Very Bad Wizards

Ranking history

About the show

Latest episodes

• The Lotus Eaters Episode 11: Cleaning House

  October 8, 2026 · 1 hr 6 min

  Tamler and David discuss books 20, 21, & 22 of The Odyssey. Beginning with omens and portents and ending with merciless slaughter (with a bow contest in between), we finally see Odysseus' plans for revenge reach fruition.

• Episode 342: A Boy's Best Friend (Hitchcock's "Psycho")

  October 6, 2026 · 1 hr 54 min

  David and Tamler steal some of Laurie Santos' podcast money (she'll never miss it), drive to LA, and pull over in the rain to spend the night in the Bates Motel. That lanky young man in the office seems nice if a bit awkward, not sure…

• The Lotus Eaters Episode 10: Like-Minded [unlocked]

  October 1, 2026 · 1 hr 3 min

  Tamler and Dave devote a full episode to Book 19 of The Odyssey. In what is one of the most emotionally intense chapters of the story so far, Odysseus continues his Cretan lies, has a long tête-à-tête with Penelope, and finally gets…

• The Lotus Eaters Episode 9: An Ode to Argos [unlocked]

  September 24, 2026 · 49 min

  Tamler and David discuss The Odyssey books 17 & 18, in which Telemachus and Odysseus, back at home, continue their deception and put everyone to the test. Everyone except for Argos, that is, because Argos was (and will always be) a very…

• Episode 341: Psychology Ranked (With Paul Bloom)

  September 22, 2026 · 1 hr 38 min

  David and Tamler welcome Paul Bloom back to the show for a definitive ranking of classic psychology experiments. Will the shocking results of the Milgram studies earn him a posthumous 'S' ranking? How far will Zimbardo fall? Is the Stroop…

• The Lotus Eaters Episode 8: Home and Homelessness [unlocked]

  September 17, 2026 · 1 hr 3 min

  In this episode, Tamler and David discuss The Odyssey Books 15 & 16, in which father and son (and father figure and son) are reunited, and in which the Odysseus and Telemachus start planning their revenge against the suitors.

• The Lotus Eaters Episode 7: Lying Odysseus [unlocked]

  September 10, 2026 · 56 min

  Tamler and David discuss Books 13 & 14 of The Odyssey. Odysseus finally makes it to Ithaca and meets up with Athena, gets a disguise, and has a chat with his most loyal slave Eumaeus.

• Episode 340: The Sublime Folly of Hope

  September 8, 2026 · 1 hr 16 min

  Why do baseball players have so many superstitious rituals compared to athletes in other sports? How does this relate to the magic rituals of the Trobriand Islanders of Melanesia? We dive into Bronisław Malinowski's classic 1925 paper…