Once a subcategory for mysteries, “cozy” feels like the latest craze in publishing with every genre getting in on the act. Is it really a new thing? Are authors able to take sci-fi or horror and turn it into something to be read while cuddled into a warm blanket with a cup of tea at one’s elbow? Our panel discusses what makes a piece of media cozy, drafts a few books (sometimes with media tie-ins), and then throws it open to anything that gives us that cozy feeling. David includes tea pairings with his choices and Antony tells us how he ended up writing a cozy mystery series.

Cozy Draft

Host Shannon Sudderth with Antony Johnston, Annette Wierstra, Shelly Brisbin, David J. Loehr, and James Thomson.

Antony’s rec list of fellow cozy authors:

From white hole to black hole, from the near future to the present (of the future), it’s time for Scott and Jason to wrap up another season of “Strange New Worlds” with a delightful time-bending episode that puts Uhura(s) at the center.

(Don’t miss Scott’s triumphant return to Random Trek! And stay tuned soon for our season-wrap-up panels both here and on The Incomparable!)

Hosts Scott McNulty and Jason Snell.

Episode 8 is chock full of injuries, intrigue, and investigations (and perhaps other “in-” words this blurb writer can’t think of at this late hour)! Higgins gets the tip to “follow the anger”, but Brian, Kathy, and Chip are certainly not angry today. Grab a high heel, break a window, and settle in for another episode of Football Is Life.

Hosts Chip Sudderth and Brian Warren with Kathy Campbell.

I cannot rest from podcasting. Jill Hoffman returns to discuss three poems by Alfred, Lord Tennyson: “Charge of the Light Brigade” (1854), “Lady of Shalott” (1832, 1842), and “Ulysses” (1833).

Host John McCoy with Jill Hoffman.

Kellye generously allows us a peek (hands behind our backs!) at a collection that means a lot to her.

Host Sandra Wong with Kellye Garrett.

Lex Friedman, the force behind Lex.Games and Strategery, joins Scott to discuss “A Private Little War” (TOS S2E19).

Topics include costumes (both tiny and ridiculous), when everyone gets their wigs at the same store, and finally settling the eternal question: is Spock a robot?

Host Scott McNulty with Lex Friedman.

Watch it yourself:

It’s the thrilling conclusion to Heart of Ashes! K’ronng does his signature move - a Muppet Sword attack. Levithia marks an enemy as both prey and quarry. Tink invites a charming friend to hang out. Cherish smites divinely. Jaee walks through a bed.

We’re taking next week off to prepare for SHOCKTOBER!

Keys from the Golden Vault - Heart of Ashes, Part 6

Host Tony Sindelar with Annette Wierstra, Erika Ensign, Kat Griffiths, Kathy Campbell, and Monty Ashley.

Edited by Erika Ensign.

We’re taking a breather from Lanterns this week to cover Spider-Man: Brand New Day. When we left Peter Parker he’d had Doctor Strange erase the memory of him from all of his friends and loved ones. Can Peter cope with his isolation and lonliness without become something he’d never want to be? With a little love from his pal Frank Castle maybe things will work out.

Hosts Dan Moren, John Moltz, and Guy English.

Curiosity, c’est un robot! Robot de cuisine, ce n’est pas un robot!

Thanks to Listener Erik and the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie.

Hosts John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

The Summer of Sundance comes to an end with “The Natural,” a story of a legendary baseball player—no, we’re not talking about Joe Don Baker as The Whammer, or are we? It’s Bernard Malamud’s take on baseball as American mythology, filtered through the mind of Barry Levinson. Barbara Hershey shocks and confuses, Glenn Close glows, Wilford Brimley is very old and near retirement despite being younger than us, and Robert Redford is so versatile he can play a teenager and a man in his mid-thirties despite being in his late forties.

"The Natural"

Host Jason Snell with Philip Michaels, Micheline Maynard, John Siracusa, and David J. Loehr.