David returns from holiday to join Jean for a deep dive into "Rhaenyra Triumphant," the third episode of House of the Dragon Season 3. The conversation covers the Hightower capitulation at Oldtown, Ormond's treacherous gambit with a fake Daeron, and Daemon's spectacular failure of tactical judgment throughout. At the heart of the discussion is the show's richest ongoing theme: what it truly means to rule when the entire system around you was never built for you to wield it, and how the complicated bond between Rhaenyra and Alicent remains the emotional core of the Dance of Dragons.Contact UsQuestions or comments? Send emails to: [email protected], send us a voicemail! You can use the voicemail tool on our website, thelorehounds.com/contact OR record a note on your smartphone and email it to us at the same address.Links to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliateshttps://linktr.ee/thelorehoundsAny opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We're all experiencing an awakening of some kind in the latest episode of The Vampire Lestat. From ice cream scoops to vampire origin stories to reliving the losses of our pasts, this episode has it all. Elysia and John laugh and cry along to our favorite gremlins and their games.Stick around after the credits for a book spoiler Inside the Coffin segment and a Devil's Minion Corner.Contact UsQuestions or comments? Send emails to: [email protected] to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliateslinktr.ee/thelorehoundsAny opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Mothers mourning, Black beach bonding, a new unlikely comic duo, and a whole bunch of dragons – there's a lot happening in House of the Dragon season 3, episode 2: "Queen's Landing" even before it reaches its game-changing climax. And Jean and Elysia are here to break it all down.Stick around after the outro music for additional book-spoiler discussion.Contact Us Questions or comments? Send emails to: [email protected], send us a voicemail! You can use the voicemail tool on our website, thelorehounds.com/contact OR record a note on your smartphone and email it to us at the same address.Links to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliates https://linktr.ee/thelorehoundsAny opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Ask not for whom the bell of shame tolls, for it tolls for every vampire on this show. Elysia and John recap Lestat's taunting of Armand, Daniel's transformational trauma and blackout years, and the overall failure of these vampires to develop healthy coping mechanisms.Stick around after the credits for a book spoiler Inside the Coffin segment and a Devil's Minion Corner.Contact UsQuestions or comments? Send emails to: [email protected] to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliateslinktr.ee/thelorehoundsAny opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jean and Elysia kick off the new season of "horrible people doing horrible things to each other" – aka House of the Dragon season 3, episode 1 – with a dive even deeper than a dragon's fall into the Gullet. They discuss character motivations, the meanings of new revelations, one misused quote, Green Men lore, our new favorite dragon, and arguably the most beautiful battle ever committed to screen.Stick around until after the outro music for the final full-book-spoiler discussion of these events and what might be coming next.Links DiscussedHBO BTS: How to Film An Epic Sea BattleBackrooms (2026) pod (incl. discussion of “The Yellow Wallpaper” short story)Podcast discussing the Green Men (Electric Bookaloo)Contact Us Questions or comments? Send emails to: [email protected], send us a voicemail! You can use the voicemail tool on our website, thelorehounds.com/contact OR record a note on your smartphone and email it to us at the same address.Links to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliates https://linktr.ee/thelorehoundsAny opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Elysia and John head to Toronto to watch Lestat troll Daniel into a feeding frenzy. They discuss media handling of trauma, the truth behind Lestat's dramatizations, and the empathy machine that is Anne Rice's world.Content Warning: This episode addresses sexual assault and abuse.Stick around after the credits for a book spoiler Inside the Coffin segment.Contact UsQuestions or comments? Send emails to: [email protected] to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliateslinktr.ee/thelorehoundsAny opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Eight bells toll in the Widow's Bay season 1 finale – setting Elysia, Mark (Nevermind the Music), and Lisa (Into the West) off on an investigation to uncover what they mean. Sifting through the heart, horrors, and humor of the second half of the season, they piece together the emerging mythology of the island's many secrets through lore teases and key character moments.Links DiscussedSea Shanty in episode 7Did [Writer James Grissom] Actually Know Tennessee Williams?Map of the islandContact UsQuestions or comments? Send emails to: [email protected] to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliateslinktr.ee/thelorehoundsAny opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

John is joined by Marilyn R. Pukkila to discuss the second part of Of Túrin Turambar, the twenty-fifth portion of The Silmarillion. They discuss classical heroes, the grimdark present in Tolkien's writings, and how a character gets in their own way.Marilyn's WebsiteMarilyn R. Pukkila, Research & Instruction Librarian Emerita, Colby CollegeLinks to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliateslinktr.ee/thelorehoundsDeep lore questions, comments and/or thoughts to share? Send us an email at [email protected] opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

David and Elysia work through their own and the community's mixed-but-leaning-positive feelings about Steven Spielberg's new alien-focused movie Disclosure Day (currently in theaters). They get into the greatest cinematic moments, the cast and performance(s) they loved best, and (yes) the lore holes nagging at them after the fact – and why this film is worth seeing in theaters, and even if it engages the heart more than your critical thinking skills.Contact Us [email protected], send us a voicemail! You can use the voicemail tool on our website, thelorehounds.com/contact OR record a note on your smartphone and email it to us at the same address.Links to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliates https://linktr.ee/thelorehoundsAny opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jean and Elysia talk the good, the great, and the even better of the recently released first season (of, they hope, more) of Spider-Noir on Amazon Prime. They talk about the multiversal source of this Film Noir flavor of Spider-Man, here going by the name Ben Reilly – one of the many decisions that diverge this version of the 1930's New York webslinger from his comics inspiration and appearance in the animated Spider-Verse films.After a spoiler-free overview of the show and why you should watch it, they talk through all the important characters, their relationships and motivations, how they fit into their very specific world, the singular actors who bring them to life, the Nicolas Cage as EP factor, classic Film Noir and superhero film references, and which scenes look best in black & white or color.More Spider-Verse coverage:Prep for Across the Spider-VerseAcross the Spider-Verse breakdownContact UsQuestions or comments? Send emails to: [email protected] to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliateslinktr.ee/thelorehoundsAny opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy