The Tolkien Professor

The twenty-third session of the Silmarillion Seminar, covering Chapter 20 of the Quenta Silmarillion, "Of the Fifth Battle: Nirnaeth Arnoediad."

Peter S. Beagle, "The Last Unicorn", Chapters 5-8, Recorded 04/15/11.

Digest co-host Trish joins Prof. Olsen and Dave as they cover all things Hobbit and Comic-Con. And Christopher Tolkien! They set a new record for episode length all the while.

Dave and Trish wrap up their marathon Saturday podcasting session with one more digest. This week we revisit The Split and The Battle of Dol-Guldur!

This episode we discuss our namesake Hobbit chapter: Riddles in the Dark. We can't wait so see The Riddle Game on-screen, but how many of the original riddles will make it into the film?

Dave and Trish are on a roll! In this episode we review predictions, analysis, and feedback on Riddles 4 and 5 and address copious listener comments about the talking purse!

Peter S. Beagle, "The Last Unicorn", Chapters 1-4, Recorded 04/13/11.

The Digest is back! Trish Lambert joins the Riddles team and helps Dave review predictions, analyses, and listener feedback on the third topic, The Battle of Azanulbizar. Make sure you listen to the end...

C.S. Lewis, "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe", Chapters 12-17, Recorded 04/11/11.

C.S. Lewis, "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe", Chapters 7-11, Recorded 04/08/11.

This week we discuss two topics that go hand-in-hand: Gollum and romance. Duh.

C.S. Lewis, "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe", Chapters 1-6, Recorded 04/04/11.

The twenty-second session of the Silmarillion Seminar, in which we spend an unprecedented third week on Chapter 19 of the Quenta Silmarillion, "Of Beren and Luthien." And oaths.

Only four months into the podcast, we finally get around to talking about The Hobbit's titular character, Bilbo Baggins...for two hours!

J.R.R. Tolkien, Smith of Wootton Major, Pages 35-39 Recorded 04/01/11.

We go back to the very beginning...of first Hobbit film, that is. How will The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey open on-screen?

J.R.R. Tolkien, Smith of Wootton Major, Pages 9-34 Recorded 3/30/11.

George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin, Chapters 21-32 Recorded 3/28/11.

The hosts hop on the Cinemacon debate bandwagon and weigh in on the "Tomb of the Ringwraiths." How will Sauron's most terrible servants factor into the The Hobbit?

The second in a two-part series on the most hotly debated Hobbit question: where will the two films be split? In this episode, we are joined by special guest Fr. Roderick Vonhogen of SQPN to talk about The White Council.

The first in a two-part series on the most hotly debated Hobbit question: where will the two films be split? In this episode, we address the main Hobbit storyline and predict the "tone" of the ending of An Unexpected Journey.

George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin, Chapters 11-20 Recorded 3/25/11.

The twenty-first session of the Silmarillion Seminar, discussing the second part of Chapter 19 of the Quenta Silmarillion, "Of Beren and Luthien"

The first RITD episode to address humor in the Hobbit; this week we focus on Bilbo's first "successful adventure" with the trolls.

Co-host Dave reviews the first two topics, Thrain and Thror, and presents predictions, arguments, and feedback from RITD analysts and listeners. We also give a few RITD-related updates and news items.