It's our first ever Hunter episode and he takes things in a slightly different direction, deeply personal journey across state lines to his favorite late night eatery, the one and only Waffle House. He teaches you how to order properly, the traps to avoid, and whether or not you should start anything with your server. Plus he calls out David. Seriously, David. What the hell man.

Writer Sarah Hatheway joins us to talk about a thing that's brought her so much joy over the years, romance novels. She loves them so much she's written her own (more on that soon, we hope). We learn about the history of the genre and a bit more about how genre works in general. It's a really good episode.  Get the best selling novel "Unwrap My Heart" Follow along on the Figma Watch this episode on YouTube

If there's one thing that's a shoe-in for Best Thing Ever it's the thing that our hosts have pursued for a combine 20+ years. But after a great history of standup comedy from Anthony, we prove that we're a lot more conflicted about our careers than even we knew. Is standup the best or is it stinky? If you're enjoying the show please give us an honest 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and tell us if we're right or wrong in our placement of standup comedy. Get Alex's standup record "Vanilla" Follow along on the Figma Watch this episode on YouTube

Trees. They're everywhere. Watching. Biding their time. Providing us everything we need to live but always threatening to take it away. They're the beauty and the danger, but are they the best thing ever? Alex gives a presentation on his 15 favorite trees in an effort to convince people they are but where do they end up? Find out. Follow along on the Figma here Please take a second and leave us an honest 5 Star Review on Apple Podcast and tell us which tree got overlooked in this episode.

It's the moment you've been waiting for, that Anthony has been saving all his political capital for, it's time for the pro wrestling episode. Along with special guest Jamie Carbone, we go on a journey into the world of wrestling and how we can appreciate it more. We learn words and phrases like "the shine", "a work", "gaga", and controversially, "some color." We hope you learn something too and maybe even rank wrestling higher than you ever thought you would. Watch this episode on video Follow along with the FigJam

As a beverage goblin I'm thrilled to present my strongest application for best thing ever so far, warm beverages. We give you a brief history of coffee and tea as well as a guide for how to find the best coffee shops.  PLUS we're joined by incredible standup comedian Irene Tu (irenetu.com) who recently opened for Patton Oswald and Sarah Silverman and has a new record out that's just the best. Watch this episode on YouTube Browse the FigJam as you listen

Everybody connect to your LAN and settle into your hunched-over position so we can tell you the tale of a transformational video game (and masculinity both good and bad). We're talking about communal video games generally and Halo specifically. Grab your Bawls and let's dive in! Plus this week we've got a very special guest. Laser The Boy just dropped his debut LP and you can (and should) listen to it now. Watch this episode on YouTube Browse the Figjam as you listen

Our search for the best thing ever continues with a deep dive into one of the cuddliest movies of all time, Studio Ghibli's "My Neighbor Totoro." Will it unseat bread and cat videos? It's a tough call. Plus the briefest history of Japan you've ever seen and an update on bay leaves.  Explore the My Neighbor Totoro slide deck at your leisure

We’re back for our second episode ever and the first one where we actually have a tough time ranking the topic. And this topic is a strong possibility for Best Thing Ever, it’s fresh baked bread, featuring a complete history of bread written by Ezra Fox. Is it better than cat videos? Find out! Plus we give advice to Ali on moving in with a partner for the first time. You can get really mixed advice by becoming a Meat Buddy! Watch this episode on YouTube Peruse the Figma as you listen

It's the first episode of our new show! After months of work we’re here to launch our brand new podcast investigating all things to find the best one. And our first contestant out of the gate is Cat Videos. Featuring a history of Cat Videos written by Anthony Lopez and and immediate first place ranking. Watch this episode on YouTube Peruse the Figma as you listen

And that's it. We've finished one full year of playing the game we made up, Kevin Bacon's Exquisite Corpse. It's a mixed success, so we spend the episode talking about how we could have improved if we'd thought about it earlier. Plus we re-rank a few movies on our master list to make it a little bit better but still pretty weird. Next up: A VERY COOL THING WE'LL TELL YOU MORE ABOUT SOON

IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS! Well maybe it doesn't since weather prevented Hunter from joining us today. But we watched his movie choice anyway, the Tom Cruise orgy movie Eyes Wide Shut and it was a fun chat. Plus in the news, Tom Cruise jumped off a thing. Next up: That's a wrap on season 5! We'll do a post mortem in early January and then talk more about where we go from here.

After much controversy, we travel back to PT Anderson's 1992 epic about chance and fate, Magnolia. It earns a pretty high place on our list of best films of all time. Plus in the news, Alex's video finally worked. Next up: Controversy continues and that ends in the weirdest way possible, and we're traveling through the Cruise Missile and watching Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

Our second Batman movie of season 5 is also our third time visiting the 90s Batman series and it's probably our best stop on the bat train.  Plus in the news, Alex is performing in Austin, TX next week and Santa is a conspiracy. Next up: After a LOT of rules lawyering, we're watching Magnolia (1999)

Alex chooses Anthony's movie and Anthony chooses violence. Plus in the news, a very important month is over, Alex posts a video, and the Wall Safe Wallsafe is on sale now. Next up: Ezra moves through Danny DeVito to Batman Returns.

Hunter had to leave for the Holidays early so we did a special bonus about the just-wrapped Disney+ Star Wars series Andor. Alex is less enthusiastic than the others would like but it's always nice to talk about how George Lucas sucks. Plus in the news, Disney switches Bobs and donuts get real. Next up: We finally watch Virgin Suicides (1999).

From a princess who wants to be a wolf to a princess who just wants to know her own name, we watch another 90s animated film not made by Disney, this one the oddly a-historical Bluth joint Anastasia. The panel isn't thrilled but it has its supporter(s). Plus in the news, Alex gives a Zelda update and talks about his new project Fauxcella. Next up: Ezra's gambit backfires as Alex steers us to Anthony's movie and everybody scores but Ez. It's Virgin Suicides (1999).