A universe simulator, a growing collection of shoes, and a podcast…in space? The Midnight Gospel gives you all of this in one, eight-episode season on Netflix. It’s an animated series that explores deep, meaningful conversation ranging from life and death to ceremonial magic and the connectedness of life in Indra’s Jeweled Net. 

Each episode takes the viewer to a new planet with new people, voiced by well-educated guests who are interviewed by the show’s main character, Clancy, for his “spacecast” titled “The Midnight Gospel.” At the end of each adventure, Clancy takes a pair of shoes from the world for a souvenir and begins editing his spacecast. 

I learned about this show from Netflix constantly playing the trailer for it everytime I launched the app. I was hesitant at first, thinking the show was far more juvenile than its content, but I watched it anyway. 

When the first episode consisted of Clancy interviewing the President, in a world ravaged by a zombie apocalypse, about psychedelics, I knew this was something different. A bit of research showed me that the voice of the President was Dr. Drew Pinsky, a specialist in addiction medicine. That knowledge shined an even brighter light on the uniqueness of this show. It takes what could work as an already interesting podcast, and combines it with a creative, goofy, and metaphorical setting with an entertaining subplot. 

The Midnight Gospel is a perfectly executed example of mixed media. Combining a podcast with an animated show resulted in a delightful and educational experience.

The Midnight Gospel was a much needed, pleasant surprise. It manages to make you laugh, make you think, and make you wonder exactly how many shoes one person needs. The show’s only fault is the small number of episodes as the season only took a few nights to casually watch. I highly recommend taking the time to indulge in the wondrous journey that is The Midnight Gospel, a show with so much to offer, and I guarantee you’ll be right in my shoes, already waiting for season two.