Close the year out right by listening to a few of the podcast episodes we’ve deemed as our very best of 2017.

I don’t know about you, but I’m a huge podcast fanatic. Have been since I first discovered MuggleCast back in… 2007? (Shiiiiiiiiit, it’s been TEN WHOLE YEARS since I discovered podcasts and MuggleCast? I feel old…)

I seriously can’t get enough of them. On any given day, I have three or four new episodes of various shows to download. But my absolute favorite shows are the ones we do here at Hypable.

No, really.

Aside from the fact that I get to hear some of my best friends’ voices in my ears on a weekly basis or that they’re sometimes nice enough to invite me on to the shows, we just have some really solid podcasts here at Hypable. Always have, always will.

We don’t talk about our podcasts often, but they’re something we pour our hearts and souls into. You can tell just by listening to this handful of episodes that we picked as our very favorite podcast episodes of 2017.

So sit back, relax, and enjoy our (admittedly) self-indulgent list of Hypable’s best podcast episodes of 2017. Who knows, you might find your new favorite podcast just by scrolling through our favorites.

‘ReWatchable’

This year (and last year, and I think, the year before that…) has been all about Buffy and Vampire Slayer and Angel. We’ve followed the high highs and the suuuuuuuuper low lows of our Scoobies and Pancake Gang.

But we truly hit rock bottom a few weeks ago with Angel 4×07 “Apocalypse, Nowish.” On ReWatchable episode #241, our panel had to both discuss one of the best episodes of Buffy and wallow in despair over the fact that Angel hit rock bottom with its worst episode ever.

Why is this pick one of our favorite episodes? Well, our crew masterfully manages to make the discussion about this abhorrent episode enjoyable and entertaining. Highlights include Ariana’s rants and Natalie constantly apologizing to the podcast panel and all the listeners about having to be subjected to such trash.

It’s a must-listen (and one of this writer’s personal favorite podcast episodes of the year).

‘Resistance Radio’

Need a new Star Wars podcast in your life? Now that The Last Jedi is here, we have a feeling you just might.

But before you dive into Resistance Radio‘s The Last Jedi musings, we recommend you take a listen to one of the podcast’s best episodes from this past year. In addition to their usual theorizing and discussions, our hosts had a little chat with Jay Machado from ILM (Industrial Light and Magic).

Jay is a Hard Surface Modeler and, in addition to being a fan of the movies, has had the incredible opportunity to work on Star Wars movies. He paints a really great picture of what it’s like to both be a fan of and work on these movies, including what skills fellow fans may need to follow in his (or similar) footsteps.

This episode takes an interesting look at a franchise we all know and love from a very different perspective. It’ll surely make you love the series even more than you already do. We consider this one of our best podcast episodes of 2017 and hope you will too!

‘Hype Podcast’

In 2016, Hype Podcast took on the huge undertaking of rewatching Gilmore Girls just before the Netflix revival hit the internet. They finally wrapped our 12 episode series at the beginning of 2017 with one last special dedicated to discussing the final episode in A Year In The Life. Pam and Marama also reflected on coming back to the series as adults, while Selina reflected on what it was like to watch the series in full for the first time ever.

Gilmore Girls isn’t the only series Hype Podcast dedicated some extra time to. The Hype girls also took a deep dive into The CW’s The 100 over the course of a series of three specials. This episode in particular breaks down the emotional and gritty season 3 and discusses every event and character in depth. Fans of The 100 don’t want to miss this one (especially with the next season on the horizon)!

Listener feedback is a huge part of Hype Podcast, so it was incredibly special to have some of our flagship show’s dedicated listeners join Pam for an episode of breaking down the latest entertainment news while Selina was away! This episode is a great example of the fact that Hypable couldn’t do any of this without our wonderful listeners. (And we hope if you’re not one already, you’ll give our shows a chance!)

‘MuggleCast’

This year, MuggleCast undertook eight weeks of old school-style “character discussions” for the characters of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. They talked about everyone from Queenie to the Barebones family. And so, in celebration of wrapping up the character discussion series, our favorite MuggleCast hosts discuss Newt Scamander with the actress who plays his granddaughter-in-law! That’s right! Evanna Lynch was on MuggleCast!

In addition to talking all things Newton Artemis Fido Scamander, Evanna Lynch also gave her opinions on the new Fantastic Beasts series and Cursed Child and talked to our hosts about her own podcast, The ChickPeeps Podcast. If you’re a fan of anything having to do with Harry Potter, give this episode a listen!

‘Book Hype’

In honor of the adaptation of The Zookeeper’s Wife hitting the silver screen this past spring, our Book Hype hosts had none other than the novel’s author, Diane Ackerman, on the show to talk all things Zookeeper’s Wife (both in print and on screen). But this episode was so much more than that. It was Diane Ackerman’s insightful comments and stories that made this episode so enjoyable.

In fact, the conversations in this episode are so lovely that you don’t need to have read or seen The Zookeeper’s Wife to have a good time listening. So grab a blanket and a mug of hot cocoa and give Book Hype #132 a shot.

‘Onceable’

Before Once Upon a Time really plummeted downhill, our Onceable hosts gathered together to discuss one of the more charming episodes of the show’s later seasons, “The Song in Our Heart.” With their theorizing and talking about the Captain Swan wedding, the hosts really celebrate one of the show’s last major milestones. And you know what? It was fun. (I mean, how could it not be? They were discussing a fairytale musical episode!)

Our hosts may have disappeared after just one episode into Once Upon a Time‘s seventh season, but this Onceable swan song is truly lovely.

Hey, Hypable podcast listeners! Which would you name as our best podcast episodes of 2017?