Episodes
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This week, we're taking a break from all the fandom talk to sip some of the finest Witcher tea—literally and figuratively! In this new side quest, we sample three different Witcher-themed teas from Geek Grind Coffee, offering our opinions on each of them while considering if they actually reflect the character they were inspired by. (A Yennefer tea with no lilac or gooseberries? What is this craziness?!?) We also wade into some of the juiciest Witcher gossip to hit over the past few years, offering our sassiest thoughts on all of it. Beau DeMayo! Toxic fans! Possible reasons why Henry Cavill is no longer on the show! (It strayed too much from the source material? Give us a break!) All this, plus another review shot, Tim reveals his least favorite social media platform and Valerie forgets how to drink.
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The Witcher is going to Japan! Well, sort of. With a Witcher manga now available, a line of Japanese-influenced statues in stores and a new Witcher tabletop game inspired by feudal Japan shipping next year, Geralt's flirtation with the far east shows no sign of slowing. What's behind it? This week, we welcome Gosia, the passionate fan, translator and student of Japanology behind the Ronin of Rivia social media account to see if we can find out! Gosia discusses how her love of The Witcher and Japanese culture inspired her to study the intersection of the two, why Geralt seems to resonate with Japanese fans and whether Andrzej Sapkowski may have been influenced by samurai when he created him. Plus, she discusses the challenges of translating video games and fiction and sings the praises of the Witcher translation teams...before we ruin it all by talking about Hexer.
Find Ronin of Rivia on Instagram at @ronin_of_rivia and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/roninofrivia. -
Episodes manquant?
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We're glad people can't see how bad we often are at videogames, but our latest guest shares her every jump, attack, and block with the world! Lucy Robyn is a Twitch streamer, podcaster and good friend of ours who not only joins us this week to talk about her love of The Witcher, but surprises us with a very nice bottle of Bushmills Black Bush to accompany the discussion. Lucy shares how the pandemic led to her discovery of the Witcher series and game, and how that developed into her role as a content creator, Twitch streamer and cohost of our favorite movie (and former Witcher) podcast, On the Path. She also discusses what it's like podcasting with a partner in a different continent, answers some stream-themed drunk questions and reveals why getting early access to a game isn't always the delight you'd expect.
Keep up with Lucy's latest streams by following her on Twitch, Youtube, Twitter and Instagram at @lucyjrobyn, and find her podcast, On the Path, on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher and anywhere else you find podcasts. -
Much like Sirens of the Deep itself, releasing this episode on the upcoming new Witcher animated movie was a bit delayed. But we think you’ll agree it's worth the wait, as we unpack the recent Geeked Week sneak peek (try saying that five times fast) and come to terms with the movie’s new release date. And that’s just the start! In the second half of the episode, we unveil our latest series of Whiskey With Witcher playlists and reveal how Valerie’s fandom factors into their creation. We also finally make good on our promise and take a shot of Jeppson’s Malort as a thank you for our latest five-star review. (We survive...barely.) It’s an episode of music and merpeople, accompanied by the strong, sweet notes of Blackened Cask Strength American Whiskey.
Hold music: "Local Forecast - Slower" by Kevin MacLeod -
Between the cosplay, panels, meetups, screenings, booths, signings and overall excitement, there’s nothing better than a convention! Well, at least if you ignore all the crowds, lines, overpriced food, unshowered attendees and the possibility of coming home sick (something one of our hosts knows a lot about). Still, it’s hard to deny the appeal of gathering with thousands of fans to celebrate something you love…especially when that celebration also spills over into the local bars. In this week’s new episode, we discussing our history with conventions—both as attendees and exhibitors—including our recent trip together to San Diego Comic-Con. We share what it was like seeing Freya Allan, explain some of the issues we had with Comic-Con this year and ponder what we see happening to the convention landscape in the future. Plus, we unpack Netflix’s recent Geeked Week announcement. Are we in for a shipload of Sirens news? Or just an ocean of disappointment?
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Our conversation on fanfiction continues, as the always insightful Rebekah Rodriguez-Lynn discusses some of the Witcher fics she’s authored and what it’s been like developing as a writer on AO3. Which of her favorite Witcher ships resonate with readers and which one, despite all her best intentions, has not? What has writing and reading fanfiction taught her? And what happens when she’s written fanfic while drinking? Plus, we answer some questions from Rebekah’s fans on Tumblr and subject our guest to some particularly challenging drunken questions. And yes, Tim gets some more verbal spankings—but don’t worry, he’s into them.
You can find Rebekah Rodriguez-Lynn on Twitter at @BuffySummers10, on Tumblr at @Fangirleaconmigo and on AO3 at Descarada. -
The best writing often challenges you, so it’s only natural that our episode on writing and fanfiction does as well! We’re excited to welcome back one of our favorite past guests, fanfiction writer and Witcher expert Rebekah Rodriguez-Lynn, for a little wining and opining about all things fanfiction. We uncork two bottles of wine from Suveg Cellars—a local favorite of Rebekah’s—for a fierce, but fascinating discussion that gets into what makes something fanfiction, why fans devote so much of their lives writing and reading it and whether a fanfic can drift so far from the source material that it’s no longer a fanfic. In fact, we had so much fun that we ran a little longer than usual and decided to break the episode into two parts. Look for the rest of the conversation next week. Believe it or not, it gets even crazier!
You can find Rebekah Rodriguez-Lynn on Twitter at @BuffySummers10, on Tumblr at @Fangirleaconmigo and on AO3 at Descarada -
You can be a fan of art. But is there an art to being a fan? There certainly is when we’re talking about our friend Maja, who over the past few years has become one of the most talented, distinct and sought after Witcher fan artists working today. Maja’s clever illustrations of characters like Yennefer, Jaskier and Geralt (to say nothing of our podcast art, which she designed) all boast a sophisticated sense of style and influence that would seem to extend well beyond her young age, and which we discuss thoroughly with her as Maja joins us on our latest episode. Plus, she shares some savage thoughts on The Witcher’s costumes, explains why she’s so fond of Yenskier and yes, answers our drunken questions in what’s one of our liveliest fandom discussions yet!
See Maja’s latest fanart by following her on Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr at @perseruna -
Dandelion’s biggest fan...is probably himself. Dandelion’s second biggest fan, however, is arguably Elias the Bard, the extraordinarily gifted cosplayer and Witcher fan who has made a name for himself cosplaying as the flamboyant troubadour. In this week’s episode, we welcome Elias to the podcast, who discusses discovering The Witcher through the trilogy of games and how his love of the world and particularly Dandelion led to him creating some of the most authentic Jaskier cosplays out there. We dive deep into cosplay as a form of fandom, as Elias shares stories about dressing up at cons, explains why he cosplays the characters he does and ponders how aging might affect his cosplaying in the future (in short, it won’t!). Plus, he reveals which of The Witcher’s many characters would do the best job cosplaying as him!
Find Elias the Bard online in the following spots...
Instagram: @the.gardening.bard
Twitter/X: @Gardening_bard
TikTok: @eliasthegardeningbard
Tumblr: @elythegardeningbard -
How do you know you’re a pretty big Witcher fan? When you spend over a year of your life bringing it to life! This week, we welcome Lihtar Studio’s Edward Kurchevsky to the podcast to discuss the recent animated tribute short he directed based on Andrzej Sapkowski’s short story, “A Grain of Truth.” A stylish interpretation of Geralt and his world, the energetic teaser is a labor of love from all involved—and Lihtar’s very first project. Over scotch, Edward shares why he and his colleagues decided to launch their studio with The Witcher, what he enjoys most about the franchise and what other memorable Witcher story he’d love a chance to animate. Plus, we discuss European vs. American fandom and whether Geralt should have a beard. (The answer is surprisingly controversial!)
Watch Lihtar Studio’s Witcher short: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbVvxxgNj2k -
Some artists draw comics full of deep emotion. Others draw comics full of sexy naked people! Getting it on! In all kinds of creative ways! Joanna Estep is one of the few who manages to do all of the above while also setting her stories within the world of The Witcher. This week, we welcome Jo back to the podcast to find out exactly how she pulls it off, while also discussing her involvement in Witcher fandom overall. Jo opens up about the role fandom has played throughout her life, revealing why she’s driven to create thoughtful, poignant comic book stories (that just so happen to feature a ton of sex) and which of The Witcher’s many ships is ultimately her favorite. No, it’s not Yarskier, but she offers her thoughts on that as well!
Buy Joanna Estep’s latest Witcher fancomic: https://joannaestep.storenvy.com/ -
Your days of sober-minded conversation are over, as Whiskey with Witcher is back with an all-new season devoted entirely to fandom! Why do we fall hard for things like The Witcher, and why does that passion manifest so differently for all of us? How can we love a franchise so much, but still feel driven to write fanfic that’s completely at odds with it? Why are some fans inspired to recreate a show’s costumes, while others get drunk on podcasts and drag that same show’s costume designer? (No, not us—we would never!) We fans are a diverse, opinionated and occasionally conflicted crew, and in our premiere episode, we kick off our quest to get to the bottom of what’s behind it…while getting to the bottom of a bottle of Angel’s Envy Bourbon. Plus, both of us share our thoughts on the first images of Liam Hemsworth as Geralt!
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It’s a whirlybird of a crossover! In this special bonus episode, Tim and Valerie guest on the Tentpole Trauma podcast to discuss Henry Cavill’s recent box office misfire, Argylle. We break down the film with host Sebastian Bendix to see if we can figure out why the movie failed to find an audience before discussing where Cavill’s career should go from here. We also recap the movie’s utterly bonkers marketing campaign and throw in some Witcher talk, just to cleanse our palate. So, pour yourself a drink—even intoxicated you’re likely to be far more coherent than anything in the film—and join us for some seriously sauced spy games!
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We’re back…sort of. While the official debut of our upcoming season is still a few weeks away, we just couldn’t wait to weigh in on all the latest Witcher news! Season 4 is officially in production! Season 5 has been greenlit—and it’s the show’s final season?!? We debate whether this is a good or bad thing before sharing what we’d like to see in The Witcher’s remaining episodes. We also discuss all the casting news that’s hit since our last episode, engage in some controversial Lady of the Lake commentary and bring back over a half dozen whiskeys from previous seasons…with exactly the results you’d expect.
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Take seven different Witcher-themed recipes prepared by four Continent-loving cooks, serve generously and garnish with a bottle of Woodford Reserve BevMo! Barrel Select Double Oaked Bourbon and what do you get? Our 2023 season finale! The highly anticipated Witcher Official Cookbook is now in stores, and we’ve asked our friends (and previous guests) Juliet Bennett Rylah and Christina Newhall to help us give it a test run. The table is set for some colorful culinary conversation, as we discuss the recipes and our experiences making them while sharing our thoughts on the cookbook overall. Which dishes did we love and which did we want to kill with Igni? The answers may surprise you in this savory seasonal sendoff!
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The year may be winding down, but Witcher fans have had much to celebrate in 2023, from one of the most thrilling and book-faithful seasons so far, to news of a new Witcher novel in the works, to the announcement of an all-new animated film. So, in that spirit, we’re doing some celebrating ourselves and revealing a few of our personal favorites from The Witcher’s latest season…and ours! What’s our pick for Season 3’s best episode? Who’s our favorite new character? Which actor’s performance this season reigns supreme and which ship has set our hearts aflutter? We also reveal our top podcast moments, what important lessons we’ve learned this year, and which of this season’s whiskeys was our favorite…which we bring back for a second round. In short, it’s a seriously sauced soiree that’s sure to delight you at times and frustrate you at others, and if that’s not a fitting end to this year, we’re not sure what is!
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For all its evil mages, freaky monsters, and conquest-minded kings, music has always been an important part of The Witcher. And while Dandelion may love to take credit, we know that it’s really the hard work of some talented composers who have shaped and finessed the sound of this world that we’ve all come to love. In this episode, we’re raising a glass to them as we revisit the music of Netflix’s Witcher, discussing what we feel works and what doesn’t on each of the five released soundtracks, and highlighting a few of our favorite songs from all three seasons of The Witcher, plus Nightmare of the Wolf and Blood Origin. It’s everything you need to put together the perfect monster-slaying (or bottle-killing) playlist!
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We’re in the presence of royalty this week as we welcome Queen Denise to the podcast for the first time. If you’re a regular listener, you know who Queen Denise is, but you may not know what she actually does for a living…and how cool it is! Denise joins us to talk about her career as a bourbon steward (yes, it’s a real job!), explaining what it’s like to get paid to drink whiskey. She also discusses attending Moonshiner University (yes, it’s a real place!), dishes about her relationships with whiskey reps and lifts the veil on what it’s like being a woman in a very male-dominated industry. And of course, she shows off some of her knowledge about whiskey by bringing on not one, but two different Green River bourbons for us to try. Let there be no doubt, this Queen is VERY good to her subjects. Long may she reign!
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Geeked Week has come and gone and we may have celebrated a bit TOO hard, but that’s not about to stop us from unpacking some of the Witcher-shaped surprises it brought us. We got our first peek at Geralt’s new animated movie with not one, but two different teaser trailers, plus all sorts of juicy details about what we can expect when it hits Netflix in…um…late 2024?!?! While we don’t love that release date, everything else about The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep looks great. We give an overview of what was revealed, speculating on how close they’ll stay to the short story that inspired it (but don’t worry, we stay spoiler free) and whine about how long it’ll be before we see more. We also discuss some of the other Geeked Week events, including how we managed to take first place in their Los Angeles trivia competition. And they say alcohol kills brain cells!
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https://press.etc.cmu.edu/books/psychgeist-pop-culture
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