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PODCAST

The Midnight Myth Podcast

Derek Jones and Laurel Hostak

Derek & Laurel dish on myths, history, pop culture and more as they explore universal themes in storytelling. From Game of Thrones and Harry Potter to the Marvel Universe and Star Wars, we"ve been making pop culture sound smart since 2017.

tv & film film history

All Episodes

01:09:17

Episode 151: The Ghost with the Most | Beetlejuice,...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/05/24

So you’re recently deceased. Now what? Grab your handbooks and head into the strange and unusual world of sandworms and case workers, interior designers and, of course… Betelgeuse. Er, Beetlejuice? Third time’s the charm. This week on the Midnight Myth, we’re holing up in our idyllic Connecticut home with Adam and Barbara Maitland, and we’re discussing Tim Burton’s raucous 1988 comedy BEETLEJUICE! We’ll discuss the influence of the Gothic—from the historic Germanic tribes to the architecture to the

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01:27:31

(BONUS) The Wheel of Ka: Episode Thirteen, The Dark...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/05/20

Fellow travelers on the path of Beam, Derek and Stave are back at it again, this time discussing the epic conclusion of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower Book VII: The Dark Tower. What did this multi-verse spinning, psych power wielding, todash chime ringing narrative mean? What happens to Roland when he reaches the Tower, and confronts shape changing monsters, laughter eating vampires, and the end of the Ka-Tet we have come to love? Come with us through the advice of Stuttering Bill on Tower Road to

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01:04:46

Episode 150: Bangarang! | Hook (1991), Psychoanalysis...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/05/17

The five-week nostalgia gauntlet continues on the Midnight Myth with the 1991 Spielberg classic HOOK. This clever reimagining of the story of Peter Pan begins with one fundamental question: What if Peter Pan—the boy who wouldn’t grow up—grew up? This week, we follow the second star to the right (straight on till morning) and revisit Neverland as adults, feeling a lot like Peter Banning as we do. In the process, we uncover the lost memories of childhood, interrogate our nostalgic responses, and ask

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01:01:07

Episode 149: Great Scott! | Back to the Future, Time...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/05/10

We’re going back… to the future! In the first episode of a 5-week series exploring movies that brought us joy as kids, we’re covering the beloved 1990 sci-fi classic Back to the Future. We’ll explore the mythic and literary archetypes that feed into the iconic character of Doc Brown, we’ll dive deep into the complex and fascinating world of physics and time travel, and we’ll discover how the history of science and science fiction come together in this hysterical movie. What would you do if you were

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01:03:54

Episode 148: Don't Panic | The Hitchhiker's Guide to...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/05/03

What is the answer to the ultimate question—of life, the universe, and everything? If you dig Douglas Adams, it’s 42. But what IS the ultimate question—and is that question really worth asking? This week, we’re taking on the beloved Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the one-of-a-kind sci-fi satire that brought us pan-galactic gargle-blasters, Babelfish, Vogon poetry, and everything in between. With insights from the 2005 film and the Douglas Adams novel, we’ll explore the philosophy that underlies

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01:03:22

Episode 147: Masquerade | The Phantom of the Opera,...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/04/26

Put on your mask, close your eyes, and surrender to your darkest dreams. That’s right, we’re covering the longest running Broadway musical in history, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 1986 mega-hit The Phantom of the Opera. We’’ll analyze the angel of music himself, the love triangle at the show’s core, and symbolism in the opera house through the lens of aesthetic philosophy and mythology—From Edmund Burke’s description of beauty and the sublime to Neoplatonism and the evolution of art-making. Is Phantom a

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01:21:58

Episode 146: Sheer Perfection | What Is the Perfect...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/04/19

Let’s shake it up, shall we? Every week, the first words you hear on the Midnight Myth are “what is the perfect story?” We thought we’d try our hand at really answering that question. This week, we’re laying out our metrics for the perfect movie—a set of criteria we developed while trying to kill time in quarantine. We’ll go through our methodology, share listener suggestions, and run a few possibly perfect movies (Jurassic Park, Dr. Strangelove, Ghostbusters, anyone?) through the gauntlet. It’s

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01:12:32

Episode 145B: The End of All Things | The Lord of the...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/04/12

We come, at last, to the end of all things. In the final episode of our Lord of the Rings series, we cover the back half of Tolkien’s The Return of the King. From the eucatastrophic destruction of the One Ring in the fires of Mt. Doom to the Scouring of the Shire and Frodo’s departure for the Undying Lands, we do our best to leave no seeing stone unturned. We revisit some of the themes that have connected us throughout the series—humanity & heroism, cultivation & stewardship, styles of

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01:07:27

Episode 145A: Prince of the Halflings | The Lord of...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/04/05

In the penultimate episode of our Lord of the Rings podcast series, we’re discussing the first half of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Return of the King (aka Book 5: The War of the Ring). It’s a fast-paced, combat-heavy book that sees the forces of Rohan and Gondor combine and Aragorn prepare to assume the kingship. We discuss the massive character growth of Pippin and Merry, two unassuming hobbits who rise to become heroes of war and politic. We revisit themes of stewardship and monarchy in the portraits of

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01:03:17

Episode 144: Crusty Jugglers | Hot Fuzz, The History...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/03/29

Welcome to Sandford Gloucestershire! This week on the podcast, we’re covering a movie that’s been on our to-do list as long as we’ve been recording: HOT FUZZ. The insane cosy mystery/buddy cop flick/madcap action spectacular/slasher horror film by Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg is a masterpiece of genre pastiche and comedy that brings up some unexpected philosophical questions. What is the greater good? What is the right way to serve a community? What do you do when the swan’s escaped? In this episode,

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00:29:53

Boomerangerang: Rabbit Season/Duck Season

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/03/22

Surprise, it’s a bonus Boomerangerang!! While we usually reserve these bonus episodes for our Patreon supporters, today we’re releasing some fun audio content out to the general public—we could all use a little distraction right now. In our signature pop culture debate, we pit Looney Tunes characters against each other in a scenarios historical, mythological, and philosophical. Play along and enjoy. We’re doing a Lord of the Rings GIVEAWAY! Follow us on Twitter and check out our pinned tweet to

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01:05:18

Episode 143: If It's a Myth | HBO's The Outsider,...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/03/21

Is there a monster out in the darkness? How do we know what we know? In this week’s episode, we discuss HBO’s new Stephen King adaptation, The Outsider. Spoilers abound! We’ll talk about the epistemological conflict between Ralph Anderson and Holly Gibney, and how their tension compounds the mystery. We’ll discuss universal folklore and mythology around children, monsters, and psychic energy. This unconventional crime drama is filled with surprises, so be sure to tune in to the show before hearing

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01:03:39

Episode 142: Modern Prometheus | Doctor Who, Gothic...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/03/15

TARDIS time! We’re hopping in the big blue box with our favorite time-traveling superhero and her fam. A new season of Doctor Who has just wrapped on the BBC, and we have tons to say about it. In this episode, we’ll analyze one episode in particular of Series 12, and that’s Episode 8: The Haunting of Villa Diodati. The Doctor and her companions visit Lake Geneva in 1816 to witness one of the most famous gatherings in literary history—that dark and stormy night when Mary Shelley, Percy Bysshe

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01:03:40

Episode 141B: Pity and Mercy | The Lord of the Rings:...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/03/08

In Part Two of our discussion of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, we rejoin the Ringbearers Frodo & Sam on their journey East to Mordor. Through dangerous and barren terrain, our heroes struggle to survive and pursue the near-impossible task of destroying the One Ring. It’s in this part of the series that we finally come face to face with Gollum, arguably the most wretched character in all of literature. We’ll discuss the mythological counterparts of the Waste Land, Gollum as a dark double

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01:17:51

(Bonus) The Wheel of Ka: Episode Twelve, The Dark...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/03/04

My fellow travelers on the path of beam, the long wait, the long walk through the desert wastes, into the minds of the three to be drawn, through the city of Lud, into the pasts of Mejis, we have all traveled. It is here. Book 7 of Stephen King’s the Dark Tower: The Dark Tower. The final tale will be told and we shall share it together before we all meet again, at the clearing at the end of the path. Derek and Steve discuss each character’s journey through the first two installments of Book 7, which

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01:07:04

Episode 141A: The Turn of the Tide | The Lord of the...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/03/01

Where now the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing? This week, we return to you with the next installment of our multi-part discussion of JRR Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, this week covering the first part of The Two Towers, The Treason of Isengard. We follow Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas in their pursuit of the orcs who absconded with Merry and Pippin. We mourn the death of the complicated man Boromir. We meet new cultures—like the Ents and the Rohirrim—and find common ground on

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01:03:37

Episode 140: None of This Is Bad | The Good Place,...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/02/23

Welcome. Everything is fine. NBC’s acclaimed philosophical comedy The Good Place came to an end recently, and we’re here to discuss the emotional series finale and the lasting legacy of the show. Having finally reached the real Good Place, Eleanor, Chidi, Tahani, and Jason (along with architect Michael and not-a-girl/not-a-robot Janet) have overseen the creation of an entirely new afterlife system. In the finale, “Whenever You’re Ready,” the show grapples head-on with the most difficult questions of

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01:08:44

Episode 139B: Those Who Wander | The Lord of the...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/02/16

Part two of a two-parter on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring. Hearken now to the conclusion of our conversation on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. Last week, we discussed the start of Frodo’s journey, the strange characters who lurk in old forests, and the shifting boundaries and morals of Middle-Earth. This week, we’ll drill down on some key moments in Fellowship, particularly the Council of Elrond at Rivendell and the meeting with Galadriel in

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01:09:07

Episode 139A: One Pod to Rule Them All | The Lord of...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/02/09

Part one of a two-parter on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring. One ring to rule them all… The Midnight Myth Podcast returns once more to the land of Middle Earth as we embark on a quest to explore J.R.R. Tolkien’s massively influential book series The Lord of the Rings. In this ongoing series, we’ll reread The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King, discussing each book as a work of art and history. In this first installment, we discuss key moments in The

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01:01:30

Episode 138: The Laughing Place | Castle Rock S2,...

The Midnight Myth Podcast ·

2020/02/02

An ancient evil lurks underneath the seemingly idyllic New England villages of Castle Rock and ‘Salem’s Lot. In this episode of the Midnight Myth, we’ll discuss Season 2 of Hulu’s Castle Rock, the anthology series set in the universe of Stephen King’s writing. This season mashes up characters and locations from Misery, Salem’s Lot, Stand By Me, and more to create a complex portrait of communities in transition. We explore parallels to the Book of Genesis in the Bible—especially the story of the

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