I like them both, and I actually feel like the chemistry between the two is perfect. Brace is funny and irreverent, but could go on for hours rambling if not reigned in. Liz is more serious and focused, and helps keep the discussion on track. I feel like one without the other just wouldn't have the same appeal.
Probably Will, as he seems affable and engaging even in his movie mindset. Felix being a manchild in his mid 30s really shows, but with Matt gone I've noticed he tends to put more effort and focus rathee than jusr phone it in.
I wouldn't be surprised if this is the last year of chapo though
He's essentially the straight man, and unfortunately most of the guests he's brought on for the past year were also straight man types. Chapo was better with 2 dedicated goofball slots, but without Matt that's a very hard thing to get.
Will is really good at skewering shitty op-eds and punditry, talkin' movies and is good at teeing up the other hosts
Matt's my favorite overall for how into the weeds he can get talking history and philosophy and being really genuine at times too despite being a funny sardonic schlub which I find really endearing and refreshing sometimes
Felix is a three true outcomes guy, he's either sockin' dingers with some brilliant quip out of nowhere or he's striking out running a bit into the ground that didn't really land to begin with (I guess the walk in the three true outcomes analogy is teeing someone else up for a riff)
Amber's good talking about bullshit in academia and organizing but has had some awful takes (the Taibbi episode), but she works well with the others making fun of electoral shit and pundits
Hesse Deni, Katherine Krueger, Alex Nichols and David Roth are all great rotating guest cohosts imo
From afar I have greatly admired your stewardship of the Chinese Communist Party. It is clear by now that socialism with Chinese characteristics offer the only viable alternative to terminally declining US global hegemony. Comprehensive deepening of reform at home coupled with the visionary Belt and Road initiative abroad are offering a stable basis for the development of a worldwide alliance of progressive national elements towards the long-term goal of overthrowing the dominance of Anglo-American finance capital and establishing global communism.
However, there is one issue with your leadership that sadly prevents my official endorsement of Xi Jinping thought. A black mark on your record that has become increasingly difficult to ignore. The presence of CGI blood and muzzle flashes in Chinese action blockbusters such as Wolf Warrior 2.
If the 1980s style action films of your regime are going to insist on using the contemporary Washington consensus approach to action special effects, sacrificing verisimilitude and awesomeness on the altar of grim budgetary efficiency, perhaps party-led development really is functionally identical to neo-liberal capitalism.
As such, I am hereby calling for the US to renew it’s commitment to defending the sovereignty of Taiwan, supporting the struggle of freedom fighters in Hong Kong, and calling on our State Department to increase diplomatic pressure to force regime change, to punish the continue to punish the persecution of the Weegers, the Whygurs? whatever they’re called. Anyway…
Virgil Texas completely ghosted his online life when an allegation came out about him trying to hook up with an underage fan. AFAIK no proof of the allegation was ever offered, and none of the other Chapos have ever spoken about the incident, so whether or not there was truth to it he cancelled himself.
the twitter account that made the original allegation was connected (I think via one of their only follows or likes?) to... shit now I am forgetting, but it was some fash troll adjacent thing. does anyone else remember more clearly?
Is Matt ever coming back? Did we ever find out what happened to him? Is he, like, paralyzed from the neck down? If your job is just bullshitting with your friends to begin with, why would anybody need to take a full year off? I assume he's been out of the hospital for several months at least, right?
He had a stroke and aphasia, right? It can take a long time to get your brain back in order, like speech therapy, physical therapy, assuming you can recover. Plus it's likely very traumatic. He might be able to talk but with difficulty, or have trouble getting words out coherently enough for the pod. Lots of potential issues when your eggs get lightly scrambled and you're in the process of recovering and figuring out how much of your life you're going to get back.
I get aphasia before, during, and after migraines and with extreme distress.
Not being able to communicate is very frustrating. Yesterday afternoon, I couldn't find the words to ask my husband to please get my sunglasses from the front pocket of my purse. What are those things that help my eyes called? And the dark green bag I take around with me?
Matt relays a lot of detail and complicated ideas – I couldn't even ask for sunglasses. I can't imagine how much time and patience it must take for him to have a conversation of any substance at all.
He had a stroke which gave him aphasia, so he’s basically been relearning how to talk. A really unfortunate issue to have when your job is talking to people and recording it
Never listened to a whole episode of chapo for some reason, but have listened to both hell series a couple times as well as other matt compilations. So not me ig
He's occasionally a little vibey with his analysis but still probably one of the best leftist edutainment sources out there (by some arbitrary metric I'm having a hard time conceptualizing, like there's no one else that's simultaneously as educational/knowledgeable and entertaining, most other people lean one way or the other). Sometimes I want vibes and it's nice to be yelled at by someone with an actual material grounding instead of pure woo nonsense.