The Midnight Myth Podcast

The Wheel of Ka is back! On the next installment of our podcast reread of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower, Derek & Steve discuss the first half of Book Four: Wizard & Glass. King finally lets the readers into the murky history of Gliead’s last Gunslinger, Roland, and we learn of his youth and the love that would come to define the romantic nature of his heart, Susan Delgado. Derek and Steve...

We’re just days from the premiere of Stranger Things 3 on Netflix, so we’re going back through the first two seasons to demystify the many monsters of the Upside Down. Drawing on the mythological inspiration for the Demogorgon, the role of Dungeons & Dragons in shaping the imagination, and the long history of monsters in the movies, this episode seeks to understand why we create monstrous beas...

It’s the Midnight Myth Time Machine y’all! We’re publishing our back catalog week by week to make it available on all platforms. This is Episode 2: Hey Princess, which aired in February of 2017. We discuss our hero, Princess Leia/General Organa from the Star Wars franchise and her legacy for the princess archetype in Hollywood. With an exploration of Central European fairy tales and Disney’s iconi...

It’s a most triumphant part two to our discussion of the wise fools Bill S. Preston, esq. and Ted ‘Theodore’ Logan! This week, we’ll get into the wacky and ambitious sequel to Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey. As we track the heroes’ journey through the afterlife—heaven, hell, a new-age seance, and everywhere in between, we’ll explore its roots in Greek mytholog...

IT'S THE MIDNIGHT MYTH TIME MACHINE! We’re republishing our back catalog, which has heretofore been unavailable on most platforms. We’re starting with Episode 1: Villainy, in which Derek & Laurel deliver side-by-side case studies of two iconic villains. First, an exploration of Dracula and the Francis Ford Coppola adaptation of the classic vampire tale that upends traditional villain narrative...

The year is 2688. The place is San Dimas, California. The air is clean, the water is clean, and even the dirt… is clean! Buckle up, friends, because we’re going back (and forward) in time for this episode, exploring the cult classic and career launch for the one and only Keanu Reeves: Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure. For an unassuming slacker buddy comedy, Excellent Adventure delves into its...

Some physicists believe the universe was created in the Big Bang approximately 13.8 billion years ago. These theories are, unfortunately, incorrect. The universe was, in fact, created by Neil Gaiman and Sir Terry Pratchett, and I’m afraid it’s turtles all the way down. Welcome to the Midnight Myth Podcast’s exploration of the mythological sources and philosophies of Good Omens (a new limited serie...

With Game of Thrones in the rearview mirror, it’s time for another character study. Our listeners voted (back in early April) for a Bran Stark episode, and little did we know that he would become such a key player in the final episodes. We’ll draw on ancient Celtic and Norse mythological traditions to discover the antecedents of the character, discuss the archetypes he conforms to (and subverts),...

The Wheel of Ka, our monthly Dark Tower podcast, is back! Join Derek and Steve for a no-holds-barred discussion of the second half of Book III: The Waste Lands. Picking up where we left off and traveling into Lud, we’ll explore the changing landscape of Stephen King’s fantasy epic, the character growth of our beloved ka-tet, and the strange new evils and dangers they encounter along the Path of th...

He comes from the land of the ice and snow, with the midnight sun, where the hot springs flow… You know where we’re going with this. The third in a series of character studies from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we’re rounding out the core Avenger trio with everyone’s favorite god of hammers (um, we mean Thunder), THE MIGHTY THOR. From his roots in the Norse mythological tradition and rise to prom...

And now our watch is ended. Join us at the end of the road as we analyze and explore the final episode of the cultural juggernaut that is Game of Thrones. We bring in historical parallels to fallen empires and civil wars, references to pagan mythology and German Expressionism, and everything in between. Was it the ending we’d all hoped for? Was it an ending we can live with? What did it all mean?...

Can storytelling change the world? How does our media shape our understanding and perceptions of other cultures? As we await the release of the live-action remake of the beloved animated film Aladdin, these questions have bubbled to the surface. In this exploration of the best-known retelling of Aladdin and his Enchanted Lamp, we’ll learn about the jinn of Islamic theology, the tangled publication...

Game of Thrones Season 8 spoilers, y’all. Here with our quick take on Episode 5: The Bells, we’re interested in the historical context of the BIG THING THAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK—both in our literal history and the history of Westeros. We’ll investigate conquerors like Julius Caesar and A Song of Ice & Fire characters like Jon Connington. Plus our standout scenes, MVPs, and light predictions for...

Love is a many splendored thing, love lifts us up where we belong, all you need is love! Come with us to the Underworld of turn-of-the-century Paris—a nightclub, a dancehall and a bordello… the Moulin Rouge. Revisiting the 2001 modern classic by Baz Luhrmann, we’ll explore the tenets of Aristotelian tragedy, the Greek myth of Orpheus & Eurydice, and the historical period known as La Belle Epoq...

The Last of the Starks get ready for the last war this week, and we stare down the barrel of the final episodes of Game of Thrones. So many questions! Will Jon and Dany turn on each other? Who will sit on the Iron Throne? Why didn’t Jon pet the very good boy Ghost? In another bonus recap/quick analysis of the show’s final season, we share standout scenes, MVPs, a few out-there predictions, and som...

Who will campaign door to door for America? Why, the Star-Spangled Man with a plan. Our Captain America character study is here, the second in a new series of character-based podcasts from the MCU. Hot on the heels of Avengers: Endgame, Derek and Laurel analyze the long, emotional arc of a 90-year old superhero. We track his character evolution from scrappy young man to propaganda symbol to fugiti...

On another special bonus episode of the Midnight Myth, Derek and Laurel tackle Game of Thrones, season 8 episode 3: The Long Night. The night is dark and full of spoilers! Who was the episode MVP? How did we handle the casualties? Where do we go from here? All that, plus an analysis of the battle tactics at Winterfell and some of the most impactful character relationships.

We’re in the Endgame now. Hot on the heels of the release of Avengers: Endgame, a defining moment for the MCU, and the culmination of 22 films spanning over a decade, we’re here with a deep dive into some of the most potent themes at play. A heavily spoiler-filled discussion kicks off with our first impressions, then turns to the history of the American Civil War, 20th century psychology, and Gree...

The podcasting ka-tet is back at it again, set your watch and warrant on it. This time, Derek and Steve are tackling the third book of Stephen King’s the Dark Tower: The Waste Lands. The scope of this book meant that your pod-slingers took a look at the events of the first half of the third book— Book One: Jake, Fear In a Handful of Dust. Tune your satellite dishes, rotating atop your heads, to aw...

Game of Thrones is back with its final season, and we’re here with a recap and roundup of Season 8, episode 2: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Find out who our MVPs are, major themes, standout scenes, and a few fan theories and predictions going forward. Who will survive the Battle of Winterfell? Whose life will be cut tragically short in classic George RR Martin style? When will the dragons fight...

“I am Iron Man,” declares genius billionaire, playboy, philanthropist at the end of the blockbuster movie of the same name. Our subject this week is Avenger who started it all, kicking off the MCU with a bang. With an eye to the movies and the highly-anticipated premiere of Avengers: Endgame this week, we’ll look for the mythological, historical, and philosophical roots of the man in the mechanize...

Game of Thrones season 8 is upon us! Winter has come at last and we couldn’t hold our tongues. Join us for a bonus recap and analysis of season eight, episode one: Winterfell. Derek and Laurel will share their first impressions, favorite scenes, and character MVPs. There may be a prediction or fan theory or two along the way. Who will sit on the Iron Throne? Will there be an Iron Throne? Which of...

In the landmark 100th episode of the Midnight Myth, we’re going back to our roots in comparative literature and mythology. Derek and Laurel revisit the Arthurian legend, Middle-earth, and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter for an in-depth analysis of one of storytelling’s most enduring archetypes. How does each character adhere to or evolve the archetype? What is the role of the magician-mentor i...

What do Charles Dickens, Albert Einstein, and Miles Morales have in common? In a follow-up to our overview of Spider-Man, Derek and Laurel (or perhaps their alternate universe counterparts) offer a deep-dive into the Spider-Verse. We’re exploring the major themes that resonate through the first big-screen appearance of a new Spider-man, Miles. Dust off your physics textbooks and join for a discuss...

When the troubling chaos of life presents you with unprecedented power from a random radioactive spider bite, what do you do? In a sweeping study of one of the most popular superheroes ever (and his iconic alter ego, Peter Parker), Derek and Laurel draw on mythological and Shakespearean sources to understand the enduring appeal of your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. At the core of this conversa...