Beautifully written and intelligently paced, this well-acted show deserves all of the accolades it has received (and which pointed me to it in the first place). It doesn’t fall victim to the “must explain mystery one before presenting mystery two to keep momentum going” trope. It paces out both mysteries and revelations in a way that we, as the audience, suspend disbelief and keep faith along with the characters themselves, as they do the same. As they say to themselves, “well, I guess we believe in _____ now,” it’s easy for us to say we kind of do, too. It’s brilliant. And once season five hits - that’s where the perfection of the show really sets in. We come to realize that, all along, there’s been a plan. All along, there’s been a focused resolution to the characters and their journeys, and each one of them is given the honor of a beautiful and poignant period at the end of their five-season-long sentence. It’s really lovely. I encourage you to listen to the entire show - all five seasons. The characters, their relationships, and their growth as people are as engaging as the “WTH is happening in this town” mystery that underlies the show. It’s really a wonderful ride. Best podcast I’ve listened to in years.

really enjoying it, took a little bit to pick up but i am really into it now that it did!!! as a queer ohio native, i love it even more

This story made me feel so good about everything. The characters are extremely well-developed, and really relatable. All their insecurities and shortcomings, and the ways they learned to trust and depend on each other over time. Heart. Heart. Heart. Heart. I admit I teared up a bit when I got to the last episode. A+

I’ve listened to many an audio drama and this one stands out and on its own two feet. This is very different from other shows I’ve listened to… and that’s a good thing. It’s developing a genre and format all on its own. It took me awhile to really get into the characters, but once your “in,” these characters captivate you with their backstory and character development. Well worth the listen.

My heart, I loved every minute of this podcast. I bawled my eyes out when finished. Thank you to everyone involved in the making of this masterpiece. Goodnight Mt.Absalom.

I absolutely fell in love with every character! Not to mention, I never figured out the ending ahead of time! I’m rarely surprised, but this has a beautiful plot and ending. 😊

A great story all around, definitely fits well on it's Fiction shelf but I felt immersed in this little town, it felt like a little family!

I almost turned it off immediately in the beginning, but stuck with it. It got better and better and was probably one of my favorite audio dramas ever. The writing was amazing and very creative

Binged all 5 seasons. I will miss it

Show is really great but Abby is absolutely insufferable lol

I really enjoyed this series. The characters are well written, their relationships are complicated but ultimately loving, and the acting is very solid. It’s a story about home and family, about memory and what responsibilities we have to each other. It’s about a place that has a soul, and you really get to know the town and the people in it. Abby, Lily, and Dot are my favorites, but so are Wes and Rudy, Nora, and in the end even Chester. It even got me wanting to try celery soda, and I hate celery!

I’ve been listening to this series from the very beginning, and just finished it. Unwell is a deep sit - a meticulously-unfolding narrative that invests deeply in its world and characters, and steadfastly refuses to hold your hand. The reward for paying close attention is a rich and considered multi-valent story about a group of lovable misfits trying to understand a profound and mysterious terror. The storytelling takes its time in a way that feels wrenchingly true: it’s extremely relatable to listen to folks gradually coming to terms with the fact that something is very wrong, resisting the call to reckon with its origins, and eventually recognizing that the only way out is through. Along the way, they end up living their lives in ways they never imagined. Real life doesn’t hold your hand either - and Mount Absalom, for all of its mysteries, feels jarring familiar.

Bravo well done

So first, this story is beautifully meandering. The whole first two seasons I feel like you’re being introduced to different people and different little sides of the mystery. Its not super spooky, you're just left with a lot of questions. Slightly eerie is where I’d put it. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but if you want an intensely scary story this isnt for you. You’re going to love all the characters. Theyre all wholesome and loving even if their way of showing it isn't always compatible. I would definitely say the writers did a great job seamlessly writing a loving and tolerant town. I’m so happy the wrote and finished this. Im so sad its over. I’m going to miss all of the characters, but it was a good listen. Thank you to the writers, the cast, and the crew. You did a wonderful job.

Just. Bravo.

I’m an avid audio drama listener. This was the first time I was distracted by all the sounds used; footsteps, doors opening, scratching, etc. None that were important to the story. They compete with the dialogue. This was the first episode so hopefully they learned how to edit themselves with experience and maturity rather than use every sound just because they could.

This is a very creative podcast and I enjoy listening to it while I am at work. Helps me focus.

This is one of the best acted podcasts I’ve come across. A well-written story that digs into human emotions and real fears. Great depictions of real, flawed characters. I love the diversity and the portrayal of the struggles so many of us face with dementia in a loved one. The supernatural elements are creepy and exciting but not gratuitous. If you just want to be scared, this isn’t the podcast for you, but if you want a good story with well-developed characters and lots of emotion this one has it.

I would like to just sing some praises for Lily’s character. I think it’s incredible how Lily leads with kindness. She doesn’t judge or jump to conclusions when faced with villains. And she doesn’t do the cop-out thing that a lot of mainstream shows do these days, which is attempt to be empathic towards the villains, but only succeed at being mildly sympathetic. In mainstream it’s always an attempt. But with this show, and especially with Lily, she always comes out with an empathy that is so unexpected. The way in which she treats Silos at the end had me *literally* tearing up. Her kindness and her reaction to pain and suffering being gentleness is so genuine. It’s also so natural for her character. I love how it’s not a character development, it feels like this is how she always has been, or rather, how she was always meant to be; kind and gentle, and truly truly truly understanding. I also love how she brings that same softness and gentleness and kindness to her mother. My grandma had dementia and lived with my and my parents until her death a few years ago, and hearing that struggle with a loved one has me crying all the time. I wish I could have had this level of gentleness and kindness and understanding. The writing of Lily is so truly inspirational. I also just love so much the times when Lily is frustrated or does something out of fear. I love how she has a full spectrum of emotions. I think that’s what makes her gentle kindness proof of great writing. We know the character can be mad! And frustrated! And confused! And scared! And because we know she can have these intense emotions, it’s so incredible to hear that her reaction to the Big Fight with the Big Bad is to not fight, and instead be gentle. To ask what is wrong, and to listen. To just listen. Such good writing! Amazing writing!

I’m just starting this series… and man oh man, season 2 Ep10!!!! Had me balling🥹🥹! When I say she acting??? She was acting… was so good!!!

I just finished the last episode of this 5 season story and will miss the characters now that they’ve moved on.

I just finished this series after following for a number of years, and I’m satisfied with the outcome. Kind of a rarity in audio drama to wrap up all the loose ends and complete the story, so kudos to the team for sticking the landing. Was it the best fiction pod I’ve listened to? No. Was it the worst? Not by a long shot. I’ve loved these characters, even when the story lagged, which is why I stuck around thru to the end. The sound production is immersive, if a bit difficult to place now and again. Good voice actors, diverse cast of characters, including BIPOC, queer, autistic, and non-binary folks. A good listen if you enjoy small midwestern towns, queer romance, slow-reveal mysteries, complicated family relationships, supernatural stories, and themes around memory, loss, grief, belief, and community.

Well, it’s been a long, gentle journey that finally ended. No spoilers, but I do want to say the payoff is very well-thought out and executed. If you prefer your supernatural stories to dial back on the horror and (for once) not involve the Biblical Apocalypse, this is for you.

To anyone who wants to go on this five season journey, this is not a normal ghost story. It’s a story about family and pain, community of laughter, growth and change and stasis. It’s about all of these forces, interplaying and struggling with each other. It’s a love story, both realized and unrequited. It’s about justified anger and unjustifiable actions. And more than anything, it’s about how humans can adapt to any circumstances. I don’t listen to, or watch stories about dementia. Both because it is an overriding fear of, and, more recently, because my mother is experiencing it due to age and illness. This is the first story that I have completed that features a character experiencing severe dementia. I finished it because it was worth. Thank you for the story

what a satisfying ending. i laughed, i cried, i realized i would miss these people. thank you all for the story and the hard work it took to bring it to us. i will remember it and them (and therefore you) for a long time

Great talent here!! Thanks for sharing the dedicated and passionate community of this podcast. Accolades well deserved . Going to miss all of you,and the Mt.A .family. Cheers 🥂 🏆. Keep traveling Ms.Dot 🌎 .

Don’t say it’s over so beautiful

I loved this whole podcast. Thank you so much for existing even the episodes that didn’t have anything going on. I enjoyed and I teared up when Lily and Wes had to say goodbye. Thank you very much.

Excellent job ya’ll! Loved the story and I couldnt wait for each episode. The last one….WOW, just WOW! Hope to see more!

A good mix of light and heavy and happy and heartfelt. Episodes are short and sometimes not super plot pivotal. I like to wait for the whole season to come out and listen to it in a day.

The way this show has got me trapped in a chokehold!!!! Rudy just died and I’m in tears!!! My favorite podcast!!! Thank you all

Really liked it for the first couple of seasons. However it started going downhill later on. This season, season 5, was a challenge to listen to. Entire episodes where it seems like nothing is happening, and all the character interactions that used to be interesting just aren’t there anymore. In earlier seasons there were episodes that focused on characterization and development that were interesting. Now there are episodes where it seems like nothing is really being accomplished. I could literally skip like 75% of this season and still won’t miss a thing. Sad considering I liked the beginning. Anyways thanks for the earlier seasons they were a joy to listen to.

Started out really great. If you like short episodes this is for you. Best to binge in my opinion. Now that I am caught up I can see that almost nothing happens in these very short episodes. I am only still listening to finish what I started.

I really wanted to like this, but it gets so confusing and hard to follow that I’m over it. Also, this is a very woke podcast which feels like it’s just ticking boxes off for the sake of a favorable ESG score, which contributes to it being difficult to follow with all the“them-theys”. While it has potential, it unfortunately falls way short.

A complete snooze fest. Spread thin pointless dialogue. Very boring podcast

I recently picked this series at semi-random to help me stay awake on a long road, but was ultimately hooked. As of writing this, I’ve just finished S5E8, so there’s still plenty to go. I will admit, some of the reviews made it seem like the show dragged on or never went anywhere, or that it burns so slowly you don’t even know if there’s a fire. These reviews are wrong. It is a slow burn, but it’s always burning. There’s almost never any kind of “filler” material, and most of that filler stuff is just character building and development. I read complaints about the characters being mean or abrasive or jerks, but no one is written in a way as to make them “unlikeable” as a character. Everyone is well written and well acted. I’ve never felt total disgust or dislike for anyone of them, even the antagonistic characters. People fight and argue sometimes, but so do real life people. Overall, the series has been a surprising delight so far and I can’t wait to see how it ends. Props to the the entire team for putting something like this together.

This podcast was a little bit of a tough listen at first, due to the initially abrasive and unlikable characters, but the character arcs are fantastic and redeeming, the writing and acting are superb, and the nods to historical and social issues are icing on the cake for a history buff like me. And, I just ugly cried near the end of season four, something that I have never done while listening to any other podcast. That is just how moving the characters and story are!

Loved it at first. Interesting & unpredictable. But by season 5 it felt like Alice fell down the rabbit hole and it no longer made sense and was hard to follow. Feels like there is no resolve. A little disappointed.

I hate that this is another thing that is pushing the pronoun crap and gays. I just want a good podcast without all this crap. Stop trying to force this down peoples throats. 😩

Can’t we just get a normal podcast with normal people not trying to push the whole agenda. “They/them” how “gay”. The world is such a joke these days.

I loved, like absolutely loved the first three seasons. It’s gotten a little hard to follow since then. I wish they did recaps or something between seasons or had a timeline/summary.

Great story and fantastic acting! I appreciate the turn toward recognizing that Gender is different than Sex, and that people have the right to choose their own pronouns. They have carried a good story through many seasons.

This podcast builds a rich world in Mount Absalom to get lost in. The writing, acting, & sound design are 10/10 Don’t listen to the weird negative reviews people are leaving. This show is definitely worth the listen.

Love it

And I really tried. I wanted to like this. I don't dislike it because of anyone's sexuality or gender identity, I don't like it because it's full of irritating characters, dull storylines, and I could not be convinced to care about anything happening. It's exhausting to listen to a bunch of wieners argue about philosophical drivel when there's literally no story moving forward. Chronically online energy to this one, id pick something else.

And a great story, writing & acting.

Entertaining, the story telling was ok held my interest for a bit. Tons of unnecessary details that take away from the story… predictable and did the job in the crunch of a road trip.

Wow, this does not deserve all the bad reviews! The voice acting and creative story telling are stellar, and I’ve loved the twists and turns as the seasons go on. It’s also really nice to see yourself represented in a story, and to see that story told in a thoughtful, respectful way. And guess what - people who aren’t your basic straight white conservatives dudes exist in southeast Ohio! Shoutout to all my other Appalachian lgbts :)

Easy listen with great voice actors and nice plot twists. Awesomely inclusive and diverse. Always good for a re-listen.

Don’t let the number of salty people leaving bad reviews because their butt hurt about “ideology” and “pronouns” put you off, this is a good podcast. It’s an interesting and weird story about a haunted (possibly cursed?) town and the complicated nature of family, home and place. If the mere existence of queer or non-binary people is going to put you off, this may not be for you. Yeah, Abby, Lily, and Dot are all a bit much in the beginning, they are each difficult, condescending, and rude (mostly to each other) in their own way. But they grow and part of the character drama is experiencing them change. A good story doesn’t needed to make every single protagonist “likable”. This may come as a shock to some, but you actually have to pay attention to multiple episodes if you want to follow the plot. The show is entertaining, a little spook, a little weird humor, a dash of the occult and malevolent supernatural. If that’s your thing, just enjoy it and don’t over think it.