TV Guide senior editor Malcolm Venable is here to talk about Lovecraft Country, HBO's series imagining of Matt Ruff's novel -- and why everything from the show's look and feel to the acting to Jonathan Majors's believable charisma drew us in. Then we drove our woody wagon Around The Dial with stops at Ted Lasso, Little Voice, and The Great Heist before Rebecca's Extra Credit tasked us with casting reality-competition shows with our favorite TV characters. Sarah then filed a Canon motion on behalf of a latter-season Law & Order Mothership episode. The British Empire won, the DC Universe lost, and we mashed up actor names and fictional reboots in Game Time. Grab a wooden bat and an illustrated map: it's an all-new Extra Hot Great.

GUESTS

👤 Malcolm Venable

TOPICS

Lead Topic: 🛣 Lovecraft Country

Around The Dial: ⚽️ Ted Lasso

Around The Dial: 🎙 Little Voice

Around The Dial: 💸 The Great Heist

Extra Credit: 🤑 Be Our Host

The Canon: ⚖️ Law & Order S15.E13: Ain't No Love

Winner & Loser: 👍 The Crown Jonathan Pryce, Elizabeth Debicki

Winner & Loser: 👎 DC Universe

Game Time: 🧠 Name Above The Title

NOTES

🗒 Full episode notes can be found on the episode 316 page on ExtraHotGreat.com

🐦 Malcolm Venable on Twitter

👓 "How Lovecraft Country Reappropriates H.P. Lovecraft's Notoriously Racist Creations" at Slate

🦴 The Bones Zone podcast

📖 Malcolm at TVGuide.com

🎧 The Mark And Sarah Talk About Songs podcast

🏆 The Great American Pop Culture Quiz Show podcast

🎶 "2 Are Charged In Killing Of Jam Master Jay, Hip-Hop Pioneer" at NYTimes.com

📖 Rap On Trial at TheNewPress.com

🚨 "A History of Violence: Why I Loved Cop Shows, and Why They Must Change" by Alan Sepinwall at RollingStone.com

👮‍♂️ "Cops Are Always the Main Characters" by Kathryn VanArendonk at Vulture