Jen, the cruise director, instructs 4,500 people to use red bags for number two in a desperate emergency plan.
True Crime Obsessed is a comedy-true crime podcast hosted by Julie Mazzavalli and Patrick Hines, known for their irreverent commentary on documentaries and true crime content. This episode covers the Netflix Trainwreck documentary series installment about the Carnival Triumph “Poop Cruise,” the February 2013 disaster in which a fire in the engine room knocked out power to a cruise ship carrying over 4,000 passengers in the Gulf of Mexico. Without propulsion, toilets, running water, or functional air conditioning in warm weather, the ship drifted for several days before being towed to Mobile, Alabama, while passengers improvised sanitation using red bags distributed by the crew. The documentary features passengers, crew, and Carnival executives describing the experience, and the hosts react with equal parts horror and dark humor. Patrick reflects that at some point he started rooting for the ship rather than its passengers, finding some behavior insufferable even in the context of a genuine crisis. Julie notes that she found the documentary validating of her own anti-cruise convictions. The episode is part of a two-cruise episode day—the first episode covered the case of Amy Bradley, who disappeared from a cruise ship. The hosts discuss the general nightmares of cruise culture: people running through ports to make ships on time, the corporate machinery of cruise lines, and the breakdown of social norms when basic amenities disappear. Frequent detours into personal anecdotes, Senior Frogs restaurant memories from Puerto Vallarta, and Discord community updates characterize the episode’s conversational style. A specific passenger named Devin is introduced as the main documentary subject. The episode’s tone is comedic and unfiltered, aimed at a regular true crime and documentary audience who enjoy co-host banter as much as the content itself.
