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Recent episodes
Mort 3: Just Us
May 8, 2026
1h 07m 28s
Mort 2: What Should Be Will Be
Apr 22, 2026
1h 12m 29s
Mort 1: The Uncommon Man
Apr 2, 2026
1h 15m 15s
Neuromancer 3: It's The Punk
Mar 19, 2026
19m 43s
Neuromancer 2: No Imagination
Dec 8, 2025
1h 08m 51s
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| Date | Episode | Topics | Guests | Brands | Places | Keywords | Sponsor | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5/8/26 |  Mort 3: Just Us✨ | Terry PratchettMort+4 | — | — | — | MortTerry Pratchett+4 | — | 1h 07m 28s | |
| 4/22/26 |  Mort 2: What Should Be Will Be✨ | perspectivedualities of life+3 | — | PatreonMort | — | Terry PratchettMort+3 | — | 1h 12m 29s | |
| 4/2/26 |  Mort 1: The Uncommon Man✨ | DiscworldTerry Pratchett+3 | — | Next WordMort+1 | — | DiscworldTerry Pratchett+5 | — | 1h 15m 15s | |
| 3/19/26 |  Neuromancer 3: It's The Punk✨ | William GibsonNeuromancer+5 | — | PatreonNeuromancer | — | NeuromancerWilliam Gibson+5 | — | 19m 43s | |
| 12/8/25 |  Neuromancer 2: No Imagination✨ | juvenile rebellionindustrial vs post-industrial+3 | — | Neuromancer | — | NeuromancerWilliam Gibson+4 | — | 1h 08m 51s | |
| 11/14/25 |  Neuromancer 1: But The Dreams Came On✨ | cyberpunkscience fiction+3 | — | Neuromancer | — | NeuromancerWilliam Gibson+4 | — | 1h 11m 03s | |
| 11/2/25 |  The Haunting Of Hill House 3: The Unreliable Narrator✨ | unreliable narratorperspective of the house+4 | — | Next WordThe Haunting Of Hill House+2 | — | The Haunting Of Hill HouseShirley Jackson+5 | — | 1h 26m 29s | |
| 10/25/25 |  The Haunting Of Hill House 2: Come Home✨ | identityqueer subtext+3 | — | PatreonThe Haunting Of Hill House+2 | — | The Haunting Of Hill HouseShirley Jackson+5 | — | 1h 15m 49s | |
| 10/17/25 |  The Haunting Of Hill House 1: Swallowed By A Monster✨ | gothic traditionShirley Jackson+3 | — | Next WordThe Haunting Of Hill House+2 | — | Shirley JacksonThe Haunting Of Hill House+3 | — | 1h 16m 07s | |
| 10/10/25 |  The Haar 3: The Old Woman And The Sea✨ | cozy fictionsatire+4 | — | Haggis Wildlife FoundationThe Haar+1 | — | cozy fictionsatire+4 | — | 1h 06m 33s | |
Want analysis for the episodes below?Free for Pro Submit a request, we'll have your selected episodes analyzed within an hour. Free, at no cost to you, for Pro users. | |||||||||
| 10/3/25 |  The Haar 2: Bright Sea✨ | memoryidentity+3 | — | Haggis Wildlife FoundationThe Haar+1 | Scotland | The HaarDavid Sodergren+5 | — | 1h 04m 56s | |
| 9/26/25 |  The Haar 1: It's Mrs McAuley | Welcome to spooky season, and our Modern Horror unit on David Sodergren's The Haar. What is the necessary context for this novel? How does the possibility space of a horror novel work in practice? Is Muriel Margaret McAuley the best protagonist we've studied?To see the video version of this week's show, click here; to see the slides, click here!Next week, we continue David Sodergren's The Haar, live on Patreon on Thursday, October 2nd at 9PM Central Time. Footnotes:The HaarYou've Been Trumped (2011)Trump International Golf Links, Scotland"Protected sand dunes to lose special status after environmental damage by Trump golf course." (London School of Economics)"‘People have seen through him and he’s not welcome’: Scotland tees up for Trump visit." (The Guardian)Follow Stars And Swords on YouTube, Bluesky and Instagram.To join me for the live broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 08m 30s | ||||||
| 9/21/25 |  Sense And Sensibility 6: A Knave Or A Fool | This week, we conclude our discussion of Jane Austen's Sense And Sensibility. How does the text position WIlloughby as an interesting villain? Is there a moral lesson to be found in Marianne's last transformation? Is Edward enough for Elinor?To see the slides, click here! Don't forget to check out my new Tolkien-related show, Shire Reckoning!Next week, we begin David Sodergren's The Haar, live on Patreon on Thursday, September 25th at 9PM Central. Footnotes:Sense And SensibilityA Calendar for Sense and SensibilitySense And Sensibility (1995)Stars And Swords on Bookshop.orgThe Haar To join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 13m 57s | ||||||
| 9/15/25 |  Sense And Sensibility 5: Dropping Eaves | This week, we continue our discussion of Jane Austen's Sense And Sensibility. How are the Miss Steeles revealed to be undesirable types? Why does Mrs. Jennings set up a great conflict, then immediately resolve it? Just how feminist is Austen anyway? To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here! Don't forget to check out my new Tolkien-related show, Shire Reckoning!Next week, we finish Sense and Sensibility, live on Patreon on Thursday, September 18th at 9PM Central. Footnotes:Sense And SensibilityA Calendar for Sense and SensibilitySense And Sensibility (1995)Stars And Swords on Bookshop.org To join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 58m 04s | ||||||
| 9/6/25 |  Sense And Sensibility 4: A Very Awkward Narrator | This week, we continue our discussion of Jane Austen's Sense And Sensibility. How does Colonel Brandon's awkwardness communicate his honesty? How do we understand the backstory of Willoughby and Eliza? Is John Dashwood or Robert Ferrers worse?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Don't forget to check out my new Tolkien-related show, Shire Reckoning!Next week, Volume 3, Chapter I (37) to VII (43) of Sense and Sensibility, live on Patreon on Thursday, September 11th at 9PM Central.Footnotes:Sense And SensibilityA Calendar for Sense and SensibilitySense And Sensibility (1995)Stars And Swords on Bookshop.org To join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 05m 25s | ||||||
| 8/29/25 |  Sense And Sensibility 3: Properly Idle | This week, we continue our discussion of Jane Austen's Sense And Sensibility. How does Marianne embody the modernity of Austen's age? What are the social expectations surrounding courtship and engagement? Is Edward maybe sometimes kind of a loser?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Don't forget to check out my new Tolkien-related show, Shire Reckoning!Next week, Volume 2, Chapter VI (28) to XIV (36) of Sense and Sensibility, live on Patreon on Thursday, September 4th at 9PM Central.Footnotes:Sense And SensibilityA Calendar for Sense and SensibilitySense And Sensibility (1995)Stars And Swords on Bookshop.org To join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 19m 03s | ||||||
| 8/15/25 |  Sense And Sensibility 2: Neither Genius, Taste Nor Spirit | This week, we continue our discussion of Jane Austen's Sense And Sensibility. Does Willoughby make the perfect heroic entrance into the story? What draws Elinor and Colonel Brandon together? Is Barton Cottage secretly a metaphor for Marianne?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Don't forget to check out my new Tolkien-related show, Shire Reckoning!Next week, Volume 1, Chapter XV (15) to Volume 2, Chapter V (27) of Sense and Sensibility, live on YouTube on Thursday, August 21st at 9PM Central.Footnotes:Sense And SensibilitySense And Sensibility (The Norton Library)Sense And Sensibility (1995)Stars And Swords on Bookshop.org To join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 23m 49s | ||||||
| 8/8/25 |  Sense And Sensibility 1: To Wish Was To Hope | This week, we begin our eleventh unit and our discussion of Jane Austen's 1811 novel Sense And Sensibility. How are Elinor and Marianne Dashwood compared and contrasted? How sharp is Austen's satire? What exactly makes a flannel waistcoat so unattractive?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Don't forget to check out my new Tolkien-related show, Shire Reckoning!Next week, we finish the first volume of Sense and Sensibility, live on YouTube on Thursday, August 14th at 9PM Central.Footnotes:Sense And SensibilitySense And Sensibility (The Norton Library)Sense And Sensibility (1995)'Leaving the Herd': How Queer Was Cowper? (Conrad Brunstrom)Stars And Swords on Bookshop.org To join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 30m 13s | ||||||
| 8/1/25 |  The Silmarillion 27: The Hands Of The Weak | This week, we conclude the our study of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion with the back half of On the Rings of Power and the Third Age. How bad is Isildur's failure? How does Tolkien integrate the material from The Hobbit? Does Sam deserve more attention?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Don't forget to check out my new Tolkien-related show, Shire Reckoning!Next week, we begin Jane Austen's classic Sense and Sensibility, live on YouTube on Thursday, August 7th at 9PM Central.Footnotes:The SilmarillionThe Silmarillion Unit Production ScheduleStars And Swords on Bookshop.org To join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 51m 22s | ||||||
| 7/25/25 |  The Silmarillion 26: Into The Realm Of Hidden Things | This week, we conclude the history of Númenor and the Second Age with some apocalyptically terminal punctuation, and then rewind to consider what's been happening in Middle-earth this whole time. Could Sauron have been redeemed? What are the powers of the Rings? Why is it called the Last Alliance?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Don't forget to check out my new Tolkien-related show, Shire Reckoning!Next week, the end of The Silmarillion and the feature story of the Third Age, live on YouTube on Thursday, July 31st at 9PM Central.Footnotes:The SilmarillionThe Silmarillion Unit Production ScheduleStars And Swords on Bookshop.orgThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (Amazon)To join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 43m 10s | ||||||
| 7/18/25 |  The Silmarillion 25: This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things | This week, the history of Númenor and the Second Age in the penultimate part of The Silmarillion, Akallabêth. How do we understand the different influences which inspire this part of Tolkien's secondary creation? Why do the Men of Westernesse have such a hard time reconciling themselves to death? Are the words Atalantë and Avallónë really just coincidental?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Don't forget to check out my new Tolkien-related show, Shire Reckoning!Next week, the end of The Silmarillion and the feature story of the Third Age, live on YouTube on Thursday, July 24th at 9PM Central.Footnotes:The SilmarillionThe Silmarillion Unit Production ScheduleStars And Swords on Bookshop.orgShire ReckoningThere And Back Again 72: Well, I'm BackThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (Amazon)Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (LucasArts) ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 44m 28s | ||||||
| 6/27/25 |  The Silmarillion 24: Of Mariners Most Renowned | This week, the stories of Eärendil and the War of Wrath in Chapter XXIV of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion. How does Tolkien stick the landing in the story of Beleriand and First Age? How do we understand the consequences of the Oath of Fëanor and the Doom of the Noldor? Are there hints of a happy ending?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Next week, the story of the Second Age and the Fall of Númenor in Akallabêth, live on YouTube on Thursday, July 3rd at 9PM Central.Footnotes:The SilmarillionStars And Swords on YouTubeThe Silmarillion Unit Production ScheduleStars And Swords on Bookshop.orgPopulations of Middle Earth in the First Age - Part 1: The Elves To join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 51m 27s | ||||||
| 6/23/25 |  The Silmarillion 23: Work And Devices | This week, the last city falls but a new hope is born in Chapter XXIII of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion. How is Tuor different from the other heroes of the age? Why is the story, as presented in this book, so brief? Does Maeglin get the fate he deserves?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Next week, the end of the Quenta Silmarillion and the story of Eärendil in Chapter XXIV, live on YouTube on Thursday, June 26th at 9PM Central.Footnotes:The SilmarillionStars And Swords on YouTubeThe Silmarillion Unit Production ScheduleStars And Swords on Bookshop.orgAtlas Of Middle-Earth, Karen Wynn FonstadTo join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 31m 07s | ||||||
| 6/16/25 |  The Silmarillion 22: A Dark Road | This week, things come undone in Chapters XXII of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion. What do we make of the final fate of Húrin? How does the influence of Morgoth differ from that of the Silmarils? Could anything have saved Beleriand?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Next week, we discuss Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin in Chapter XXIII of the Quenta Silmarillion, live on YouTube on Thursday, June 19th at 9PM Central.Footnotes:The SilmarillionStars And Swords on YouTubeThe Silmarillion Unit Production ScheduleStars And Swords on Bookshop.orgThe Children of HúrinTo join me for the live YouTube broadcast, to support the podcast, to join the conversation on Discord and to get access to monthly bonus episodes, please visit Patreon.com/NextWord and pledge your support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 2h 10m 14s | ||||||
| 6/6/25 |  The Silmarillion 21: Now Comes The Night | This week, we conclude the story of Túrin Turambar in Chapter XXI of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion. Who do we blame for the tragedy of the Children of Húrin? Does Nienor end her life on her own terms? Why is Túrin counted among the Elf-Friends?To see the video broadcast of this episode, click here; to see the slides, click here!Next week, we approach the end of the First Age with Of The Ruin of Doriath, Chapter XXII of the Quenta Silmarillion, live on YouTube on Thursday, June 12th at 9PM Central.Footnotes:The SilmarillionStars And Swords on YouTubeThe Silmarillion Unit Production ScheduleStars And Swords on Bookshop.orgThe Children of Húrin ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ | 1h 55m 03s | ||||||
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