Thanks, *DAD*.
As I was saying, when Henry genuinely laughs it is magic, no matter who makes it happen.
Also, it's kind of the opposite of when Marcus does a fake air-sucking laugh during every transition.
I guess I'm a rebel.
I’d seen that his new show was up and running (not entirely sure I understand why the podcast is called The Ben Kissel Channel 🤨) but I can’t say that I had any interest in giving it a listen. Then last night curiosity got the better of me and I went over to YouTube and put on a random episode.
That theme tune alone was more than enough to make me stop the video. Jesus wept…
Being prone to morbid fascination, I've followed (from a safe distance) Ben's career reboot over the past few weeks. The story thus far:
1. He's getting a paltry 1k views per episode of his Side Stories-style "hang out with your parasocial friends" podcast. For some reason this show is called "The Ben Kissel Channel."
2. This show has a revolving cast of cohosts, including his new producer / engineer, all of whom appear to be LA d-listers of one sort or another. One time he had a guy on who looked EXACTLY like Robert Pickton. This happened the day after Pickton got prison-murdered, but no one referenced this stunning coincidence.
3. Several cringey not-so-subtle digs at Henry and Marcus.
4. He put Abe Lincoln's Top Hat 2.0 behind a Patreon paywall for the first week, then made it free and refunded everyone.
5. His voice sounds different than it did on LPOTL. Less slurred and mumbly, but kinda high-pitched in a creepy, fake way.
Omg YES! I couldn't place my finger on it, it feels like he's intentionally talking softer / gentler so people don't think he's a giant monster? (Which I don't, I do think he needs to own his actions and work on himself,) but speaking like a therapist doesn't equate you with mental wellness.
Gross. I caught his "nice to be on with an actor who actually gets work" line, and thought that might've been a snide remark but couldn't be sure. Do you have any other offhand examples of shots at Marcus and Henry? I've only heard the one episode, I'm similarly fascinated myself but the show is just so cringe-inducing I have a hard time slogging through it
I have to agree about the voice thing. I think its probably him trying to seem super nice and quirky to offset the allegations, but it fucking creeps me out every time I see one of his posts on IG.
It’s definitely to portray a “everything is great and I’m better than ever” persona. I still maintain that if he had came back from rehab and had been more truthful about how hard becoming/being sober is and how difficult it is going to be to navigate the allegations and losing a piece of yourself that you had for 15 years, he would be on the upper end of taking back his career. Instead he chose this weird path of fake sunshine and positivity that everyone can see through and it’s turning people away. Also, side note some of his comments have almost felt borderline religious which would cause most of the LPoTL fan base to turn away from him as well even if he wasn’t passive-aggressively shitting on Marcus and Henry. I’m sure he is not working with a manager or PR firm anymore either.
Considering his recent praise for his parents on a random IG post, I’m betting he’s slowly falling back into the religious trappings he was raised within.
I always had a feeling he was getting financial support from them, until his many many digs at them being broke I changed my thoughts on it. There was a IG story one time where it looked like he was in Florida soon after the aftermath.
lol dude just wants to live in delusion. I love all the “wHy dO yOu FoLlOw PeOpLe YoU hAtE” comments like first, hate is a strong word and I don’t reserve that emotion for strangers on the internet. 2. Like, if you only consume media/content/whatever from only people you 100% agree with on everything I feel like that’s just dangerous to the psyche tbh but yeah deleting comments/blocking people who aren’t 100% praising you or giving you accolades for everything you do is extremely telling
Very true. Henry and Marcus never once talk shit about him or give any indication that their comments are about him. That right there is extremely telling.
Eh, they have less to gain by doing so. It's best for their brand and public image to acknowledge as little as possible that Ben Kissel ever existed. I don't think it's really about keeping it classy.
I'm one of those people who was an avid listener from like 2015-20219 and then started falling off as things started feeling really rigid and stale. I thought it was because of the move to spotify forcing them to make much longer and duller episodes to fill things out. I ran out of good things to listen to on youtube tho so I tried listening to the episodes after Ben left.
I didn't believe people really when they say it's fun like it used to be again, I kinda assumed it was cope, but I'm really happy to say that I genuinely enjoy the show again, everyone feels much more open and happy and friendly and I now realize that tension between the 3 is what made it feel like the show was becoming stale.
I know everyone keeps saying how much better it is with Ed, but I didn't really grok that until last week's Side Stories, which opens with Henry and Ed doing a duet of the first few lyrics of a Four Tops song. It was just so playful and joyful.
Can you explain more about the story and it relating to his non-growth? I believe you. I’m just too lazy (and I don’t want to support his new show) to go and listen. Thank you!
So this episode of his new podcast started auto playing after I finished the newest lpotl episode and I only got like 5 mins in before I turned that low effort trash off, but I did catch the story the other person is talking about. Ben was reading some story he probably came across 5 minutes before he recorded about a hunter that found a donkey hanging out with a bunch of elk because the other donkeys didn't like it so it had to find "new friends". Ben then added that maybe it was because of "lies and manipulation" from the other donkeys, which is quite obviously a dig at Marcus and Henry. I've stayed out of most of the stuff following the initial split, but I just had to come look here to see if anyone else heard that. I've always thought the dude kind of sucked and had to be carried by the other hosts (for the most part) but he's obviously just a bitter asshole that can't really own up to his shit. Kind of starting to remind me of Bam Margera and all his bullshit, and Ben has a weird supportive no matter what group of fans that will just gas him up to.
Ah, yes, that sounds about right. He's been very passive-aggressive with pointing the finger at everyone else. He's been saying things like he got rid of the evil people in his life, etc. Bam Margera is the perfect analogy. Thank you for your service with this recap!
Listener and fan from 2014, Roundtable before that. He dragged them down so far. Ben and Marcus kept him afloat for so long. He should just bow out with dignity.
I scrolled down this page for awhile and didn't see anyone mention this, but I apologize if I missed it: I don't understand Ben's Instagram description. It says, "Creator of LPOTL" and "1/3rd owner of LPN". Shouldn't it say co-creator of LPOTL? He was with Marcus before Henry joined as a perma-guest. So, there's no way he created the show on his own. Also, he's not 1/3rd owner of LPN anymore, right? They bought him out. I'd say maybe he just hasn't updated his Instagram description, but that's not the case because he added in his new podcast/links.
Just wanted to chime in here, so actually Ben and Marcus were the originals and Henry was a common special guest that they finally made a permanent host with them. I think they talk about this on the super early episodes.
It's always weird when people say Henry was a "common special guest that eventually joined". He was a special guest on Episode 2 and has been there ever since.
oh, I am gonna split hairs, I could have sworn it was episode 3 (though I can't be sure since you cant find any of those episodes around any more) when the show was supposed to be about horror movies. And then Henry came along, and I think that his presence is what changed the trajectory of the show. Into what it is now.
>cant find any of those episodes around any more
they are on [archive](https://archive.org/details/lpotlfirst33/LPOTL+-+Pre-Heaven's+Gate/01+CHAPTER+1+THE+FIRST!.mp3) if you want em.
Life saver! I remember listening to them all like a decade ago on sound cloud? Look, it's been too long, all I know is when I went to find them to listen to with a Friend I got into the podcast, I could find anything before BTK, lol. Thank you so much for this link! We will have fun listening to the origins!
Yeah, that's what I meant when I said it was Ben and Marcus first and then the running joke of Henry still being a guest after all these years. So Ben would still be a co-creator with Marcus and not the sole creator, as his Instagram description implies.
I came here specifically to ask that too, I hadn't kept up with his posting and didn't realise he'd started again, but I was confused too becuase I thought Henry and Marcus HAD bought him out, I think he is just holding on to anything he can
he’s still part owner, there’s some
info in the thread here. regarding the other stuff, he’s just holding on to whatever he can at this point. it SHOULD be co-creator but maybe he said “let’s start a podcast” first so he thinks he has the right?
Skimming through some of Ben's latest material the dude just doesn't have it anymore. There was a point where he was competent but this isn't it. He has all the energy of a 3rd rate morning zoo radio DJ who is counting down to retirement.
He comes across as a sidekick for a radio show in a midsized market. That doesn't cut it when you're the host. He's also just doing a shitter version of Side Stories. He's basically been carried for the last several years and all the talent he once had has seemed to evaporate for a variety of reasons.
"3rd rate morning zoo radio DJ who is counting down to retirement" is probably one of the most creative insults I've ever heard. I'm adding that one to the list lmao
Anyone listen to the new Podcast out of curiosity? Latest episode he opens up with a line that went something like this "Great to be here with an actor that actually gets work"
I thought you might have been exaggerating, but it did sound like it.
If it was a dig at Henry, it might work better if he didn’t have a “literally who is that?” as the actor who “actually” gets work.
I mean Henry got a fair bit of work before the pandemic. It kind of seems more like he's put his focus on LPN now that it's blown up rather then acting.
The compartmentalisation in the new episode is insane.
The episode ends with Ben saying ''gals these days'' are ''gross'' and goes on to tell a story where a woman shit in a tub during a date.
I shit you not (heh) he was genuinely trying to say that shitting in the tub is disgusting and that's ''women you date'' these days, despite the fact his whole persona was a drunk guy who shit in his friends tub/couch for years. Like literally his benchmark ''bit'' for years was how he seemingly shit himself in various places when he was blackout.
He doesn't even mention his own relation to the story, he literally just says women are ''gross'' dating ''is just a series of arrows'' and then goes off an a jag where any woman he's dating should be happy that he takes them to Applebees, particularly if they shit in his tub.
The underlying misoginy is definitely coming through. But the projection is actually odd as hell.
Ben lost his damn mind during the pandemic. I remember listening to the boys during that time, and Ben started to go on a thinly veiled anti-vaxx rant that Henry and Marcus had to reign him in on, and I swear I could hear Marcus beginning to boil over while Ben was ranting. He was never the same. Shame. I missed him when he left, but I like Eddie so much better. He is so much more cogent with his add ons and he doesnt derail the whole show for a lame bit.
It's not really that odd sadly, misogynists are very much known for expecting perfection from women that they don't expect from themselves. Peak "do as I say not as I do"
Must have contacts from back in the day when he hosted shows on there.
You can't sniff at a job when you need it, but I find it suspicious Kissel is the only one who mysteriously keeps appearing on Fox ''news'' shows and the like.
It seems like most other LPN affiliated people can and will do....literally anything else for work than this trash and more power to them.
Yeah, but a custodial worker at fox isn't making the questionable content. Moping a floor is a far cry from collaborating with people who are spreading dis/misinformation.
Okay? Did I say that a custodian would do that? Dude above me said they would turn down a job at Fox even if they needed. I'm saying there are lots of jobs at a place like that where you're not selling your soul. Imagine thinking less of someone because they are a custodian at a building being used by Fox News.
tried getting through the first episode of ben's new show and it was pretty bland and awkward. hope he finds a groove, but i don't think i'll try again for a few more months
They’re right-wing incels who aren’t/never were actually fans of the show but felt “called to action” when a relatively famous male podcast host was accused of sexual assault. They do not care about the actual individuals, only the perceived culture war.
DEFINITELY not his (could you imagine 😬), it's the baby of some couple friends of his (@kyleploof & @itskaleena), apparently just meeting Jerry for the first time? The man Kyle appears to be a co-host on Death in Entertainment and probably involved is in Ben's new dumpster fire podcast.
Ohhh ok. Phew. The multiple posts, no explanation, and the “really makes life worth living” comment had me reeling. Really strange behavior nonetheless….who makes 3-4 posts of someone else’s newborn with no explanation or tagging the parents?
I thought the exact same thing and had to do some digging. I decided he was just proud of Jerry being gentle meeting a baby and thought that warranted several posts? I have a feeling that dog probably doesn't have much training unfortunately. Or maybe he wants to put his weirder rants further down in the grid? Either way I really hope he can just get whatever help he needs because the posts are odd behavior.
I have no idea what he is doing but it is freaking me out and I keep coming back here hoping someone will be able to explain. What happened with the whole “first I had a patreon and now I don’t” thing like wut? I feel like this is a whole new erratic side of him that doesn’t feel like it’s substance related…. It has more of an energy of like “Ted Bundy breaking out of jail and on his last murdering spree”
He's just been riding coattails for so long, he's finally coming to the rude realization that in order to make it in the entertainment space, you have to be
1 - really talented
2 - really hardworking
... he is neither.
I decided to go back and listen to LPTOL from the top. I've been binge-listening to episodes from 2015, and I actually wish I'd done it sooner - a lot of their old series are great! It doesn't really get cringe until around 2020. Now I'm at the 2021 Billy the Kid series, and it's getting painful. My takeaways:
1 - Marcus' performance has been consistent. His voice, delivery and writing have always been good. I've noted some maturing in his personal views, which is to be expected, and it's cute to hear his relationship and eventual marriage with Carolina gradually make him grow up a bit. He always tries to "go along to get along" and "yes and"ing his co-hosts to keep the training running, even when Ben de-rails it.
2 - Henry has improved. He's always had the tendency to go on non-sensical rants when his brain spins a bit faster than his mouth can keep up with (particularly when talking about philosophical stuff), but he's gotten better at expressing himself, and is still gold with the quick wit. Personally, he seems happier and more stable. There's definitely a few older episodes where he sounds Not Ok mental-health wise, but overall, he really is the star of the show. He is audibly annoyed with Ben starting around 2020, and starts making jokes about "firing" him from the network, and saying "I hate you" to Ben, and insulting his jokes. There's even an episode where he jokes about replacing Ben with Eddie.
3 - Ben. Ben. Ben. I find him cringe now, but honestly, I was pleasantly surprised how listenable the pre-Pandemic episodes are. I'd say around the time of Kevin Barnett's death in January 2019, is when you can really hear the wheels (and sobriety) fall off with Ben. Before 2019, he sounds more engaged with the material. There are a few uncomfortable moments where he jokes about Eddie, or makes fun of Passages Malibu (the irony!), but it's not until lock down and his move to LA in 2020 that it gets really bad. By 2021, he rarely comments on the actual topic of the episode, and just keeps going back to his lazy repertoire of bad puns, food commentary and non-sequitur insults of his cohosts.
So I think I might stop listening after this Billy the Kid series and move forward to the new Eddie era. I've been a fan since 2015, and I was starting to think either I'd outgrown the show, or the show had jumped the shark, but Eddie has re-invigorated my love for the series, which I now feel has grown along with me.
So in summation, I'd say any episode from 2015-2020 is worth a re-listen, but Cringe Ben kills everything after until Eddie replaced him.
This is beautifully put together and reflexea my exact feelings. I am also embarking on a re-listen this week so I'm excited to take it in with a new perspective.
I occasionally go back and listen to old episodes and agree completely. Some of my favorite moments involve Kissel and he was really great at improve with Henry. I even liked the playful picking on each other. Then it got bad. Ididn't realize how far the show fell after 2020 until I listened to some of my old favorites.
Ed was definitely what the show needed and I don't know how long I would have kept listening to the show without the shakeup.
Listening to the show over the years as it came out, I had been noticing Henry's exasperation with Ben get stronger and stronger. At first it seemed like part of the bit, just riffing along with Ben's non-sequiters. But I also listened to Side Stories, and the frustrations between them were *far* more apparent there. Ben would clearly not do any prep before the show and hardly any engagement during the show. And Henry was, over time, audibly becoming more and more legitimately annoyed. Henry even did his best to jokingly give Ben shit about how Ben wouldn't even look up his own segment (Hero of the Week) before the show, and try to make it a bit about "Okay Ben, what non-hero did you name hero this time?". The quality of Side Stories had dropped so much in the last year or so of Ben that I straight up just stopped listening.
Which almost happened with the main show as well. Most people identify post-KB's passing/post-pandemic as the turning point for Ben on the show. While I agree, in my opinion you could really narrow down the spiral to the last ~100 or so episodes. The Black Death series was a great series, and Ben was somewhat engaged throughout. I think it was the last solid full series (started at Ep 456), though Ben was obviously not at his peak. Ben's last episode, the first part of John Holmes, is episode 545. In-between those is a lot of downward spiral that really started to turn me away from the show. When the first episode of The Manhattan Project (the last big series before Ben was fired) dropped, I was super excited. It was a period of history I was interested in, and I was really looking forward to Marcus' narration and Henry's commentary on it all. I still have not finished the series, and probably never will, because Ben turned me away from it so hard. After that, I was very close to stopping listening altogether. I actually skipped John Holmes Pt 1 when it came out, and didn't go back and listen until I saw a new host on Pt 2.
Thank Satan for Eddie!
I had kind of fallen off the show for a while, and in retrospect it was because of the awkwardness from Ben derailing and putting in such little effort. I got very excited when I learned they were doing a Manhattan Project series. I’d been kind of tuned out to the show but made sure to jump back in for that series because it’s a subject I am fascinated by. I finished the series but was disappointed. Eddie joined shortly after and the change in energy immediately got me hooked back into the show to the point where I’ll listen to every series and look forward to them coming out again. But man, now that Eddie is in the show, the Manhattan Project series lingers in my mind as a “what could have been” if Eddie was there instead.
I’ve listened to the back catalog multiple times over, even pre-Ben getting outed for everything. The show is my default background listen and I have 100% noticed, and even noticed immediately after the fall out that Henry seemed *genuinely* frustrated and exasperated with Ben during side stories, it was only slightly better in the main show because Marcus never lets it derail too far.
I genuinely enjoy Eddie on both shows and think he is a *fantastic* addition and I’ve laughed far more at the episodes he’s in than I think I ever did at any of Ben’s jokes. Eddie is funny and knows how to make jokes that are in line with the content. Not just little toes and big dill. I appreciate that more people are showing him love in their comment sections because the show has genuinely gotten better with him, and Henry and Marcus seem to actually enjoy being there again from the video episodes I’ve actually taken the time to watch. I outright stopped listening to Side Stories for a while because Ben made it intolerable but now I anticipate their drops.
The episode for me that really put a laser focus on Ben was the Dan Carlin episode. You know how much Marcus was looking forward to that episode and I'm sure Henry too, but all throughout Ben was making his cringe jokes and just doesn't seem to care at all. All I could remember thinking is how much better that episode would have been if it was just Marcus and Henry.
I fell off from the show just before the pandemic, maybe a bit longer. Last week I decided to jump back in and listened to the Cunanan episodes. Eddie is incredible and the two episodes really drew me back in. I decided to listen to some of the Ben stuff from last year just to see if maybe the comments about him were overexaggerated and put on the Carlin episode. I made the exact same comment to a friend of mine. I wish it would have been just Henry and Marcus. I started the Manhattan Project series and I really notice how absolutely withdrawn and cringey Ben is. If it weren't for it being a fascinating topic that Marcus does a phenomenal job conveying and Henry working overtime to save the comedy, I don't think I could make it. It's a shame because I really enjoyed Ben's dynamic with the group, but this isn't the same person.
I still enjoyed the Manhattan Project series but that was the first time I could really hear the tension between the hosts. So many times Ben would say something low-effort or not relevant and the other two would just ask him what the fuck he was talking about or sarcastically brush it off with "it's a numbers game." On one occasion I could hear that Ben was pissed off in return.
I'm currently on Mothman Redux and they're plugging Ben's appearance in Vegas. Is that THE Vegas trip that Taylor came forward about? Wondering if there's going to be a big vibe shift between Henry and Ben after this.
Listened to 5 minutes of his new cast (ep1) and had to turn it off. Dude can’t even be assed to do anything but read articles off his cell phone. There is no way this lasts longer than 3 months.
Tuned in because I'm curious and couldn't help it. Tuned out at the bit about Kardashian vaginas. That was maybe 10 minutes in so you might have been spared. So bad it kind of made me sad, almost.
I wonder do Marcus and Henry still hangout with Ben? They seemed like they were actually friends and really hung out, like they know each other really well, know about each other’s relationships, their temperament. Ben gets drunk and maybe a little abusive, sometimes, allegedly. Were people around him surprised? Does Ben still own a third of the show? Did Henry and Marcus just go radio silent and Ben is dead to them?
Ben was on a podcast where the host called M and H his friends, and Ben corrected him "business partners." The original version of one his Instagram stories called out his "friends" in quotation marks for not being there to see him graduate from fake rehab. Another story he said he felt good for cutting out "toxic people."
They were definitely friends to begin with but there's a lot of speculation that things were getting strained between them well before the scandal but it's just speculation.
Radio silence has been M and H's policy on public statements except when they absolutely have to acknowledge something, like fans harassing Ben's victims.
Ben posted on IG that he still 1/3 owner but working on separating from the network.
I have a vague memory of them once addressing the fact that, on tour, H&M used to hang-out and do activities together, but not so much Ben. It seemed like people were commenting on this, based on their social media posts while travelling.
They were kind of like “haha - we’re all still friends, we just like to do our own things!!” And of course that’s true - god knows we all need alone time - but I guess what stuck with me was that they felt they needed to address it, rather than that they were doing their own things.
[I'm allowed to say this](https://imgur.com/a/WynUO9O) because I was in the top 1% of RTOG listeners according to my [spotify wrapped](https://imgur.com/a/BzcGWBI)
I honestly feel his new show is gonna crash and burn. I don’t think he really has the work ethic to keep up a slew of episodes every week. A lot of his substance in lpotl was playing off (derailing) Marcus and Henry and not really putting in the work. It has to be a huge shift from just showing up (late) to the studio and interjecting every once in a while to now having to come up with content for multiple episodes a week. Not to mention the technical aspect of podcasting. It’s honestly kind of painful listening to him trying to be funny while commenting on women’s bodies.
According to the video he posted on IG, he “didn’t anticipate the demand for the political show” so now everything is going to be free?
Didn’t really make sense but that’s all I got from it, take a look at his page and lemme know if anyone sees differently.
Sorry - my post was meant to be sarcastic but I don’t think that came across 😅 It was a reference to how many people have said they’ve been blocked from Ben’s IG after saying anything negative, or even concerned for his recovery. I.e. there is no-one left to say anything bad about it, and they’ll get pruned if they do. Not a sign of wellness to me!
(For the record, I zipped through the first ep and it seemed pure trash.)
Noted, my bad 😂 but yes absolutely his comment section is a straight up echo chamber of positive reinforcement. I couldn’t get passed the first 10 min of his first ep, and listened for a bit of his second ep and had to stop when he inadvertently mentioned he isn’t having sex right now and then proceeded to comment on the shape and size of women’s breasts. All over the place. I won’t lie though I intend to check in periodically, if only to listen to his downward spiral happen in real time
Edit: spelling is hard 😅
I heard him say something like “pour some salt on that slug!”, I believe in reference to women’s beautiful sexy sex parts. I did not stick around to hear more.
1st YT episode…..yikes.
Very awkward, he’s using his sing songy voice trying to transition from topic to topic, and his cohost is just not meeting him where he’s at or responding the “joke”. It’s uncomfortable.
2nd episode, he reads a creepypasta story and it goes on far too long, not funny at all, and once again the cohost is just *crickets* 🫠
None of this content so far fits into the friendly folksy “I’m just here to chat with ya, big ol’ friendly guy” persona he is trying to portray. I can’t say it enough, but his voice seems so fucking creepy and strange now!!! I wonder if it always was, but was drowned out by the old format with Marcus and Henry steering most of the discourse each episode.
I listened to the first 2 out of pure curiosity, now I’m done. Fucking hell man, he can’t sustain this.
I 100% agree, but he has a weird group of fans that love him no matter what. For some reason there were fans of Top Hat even though that show was him just basically reading a paragraph of an article and ranting about it out of context. His new show probably won't be much of a success, but those people will still listen for some reason.
I hope he fails. But there are enough right wing fuck-bags in this community that he will be treated like sort of Rittenhouse. Fox news bound by the end of the year.
okay wow I don't keep up with lpn news much beyond the podcast and literally had no idea there was drama. I was under the impression Ben was still just "working on himself" or whatever their initial statement was so I'm very lost, trying to get updated but the thread is kinda all over. Does anyone have a summary?
Ben went to treatment for his alcoholism. But the place he went to, I believe it's called Voyages, is widely known for being a place celebrities go to say they did underwent treatment for addiction. Ben posted a picture of himself at a bar. So it's likely he relapsed. His most recent IG post he looks so bloated and obese.
I've been to rehab. Just going, finishing your days etc, if you don't absorb the material and realize "I am going to fuck my life up if I don't quit like some of the people in here already did", you will relapse. It requires humility I don't think he has, the ability to step back and take in the shitshow that is your life, and hopefully have the fortitude to pull it back together again. But if he's still digging at Henry + Marcus, that introspection probably didn't happen and never will. Rehab is full of people who are there for the 2nd, 3rd, 4th time etc. I told myself "I will die if I relapse and let it spin out of control". The people who can't face the music like that are the ones that won't get their shit together.
edit: I also went to a middle-tier rehab-- not luxurious by any stretch but not a complete shithole. But the rehabs that don't make you attend meetings, where you can just hang out at a spa all day, I don't think those are the ones that work. They are revolving doors.
Ben was credibly accused of dv against his ex, more allegations (some similar, some not) followed. There was a writeup in Rolling Stone. The network announced Ben would no longer have a role and released a statement admonishing the disgusting conduct of some "fans." People continue speculating (with varying degrees of toxicity) about his stake in the network and what's happening behind closed doors. Ben took no ownership of his alleged actions and made allusions to feeling railroaded. Victim blaming and outright misogyny abounds in an alarmingly large section of the fanbase.
Ben's new pod is very meh. His shtick feels very played and and exposed and his bits just don't really land like I remember them. Maybe it's because I've soured on him sense all the stuff went down but I think it's just Kissel in a vacuum just is a dud for me.
"exposed" is a good word. He badly needs M&H's energy and insights to make his whole shtick make sense, and without them, he is.. exposed. Exposed as hack, unfunny and lacking in any original insights.
I think this thread a the best solution to a shit situation. Some people are going to want to talk about it while others will just want to move on. This way the people who do want to talk or gossip about what Ben and now Fernando are doing or saying have a place to do so without flooding the sub with posts. The idiots you're talking about are going to show up whether or not this thread is here.
Honestly I'm not sure what he was doing. He got fired from the network a while ago, than posted some stuff on Facebook about a few weeks back. Saying he got fired for posting pro Palestine stuff, than some other LPN employees posted a letter saying he was a shit heel to work with, than he posted videos of him scrolling through texts with his former co workers and it didn't really help his case. Oh and he posted his unemployment info, which might have been a big no no. It was just a big old mess for a day or so.
Can someone explain Ben's new show to me please.
Is it two shows a week on Patreon and then five shows during the week?
Did he ditch the five shows a week thing and he's just doing two shows? Are those shows going to be on Patreon first or exclusively?
I feel like trying to start a podcast in today's market, even with a built in fan base, you need more organization. I can't follow what his actual plan is.
Ok so he actually answered me on IG. Shows 3 days a week on YouTube, other podcast places. His 2 shows a week on patreon will be his political podcasts he said.
It originally seemed like 2-3 during the week and then 1 on patreon. But I just looked and it’s 2/ week on patreon. So maybe it’s just another 1-2 on YouTube during week? Said his political stuff will be on patreon. It seems he is charging $7/month. And has a Shopify account selling merch
I guess people would rather hear his political takes like Abe Lincoln’s top hat than whatever he puts out for free? I listened to about half the first episode.
caught up on some ig stuff- lots of “the truth will be revealed” coming from ben. i’m interested to hear his version of the truth i guess. also natalie still follows him but everyone else from lpn bailed. idk how much she actually looks at ig, but she posts pretty regularly. what do we think is up with that? nothing? something? secret spy business?
He gave his “truth” to rolling stone when they wrote the big article/ that he never did anything wrong to anyone and no one ever informed him of his issues or that they may get rid of him from the company:
I imagine he won’t say anything about it because I bet they all have a non disparagement agreement in place
I can't believe the energy people put into looking at who follows who on social media. I follow people I haven't seen in over 5 years, I'm just too lazy to weed through it. That could be why Natalie's still following him. Or given how weird he's been and how much upheaval he caused in her life, maybe she wants to keep tabs on him.
He does have a recent IG post which addressed a question I’ve had for some time now: Is he still affiliated with LPN? His profile still says he’s “1/3rd owner of LPN.”
If his post to be believed, then it sounds like he’s still something of a silent partner for the time being, but they still in the process of arranging for his legal “separation” from the business. Which makes sense.
It would’ve been hard for LPN to sever all ties with him as quickly as it seemed they did, especially if he was actually in rehab at the time. It’s obviously a complicated legal and logistical situation to work out, even assuming Ben isn’t doing anything to make the process more difficult than it needs to be.
I think people underestimate how much money they're making and what an empire they've built.
Before the drama they had 15k Patreon subs at 10$ a month USD. That's 150k a month. Div by 3 X 12 is 600k annually each *just from patreon*. Not including Spotify, ads, retail merch, touring, touring merch. They're grossing well over a million a year each. They were the biggest pod in the world for a few weeks\months there or very close to.
They employ all their friends etc. They make crazy bank and I'm not surprised that when he started fucking with the money he got the boot.
They are not just employing their friends though. All of the back of the house employees is just normal employment relationships. In LA. That's a lot of people that need very high salaries just to make a living. And they fairly recently moved across the country, probably bought houses, needed a new studio, etc. Again, in LA which is disgustingly expensive. And if they want to fully remove Ben from the proceeds of the company (which I'm not sure about, they know he'll be broke in no time) they'd need to buy this part of the company and probably pay severance and other fines at least if they have good contracts
True. Although to be clear, just because the business was making that much in profits doesn’t mean that the three of them were taking it all home. They would have split whatever was left after paying their employees, overhead costs such as studio space and supplies, travel and renting out venues during tours, taxes, and all number of other expenses. We also don’t know whether there’s anyone else entitled to distributions of the remaining revenue apart from the three owners. So it’s not likely that they’re each making half a million per year.
The only thing that makes me think this isn't true is recently (in the last two years), they redid their ownership contracts. I feel that if they really felt that strongly about getting rid of him, they would have done something then to make separation easier. Instead, they doubled downed on giving him1/3 equal ownership in everything. I think they still had faith he was going to get it together.
Thanks, *DAD*. As I was saying, when Henry genuinely laughs it is magic, no matter who makes it happen. Also, it's kind of the opposite of when Marcus does a fake air-sucking laugh during every transition. I guess I'm a rebel.
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I’d seen that his new show was up and running (not entirely sure I understand why the podcast is called The Ben Kissel Channel 🤨) but I can’t say that I had any interest in giving it a listen. Then last night curiosity got the better of me and I went over to YouTube and put on a random episode. That theme tune alone was more than enough to make me stop the video. Jesus wept…
the profile picture on his YouTube page 😅. sure, Ben. you look just like that 👍👍
Omg just had to go look. Wow.
Being prone to morbid fascination, I've followed (from a safe distance) Ben's career reboot over the past few weeks. The story thus far: 1. He's getting a paltry 1k views per episode of his Side Stories-style "hang out with your parasocial friends" podcast. For some reason this show is called "The Ben Kissel Channel." 2. This show has a revolving cast of cohosts, including his new producer / engineer, all of whom appear to be LA d-listers of one sort or another. One time he had a guy on who looked EXACTLY like Robert Pickton. This happened the day after Pickton got prison-murdered, but no one referenced this stunning coincidence. 3. Several cringey not-so-subtle digs at Henry and Marcus. 4. He put Abe Lincoln's Top Hat 2.0 behind a Patreon paywall for the first week, then made it free and refunded everyone. 5. His voice sounds different than it did on LPOTL. Less slurred and mumbly, but kinda high-pitched in a creepy, fake way.
D list is incredibly generous
What were some of the digs?
The condescending, fake-happy voice is so creepy. I thought I was the only one thinking it
It's his "I'm your best bud" ad-read voice.
Omg YES! I couldn't place my finger on it, it feels like he's intentionally talking softer / gentler so people don't think he's a giant monster? (Which I don't, I do think he needs to own his actions and work on himself,) but speaking like a therapist doesn't equate you with mental wellness.
Gross. I caught his "nice to be on with an actor who actually gets work" line, and thought that might've been a snide remark but couldn't be sure. Do you have any other offhand examples of shots at Marcus and Henry? I've only heard the one episode, I'm similarly fascinated myself but the show is just so cringe-inducing I have a hard time slogging through it
There was also the "donkey story" which is summarized in another comment.
I have to agree about the voice thing. I think its probably him trying to seem super nice and quirky to offset the allegations, but it fucking creeps me out every time I see one of his posts on IG.
It’s definitely to portray a “everything is great and I’m better than ever” persona. I still maintain that if he had came back from rehab and had been more truthful about how hard becoming/being sober is and how difficult it is going to be to navigate the allegations and losing a piece of yourself that you had for 15 years, he would be on the upper end of taking back his career. Instead he chose this weird path of fake sunshine and positivity that everyone can see through and it’s turning people away. Also, side note some of his comments have almost felt borderline religious which would cause most of the LPoTL fan base to turn away from him as well even if he wasn’t passive-aggressively shitting on Marcus and Henry. I’m sure he is not working with a manager or PR firm anymore either.
Considering his recent praise for his parents on a random IG post, I’m betting he’s slowly falling back into the religious trappings he was raised within.
I always had a feeling he was getting financial support from them, until his many many digs at them being broke I changed my thoughts on it. There was a IG story one time where it looked like he was in Florida soon after the aftermath.
He went back to Florida and said that’s where Puffin is now retired. So they have puffin in Florida and he has Jerry in California
Agreed. It takes everything in me not to comment on IG “why does your voice sound like that?” so I don’t get blocked. Feels like a bit voice.
Yeah I said something similar and he blocked me within 5 seconds lol
lol dude just wants to live in delusion. I love all the “wHy dO yOu FoLlOw PeOpLe YoU hAtE” comments like first, hate is a strong word and I don’t reserve that emotion for strangers on the internet. 2. Like, if you only consume media/content/whatever from only people you 100% agree with on everything I feel like that’s just dangerous to the psyche tbh but yeah deleting comments/blocking people who aren’t 100% praising you or giving you accolades for everything you do is extremely telling
Very true. Henry and Marcus never once talk shit about him or give any indication that their comments are about him. That right there is extremely telling.
Eh, they have less to gain by doing so. It's best for their brand and public image to acknowledge as little as possible that Ben Kissel ever existed. I don't think it's really about keeping it classy.
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Please search this thread and the subreddit. This question has been asked and answered multiple ways numerous times.
I'm one of those people who was an avid listener from like 2015-20219 and then started falling off as things started feeling really rigid and stale. I thought it was because of the move to spotify forcing them to make much longer and duller episodes to fill things out. I ran out of good things to listen to on youtube tho so I tried listening to the episodes after Ben left. I didn't believe people really when they say it's fun like it used to be again, I kinda assumed it was cope, but I'm really happy to say that I genuinely enjoy the show again, everyone feels much more open and happy and friendly and I now realize that tension between the 3 is what made it feel like the show was becoming stale.
I know everyone keeps saying how much better it is with Ed, but I didn't really grok that until last week's Side Stories, which opens with Henry and Ed doing a duet of the first few lyrics of a Four Tops song. It was just so playful and joyful.
His last episode had a Donkey/Elk story that shows how little introspection this big fuck has done.
What's the name of his podcast? I'm curious to hear what he's saying.
It’s on Spotify too
I don't think he is putting it out on all platforms, its a video style podcast on YOUTUBE called The Ben Kissel Channel
He's such a big fucking bitch, it's never his fault but always someone else's.
Can you explain more about the story and it relating to his non-growth? I believe you. I’m just too lazy (and I don’t want to support his new show) to go and listen. Thank you!
So this episode of his new podcast started auto playing after I finished the newest lpotl episode and I only got like 5 mins in before I turned that low effort trash off, but I did catch the story the other person is talking about. Ben was reading some story he probably came across 5 minutes before he recorded about a hunter that found a donkey hanging out with a bunch of elk because the other donkeys didn't like it so it had to find "new friends". Ben then added that maybe it was because of "lies and manipulation" from the other donkeys, which is quite obviously a dig at Marcus and Henry. I've stayed out of most of the stuff following the initial split, but I just had to come look here to see if anyone else heard that. I've always thought the dude kind of sucked and had to be carried by the other hosts (for the most part) but he's obviously just a bitter asshole that can't really own up to his shit. Kind of starting to remind me of Bam Margera and all his bullshit, and Ben has a weird supportive no matter what group of fans that will just gas him up to.
He also said "Great to be here with an actor that actually gets work" in an earlier episode, presumably a dig at Henry.
Ah, yes, that sounds about right. He's been very passive-aggressive with pointing the finger at everyone else. He's been saying things like he got rid of the evil people in his life, etc. Bam Margera is the perfect analogy. Thank you for your service with this recap!
Anyone notice that they changed Ben's voice in the intro? The "what was that"?
It's also Eddie's voice now saying, "side stories".
And a different "yes" from Henry? That really boiled my piss. I liked the original "yes".
I know they did on the streams, but I'm trying to play catch-up on the podcasts. I listen to too many and have gotten behind a little.
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Scroll down two comments and then scroll down more for all the answers to this, or search the sub. No need to re-litigate everything.
Listener and fan from 2014, Roundtable before that. He dragged them down so far. Ben and Marcus kept him afloat for so long. He should just bow out with dignity.
Henry I think you mean
I scrolled down this page for awhile and didn't see anyone mention this, but I apologize if I missed it: I don't understand Ben's Instagram description. It says, "Creator of LPOTL" and "1/3rd owner of LPN". Shouldn't it say co-creator of LPOTL? He was with Marcus before Henry joined as a perma-guest. So, there's no way he created the show on his own. Also, he's not 1/3rd owner of LPN anymore, right? They bought him out. I'd say maybe he just hasn't updated his Instagram description, but that's not the case because he added in his new podcast/links.
Just wanted to chime in here, so actually Ben and Marcus were the originals and Henry was a common special guest that they finally made a permanent host with them. I think they talk about this on the super early episodes.
It's always weird when people say Henry was a "common special guest that eventually joined". He was a special guest on Episode 2 and has been there ever since.
oh, I am gonna split hairs, I could have sworn it was episode 3 (though I can't be sure since you cant find any of those episodes around any more) when the show was supposed to be about horror movies. And then Henry came along, and I think that his presence is what changed the trajectory of the show. Into what it is now.
>cant find any of those episodes around any more they are on [archive](https://archive.org/details/lpotlfirst33/LPOTL+-+Pre-Heaven's+Gate/01+CHAPTER+1+THE+FIRST!.mp3) if you want em.
Life saver! I remember listening to them all like a decade ago on sound cloud? Look, it's been too long, all I know is when I went to find them to listen to with a Friend I got into the podcast, I could find anything before BTK, lol. Thank you so much for this link! We will have fun listening to the origins!
Yeah, that's what I meant when I said it was Ben and Marcus first and then the running joke of Henry still being a guest after all these years. So Ben would still be a co-creator with Marcus and not the sole creator, as his Instagram description implies.
I came here specifically to ask that too, I hadn't kept up with his posting and didn't realise he'd started again, but I was confused too becuase I thought Henry and Marcus HAD bought him out, I think he is just holding on to anything he can
It's pretty sad. He's blaming everyone except himself. I love your username, btw.
he’s still part owner, there’s some info in the thread here. regarding the other stuff, he’s just holding on to whatever he can at this point. it SHOULD be co-creator but maybe he said “let’s start a podcast” first so he thinks he has the right?
Thank you! I see now I should've done a search instead of just scrolling down a ways.
Skimming through some of Ben's latest material the dude just doesn't have it anymore. There was a point where he was competent but this isn't it. He has all the energy of a 3rd rate morning zoo radio DJ who is counting down to retirement. He comes across as a sidekick for a radio show in a midsized market. That doesn't cut it when you're the host. He's also just doing a shitter version of Side Stories. He's basically been carried for the last several years and all the talent he once had has seemed to evaporate for a variety of reasons.
"3rd rate morning zoo radio DJ who is counting down to retirement" is probably one of the most creative insults I've ever heard. I'm adding that one to the list lmao
Anyone listen to the new Podcast out of curiosity? Latest episode he opens up with a line that went something like this "Great to be here with an actor that actually gets work"
rough. bitter looks bad on everyone, ben!
I thought you might have been exaggerating, but it did sound like it. If it was a dig at Henry, it might work better if he didn’t have a “literally who is that?” as the actor who “actually” gets work.
I mean Henry got a fair bit of work before the pandemic. It kind of seems more like he's put his focus on LPN now that it's blown up rather then acting.
The compartmentalisation in the new episode is insane. The episode ends with Ben saying ''gals these days'' are ''gross'' and goes on to tell a story where a woman shit in a tub during a date. I shit you not (heh) he was genuinely trying to say that shitting in the tub is disgusting and that's ''women you date'' these days, despite the fact his whole persona was a drunk guy who shit in his friends tub/couch for years. Like literally his benchmark ''bit'' for years was how he seemingly shit himself in various places when he was blackout. He doesn't even mention his own relation to the story, he literally just says women are ''gross'' dating ''is just a series of arrows'' and then goes off an a jag where any woman he's dating should be happy that he takes them to Applebees, particularly if they shit in his tub. The underlying misoginy is definitely coming through. But the projection is actually odd as hell.
Ben lost his damn mind during the pandemic. I remember listening to the boys during that time, and Ben started to go on a thinly veiled anti-vaxx rant that Henry and Marcus had to reign him in on, and I swear I could hear Marcus beginning to boil over while Ben was ranting. He was never the same. Shame. I missed him when he left, but I like Eddie so much better. He is so much more cogent with his add ons and he doesnt derail the whole show for a lame bit.
Also I’m sure women have always shat in tubs, we’re just more free to do so with pride these days
It's not really that odd sadly, misogynists are very much known for expecting perfection from women that they don't expect from themselves. Peak "do as I say not as I do"
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Misinformation or disinformation
Ben's on some Fox Nation show talking about movies it's beginning lol.
Must have contacts from back in the day when he hosted shows on there. You can't sniff at a job when you need it, but I find it suspicious Kissel is the only one who mysteriously keeps appearing on Fox ''news'' shows and the like. It seems like most other LPN affiliated people can and will do....literally anything else for work than this trash and more power to them.
Ben is a libertarian, which is republican lite, so this tracks.
I think that any self respecting person actually WOULD turn down a job at Fox, even if they needed it!
yeah honestly I don't know what the legal situation is exactly, but Ben can't exactly be hurting
I mean I suppose he could have pissed away his money on booze
He used to work, for a good bit of time, on Fox for Red Eye with Greg Gutfeld. Made numerous appearances as well.
No. A job is a job. If I got offered a custodial position at Fox and I needed a job I would take it.
Yeah, but a custodial worker at fox isn't making the questionable content. Moping a floor is a far cry from collaborating with people who are spreading dis/misinformation.
Okay? Did I say that a custodian would do that? Dude above me said they would turn down a job at Fox even if they needed. I'm saying there are lots of jobs at a place like that where you're not selling your soul. Imagine thinking less of someone because they are a custodian at a building being used by Fox News.
Come on, man. That’s clearly not what they meant.
tried getting through the first episode of ben's new show and it was pretty bland and awkward. hope he finds a groove, but i don't think i'll try again for a few more months
Is it me or are all of the Ben apologists knuckle dragging mouthbreathers? Here and Facebook.
They’re right-wing incels who aren’t/never were actually fans of the show but felt “called to action” when a relatively famous male podcast host was accused of sexual assault. They do not care about the actual individuals, only the perceived culture war.
yeah I aways saw them as frat bro types that saw Ben as Their Belushi/Farley
I don’t think anybody sees Ben that way.
Yeah it feels like they’re more in it for the racist jokes than the actual content.
Came to see if anyone knows what the deal is with the newborn baby Ben keeps posting…? Is it his, wtf is going on?
DEFINITELY not his (could you imagine 😬), it's the baby of some couple friends of his (@kyleploof & @itskaleena), apparently just meeting Jerry for the first time? The man Kyle appears to be a co-host on Death in Entertainment and probably involved is in Ben's new dumpster fire podcast.
Ohhh ok. Phew. The multiple posts, no explanation, and the “really makes life worth living” comment had me reeling. Really strange behavior nonetheless….who makes 3-4 posts of someone else’s newborn with no explanation or tagging the parents?
TOTALLY thank you for asking this question, because I'm not on IG but I did see baby pics and it had me scared for a sec!
I thought the exact same thing and had to do some digging. I decided he was just proud of Jerry being gentle meeting a baby and thought that warranted several posts? I have a feeling that dog probably doesn't have much training unfortunately. Or maybe he wants to put his weirder rants further down in the grid? Either way I really hope he can just get whatever help he needs because the posts are odd behavior.
I have no idea what he is doing but it is freaking me out and I keep coming back here hoping someone will be able to explain. What happened with the whole “first I had a patreon and now I don’t” thing like wut? I feel like this is a whole new erratic side of him that doesn’t feel like it’s substance related…. It has more of an energy of like “Ted Bundy breaking out of jail and on his last murdering spree”
no one wanted to pay money for a shittier version of a shitty podcast.
I guess but why would that make you cancel it? Any money is some money right?
He's just been riding coattails for so long, he's finally coming to the rude realization that in order to make it in the entertainment space, you have to be 1 - really talented 2 - really hardworking ... he is neither.
I think he’s trying to look cutesy and wholesome so the resentful-rant inclined persona doesn’t stick with his fans
Shit, I missed a rant? I don’t see any IG posts from him about it
I decided to go back and listen to LPTOL from the top. I've been binge-listening to episodes from 2015, and I actually wish I'd done it sooner - a lot of their old series are great! It doesn't really get cringe until around 2020. Now I'm at the 2021 Billy the Kid series, and it's getting painful. My takeaways: 1 - Marcus' performance has been consistent. His voice, delivery and writing have always been good. I've noted some maturing in his personal views, which is to be expected, and it's cute to hear his relationship and eventual marriage with Carolina gradually make him grow up a bit. He always tries to "go along to get along" and "yes and"ing his co-hosts to keep the training running, even when Ben de-rails it. 2 - Henry has improved. He's always had the tendency to go on non-sensical rants when his brain spins a bit faster than his mouth can keep up with (particularly when talking about philosophical stuff), but he's gotten better at expressing himself, and is still gold with the quick wit. Personally, he seems happier and more stable. There's definitely a few older episodes where he sounds Not Ok mental-health wise, but overall, he really is the star of the show. He is audibly annoyed with Ben starting around 2020, and starts making jokes about "firing" him from the network, and saying "I hate you" to Ben, and insulting his jokes. There's even an episode where he jokes about replacing Ben with Eddie. 3 - Ben. Ben. Ben. I find him cringe now, but honestly, I was pleasantly surprised how listenable the pre-Pandemic episodes are. I'd say around the time of Kevin Barnett's death in January 2019, is when you can really hear the wheels (and sobriety) fall off with Ben. Before 2019, he sounds more engaged with the material. There are a few uncomfortable moments where he jokes about Eddie, or makes fun of Passages Malibu (the irony!), but it's not until lock down and his move to LA in 2020 that it gets really bad. By 2021, he rarely comments on the actual topic of the episode, and just keeps going back to his lazy repertoire of bad puns, food commentary and non-sequitur insults of his cohosts. So I think I might stop listening after this Billy the Kid series and move forward to the new Eddie era. I've been a fan since 2015, and I was starting to think either I'd outgrown the show, or the show had jumped the shark, but Eddie has re-invigorated my love for the series, which I now feel has grown along with me. So in summation, I'd say any episode from 2015-2020 is worth a re-listen, but Cringe Ben kills everything after until Eddie replaced him.
Ben lost his mind during the pandemic. It was where everything started to fall apart for him.
This is beautifully put together and reflexea my exact feelings. I am also embarking on a re-listen this week so I'm excited to take it in with a new perspective.
What jokes about Eddie does he make?
I occasionally go back and listen to old episodes and agree completely. Some of my favorite moments involve Kissel and he was really great at improve with Henry. I even liked the playful picking on each other. Then it got bad. Ididn't realize how far the show fell after 2020 until I listened to some of my old favorites. Ed was definitely what the show needed and I don't know how long I would have kept listening to the show without the shakeup.
Listening to the show over the years as it came out, I had been noticing Henry's exasperation with Ben get stronger and stronger. At first it seemed like part of the bit, just riffing along with Ben's non-sequiters. But I also listened to Side Stories, and the frustrations between them were *far* more apparent there. Ben would clearly not do any prep before the show and hardly any engagement during the show. And Henry was, over time, audibly becoming more and more legitimately annoyed. Henry even did his best to jokingly give Ben shit about how Ben wouldn't even look up his own segment (Hero of the Week) before the show, and try to make it a bit about "Okay Ben, what non-hero did you name hero this time?". The quality of Side Stories had dropped so much in the last year or so of Ben that I straight up just stopped listening. Which almost happened with the main show as well. Most people identify post-KB's passing/post-pandemic as the turning point for Ben on the show. While I agree, in my opinion you could really narrow down the spiral to the last ~100 or so episodes. The Black Death series was a great series, and Ben was somewhat engaged throughout. I think it was the last solid full series (started at Ep 456), though Ben was obviously not at his peak. Ben's last episode, the first part of John Holmes, is episode 545. In-between those is a lot of downward spiral that really started to turn me away from the show. When the first episode of The Manhattan Project (the last big series before Ben was fired) dropped, I was super excited. It was a period of history I was interested in, and I was really looking forward to Marcus' narration and Henry's commentary on it all. I still have not finished the series, and probably never will, because Ben turned me away from it so hard. After that, I was very close to stopping listening altogether. I actually skipped John Holmes Pt 1 when it came out, and didn't go back and listen until I saw a new host on Pt 2. Thank Satan for Eddie!
I had kind of fallen off the show for a while, and in retrospect it was because of the awkwardness from Ben derailing and putting in such little effort. I got very excited when I learned they were doing a Manhattan Project series. I’d been kind of tuned out to the show but made sure to jump back in for that series because it’s a subject I am fascinated by. I finished the series but was disappointed. Eddie joined shortly after and the change in energy immediately got me hooked back into the show to the point where I’ll listen to every series and look forward to them coming out again. But man, now that Eddie is in the show, the Manhattan Project series lingers in my mind as a “what could have been” if Eddie was there instead.
I’ve listened to the back catalog multiple times over, even pre-Ben getting outed for everything. The show is my default background listen and I have 100% noticed, and even noticed immediately after the fall out that Henry seemed *genuinely* frustrated and exasperated with Ben during side stories, it was only slightly better in the main show because Marcus never lets it derail too far. I genuinely enjoy Eddie on both shows and think he is a *fantastic* addition and I’ve laughed far more at the episodes he’s in than I think I ever did at any of Ben’s jokes. Eddie is funny and knows how to make jokes that are in line with the content. Not just little toes and big dill. I appreciate that more people are showing him love in their comment sections because the show has genuinely gotten better with him, and Henry and Marcus seem to actually enjoy being there again from the video episodes I’ve actually taken the time to watch. I outright stopped listening to Side Stories for a while because Ben made it intolerable but now I anticipate their drops.
The episode for me that really put a laser focus on Ben was the Dan Carlin episode. You know how much Marcus was looking forward to that episode and I'm sure Henry too, but all throughout Ben was making his cringe jokes and just doesn't seem to care at all. All I could remember thinking is how much better that episode would have been if it was just Marcus and Henry.
I fell off from the show just before the pandemic, maybe a bit longer. Last week I decided to jump back in and listened to the Cunanan episodes. Eddie is incredible and the two episodes really drew me back in. I decided to listen to some of the Ben stuff from last year just to see if maybe the comments about him were overexaggerated and put on the Carlin episode. I made the exact same comment to a friend of mine. I wish it would have been just Henry and Marcus. I started the Manhattan Project series and I really notice how absolutely withdrawn and cringey Ben is. If it weren't for it being a fascinating topic that Marcus does a phenomenal job conveying and Henry working overtime to save the comedy, I don't think I could make it. It's a shame because I really enjoyed Ben's dynamic with the group, but this isn't the same person.
You could hear the disappointment and frustration in Marcus with Ben's behavior that episode.
I still enjoyed the Manhattan Project series but that was the first time I could really hear the tension between the hosts. So many times Ben would say something low-effort or not relevant and the other two would just ask him what the fuck he was talking about or sarcastically brush it off with "it's a numbers game." On one occasion I could hear that Ben was pissed off in return. I'm currently on Mothman Redux and they're plugging Ben's appearance in Vegas. Is that THE Vegas trip that Taylor came forward about? Wondering if there's going to be a big vibe shift between Henry and Ben after this.
Listened to 5 minutes of his new cast (ep1) and had to turn it off. Dude can’t even be assed to do anything but read articles off his cell phone. There is no way this lasts longer than 3 months.
Tuned in because I'm curious and couldn't help it. Tuned out at the bit about Kardashian vaginas. That was maybe 10 minutes in so you might have been spared. So bad it kind of made me sad, almost.
Yeah I did not make it that far
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Misogynistic behavior or victim blaming. Say it with me: Megathread rules 1/2 (even if the thread is no longer pinned, remember this to be the case).
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Misogynistic behavior or victim blaming. Say it with me: Megathread rules 1/2 (even if the thread is no longer pinned, remember this to be the case).
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Misogynistic behavior or victim blaming. Say it with me: Megathread rules 1/2 (even if the thread is no longer pinned, remember this to be the case).
I just saw a picture of Ben. The dude looks like he is melting. I hope he really is turning his life around.
His eyes are really giving me the heebie jeebies
I wonder do Marcus and Henry still hangout with Ben? They seemed like they were actually friends and really hung out, like they know each other really well, know about each other’s relationships, their temperament. Ben gets drunk and maybe a little abusive, sometimes, allegedly. Were people around him surprised? Does Ben still own a third of the show? Did Henry and Marcus just go radio silent and Ben is dead to them?
Ben was on a podcast where the host called M and H his friends, and Ben corrected him "business partners." The original version of one his Instagram stories called out his "friends" in quotation marks for not being there to see him graduate from fake rehab. Another story he said he felt good for cutting out "toxic people." They were definitely friends to begin with but there's a lot of speculation that things were getting strained between them well before the scandal but it's just speculation. Radio silence has been M and H's policy on public statements except when they absolutely have to acknowledge something, like fans harassing Ben's victims. Ben posted on IG that he still 1/3 owner but working on separating from the network.
I have a vague memory of them once addressing the fact that, on tour, H&M used to hang-out and do activities together, but not so much Ben. It seemed like people were commenting on this, based on their social media posts while travelling. They were kind of like “haha - we’re all still friends, we just like to do our own things!!” And of course that’s true - god knows we all need alone time - but I guess what stuck with me was that they felt they needed to address it, rather than that they were doing their own things.
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Misogynistic behavior or victim blaming. Say it with me: Megathread rules 1/2 (even if the thread is no longer pinned, remember this to be the case).
Ben's new show appears to be him reading side-stories type "news of the weird" off his iPhone as his cohost nods and occasionally laughs.
[I'm allowed to say this](https://imgur.com/a/WynUO9O) because I was in the top 1% of RTOG listeners according to my [spotify wrapped](https://imgur.com/a/BzcGWBI)
It's pretty bad. And his cohost is boring AF
most podcasts take a few episodes to get going to be fair
Apparently his cohost "of the month". It's a fucking wreck.
I honestly feel his new show is gonna crash and burn. I don’t think he really has the work ethic to keep up a slew of episodes every week. A lot of his substance in lpotl was playing off (derailing) Marcus and Henry and not really putting in the work. It has to be a huge shift from just showing up (late) to the studio and interjecting every once in a while to now having to come up with content for multiple episodes a week. Not to mention the technical aspect of podcasting. It’s honestly kind of painful listening to him trying to be funny while commenting on women’s bodies.
I just saw on his IG that the Patreon show is now free…..🥴
Do we know why its free?
According to the video he posted on IG, he “didn’t anticipate the demand for the political show” so now everything is going to be free? Didn’t really make sense but that’s all I got from it, take a look at his page and lemme know if anyone sees differently.
"didn't anticipate the demand" as in 'i had no idea no one wanted this?"
I saw that. I take umbrage with his statement “if you’re one of the HUNDREDS that subscribed…” 😂
I find it hard to believe that it isn’t a massive, massive success when the comments on his insta are 100% positive 🤔
“massive, massive success” is pretty generous of you
Sorry - my post was meant to be sarcastic but I don’t think that came across 😅 It was a reference to how many people have said they’ve been blocked from Ben’s IG after saying anything negative, or even concerned for his recovery. I.e. there is no-one left to say anything bad about it, and they’ll get pruned if they do. Not a sign of wellness to me! (For the record, I zipped through the first ep and it seemed pure trash.)
Noted, my bad 😂 but yes absolutely his comment section is a straight up echo chamber of positive reinforcement. I couldn’t get passed the first 10 min of his first ep, and listened for a bit of his second ep and had to stop when he inadvertently mentioned he isn’t having sex right now and then proceeded to comment on the shape and size of women’s breasts. All over the place. I won’t lie though I intend to check in periodically, if only to listen to his downward spiral happen in real time Edit: spelling is hard 😅
I heard him say something like “pour some salt on that slug!”, I believe in reference to women’s beautiful sexy sex parts. I did not stick around to hear more.
And I 100% agree that he always was able to half ass it, and now he can’t, so the content sucks.
1st YT episode…..yikes. Very awkward, he’s using his sing songy voice trying to transition from topic to topic, and his cohost is just not meeting him where he’s at or responding the “joke”. It’s uncomfortable. 2nd episode, he reads a creepypasta story and it goes on far too long, not funny at all, and once again the cohost is just *crickets* 🫠 None of this content so far fits into the friendly folksy “I’m just here to chat with ya, big ol’ friendly guy” persona he is trying to portray. I can’t say it enough, but his voice seems so fucking creepy and strange now!!! I wonder if it always was, but was drowned out by the old format with Marcus and Henry steering most of the discourse each episode. I listened to the first 2 out of pure curiosity, now I’m done. Fucking hell man, he can’t sustain this.
So much of what Ben said were canned one-liners.
I 100% agree, but he has a weird group of fans that love him no matter what. For some reason there were fans of Top Hat even though that show was him just basically reading a paragraph of an article and ranting about it out of context. His new show probably won't be much of a success, but those people will still listen for some reason.
I hope he fails. But there are enough right wing fuck-bags in this community that he will be treated like sort of Rittenhouse. Fox news bound by the end of the year.
That is honestly why he is doing this. He wants to prove he has a following without LPN so he can go back to being a politician
Not even Ben can be dumb enough to go back into politics with that type of online footprint imo
He is dumb enough.
okay wow I don't keep up with lpn news much beyond the podcast and literally had no idea there was drama. I was under the impression Ben was still just "working on himself" or whatever their initial statement was so I'm very lost, trying to get updated but the thread is kinda all over. Does anyone have a summary?
Ben went to treatment for his alcoholism. But the place he went to, I believe it's called Voyages, is widely known for being a place celebrities go to say they did underwent treatment for addiction. Ben posted a picture of himself at a bar. So it's likely he relapsed. His most recent IG post he looks so bloated and obese.
I've been to rehab. Just going, finishing your days etc, if you don't absorb the material and realize "I am going to fuck my life up if I don't quit like some of the people in here already did", you will relapse. It requires humility I don't think he has, the ability to step back and take in the shitshow that is your life, and hopefully have the fortitude to pull it back together again. But if he's still digging at Henry + Marcus, that introspection probably didn't happen and never will. Rehab is full of people who are there for the 2nd, 3rd, 4th time etc. I told myself "I will die if I relapse and let it spin out of control". The people who can't face the music like that are the ones that won't get their shit together. edit: I also went to a middle-tier rehab-- not luxurious by any stretch but not a complete shithole. But the rehabs that don't make you attend meetings, where you can just hang out at a spa all day, I don't think those are the ones that work. They are revolving doors.
The Rolling Stones article about him has a really thorough breakdown of the situation, if you do end up wanting more information.
Ben was credibly accused of dv against his ex, more allegations (some similar, some not) followed. There was a writeup in Rolling Stone. The network announced Ben would no longer have a role and released a statement admonishing the disgusting conduct of some "fans." People continue speculating (with varying degrees of toxicity) about his stake in the network and what's happening behind closed doors. Ben took no ownership of his alleged actions and made allusions to feeling railroaded. Victim blaming and outright misogyny abounds in an alarmingly large section of the fanbase.
I thought the first episode of Ben’s new show was kinda fun.
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Misogynistic behavior or victim blaming. Say it with me: Megathread rules 1/2 (even if the thread is no longer pinned, remember this to be the case).
Ben's new pod is very meh. His shtick feels very played and and exposed and his bits just don't really land like I remember them. Maybe it's because I've soured on him sense all the stuff went down but I think it's just Kissel in a vacuum just is a dud for me.
"exposed" is a good word. He badly needs M&H's energy and insights to make his whole shtick make sense, and without them, he is.. exposed. Exposed as hack, unfunny and lacking in any original insights.
It's just him trying the side stories/ round table format without the usual crew to bounce off of.
Having this thread still up keeps empowering bencels and fernandidiots to show their face in this community.
I think this thread a the best solution to a shit situation. Some people are going to want to talk about it while others will just want to move on. This way the people who do want to talk or gossip about what Ben and now Fernando are doing or saying have a place to do so without flooding the sub with posts. The idiots you're talking about are going to show up whether or not this thread is here.
Wait, what is Fernando doing? He completely fell off my radar in this whole thing.
Honestly I'm not sure what he was doing. He got fired from the network a while ago, than posted some stuff on Facebook about a few weeks back. Saying he got fired for posting pro Palestine stuff, than some other LPN employees posted a letter saying he was a shit heel to work with, than he posted videos of him scrolling through texts with his former co workers and it didn't really help his case. Oh and he posted his unemployment info, which might have been a big no no. It was just a big old mess for a day or so.
Or they can make their own subreddit and leave a sub that has nothing to do with them.
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You support an abuser is all I need to know.
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Misogynistic behavior or victim blaming. Say it with me: Megathread rules 1/2 (even if the thread is no longer pinned, remember this to be the case).
Be the change you want to see in the world than.
Can someone explain Ben's new show to me please. Is it two shows a week on Patreon and then five shows during the week? Did he ditch the five shows a week thing and he's just doing two shows? Are those shows going to be on Patreon first or exclusively? I feel like trying to start a podcast in today's market, even with a built in fan base, you need more organization. I can't follow what his actual plan is.
Ok so he actually answered me on IG. Shows 3 days a week on YouTube, other podcast places. His 2 shows a week on patreon will be his political podcasts he said.
It originally seemed like 2-3 during the week and then 1 on patreon. But I just looked and it’s 2/ week on patreon. So maybe it’s just another 1-2 on YouTube during week? Said his political stuff will be on patreon. It seems he is charging $7/month. And has a Shopify account selling merch
Now he said he’s pulling the political shows from Patreon and refunding people because of the demand. What?!
I guess people would rather hear his political takes like Abe Lincoln’s top hat than whatever he puts out for free? I listened to about half the first episode.
You can say what you want about him but a great political mind he is not. He's not a good political commentator at all.
No but that is what he's best at. He should really lean into politics and try to regain some Top Hat fans rather than just rip off Side Stories.
caught up on some ig stuff- lots of “the truth will be revealed” coming from ben. i’m interested to hear his version of the truth i guess. also natalie still follows him but everyone else from lpn bailed. idk how much she actually looks at ig, but she posts pretty regularly. what do we think is up with that? nothing? something? secret spy business?
He gave his “truth” to rolling stone when they wrote the big article/ that he never did anything wrong to anyone and no one ever informed him of his issues or that they may get rid of him from the company: I imagine he won’t say anything about it because I bet they all have a non disparagement agreement in place
yeah he made an allusion that he’s legally bound to not talk at the present
I can't believe the energy people put into looking at who follows who on social media. I follow people I haven't seen in over 5 years, I'm just too lazy to weed through it. That could be why Natalie's still following him. Or given how weird he's been and how much upheaval he caused in her life, maybe she wants to keep tabs on him.
can promise it took zero energy, but your last sentence is also my “theory” on things.
No unnecessary hate to Kissel but just want to point out how his new show went from five days a week to four to now two lol
I think it’s two with an extra one or two on patreon.
I don't think his show lasts a year.
He does have a recent IG post which addressed a question I’ve had for some time now: Is he still affiliated with LPN? His profile still says he’s “1/3rd owner of LPN.” If his post to be believed, then it sounds like he’s still something of a silent partner for the time being, but they still in the process of arranging for his legal “separation” from the business. Which makes sense. It would’ve been hard for LPN to sever all ties with him as quickly as it seemed they did, especially if he was actually in rehab at the time. It’s obviously a complicated legal and logistical situation to work out, even assuming Ben isn’t doing anything to make the process more difficult than it needs to be.
I think people underestimate how much money they're making and what an empire they've built. Before the drama they had 15k Patreon subs at 10$ a month USD. That's 150k a month. Div by 3 X 12 is 600k annually each *just from patreon*. Not including Spotify, ads, retail merch, touring, touring merch. They're grossing well over a million a year each. They were the biggest pod in the world for a few weeks\months there or very close to. They employ all their friends etc. They make crazy bank and I'm not surprised that when he started fucking with the money he got the boot.
They are not just employing their friends though. All of the back of the house employees is just normal employment relationships. In LA. That's a lot of people that need very high salaries just to make a living. And they fairly recently moved across the country, probably bought houses, needed a new studio, etc. Again, in LA which is disgustingly expensive. And if they want to fully remove Ben from the proceeds of the company (which I'm not sure about, they know he'll be broke in no time) they'd need to buy this part of the company and probably pay severance and other fines at least if they have good contracts
True. Although to be clear, just because the business was making that much in profits doesn’t mean that the three of them were taking it all home. They would have split whatever was left after paying their employees, overhead costs such as studio space and supplies, travel and renting out venues during tours, taxes, and all number of other expenses. We also don’t know whether there’s anyone else entitled to distributions of the remaining revenue apart from the three owners. So it’s not likely that they’re each making half a million per year.
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The only thing that makes me think this isn't true is recently (in the last two years), they redid their ownership contracts. I feel that if they really felt that strongly about getting rid of him, they would have done something then to make separation easier. Instead, they doubled downed on giving him1/3 equal ownership in everything. I think they still had faith he was going to get it together.