This episode reminded me how much I adore Ron Sexsmith, but the real standout that needs to be a return character was Neil Campbell's Cam Billmoth-- perfect pastiche of Mitch Albom (with anagram name to boot).
Strangely, I've always traced my podcast love back to my obsession in middle school with Albom's AM talk radio program in Detroit... weirdly sandwiched between all the right wing wackos, it was a pretty much nonpolitical sports, entertainment, and variety show with the occasional staged bit.... imagine if your dad tried to make a podcast in 1998 and managed to restrain himself on the Lewinsky jokes, and you've got the right idea. Of course, I didn't know any better in terms of quality humor as a kid, and the appeal of the format just kind of stuck.
As a grownup, however, I see Mitch's weird sanctimonious nostalgia and cynical schmaltz is a gold mine of parody, and was glad to see it finally get tapped, along with a wikipedia-culled cornucopia of Detroit references. Well played.
