We were saddened to learn today of the passing today of Christopher Tolkien, someone who has done more for the fantasy genre than most people realize. Craig talks a bit about the younger Tolkien’s legacy and his contribution to fantasy. The bulk of the episode is reserved for reviewing Netflix’s The Witcher, starring Henry Cavill. There’s a lot to love and a lot to … love somewhat less, and we’ll get to a few of those things on today’s episode. Craig and Kyle are joined on this episode by Matt Hatch from The Dusty Wheel, a Wheel of Time-centric, live call-in show on YouTube. Go check it out.

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I really hope Craig puts info here…. (Narrator: But Craig did NOT put any info here. He decided to let Ryan sleep in the bed which he’d made. His decision was validated when he looked ahead and realized Ryan had called Sanderson’s latest book “nonsense,” which would surely become a delightful regret.) Todd, Kenn and Ryan blather on about Starsight or some such nonsense. They were clearly tired and made questionable decisions. Support us on Patreon.

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Craig, Ryan, and Stephanie finally get back on the horse and continue their discussions of Brent Weeks’s Lightbringer series. This time they cap off book 3, The Broken Eye. Where do Andross’s loyalties lie? What will Teia do with/for the Order of the Broken Eye? Will Kip and Teia ever get together? Does Stephanie hate hot girls in books? Only one way to find out!

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Craig, Ryan, Megan, Kenn, and Todd crowd around the mics to give you what you all need: another podcast of people chatting about the new Star Wars movie. It is our inevitable destiny that we’ll do a minimum of one Star Wars episode every year until the end of time, so here we are again. We’re finally (maybe?) putting the Skywalker saga to bed, and we give it quite the send-off, with nearly 90 minutes of argument, conjecture, and horrible, forced Star Wars puns. (ha.)

Craig dons his elbow patches so that he and Kyle can continue their Hobbit adventure, this time talking about the Smaug chapters: that is, chapters 12 through 14. They talk about Smaug, of course, but also about the Arkenstone, the relationship of these scenes to others in The Hobbit and in The Lord of the Rings, and Tolkien’s meditations on greed. Ever wondered why Smaug was so ticked off that the villagers of Lake Town had destroyed their bridges? Listen and find out!

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Blue Team has finally given in to the true crime podcast craze: a serial killer is on the loose in the Dresdenverse, and Harry is on the case. Megan, Todd, and Kenn take on White Night, the ninth book in Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files. And between the White Court, debates of free will, and Lasciel’s coin, there’s plenty of discussion to be had.

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It’s been long enough, time to get back on that oar! Craig, Ryan, and Stephanie discuss chapters 1-55 of The Broken Eye, book 3 in Brent Weeks’ Lightbringer series. Lots of questions this time around: Are we spending enough time with our villains? Is “fake it ’til you make it” a real thing? What is the most touching of human gestures? Is Ryan a monster for not laughing at Craig’s best jokes? Listen and find out!

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It’s a Dresdendum! Fear not, your pleas have not fallen on deaf ears. Todd and Kenn return to talk more Proven Guilty. After the previous episode, they (and the listeners shouting politely on Reddit) knew there was simply too much left unsaid. So they’re here to un-unsay it.

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Do video game movies always suck? Maybe not. But they’re never actually good, either. Why is that? Craig and Kyle are joined by Adam Sherlock from Deep Dive Film School to spend, oh…maybe 5 minutes teasing out the answer to the question at hand, and 45 minutes just laughing about terrible video game movies.

Check out Sherlock’s show, Deep Dive Film School, in audio or video form.

Brent Weeks, bestselling author of the Lightbringer and Night Angel series, joins Craig and Ryan for another installment of the Author’s Shelf series. Brent chose The Odyssey, and actually apologizes for making the podcast look pretentious, as though Craig didn’t relish a bit of pretension. If you’re looking to learn something new about The Odyssey, you’re in luck! Because there are lots of other podcasts where you can do that. But if you’re looking for a fun, lighthearted discussion about it, then you’re in the right place.

Check out Brent’s website and purchase Brent’s latest book, The Burning White (and the other Lightbringer books too, if you haven’t)