Relationships Talk

The comedy podcast universe is ever-expanding, not unlike the universe universe. We’re here to make it a bit smaller, a bit more manageable. There are a lot of great shows and each one has a lot of great episodes, so we want to highlight the exceptional, the noteworthy. Each week, our crack team of podcast enthusiasts and specialists and especially enthusiastic people will pick their favorites. We hope to have your ears permanently plugged with the best in aural comedy.

Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend — Kristen Bell

It’s hard to believe that a guy who’s been on national television for a quarter-century is wanting for friends but, to hear him tell it, Conan O’Brien is turning to podcasting in order to find a true chum. In the second episode of Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, the host chats up potential pal Kristen Bell (The Good Place), who seems very well-suited to the position. She dives right in, asking O’Brien why he needs a friend so badly when he’s got so many people already in his life who share his goals — whether it’s the folks who help make his TBS TV show run, or his wife and kids at home. It turns out that maybe what he really needs is more “me”-time than “we”-time, whether that means working out more or getting out on the open road on his motorcycle. We learn that Bell and O’Brien have been out on the town together, double-dating with their significant others (Dax Shepard and Liza O’Brien), and the door is left open for more “friendship-adjacent” action. The conversation is breezy and easy, with a little more edge than his TV segments generally allow. The show is tagged with a “True or False” segment, where O’Brien quizzes his plucky assistant Sona Movsesian to get to know her better. Also along for the ride is the show’s producer, Matt Gourley of Superego, whom O’Brien doesn’t seem to quite trust, yet. — Marc Hershon.

Listen: Spotify | Apple | Website

The Hilarious World of Depression — Aparna Nancherla

As we gear up for the holiday season, now is the perfect time to deck some halls, bake those cookies, and, yes, check in on your own mental health. Statistically speaking, holiday depression, anxiety, and stress can affect anyone at any age. For me, The Hilarious World of Depression acts as a wonderful bridge between a traditional comedy podcast and one that tackles the taboo subject of mental illness. This week, Aparna Nancherla joins host John Moe to discuss her history with depression and anxiety. With something much like the vulnerability and courage it takes to attempt stand-up in the first place, Nancherla, true to form, is unapologetically open and honest about her battles with depression. She brings us on a journey that starts with a breakdown she suffered in college, through the beginning stages of her comedy career, and to her current struggles with depression and anxiety today. Throughout, Moe asks insightful questions that touch on the difficulties of being vulnerable onstage, whether Twitter has been bad for Nancherla mental health, and what she wishes she knew about depression long ago. Aparna and John, through honest conservation, help shed some light on whether or not depression can actually be funny. — Tom Rainey.

Listen: Spotify | Apple | Website

Anna Faris Is Unqualified — Bill Hader

At 150 episodes and hundreds of more questions into her podcast, is Anna Faris finally qualified to give relationship advice? Faris would say no, but this week’s excellent episode proves she’s nearing expert status. Freshly minted Emmy Award winner Bill Hader first opens up about hiding his anxiety at SNL and the loudest laugh he’s ever heard inside Studio 8H, which happened to be during one of Faris’s hosting appearances. The two Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs co-stars go on to trade war stories from their collective press tours that sound truly nightmarish. We even get a classic Bill Hader laugh-break while Faris role-plays Beige Schumacher-Smith, her red-carpet reporter character. Blank-slate questions like “Tell us about your new show Larry,” and, “Now, Kanye?” cause Hader to completely lose it. It’s a delight to listen to. After the interview, Faris plays the voice of reason to a previous caller, rescuing him from Hader and co-host Sim Sarna’s unhelpful college dating advice. The second caller shares the sobering details of workplace harassment by a male co-worker. The three try to help but ultimately admit they are unqualified to give real advice on the situation, thus keeping the podcast’s title and the balance of the podcast universe in order. — Mark Kramer.

Listen: Spotify | Apple | Website

Off Book: The Improvised Musical — Jeff Hiller in “A Sea Star Is Born Live” from Murmrr

Let’s consider this an audition for guest Jeff Hiller to replace Lady Gaga as Ursula in the live-action Little Mermaid. Live in Brooklyn, Jess, Zach, and New York’s own Hiller take the stage to weave a masterful new underwater musical. “Swim On In” to hear Hiller inhabit both Ursula (yes, that one) and Ally, the starfish who’s been told she’ll never work in this industry. That’s right — this a potential origin story for a Disney villain and the underwater tale of how “A Sea Star Is Born.” As someone who’s yet to see Gaga’s new film, I have to believe it’s about a stingray and a sea cucumber seeking out a sea-witch/cabaret singer and undeveloped future star to sing at their underwater lounge. It must involve Ally’s being scared to perform, someone repeatedly trying to convince her to do so, and sexually charged dolphins. As for the hosts’ claim that Hiller is one of the greatest musical improvisers of all time, it’s hard to disagree. With guest New York musicians and Hiller’s fearless vocal stylings, this episode’s songs are more than good enough for Bradley Cooper. Find out how far from the sha-ha-shallow we end up! — Anna Marr.

Listen: Spotify | Apple | Website

Other Podcasts We’re Listening To:

Why Won’t You Date Me? — Erin Whitehead
Listen: Spotify | Apple | Website

The Soft Spot — Cereal Killer Nick Wiger
Listen: Spotify | Apple | Website

Armchair Expert — Conan O’Brien
Listen: Spotify | Apple | Website

The Misfits Podcast — Misfits House
Listen: Spotify | Apple | Website

Cool Playlist — Solo Karaoke with Eliot Glazer
Listen: Spotify | Apple | Website

Got a comedy podcast recommendation? Drop us a line at comedypodcasts@vulture.com.

Paris Hilton isn’t even “thinking about” dating right now.

The DJ and socialite insists she is focusing on her work and family following her split from ‘Leftovers’ actor Chris Zylka and is “busy being a boss-babe”.

She told E! News: “I’m amazing. I am busy being a boss-babe, running an empire. That is all I have time for. I barely have time for myself, let alone anything else. I am not even thinking about [dating] right now. I am literally so busy. I hardly have time to see my own family, let alone do that. I am so happy. I just love my life. My advice is to always be happy and feel good about yourself – because life is truly too short.”

Meanwhile, Paris previously admitted she thought her marriage to Chris was going to be her own version of a “Disney” happy ending.

She said: “I’m doing really good. I’m just really having my me time. I just feel that when I fall in love, I fall in love fast and hard. It was this whirlwind romance and I’ve always been obsessed with Disney stories and love stories, and I thought it was going to be my happy ending and I just realised after time that it wasn’t the right decision.”

And the 37-year-old star hasn’t ruled out getting married and having children in the future.

She added: “You know, one day, I would love to get married and have children, but for right now I’m just focusing on myself and my work.”

A source previously claimed that Paris’ wedding to Chris was “never going to happen”.

They said: “This wedding was never going to happen. They never had an engagement party and Chris’ parents never even met Paris’ parents. They postponed the 11/11 date without a new date. No one is surprised by this at all. Paris got caught up in wanting a wedding and she just didn’t think about the marriage part. It was never going to work with Chris.”

We’re trying a new video advice series around everyday dilemmas: friendship, dating, relationships and more. We’re calling it Crowdsourced. But instead of your typical advice column, we want you to ask the questions and answer them. Hear directly from people around the country who are going through the same thing you are.

So, here’s a question for you:

Send your advice (your best facial expressions welcome!) as a video message to crowdsourced@nbcuni.com or share your thoughts as a written message in the form below.

Ladies, if he: is funny but formulaic; seeks attention; and goes viral after a tweet about our 19th president …

He’s not your man. He’s the new meme that’s taking over the Internet.

Most of us have stayed in at least one relationship past the point it was far too obvious the other person wasn’t in it with us. Which is why the latest Twitter joke — “He’s not your man,” a Mad Libs bait-and-switch that starts out as essentially a 2018 version of “He’s just not that into you” — is resonating.

The punchline is in the pivot: He’s not your man. He’s economist Adam Smith. He’s not your man. He’s Watergate source Deep Throat. He’s not your man. He’s a raccoon.

It’s a goofy meme, but there’s also deeper meaning in the laughter. Ever fallen for someone who wasn’t worth your time or whose interest in you was merely an illusion? Ever held on to false hope and then felt like a doofus once you realize the object of your affection has more in common with a raccoon than a soul mate? We’ve all lived some version of this situation. And the meme thrives on that familiarity.

According to Know Your Meme, this Twitter joke was (shocker!) started by a man. Last week @KylePlantEmoji tweeted:

As of Wednesday, that original tweet has almost 21,000 retweets, and hundreds of others have joined in.

There are versions about refrigerators, books, synonyms, raccoons, manatees, the New York subway. If he “interjects with unsolicited advice,” “reads your personal documents” and “constantly tries to help you format paragraphs” — he’s not your man, journalist Rachel Zarrell tweeted. He’s Clippy, the Microsoft Word Office assistant.

The Bard chimed in with a Shakespearean twist: “‘Tis not thy man. ‘Tis all men.”

Even dating apps themselves — where you’ll find plenty of men who will ignore your texts! — have gotten in on the joke.

Yes, Rutherford B. Hayes and animated paper clips have little to do with your dating life or gender relations. But there’s a reason it’s “He’s not your man.” I doubt a “She’s not your woman” formula would have taken off in quite the same way. Dating advice is most often directed at women — and women are trained to tolerate and explain away a partner’s inattention, entitlement and mistreatment when we should really be saying, “Thank u, next.”

Women have aired their pain on social media a lot in the past year — with devastating #MeToo stories highlighting the prevalence of sexual assault and harassment and #WhyIDidntReport explanations of how rarely such accounts are believed, taken seriously and fairly prosecuted.

The time was ripe for some way of finding comedy in a similar kind of pain. The joke’s setup hinges on a power differential that can occur in heterosexual relationships. Traditionally, women are judged more severely for being single than men are, so she might excuse bad behavior longer than she should. If a woman has less earning power, she might stay in a bad relationship for economic reasons. She might work hard to keep her partner happy, even if he is not matching her efforts. From a young age, women are told that it’s better to be with a man than lacking one, that it’s better to go along with things than to fight back.

Just as women are increasingly aware of these problems, this meme has a way of implying: Keep your standards high, and don’t be a fool who mistakes a man for a manatee.

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