
Welcome to Night Vale's Meg Bashwiner and Joseph Fink consider the Golden Age of Television, at its best and its worst. Each episode, we consider a classic show by watching first its worst IMDB user rated episode, and then its best. What can we learn by watching the best and worst of classic TV? Let's find out together.
| Publishes | Weekly | Episodes | 65 | Founded | a year ago |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Listeners | Categories | TV ReviewsTV & Film | |||

The Cosby Show
1984-1992
197 episodes
Worst episode: s8 e22 You Can't Stop The Music
Best episode: S2.E22 ∙ Theo's Holiday
Hey so I don't know if you heard about this but
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Murder, She Wrote
1984-1996
2... more
Murder, She Wrote
1984-1996
264 episodes
Worst episode: s7 e18 Where Have You Gone, Billy Boy?
Best episode: S1.E18 ∙ Murder Takes the Bus
Being Old has never looked so good.
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Roseanne
1988-1997
221 episodes
Middlest episode: s2 e16 Born to be Wild
Born to work with Steppenwolf and the Delacorte Theater
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This podcast is a really excellent concept. But it is badly hurt by Joseph's unrelenting criticism of the shows and his monopolizing of the conversation. Also, they should move swiftly through the bad episodes. Focus on the good ones.
Without new episodes of The Best Worst landing on my Podcast home page I believed that the show had been canceled. Glad to see that I had just forgotten to follow the show. Lucky me, I now have four episodes to binge.
The hosts are annoyingly liberal and let their views bleed through which takes away from the content. However, if you can get past that, they are very thorough and give great reviews of the shows that were so influential in American life.
These two have such a way with taking a look at what is fun and good and interesting about the best and worst from old (and new) tv. It’s fun to get lots of contextual behind the scene details about writers and television and just hearing about tv I haven’t seen (sorry Mr Ed fans I’m new here). I’m also delighted to hear thoughts about my favorite shows that I have seen while getting a little lesson in television history. Love the diverse range in shows and I look forward to more of the best wor... more
if i had a nickel for every time i decided to finally get around to watching something and then the best worst announced next weeks episode was that show so i had to speed watch it before i could listen id have three nickels, which isnt a lot, but its weird that its happened thrice.
anyways i love this show! i listen to it almost every shift i work. it’s a really fun and interesting look at a media format i know very little about beyond “i watch it sometimes” done by people who clearly care abo... more
Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.
How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.
Apple Podcasts | #84 | |
Apple Podcasts | #65 | |
Apple Podcasts | #182 | |
Apple Podcasts | #31 | |
Apple Podcasts | #165 | |
Apple Podcasts | #246 |
Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.
Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.
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The show takes a high-velocity, nerd-cation approach to classic television by analyzing the best and worst episodes of a given series, then unpacking what those extremes reveal about storytelling, pacing, and cultural impact. Guests, production trivia, and behind-the-scenes chatter enrich discussions, while a recurring Patreon-driven Middlest format explores deeper context and cross-promo opportunities. The hosts' lively banter and strong show-specific voice make for thoughtful yet playful critiques that appeal to lovers of TV history, analysis, and pop culture nostalgia. A standout trait is the blend of affectionate nostalgia with rigorous critique, plus a willingness to connect historical TV moments to today's media landscape and fan disc... more
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The Best Worst launched a year ago and published 65 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.
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Recent guests on The Best Worst include:
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2. Mandy Moore
3. Busy Philipps
4. Rob Benedict
5. Richard Spate
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