Exam season, patio season, and true crime in between.
Claire and Katie, two university students, fill Margarita Madness with exam stress, patio plans and TikToks about dads doing yard work. Elsewhere the tone turns serious, as one of them walks through a case like the Green River Killer or the life of Bree, a woman from Anchorage, Alaska.
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Margarita Madness is a two-person conversation show with a true crime streak. The two are Claire and Katie, university students who begin episodes by trading names and a welcome back. Sometimes that takes two tries. One opening restarts seven seconds in after a tongue-tied stumble, and in another, one of them nearly introduces herself by the other's name. The mood is loose and chatty, full of tangents and half-finished thoughts. A lot of it is ordinary life, told in detail. At the end of a semester, the pair compare notes on a submitted essay and lab, two exams still ahead, and the strange urge to stall just before finishing something. One of them admits to sitting on an unwritten conclusion; the other says she yelled at her over text, and they agree that sometimes a person just needs the push. They can hardly believe they are about to be fourth years. Summer brings a bucket list: reading teen novels, including one described as Gossip Girl meets Pretty Little Liars, and visiting as many patios as they can. By the end they are asking for Toronto patio and sushi recommendations and joking that they have become a patio review pod. Another episode lingers on a TikTok sound about dads doing yard work, which leads straight to one of their fathers, who used to be a part-time handyman and now gardens at all hours. The true crime stretches change the pace. In 'The Green River Killer', the narration moves from a witness spotting a truck to police questioning the man at the home where it was parked, finding nothing to tie him to the deaths. It then turns to his troubled childhood, with a stated choice to spare the most disturbing details. 'Breanna Moore' sketches Bree of Anchorage, Alaska: remembered by friends as the kindest, happiest person they knew, a volunteer at an animal shelter who came home with a bulldog, and someone who hoped to become a doctor. Opinion gets its own space in 'Controversy', where the talk covers legalization, the case for buying from approved vendors instead of an unknown source, and safe injection sites. One of them says she is for legalization while admitting she is not especially educated on it. The pair are open about the gaps between episodes, blaming a busy summer and school, and promising to check in when they can. Sign-offs point to Instagram, inviting case suggestions, questions, hot takes or a simple hello.
Made for: Suits a listener who likes true crime told casually and doesn't mind detours into exam stress, summer plans, family anecdotes and patio hunting in Toronto, all from two university students.
What sets it apart: The same two voices that narrate a serial killer case also put off a paper's conclusion and hunt for Toronto patios. The result plays more like a shared personal journal with true crime running through it than a dedicated crime program.
Just two university gals talking about everything from true crime to life advice, and everything in between. Join us every Thursday for a new episode and get ready for a bumpy ride!
A dad-TikTok tangent gives way to Missy Beavers; your appetite for side chats matters here.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
An early-morning church discovery anchors a loose, conversational true-crime episode.
Missy is found dead at a church early in the morning, turning a class setup into a murder case shaped by broken glass, a battered body, apparent puncture wounds to the head, and a town that has gone seven years without one.
Claire and Katie talk through approved vendors and safe injection sites with a practical focus on safer-use options.
Controversy shifts from a loose host catch-up into a candid discussion of legalization, approved vendors, and safe injection sites. Claire and Katie consider whether regulated access could lower the danger of laced substances, and whether supervised spaces might offer a safer…
A warm portrait of Bree turns uneasy as a fast-moving relationship begins to narrow her world.
Margarita Madness looks to Alaska for the story of Brianna, known as Bree, an Anchorage woman remembered by friends as kind, happy, well rounded, and good at everything.
Claire and Katie turn summer plans into an easy chat about patios, reading, tans, and a hopeful 10K.
Summer takes shape here as a handful of modest plans: Claire and Katie want more patio nights, more reading during a week off, a less obvious golf-shirt tan, and a possible 10K.
A plainspoken true crime discussion of Gary Ridgeway, a missed police lead, and early warning signs.
Margarita Madness follows Gary Ridgeway's case by starting with a lead that never lands. A witness reports a truck, later sees the same truck in the driveway of a home police identify as Ridgeway's, and investigators visit, but nothing from that stop connects him to the deaths.
Pop culture trivia, argued fast and with affection.
Pop culture, personal stakes, and room for a tangent.
A Brazilian journalist spends years reinvestigating unsolved child disappearances in Paraná.
Cris Bartz and Juva Lauer alternate debate and interview episodes on Brazilian social issues.
Margarita Madness covers the April 18, 2016 killing of Missy Beavers at a church boot camp in Midlothian, Texas, where police arrived at 4:45 a.m.
Margarita Madness’ “Controversy” has Claire and Katie sorting through gun control, abortion, religious freedom, vaccinations, marijuana legalization, safe injection sites, universal health care, the death penalty, and sexuality and gender identity.
Claire and Katie use Margarita Madness to tell the case of Bree Moore, a 20-year-old from Anchorage, Alaska, whose boyfriend Josh was later accused of killing her on June 26, 2014.
Claire and Katie open Margarita Madness with a Toronto patio sushi dinner at Asahi Sushi, where a waiter asks whether they are going “to drink more” and Claire says she had to bring her own gluten-free soy sauce.
Margarita Madness opens on the Green River Killer, tracing the case from Wendy’s disappearance in July 1982 and the first body found in the Green River to a cluster of victims near Pacific Highway South.
Claire and Katie mark one year of Margarita Madness by revisiting why they began recording together during COVID.
Margarita Madness hosts Claire and Katie recount the 1992 disappearance of 14-year-old Misty Copsey after she missed the 8:40 bus from a Washington fair.
Claire and Katie rank Olivia Rodrigo's Sour, giving the album 10/10 and 7–7.5/10.
Two university friends catch up after a break, discussing their end-of-semester stress, exams, and procrastination.
Two university friends chat about the end of 2020, turning 21, quarantine experiences, and recent pop culture highlights.
Two university friends catch up in person after months apart, discussing their plans for recording and their recent activities.
Two university friends catch up and discuss their stressful week of packing and moving to school.