The End #13 | Nocturnal, The Handmaid’s Tale, + 14 other complete fiction podcasts
(Disclaimer: I’m not exactly sure how to best use Medium as a distribution method for The End, my weekly newsletter that shines a light back on fiction podcasts when they’ve reached the — or at least a — conclusion.
But when did that ever stop me?)
Welcome to December! Our 🎄is up, the gifts are wrapped, and baking has commenced here at The End HQ.
My gift to you? A slew of complete fiction podcasts to keep you occupied as you do your last-month-of-the-year activities.
Before we get to the tales — a quick shout-out to our newest collaborating sponsor, The Big Minute! Dive into a new podcast every Sunday, and uncover what makes their audio stand out.
Let’s get to the stories!
Evo’s Featured Finished Fiction Podcasts
These are my personal recommendations. I’ve listened to every episode and can vouch for the quality of the story and the audio.
NOCTURNAL by Scott Sigler (Narrated urban fantasy horror)
The streets of San Francisco unleash a torrent of noir characters: crime lord Johnny Yee, mob boss Frank Lanza, street bum Aggie James, and Rex Deprovdechuk, a teenager suffering constant bullying at the hands of his classmates.
- Series complete as of 7 Apr 2022
- 1 season, 48 episodes
- Listening time: 25h 54m
The Handmaid’s Tale from Wondery (Dramatized scifi)
A dystopian future, in which the birth rate has plummeted and the United States has become a theocracy called Gilead. Women who are capable of childbirth are pulled out of society and trained as handmaids, then assigned to men for the sole purpose of procreation.
- Series complete as of 20 May 2021 | 1 season, 6 episodes
- Listening time: 3h 18m
Recently Complete Fiction Podcasts
Ten recently (sorta) completed shows to tell you about this week. The good news is that most are super short. With one very notable exception! (No, that’s not a typo down there.)
Omega Star 7 from Omega Star Productions (Dramatized scifi comedy)
In a galaxy known as the ”Sometime, Somewhere” sits a cluster of wild stars known as Omega Star 7. These are the tales of the crews who dare to call this place home.
Sardonic, self aware, and a little bit silly. Omega Star 7 is what you‘d have if a famed science fiction satirist set out to write Dune, and ended up with Star Wars. Inspired by Westerns, Pulpy Science Fiction B-Movies, and Space Operas this show has a little for everyone. Whether it‘s the improvised dialogue, ”No-Earth” setting akin to Fantasy, or the Soundtrack filled with Synths and Sludgy Desert Rock. Surely you can find something to love, or hate, about Omega Star 7.
Content Contains Language and Scenarios not always appropriate for children.
- Season 1 finale dropped 29 Nov 2022
- 30 episodes available
- Season 2 starts Feb 2023
- Listening time: 13h 37m
Metahuman Intelligence Agency by Cosmic Octave (Dramatized scifi)
When the metahumans came into this world they were drunk on their own power. The MIA is the only thing standing between metahumans and total destruction.
- Season 1 finale dropped 29 Nov 2022
- 6 episodes available
- Listening time: 1h 26m
The Adventures of the Fox in the Fedora by Christopher S. Fox (Dramatized mystery thriller)
Magic! Mystery! Danger! Adventure! It’s around every corner! Join multiverse-traveling street thief/treasure hunter Fox (yes! A fox who walks, talks, and acts like a human!) and his friends on their many adventures to procure existence’s most dangerous magical treasures before they fall into the wrong hands…
- Season 1finale dropped 28 Nov 2022
- 10 episodes available
- Season 2 starts Oct 2023
- Listening time: 3h 50m
13 Minutes Or Less by Lynette Bacon-Nguyen (Dramatized horror)
Pizza chef Ella doesn’t like dealing with people, but with a short staffed pizzeria it’s on her to do some deliveries. Though not always the most charismatic she does try her best, even if some of her routes are more spooky then expected.
This is an anthology series of slice of life audio dramas about pizza delivery, customer service and the supernatural.
- Season 1 finale dropped 21 Nov 2022
- 6 episodes available
- Season 2 starts Mar 2023
- Listening time: 0h 38m
NOBODY KNOWS BUT US from The Possibility Project (Dramatized musical)
The Possibility Project presents NOBODY KNOWS BUT US, an original musical podcast drama in five episodes written and acted by a cast of NYC foster care youth from the stories of their lives. Aesop is a high school student and an aspiring journalist. She is also a part of the NYC foster care system. Lately, she is noticing how little people really know about young people, especially young people in foster care. She decides to bring her friends Danu, Johnte, and Vanessa together and follow their lives. Aesop wants the world to know the truth because “nobody knows but us.” NOBODY KNOWS BUT US was directed by Paul G. Griffin, assisted by Theo Vidal; all music composed and recorded by Delune; lyrics written by Delune and the cast; and audio mixed and mastered by Jordan Del Pino and Ryan Hall. NOBODY KNOWS BUT US is made possible in part by Macy’s Downtown Brooklyn, The Warner Fund, The Hyde and Watson Foundation, The Charles Lawrence Keith and Clara Miller Foundation, The Beacon Group, The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, The New York State Council for the Arts, The National Endowment for the Arts, and the hundreds of individuals who contributed to The Possibility Project’s online Mission Possible campaign.
- Series complete as of 3 Nov 2022 with 5 episodes
- Listening time: 2h 11m
The Point of Survival by Tricia Hagerty and Ed Batewell (Narrated thriller)
The Point Of Survival is a YA Serial Fiction Experience. After a dirty bomb is dropped on her university, Syd goes on a mission to save her boyfriend in this eerie dystopian thriller.
- Season 1 finale dropped 18 Oct 2022
- 14 episodes available
- Season 2 starts Oct 2023
- Listening time: 3h 41m
Montana El Diablo by ChunkMcBeefChest (Narrated comedy thriller)
A user directed narrative experience.
- Season 1 finale dropped 5 Oct 2022
- 163 episodes available
- Season 2 starts Oct 2023
- Listening time: 5h 53m
Phoebe Reads a Mystery from Vox (Narrated mystery)
Phoebe reads a mystery novel. Our other shows are Criminal and This is Love.
- Season 23 finale dropped 10 Jun 2022
- 699 episodes available
- Listening time: 274h 18m
Molly Whiskers and the Blue Tentacle from Origin (Narrated children’s mystery)
Private detective Molly has an eye for detail and a strong moral compass. She’s also a rabbit.
Her newest case involves a number of disappearing hamsters, but hot on their trail are Roscoe and Bailey, two of Fogsworth’s finest police detectives… who, it should be mentioned, are cats.
Lurking in the shadows are the retired military minds of the town, including an obese pug and his colourful canine henchmen, who serve a sinister mastermind.
Molly must team up with the cats and build new friendships, if she’s to save the hamsters and rescue her new assistant from the clutches of the Professor.
This story is written by Ashley Kingslund, and read by Imogen Church, with sound design and editing by Mark Steadman at Origin.
- Season 1 finale dropped 22 Feb 2022
- 14 episodes available
- Listening time: 5h 18m
Saturn’s Return from Nerve Tank Media (Dramatized urban fantasy)
The people of Barthos are suffering. Not long ago, everyone had plenty to eat and plenty to trade. Then — with the disappearance of a very special prisoner — everything changed.
A contemporary fable about loss, sacrifice, and ordinary magic, told by four criss-crossed souls.
- Series complete as of 15 Jan 2022 with 3 episodes
- Listening time: 1h 3m
New Seasons Starting Soon
It feels strange to see 2023 as a start date for these new seasons. But the calendar must turn! Catch up on these tales now so you’re ready to go.
Dirt from STUDIO5705 | Fable & Folly (Dramatized mystery)
A strange letter. An impossible sender. Secrets hidden in the ground. From STUDIO5705, a scripted fiction podcast set in present-day Washington State about a man’s journey to unlock a family mystery — and find things long ago buried.
- Returns 15 Dec 2022 for season 3
- 13 prior episodes available
- Listening time: 6h 50m
Breathing Space from Law of Names Media (Dramatized scifi anthology)
A bi-weekly anthology Science Fiction audio drama, telling the stories of the people of the Sol System.
- Returns 1 Jan 2023 for season 3
- 30 prior episodes available
- Listening time: 21h 03m
Cascadia 911 Podcasts (Dramatized scifi)
Ten years after a cataclysmic earthquake and tsunami devastates the Pacific Northwest, a new ocean floor reveals itself along the infamous Casacadia Subduction Zone — but when philanthropic billionaire, Wesley Badger, falls unfit to go on a deep sea expedition to explore the new area, rookie captain, Declan Walters must step up and pilot The Alexandria Submarine through the uncharted Pacific abyss. Fellow crew members are reluctant to trust their new captain, especially after a routine dive does not go according to plan…
- Returns 1 Jan 2023 for season 3
- 5 prior episodes available
- Listening time: 2h 35m
Spaceships from Afterscape, Filip Momirovski (Dramatized scifi comedy)
A sci-fi comedy with sentient spaceships dealing with the sudden die-off of all species in the galaxy.
- Returns 1 Jan 2023 for season 2
- 10 prior episodes available
- Listening time: 3h 26m
So there you have it. My debut of distributing The End on Medium. Thoughts and ideas welcome. And if you have a complete fiction podcast that needs to be in the next issue, fill out this simple form and we’ll get it in!
Cheers!
Evo Terra