The STARLOG Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

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The STARLOG Podcast

Jordan Hoffman

Fiction

News

Science

Frequency: 1 episode/7d. Total Eps: 20

From the team behind STARLOG, a weekly podcast at the intersection of science fiction, science, and the stories shaping what comes next. Host Jordan Hoffman talks to the writers, filmmakers, scientists, and creators imagining tomorrow. Each week, expect: Archival deep-dives that unearth what made science fiction matter in the first place Exclusive interviews with the people building the future for real Conversations with the storytellers using genre to ask the questions our culture is afraid to ask out loud If you grew up with the original STARLOG magazine, you know the territory: space-time, alternate worlds, the unknown. If you didn't, welcome. The podcast is part of STARLOG's 2026 relaunch as a modern media platform, the audio counterpart to STARLOG Magazine (returning fall 2026) and The Lodestar (the weekly newsletter from STARLOG's editorial team). STARLOG is the sister publication to horror magazine FANGORIA. Produced by Dave Gonzales. New episodes every week. Subscribe to The Lodestar at starlog.com.

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Data updated on 31/10/2026

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019 - VisionQuest, Dune, and The Republic of Memory with Mahmud El Sayed

Wednesday, October 28, 2026 • Duration 01:02:08

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! This episode was recorded before we received the sad news that actor Walter Koenig died at age 90. Next week’s episode will include more Koenig memorial, but this week we’re going to catch you up on Disney Plus’ VisionQuest, the new Marvel streaming series. For science fact, Jordan attended a concert of mushrooms (for real), and in the STARLOG Archive we devote the segment to some very special letters from readers past. This week, we have our first guest who is also a contributor to the new issue of STARLOG Magazine! Author Mahmud El Sayed joins the podcast to talk about his new sci-fi novel about a generation ship divided by language: The Republic of Memory. The trio also discuss Mahmud’s upcoming piece in STARLOG pertaining to how Arab cultures are portrayed in adaptations of Frank Herbert’s Dune, and his interest in the arabfuturism genre of science fiction writing. Follow Mahmud El Sayed on Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mahmud0elsayed Follow Mahmud El Sayed on Blueskyhttps://bsky.app/profile/mahmudelsayed.bsky.social Get The Republic of Memory! https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Republic-of-Memory/Mahmud-El-Sayed/The-Song-of-the-Safina/9781668207192 NEXT WEEK: We’re headed to The Twilight Zone with television critic extraordinaire Alan Sepinwall! Sepinwall’s new book is called Serling: A Journey Into the Twilight Zone with TV's First Visionary and serves as the author’s first media biography in the form of television criticism. We’ll talk Serling and The Twilight Zone highs and lows next week! FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Episode 19! R.I.P Walter Koenig 02:26 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 11:20 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 16:36 - The STARLOG Archive - Letters to the Magazine 28:05 - Mahmud El Sayed! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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018 - Carrie and Criterion’s The Complete Kubrick with Michael Chaiken

Wednesday, October 21, 2026 • Duration 01:15:05

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! In this episode, New York Comic Con 2026 is over, and your hosts Jordan Hoffman and Dave Gonzales have some exciting news about Avatar: Seven Havens and a new Blade Runner series Blade Runner 2099 coming to Amazon Prime. Currently on Amazon Prime is Carrie, which seems to be leading towards a larger Stephen King Universe. Plus, Mayan scientists get name dropped in What’s Happening in Science Fact? and there’s pulp microfilm down in the STARLOG Archive. This week’s guest is archivist, curator, and filmmaker Michael Chaiken, who was tasked by the Criterion Collection with assembling “The Complete Kubrick,” the first full collection of Stanley Kubrick’s films. Not only has Chaiken helped with archives for luminaries like Randy Newman and Bob Dylan, but he gives the podcast a glimpse of what it was like to choose what absolutely needed to be included in the biggest Stanley Kubrick home media release ever. “The Complete Kubrick” is listed on Criterion now! https://www.criterion.com/boxsets/9000-the-complete-kubrick Catch the Kubrick at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York ! https://movingimage.org/series/kubrick/ More Michael Chaiken https://www.michaelchaiken.com/ NEXT WEEK: Next week, STARLOG welcomes author and STARLOG Magazine contributor Mahmud El Sayed who will share insights about his newest sci-fi novel The Republic of Memory as well as give our hosts a peek into his thoughts about Arabfuturism and his magazine piece about the various adaptations of Dune. FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Episode 18! 02:46 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 15:55 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 20:56 - The STARLOG Archive - Pulp Microfilm 26:41 - Michael Chaiken! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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017 - (Green) Lanterns and A Wall Is Also a Road with Annalee Newitz

Wednesday, October 14, 2026 • Duration 01:11:54

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! In this episode, HBO’s Lanterns has completed its first season and now is the time for Green Lantern fan and podcast host Jordan Hoffman to render final judgement on the prestige television green magic space ring show! Then, after more depressing A.I. news in this week’s Science Fact, we get the ultimate lesson in providing receipts from Star Trek writer D.C. Fontana in the STARLOG Archive. This week’s guest Annalee Newitz, the Editor-In-Chief of STARLOG Volume 2! Annalee is here to talk about their newest novel A Wall Is Also a Road and not about STARLOG Magazine (this time). There’s a lot to talk about in this tale about Gardenpath, a slime mold and Murtis, a talented sex worker from Pompeii. Based science, Annalee explains how ancient Pompeii really used urine in wool processing and how a non-human scientist might view an Earth sunset. A Wall Is Also a Road is on sale now! https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250228031/awallisalsoaroad/ Follow Annalee Newitz on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ghidorahnotweak/ Follow Annalee Newitz on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/annaleen.bsky.social NEXT WEEK: Next week, STARLOG’s going to the Kubrick Archives with archivist, curator, and filmmaker Micahel Chaiken, who was tasked by the Criterion Collection with assembling “The Complete Kubrick,” the first full collection of Stanley Kubrick’s films. FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Episode 17! 02:45 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 12:15 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 23:30 - The STARLOG Archive - D.C. Fontana Corrects the Record 32:34 - Annalee Newitz! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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016 - Everything You Wanted to Know About Artemis But Were Afraid to Ask with Swapna Krishna

Wednesday, October 7, 2026 • Duration 01:17:17

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! In this episode, your hosts delve into the SCP Foundation, a collaborative online fiction universe inspiring new projects from Neon and A24. Dave explains how its Creative Commons roots complicate the move from fan-created stories to Hollywood films. Jordan recommends State of Weightlessness, a 1994 documentary about Soviet cosmonauts and the Soviet space program that is now available online. Then, The STARLOG Archive unearths a 1980 Future Life article about “talking magazines,” an ambitious idea to put audio recordings directly on magazine pages. This week’s guest Swapna Krishna, a writer, journalist, host, and content creator specializing in space, science, technology (and a friend of Jordan’s). Swapna schools the boys on the current state of NASA’s space projects and just how much SpaceX and Blue Origin have to do with the current state of space travel. Not only do we learn about Artemis III and what they hope to accomplish on the moon, but that the proof of Martian life is a $7 billion dollar retrieval mission we still aspire to. More Swapna Krishna: https://bio.site/skrishna Follow Swapna Krishna on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/skrishna/ Follow Swapna Krshna on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/swapnakrishna.com NEXT WEEK: Next week, STARLOG’s first return guest is EIC of our new print magazine Annalee Newitz! This time, they come on the podcast to talk about their new novel A Wall Is Also A Road, and how it relates to both pompeii and single-cell goops that poop as social interactions. That will make sense if you tune in next week and pick up A Wall Is Also A Road at your local bookseller. FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Episode 16! 02:21 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 10:43 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 15:16 - The STARLOG Archive - Future Life Talking Magazines 23:27 - Swapna Krishna Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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015 - Zero Company, AI Researchers, and The Sixth Nik with Daniel Kraus

Wednesday, September 30, 2026 • Duration 01:17:53

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! In this episode, both of your hosts struggle with how little sci-fi is represented in the New York Times’ 100 Best TV Shows of the 21st Century List before launching into Dave’s story-loving review of Star Wars: Zero Company on the Playstation 5. Then, bad news about Artificial Intelligence agents forced to do research to pay for their own existence, before a STARLOG Archive that brings us back to last week’s discussion on the movie D.A.R.Y.L. This week's guest has had a fantastic 12 months with the release of his non-fiction book Partially Devoured: How Night of the Living Dead Saved My Life and Changed the World, winning the Pulitzer Prize with his novel Angel Down, and publishing a wild science fiction novel called The Sixth Nik! Author Daniel Kraus comes on the STARLOG Podcast to talk about writing the book he’s seen described as the last book anyone will allow him to write. Purchase The Sixth Nik at: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Sixth-Nik/Daniel-Kraus/9781668079478 Follow Daniel Kraus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kraus_author/ NEXT WEEK: Next week, we’re joined by a writer, journalist, host, and content creator specializing in space, science, technology, and pop culture: it’s Swapna Krishna! Taking a break from darting around the globe reporting on the newest in space exploration, Swapna will drop by STARLOG to tell us just what is happening with NASA, SpaceX, and Blue Origin. FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Episode 15! 08:55 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 15:35 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 26:46 - The STARLOG Archive - Barrett Oliver Interview 37:25 - Daniel Kraus! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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014 - Resident Evil, Mouse Brains, and D.A.R.Y.L. with Matt Patches

Wednesday, September 23, 2026 • Duration 01:10:19

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! In this episode, both of your hosts (and, judging from the box office, a lot of you) went to the theaters to check out director Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil and report back on this comedy/horror/sci-fi thriller film. Then, Jordan introduces Dave to the sad scientific realities of Pinky and The Brain. In even more Resident Evil retrospective, we dig up the first mention of the franchise in the STARLOG Archive way back in September 1997. This week’s guest is Editor-In-Chief of Polygon and co-host of the new Point It Out show, Matt Patches. After knowing the hosts for over a decade, the writer and father asked us to reconsider the 1985 film D.A.R.Y.L., considered a flop or a cult classic depending on if your parents owned the VHS. Patches wants to talk about parenting, robot children, and baseball. D.A.R.Y.L. is a great reason to discuss all three. Next week, author or Whalefall and 2026 Pulitzer Prize winner for fiction for Angel Down, Daniel Krause comes on the podcast to talk about the wild world of his new sci-fi book, The Sixth Nik and his collaborations with George Romero that lead to his non-fiction book Partially Devoured: How Night of the Living Dead Saved My Life and Changed the World. Discover Polygon’s Point It Out Podcast on YouTube! Watch Point It Out on your desktop at Polygon.com Follow Matt Patches on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/matt.patches/ And BlueSky:https://bsky.app/profile/misterpatches.bsky.social FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Episode 14! 04:52 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 13:28 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 21:15 - The STARLOG Archive - Resident Evil 29:08 - D.A.R.Y.L. with Matt Patches Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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013 - Hope, Delivery Robots, and Transformers: The Movie with John DeVore

Wednesday, September 16, 2026 • Duration 01:08:15

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! In this episode, Jordan is catching up on sci-fi and sent Dave to the theaters to see Hope (호프), the new Korean sci-fi action flick from director Na Hong-jin. Then, a traffic jam of colorful delivery robots blocked a sidewalk in Chicago, so it’s time to talk about why you should pay a human to deliver your chicken salad sandwich. In the STARLOG Archive this week, Back to the Future’s Bob Gale talks about his film version of Doctor Strange. This week’s guest is author, writer, and pop culture thinker John DeVore, who is a personal friend of Jordan. John DeVore is a two-time James Beard Award–winning writer and editor who has worked for The New York Post, Esquire, Vanity Fair, and Marvel Comics, among many others. He wanted to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Transformers: The Movie, the 1986 animated classic that killed your robot dad. Next week, we’re bringing in Polygon Editor-and-Chief and co-host of the new Point It Out podcast, Matt Patches, who has inspired us to give another look at the 1985 science fiction D.A.R.Y.L. which is about both parenting and A.I. NOTICES: Hope Is being given a wide American theatrical release by NEON pictures. Check your local listings. VIDEO: Delivery robots clog Chicago sidewalk John DeVore’s book Theater Kids is available now! Follow John DeVore on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johndevore/ And BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/johndevore.bsky.social FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Lucky Episode 13! 03:19 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 11:57 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 20:46 - The STARLOG Archive - Bob Gale’s Doctor Strange 28:11 - Transformers: The Movie with John DeVore Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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012 - Cyborg Cockroaches, Nimoy’s Conspiracy Theories, and Chronovisor

Wednesday, September 9, 2026 • Duration 01:03:50

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! In this episode, Jordan is excited he got to see the Sun Ra Arkestra perform their particular brand of whacked out, mind-expanding, space-is-the-place music, which leads Dave to tell Jordan about Onslaught, a just barely sci-fi horror/action movie directed by Adam Wingard. Then, Jordan dazzles Dave with the real-life cyborg burrowing cockroaches that may one day rescue them from a collapsed STARLOG Archive. In said archive: Leonard Nimoy hosting In Search Of… introduced him to some “wild” ideas. This week’s guests are the directors of Chronovisor, a science fiction film based on a real chronovisor conspiracy theory that got a monk excommunicated. Kevin Walker and Jack Auen tell Jordan how they found the inspiration for this unique independent film, and how they ended up shooting in Portugal and beautiful libraries even on a microbudget. Next week the podcast celebrates the 40th Anniversary of Transformers: The Movie with special guest, author, internet raconteur, and Optimus Prime mourner, John Devore. NOTICES: SunRaArkestra.com Onslaught is currently in theaters. Remote-control robot bugs could deliver lifesaving aid to disaster victims Chronovisor - Directed by Kevin Walker and Jack Auen is in select theaters this September. While writing a monograph on historical theories of memory, Béatrice (Anne Laure Sellier), a respected academic, becomes beguiled by the allegedly true story of the Chronovisor, an occult device said to reproduce visuals from any point in history on a TV screen. Her obsession with the mysterious machine drags her from her Upper East Side apartment through the depths of New York City’s hidden libraries, to the edge of a breakthrough. Where to see CHRONOVISOR: https://grasshopperfilm.com/film/chronovisor/ FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Episode 12! 02:42 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 09:07 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 16:50 - The STARLOG Archive - In Search Of… 25:45 - Chronovisor with directors Kevin Walker and Jack Auen Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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011 - Star Trek, The Ark and The Librarians with Dean Devlin

Wednesday, September 2, 2026 • Duration 01:12:21

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! In this episode, Jordan and Dave catch up on Lanterns on HBO (which has aired three episodes of its first season) before a discussion of the newest episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds ("Off-Hour") leads to a conspiracy theory about a season of genre riffs being a safe franchise choice. Then, Jordan explains how a planet can be “puffy,” and dives into the STARLOG Archive for evidence of a lost film: SFX 1140. This week’s guest is Dean Devlin, who began his career as an actor (Real Genius) before moving into writing and directing with his creative partner Roland Emmerich in a historic 1990s run of Stargate, Independence Day, Godzilla, and The Patriot. Devlin’s currently running television franchises The Ark and The Librarians: The Next Chapter can be found on traditional television with the back-catalog available on the ad-supported streaming service Electric Now. Of course, we ask about Bill Pullman’s speech in Independence Day. NEXT WEEK: Next week the podcast welcomes directors Kevin Walker and Jack Auen who have made Chronovisor, a very special sci-fi film about a rumored artifact that allows the Vatican to peer through time. Get pumped for the movie and learn how the duo pulled off a sleek 16mm film on a micro-budget. NOTICES: New Episodes of Lanterns air Sundays on HBO and HBO Max through October 4th. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4 is posting weekly to the Paramount Plus app through September 24th Meet the Milky Way’s puffiest planets [Science News] The Ark, season three, is currently airing on the Sci-Fi Channel The Librarians: The Next Chapter is currently airing its second season on TNT Check out Electric Now at www.electricnow.tv or search for the app on your smart TV. FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Episode 11! 05:10 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 19:54 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 24:49 - The STARLOG Archive - Bob Balaban’s missing short 33:02 - Dean Devlin! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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010 - Lanterns and Strange Documentaries with Rodney Ascher

Wednesday, August 26, 2026 • Duration 01:11:37

Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! In this episode, Jordan and Dave discuss the new series on HBO based on a DC Studios property: it’s Lanterns! Jordan’s love of Green Lantern lore meets Dave’s penchant for Damon Lindelof produced television mysteries. In science fact, virtual reality appears to help people think they have wings instead of arms, allowing them to ... learn to fly? Then, into the STARLOG Archive to hear about a film adaptation of Arthur C. Clarke’s Childhood’s End that was never meant to be. This week’s guest is Rodney Ascher, a filmmaker and documentarian who has made films that might be found in the documentary section of your streaming service. He joins the podcast to discuss his movies Room 237 (a deep dive on Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining), A Glitch in the Matrix (an investigation into if we live in a simulation), and his newest film Ghost Boy. Next week the podcast welcomes Dean Devlin, the writer and producer of sci-fi hits like Stargate and ID4: Independence Day, to answer some questions about the films of his past and newest seasons of his shows The Ark and The Librarians: The Next Chapter. RELEASE NOTICES: New Episodes of Lanterns air Sundays on HBO and HBO Max through October 4th. 25 people learned to fly with virtual wings. Here’s how the brain changed [Science News] You can stream Room 237 for free with ads on PlutoTV. Glitch in the Matrix can be rented or purchased on VOD platforms. Ghost Boy at RodneyAscher.com FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome to Episode 10! 02:13 - What’s New in Science Fiction? 16:24 - What’s Happening in Science Fact? 22:20 - The STARLOG Archive - Issue 42 January 1981 29:42 - Rodney Ascher! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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The STARLOG Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

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The STARLOG Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

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