ONE COOL THING: PROFESSOR BLASTOFF AND TIG NOTARO
One Cool Thing is a series on IC where we post art, projects, music, or really anything that we think you should check out. It may be related to parenting, it may be related to the LGBT community, or it may just be something that’s really awesome.
Welp, this has nothing to do with gay parenting. BUT, if you are a parent that has some time to kill while
- a) driving in a car
- b) hanging out and doing a boring task at home
- c) riding public transportation or standing in long lines
- d) exercising?
then I think you should check out this month’s One Cool Thing, the comedy podcast Professor Blastoff.
The podcast is a weekly conversation between lesbian comedian Tig Notaro (best known as the cop on The Sarah Silverman Show) and her co-hosts (not lesbians, but still very funny) Kyle Dunnigan and David Huntsberger, in which they focus on a central theme they find interesting. The topics range from scientific to philosophical to metaphysical, and often include guest “experts” (with varying levels of actual expertise) in the subject.
Now, somewhat secret comedy podcasts seem to be all the rage in the comedy world these days, I’m guessing because they serve as an outlet for any group or single comedians to creatively riff without the pressure and hassle of gathering a crowd, and I have to say, I think it’s a good thing. (Judge John Hodgeman and WTF with Marc Maron are two of my other go-to podcasts for working/cleaning/cooking time, the former when I want to laugh out loud, the latter when I want a more psychological and personal comedy-related-but-not-necessarily-belly-laugh-funny-more-like-a-darker-woody-allen experience to listen to). They put their unique brand of comedy out there, and you sign up if it suits your tastes, without the high production costs and competition of a TV show or HBO special.
What I like best about Professor Blastoff (I think) is that they sound like they are geniunely having a good time as a group of friends making each other laugh, and you kind of start to feel like you are sitting in the room with them, giggling over a crack one of them made about the other. From taking on big topics, like atheism and metaphysics, to ones you know are going to be good, like sexual attraction and deja vu, the three comedians that anchor the show frequently veer off topic, but don’t really give a shit – and that’s what makes it great. (The greatest, I would argue, are the weekly limerick/poems that Kyle Dunnigan hilariously and spontaneously unravels at random points in the show). You see how their friendship works episode by episode, and identify with them when they ask stupid questions or blunder about in the topic area of choice (How much do any of us really know about robotics?). Not to mention, um, Tig seems pretty cool. So, yeah.
So there you have it- the IC One Cool Thing this month — the Professor Blastoff podcast. Listen to it, love it, and let them know I sent you!
