Smiley's Podcast

And so to supplement the banter (and tragedy), what is a podcast to do but keep ripping into Draconus - deservedly, by the way - in his "headlong careening towards destruction"? It bears noting that - unfortunately - technical issues were present throughout the episode and somebody couldn't configure OBS to save their lives & thereby the audio in the end sounds kinda crap. Blame...

Well, we got past the hard mess, and onwards to better shores. Scara & Silchas bantering (#NotMyBloodeye), Rise Herat pondering for a good five pages, and the impending dread carrying over from Chapter 14. Three yays for Hish Tulla. Also, more Arathan & Korya, which are always welcome - if nothing else, for Jaghut banter, whose levity is much needed in a chapter like this. We hope you enjo...

[Spoilers upto chapter 14 of FoD] This is just our attempt to wind down after those horrendous chapters. Join us if you want to listen to some decidedly non Malazan talk. For the most part only, since we do cave in and go off on Malazan tangents before the end. Some of the books that were brought up- 1. Prince of Nothing by Scott Bakker 2. The Cradle series by Will Wight 3. Wheel of Time by Robert...

A more succinct representation of what we couldn't quite get into because we were too downtrodden from the chapters to actually discuss! Kadaspala being a lens through which to view the entire book & how he touches upon the thematic elements of the book before anyone else does, or puts them with great clarity; Narad's fate & actions as well as his being the voice of reason; the Leg...

This is it, friends, the infamous chapter of Forge of Darkness. We released a trigger warning almost a week ago and we stand by it. This episode discusses some pretty dark shit in decently explicit language. Other than that? Chapter 13 & most of 14 is wonderful. The imagery is incredibly evocative (for better or worse), the philosophy and monologues are fascinating, and the tragedy of the whol...

So, these chapters introduce Renarr. And if you've read the series - or listened to our interview with Erikson, hint hint - you probably know Renarr's quite important. And also, it has more of Vatha, and I kinda like Vatha. Sue me. Also, Olar, Draconus & Arathan are doing their thing. And nobody here likes Olar, so here's Part Two of us cheering when she gets burnt to a nice crisp....

So, these chapters just got... weird... And thankfully for our sanity, we're not going to bother to decode the symbolism at all. While Chapter 11 has all sorts of weird things going on, Chapter 12 is relatively straightforward. No less weird, I'll grant you, but at least we can make sense of it. And it's really good. We hope you enjoy! Those links we promised: Cycladic statuettes: http...

Join us as we ponder the effects - and potentially, the motivations - of T'riss' actions in these chapters, how wrong she is in her assertions, how childish Anomander is acting, and how Olar Ethil must well & truly be bullshitting us (and basking in the afterglow) after we see Burn. Neither of us is convinced of the efficacy of her words, and scant little is going to change our minds!...

Welcome to our thinly veiled excuse to drink with our friends. We figured that wouldn't be quite exciting enough, so we decided to watch and discuss a movie. Unfortunately, that movie was 2001 Space Odyssey, which we quickly realised benefitted immensely from another watch and/or reading the book. Lee, alas, did not watch the movie twice nor read the book. So, join us - Mora, Derek & Lee - as we d...

Shit really did hit the fan. Told you it would. Join us as we explore the actions of a certain Azathanai & the ramifications that will hold for Kurald Galain as a whole. Listen as the "sluttiest of all men" slut shames a child alley dancer; as "the defiance within him" is made manifest; and as Darkness is finally forged (ah? See what I did there?) Chapter 10 has shockingly...

Hello & welcome back, to more existentialism, and more philosophy, and more murder (gods below, so much murder). Come for thoughts on civilization, for talk about the Vitr, a new perspective on T'riss, and - of course - more bashing of Errastas for being a murderer. Also, Caladan & Grizzin meet, and their conversation - which was a bit hard to summarise - was great! We hope you enjoy!...

So this was... a chapter. T'riss gets deeply existentialist, Ilgast Prude gives us a bit more exposition on the sorcery employed in Kurald Galain, and there's fucking dragons, there, too! Also, something about the materialist versus the spiritual value of wealth - through the very literal metaphor of a mountain of gold being worth less than love or trust. Oh, and somebody gets murdered at...

Join Lee & Mora for the implications of Sagander fucking around and finding out, Henarald's assertion about becoming a child once more, Kellaras & Galar - once again - being total bros, and Lee gushing over the implications of Urusander & Kadaspala's conversation and portrait. Links & socials: Niflrog’s post on Mythos & Eleint blood: https://www.reddit.com/r/Malazan/com...

Spoilers may include MBotF & NotME, and up to Chapter Six of Forge of Darkness Draconus is a piece of work, it seems, and his son suffers the consequences. Sagander fucks around and finds out in possibly the most satisfying display of gore in the series thus far. No, really, fuck this guy. Feren & Rint are actually a really decently written sibling duo, even if the former is being a bit cr...

Join us as we discuss Chapters 3 & 4 of Forge of Darkness. Lee may - may - have just slightly lost his marbles during this ep, especially regarding Tiste ways & their innate ability to reach just short enough of a major breakthrough, only to screw it up in the final stretch. Spoiler alert: That continues throughout the series. And it's so frustrating. Makes for fun discussions, though....

Lee's computer crashed, but the show must go on. Mora found Dan, one of the most enthusiastic Malazan new readers and sat down for a casual conversation. Spoilers upto the sub-book 1 of House of Chains. If you haven't yet, do check out Dan's Youtube channel over at- https://www.youtube.com/@UCG5qLfzLoS5nwQTWuvr00Hg Want to watch this? https://youtube.com/@smileyspodcast Wanna talk? smi...

Summaries of Chapters 3 & 4 of Forge of Darkness by Steven Erikson. Spoilers may include MBotF and NotME series. Discussion part of this episode is coming soon. Next episode in the series covers Chapters 5 & 6. Want some YouTube? https://youtube.com/@smileyspodcast Wanna talk? smileyspodcast@gmail.com Want schedule updates? https://twitter.com/podcast_smiley Wanna buy us a drink? https://k...

Mora & Lee tackle the first couple of chapters in Forge of Darkness. Foreshadowing galore - but you knew that - and also, spoilers galore, but you knew that too. Be forewarned, this episode contains spoilers for all Malazan works, relevant or otherwise. Want some YouTube? https://youtube.com/@smileyspodcast Wanna talk? smileyspodcast@gmail.com Want schedule updates? https://twitter.com/podcast...

Summaries of Chapters 1 & 2 of Forge of Darkness by Steven Erikson. Spoilers may include MBotF and NotME series. Discussion part of this episode is coming soon. Next episode in the series covers Chapters 3 & 4. Want some YouTube? https://youtube.com/@smileyspodcast Wanna talk? smileyspodcast@gmail.com Want schedule updates? https://twitter.com/podcast_smiley Wanna buy us a drink? https://ko-fi.com...

So you have found us and would hear the tale... Join us as we discuss the prelude to the Forge of Darkness, the first book in the Kharkanas series written by Steven Erikson. For a 2 page piece of writing, the prelude packs a whole lot of lore, sets up the framing of the series, tempers your expectations, veers into metatextual commentary and is filled to the brim with quite quotable quotes. We jus...

We've been teasing this for about as long as there has been a Smiley's Podcast. And, through thick and thin, exams, Covid, two different series by Esslemont, three separate author interviews, AND the Witness trilogy (Gods, we did every series except for Kharkanas, didn't we?), we're finally tackling the beast known as the Kharkanas Trilogy. The format is relatively simple: Each wee...

[Mild spoilers MBOTF and NOTME] This is our end of book discussion of the third instalment of the Malazan prequel series, Path to Ascendancy by Ian C. Esslemont. Lee sounds like a god damned broken record at this point. Our central duo in the books is starting to take more of a back seat in the story, but they're still hilarious. New blood takes the forefront, and old names arise once more to...

[Mild spoilers MBOTF and NOTME] This is our end of book discussion of the second instalment of the Malazan prequel series, Path to Ascendancy by Ian C. Esslemont. Warning: Sureth/Surly simping galore. Wanna say 'Hi!' or give us feedback or have any questions for us, why not reach out? We are on Twitter - https://twitter.com/podcast_smiley, https://twitter.com/mora_books and on Reddit- Lee (u/Lolee...

[Mild spoilers MBOTF and NOTME] This is our end of book discussion of the first instalment of the Malazan prequel series, Path to Ascendancy by Ian C. Esslemont. Wanna say 'Hi!' or give us feedback or have any questions for us, why not reach out? We are on Twitter - https://twitter.com/podcast_smiley, https://twitter.com/mora_books and on Reddit- Lee (u/Loleeeee), Mora (u/kashmora). You can also e...

[SPOILERS ALL] We sat down with our Malazan best friend, Niflrog, for  a freewheeling chat about how to approach our Kharkanas reread. We got a whole, full minute of that discussion before the booze kicked in and off we went on tangents leading to more tangents.  Every good and nice character in the series has been disparaged and names have been dragged through the mud. I humbly suggest...