Welcome to The Authority, Slate’s deep dive into the world(s) of HBO’s His Dark Materials. Each week, Slate’s scholars of experimental theology Dan Kois and Laura Miller discuss the HBO series and Philip Pullman’s original trilogy. It’s a new season, and Lyra and Will aren’t the only people who’ve traveled to entirely different worlds. We all have since the show’s first season ended in 2019. Can Season 2 recapture the magic? We explore the season premiere, “The City of Magpies,” and discuss the architecture of Citàgazze, the growing friendship between Lyra and Will, and the secret powers of witches.
Email: asktheauthority@slate.com
Podcast production by Phil Surkis.

Dan Kois on Twitter: @dankois
Laura Miller on Twitter: @magiciansbook

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The City of Magpies

Go deeper inside the world of HBO's adaptation of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. Join Slate's scholars of experimental theology, Laura Miller and Dan Kois, as they discuss Dust, daemons, the Magisterium, and more—and, of course, break down the events of each episode. New episodes air Mondays at 9 p.m. on HBO.

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Welcome to The Authority, Slate’s deep dive into the world(s) of HBO’s His Dark Materials. Each week, Slate’s scholars of experimental theology Dan Kois and Laura Miller discuss the HBO series and Philip Pullman’s original trilogy. This week, they cover the Season 2 finale, “Æsahættr”, in which Will finally meets his father, Lee Scoresby visits the Alamo, and Mrs. Coulter puts a kid in a trunk. Plus: an interview with Jack Thorne, the adaptor-in-chief of Philip Pullman’s books.
Email: asktheauthority@slate.com
Podcast production by Phil Surkis.
Dan Kois on Twitter: @dankois
Laura Miller on Twitter: @magiciansbook

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Æsahættr

Welcome to The Authority, Slate’s deep dive into the world(s) of HBO’s His Dark Materials. Each week, Slate’s scholars of experimental theology Dan Kois and Laura Miller discuss the HBO series and Philip Pullman’s original trilogy. This week, they cover Episode 6 of Season 2, “Malice,” in which Mrs. Coulter controls Spectres, Lee loses control over his balloon, and Mary Malone spends a nice afternoon reading Let’s Go Cittàgazze. Plus: Actual daemons respond to HBO’s My Daemon app.
Email: asktheauthority@slate.com
Podcast production by Phil Surkis. My Daemon segment written by Marissa Martinelli.
Dan Kois on Twitter: @dankois
Laura Miller on Twitter: @magiciansbook

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Malice

Welcome to The Authority, Slate’s deep dive into the world(s) of HBO’s His Dark Materials. Each week, Slate’s scholars of experimental theology Dan Kois and Laura Miller discuss the HBO series and Philip Pullman’s original trilogy. This week, they cover Episode 5 of Season 2, “The Scholar,” in which Will and Lyra steal back the alethiometer, Mary Malone makes a big decision, and a monkey wears a seat belt.
Email: asktheauthority@slate.com
Further reading: Archive of Our Own: Temptress - Chapter 1
Podcast production by Phil Surkis.
Dan Kois on Twitter: @dankois
Laura Miller on Twitter: @magiciansbook

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The Scholar

Welcome to The Authority, Slate’s deep dive into the world(s) of HBO’s His Dark Materials. Each week, Slate’s scholars of experimental theology Dan Kois and Laura Miller discuss the HBO series and Philip Pullman’s original trilogy. This week, they cover Episode 4 of Season 2, “The Tower of the Angels,” in which Will meets the subtle knife, Lee meets the Hot Priest, and Mary Malone meets Dust. Plus: a deep dive into the Guild of Philosophers and the mysteries of the subtle knife.
Email: asktheauthority@slate.com
Podcast production by Phil Surkis.
Dan Kois on Twitter: @dankois
Laura Miller on Twitter: @magiciansbook


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The Tower of the Angels

Welcome to The Authority, Slate’s deep dive into the world(s) of HBO’s His Dark Materials. Each week, Slate’s scholars of experimental theology Dan Kois and Laura Miller discuss the HBO series and Philip Pullman’s original trilogy. This week, they cover Episode 3 of Season 2, “Theft” in which Will loses Lyra, Lyra loses the alethiometer, and Mrs. Coulter has a meeting of the minds with Lee Scoresby. Plus: a deep dive into the character of Lee and the series’ attempt to give this cowboy aeronaut a tragic backstory.
Email: asktheauthority@slate.com
Podcast production by Phil Surkis.
Dan Kois on Twitter: @dankois
Laura Miller on Twitter: @magiciansbook
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The City of Magpies

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