153-Odysseus: The Angry One
04 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A boy is born, fated to be one who brings strife. Two sons seek to outrun a family curse. A wife is ...
152-King Arthur: When in Rome
28 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Things are going well for King Arthur for once. He’s in complete control over the island of Great ...
151B-Faust: The Bad Place
21 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Faust decides that if he's going to have these powers, he's really going to enjoy them so, in no par...
151A-Faust: A Man of Wealth and Taste
14 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The story of Faust and his infamous deal is one that has survived for hundreds of years. Beginning a...
150B-European Epics: Where the Shadows Lie
07 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
From the end of the world to the underworld and Armageddon itself, Kalevipoeg does way too many thin...
150A-European Epics: King Me
31 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
From the Estonian epic, the Kalevipoeg, comes the story of, well, Kalevipoeg, the son of a giant who...
149-Japanese Fairy Tales: Son of a Peach
17 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Why you absolutely should take the biggest peach you can find in the supermarket and sing to it. It ...
148B-Monkey King: Leaps and Bounds
10 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The monkey king has done it all: he was immortal, he had allied with all the mythological creatures ...
148A-Monkey King: Good Little Monkey
03 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Sun Wukong, the (Handsome) Monkey King, is both an actual monkey and an actual king…and presumably...
147B-Antigone: Authority
26 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A dark story gets darker as Antigone battles an authoritarian state in the form of her uncle Creon. ...
147A-Oedipus: Team Spear It
19 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
When we last left the Oedipus family, they all found out they were more related than they ever thoug...
146-Scandinavian Folklore: Twinning
12 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The story of Tatterhood is unlike any I've ever read on the podcast, and it's so excellent. The prob...
145-Achilles: The Age of Heroes
05 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
We're back on the road to the Trojan War, with the story of Achilles. Starting from when his father ...
144-Viking Legends: The Old Gods and the New
29 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
King Olaf has a new guest...named Guest. Guest has a story, an impossible story of gods, giants, and...
143-Japanese Folktales: Crabby
22 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The story this week is the reason you don’t make enemies with a decapod who’s friends with a bee...
142B-Rome: Politics
15 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Romulus and Remus are finally striking out on their own, and what could go wrong with two seventeen ...
142A-Rome: Glory
08 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
If you're remotely familiar with the legendary history of Rome, you might know about two babies suck...
141C-Robin Hood: On Brand
01 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
When we left off last week, Robin Hood was stabbed in the side by an assassin who deceived him, and ...
141B-Robin Hood: The Hunted
24 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This week, it’s a continuation of our Robin Hood tale, and this time, the Sheriff of Nottingham is...
141A-Robin Hood: Merry
17 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Robin Hood is a name that has echoed through the ages as a noble outlaw - one who takes from the ric...
140-La Llorona: No Way Out
10 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
If you hear her weeping, it might already be too late. A life fraught with loss and betrayal creates...
139B-Irish Legends: Evitable
03 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Where we left off, Cú Chulainn was getting dung smeared in his face by a stronger, magical king. No...
139A-Irish Legends: The Hound
27 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Swan hunting, demon horde fighting, and marriage counseling: we’re back in the stories of Cú Chul...
138-Knights of the Round Table: Carl
20 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Gawain, Kay, and Bishop Baldwin are road tripping, but it's starting to rain. Kay won't camp out in ...
137-Italian folklore: Tailor-made
13 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Young Dionigi is an apprentice to the master tailor, Maestro Lattantio. It’s a good job and, frank...
136-Pecos Bill: To the Moon and Back
06 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
It’s the long awaited, frequently requested return of Pecos Bill, and we’ll see the aftermath of...
135C-Tristan and Isolde: Homecoming
27 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The jig is up, the news is out, they finally found Tristan and Isolde. They were renegades who had i...
135B-Tristan and Isolde: Secrets
20 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Tristan and Isolde have a problem: they can't get enough of each other. After they inadvertently dra...
135A-Tristan and Isolde: Matchmaker
13 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
I don't want to spoil anything for someone who doesn't know this story, but this three-parter has ev...
134-Grimm: Thirsty
06 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
For once, the king is dead and the queen is alive, and she's going to make sure her daughter avoids ...
133-Filipino folklore: Monkey Business
23 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This week, it's a fable from the Philippines with a monkey, a turtle, and Game of Thrones level viol...
132B-Trojan War: Some Foolish Thing
16 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This is the episode. This is the episode where Helen of Sparta becomes Helen of Troy, and an event h...
132A-Trojan War: The Wars to Come
09 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In this prelude to the Trojan War, we learn the origin of the most famous Greek hero, and maybe the ...
131B-Greek Mythology: All in the Family
02 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Last week, Hera hid that she was pregnant. This week, we learn who the father isn’t, and see the b...
131A-Greek Mythology: Sudden but Inevitable Betrayal
26 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The origin stories of the Olympians. The creatures this week are the Yule Lads, their mom, stepdad, ...
130C-Jungle Book: An Old War
19 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Mowgli is hiding among the humans to stay safe from Shere Khan after burning and shaming the tiger a...
130B-Jungle Book: The Strength of the Pack
12 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
We catch up with Mowgli after he’s been tossed in a pit of cobras while his friends fight countles...
130A-Jungle Book: Welcome to the Jungle
05 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A boy is lost. A tiger hunts. The wolf pack takes on a new cub. The story of the Jungle Book begins ...
129B-Persian mythology: Champions
28 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Rostam embarks on his quest to free his king, taken captive in the land of the demons, where he'll n...
129A-Persian Mythology: The Mammoth that Rides
21 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The story of Rostam from the Shahnameh, an important book in Iranian Mythology. It starts out in a w...
128-Irish folklore: Give Him the Finger
14 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A fairy tale from Ireland with a genre savvy queen who has one request for her husband: don't let hi...
127-Finnish Mythology: The Boy who Lived
07 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A story from the Finnish national epic, the Kalevala, about revenge, letting go, and moving on. Also...
126-Wendigo: Hunger
31 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
On our annual Halloween episode, it's stories of a monstrous creature who stalks the north woods...a...
125-Norse Mythology: Bound
24 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
We're back in Norse Mythology. It's set before Ragnarok (obviously), and it's a story we never got t...
124-Greek Mythology: The Fall
17 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Theseus has had a long and storied life, but now he faces his greatest challenge: after you've accom...
123-Dark Tower: Directions
10 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A game turns dark as a child disappears. Her brothers must follow her into a land that's like a mirr...
122-Indian Folklore: Let it Be
03 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A king fighting against fate. A young man surviving the impossible. A hermit reading the future from...
121-Grimm Brothers: King of the Mountain
26 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A man loses everything except for his children and his field, but it's while he's in that field with...
120B-Holy Grail: Beyond the Sea
19 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Seven people have been informed that they will be pivotal in the quest for the greatest holy object ...
120A-Holy Grail: Only the Penitent Man Will Pass
12 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The Holy Grail: The greatest legendary item of all time and the focal point of the Arthurian legends...
119-Sleeping Beauty: Rude Awakening
05 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
It's the first written version of Sleeping Beauty, put down to paper in the 1600s by the Neapolitan ...
118-Jewish Folklore: The Eyrie
29 Aug 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The king is annoyed. All of these people want to make him work. It's just...not fair. Sure, they're ...
117-Romanian Folklore: What did it Cost?
22 Aug 2018
Contributed by Lukas
This week, it's the fairy tale "Youth without Age and Life without Death", from Romania, a tale of l...
116B-Mexican Legends: Outlaw Country
15 Aug 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Joaquin is out of control. He is riding through town, doubling the rewards on his own wanted posters...
116A-Mexican Legends: Alta California
08 Aug 2018
Contributed by Lukas
It's 1850. The gold rush in the wild west, and Joaquin Murrieta seeks a better life in the US state ...
115-Chinese Folklore: Another Brick in the Wall
01 Aug 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The story of Meng Jiangnu and the Great Wall is one of the four great folktales of China. It's the s...
114B-Indian Stories: Heavy
25 Jul 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The world has been quiet for centuries, but everyone knows that they will return. The demon kings. A...
114A-Indian Stories: Calamity
18 Jul 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Three lifetimes, two guardians, one objective: get back home. In our long overdue first foray into s...
113-Armenian folklore: Occupational Hazard
11 Jul 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The prince is having a bad day...because the prince is having a great day. His life is just too easy...
112C-Pinocchio: Whale Jail
27 Jun 2018
Contributed by Lukas
It's the end for Pinocchio. We left him last week the lead suspect in a murder investigation (no, I'...
112B-Pinocchio: Nosey
20 Jun 2018
Contributed by Lukas
I wouldn't really call Pinocchio ill-fated. That implies that it's undeserved, and it's definitely n...
112A-Pinocchio: No Strings Attached
13 Jun 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Prison. Assassins. Marionette dance parties. The original story of Pinocchio has it all. Of course, ...
111-Thumbelina: Sweet Summer Child
06 Jun 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Thumbelina's life is already difficult. She lives in early modern Denmark and is no bigger than her ...
110-Viking Myths: Alone
30 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Odin. Jotunheim. Shin Tinder. We're (basically) back in Norse mythology with the legendary story of ...
109-Athens: Home
23 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The city of Athens is one of the most famous of the ancient world and its royal family was plagued w...
108-Tom Thumb: Thumbs Up
16 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Tom Thumb is the story of a guy named Tom...who is as big as his dad's thumb. A practical joke by a ...
107B-Golem: To Dust You Shall Return
09 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
It's quiet. Too quiet. It has been years since the last blood libel and the Jewish community in Prag...
Bonus-U.S. Folklore: Gaslighting
05 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
As a way to say thank for voting for Myths and Legends for the Webbys (and for being the reason why ...
107A-Golem: Guardian
02 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
In 16th century Prague, a people are under attack. Accused of an unspeakable crime they didn't commi...
106C-African Legends: Who Tells Your Story
25 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The king returns to his homeland after nearly a decade of exile. An evil sorcerer king is at the ape...
106B-African Legends: Bad Move
18 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A new shadow rises to the north of Mali and an evil sorcerer king (and connoisseur of severed heads)...
106A-African Legends: Long Live the King
11 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The epic of Sundiata, the founder of the Mali empire, has everything - magical old women, evil magic...
105B-Reynard: Ferocious Mr. Fox
04 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Reynard, having received a pardon from the Lion who was a King, is up to his old tricks. Like, immed...
105A-Reynard: Fox on the Run
28 Mar 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Despite cute talking animals, the world in the stories of Reynard the fox is a rough place. The fox ...
104-Egyptian Mythology: The First Avenger
21 Mar 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Horus's uncle Set murdered his father, and because his mother was shrewd, he gained the throne and t...
103-Middle Eastern Folklore: Shipshape
14 Mar 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A story about a king and his garden...that somehow turns into a story with genies, witches, boats fu...
102-Charlemagne: Honor Among Thieves
07 Mar 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Charlemagne is the Holy Roman Emperor, and as a Holy Roman Emperor in a legend, it's not surprising ...
101-Fairy Tales: Three Dog Night
28 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
What do you do if an obvious witch stops you on the road and asks a favor? Keep walking, right? Well...
100B-Knights of the Round Table: Family Reunion
21 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Things get weird this week. The knights continue their quests through the Country of Strange Adventu...
100A-Knights of the Round Table: Buddy System
14 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Yvain and Gawain are just two best friends taking a fun trip together. Nevermind that they've been e...
99-William Tell: One Shot
07 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The story of William Tell is so much more than an arrow and an apple. It's the story of a reluctant ...
98-Native American History: Runner in the Night
31 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
As I was reading the story of Gouyen, I couldn't believe it was a true story - the lengths and the d...
97-Jack and the Beanstalk: Sleeping Giant
24 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
I feel pretty confident saying that this episode is the most fun you'll have listening to a story ab...
96-Russian Folklore: Cold as Ice
17 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Two vastly different stories of children made from snow. The first is one where the king is called o...
95B-Irish Legends: Finn the Human
10 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A giant otherworldly monster that shoots fire from its mouth. The treacherous chief that killed his ...
95A-Irish legends: Wanted
03 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
If I could have just re-named myself in grade school, it probably would have been Finn MacCool. I me...
Bonus-The Time Machine: Inspector Spacetime
29 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Since Myths and Legends is off this week, I thought I would run an episode from our other show, Fict...
94-Norse Legends: A Very Viking Christmas
20 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The story of a few violent, zombie-filled Christmases from Norse legend. There are two creatures ...
93B-Theseus: Love and War
13 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The Amazons are at the gates, and they want what they came for: the sister of the queen that was kid...
93A-Amazons: Wonder Women
06 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
There is a monster that's worse than all other monsters. He's (literally) the father of monsters. Hi...
92-Greek Myths: Gigantic
29 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
There is someone that isn't happy that the family of Zeus and Hera is sitting on Olympus. Well, ther...
91-Greek Myths: Fatherhood
22 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Two stories of just terrible, terrible fathers from Greek mythology. The first is really only in the...
90-Viking Legends: Mighty
15 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The land of giants. Jotunheim. The realm of the monstrous "other" from Norse myth. Thorstein grew up...
89-Maui: The Mauiest Maui
08 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Maui. Trickster. Demigod. Sometimes-fish. Abandoned at birth but in the possession of great power, t...
88-Ragnarok: Doom
01 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The Day of the Wolf. The Doom of the Gods. The end of all things. It has many names, but one word en...
87-Werewolves: The Lost
25 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Werewolves are people that turn into wolves. Or they don't. Maybe they just wear a fancy wolf belt. ...
86-Grimm: Clever
18 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Clever Hans is clever. He knows the best way to store needles and knives and how to carry a goat in ...
85B-Slavic Folklore: Hold on to Your Hat
11 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The conclusion to the dwarf with the long beard, a story about a dwarf. And a long beard. And enteri...
85A-Slavic Folklore: For the Right Reasons
04 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Today's story comes from Slavic folklore and it was so much fun. It's surprisingly complex and full ...
84-Famous Fairy Tales: Rule of Three
27 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Threes are everywhere in folklore, and today we look at stories where they feature the most prominen...