The Conundrum Cluster Podcast

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.theconundrumcluster.com

I am very happy to present our second politics mailbag episode! Thank you so much to everyone who asked questions. If you’d like your question answered in the next episode, upgrade to our new Benevolent Patron tier.

Most recent podcast episodes:

Ep101: Mailman horror rollercoaster Resident Evil (2026) can’t quite deliver (Paid)

Ep100: Politics Mailbag Episode #1 “Should JD Vance consider DROPPING OUT to avoid defeat in 2028?” (Paid)

Ep99: [Se7en (1995) David Fincher retrospective] Imagine a world where serial killers weren’t actually semi-retarded and deeply mediocre (Paid)

Ep98: Should you see Resident Evil (2026) in theaters now come on man do it right now? (Paid)

Ep97: [Buddy review] When must we kill the Millennials? (Paid)

Ep96: I think I figured out Coyote vs. Acme (2026) (Paid)

Ep95: Little Dieter still needs to fly (Paid)

Ep94: David Fincher’s Zodiac (2006) is about your inability to accept that you are a weird loser (Paid)

Ep93: For personal reasons I will be burning myself alive in front of Halo Studios headquarters in Redmond, Washington (Paid)

Ep92: I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026) like two weeks ago and just remembered I had to do an episode on it? (Paid)

Ep91: [Minions & Monsters review] Should you see this new cinematic odyssey in theaters now? (Paid)

Ep90: Should you watch new movie Young Washington (2026) this Independence Day? (Paid)

Hi everyone, I hope your weekend was pleasant.

I’ve decided to make the New Vegas episode from 2024 free for a limited time just to give our unfortunate free subscribers a sample of what the “bread and butter” episodes of the podcast are like. This one was great, honestly. I recommend turning the playback speed up to 1.5x or 2x to make things a bit more listenable.

Other Fallout episodes:

Ep33: The new Fallout TV show is really, really, bad (Paid)

Ep35: The differences between Fallout 3 and Fallout 4 are a little too relevant to today’s problems (Paid)

As always, I strongly recommend upgrading to a paid subscription, we have a lot of cool new paid-exclusive content on the way: Lots of paid episodes that have all been very well received. Our highly anticipated politics mailbag episodes are going to be launching this week.

We also recently finished half of a group readthrough of Always with Honor: The Memoirs of General Wrangel and will be kicking off the second half shortly (I have an extra credit assignment cooked up). The book club episodes are some of my favorite content that I’ve done on Substack so far, it really is a lot of fun to go through the book again with the high human capital that has accumulated in our beautiful paid-exclusive comments section.

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 1: Always with Honor Chapters 1-3

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 2: Always with Honor Chapters 4-6

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 3: Always with Honor Chapters 7-9

The most recent podcast episodes are below, pretty much everything over the last two years has been paid-exclusive. Paid subs help support my work a lot and I think you would enjoy the benefits as well.

Most recent podcast episodes:

Ep99: [Se7en (1995) David Fincher retrospective] Imagine a world where serial killers weren’t actually semi-retarded and deeply mediocre (Paid)

Ep98: Should you see Resident Evil (2026) in theaters now come on man do it right now? (Paid)

Ep97: [Buddy review] When must we kill the Millennials? (Paid)

Ep96: I think I figured out Coyote vs. Acme (2026) (Paid)

Ep95: Little Dieter still needs to fly (Paid)

Ep94: David Fincher’s Zodiac (2006) is about your inability to accept that you are a weird loser (Paid)

Ep93: For personal reasons I will be burning myself alive in front of Halo Studios headquarters in Redmond, Washington (Paid)

Ep92: I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026) like two weeks ago and just remembered I had to do an episode on it? (Paid)

Ep91: [Minions & Monsters review] Should you see this new cinematic odyssey in theaters now? (Paid)

Ep90: Should you watch new movie Young Washington (2026) this Independence Day? (Paid)

Ep89: New anti-migrant thriller Citizen Vigilante (2026) really makes you think (Paid)

Ep88: What really happened with the Zebra Murders, America’s deadliest* serial killing? (Free)

I’m happy because I love you

The Conundrum Cluster is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.theconundrumcluster.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.theconundrumcluster.com

Review of Little Dieter Needs to Fly (1997) with thoughts on the documentary genre and the future of culture.

Most recent podcast episodes:

Ep94: David Fincher’s Zodiac (2006) is about your inability to accept that you are a weird loser (Paid)

Ep93: For personal reasons I will be burning myself alive in front of Halo Studios headquarters in Redmond, Washin…

Happy almost Labor Day everyone! I hope you’re enjoying the long weekend.

I decided to make last year’s True Detective Season 2 episode free for a limited time just to give our unfortunate free subscribers a sample of what the “bread and butter” episodes of the podcast are like. I recommend turning the playback speed up to 1.5x or 2x to make things a bit more listenable.

As always, I strongly recommend upgrading to a paid subscription, we have a lot of cool new paid-exclusive content on the way.

We recently finished half of a group readthrough of Always with Honor: The Memoirs of General Wrangel and will be kicking off the second half shortly. The book club episodes are some of my favorite content that I’ve done on Substack so far, it really is a lot of fun to go through the book again with the high human capital that has accumulated in our beautiful paid-exclusive comments section.

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 1: Always with Honor Chapters 1-3

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 2: Always with Honor Chapters 4-6

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 3: Always with Honor Chapters 7-9

The most recent podcast episodes are below, pretty much everything over the last two years has been paid-exclusive. Paid subs help support my work a lot and I think you would enjoy the benefits as well.

Ep94: David Fincher’s Zodiac (2006) is about your inability to accept that you are a weird loser (Paid)

Ep93: For personal reasons I will be burning myself alive in front of Halo Studios headquarters in Redmond, Washington (Paid)

Ep92: I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026) like two weeks ago and just remembered I had to do an episode on it? (Paid)

Ep91: [Minions & Monsters review] Should you see this new cinematic odyssey in theaters now? (Paid)

Ep90: Should you watch new movie Young Washington (2026) this Independence Day? (Paid)

Ep89: New anti-migrant thriller Citizen Vigilante (2026) really makes you think (Paid)

Ep88: What really happened with the Zebra Murders, America’s deadliest* serial killing? (Free)

Ep87: I really loved Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) and think you would love it too (Paid)

Ep86: I watched the first season of Yellowstone-spinoff Y: Marshals (2026) and now wish I were dead (Paid)

The Conundrum Cluster is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.theconundrumcluster.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.theconundrumcluster.com

Thoughts on Zodiac (2006) and the present cultural moment.

Most recent podcast episodes:

Ep93: For personal reasons I will be burning myself alive in front of Halo Studios headquarters in Redmond, Washington (Paid)

Ep92: I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026) like two weeks ago and just remembered I had to do an episode on it? (Paid)

Ep91: [Minions & Monsters review] Should you see this new cinematic odyssey in theaters now? (Paid)

Ep90: Should you watch new movie Young Washington (2026) this Independence Day? (Paid)

Ep89: New anti-migrant thriller Citizen Vigilante (2026) really makes you think (Paid)

Ep88: What really happened with the Zebra Murders, America’s deadliest* serial killing? (Free)

Ep87: I really loved Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) and think you would love it too (Paid)

Ep86: I watched the first season of Yellowstone-spinoff Y: Marshals (2026) and now wish I were dead (Paid)

Here are all the podcast episodes available now (most are paywalled):

Ep31: Alex Garland’s Civil War (2024) is a shocking bland film that says nothing in the most dishonest way possible (Paid)

Ep32: Canadians accidentally made a sci-fi movie about the Ukraine War in 1995 (Paid)

Ep33: The new Fallout TV show is really, really, bad (Paid)

Ep34: I found the single most important American history book for rightwingers to read today (Paid)

Ep35: The differences between Fallout 3 and Fallout 4 are a little too relevant to today’s problems (Paid)

Ep36: Why exactly has Fallout: New Vegas stuck around for so long? (Paid)

Ep37: The long-awaited/much-demanded review of A Perfect World (1993) (Paid)

Ep38: ($0 free episode) Cyberpunk 2077 is the one game you need to play before the 2024 election (Free)

Ep39: Should you watch Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga? (Paid)

Ep40: Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty shows us how to complete a perfect story (Paid)

Ep41: You really *really* need to watch the first Mad Max movie (Paid)

Ep42: You really really *really* need to watch Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (Paid)

Ep43: The Bikeriders is an eternal story about cultural decline in a very small place (Paid)

Ep44: Is new western Horizon (2024) the start of Kevin Costner’s redemption arc? (Paid)

Ep45: The Ultimate Bladerunner 2049 Retrospective (Paid)

Ep46: Should people who enjoyed new movie Alien: Romulus (2024) be killed? (Paid)

Ep47: Everyone who didn’t enjoy Top Gun: Maverick should be beaten to death with hammers (Paid)

Ep48: I am humbly requesting that you watch Andrei Rublev (1966) right now (Paid)

Ep49: New movie Megalopolis (2024) is a grand failure of Boomer Lib vision (Paid)

Ep50: I have very bad news about Joker 2 (Paid)

Ep51: Why exactly is Dead Rising the greatest zombie game of all time? (Paid)

Ep52: I watched terrible new Trump movie The Apprentice (2024) so you don’t have to (Paid)

Ep53: Smile 2 (2024) is a nearly perfect horror sequel that you should watch in theaters while you can (Paid)

Ep54: ELECTION DAY SPECIAL! The definitive Halo: Combat Evolved retrospective (Paid)

Ep55: Should you threaten to kill yourself if your family wants to see Gladiator 2 (2024) over Thanksgiving? (Paid)

Ep56: Terrible new Dune TV show targets Femgooners, unlocking secrets of wifejak and the genderwar (Paid)

Ep57: CHRISTMAS SPECIAL! The definitive Halo: Reach retrospective (Paid)

Ep58: Horror snoozefest Nosferatu (2024) is basically Hamilton for redpilled people (Paid)

Ep59: This new Academy Award-winning romantic comedy about a prostitute is what rightwing pseudo-intellectuals pretended Nosferatu (2024) was (Paid)

Ep60: MEGA VARIETY EPISODE - Did this new Ukrainian shooter unlock the secret of our time? (Paid)

Ep61: Can one humble strategy game tell us what was so special about the 1990s? (Paid)

Ep62: Terminally dogshit new spy thriller Black Bag (2025) illustrates that movies are officially over. I hate movies now (Paid)

Ep63: I was planning on killing myself in public to protest the death of film but then I saw Minecraft (2025). Movies are officially BACK! (Paid)

Ep64: Warfare (2025) is a shockingly perfect new movie that you absolutely have to see in theaters while you still can (Paid)

Ep65: The definitive introduction to LOST: Season 1, objectively the best television ever produced (Paid)

Ep66: Mission Impossible has fallen (Paid)

Ep67: URGENT🚨WW3 Emergency Geopolitics Episode🚨 Analyzing Mid-East Strategic Rocket Forces 🚀🚀🚀 and Trump’s Betrayal🔪 (Paid)

Ep68: “Days of Rage” is the most important book for you to read today, right now (Paid)

Ep69: Zen police ultraviolence simulator Ready or Not (2023) is the only game for our time (Paid)

Ep70: A brief introduction to True Detective Season 2, our Great American Novel (Paid)

Ep71: New movie in theaters Weapons (2025) is an inspired horror-comedy-mystery that’s really about... uh... umm... (Paid)

Ep72: I forgot to cancel my HBO free trial subscription and ended up watching anti-white vampire action epic Sinners (2025) as a cynical cash grab (Paid)

Ep73: I hated normieslop F1 the Movie (2025) in a way I didn’t think possible (Paid)

Ep74: The Mega WW2 episode (Paid)

Ep75: Does this secret book about WW2 (Jews, Holocaust, Israel) provide the key to winning America’s impending CIVIL WAR? (Paid)

Ep76: Does this videogame where you accidentally shoot 10 million Chinese people prove that Michael Mann’s film Heat (1995) is actually bad? (Paid)

Ep77: Thoughts on Black Christmas (1974), Christmas movies, the Retard Right, and what makes the holidays so special (Paid)

Ep78: Genius furry epic Avatar 3 shows that white genocide films are EVOLVING (Paid)

Ep79: Should you watch 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple? Are you a normie now? Idiot. (Paid)

Ep80: Wuthering Heights (2026) review (Paid)

Ep81: Beloved Game of Thrones spin-off A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is woke trash and so are you if you liked it (Paid)

Ep82: Should we kill you if you liked Project Hail Reddit (2026)? (Paid)

Ep83: Does troon-coded extraction shooter Marathon (2026) provide the key to escaping the Right’s cultural doldrums? (Paid)

Ep84: Does this obscure 1970s movie about a mass shooter at the Super Bowl help explain how the Civil Rights Movement broke everyone’s brains? (Paid)

Ep85: The official Backrooms (2026) review (Paid)

Ep86: I watched the first season of Yellowstone-spinoff Y: Marshals (2026) and now wish I were dead (Paid)

Ep87: I really loved Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) and think you would love it too (Paid)

Ep88: What really happened with the Zebra Murders, America’s deadliest* serial killing? (Free)

Ep89: New anti-migrant thriller Citizen Vigilante (2026) really makes you think (Paid)

Ep90: Should you watch new movie Young Washington (2026) this Independence Day? (Paid)

Ep91: [Minions & Monsters review] Should you see this new cinematic odyssey in theaters now? (Paid)

Ep92: I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026) like two weeks ago and just remembered I had to do an episode on it? (Paid)

Ep93: For personal reasons I will be burning myself alive in front of Halo Studios headquarters in Redmond, Washington (Paid)

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.theconundrumcluster.com

Thoughts on Halo: Campaign Evolved (2026) and video game remakes.

Ruby’s Rebalanced Mod for Halo: Combat Evolved in the Master Chief Collection

Other Halo episodes:

Ep54: ELECTION DAY SPECIAL! The definitive Halo: Combat Evolved retrospective (Paid)

Ep57: CHRISTMAS SPECIAL! The definitive Halo: Reach retrospective (Paid)

Most recent podcast episodes:

Ep92: I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026) like two weeks ago and just remembered I had to do an episode on it? (Paid)

Ep91: [Minions & Monsters review] Should you see this new cinematic odyssey in theaters now? (Paid)

Ep90: Should you watch new movie Young Washington (2026) this Independence Day? (Paid)

Ep89: New anti-migrant thriller Citizen Vigilante (2026) really makes you think (Paid)

Ep88: What really happened with the Zebra Murders, America’s deadliest* serial killing? (Free)

Ep87: I really loved Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) and think you would love it too (Paid)

Ep86: I watched the first season of Yellowstone-spinoff Y: Marshals (2026) and now wish I were dead (Paid)

Ep85: The official Backrooms (2026) review (Paid)

Here are all the podcast episodes available now (most are paywalled):

Ep31: Alex Garland’s Civil War (2024) is a shocking bland film that says nothing in the most dishonest way possible (Paid)

Ep32: Canadians accidentally made a sci-fi movie about the Ukraine War in 1995 (Paid)

Ep33: The new Fallout TV show is really, really, bad (Paid)

Ep34: I found the single most important American history book for rightwingers to read today (Paid)

Ep35: The differences between Fallout 3 and Fallout 4 are a little too relevant to today’s problems (Paid)

Ep36: Why exactly has Fallout: New Vegas stuck around for so long? (Paid)

Ep37: The long-awaited/much-demanded review of A Perfect World (1993) (Paid)

Ep38: ($0 free episode) Cyberpunk 2077 is the one game you need to play before the 2024 election (Free)

Ep39: Should you watch Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga? (Paid)

Ep40: Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty shows us how to complete a perfect story (Paid)

Ep41: You really *really* need to watch the first Mad Max movie (Paid)

Ep42: You really really *really* need to watch Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (Paid)

Ep43: The Bikeriders is an eternal story about cultural decline in a very small place (Paid)

Ep44: Is new western Horizon (2024) the start of Kevin Costner’s redemption arc? (Paid)

Ep45: The Ultimate Bladerunner 2049 Retrospective (Paid)

Ep46: Should people who enjoyed new movie Alien: Romulus (2024) be killed? (Paid)

Ep47: Everyone who didn’t enjoy Top Gun: Maverick should be beaten to death with hammers (Paid)

Ep48: I am humbly requesting that you watch Andrei Rublev (1966) right now (Paid)

Ep49: New movie Megalopolis (2024) is a grand failure of Boomer Lib vision (Paid)

Ep50: I have very bad news about Joker 2 (Paid)

Ep51: Why exactly is Dead Rising the greatest zombie game of all time? (Paid)

Ep52: I watched terrible new Trump movie The Apprentice (2024) so you don’t have to (Paid)

Ep53: Smile 2 (2024) is a nearly perfect horror sequel that you should watch in theaters while you can (Paid)

Ep54: ELECTION DAY SPECIAL! The definitive Halo: Combat Evolved retrospective (Paid)

Ep55: Should you threaten to kill yourself if your family wants to see Gladiator 2 (2024) over Thanksgiving? (Paid)

Ep56: Terrible new Dune TV show targets Femgooners, unlocking secrets of wifejak and the genderwar (Paid)

Ep57: CHRISTMAS SPECIAL! The definitive Halo: Reach retrospective (Paid)

Ep58: Horror snoozefest Nosferatu (2024) is basically Hamilton for redpilled people (Paid)

Ep59: This new Academy Award-winning romantic comedy about a prostitute is what rightwing pseudo-intellectuals pretended Nosferatu (2024) was (Paid)

Ep60: MEGA VARIETY EPISODE - Did this new Ukrainian shooter unlock the secret of our time? (Paid)

Ep61: Can one humble strategy game tell us what was so special about the 1990s? (Paid)

Ep62: Terminally dogshit new spy thriller Black Bag (2025) illustrates that movies are officially over. I hate movies now (Paid)

Ep63: I was planning on killing myself in public to protest the death of film but then I saw Minecraft (2025). Movies are officially BACK! (Paid)

Ep64: Warfare (2025) is a shockingly perfect new movie that you absolutely have to see in theaters while you still can (Paid)

Ep65: The definitive introduction to LOST: Season 1, objectively the best television ever produced (Paid)

Ep66: Mission Impossible has fallen (Paid)

Ep67: URGENT🚨WW3 Emergency Geopolitics Episode🚨 Analyzing Mid-East Strategic Rocket Forces 🚀🚀🚀 and Trump’s Betrayal🔪 (Paid)

Ep68: “Days of Rage” is the most important book for you to read today, right now (Paid)

Ep69: Zen police ultraviolence simulator Ready or Not (2023) is the only game for our time (Paid)

Ep70: A brief introduction to True Detective Season 2, our Great American Novel (Paid)

Ep71: New movie in theaters Weapons (2025) is an inspired horror-comedy-mystery that’s really about... uh... umm... (Paid)

Ep72: I forgot to cancel my HBO free trial subscription and ended up watching anti-white vampire action epic Sinners (2025) as a cynical cash grab (Paid)

Ep73: I hated normieslop F1 the Movie (2025) in a way I didn’t think possible (Paid)

Ep74: The Mega WW2 episode (Paid)

Ep75: Does this secret book about WW2 (Jews, Holocaust, Israel) provide the key to winning America’s impending CIVIL WAR? (Paid)

Ep76: Does this videogame where you accidentally shoot 10 million Chinese people prove that Michael Mann’s film Heat (1995) is actually bad? (Paid)

Ep77: Thoughts on Black Christmas (1974), Christmas movies, the Retard Right, and what makes the holidays so special (Paid)

Ep78: Genius furry epic Avatar 3 shows that white genocide films are EVOLVING (Paid)

Ep79: Should you watch 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple? Are you a normie now? Idiot. (Paid)

Ep80: Wuthering Heights (2026) review (Paid)

Ep81: Beloved Game of Thrones spin-off A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is woke trash and so are you if you liked it (Paid)

Ep82: Should we kill you if you liked Project Hail Reddit (2026)? (Paid)

Ep83: Does troon-coded extraction shooter Marathon (2026) provide the key to escaping the Right’s cultural doldrums? (Paid)

Ep84: Does this obscure 1970s movie about a mass shooter at the Super Bowl help explain how the Civil Rights Movement broke everyone’s brains? (Paid)

Ep85: The official Backrooms (2026) review (Paid)

Ep86: I watched the first season of Yellowstone-spinoff Y: Marshals (2026) and now wish I were dead (Paid)

Ep87: I really loved Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) and think you would love it too (Paid)

Ep88: What really happened with the Zebra Murders, America’s deadliest* serial killing? (Free)

Ep89: New anti-migrant thriller Citizen Vigilante (2026) really makes you think (Paid)

Ep90: Should you watch new movie Young Washington (2026) this Independence Day? (Paid)

Ep91: [Minions & Monsters review] Should you see this new cinematic odyssey in theaters now? (Paid)

Ep92: I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026) like two weeks ago and just remembered I had to do an episode on it? (Paid)

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.theconundrumcluster.com

Hello everyone,

I am extremely happy to present the 3rd entry in our book club episodes on the book Always with Honor: The Memoirs of General Wrangel. In my humble opinion, the first and second book club episodes are still some of the best in this podcast’s history. You can listen to the previous episodes below:

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 1: Always with Honor Chapters 1-3

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 2: Always with Honor Chapters 4-6

Latest podcast episodes:

Ep92: I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026) like two weeks ago and just remembered I had to do an episode on it? (Paid)

Ep91: [Minions & Monsters review] Should you see this new cinematic odyssey in theaters now? (Paid)

Ep90: Should you watch new movie Young Washington (2026) this Independence Day? (Paid)

Ep89: New anti-migrant thriller Citizen Vigilante (2026) really makes you think (Paid)

The paid subscribers did a really good job on their responses to the discussion prompts this time around. I’ve featured some of my favorites below, but I strongly encourage you to go back to the original discussion post to see for yourself. There are tons of great content in the replies, this is probably my favorite project that we’ve done on this Substack so far.

Featured discussion prompt responses below:

1. Talk about Wrangel’s actual description of the retreat (i.e. not his dispute with Denikin). What stands out to you about conditions on the ground?

Nixonsdaydreams:

Wrangel’s descriptions of how the soldiers had begun behaving during the retreat via the railroads stuck out especially. Many regiments that while diminished many had carriages full of war loot the soldiers mainly officers were actively trading, selling, and working to send back. Much of this loot was “requisitioned” from the places they had liberated from the reds during retreat much of it from the populace they were supposed to protect. Their behavior being more akin to bandits counting the spoils before an eventual exit than soldiers fit to retake their home.

Henry:

On #1–on pg. 124, “told me that the evacuation of Odessa had been a veritable nightmare. No measures had been taken to maintain even a semblance of order. In the port the refugees were killing one another and committing suicide in despair.”

This stood out to me because it was a stark reminder of what defeat looks like when political stakes are real. Just bluntly horrible and murderous and total succumbing to darkness. It’s just a very sobering and grim portrayal of (1) what actual defeat looks like—not just losing some vote, and (2) how bad things can get if people are careless with their duties in a political/military struggle.

2. Was Wrangel and Denikin’s big break inevitable? Talk about the actions of people who aren’t Wrangel and Denikin that might have contributed to the mess.

Wesley:

Wrangel and Denikin’s big break seems to me to have not been inevitable at first but would eventually enter a path of no return. In chapter 6 when Wrangel was surrounded after going to the theatre he writes, “Amongst other questions I was asked: ‘What are your relations with General Denikin? Is it true that you have broken completely with the Commander-in-Chief?’

An invisible hand was fostering intrigue behind the scenes and sowing the seeds of doubt and confusion in all minds.”

In any political system those shadowy forces are a fact of life. Ultimately it was up to Denikin to see the situation clearly enough to continue trusting Wrangel. Those seeds of doubt blossomed through the Disaster of chapter 7 as Denikins reputation continued to decline and Denikins close officers (as seen in Wrangels discussion with Romanovsky where Wrangel had his epic go-off moment on him “It means that intrigues are still flourishing—that is all…”) provided no help in seeing the situation clearly.

Aethermacht:

Denikin clearly had some degree of paranoia of Wrangel seizing power from him. The military defeats that led many to openly disavow Denikin while hyping up Wrangel certainly did not help this perception. Perhaps these sorts of personality issues could have been resolved if Denikin was not so feminine in his conflict with Wrangel. If upon receiving Wrangel’s demands Denikin made it clear that the offering of demands under threat of desertion was unacceptable, perhaps an understanding could have been reached. Instead in person Deinkin bent to Wrangel but in private he lashed out.

Also having a rebellious Captain Orlov publish a proclamation that his band would only submit to Wrangel was funny in how ill-timed it was.

3. Wrangel spends what seems to be an usually large amount of time describing the actual legal succession process between him and Denikin as head of White forces at the Council of War. What happened there and why does Wrangel give it so much emphasis?

WDot:

Honestly it was worth Wrangel putting in the effort to have the appearance of being an officially appointed successor to Denikin, rather than a democratically elected one. If the council can vote Wrangel in on a whim, they can vote him out on a whim, which could make an already chaotic situation worse.

“I personally considered it absolutely inadmissible that a new Commander-in-Chief should be elected by his future subordinates” -- I don’t think this came from pride, but from properly considering the source of legitimate authority. When Denikin was in charge, there was no legitimate democratic method to remove Denikin a Commander-in-Chief (and there should not have been!) If Denikin appoints a successor, this governance structure doesn’t change. For a military institution, especially one on the backfoot, that’s important!

What if some of Wrangel’s generals start grumbling about him over a particular order? The idea of voting in a new general would at least cross their mind. Bullying Denikin into issuing an edict that says the words “Wrangel is hereby appointed Commander-in-Chief,” with no reference to a vote, brought stability to that transition.

4. What are Wrangel’s main problems when actually assumes command in Crimea?

variableannuity:

Wrangel details a litany of problems when he assumes command in Crimea: low morale; acute manpower and supply shortages; lack of control over backline cities; lack of legitimacy and public support; flagging international backers. To fuse these issues together, Wrangel inherits an army without a legitimate state.

5. How does Wrangel solve these problems?

variableannuity:

Wrangel’s actions in Chapter 9 are his attempt to turn this weakness to a strength. He changes the goal of the Volunteer/Russian Army from contesting control of the entire Empire to defending a legitimate breakaway government on Russian soil, aiming to outlast the Soviets. His every action in that chapter is taken with the goal of establishing legitimacy.

Briefly, I would say Wrangel takes a three-pronged approach in creating legitimacy in his government. First, he fixes the most urgent and debilitating issues with supply and lawlessness, distinguishing his regime from Deniken’s. I’d note here that he takes time to mention that he ceases public executions as they are no longer effective. He just wants the free subscribers of Crimea totally disappeared, erased from history.

Second, he builds personal relationships with all of the stakeholders in the region, establishing his government as one for all true Russian patriots. I think he realizes that pretty much everyone left alive has panicked and made some mistakes at some point over the past few years, so he implements a campaign of persuasion rather than punishment. In Chapter 9 alone, he personally meets with the insane Cossack leaders, foreign dignitaries, the libtard newspapermen, that treasonous mayor, and even representatives from the bordering peasant soviets. He has boats everywhere trying to pick up refugees. He even writes to the Red Army itself!

Finally, and necessarily after the first two steps, Wrangel begins institution building. Hes built a tribunal system so far, and is about to start with the land reform program. This is incredibly important as the government at the moment is entirely dependent on his reputation and health. When these institutions are established, the hope is that people will start believing in government again, not just his personal leadership.

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Hi everyone,

I just wanted to remind you that our 3rd book club meeting on Always with Honor: The Memoirs of General Wrangel, covering the collapse of the White Army and birth of Wrangel’s Russian Army, is exactly 7 days from now.

I strongly encourage you, the person reading this, to get over to the Book Club Meeting 3 Discussion Post to get your answers in on this week’s discussion prompts. You can also check out the first two episodes in this series below.

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 1: Always with Honor Chapters 1-3

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 2: Always with Honor Chapters 4-6

This has probably been the most fun project we’ve done on this Substack so far. I am constantly impressed by how intelligent, perceptive, and conventionally attractive our beloved paid subscribers are.

See you in the comments!

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 3: Always with Honor Chapters 7-9 Discussion Post

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Hello everyone,

I could not be more happy with the response to our last discussion post. The comments crew really is on fire and has done a great job digging into one of my favorite books, Always with Honor: The Memoirs of General Wrangel. This entire book club project has been a huge success. In my humble opinion, the first and second book club episodes are some of the best in this podcast’s history.

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 1: Always with Honor Chapters 1-3

Mystery Grove Book Club Meeting 2: Always with Honor Chapters 4-6

This is one of the most rewarding parts of Always with Honor, you get to see both the death of Denikin’s White Army and the rebirth of Wrangel’s Russian Army. There are lots of insights to be gained from these chapters and I can’t wait to see what our beloved paid subscribers come up with.

Without further ado, below you will find the next discussion prompts. The next book club episode discussing your responses will be released two weeks from now, Wednesday August 19th.