The Sillymarillion Ep 02 - The Choices of Master Fëanor (J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion)

For this show-within-a-show, Craig and Andrew learned about the world of Middle-Earth by reading J.R.R. Tolkien's posthumously published legendarium THE SILMARILLION. This episode posted first for our Patreon supporters in July 2025. If you want to hear our current longread project TOKYO DRIFTERS (and a bunch of other stuff besides), visit Patreon.com/overduepod.

The Elves are here, and it's time to learn all about them! Because there are a whole bunch of different sub-types of them, mostly sorted by whether and how quickly they decided to heed the summons to come party with the gods on their paradise island.

The most important one we meet is Fëanor, who forges the book's MacGuffins and then instantly gets super weird and possessive about them, in a way that ensures lasting misery for all involved. Hooray!

The reading list:

Ep 1 - Ainulindale, Valaquenta, Quenta Silmarillion Ch 1-3

Ep 2 - Quenta Silmarillion Ch 4-10

Ep 3 - Quenta Silmarillion Ch 11-16

Ep 4 - Quenta Silmarillion Ch 17-20

Ep 5 - Quenta Silmarillion Ch 21-24

Ep 6 - Alkallabeth, Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age, Appendices

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The Sillymarillion Ep 02 - The Choices of Master Fëanor (J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion)

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Ep 752 - Daisy Jones and The Six, by Taylor Jenkins Reid

In 2019, author Taylor Jenkins Reid released her sixth novel Daisy Jones & The Six, a fictional oral history of a Fleetwood Mac-esque 70s rock band. In May 2026, Andrew and Craig from Overdue recorded a podcast about the author, her novels, the themes and points of inspiration that helped make Daisy Jones a bestseller. This is an aural history of that recording.

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Ep 752 - Daisy Jones and the Six

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Ep 751 - Annie Bot, by Sierra Greer

Less a story about AI, and more "what if that Star Trek episode about whether Data was a person was also exploring the concept of domestic abuse?" Greer writes a short punchy novel that is occasionally uncomfortable but thoughtfully constructed, not unlike a sentient humanoid robot might be.

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Ep 751 - Annie Bot

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Ep 750 - Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir

In the not-so-distant future, Andy Weir will write a novel about a Competent Man getting into trouble and then getting himself out. Then it will be made into a major motion picture starring a relatively bankable movie star. Then Overdue will (probably) read the book. That's what happened with The Martian, and that is what's happening this week with Project Hail Mary — a novel about a science teacher on a mission to save Earth (and maybe some other planets) from an otherworldly threat.

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Ep 750 - Project Hail Mary

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Ep 749 - The Very Hungry Caterpillar (and Other Stories), by Eric Carle

To celebrate this year's Children's Book Week, we're discussing the work of children's author and illustrator Eric Carle, whose colorful art and innovative prints have delighted our children (and us!) for years. Since they're each pretty short we decided to talk about a bunch of them, including:

1. The Very Hungry Caterpillar

2. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (with Bill Martin, Jr.)

3. Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? (with Bill Martin, Jr.)

4. My Very First Book of Numbers

5. My Very First Book of Colors

6. The Grouchy Ladybug

7. The Very Lonely Firefly

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Ep 749 - The Very Hungry Caterpillar (and Other Stories)

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Ep A03 - The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson (Annotated)

Around 25 minutes into this episode, Andrew and Craig take a mysterious elixir that turns them into younger versions of themselves with worse microphones and less research under their belts. Oh no! I hope they can find the ingredients to turn themselves back!

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Ep A03 - The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson (Annotated)

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The Sillymarillion Episode 1 - A Shortcut to Ilúvatar (J.R.R. Tolkien's Silmarillion)

For this show-within-a-show, Craig and Andrew learned about the world of Middle-Earth by reading J.R.R. Tolkien's posthumously published legendarium THE SILMARILLION.

In the beginning, Eru Ilúvatar created the heaven and the earth, primarily by watching his child-angels have an epic sing-off. And Melkor was there singing bad stuff, but Ilúvatar was like "no matter how bad you sing I can always make it a part of the awesome world I am building."

Anyway, this episode is about perhaps the most biblical part of the Hobbit Bible, where a god-like figure creates the world and casts out one of his followers who thinks he's good enough to challenge god himself. Also: the Dwarves are created, and the Elves wake up.

This episode posted first for our Patreon supporters in June 2025. If you want to hear our current longread project TOKYO DRIFTERS (and a bunch of other stuff besides), visit Patreon.com/overduepod.

The reading list:

Ep 1 - Ainulindale, Valaquenta, Quenta Silmarillion Ch 1-3

Ep 2 - Quenta Silmarillion Ch 4-10

Ep 3 - Quenta Silmarillion Ch 11-16

Ep 4 - Quenta Silmarillion Ch 17-20

Ep 5 - Quenta Silmarillion Ch 21-24

Ep 6 - Alkallabeth, Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age, Appendices

Support the show! Buy the book on Bookshop.org.

The Sillymarillion Ep 01 - A Shortcut to Ilúvatar (J.R.R. Tolkien's Silmarillion)

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Ep A02 - Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley (Annotated)

Our stroll down memory lane continues this week, but we come provisioned with Present-Day Overdue research and context. This week, 2026 Andrew and Craig talk about Mary Shelley and the legacy of her most famous work while 2013 Andrew and Craig deal primarily with the story, including the titular Dr. Frankenstein and his monster. (Even past us knew that Frankenstein is the doctor, okay??). Also please bear with 2013 us as we discuss artificial intelligence with no knowledge of where we'd be in 2026.

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Ep A02 - Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley (Annotated)

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Ep A01 - Dune, by Frank Herbert (Annotated)

We're revisiting our past this month, adding Present-Day Overdue research and context to a few old episodes that didn't have them. This week, 2026 Andrew and Craig talk about Frank Herbert and the extended Dune-iverse while 2013 Andrew and Craig do their best to talk about the book. 

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Ep A01 - Dune, by Frank Herbert (Annotated)

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Special Collections: Twilight (2008)

This isn't a belated April Fool's joke. We really did watch the movie Twilight, and we're really here to talk about it. Why are Edward and Bella SO strange? How is it that all of the side characters come off as more human than they do in the books? Why is the vampire running like that??

Sometimes over on the Patreon (patreon.com/overduepod) we discuss movies and TV under the Special Collections banner. Join us to find out what we thought about the first appearance of the Minions, for instance.

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Special Collections: Twilight (2008)

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