The Left Page

Hello everyone!!

We continue with the First Law Standalone novels, now going into Heroes and Red Country!

We talk about how these characters continue to be engagin, how the materiality of war and conflict continues, and how change, propelled by capital, can be such a dangerous thing the world over, fantasy world it might be.

Enjoy!

If you can and are interested in early episodes and our bonus content, soon to be plenty more, check out o /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388585

Hello everyone!!

We continue with Joe Abercrombie's First Law series, now talking about the 3 standalone novels: Best Served Cold, Heroes, and Red Country!

Because these books are great and there is a lot to talk about, we split these episodes in 2 parts, both already available for Patrons! First we talk about Abercrombie and the setup to these books, then Best Served Cold and how to write a phenomenal revenge story indeed.

Enjoy!

Hello everyone!!

We visit the sequel of our very first Here be Media episode, coming alongside a very special announcement in the first 10 minutes about the future of this podcast.

We set out to explore the pitfalls of exclusively centreing psychology in your familial narrative, that is therefore ot able to grapple with the existential conflict it seeks to portray.

Please enjoy!

If you can and are interested in early episodes and our bonus content, soon to be plenty mo /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388600

Hello everyone!!

We're wrapping up the year in serious fashion, diving once back into Imperialism everywhere, with the 2025 Superman, and bringing our superhero liasion along, André!

This was a film really well talked about for being positive, and progressive and... things which it isn't. It's still imperialist and still very much on the US' side when thinking about anything.

So come along as we look at this at first, maybe good superhero film, and yet, rather vile film, re /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388605

Hello everyone!!

We're finally tackling Tolkien! And so here we are, at the beggining... In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit.

We go into Tolkien's role in fantasy, how The Hobbit still holds up as both a monument of fantasy and still an excellent book, and the resonance that this work has to fantasy still.

Thus we close off 2025 on The Left Page, by beggining Tolkien, with more to come!

Enjoy!

If you can and are interested in early epi /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388620

Hello everyone!!

We're back talking about Brazilian Literature, with a long overdue request! It's "Golden Harvest" or "São Jorge dos Ilhéus", by Jorge Amado!

The horrors of capitalism are everywhere, and none less here, where the forces of empire and capital seek to make Brazilian cocoa production their own, with no regard for people and their lives.

So come along in this historically inspired novel to further deepen the obviousness that we must abolish the present state o /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388625

Hello everyone!!

We're talking about a great Sci-fi film, going into language, history and time. As we discuss some of Ted Chiang's short story "Story of Your Life", but primarily, the Denis Villeneuve film "Arrival"!

Why are aliens here? How can our understanding of reality changing help us confront the horrors of capitalism? How is time's linearity a simplistic way to confront capital's victories over past, present and future?

Come along as we answer those questions and mo /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388630

In our latest Conversation, Frank has something special for us!

Following attempts at bringing together all their academic work, Frank goes into Star Trek proper for the first time in the podcast, surprisingly. In an attempt to articulate how the original 1966-1969 run articulated a certain version of the future that, while utopian, was still entrenched in Liberalism and certain elements of Empire from which it could not imagine a different outcome.

So follow along as we dive into pro /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388635

Happy closing of the spooky season Listeners

Jay and I are talking about Titane, and subsequently Queer relations and cars.

Enjoy!

Find more of us at:

https://www.patreon.com/leftpage

Find Jay at:

www.librarypunk.gay

https://bsky.app/profile/wildeatheart.bsky.social

Intro Music: I Would Never Have To Know - Samurai Drive. From the Album: Samurai Drive&nb /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388640

Hello everyone!!

We're finally talking about one of the big ones for our special Halloween collab with Horror Vanguard, it's Berserk!

Focusing on the Golden Age Arc, we talk about how this manga so effectively depicts despair and hope, how it can have ultraviolence and still have one emotional gutpunch after another. And, of course, about fighting fascism in all its forms.

Enjoy!

And check out Horror Vanguard wherever you get your podcasts!

/episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388645

Hello everyone!!

We're back talking about vampires and abuse, but with a twist! It's far more elaborate and engaging this time, as we discuss the indie game El Paso: Elsewhere!

How do we deal with the holes of violence? With the abyss of abuse that seems to swallow and destroy us whole? In this Max Payne-inspired game (1 and 2, not 3, not at all) we find several ways to not destroy ourselves in such a pit, and find a way to understand ourselves better, even if we don't know what's on /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388650

Hello everyone!!

We're talking about another classic today, but for sci-fi, it's the 1995 anime film of Ghost in the Shell!

Time to talk about one of the most iconic cyberpunk objects there are, and for good reason. Quite a lot to go over when thinking of bodily relations and representation, identity, the urban landscape and, of course, a whole heap of gender. And it's great!

It's a phenomenal film, and we're finally spending some time on it.

Enjoy!

For r /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388655

Hello everyone!!

We finalize another series! James S. A. Corey's The Expanse! Returning for the last three novels, Persepolis Rising, Tiamat's Wrath, and Leviathan Falls.

Discussing how these books represent fascism and cannot conceive of any other kind of enemy, we also reexamine the series as a whole. Pointing out its merits in materialism and political relationships... up to the point where it slips up, falling back into usual liberalism that cannot break /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388660

Hello everyone!!

We're talking about one of 2025's biggest and best releases so far, and with our good friend André! It's Clair Obscur: Expedition 33!

It's French, but we have to talk about it. Both how it creates a mechanically elaborate and successful game, and how it manages to incur in unfortunate psychological reductions and an... unfortunate bump into imperialism and colonialism. We have plenty good and plenty bad in it, so we had to talk about it, and its Frenchness.

Hello everyone!!

Joined by good friend Jon, of Horror Vanguard, as we talk about one of the books of all time, Moby Dick, or The Whale, by Herman Melville!

Come along as we discover why this book is everything, how it fits into the larger body of American Literature, and how the threats and consequences of individualism are ever-present. Oh, and of course: how this is a phenomenally gay book indeed.

Enjoy!

Check out Horror Vanguard:

/episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388670

Hello everyone!!

Time for us to talk about one of the bigger and better releases of the year, and a kind of horror movie, no less, it's Sinners!

Come along as we go into how the film represents music and culture, how it frames the ideas of religion and "sinning", and, obviously, the institutional practices of racism, colonialism and oppression. There's a LOT to talk about, and we certainly do!

Enjoy!

If you can and are interested in early episodes and th /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388675

Hello everyone!!

Time to wrap up the Witcher Saga proper!! As we go over this series in things we hadn't yet covered last time!

We dive into the sense of History and Myth established, some other relationships and the fellowship functions themselves, and some of our general thoughts on the Witcher and the Saga! We mark it here for the books, we are (probably) finished!

Enjoy!!

If you can and are interested in early episodes and the /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388680

Hello everyone!!

We are back with some more Star Wars, and of the best kind, with the second season of Andor!

There's been a lot of talk on Andor lately, and having done an episode for the first season, we were not going to let it pass us by.

So join us, as we dive into what makes this such a compelling show (amidst flaws, as we talk about them too), critiquing a great deal of liberal hypocrisies, having a rather nuanced understanding of violence, all while never conceding t /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388685

We found something else.

Frank talks about the videogame SEASON: A Letter to the Future. It has problems when it talks about History. It's worth talking about.

Thank you.

For more, keep an eye out on:

https://www.patreon.com/leftpage

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Hello everyone!!

The time has come!! Now that both of us have read the Witcher Saga books, it's time to finally return to this universe and talk about them!

However, it being a rather involved story and universe, alongside comprising 5 books, we decided to make two episodes but discussing the whole Saga.

In this first part we dive into some of the relationships of Ciri, Geralt and Yennefer, how the story's form has changed since the short story collections, we spend time tal /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388700

Hello everyone.

The time has come to face our enemy once more. Yuval Noah Harari wrote another book, so we dive into how it is, indeed, a torment of pain and horror.

We try to fathom how Harari misunderstands History, historical practice, information, institutions, religion, power, science fiction, AI etc etc. There is very little accurate in this book, and yet, it seems to be rather successful in its nonsense.

As we interweave some of the MANY ways this book misrepresents r /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388705

Hello everyone!!

We have a special episode with a great guest! In order to talk about the magnificent show The Wire (2002-2008) we bring along Oli Mould, professor of Human Geography at Royal Holloway, University of London!

In this episode we dive into this destructive institution that is the police, alongside a few others. All while understanding how the show interweaves its characters, environment and narrative that is always aware of the sociological, the psychological and the pers /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388710

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello everyone!!

The time has come. We finish our first long-term game series! Dragon Age has come to an end as we understand it. Let's talk about The Veilguard, with good friend Holly!

It is a sad time, as we go over some of the many failings of The Veilguard, its faults in production, writing, execution... And yet, all boiling down to a rather generic game (and failing even at that), that is quite unrecognizable from the Dragon Age series, even in its lowest points /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388725

Hello everyone!!

For our late Left Page this month, we dive into an odd choice, but a fruitful one! Emperor Marcus Aurelius' Meditations, from 161 A.D.!

In what we find to be one of the original inspirations for self-help books, we... certainly suffer through this one! Talking about how an Emperor can isolate himself from his society and keep himself above it, becoming "a perfect and invincible soul".

And we tackle it in turn, with our own experiences, charging against his f /episode/index/show/4538e204-68c4-45e6-b2f5-4c0a3d879edb/id/40388730