The Boiled Leather Audio Hour

We take a break from German history to do some American history! Since it’s silly to do rankings of the American presidents, we are opting for a chronological approach. But we’re still grading them of a sort. Instead of fruitlessly arguing who’s best, we are sorting by impact. Who left the biggest mark on US history? Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Jim’s blog Jim on Twitter.

It’s weird (and that’s a word you’ll hear a lot in this podcast), but it took me until the time between years to finally watch Twin Peaks. And the one question I have since then is captured best in the acronym WTF. So, naturally, I would ask Sean to take me through a guided tour. What exactly is Twin Peaks, and why is it so captivating? The episode is almost spoiler free, so you can still enjoy it if you have not yet seen the series and want to make up your mind, but of course, we’ll discuss it in full! You can support us on Paypal (http://www.paypal.me/boiledleather) or on Patreon (http://www.patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour), where a lot of bonus material is available! Download the episode! Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan on Twitter. Stefan’s blog. Sean on Twitter.

Sean and Gretchen reunite for a second two-hour deep dive into television’s storied recent past! This time, the Original Bad Boy and the Filthcore Queen tackle shows they didn’t touch on before or only touched on briefly. Beginning with a trinity of canonical dramas—The Wire, Deadwood, and Mad Men—they then make the jump to anthology TV—Channel Zero, American Crime Story, and Fargo—with plenty of surprises along the way. It’s better than your most recent Netflix binge, and it’s brought to you by your friends at the Boiled Leather Audio Hour! Download the episode! Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Sean on Twitter. Gretchen on Twitter.

We’re talking about storytelling a lot here on the Boiled Leather Audio Hour, and on occasion, we analyzed how the Westerosi politicans are using story to drive their own machinations - or how stories ruin them. Turns out, both are true for the real world as well. I’m talking to top-tier political consultants Frank Spring and Marcus A. Roberts about how narratives drive election decisions and learn some interesting things about voter psychology and tribalism on the way. Find a video version here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVoQokp5jb4 You can support us on Paypal (http://www.paypal.me/boiledleather) or on Patreon (http://www.patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour), where a lot of bonus material is available! Download the episode! Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan on Twitter. Stefan’s blog. Marcus on Twitter. Frank on Twitter.

We return to Weimar history one more time in order to draw lessons. What can we actually learn from its collapse? What ways were there to prevent it? Join the discussion, and please tell us where you want this particular strand of the show to go!  Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Jim’s blog Jim on Twitter.

It’s  a Boiled Leather Audio Hour first! Sean’s flying solo in the captain’s  chair for this episode, but he’s not alone—returning guest Gretchen Felker-Martin is here to talk about the New Golden Age of Television in  all its glory. From ‘Twin Peaks’ and ‘The Sopranos’ to ‘Boardwalk  Empire,’ ‘Halt and Catch Fire,’ ‘Channel Zero,’ ‘The Terror,’ and other  overlooked gems, Sean and Gretchen take a wide-ranging tour of twenty  years of groundbreaking television. Do they discuss ‘Game of Thrones,’  you ask? Oh boy, do they ever! Smash that play button for this  first-of-its-kind episode, one of the most in-depth and informative  discussions of TV you’re likely to ever hear!  Download the episode! Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Sean on Twitter. Gretchen on Twitter. 

It’s the last episode of the series, as we go through the presidential cabinets of Franz von Papen, Kurt von Schleicher and one Adolf Hitler. With the Reichstag burning and democracy left in the ashes, we leave the history of Weimar behind us. It’s been quite a ride, and we want to thank everyone who went on it with us!  Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Jim’s blog Jim on Twitter.

In this episode, we close off our series on the Teachers of Ice and Fire by having a closer look at Bran Stark. He is taught a little bit by his stern father before he takes off to King’s Landing, then gets his lessons from principal Luwin before graduating to the magical teachers of Jojen and Bloodraven.  However, we don’t want to consign ourselves to only the main saga, and so we included Dunk the Lunk, the redoubtable Duncan the Tall, in our lineup. He has a plethora of teachers in only three novellas, ranging from Arlan of Pennytree, Baelor Breakspear, Aerion Brightflame, Eustace Osgrey, Rohanne Weber, Uthor Underleaf, Maynard Plumm/Bloodraven and, of course, Egg himself. You can support us on Paypal (http://www.paypal.me/boiledleather) or on Patreon (http://www.patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour), where a lot of bonus material is available!  Download the episode! Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan on Twitter.  Stefan’s blog. Sean on Twitter.

We’re back, and it’s the penultimate episode of our history of Weimar Germany. We cover the years 1928-1931, as the last democratic government forms just before the Great Depression starts in the US, taking down the world economy and the Republic with it. Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Jim’s blog Jim on Twitter.

I won’t tell you whose teachers we’re talking about this episode, but at one point it’s a valuable comparison to ask ourselves what Obama could have learned from Avon and Stringer Bell. We’re also learning as we go and arrive at conclusions that genuinely surprised us and that were wholly unscripted. And if that’s not enough, we find ourselves at wit’s end in assessing Stannis’ teaching qualities and look for the fandom for support. Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Sean on Twitter.

We’re continuing our series, talking today about societal changes in Weimar. It’s a period caught between inertia and progress, pulled in different directions and inadequately equipped to sustain the strain. Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Jim’s blog Jim on Twitter.

In this installment of our ongoing series on the Weimar Republic, Jim and I tackle the stabilization period between 1924 and 1928. We look at how a precarious balance establishes itself, why this balance comes to be and why it is so precarious. There are a lot of lessons to be learned if you’re willing. Naturally, most people aren’t. Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Jim’s blog Jim on Twitter.

Teachers! Who likes them? Oftentimes, the influence of our tutors is overlooked and underappreciated. Not on this podcast, though! We’re taking a look at the different teachers that Sansa and Arya have and that shape their characters and world views. They’re some surprising tidbits, and we find out that the TV show actually made more of some teachers than the books. Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Sean on Twitter.

We continue our journey through the history of Weimar Germany with a look at how democracies actually weather crises. In this case, the triple crisis of 1923 provides the blueprint. Why did the Republic survive this onslaught, when it would fold under similar pressure later? This is also when Hitler makes his first appearance, and we get a remarkable misjudgment by the New York Times. Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Jim’s blog Jim on Twitter.

In the final episode in our series on the sample chapters, Sean and I tackle the much-hyped “The Forsaken”, Aeron Greyjoy’s first chapter of “The Winds of Winter”. No worries, we’ll do it in one podcast.  As a side-note, I’ve yet refrained from listening in on the NotACast’s mammoth five-part-series on the topic as not to influence my own analysis and to keep it original.   Download the episode! Our Patreon page at patreon.com/boiledleatheraudiohour. Torrent Our iTunes page. Previous episodes. Podcast RSS feed. Stefan’s blog. Sean on Twitter.