A-Rated Episodes from “This Week in Podcasts”

Each week, I give a letter grade to almost every podcast episode I listened to, organized by the date on which they were released. You can read my rating system here, but suffice it to say that giving a grade between an A- and an A+ is rare. This is a collection of every time I’ve given a podcast an rating between that range.

Note that these ratings have only existed since about May 2017, so episodes older than that do not have ratings. Because the rating system is somewhat new, this isn’t a comprehensive list of my favorite podcast episodes–but you can find that here.

Last updated 8/19/2018

Episodes with an A+ rating

• Radiolab, “Colors”
• The Adventure Zone, “Ep. 69. Story and Song – Finale, Part Three”
• The Big Loop, “Goodbye, Mr. Adams”
• The Bright Sessions, “50 – Rose”
• Song Exploder, “Perfume Genius – Slip Away”
• What’s the Frequency?, “12. 38.17 Mhz”

Episodes with an A rating

• The Adventure Zone, “Ep. 66. The Stolen Century – Chapter Seven”
• The Adventure Zone, “Ep. 67. Story and Song – Finale, Part One”
• 99% Invisible, “265- The Pool and the Stream”
• 36 Questions, “Act 1 of 3”
• The Adventure Zone, “Ep. 68. Story and Song – Finale, Part Two”
• My Brother, My Brother and Me, “MBMBaM 367: Shrimp! Heaven! Now!”
• The Hilarious World of Depression, “PLACEBO: How to Get Help”
• Rough Translation, “American Surrogate”
• The Adventure Zone, “The Adventure Zone: Live in Austin”
• Showcase by Radiotopia, “The Polybius Conspiracy #3 – The Cassette”
• Showcase by Radiotopia, “The Polybius Conspiracy #5 – The Seller”
• Marsfall, “Chapter 8 – Jacki”
• What’s the Frequency?, “6. Books Containing Words”
• ars PRADOXICA, “35: Tangent”
• The Bright Sessions, “Dr. Bright”
• Join the Party, “29. Bachelorette Party IX”
• Love and Luck, “Episode 42 – Repairs”
• Han and Matt Know It All, “#77: Han and Matt Agree to Disagree”
• Everything is Alive, “Louis, Can of Cola”
• Tides, “Get Kraken”
• The Big Loop, “Surfacing”
• Arden, “The Monsters Who Did It”
• HORSE, “Ep. 14: Do You Have Any Sons?”

Episodes with an A- rating

• Code Switch, “What To Make Of Philando Castile’s Death, One Year later”
• Song Exploder, “Fleet Foxes – Mearcstapa”
• ars PARADOXICA, “Curses”
• Beautiful Stories From Anonymous Strangers, “69. Love Is Everywhere”
• The Once and Future Nerd, “What Used to Be Enough, Pt. 5”
• 36 Questions, “Act 2 of 3”
• Pop Culture Happy Hour, “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets”
• Millennial, “#46 Sharp Turns”
• Join the Party, “Political Party II”
• Wolf 359, “Episode 54: The Watchtower”
• The Far Meridian, “1.8 A Fine Figure”
• What’s the Frequency?, “A Thank You To Our Sponsor”
• The Hilarious World of Depression, “Guy Gulman Is a Brilliant Comedian and an Ineffective Offensive Lineman”
• Greater Boston, “Halloween Special: Spirits of Greater Boston”
• Within the Wires, “Season 2, Cassette 6: Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (1978)”
• The Bright Sessions, “Former Patient (#11-A-7)”
• Beautiful Stories from Anonymous People, “94. The Puppet Master”
• The Bright Sessions, “Mark”
• Wooden Overcoats, “Season 3, Episode 8: Putting the Funn in Funerals”
• Terrible, Thanks for Asking, “34: Karen”
• The End of Time and Other Bothers, “4: The Academy of the Fallen, Part 3”
• Everything is Alive, “Maeve, Lamppost”
• Love and Luck, “Episode 2 – Flustering Flustertash”
• Love and Luck, “Episode 48 – Justice”
• Kalila Stormfire’s Economical Magick Services, “Case Twelve: Fire”
• What’s the Frequency?, “11. Distortion”
• Kalila Stormfire’s Economical Magick Services, “Case Thirteen: Catharsis”
• Greater Boston, “Episode 26: But Perhaps There Is a Key”
• Station Blue, “Slip”
• 99% Invisible, “330- Raccoon Resistance”
• Spirits, “105: Rangda”
• The Dream, “Episode 11: And That’s When I Woke Up”