Invisibilia Podcast Review

The online world is saturated with podcasts. That’s why finding a good one is so difficult.

Serial, a product of This American Life from NPR, caught on and spread throughout the online world. Serial‘s first season is done, but what can replace it?

Enter Invisibilia. Another product from NPR. Invisibilia looks at our thoughts, ideas, beliefs in an attempt to explain why we are the way we are.

Comparing Invisibilia to Serial isn’t ideal, nor is it accurate. The two shows focus on different things. Serial was a true crime story. Invisibilia wants to explore our brains and behaviors.

While both podcasts are different, they aim for the same goal: entertainment.

The first episode of Invisibilia starts on the right foot. Co-hosted by Alix Spiegel and Lulu Miller, the first episode told two tales. “S” who was deeply troubled by thoughts of murder and Martin Pistorius, a man whose body shut down, but was still aware of what was happening around him.

Both tales are told in This American Life style. Plenty of interviews, ambient background noise, and light on the opinion. It balances the right levels of brevity and description.

I love this style of storytelling. I don’t know how they do it, but the emotion really comes through in the stories. That’s what sets these podcasts apart from others. The audience is listening to more than a conversation.

Even though Invisibilia does a fine job with their first episode, I can’t tell you this is going to step into the large shoes Serial left vacant.

But there’s promise with this show. There’s promise and potential to hear some very unique stories.

You can listen to Invisibilia from their webpage on Fridays.