Big news: Kim Renfro and David Chen will be recapping Succession for its 4th and final season! 

In this special season 4 preview episode for Decoding TV, we discuss:

Why is it we love Succession so much?
Where we left off with each of the Roy characters at the end of season 3
Jesse Armstrong’s comments on why he wanted to end the show
Where we think season 4 will wrap up
Where we want to see each of the Roys end up
The biggest jettisoned plotlines from earlier on in the show
And much more!

To get the rest of the episodes, head over to podcast.decodingtv.com or find us wherever you get your podcasts!

You can also follow Decoding TV on:

Twitter
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Decoding TV: Succession Season 3 Look-Back and Season 4 Preview

Over on the Decoding TV podcast, David Chen, Joy, and Kim Renfro recorded a bonus episode discussing season 1 of Netflix's 1899.  In this excerpt we discussed our overall thoughts on the show. Later, we dive into our thoughts on the production design, each character's arc, and the unexpected ending to season 1. 

This clip contains the NON-SPOILER parts of our conversation. To listen to our full spoiler chat, go here. Find Decoding TV on Apple Podcasts or wherever your podcasts are found.

Decoding TV Preview: 1899 Season 1

David Chen and Kim Renfro are back! In this bonus episode, Kim Renfro describes her experiences attending the Game of Thrones Official Fan Convention (the first officially licensed fan convention!). Which panels did she see and what did she learn about the current and future state of Game of Thrones/House of the Dragon? Listen to find out!

Links:

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Bonus Ep. - Dispatch from the Game of Thrones Official Fan Convention

Subscribe to the Decoding TV podcast and hear us cover shows like The White Lotus, Andor, and many more!

In this A Cast of Kings bonus episode, David Chen and Kim Renfro reflect on the first season of House of the Dragon. What questions remain unanswered? What themes stick out the most? And what was it like to make a podcast about it all? Listen to find out. 

Programming note:  Kim and I plan to do other bonus episodes throughout the year as Game of Thrones/House of the Dragon news breaks. Keep it tuned in to A Cast of Kings for more!

Links:




WATCH: David's special send-off for Kim this season

Kim Renfro: What book chapters should you read to brush up on House of the Dragon? 
Kim Renfro: 11 questions the House of the Dragon season left unanswered
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House of the Dragon Season 1 Post-Mortem

Hey folks, it's David Chen here. The second season of The White Lotus will debut on October 30 on HBO and run for 7 episodes, and I’m thrilled to share that the Decoding TV podcast will be recapping and reviewing each episode. Furthermore, I’m excited to announce that my co-host will be Roxana Hadadi, a TV critic at Vulture.com and one of my favorite writers on the internet today.

In this Decoding TV bonus ep, we discuss season 1 of The White Lotus, with a particular focus on its finale. Where did we leave off with each of these characters? What was this show trying to say about wealth and privilege, and how effectively did it say it? And what about that whole murder mystery plot? Listen to hear our thoughts on all of the above!

To listen to the rest of the show, subscribe at podcast.decodingtv.com.

Decoding TV Bonus Ep: The White Lotus Season 1 Lookback and Season 2 Preview (with Roxana Hadadi)

Help keep podcasts like A Cast of Kings going by becoming a paid member at DecodingTV.com!

In this episode of A Cast of Kings, David Chen and Kim Renfro dive into House of the Dragon’s season 1 finale, “The Black Queen.” Rhaenyra learns of what went down at King’s Landing next week, prompting her and Daemon to take immediate action. But can Rhaenyra prevent tragedy from befalling the kingdom, as well as her family? 

Where is this show going with all the references to the ASOIAF prophecy? What’s up with the depiction of Daemon this episode? What are the major differences between the show and the books when it comes to this episode’s events? How will the Dance of the Dragons play out? Now that season 1 is over, will David stop complaining about the time jumps? Listen to hear our thoughts!

Programming note: Kim and I will record at least one additional bonus episode next week, and we plan to do other bonus episodes throughout the year as Game of Thrones/House of the Dragon news breaks. Keep it tuned in to A Cast of Kings for more!

Links:




Kim Renfro: 8 details you might’ve missed
Kim Renfro: How HOTD made an important change to a tragic death
Listen to our Twitter Space reacting to this episode
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House of the Dragon S1E10 - The Black Queen

In this episode of A Cast of Kings, David Chen and Kim Renfro dive into House of the Dragon’s ninth episode, “The Green Council.” Major events leave the Small Council divided on how to proceed. But who will have the upper hand?

Should Aegon really be king or is Aemond really better prepared? Why is Ser Criston able to just do WTF he wants with no consequences? Will Alicent ever realize the grave error that she’s made? And what’s Larys’s whole deal anyway? Listen to hear our thoughts!

Thanks to our sponsors this episode:



Private Internet Access: Head to PIAVPN.com/kings and get an 82% discount.

Uncommon Goods: To get 15% off your next gift, go to uncommongoods.com/KINGS.

Links:

Kim Renfro: 10 Details You Might’ve Missed
David Chen’s tweet about the one guy in the crowd
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House of the Dragon S1E09 - The Green Council

Support this podcast by becoming a paid member at DecodingTV.com!

In this episode of A Cast of Kings, David Chen and Kim Renfro dive into House of the Dragon’s eighth episode, “The Lord of the Tides.” It’s the end of the line for Viserys as his whole family converges on King’s Landing to have one last extremely civil debate about the true line of succession.

What’s going on with the disparate aging of the characters in the show? What is the dynamic between Rhaenyra and Alicent? Are we really going to hinge everything that happens next on a simple prophecy misunderstanding?? Listen to hear our thoughts!

Links:

Kim Renfro: 7 details you might’ve missed
Kim Renfro: A timeline of major events
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House of the Dragon S1E08 - The Lord of the Tides

Welcome to the Hellmouth Weirdos! Your favorite Morbid hosts Ash and Alaina are branching out from true crime and heading to Sunnydale for the ultimate Buffy the Vampire Slayer Rewatch podcast! Alaina is a Buffy superfan and Ash has never watched a single episode, so whether you’re Team Angel, Team Spike, or have no clue who those people are…they’ve got you covered! Join them each week as they slay their way through the series, episode by episode, re-watching, and watching for the very first time. They’ll break down Buffy and her friends adventures through weekly recaps, categories, and awards while Ash takes some (wooden stake) stabs at predicting what she thinks will happen next. They'll also welcome the occasional Buffy cast member, guest star, or celebrity superfan to join in the slaying.

Listen to The Rewatcher: http://wondery.fm/ACOK_ReWatcher

Wondery Presents: The Rewatcher: Buffy The Vampire Slayer

Support this podcast and get ad-free episodes and bonus episodes by becoming a paid member at DecodingTV.com!

In this episode of A Cast of Kings, David Chen and Kim Renfro dive into House of the Dragon’s seventh episode, “Driftmark.”

In this episode, a sudden death in the family brings disparate folks together from across the kingdom and introduces new tensions. How might the resulting conflicts reverberate through the rest of the show? Listen to hear our speculations and analyses.

Thanks to our sponsor this week:
Go to expressvpn.com/castofkings and get an extra 3 months free on a one-year package


Links:

Kim Renfro: 5 Details You Might’ve Missed
Kim Renfro: Why This Episode Surprised Even Bookreaders
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House of the Dragon S1E07 - Driftmark

Support this podcast by becoming a paid member at DecodingTV.com!

In this episode of A Cast of Kings, David Chen and Kim Renfro dive into House of the Dragon’s sixth episode, “The Princess and the Queen.”

In this episode we jump forward 10 years in time to find that Daemon is much more mellow, Larys is much more sketchy, Alicent is much more intense about protecting her children, and Rhaenyra just wants to GTFO. But does it all work as a TV show? Listen to find out. 

Thanks to our sponsor this week, MintMobile. To get your new wireless plan for just 15 bucks a month, and get the plan shipped to your door for FREE, go to mintmobile.com/kings.

Links:




The Decoding TV podcast is covering Andor, She-Hulk, and The Rings of Power. Subscribe here!
Kim Renfro: Details you might've missed from this episode
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House of the Dragon S1E06 - The Princess and the Queen

This is a preview of a bonus episode where Kim Renfro and David Chen discuss this show's use of time jumps.

To get the rest of this episode, other bonus episodes, and ad-free episodes of the podcast, consider supporting this show by becoming a paid member at DecodingTV.com!

Links:

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Bonus Ep. Preview - Spartacus, Why Viserys Favors Rhaenyra, The Status of George's Books

Support this podcast by becoming a paid member at DecodingTV.com!

In this episode of A Cast of Kings, David Chen and Kim Renfro dive into House of the Dragon’s fifth episode, “We Light The Way.”

Does this episode give Lady Royce fans what they want? What is the sexual equivalent of roasted duck? Will it ever be a good idea to go to a wedding in Westeros? Listen to find out!

Thanks to our sponsor this week, HelloFresh. Go to Hellofresh.com/kings65 and use code "kings65" to get 65% plus free shipping!

Links:




For quality written content about House of the Dragon and many other shows, check out the Episodic Medium newsletter.
Kickstarter video to remove the rat from The Departed
The Decoding TV podcast is covering Andor, She-Hulk, and The Rings of Power. Subscribe here!
Kim Renfro: Six details you might have missed in this week’s episode
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House of the Dragon S1E05 - We Light the Way

This is a preview of a bonus episode where Kim Renfro and David Chen discuss this show's use of time jumps. 

To get the rest of this episode, other bonus episodes, and ad-free episodes of the podcast, consider supporting this show by becoming a paid member at DecodingTV.com!

Links:

Subscribe to this show on YouTube
Follow this podcast on Tiktok

Follow David Chen on Twitter

Bonus Ep. Preview - Time Jumps in 'House of the Dragon'

Who is most worthy of Rhaenyra’s hand in marriage? How does House of the Dragon resemble Aladdin? Will we ever be able to look at Paddy Considine in the same way again? Listen to find out!

Links:




Thanks to our sponsor this episode, Manscaped! Get 20% Off and free shipping with the code CASTOFKINGS at Manscaped.com.
For quality written content about House of the Dragon and many other shows, check out the Episodic Medium newsletter.
The Decoding TV podcast is covering She-Hulk and Rings of Power. Subscribe here!
Kim Renfro: 11 Details You Might've Missed
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House of the Dragon S1E04 - King of the Narrow Sea

Support this podcast and get ad-free/bonus episodes by becoming a member at DecodingTV.com

In this episode of A Cast of Kings, David Chen and Kim Renfro dive into House of the Dragon’s third episode, “Second of His Name.” 

This week another massive time jump resets the status quo. What are the positives and negatives of these time jumps from a storytelling perspective? Why is Viserys so indecisive about who is heir should be? What are the parallels between Rhaenyra and Danny from Game of Thrones? Who is Johanna Swan, exactly? Who were those dudes eyeing Rhaenyra when she got back to camp? Listen to find out!

Links:




THR: Miguel Sapochnik leaves House
House of the Dragon’s time jumps are a problem
The Decoding TV podcast will cover Rings of Power. Subscribe here!
Kim Renfro: 11 Details You Might’ve Missed from this Episode
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House of the Dragon S1E03 - Second of His Name

Support this podcast and get ad-free/bonus episodes by becoming a member at DecodingTV.com

In this episode of A Cast of Kings, David Chen and Kim Renfro dive into House of the Dragon’s second episode, “The Rogue Prince.” How questionable are Daemon and Viserys’s decisions? What’s up with this new opening credits sequence? What on earth is happening with Mysaria’s accent? Listen and find out! 

Links:




The Decoding TV podcast will cover Rings of Power. Subscribe to the free podcast here!
Check out this Twitter breakdown of the opening credits sequence
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Kim Renfro: Why some characters will be played by different actors
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House of the Dragon S1E02 - The Rogue Prince

Kim and I are trying something different today: We’re doing a Twitter Space that’s going to have our immediate and live reaction to this week’s episode of House of the Dragon, in advance of our fully refined recap tomorrow. 

If you don’t know what Twitter Spaces are, they’re basically live audio rooms on Twitter where people can have a conversation while others listen in. Of note: the audio is going to rougher than a usual podcast, and our thoughts are also a bit more raw. But this is really for those who watch the show on Sunday nights and want to hear our conversation about it as soon as possible.

I’m not sure we’ll be able to do a Twitter Space every week but if we do, the Space will be made available as a podcast for members of DecodingTV.com. This one is free for everyone. 

Links:




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The Rogue Prince (Ep. 2) - Quick Reactions

Welcome to a Cast of Kings bonus episode, brought to you thanks to our paid members at DecodingTV.com! Sign up at DecodingTV.com to get ad-free episodes, early access to episodes, and future bonus episodes like this one.

In this episode, David Chen and Kim Renfro discuss a bunch of the intriguing lore that we didn’t get to during the course of the main episode:




What was the Doom of Valyria? 
Who was Nymeria, again? 
Why was Maegor called Maegor the Cruel? 
What was do we make of the state of prophecies in Westeros at this point?

Listen and find out!

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Bonus Ep. - The Doom of Valyria, Nymeria, HBO Ratings, Maegor the Cruel, Prophecies in Westeros

Support this podcast by signing up for a subscription at DecodingTV.com! Members will get:

Ad-free episodes
Bonus episodes
Early access to episodes
The ability to comment and join the community

Welcome back to a new season of “A Cast of Kings!” We’re happy you’re here and that you’ve decided to join us for a new season of House of the Dragon, a show that takes place 172 years before the events of Game of Thrones. 

In this episode, David Chen and Kim Renfro dive into the House of the Dragon season premiere, “The Heirs of the Dragon.” How well did this episode introduce us to all the new characters and establish the conflicts to come? What are the best easter eggs for those who enjoyed the original series? What’s up with the security in the Small Council room? Listen to find out! 

Links:




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Kim Renfro: 14 Details You Might Have Missed
Kim Renfro: The Big Targaryen Reveal
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