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Whatever Happened to the Pizza at MacDonalds?

Started by Ferris, October 24, 2019, 07:38:31 PM

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Ferris

I've become stuck in this podcast. It's really good.

Rather than have it be buried in the generic podcast thread, I thought I'd start a separate thread to proselytize. The first arc is slow, and takes about 22 eps to really get going (but they're all a few minutes long so really you can up to speed in 2 days worth of commutes). Glad I stuck with it because it's paying off big style now.

It is ostensibly an in-depth investigative podcast about why MacDonalds stopped serving pizza in the mid '90s, hosted by an obsessive "journalist", but the characterization and in-jokes really build. Anytime someone hangs up on him, he says "...very suspicious", and takes any confusion from interviewees as deliberate attempts at stonewalling his investigation. It is a lot funnier than that sounds. It also moves away from the main "investigation" pretty quickly, and now is tying lots of very disparate threads together. There is a shadowy nemesis investigative journalist who may (or may not) be hampering his investigation, that's all I'm saying.

I should say - it's also very gentle. He's not cold calling people to make fun of them, and the show is not based solely around stupid phone calls or anything, so don't be put off. I don't have a high cringe tolerance factor and it's never been an issue for me. He's always open, and presents himself as a curious obsessive, and he never pushes past anyone's boundaries which is nice (and occasionally, very rewarding).

Anyway, I thought it was clever and funny, and wanted to alert other people to it. Don't be fooled by its "try-hard at being shit" branding, or low stakes - it's actually very good. I'm up to ep 90 or so, and really enjoying it. If you liked Nathan for You, this is worth your time.

BlodwynPig


Rev+

Thanks for highlighting this one, but, and I know it's probably just a consequence of listening to this several years after it started, the adverts that have been injected into it completely do my head in.  I'm up to episode 9 and must have heard the one for the shit sounding 'what if there was an app that told you how long you've got left to live' film over a dozen times.  I know it being all advertising and little content is part of the gag, but hopefully it'll realise it's made that point and move on soon.

Ferris

Quote from: Rev+ on October 25, 2019, 10:57:48 PM
Thanks for highlighting this one, but, and I know it's probably just a consequence of listening to this several years after it started, the adverts that have been injected into it completely do my head in.  I'm up to episode 9 and must have heard the one for the shit sounding 'what if there was an app that told you how long you've got left to live' film over a dozen times.  I know it being all advertising and little content is part of the gag, but hopefully it'll realise it's made that point and move on soon.

The advertising is fucking AWFUL. Sorry. I don't know what to do about it - I'm just quick on my "skip 30 seconds" button, but didn't want to mention it in case it puts people off. It's not part of the podcast - mine is localized to Toronto and has contemporary offerings on second hand cars - guy just (presumably) sold the podcast to the highest bidder which means the most obnoxious adverts for the rest of us. Gotta roll with the punches on that one.

I'm up to ep 85. The investigation has reached the library of Congress. They may be in on it as well, albeit via a different strand of proceedings.

easytarget

[tag]Clement and La Frenais reboot "too commercial"[/tag]

Replies From View

After a while, any food not eaten is thrown into a bin whereupon it is carted to a landfill site to rot within a plastic bag.

Hope this helps x

Ferris

Quote from: Replies From View on October 26, 2019, 12:14:13 AM
After a while, any food not eaten is thrown into a bin whereupon it is carted to a landfill site to rot within a plastic bag.

Hope this helps x

Do you remember pizza at MacDonalds?

Ferris


Ferris

Got up to date on this a few weeks ago, it's brilliant.

chveik


Ferris

Quote from: chveik on November 23, 2019, 08:50:30 PM
what happened then?

The investigation is ongoing. He's had to move out of his house on stilts (collapsed under the weight of Casper mattresses) and there were too many coyotes around there anyway (long story), so he's putting the quest to acquire his California PI license on hold as he is technically homeless.

Luckily, while living in a YMCA, his roommate used to fix ms pacman video games consoles, and mentioned fixing one on Adak island, Alaska. It turns out there is an abandoned macdonalds there, preserved from the early '90s (aka the height of McDonald's pizzas power) so he has crowdsourced a trip to go and explore. This is in relation to the pizza ovens mcdonalds bought (or didn't buy), which could crack the case wide open.

I donated $1 to this effort, in my ongoing attempts to fund independent journalism. Adak island takes about a week to get to (via plane, ferry, small plane etc) and he is believed to have left for the trip already but couldn't confirm for security reasons*.

*He was recently attacked by either McDonald's, Casper mattresses (long story), or possibly an employee of Hardee's (presumed to be his old nemesis, Maxwell Boswell), but this is not clear. It did lead to a side arc featuring the "friendly ghost" brain implant chip, but I won't go into more detail here.

chveik

well done, you've made a great case for the podcast, I'm going to listen to it now (well, whenever I finish those George Saunders audiobooks). thanks!

Ferris


Dex Sawash


Ferris

Quote from: Dex Sawash on November 25, 2019, 01:54:16 AM
McDonald's had pizza in America?

Yes, but they stopped selling it in the mid '90s for shadowy, undisclosed reasons. Hopefully one day, we will know why.

sevendaughters

dived in on this, listened to 8 episodes (LOVE the brevity, hate the ads, though the Panoply stuff made me laugh) and am well into it. I love a great deadpanner/incompetent narrator.

sevendaughters

was worried about the prayer call episode (14) after the sub-podcast parody episode but I laughed loudly and genuinely about 5 times.

Ferris

Quote from: sevendaughters on November 25, 2019, 02:40:23 PM
was worried about the prayer call episode (14) after the sub-podcast parody episode but I laughed loudly and genuinely about 5 times.

That was the ep it clicked for me.

sevendaughters


Ferris

Quote from: sevendaughters on December 01, 2019, 07:28:17 PM
up to 78 and this is great great stuff

That was around where I was when I started this thread because I thought it was too good to go unnoticed. Next few arcs are very good.

PlanktonSideburns


Ferris

Good innit? I nearly dropped my phone when my wife revealed she remembered pizza at McDonald's Canada in the mid '90s. She doesn't remember how it tasted, but I was right to ask just in case.

Elderly Sumo Prophecy

He could do a follow up on the McRib. Or root beer.

Ferris

Really good last few episodes. Even a couple of overt jokes to keep the punters onside.

Worth your time.

Dewt

I had McDonald's pizza on my 9th birthday. I got Link's Awakening and went bowling.

Don't mention that though do they, in the podcast there.

sevendaughters

I got to about ep 80 and stopped having overdosed and got busy irl, but am back on it around 120 now and it just keeps going.

Ferris

Quote from: sevendaughters on May 01, 2020, 07:56:05 PM
I got to about ep 80 and stopped having overdosed and got busy irl, but am back on it around 120 now and it just keeps going.

Just listened to the latest one not 5 minutes ago! It's the only podcast I look forward to (or indeed know what day of the week it is posted)

Did you clock the change to the logo? That's the current plot arc, it's very good. He's come up with some very clever solutions to get around the fact that no one is at work so he can't continue his investigation. I was laughing within 2 seconds at ep153, and 155 is another belter.

I don't think you are at the
Spoiler alert
Adak Island expedition
[close]
arc yet but it is brilliant. I donated to the kickstarter for that and got a load of bonus content - give me a shout when you get there and I'll PM you the link

phes

Loving this, thanks. It clicked quickly, maybe a dozen episodes in (quick at their length). The thing I really enjoyed is that he finds people who explain to him very early exactly why McDonalds stopped serving pizza. But his persistence is charming and the understandable sense of paranoia and defensiveness in many people he speaks to (McD's have historically been the subject of a very large scale fraud, haven't they?) fuels the sense that maybe there really is something dirty going on behind McDonalds decision to discontinue pizza. Loved episode 30 with the very eloquent and genial Canadian who discussed the pizza at length and then said 'that's the corporate line, anyway!'.

The ones with the religious people and the prayers came dangerously close to finding it unpleasant, but thankfully didn't quite cross that line

Just heading into episode 32

Ferris

It's done really cleverly - he never crosses a line into mocking, he's always a good-natured curious obsessive who is looking for answers.

As the investigation continues, he starts to find them...

I'll say no more.

Ferris

Article in the NY Times about my favourite podcast:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/28/business/mcdonalds-pizza-podcast.html

Apparently John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats is a big fan. A Ferris ourobouros of things I am an obsessive fan of.