Popular Reviews of The Casual Criminalist

I have enjoyed other YouTube videos that Simon has produced about weapons systems, the war in Ukraine, and historic events. Usually they are well researched and informative. OTOH, he did two videos about the A-10 Warthog, the first of which described it as the most feared airplane ever, able to destroy anything in its path and damn near indestructable, and another that said it could not hit the broad side of a barn and could be shot down by a little kid with a slingshot, so take them with a grain or shaker of salt. Still, he seems to know what he is talking about and snarky comments are often appropriate when talking about the likes of Vladamir Putin or Donald Trump. But the same approach does not work with true crime, and Simon does not do the research. He just reads a script somebody else wrote while throwing in his own often snarky comments and trying and failing to be funny. So the first one I listened to was about two children who were murdered. Simon spends the first half of the podcast yukking it up about how dumb cops are and how funny people in the North of England talk. Hee hee, isn't that a riot? Oh yeah, dead kids. That's sad. The second was about an accountant who murdered his family. Again, terrible tragedy. But isn't it funny that the FBI raided an accounting firm? Hee hee! Ah Simon, if you knew anything about the FBI you would know that at least until recently, all their agents were either lawyers or accountants. They do that sort of thing every day, and those skills are useful even for tracking down international terrorists or something. People listen to podcasts for entertainment. I get that. And true crime cases are interesting, and dare I say entertaining, in that they give us a look at part of the world that most of us do not want to experience, but are curious about. But they are not usually a good source of humor. Simon is a bright guy, and I suppose many of his listeners are as well, and there is some entertainment in noting the failures of military and political leaders or people who design airplanes. But when I listened to him yuck it up while discussing the brutal murder of a four-year-old, I was not amused, just disgusted. Perhaps I am more sensitive than most because work with kids, but honestly, but to me Simon, you did not sound like a comedian, just an a-hole.

Callum is an epic writer, Simon is delightfully cheeky in his delivery, and Jen adds the perfect sounds in just the right places. Informative, dark, humorous, entertaining; a must listen!

Very funny, I love Steve's writing and Simon speaking in his innocent geeky way. It's gripping stuff with unique twists and turns about killing/killers

Not just your normal true crime podcast. It is well written, informative and the commentary from Simon is hilarious.