'Serial' Season 2 Is FINALLY Here!

If you woke up early on Thursday morning, and are as avid a Serial fan as the rest of the world, then you were shocked and delighted to discover that the mind-numbingly popular podcast has debuted Season 2. Let me say that again for those of you in the back: Serial Season 2 has premiered on the podcast's official website, and fans can now listen to Episode 1 in a new saga that covers the infamous case of Bowe Bergdahl. The Internet cracked the mystery of Serial's upcoming next case back in September, after Season 1 re-opened the murder of Hae Min Lee, and it appears that the rumors of Serial's intention to dive into the complicated, controversial circumstances concerning Bergdahl's disappearance from his army base in 2009 are true. But some fans — like myself, for example — might be asking a more important question now that that one has been answered. Um, when will Serial Season 2 be on iTunes? Because it's not. At least, not yet. What gives? Update: It's been added to iTunes. Go listen right now!

Earlier: When it was first announced that Serial Season 2 was on the horizon, the announcement came along with an even more important one: that Serial would be expanding onto Pandora, as the podcast continues to grow in popularity and sway. However, fans were assured at the same time that the podcast would continue to air on iTunes and other podcast streaming sites. So, why, then, can you currently listen to Season 2, Episode 1 on the two websites only, and when exactly is it going to live up to its promise to make it's way onto iTunes and automatically download itself to your iPod like the other episodes did?

Breathe, Serial fans. While the podcast is currently only available on the official website and, of course, on Pandora as advertised, it won't be long until it makes its way over to iTunes as well. This is the first episode of a new season, and what's the point of partnering with Pandora for said new season if they don't get exclusive rights to the episode for some time? It's likely that Season 2, Episode 1 will be streaming on both website for at least one to three days, if not a whole week, before it's available on iTunes for wider consumption. Just think about it. If you can get something easily off iTunes, why would you go anywhere else? Pandora and the Serial website have earned that traffic, OK, and we should let them enjoy it for a little while before we start flipping tables because we can't listen to the podcast on iTunes yet.

Season 2 looks to be off to a great start, with Serial already trending on Twitter, and numerous people making plans to ignore the Golden Globes nominations entirely — at least until they catch up with the latest case. Get ready for another great season of Serial, you guys. It might not be as great or groundbreaking as Season 1, but Serial's continued dedication to plumbing new depths of politics and law will continue to enchant (and infuriate) fans looking for something to argue about over the water cooler.