I enjoyed listening to this series of podcasts as it came out. I find it very interesting to see how mundane products are produced and all the steps required to get something produced and finally to market.
How I Built This with Guy Raz is another one of my favs in the same vein.
Here's a review from The Kitchn for the Trader Joe's officially approved version. I didn't know they had one, so I'm intrigued. I don't have a TJ near me, but they're close enough I could make a trip sometime, I had been wanting to taste it after listening to the shows about its creation.
I actually bought two bags of the stuff when the podcast came out. Overall it's pretty a good pasta! It certainly had a bit more of a bite than something like penne, but I couldn't say that it really heald sauce any differently. It was a fun novelty pasta but not worth the small batch prices + shipping.