The Origins of Fantasy – A Soup with Distance and Time: On Fairy Stories, Part 2
The origins of fairy story are hard to define... and though it may feel like Tolkien doesn't give us an answer, he gives us some good starting points.
Podcast Episodes
Listen to all our latest podcast episodes… or subscribe on any podcast player! Just look for “Window on the West”!
Talking Tolkien with Renowned Artist Ted Nasmith
Ted Nasmith has been creating visions of Middle-earth since the early 1970s when he decided to send JRR Tolkien one of his early pieces--and the professor responded with encouragement! In addition to being the sole featured artist in 12 Tolkien calendars (2022...
Is Star Wars a Fairy Story? – On Fairy Stories, Part 1
This week, Michael, Dan, and I discuss the first part of Tolkien's seminal essay "On Fairy Stories", where Tolkien defines what a fairy (aka fantasy) story is. Why is this important? Well, the "fairy tale" in Tolkien's era was relegated to simple children's...
This is the (raw) Meat | The Silmarillion – A Final Look | #39
High beauty, strong women, and the meat of Middle-earth!
Make Tolkien Great Again | Of the Rings of Power, Part 2 | #38
** Use the code "GREAT" at https://shop.theonering.com to get $2 off anything! ** It's hard to believe, but this week we finish "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age"--the last chapter of The Silmarillion! We talk about the the truth and beauty of Middle-earth...
The Chuck E. Cheese of Middle-earth | Of the Rings of Power, Part 1 | #37
Many of us endured Amazon's Rings of Power show last year... and now we've finally reached that part of The Silmarillion. Of course, here we actually talk about the Rings more than they were featured in the show for those, erm, amazing 5 minutes. This week we take...
Gollum’s Apology, Why We Love Tolkien, and the Nerdiest Thing We’ve Ever Done
Join us as we look back on one year of Exploring Tolkien! This week we talk why we love Tolkien so much, the path that brought us to be a part of this show, all the stats for the show... and most importantly, we ask each other our EXTREMELY personal TORC...
The Path to Gollum’s Redemption | Tolkien Discusses What May Have Happened
With the release of the new Gollum game, we decided to take a deeper dive at this character--not his motivations or history, but what Tolkien specifically said about him in his letters. Tolkien indicates that the most moving scene in all of the Lord of the Rings...
Fellowship Fridays Live | NEW Lord of the Rings MMO, Galadriel’s BIG Life Changes, Gollum Game | #3
Join us as we talk about Galadriel's "life-changing" event in Rings of Power season 2, the Gollum game releasing May 25, 2023, the newly announced MMO game from Amazon, if we accept the reason for Legolas walking on snow, and more!
Liars and Junkies of the 2nd Age | Akallabêth, Part 2 | #36
We finish up the Akallabêth this week talking about religion in Númenor, if the Valar gave up governing Arda (and for how long), and if men of Númenor are addicted to the light of Valinor.
