I have been listening to TWA for 5+ years and it has been delightful for my commute and my love of trivia. However, ever since adding Zahkia I find it extremely hard to get through an episode with her. Her voice and unnecessary squealing is so obnoxious and hard on the ears that I want to claw my ears out. I have been resorting to the extra episodes you have to pay for so I can listen to the older ones when Ben, Chris, and Carmela were on the show. I don’t mind change but it has to be right. This doesn’t seem to be appealing to fans and I hope the show reflects on the recent feedback.

I’m not confident that this show is well researched. Listen for entertainment only, and get your information elsewhere.

I didn't know Ben had left, he was the best. And Chris brought in the element of the regular guy. I am relieved to read I am not the only one who finds Zakia hard to tolerate.

I thought it was just me, but after reading a number of reviews I see I’m not alone. Zakia is annoying, I find myself telling her to shut up while listening. Her laughing at anything she says is annoying if not maddening. I have deleted episodes just based on her hosting, without listening at all. Jonathan is also a bit too full of himself, i question why anyone would want to be on the show or partner with him. His “my answer is right” regardless of if he actually knows the answer and you are just here to boost my ego is sad. Not to mention if the host doesn’t word the question to his liking, he just lays into them. I see why Chris and Ben bailed and Carmella rarely is involved. I use to look forward every week to a new episode, now being every 2 weeks, I don’t really care. Half the time I just delete. I started listening in 2015, so I have listened to the downward spiral that is happening.

On one hand, it’s fantastic. I love the content, and the questions are always fascinating and fun. On the other hand, Zakia’s addition as host is just rough. I thought Carmela’s nervous laugh was difficult to hear (although I must say that it has gotten so much better as she spent more time behind the mic!) but Zakia’s laugh and and high pitch squeal are so much worse. It genuinely sounds like a middle school girl trying to get her oblivious crush to notice her. Just skip episodes with her in them, and you’re golden!! I miss Ben and Chris 😔

She is highly annoying. She talks incessantly and is the worst decision TW has made. I’ve been a listener for about four years, and Chris and Ben added so much to the show. I only listen when Zakia is not on.

I enjoy this show but the one thing I have noticed that if you aren’t in the inner circle of friends of the hosts they don’t use questions submitted. The hosts are great! Really wish 400 was like the other centennial episodes though.

One of the great things about this show is that I get to learn some very interesting facts and some very useless facts but at least I am being entertained while learning. The hosts change around to switch it up which makes it entertaining and the educational aspect of it is truly priceless. I look forward to more yummy goodness from y’all

First and foremost, excellent questions and wonderfully structured game. I’ve been listening to TW since 2018 and subsequently branched off to other Oakes Media Group shows. Johnathan really knows what he’s doing and the rest of the guests and co hosts are star caliber trivia players. Unfortunately, maybe because he is so proficient in trivia I feel like the hosts argues the validity and wording of questions more than what I’d care to hear. It’s just a game. Trivia is meant to be fun, not a dispute over semantics. That coupled with the tendency to “should’ve, could’ve, would’ve” after answers are given (coaching after the fact) just remind me of THAT trivia team at trivia night that takes the game way too seriously and everyone else eye rolls. Again, great content, but my ears can’t take the delivery anymore. I’m still a fan of the other shows, this one is no longer for me.

I’ve downloaded several trivia podcasts, but this one is by far the best. I love pub trivia and this really brings that vibe to the podcast platform. The intellectual banter and fun that the teams have as they search for answers is great! It’s appointment listening for me on Sundays! #TeamTrivialWarfare

What happened to Chris & Carmela? Zhakia is so obnoxious that we stopped listening and moved to Triviality instead.

I've been listening for years and it's usually a good game with good questions... But Jonathon please stop chewing the scenery - your ego is overwhelming the show. You chased Chris off and when people give joke answers on easy 1-2-3 questions.. maybe relax. Everyone who gets on or listens is going to get 12/13/14 right so every game comes down to the gauntlet... and since nobody but Jonathan cares who wins it's anti-climatic. Listening to Jonathan luckbox himself into one of every 15 answers isnt as entertaining as he has convinced himself.

I read through these reviews and cannot believe that no one addresses the fact that the main host Jonathan constantly has spit in his mouth that you can hear in every word he says. I can hear it sloshing around as he speaks; it’s like he needs to swallow. It has made it nearly unlistenable for me. Carmella’s laugh also blows your ears out and is grating because she does it nervously after every statement she makes. When your business is audio, please make sure it is listenable for people and doesn’t have these painful quirks. The trivia itself is wonderful. Chris and Ben are super enjoyable every episode they are on. Wish I could listen to it more without the nails on the chalkboard of spit sounds and loud laughter.

Checked back in after taking a 6 month break and have to echo the comment made by others. Jonathan’s ego/attitude makes the show unenjoyable.

I try listening in but I often end up turning it off as Johnathon is just….difficult to listen to. It feels like he always has to have the last word in any situation or talk and it’s just unnecessary. Otherwise like the format just feel like it could have a finer tooth with editing and Johnathon could stand to be more mindful of others.

Found this through a friend and mostly love it. Great questions and like the longer format for when doing longer drives. The host Jonathan can be a hard pill to swallow and can often come across as condescending (though I don't always feel he's trying to be). Just remember you can fast forward through intros and long banters (not sure why some of these aren't cut down) that has helped a lot when some people are talking through their answers at an exhaustive rate. Overall great podcast.

I’m currently a Patreon subscriber and have been for years, but I’m not sure how much longer I can take. Jonathan constantly retcons the host’s questions, which makes the show far less enjoyable. He takes everything way too seriously and is an awful sport (whether it be not answering a question right or not getting a response from a lame joke). It’s exhausting feeling bad for the hosts that are under Jonathan’s scrutiny. He’s condescending at best and mean at worst.

i love trivia podcasts and really enjoy this one! it has great content and well written questions. while i may not know every answer, i feel like i’m learning and having a good time while doing so :) the only con is the main host jonathan. he is a super smart dude and has charisma, but is a very sore loser and a bit full of himself. it’s okay to have those qualities, but on a podcast where “regular” people are playing trivia, it seems to be quite upsetting when someone on jonathan’s team gets a wrong answer. he is clearly upset about it and i would really not enjoy that as a guest—i also don’t like hearing it as a listener. going on TW would be intimidating even for a seasoned trivia player, so making your guests feel bad about not knowing answers is really crappy. i do love ben, carmela, and chris! there are a few reoccurring guests who are absolutely fabulous (H-BOMB 💗💗💗💗💗). overall it’s a great show, i just don’t like hearing the main host put people down with his ego and competitiveness.

Do you love trivia AND morning zoo crew radio energy? Can you name the poet who wrote The Rime of the Ancient Mariner AND aspire to owning a pontoon boat in the Ozarks? Do you know the difference between the brewing processes if lager and ale AND you’ve referred to IPAs as “hipster beers”? Can you name the year of the Stonewall Riots AND you’re cool with casual homophobia (as long as it’s just for laffs)? Then THIS is the trivia podcast for you!

As someone who has been a longtime fan of both bar trivia and trivia-based game shows, this podcast has been a gift for the past few years. I play it every night while I cook dinner and play along with the contestants/hosts!

Jonathan is still condescending to other hosts/guests, and generally treats people like crap, which makes it unlistenable. That is unfortunate because it could be a good podcast.

As a trivia host and writer, I don't often get the chance to play trivia. But this podcast gives me the opportunity to play along, learn a few things and be entertained by terrific hosts. As I spend large chunks of time driving (for a separate job), Jonathan, Chris, Ben and the gang really help the time zip by with their collection of fun, facts and esoterica. I look forward to an opportunity to compete as a listener and -- since I'm Florida based -- take on the masters head to head. So glad I found you guys.

Yes, let the hate flow through you.

❤️

For the past few months, I’ve been trying to find a good pub style trivia podcast, TW is by far the best... the discussions at each questions makes it fun to play along with, and the questions are amazing! This is way better than having questions thrown at you and the answers at the end of the podcast! Well done!

Poor research and the moderator apparently didn’t graduate from middle school? When naming African countries the moderator not only got half of the names wrong but also said countries which weren’t even IN Africa. Amateur and embarrassing.

Loved this podcast when I originally found it about a year and a half ago. Listened to almost every episode. Now it has become very awkward and cringe-worthy and I only listen when I’ve run out of new episodes of other podcasts. Jonathan’s know-it-all, “well actually” personality is almost unbearable at this point. I don’t know if it’s a symptom of running a trivia podcast where listeners are constantly nitpicking and correcting information or if it’s just how he is, but it’s turned me off completely. Having Chris and Ben on the show less often only makes it even more glaring. Maybe Jonathan could consider loosening up a bit.

Great questions, but Jonathan is extremely obnoxious, forces his answers on his teammates, argues whenever he is wrong, and exceedingly braggadocious about his intelligence. I stopped listening for a while because of this, and tried it again. It’s only become worse.

This is the BEST trivia podcast I know. You guys are so funny, great questions, and it is very entertaining. I just recently started listening and I love that there are so many episodes to listen to even though I am not a patron, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to listen to all of them! I really enjoy the show, I think that you guys have done an awesome job with it and I can’t wait for the next show to come out!

Upon my first listen, there was a question about black widow spiders. One of the guys referred to it as “poisonous”. They are VENOMOUS, not poisonous. There is a big difference.

They drag the trivia in with nonstop talking and laughing at their own comments. Luke easily be cut down to 20 minutes of actual trivia. Talk less and more questions. It is trivia after all... 30 seconds a question is still to much. Also, more historical trivia would be nice. I feel like these people do not watch jeopardy or any real trivia show. Too much non-trivia trivia. Plus it seems like they maybe do two episodes a week. Better off just buying a trivia book to read or doing something with friends. Very surprising their rating is above even a 2.

Found this show when searching for shows to fill the void left by the absence of Good Job Brain. It has now become my first choice for a good trivia fix. Since I am all about girl power, I am team Carmella all the way as she provides the balance that some other trivia shows could use and she aptly keeps the game play on track when needed. As for the other regulars, I could listen to Ben’s voice forever, Chris frequently cracks me up, and Jonathan is an able host although he should sometimes listen better to his partners when he plays as he sometimes talks them out of correct answers. The show offers a wide variety of trivia ?s with a lot of chuckles between. This is as close to being out at trivia night as I will get right now.

The questions are typically very good. Carmela is a great host as is Benjamin. Other parts of the show make it hard to listen to. The joking with each other can quickly come across as passive aggressive behavior and makes it awkward to listen to at times. Also the constant breaking into song is annoying.

I’ve loved trivia for years but have never connected with hosts on other podcasts. I have listened subscribed and become a Patreon supporter so that I can have all episodes. I love the banter and competitiveness! I am almost caught up on all of the shows and it’s making me sad to think I’m going to have to wait for each new episode!! #armymember

Not only do we have to listen to constant inane laughter and Carmella finding the weirdest reasons to bring up her age (omg, we get it, you’re the youngest), but unlike other podcasts who’ve backed off patreon now that most are out of work because of the global pandemic, this podcast has done the complete opposite. Also, Jonathan’s treatment of Chris is absolutely appalling. I know he claims to care about Chris, and Chris is way too nice to stand up for himself and that’s exactly why Jonathan feels comfortable treating him so badly. You can save putting out another special episode to defend yourself like you did last time Jonathan, it’s clear you’re just a horrible person. If you cared about Chris you wouldn’t treat him the way you do. This also explains why you still have your hands out expecting people to be able to give while many are barely surviving.

Long time TWA lurker here. It took me a while to find a trivia podcast that I liked the format. This is by far my favorite. I laugh, I learn and I can’t stop listening.

Happy to see they’re using their platform to have a conversation about a topic that has been silenced for too long because it may make people feel “uncomfortable” or whatever the case. Spread it!

Could be a great Trivia Podcast but for them shoving their politics down your throat every now and again. I guess they have to show how "woke" they are.

Look forward to this pod. Fun and informative.

I had heard every episode of Trivial warfare so far an it has been ok. I got to listening to the Shakespeare episode and the Questioner started in on a racisct rant about white people - The host did not stop her or refute her open racisim. I am suprised it was not edited out or the whole episode dropped. I really can not take the degredation of a whole group of people reguardless of what race, it is just wrong.

I love this podcast. Trivia questions are a perfect difficulty level. If I had one suggestion I’d say more women’s episodes! Thanks for all the entertainment :)

I used to love this podcast, and I could handle Jonathan’s personality in small chunks, but now the podcast feels like 80% banter and Jonathan putting people down and only 20% trivia. Really disappointing and a poor show of class from what was once a good podcast.

Hilarious, educational, fun. Make this your next listen on a road trip.

The host of this podcast is all about drama and on top of that, steals content from other writers without so much as a thank you. Pretty embarrassed I used to be a fan. Take note - lots of people are pulling their money from this podcast... there has to be a reason.

Content is amazing and the questions are the perfect balance of difficult and easy. But the hosts will wear your down to the point where you can’t listen any more. Not everyone is bad, Ben and Chris are very fun and entertaining. Jonathan is an egotistical, narcissistic, and often jerk of a trivia player. He has excuses whenever he gets a question wrong. Makes fun of other people often. And is always putting down the other hosts. He often says that it’s all in fun but it’s not enjoyable to listen to. You can tell other hosts aren’t really having “fun” which is why I assume Chris isn’t on very often anymore. Carmelas personality can be a little grinding and a little similar to Jonathan’s at times but she writes great questions. This issue with this show is that the personality of some of the hosts comes through in a not-so-fun way often and it makes the listener uncomfortable and turned off. I think it’s clear that other people in the trivia community feel a similar way because the usual people that make the rounds on all the trivia shows don’t come on trivial warfare anymore. Kudos to to TW for being one of the first trivia podcasts but a lot others do it better at this point.

I discovered Trivial Warfare a few months ago and have steadily digested every episode I can get my hands on at a rate of 8+ hours a week. As a girl who has always reveled in her nerdiness and has alway sought to be a connoisseur of random and possibly useless facts, trivia has always been an interest, but this podcast, along with joining a local pub trivia team, has helped to fan the flames. As a mom, college student professional cleaning fairy (i.e. housekeeper), I have precious little time to sit and read, but when I'm working I pop in my earbuds and learn and giggle my way through several episodes. Can't get enough!

10/1 Update...after this week’s episode I’ve decided Jonathan is just too unkind with his words, so I will be unsubscribing. Once I was obsessed with this podcast, but lately I can’t get over how Jonathan speaks to his “friends.” He is always “joking” but it come across cruel to me. Especially when it comes to Chris, he seems to have the best time making fun of him. I imagine this might work in their real life, but on air it comes off cruel. Love Ben and Carmela!!

I’m currently listening to the live in Vegas episode. The game is fun and entertaining, but Carmella’s constant vocal fry is a big speed bump in the fun and is just plain annoying. It comes and goes making it seem like she’s forcing the fry. I may listen again, but will probably skip the episodes she’s in.

EDIT: Need to update to reflect new opinions. This podcast shouldn't even be on Apple Podcasts. It should be on stitcher premium or something else in that category. Recently went to subscription service for weekly content. Free listeners were getting one every other week which was fine and fair. The last two episodes for free listeners were OLD EPISODES!!! Who does that? What are you doing with your money from your subscribers?? You're making much more money than before and putting out less content... Makes zero sense. And on top of that I was on the fence about starting to subscribe but now that I'm seeing lack of effort to free listeners I'm no longer on the fence and will not be subscribing and may unsubscribe since I'm not getting new episodes anyway. Older Review I just want to start this off by saying I LOVE this podcast. I've been subscribed for a long time. I drive a lot for work and listen to tons of podcasts. I've donated to quite a few and was close to doing so with TW as well until recently. Jonathan recently mentioned wanting to make the podcast his full time job soon which is a great decision. With that said I'm not entirely sure why the podcast changed. It was normally a weekly podcast and now it's bi-weekly unless you pay the monthly "donation" to get beyond the pay wall and get the episodes. I feel if he wants to become a full time content creator then the result should be to create more content with the money he is earning. People who don't want to donate, or can't donate, shouldn't be penalized by missing out on an episode. The people who do donate should be getting the weekly episode plus an exclusive episode. Otherwise he is just getting paid more money for the same amount of content. I understand that if we like something we should pay because many people say that but some of the success of the podcast can be attributed to the listener base since they have subscribed, listened, and I'm sure mentioned it to friends. Again, I still like the podcast but I feel the TW team is alienating some of their listeners by asking for money and not producing an equal amount of content with those earnings

I used to love this podcast. I love most of the hosts, I don’t mind the bit of conversations and I think most of their interaction is great...except..I can’t handle Jonathan’s personality. Don’t mean to call him out but it’s made my husband and I stop listening. He comes across as egotistical and narcissistic. I feel like when he created the paywall (I get it, it’s a job..it’s a lot of work) he criticized people who didn’t pay and it majorly turned me off. I felt reprimanded and felt he was greedy playing up people who paid and created not great content for people not yet paying. I do donate to podcasts but not ones that smack my hand if I chose not to donate. I stopped listening for months but tried again today. Jonathan is full of himself and is too competitive in a cocky way. Again, I really like everyone else so if that doesn’t get on your nerves it’s a fun podcast. Definitely fun with the set up and trivia..it’s not hard enough that I feel like an idiot but not too easy. Just don’t know what to do when the main creator is someone I just can’t handle anymore.