Podcast Summary

Smosh Reads Reddit Stories – Exes And Oh NOs | Reading Reddit Stories

Release Date: December 13, 2025
Hosts: Shane Topp, Ian Hecox, Damian
Episode Theme: Exes, breakups, and epic relationship fails, as told through Reddit stories

Episode Overview

This episode is all about exes…and the catastrophes, betrayals, and wild drama that led to those breakups! Shane, Ian, and Damian indulge in some of Reddit’s juiciest “Am I the Ex” and “Am I the Asshole” stories—all centered on spectacularly failed relationships, legendary red flags, bad boundaries, and hilariously bad decisions. Sassy commentary, relentless roasting, and a few genuine thoughts about healthy relationships ensue.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Privacy, Trust, and Control Issues

[03:39–10:57]

• Story Recap: A man pressures his girlfriend to reveal her secret pen name (she writes romance/erotica), snoops on her laptop, and demands access.

• Hosts' Take:

  • All agree his behavior is controlling and a huge red flag—he’s the obvious asshole.
  • Shane: “Starting with ‘I demanded she tell me’… you’ve already lost. That’s transparent, blatant, controlling behavior.” [06:11]
  • Ian points out that privacy is especially important for writers and creators, relating it to their own experiences with NDAs.
  • Discussion on boundaries: Even in a relationship, you don’t have a right to everything in your partner’s professional life.

• Reddit’s Verdict: "You're the asshole. I have a right to know what she writes. Based on what? ... Don’t confuse that with having any sort of right to the information." [09:57]

• Memorable Moment:

  • The group riffing on possible pen names and genres for smut (Bigfoot, Minotaur, Cars), culminating in a debate about monster erotica. [13:04]

2. Can You Press Pause on a Relationship?

[16:47–29:33]

• Story: After a six-week "pause" (with zero communication), a woman adopts a dog her boyfriend is allergic to, only for him to return expecting to simply "unpause" their relationship.

• Hosts' Take:

  • Six weeks of no contact = breakup in every normal sense—hosts agree she was right to move on.
  • Shane: “You broke up… Not responding to texts is ghosting.” [20:12]
  • Ian: “A break is so, so, so specific… you have to put the boundaries there.” [20:20]

• Reddit’s Verdict:

  • "He does not have any right to disappear without communication, reappear as if nothing happened, and expect you to be okay." [27:10]

• Speculation: Echoed suspicion that he might've tried something with a "hometown hottie," as Shane and Damian spun the scenario into a Hallmark movie trope. [24:21]

3. Snooping, Past “Mistakes”, and Projection

[30:01–45:50]

• Story: A husband snoops on his wife’s phone, finds nudes she sent to a mechanic 16 years ago (before they met), freaks out and calls her names.

• Hosts' Take:

  • Name-calling/cursing an absolute deal-breaker—verbal abuse.
  • Damian: “The projection thing’s interesting… that does almost make me—maybe I shouldn't always assume cheating—but…” [32:37]
  • Ian: “When you have to snoop through your partner's phone… If you're feeling that way, you need to go to a couples therapist.” [35:29]

• Reddit’s Consensus: He's projecting, probably cheating himself, and way out of line to judge her for pre-relationship actions.

• Update Segment:

  • OP staked out a hotel, caught him with another woman, discovered a year-long affair.
  • “She was such a lovely young woman and I ended up having to console her and took her home myself.” [42:58]

• Memorable Moment: Literary dark comedy ensues as they imagine the "mechanic" rising from the dead, and riff on the husband’s “time-traveling” lies. [43:36]

4. Photoshop Deletion: Dealing with a Partner’s Past

[46:14–55:12]

• Story: A woman secretly removes her boyfriend’s ex-wife from family photos using Photoshop, replaces the originals, and waits for him to notice.

• Hosts' Take:

  • Unanimous: “Weird behavior,” “immature,” “psycho,”—and especially harmful for the involved children.
  • Shane: “That is borderline traumatic, probably, for a kid to just be like, 'Oh, so our mom is removed from all these photos.'” [55:12]
  • Ian: “It's a weird hill to die on, and this is a weird behavior to try and fix it for yourself.” [51:37]

• Memorable Moment:

  • The crew jokes about how much crazier her Photoshop scheme could have been—like inserting herself into old family photos—“If you're gonna be crazy, you've gotta really commit!” [56:04]

• Quote: “It’s giving Nancy.” – Damian, mocking the jealous “jealous Nancy” insult. [53:28]

5. Wedding Speech Disaster

[57:23–69:59]

• Story: A newlywed refers to his wife as a "cum dumpster" in his wedding speech, claiming it’s a long-running joke among their friends.

• Hosts' Instant Reaction:

  • Shock, horror, and laughter at the “brutal” and cringiest nickname ever.
  • Ian: “There’s no way… No one’s ever said that.” [61:17]
  • Damian: “I’d love to be a fly on the wall for that phone call with the mother-in-law…” [64:08]
  • Shane: “We gotta ban the ‘it was just a joke’ thing.” [64:39]
  • All stress that a wedding is not the place for this, and jokes at a partner’s expense are never okay, especially in public.

• Reddit’s Verdict: Overwhelmingly the asshole, with extra scorn for reducing his wife to “nothing more than something for you to come in at the wedding.” [66:55]

• Memorable: Multiple references to “dumpster fires, but not that kind of dumpster.”

6. Petty Revenge: Potty Wars

[73:17–78:00]

• Story: A woman with IBS is repeatedly locked out of the bathroom by a sadistic boyfriend, so she poops in the cat’s litter box as revenge.
• Hosts' Take:
  • Complete disgust with the boyfriend’s behavior (“super abusive”).
  • Much laughter at the poetic justice, and an extended tangent about cats' reactions.
  • Shane: “What’s the joke here? What’s the bit here?” [75:17]
  • Ian: “When you fart on somebody and they laugh with you, you’ve found someone very special.” [78:14]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Quote | Speaker | |-----------|-------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------| | 06:11 | “Starting with ‘I demanded she tell me’ … you’ve already lost.” | Shane | | 09:57 | “I have a right to know what she writes… Don’t confuse that with having any sort of right to the information.” | Shane (Reddit verdict) | | 20:12 | “Not responding to texts is ghosting.” | Shane | | 32:37 | “The projection thing’s interesting....” | Damian | | 35:29 | “When you have to snoop through your partner's phone…go to a couples therapist.” | Ian | | 55:12 | “I would say that’s borderline traumatic…that is a horrifying sight.” | Shane | | 61:17 | “There’s no way… no one’s ever said that.” | Ian | | 66:55 | “…you reduced her to nothing more than something for you to come in at the wedding.” | Reddit user (read by Shane) | | 75:18 | “What’s the joke here? What’s the bit here?” | Shane | | 78:14 | “When you fart on somebody and they laugh with you, you’ve found someone very special.” | Ian |

Key Takeaways & Recurring Themes

• Respect for Boundaries: Whether with privacy, family history, or physical space, each story hammered home the need for respect, honest communication, and healthy boundaries.
• Don't “Fix” the Past: Attempts to erase or rewrite a partner’s history (like Photoshopping an ex out of pictures) are not healthy or respectful.
• Context for Jokes: Public roasts, especially at weddings, must be made with the recipient’s feelings front and center—humor does not excuse public humiliation.
• Red Flags: Ghosting, controlling demands, snooping, gaslighting, and boundary violations are all universal deal-breakers according to the Smosh crew.
• Petty Revenge: Sometimes the best (or funniest) payback is poetic, as with the infamous cat box revenge.

Funniest Tangents

• Extended brainstorming of monster erotica genres: “Bigfoot. Big Market. Trust.” [05:36]
• Speculation about “Nancy” and British insults (“slag”), culminating in Damian labeling everything “giving Nancy.” [53:28]
• “If you’re gonna be crazy, you’ve gotta really commit—Photoshop yourself into the family photos!” [56:04]
• Cat reactions and debates over the ethics and levity of farting in relationships. [77:15–79:59]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [03:39] Story 1: Demanding the pen name
• [16:47] Story 2: The relationship “pause” and the rescue dog
• [30:08] Story 3: Husband snooping on wife’s 16-year-old FB messages
• [46:14] Story 4: Photoshop drama with the ex-wife in family photos
• [57:23] Story 5: “Cum dumpster” wedding speech disaster
• [73:17] Story 6: Revenge in the litter box

Language & Tone

• Joking, irreverent, honest, and occasionally wholesome—hosts frequently pivot from savage mocking to genuine advice.
• Strong emphasis on self-awareness in relationships, healthy boundaries, and owning up to being an “asshole” when appropriate.

Conclusion

The Smosh gang tackles internet relationship drama with humor and a surprising dose of sincerity. Across infidelity, ghosting, privacy invasions, wedding disasters, and pet revenge, they serve up both brutal honesty and cackling laughter—making for an episode that’s as useful as it is unhinged for anyone navigating the world of exes and “Oh NOs.”