Episode 33e - The Saga of the Sworn Brothers (chapters 18-23)

As always, we count up the bodies and offer praise to the wittiest saga lines before getting down to the more difficult choices.  With no clear villain in the story, who will be outlawed?  Would eithe...

16 Maj 20141h 4min

Gunnlaug Serpent-Tongue is a talented warrior-poet torn between his love for Helga the Fair and his quest for fame and fortune in the courts of Northern Europe.  Helga's father, Thorstein, gives him 3...

2 Maj 201451min

This time out, we've got the bitterly funny Bandamanna Saga, a much-beloved saga set in the mid-11th century and centered around the corruption of Icelandic law by the rich and powerful chieftains of ...

3 Apr 20141h 11min

In our first ever Saga Brief, we explore the legendary Viking torture ritual known as the blood-eagle.  It's a brilliantly violent practice with a complicated, but fascinating textual history.  In sho...

13 Mars 201438min

In this special episode, we take a break from the family sagas of medieval Iceland and look forward to the second season of History Channel’s Vikings by delving into the medieval sagas and legends beh...

23 Feb 201457min

In this episode, meet the despicable and conniving Hen-Thorir, an unpopular businessman whose shameless lust for status and respect leads to a high stakes feud that consumes the Borgafjord district of...

30 Jan 20141h 15min

It's time to judge Gisli's Saga. Join John and Andy on a tour through the saga's best bloodshed, body count, nicknames, and notable witticisms.  The titular character of Eirik's the Red's Saga was out...

21 Dec 201357min

The tragic story of the outlaw Gisli Sursson, whose profound sense of honor forces him into violent action.  Whereas most Icelanders who receive the penalty of outlawry flee the land and seek their fo...

18 Dec 201356min