Your hosts have seen through The Eyes of the Dragon and...they might be kinda mad they read this one? After an intriguing start, Stephen King's foray into fantasy commits an egregious crime: it's cringe.
Before they get there, William and Jacob bemoan the dearth of quality spooky content this Halloween season, and look forward to their upcoming reunion at the Q4 DDDSpod hosts summit (William's Halloween Party).
NEXT WEEK: No episode
November 7: The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey (150 pagesish)
And just like that...your hosts are back in a fantasy world, discussing Stephen King's first break from horror into fairy tale with The Eyes of the Dragon. In the first half of this 1987 novel, Jacob has his lavender goggles on finding a queer reading that might not be there, and William is loving the journey but doesn't know where it's going.
Before they get there, William stuns Jacob with a shocking Wandering Inn progress update, and Jacob is drunk. He also watched Wayward on Netflix.
Next week: The conclusion of The Eyes of the Dragon.
William and Jacob are finally ready to divulge The Secret of Secrets as they share their thoughts on the second half of Dan Brown's latest Robert Langdon thriller. Was it good? Did they love it? The answer to that might surprise you (it probably won't), but there are lots of laughs along the way.
Before they get there Jacob pushes back against the internet's knee-jerk reaction to Taylor Swift's The Life of a Showgirl (a no-skip album), and William gets ready for Halloween with spooky movie programming.
UPCOMING EPISODES:
Your hosts continue to test the limits of what can and can’t be the primary focus of this fantasy and science fiction podcast over the next two weeks as they discuss The Secret of Secrets, Dan Brown’s first Robert Langdon novel in eight years. That’s right, they’re running all over Prague with Robert Langdon (always both names) as he cracks head-scratching codes and uncovers the hidden mysteries of human consciousness in a thriller that may not be “scifi” but is definitely fiction that contains elements that can be described as science.
Before they get there, they catch up on Jacob’s idyllic weekend in the Catskills, dish on William’s ungrateful pool party guests, and plot their return to fantasy and science fiction novels later in October.
NEXT WEEK:
The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown: Chapter 72-End
Your hosts have been to hell and back with Alice Law and Peter Murdoch and are ready to give their final thoughts on Katabasis by R.F. Kuang. Did they love it? Yes. Did they understand it all? Probably not!
But first….Jacob updates William on his progress through the continually mid TV series Alien Earth. Then William admits that Jacob was right about 28 Years Later, and provides a shocking pronunciation of Puss In Boots 2.
NEXT WEEK:
The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown, Chapters 1-71
Jacob and William are back in hell, journeying with their dysfunctional duo Alice and Peter through the middle portion of R.F. Kuang's consistently-surprising Katabasis. But first Jacob shares a new Netflix anime rec (Frieren), and William questions what's going on with Pierce Brown's Hazard Bedlam scavenger hunt. Please note this episode also contains multiple Taylor Swift references.
NEXT WEEK: Katabasis by R.F. Kuang Chapter 21-End
Jacob and William are back from their one-week hiatus, refreshed and ready to revert to dividing books into multiple-week journeys. That's right, your hosts will be breaking each book into manageable weekly reading chunks again starting with Katabasis, the new dark academia fantasy novel by R.F. Kuang.
But first, Jacob shares an update from bookworld, freshly returned from an author event with Dan Brown to celebrate the release of his new book The Secret of Secrets (soon to be discussed on a podcast near you). And then it's down into the depths of hell—which looks a hell of a lot like a college campus—with the antiheroes of Katabasis. Your hosts are loving it, check out the episode schedule below if you want to read along!
UPCOMING EPISODES:
It's William's birthday on this week's DRAGONS DADDIES DEEP SPACE! Our Leo-Virgo cusp king unboxes the gifts Jacob sent him, and shares that he voluntarily watched the Warcraft movie (29% on Rotten Tomatoes).
Then it's time to discuss The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennet. Your hosts endeavor to spoil as little as possible while speaking for 40 minutes because–SPOILER ALERT for this DDDSpod ep–they LOVED this book, give it a resounding 5 stars, and want you to experience it for yourself.
NEXT WEEK (9/4) DDDS pod will be on a brief hiatus, before returning on the following Thursday (11th of September) with their first episode covering roughly half of Katabasis by R.F. Kuang.
A fly appears, a fly is killed, and another fly emerges.
Meanwhile... Jacob shares an important, and potentially live-saving public service announcement, which William one ups by sharing that he viewed a movie trailer. Next, your hosts share a programming update (spoiler alert: Infinite Silver is canonically unreadable). Then chests are bursting with extra terrestrials, eyes are bulging out of kitties, consciousnesses are transferring into hybrids, starships are crashing into buildings, and plots are getting riddled with holes as your hosts dive into the new FX on Hulu show ALIEN: EARTH. While they’re not sure how they feel about it–and aren’t getting that unique ALIEN feeling from it–they find plenty to chit and chat about.
NEXT WEEK’S EPISODE: The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
Leaping lizards! William and Jacob are joined by Ryan Keely, co-host of D&D real-play podcast I Seduce the Dragon, to discuss Weetzie Bat by Francesca Lia Block. This slim, punk-rock, found-family, manic-pixie L.A. fairytale is new to your hosts, but not to Ryan, who highlights her enduring love for the novel and Los Angeles, while reckoning with the cringe and elements of cultural appropriation.
UPCOMING EPISODES:
Jacob and William are back in the Classics Corner, discussing the "lost classic" The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle, as well as the 1982 film adaptation. They loved it–they might not get it!
But first, William shares an update on his progress through The Wandering Inn, and Jacob finds religion again. You won't want to miss the end of the episode, as Jacob sets the microphone on fire with his cover of the main theme from the hit film.
Jacob and William are bringing you their shortest episode ever, in honor of their shortest book yet: Binti by Nnedi Okorafor, a slim science-fiction novella that carries big themes in its tiny little package. But first, William confesses a very William-coded mistake he made from his fantasy coma sickbed, and outlines his pitch to Make Jurassic Park Great Again. Then, Jacob gives a spoiler-free update on his journey through The Name of All Things, book two of Jenn Lyons' A Chorus of Dragons, and tours his dad's library.
UPCOMING EPISODES IN AUGUST:
It's an exciting week on DDDSpod as Jacob and William unveil their new monthly episode series: Classics Corner (a working title, alternate crowd-sourced series names welcomed). This week, they're entering the Vault and discussing Foundation by Isaac Asimov. Before they get to Trantor and Terminus, however, William dives into Love Death + Robots, and Jacob discusses his latest video game adventures before taking a trip down memory lane with his saucy 8th grade English teacher who had the class play a "game" where they bent over and spelled words with their butts. You won't want to miss it.
UPCOMING EPISODES:
Your hosts are ready to sink their teeth into Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab with their full-spoiler, no tombstone left unturned review. Before they get there, William discusses his favorite movie of the year (if not all time), KPop Demon Hunters on Netflix, and Jacob shares spoiler-free thoughts on 28 Years Later. Then they're back in renaissance Europe, Victorian England, and (inexplicably and unforgivably) modern day Scotland to suck BOBITMS dry and leave no blood crumbs.
NEXT WEEK: Foundation by Isaac Asimov
You're in for a special sweet treat this week as Jacob and William are joined by their dear friend Greg Rales, the owner and operator of NYC's Red Gate Bakery, to discuss his favorite science fiction film from childhood: The Fifth Element. But first, William bemoans M3GAN 2.0 and shares another riveting update on his ramble through The Wandering Inn. Then it's time to grab your multipass, put on your skintight neon tanktop, and buckle up in the back of a flying taxi cab as they discuss the whacky and wonderful Luc Besson film.
It's Halloween in July on DRAGONS DADDIES DEEP SPACE, as the lesbian vampires of V.E. Schwab's Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil glamour Jacob and William's socks off. But first, William mourns the loss of his beloved Kindle Oasis (discontinued), while Jacob finally confronts William over his nefarious space/time monkey business. Then your hosts get knee-deep in the fecund loam with as they discuss the first 100-125ish pages of BOBITMS.
It’s time for the biggest news story of June, 2025–William and Jacob are unleashing their full-spoiler, no-holds-barred review of The Devils by Joe Abercrombie. But first, William describes a harrowing experience at his first county fair and pines for hot milk, while Jacob says a prayer of thanks to Peirce Brown’s Red Rising audiobook for getting him through his apartment move. And just like that, they’re back in weird Europe, charting the highs, lows and mehs of The Devils. Be sure to stay tuned until things go off the rails as your hosts fancast the forthcoming James Cameron blockbuster adaptation of the novel.
William and Jacob are back in the land of page-to-screen, sharing their hot takes on the new How to Train Your Dragon live-action remake. But first, William belatedly realizes the pun inherent in The Wandering Inn, Jacob shares an update on his journey to The Well of Ascension (Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn 2, to the uninitiated), and then stuns William with an unexpected foray into Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse. Keep listening to the end for digressions into the Wings of Fire series by Tui T. Sutherland, and William's original Borrowers-style universe elevator pitch.
UPCOMING EPISODES:
William and Jacob are feeling digressive today. William gives a spoiler-free movie review of Bring Her Back, and then reveals his latest before-bed book obsession, The Wandering Inn, a series of fantasy LitRPG doorstops. Jacob and William live-react to the new trailer for Wicked: For Good before they finally get to the alleged point of the episode and discuss the first five episodes of Apple TV+’s Murderbot. But don’t think the digressions stop there–both Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials and Sally Lockhart trilogies get a spotlight.
UPCOMING EPISODES:
June 19: How to Train Your Dragon
June 26: The Devils by Joe Abercrombie Full Review
Jacob and William celebrate the beginning of pride month by retooling our podcast format (shorter episodes! Less recapping! Fun, exciting new things!). And then we’re onto the most anticipated fantasy book release of the summer as we discuss Part One of Joe Abercrombie’s THE DEVILS! It has a fantasy world x historically fictitious Greco-Roman Europe mashup, a gender-flipped Catholicism, and all the throwback early-2000s horror/fantasy/action/adventure summer blockbuster energy you didn’t know you missed. It’s gory, it’s horny, and it may or may not have evil cannibalistic Elves.