Episode 5: They're Hidden, Not Secret

It's the most wonderful time of the year…for cinnamon brooms, food obsessions, and being personally victimized by your own listening history. This week, in a FROM THE VAULT release (that's right - the show has been on hiatus into 2026, so it's been a hot minute), Kay and Z are embracing the seasonal chaos with a deep dive into holiday food traditions, cranberry cocktails, the magic (and occasional betrayal) of baked goods, and an unexpectedly dark detour into the history of molasses. Then it's time for the year-end receipts! Comparing Apple Music Replays and YouTube Recaps, the duo celebrates their favorite artists, confronts their algorithm-assigned personalities, and discovers just how much their digital habits reveal. Plus, Kay recounts her unforgettable night at a live Smosh Dread show, and our friends confront elements of the Wicked movie phenomenon that are just a wee bit problematic. It's cozy, chaotic, a little nostalgic, and full of the wonderfully unnecessary tangents you've come to expect from the multiverse. Grab something festive, jump into a wormhole, and come hang out in Winter 2025.

After a longer-than-intended hiatus (we swear we’re fine), Kay and Zach return with a sprawling, thoughtful, and delightfully unhinged conversation that somehow starts with Christmas cookies and animal ownership and ends with existential clarity and following ducks around Disneyland. This episode digs into the surprisingly loaded question of what it really means when someone says they’re “not a pet person,” and how that single phrase can reveal deeper truths about responsibility, compatibility, boundaries, and trust - whether in dating, friendships, or long-term relationships. Along the way, Kay and Zach unpack how much of ourselves we’re expected to absorb when we let someone into our lives, and where it’s okay to draw the line. From there, the conversation spirals (naturally): from candy canes and potato nutrition facts, to drunken raccoons on benders, to fortune cookies that absolutely should be more threatening. Then things turn reflective as the duo zooms out to talk about generational trauma, living through too many historical events, and why “everything happens for a reason” might be the worst sentence ever invented. The back half? Quiet profundity. Kay talks about approaching the end of her 30s, entering what she lovingly dubs her villain era - not the evil kind, but the kind where she finally chooses herself. Together, Kay and Zach reflect on how fear, wanderlust, intention, and missed exits shape a life and why sometimes the most meaningful moments happen when you stop trying to get somewhere and just…go. It’s a cozy, philosophical, laugh-heavy return that reminds us why we started this podcast in the first place: curiosity, connection, and figuring it out in real time. And wow do we need that sh*t right now.

We’re back in the chaos arena for Episode 10, where we finally finish Zach’s animated movie ranking list… aka the most emotionally hazardous blind ranking format ever invented. Kay tries to preserve the top spots, Zach laughs like a villain, and a full-blown TRAP lands exactly where Kay predicted it would. (And yet. Somehow. Still pain.) As the list finally reaches its cursed conclusion, we pivot into a hotly-debated love story - because nothing says “podcast” like arguing respectfully but intensely. Zach drops an original poem, and we close with the next chapter in his creative writing series, now officially dubbed Emerald Silence. Hazel is back on her bike, the sky is wrong, and a suspicious pizza-dog truck has opinions about The Great Gatsby. It’s long, it’s unhinged, and it’s exactly what you put on while doing literally anything else. You’re welcome. Vote for us on ThePodRadar.com to help with discoverability (you might have to scroll the list to find us - we love you!)

Episode 10 is messy in the best way: another Part 1. Our dynamic duo kicks things off with a quick “we’re sorry” because Kay’s audio betrays us again (we tested… and still got humbled) before spiraling immediately into new news: Kay is basically in a committed relationship with yerba mate, and Zach [finally] discovers Stranger Things. Who's gonna die? We have theories. From there, things get real. Kay talks through a brutal depression dip - what it feels like when your brain can’t remember “better,” why “functional depression” is a scam label, and how tiny check-in texts can matter more than people realize. And then we hit the main event: Zach drops a mystery animated feature film ranking list and Kay has to place each movie blind on a tier list - with bonus chaos rules (a wild-card movie, a redemption swap, and a “defend my most controversial take” moment ready to detonate). Soundtrack bias is absolutely weaponized, historically importance vs. emotional irrelevance is debated, and the weight of vibes curated/plot optional gets a look. Our heroes only get through three movies before the episode becomes too long and snaps in half, so this one ends on a cliffhanger with the rest of the list still locked in Zach’s vault. Want to hear which movie takes the cake and which one bottoms out? You'll have to hit Multiverse'd up again in Part 2.

Welcome back to Multiverse’d - the podcast that will still fight you on the “why didn’t they just take the Eagles to Mordor?” discourse. After our longest gap yet (for us, not you), we’re back with the kickoff of our own Eras Tour…and no, it has nothing to do with Taylor Swift. This week is a classic “just-hit-record” download: chaotic life updates, nerd spirals, sports-ball detours, and the kind of best-friend tangent energy that somehow turns into a real conversation about how people actually end up living the lives they’re living. Then things get unexpectedly deep (and weirdly relatable): Kay has a Target moment that short-circuits her entire “not a mom” stance, and the duo start unpacking the different “eras” of who they thought they’d be - from childhood obsessions to creative dreams to the moments where life forces a pivot. It’s funny, reflective, a little unhinged, and ends with a perfectly-timed roast you’ll want to hear in context. Are you steering your life…or just getting carried by the current? Hit play and step into the wormhole with us... 🌀🎙️

Welcome back to Multiverse'd, in an episode where Kay and Zach launch into the impact of AI on creativity, the challenges of ADHD, and the complexities of modern dating. Today also marks a return visit to the Voicemail, with three new problems from the stratosphere that our fearless duo takes on with gusto -- Zach's a capitalist, duh! A new segment called 'Out of My Depth' makes it's debut - where guests from different universes answer the same questions to help compare and contrast our existence. The first guest? Well, they certainly are here. And if that's not enough, it's time for another 'I Want You' segment where Zach seems to be a shoe-in for a new job thanks to his glorious beard.

This week’s Multiverse’d kicks off with Kay crawling back from a kidney-infection boss battle just in time for a super-sick gig, and Zach absolutely acing at Wordle while celebrating Mizzou prowess. Between Pedialyte pops and vowel strategy debates, the duo slide into their alternative fan-casting of Lord of the Rings - complete with an unexpected Keanu Reeves cameo, a heated Samwise casting debate, and original casting lore that will make you say huh?? The duo also drops their latest new segment: Old Work, where the two live-react to snippets of each other's past creative endeavors. This time, Kay shares a live performance recording from previous musical adventure while Zach dusts off one of his short stories for an impromptu reading. Who are Hazel and Sam? What is the GFFO? And who, exactly, is indeed noble AF?? You'll have to listen all the way into the wormhole to find out! It's a super-sized episode where chaos meets catharsis: movie nerdery, creative vulnerability, and just enough friendship nonsense to keep the multiverse spinning.

This week’s episode starts with classic Multiverse’d chaos: Zach and Kay vs. The Audio Setup. Once the mics stop fighting back (even though Kay loses this week - sorry!) the duo dives into pet neutering and Kay’s surprise ER cameo. In the debut of a brand-new segment called Patch Notes, we hear 'software updates' after surviving another week of being human. Then things get wildly hypothetical: what if Adventure Time and Star Wars collided? From there, they spiral gloriously through Gravity Falls x Scooby-Doo, Bob’s Burgers x The Bear, and an unforgettable wrestling-persona job interview that no one asked for. It’s equal parts unhinged fan-fiction writers’ room and best-friend therapy session—with jokes, tangents, and the occasional medical PSA thrown in for flavor.

In Episode 5, our duo dives into a (purposefully) scattershot conversation download, exploring a variety of topics ranging from chaotic life experiences, concert memories, the secrets of longevity, Disneyland lore, the best fair fare, and an appreciation for the little things in life. Kay almost dies, Zach wants better hot dogs, and everybody agrees that we're gonna do whatever the f*ck we want.  

Do lemons make you funny? Are you a microcrasher or megacrasher? Is a 'drunk-isode' in our future? These are just a few of the questions Kay and Zach tackle on this week's download, including a brand new segment (Serve, or Swerve?) where the duo dishes out their takes on characters' vibes, fashion do's/don't's, and their ultimate impact on the multiverse at large -- and another new segment (OFT: Our Favorite Thing) where Kay discusses her current obsession: Palia. "It's giving cardinal-chic." "Pop Punk Pinapple Icon." "Real Housewives of Ooo." With a deep dive into Smoshpiration, a peek behind the curtain of things to come from the LOTR universe, notes on the continuing sexualization of female video game characters, and a discussion of drag artistry in theatre, this week's episode is full of Multiverse'd chaos to chew on.