Welcome to my final blog post on \u201cMy Favorite Murder,\u201d a mystery\/comedy podcast where the hosts, Georgia Hardstark and Karen Kilgariff, share fan submissions of murder mysteries with an exciting twist. I have enjoyed every episode that I have listened to. As I previously mentioned, my favorite aspect of this podcast is that each episode is very different as a result of the conversational recording style. I now realize that I enjoy this so much because this format gives me, and other readers, the freedom to skip around between episodes and choose ones to listen to based on a current mood. Listening to the podcast does not feel like a homework assignment. I plan on continuing to listen to it throughout the rest of the class, and once it is over. Now that I have listened to a substantial amount of episodes, listening to the hosts talk feels like listening to a conversation with friends. I recognize each of their voices, understand their different senses of humor, and connect with them and their opinions in different ways. By the last episode of my group\u2019s podcast, I hope that listeners feel the same way. I hope they can connect with each of us in different ways and feel comfortable and entertained to the extent that they feel like they are merely listening in on some friends\u2019 conversation.
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This week, I chose to listen to the most recent episodes of \u201cMy Favorite Murder.\u201d Of the episodes that I listened to, my favorites were episode 194, a fun, Halloween special with a variety of themed stories, episode 196, an exceptionally long episode detailing a case about a burger chef murderer, and the most recent episode, which I will be breaking down in this post.
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Georgia and Karen detail a story submitted by a man from Ireland. Before beginning the story, the hosts set the scene. They described the location of the murder, which was a tiny town in Ireland. They explained how everyone knew each other and mentioned the town is extremely safe. They used these details to emphasize how intense this case was considering nothing like it had ever happened or would have been predicted to happy in this town. In their typical causal, humorous fashion, they cracked some jokes about Ireland and spoke in their attempt at Irish accents, making comments such as \u201cHeidi Ho Partners.\u201d
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They introduce the story as a \u201cfucked up hometown murder in rural Ireland.\u201d The aggressive swear word was a great way to grab readers\u2019 attention and get them excited for the story to come. Although we may not utilize swearing as a strategy in our Sherlock Holmes podcasts, it is important to note this technique and the effectiveness of using a hook at the beginning of an episode.
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The hosts explain the murder of a 17-year-old girl in a tiny town of Ireland that occurred in early December of 1998. This case was extremely notable as it was the first instance of crime ever to be reported in this town. One night, the girl was driving home with some friends when she asked to stop to use the restroom. She tried to enter a pub, but because they would not let her in as a minor, she walked to the nearest chip shop to use their restroom. On the way to the shop, a 28-year-old man offered her a ride. She accepted because she was familiar with him due to the nature of the small town. Unfortunately, he ended up brutally raping her and leaving her on the beach to be taken by the tide. The next day, a man found her on his morning dog walk and reported to the police immediately. Solving the case was a bit complicated because the murderer changed his outfit quickly after the incident and caused a scene at a nearby bar to use as an alibi. Luckily, they eventually caught him with traces of fibers from the girl\u2019s sweater socks found in his car and on his clothes as proof. He was sentenced to a lifetime in prison and an additional ten years. However, there are currently rumors spreading around town that he will be free any day now.
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In this episode, the hosts read the story word for word as the fan-submitted it, without interruption. Typically, they would pause to laugh, mention personal anecdotes, or make small talk. I like it when Georgia and Karen do this because it breaks up the story and keeps me engaged. However, I think that they intentionally did not interrupt this story because it was so much more intense and sad than usual. The extremity of the story, and telling it in one breath, definitely kept me on my toes and wanting to hear more. It is fascinating to see how the hosts shift their narration techniques based on the topics they discuss. I would have expected them to be consistent with their dialogue style throughout each episode. However, I was pleasantly surprised by this change and thought it was very strategic of them. I now realize that different strategies work best for various episodes. To create a good podcast, it is crucial to take the time to decide the best way to discuss a particular topic or arrange a specific episode and avoid getting attached to one particular formula or recording method.
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Word Count: 893
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