The Isshi Incident

Double, double, toil and trouble... Almost everyone has heard of Macbeth, in the context of Shakespeare's famous play. But Macbeth was also a real king, and Shakespeare wrote about him for a very specific reason. Support Noble Blood:—ORDER 'THE ARCANE ARTS'— Bonus episodes, stick ...  Show more

When the childless King Henry III's brother died, the heir to the throne became a cousin from the Bourbon dynasty. There was only one problem: he wasn't Catholic. Support Noble Blood:—ORDER 'THE ARCANE ARTS'— Bonus episodes, stickers, and scripts on Patreon— Order Dana's book, 'A ...  Show more

In the vibrant but vicious golden age of Imperial Japan, how did women use writing as a way to secure their status, and express their deepest desires? Who was Sei Shōnagon, the witty courtier whose account of life around the Japanese Empress during the iconic Heian period, provid ...  Show more

Through the life of this 17th century Japanese shogun, we explore the role of same-sex relationships in Japanese court culture of the time, the radically different meanings of age and gender in different times and places, and a gay teen romance that ends, alas, with being stab ...

Gods having sex, founding of the imperial dynasty, and some of the origins of WWII. Plus thoughts on the role of women in early Japanese history.Purchase your copy of The Kojiki through RJL's Bookshop page to support the podcast.Transcript, notes and sources at the podcast episod ...  Show more