Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: Lino and Father Rob's reflection on how far more people follow the Twitter account dedicated to Angelina Jolie's right leg than anything associated with the Church was amusing. Even more amusing was the catfight they had over Father Rob's use of cologne and whether or not one would be expected to be served food eaten with hands at the Archbishop's residence.
Lows: Nothing stood out, but we're a bit disappointed that our "highs" ended up being side discussions rather than the main topics du jour.
Our take: The show was funny enough to merit a "B", but did it using "C" grade material. So we'll split the difference and call it a day.
Grade: B-
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Show review for 2/27/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: Father Rob going off on the seriousness of the Oscars (and Lino disagreeing with him) was yet another classic example of good show material coming from arguments between the hosts. And Lino and Father Rob's deconstruction of Lino's fish-out-of-water appearance on the Fox New religion panel was highly entertaining.
Lows: Catholic Pyramid was a good idea that quickly devolved into a train wreck... even though the later contestants finally got the hang of it, the whole segment was still painful to listen to.
Our take: A good show, but not a great one.
Grade: B
Highs: Father Rob going off on the seriousness of the Oscars (and Lino disagreeing with him) was yet another classic example of good show material coming from arguments between the hosts. And Lino and Father Rob's deconstruction of Lino's fish-out-of-water appearance on the Fox New religion panel was highly entertaining.
Lows: Catholic Pyramid was a good idea that quickly devolved into a train wreck... even though the later contestants finally got the hang of it, the whole segment was still painful to listen to.
Our take: A good show, but not a great one.
Grade: B
Monday, February 27, 2012
Show review for 2/24/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: As has become somewhat of a trend, the best parts of the show were the ones where Lino and Father Rob went off on each other... specifically, the Lenten Loophole segment where Father Rob unabashedly declared that he'd be texting like crazy on Sunday, and the opening segment where Lino attempted to weasel out of sending a three-month late thank you note to Edward Cardinal Egan.
Lows: Nothing really.
Our take: Not quite as stellar as yesterday's show, but very close. Let's keep this trend going.
Grade: A-
Highs: As has become somewhat of a trend, the best parts of the show were the ones where Lino and Father Rob went off on each other... specifically, the Lenten Loophole segment where Father Rob unabashedly declared that he'd be texting like crazy on Sunday, and the opening segment where Lino attempted to weasel out of sending a three-month late thank you note to Edward Cardinal Egan.
Lows: Nothing really.
Our take: Not quite as stellar as yesterday's show, but very close. Let's keep this trend going.
Grade: A-
Friday, February 24, 2012
Show review for 2/23/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: Pretty much the whole damn show... but if we were forced to choose, we would highlight 1) The whole Magnetic Christianity promo, complete with Lino and Father Rob bickering over which traits in the book they possess; and 2) The All Lent Long song parody, which simply defies description.
Lows: ???
Our take: A rockin' three-hour on-air party that just might become a classic over time.
Grade: A
Highs: Pretty much the whole damn show... but if we were forced to choose, we would highlight 1) The whole Magnetic Christianity promo, complete with Lino and Father Rob bickering over which traits in the book they possess; and 2) The All Lent Long song parody, which simply defies description.
Lows: ???
Our take: A rockin' three-hour on-air party that just might become a classic over time.
Grade: A
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Show review for 2/22/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: The entire second half of the show. Mark Hart and the listeners helping to determine the crew's Lenten penances, followed by Let's Make A Catholic Deal, made for some fine listening.
Lows: Most of the first half of the show. The discussion on why people go to Mass on Ash Wednesday was decent enough, but both segments dealing with the Internet and how to handle unwanted emails left us looking for a comfortable place to take a nap.
Our take: A pretty uneven show that just barely avoids a "C" due to a stellar second half.
Grade: B-
Highs: The entire second half of the show. Mark Hart and the listeners helping to determine the crew's Lenten penances, followed by Let's Make A Catholic Deal, made for some fine listening.
Lows: Most of the first half of the show. The discussion on why people go to Mass on Ash Wednesday was decent enough, but both segments dealing with the Internet and how to handle unwanted emails left us looking for a comfortable place to take a nap.
Our take: A pretty uneven show that just barely avoids a "C" due to a stellar second half.
Grade: B-
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Show review for 2/21/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: The contest to determine how many Munchkins Father Rob could eat in three minutes was truly epic. And despite being a very discussion-heavy show today, it kept our interest almost the entire way through.
Lows: Still, the show was a little heavy on talking today.
Our take: For a show that was big on chit chat, this installment turned out quite well... and Munchkin/Wine Cooler-gate pushed it into "A" territory.
Grade: A-
Highs: The contest to determine how many Munchkins Father Rob could eat in three minutes was truly epic. And despite being a very discussion-heavy show today, it kept our interest almost the entire way through.
Lows: Still, the show was a little heavy on talking today.
Our take: For a show that was big on chit chat, this installment turned out quite well... and Munchkin/Wine Cooler-gate pushed it into "A" territory.
Grade: A-
Monday, February 13, 2012
Show review for 2/10/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: We knew this show would be good when it immediately started off with Father Rob's Righteous Anger spewing on everyone who got in his way today, and it kept right on ticking with the whole "Morning Ass" radio display incident. Most of the rest of the show was pretty good as well... even Father Rob explaining to Lino the whole HHS mandate thing kept us listening.
Lows: The show got a little slow going from the second into the third hour... but only a little.
Our take: A fine way to ease into the weekend.
Grade: A-
Highs: We knew this show would be good when it immediately started off with Father Rob's Righteous Anger spewing on everyone who got in his way today, and it kept right on ticking with the whole "Morning Ass" radio display incident. Most of the rest of the show was pretty good as well... even Father Rob explaining to Lino the whole HHS mandate thing kept us listening.
Lows: The show got a little slow going from the second into the third hour... but only a little.
Our take: A fine way to ease into the weekend.
Grade: A-
Friday, February 10, 2012
Show review for 2/9/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: While the discussion surrounding it was a bit mundane, hearing that Father Rob got a decedent's gender wrong while celebrating his/her/its funeral Mass was amusing. And some of the listener ideas for renaming the Crystal Cathedral were hilarious.
Lows: Most of the rest of the show just didn't stand out... maybe because the show was so topic-and-discussion heavy today.
Our take: Today's outing really wasn't anything to write home about.
Grade: C+
Highs: While the discussion surrounding it was a bit mundane, hearing that Father Rob got a decedent's gender wrong while celebrating his/her/its funeral Mass was amusing. And some of the listener ideas for renaming the Crystal Cathedral were hilarious.
Lows: Most of the rest of the show just didn't stand out... maybe because the show was so topic-and-discussion heavy today.
Our take: Today's outing really wasn't anything to write home about.
Grade: C+
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Show review for 2/8/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: We're happy that Lino took up the whole HHS mandate topic again and did a better job of handling it than yesterday (even if we think he's wrong on whether or not the mandate specifically targets Catholics). And what better way to end the show than to witness Father Rob getting body slammed on one of our favorite segments, Do You Watch More TV Than A Parish Priest.
Lows: During Free TherapyTuesday Wednesday, Lino did a good job discussing his fears of not being likeable/lovable, but didn't mention a word about what his therapist had to say about it. Part of the fun of the segment is hearing the therapist's take on his problems, and that was missed.
Our take: Infinitely better than yesterday's HHS hatchet job.
Grade: B+
Highs: We're happy that Lino took up the whole HHS mandate topic again and did a better job of handling it than yesterday (even if we think he's wrong on whether or not the mandate specifically targets Catholics). And what better way to end the show than to witness Father Rob getting body slammed on one of our favorite segments, Do You Watch More TV Than A Parish Priest.
Lows: During Free Therapy
Our take: Infinitely better than yesterday's HHS hatchet job.
Grade: B+
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Show review for 2/7/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: Let's Make A Catholic Deal (and the witty banter contained therein) was excellent as usual. And we're glad that Lino (finally) brought up the HHS contraceptive mandate issue... particularly Catholic League president Bill Donoghue's assertion that this issue may end up being resolved "in the streets".
Lows: That being said, what took Lino so long? This whole issue has been out in the open for over two weeks, and Lino's only excuse for not mentioning it until now was that it wasn't on the radar of the average listener to the show. That's pathetic and insulting... both Gus Lloyd and the Willits have covered this topic on their shows multiple times since the news broke, and Gus in particular was en fuego on this topic just this morning. So does that mean that their listeners are better than those of TCGS? Does Lino really need to wait until everybody hears about an issue before bringing it up on the show? Ridiculous.
Our take: We're inclined to award this show an "F" just because of the way Lino handled the whole HHS issue. But that wouldn't be fair to the good parts of the show... and even the HHS discussion itself wasn't that bad, especially the Bill Donoghue/Catholic League angle. So we're going to give it the highest "needs improvement" grade we can, and pray that Lino will handle the occasional must-talk-about serious topic more adroitly in the future.
Grade: D+
Highs: Let's Make A Catholic Deal (and the witty banter contained therein) was excellent as usual. And we're glad that Lino (finally) brought up the HHS contraceptive mandate issue... particularly Catholic League president Bill Donoghue's assertion that this issue may end up being resolved "in the streets".
Lows: That being said, what took Lino so long? This whole issue has been out in the open for over two weeks, and Lino's only excuse for not mentioning it until now was that it wasn't on the radar of the average listener to the show. That's pathetic and insulting... both Gus Lloyd and the Willits have covered this topic on their shows multiple times since the news broke, and Gus in particular was en fuego on this topic just this morning. So does that mean that their listeners are better than those of TCGS? Does Lino really need to wait until everybody hears about an issue before bringing it up on the show? Ridiculous.
Our take: We're inclined to award this show an "F" just because of the way Lino handled the whole HHS issue. But that wouldn't be fair to the good parts of the show... and even the HHS discussion itself wasn't that bad, especially the Bill Donoghue/Catholic League angle. So we're going to give it the highest "needs improvement" grade we can, and pray that Lino will handle the occasional must-talk-about serious topic more adroitly in the future.
Grade: D+
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Show review for 2/6/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: Father Rob spent just the right amount of time gloating about his Giants' Super Bowl victory without it taking over the whole show... and his gloating was mighty entertaining at that. And This Or That was also enjoyable.
Lows: Most of the second half of the show dragged a good bit... particularly during the segment when Lino was talking about jump starting his prayer life.
Our take: This show was a hard one to grade. The first half of the show featured lighthearted material that made for good radio; the second half of the show featured deeper material that didn't necessarily lend itself to the kind of show Lino is known for... and for us that made it less entertaining than we're used to. That's not to say that Lino talking about problems with his prayer life and worrying about cheating his fans out of one-on-one time aren't topics worthy of discussion... they absolutely are and show that Lino has an emotional side and cares about his listeners. But we still need to grade in the context of the kind of show Lino is known for, and based on those criteria this show was strictly average at best.
Grade: C
Highs: Father Rob spent just the right amount of time gloating about his Giants' Super Bowl victory without it taking over the whole show... and his gloating was mighty entertaining at that. And This Or That was also enjoyable.
Lows: Most of the second half of the show dragged a good bit... particularly during the segment when Lino was talking about jump starting his prayer life.
Our take: This show was a hard one to grade. The first half of the show featured lighthearted material that made for good radio; the second half of the show featured deeper material that didn't necessarily lend itself to the kind of show Lino is known for... and for us that made it less entertaining than we're used to. That's not to say that Lino talking about problems with his prayer life and worrying about cheating his fans out of one-on-one time aren't topics worthy of discussion... they absolutely are and show that Lino has an emotional side and cares about his listeners. But we still need to grade in the context of the kind of show Lino is known for, and based on those criteria this show was strictly average at best.
Grade: C
Monday, February 6, 2012
Show review for 2/3/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: What's Father Rob Humming is usually a treat all by itself... but Lino's mindless gaffes (trying to start the segment before lining up a contestant, getting contestant's names consistently wrong)... and the whole segment getting stuck on Welcome To The Jungle by Guns N' Roses... just made it better.
Lows: The whole Madonna interview segment did absolutely nothing for us... who cares? And Lino Is Sorry was surprisingly weak.
Our take: If it wasn't for Father Rob's inability to hum, this one would've been a solid C.
Grade: B-
Highs: What's Father Rob Humming is usually a treat all by itself... but Lino's mindless gaffes (trying to start the segment before lining up a contestant, getting contestant's names consistently wrong)... and the whole segment getting stuck on Welcome To The Jungle by Guns N' Roses... just made it better.
Lows: The whole Madonna interview segment did absolutely nothing for us... who cares? And Lino Is Sorry was surprisingly weak.
Our take: If it wasn't for Father Rob's inability to hum, this one would've been a solid C.
Grade: B-
Friday, February 3, 2012
Show review for 2/2/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: The whole "Father Rob impersonates others" is starting to get a bit long in the tooth, but his inability to maintain the voice of "Tampa Bay Timmy" this time around certainly made us laugh. Additionally, Lino had a solid, enjoyable interview with Frank Grillo of the new hit movie The Grey. And the new game You Be The Priest was both entertaining and informative... we'd certainly be up for a return engagement.
Lows: As we said above, the whole "Father Rob impersonates others" schtick is starting to age like bad cheese... certainly Lino and Father Rob must have more creative ideas up their sleeves. And today's Minor Confessions were a bit tame compared to what we've heard in the past.
Our take: An interesting mix of strong and not-so-strong material. We think that the strong outweighs the not-so-strong today... but not by a lot.
Grade: B-
Highs: The whole "Father Rob impersonates others" is starting to get a bit long in the tooth, but his inability to maintain the voice of "Tampa Bay Timmy" this time around certainly made us laugh. Additionally, Lino had a solid, enjoyable interview with Frank Grillo of the new hit movie The Grey. And the new game You Be The Priest was both entertaining and informative... we'd certainly be up for a return engagement.
Lows: As we said above, the whole "Father Rob impersonates others" schtick is starting to age like bad cheese... certainly Lino and Father Rob must have more creative ideas up their sleeves. And today's Minor Confessions were a bit tame compared to what we've heard in the past.
Our take: An interesting mix of strong and not-so-strong material. We think that the strong outweighs the not-so-strong today... but not by a lot.
Grade: B-
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Show review for 2/1/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: Mark Hart's rapid-fire attacks on the New York Giants and turtles filled Father Rob with rage and us with glee. Almost as much fun: hearing Father Rob get shot down left and right over his choice of Radio Nowhere as a top Springsteen song. And we got to hear him sing La Bamba again.
Lows: Aside from the above, the whole rest of the show was very pedestrian. When our minds start wandering to other things multiple times while listening to the show, that's not a good sign.
Our take: Aside from Father Rob getting hot under the collar a couple of times and singing his bi-lingual version of La Bamba, this show just didn't stand out.
Grade: C+
Highs: Mark Hart's rapid-fire attacks on the New York Giants and turtles filled Father Rob with rage and us with glee. Almost as much fun: hearing Father Rob get shot down left and right over his choice of Radio Nowhere as a top Springsteen song. And we got to hear him sing La Bamba again.
Lows: Aside from the above, the whole rest of the show was very pedestrian. When our minds start wandering to other things multiple times while listening to the show, that's not a good sign.
Our take: Aside from Father Rob getting hot under the collar a couple of times and singing his bi-lingual version of La Bamba, this show just didn't stand out.
Grade: C+
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Show review for 1/31/2012
Click here for a brief summary of the show
Highs: We really wanted to hate the "Interviews With The Saints" segment because its premise was so hokey, but top-notch execution and timing by Lino and the "Saints" (all of whom sounded a lot like Father Rob) kept us smiling the whole time. The premise of Father Rob auditioning for America's Got Talent has us drooling with anticipation. And what better way to end the show than with a little Super Bowl trash talk courtesy of the show's resident priest.
Lows: We're stretching, we know, but spending the last segment of the second hour talking about Newt Gingrich being sued for playing Eye Of The Tiger at rallies was nothing but useless filler. Put it in the news segment where it belongs.
Our take: All the stuff above plus Lino's charitable act of buying musical instruments for a couple of listeners made for a fine way to close out the month of January.
Grade: A-
Highs: We really wanted to hate the "Interviews With The Saints" segment because its premise was so hokey, but top-notch execution and timing by Lino and the "Saints" (all of whom sounded a lot like Father Rob) kept us smiling the whole time. The premise of Father Rob auditioning for America's Got Talent has us drooling with anticipation. And what better way to end the show than with a little Super Bowl trash talk courtesy of the show's resident priest.
Lows: We're stretching, we know, but spending the last segment of the second hour talking about Newt Gingrich being sued for playing Eye Of The Tiger at rallies was nothing but useless filler. Put it in the news segment where it belongs.
Our take: All the stuff above plus Lino's charitable act of buying musical instruments for a couple of listeners made for a fine way to close out the month of January.
Grade: A-
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