Hoth Takes: A Star Wars Podcast
Journalists Eric Geller, Grace Segers, and Haley Byrd Wilt combine their love of debating Star Wars with their professional curiosity, irreverence, and knack for asking hard questions in this freewheeling discussion show about the galaxy far, far away.
Episodes
June 30, 2025 • 43 mins
Strong women have been part of the Star Wars saga from the very beginning, but the franchise has often struggled with how it portrays them. In this episode, we compare and critique how storytellers have written Leia Organa, Padme Amidala, Ahsoka Tano, Rey No Surname, and other female characters; share our disappointments about these and other women’s narrative arcs; and explore how the franchise has become so inhospitable to f...
Mark as Played
May 23, 2025 • 75 mins
Andor season 2 is over, and we have strong feelings about it! Join us as we debate and disagree about Cassian’s destiny, Bix’s trauma, Luthen’s amorality, and Mon’s eye-opening escape, plus two other, very different relationships. Andor raised important questions about the balance between idealism and pragmatism in a rebellion, but how well did it address this tension? Did the second season get too dark, or did it effectively...
Mark as Played
April 18, 2025 • 49 mins
With the premiere of Andor season 2 just a few days away, we’re sharing our hopes and predictions for the long-awaited return of Cassian Andor and company. We discuss the show’s increasing political relevance, its unconventional release schedule, and our excitement about everything from Rebellion tensions to weird aliens and cool food. We also talk about whether Andor should stay away from the Force, which characters might mak...
Mark as Played
March 6, 2025 • 55 mins
Inspired by one of our favorite TV shows, we’re diving into the world of alternate universes and unexplored possibilities. Eric and Grace each pitch several ideas for “what if?” storylines that explore Star Wars’s most tantalizing roads not taken. From the end of the Clone Wars to the Sequel Trilogy, these alternate storylines have our imaginations running wild. Plus, with the Andor season 2 teaser trailer fresh on everyone’s ...
Mark as Played
February 10, 2025 • 52 mins
With Skeleton Crew, Disney told a Star Wars story unlike any other, but still rooted in the themes that make the franchise so successful and endearing. In this episode, we discuss our favorite storylines, analyze the characters at the heart of the series, and consider its depiction of morality, obedience, and bravery. We also share our favorite jokes, speculate about the show’s future, and debate the concept of “unclaimsies.”<...
Mark as Played
November 27, 2024 • 58 mins
We’re less than five months away from the premiere of Andor season 2, so what’s in store for us when the best live-action Star Wars TV show returns? In this episode, Eric, Grace, and Haley try to predict the twists and turns that lie ahead for Cassian Andor, Mon Mothma, Luthen Rael, and the other characters we’ve come to know and love (or love to hate). We consider how far Mon will go, how Luthen will exit the picture (and wha...
Mark as Played
October 17, 2024 • 57 mins
Would independent journalists have prevented the events of Star Wars from happening? In this episode, we unpack a topic at the precise intersection of our fandom and our professional lives: the role of journalism and media in Star Wars. How do people in the Star Wars galaxy get their news, and how does news consumption affect their lives? How do three successive galactic governments use HoloNet broadcasts to their advantage? ...
Mark as Played
September 19, 2024 • 51 mins
It’s a bleak time in Star Wars fandom, as the community processes the news that Disney has canceled The Acolyte following lackluster viewership and relentless online hate from bigoted trolls. What does the cancelation mean for the future of Star Wars storytelling, and what does it say about Disney’s corporate philosophy and the larger issues with streaming television today? Politico’s Bill Kuchman joins Eric and Grace to discu...
Mark as Played
August 13, 2024 • 49 mins
It’s rare that we at Hoth Takes are so overwhelmingly critical of a piece of Star Wars media, but The Acolyte’s final two episodes definitely earned that treatment. Listen in as we critique Osha’s fall to the dark side, the show’s moral message, and Vernestra’s coverup. We also discuss the Jedi’s culpability for the events on Brendok and the Republic’s interest in overseeing Jedi business. Plus, we speculate about what Darth P...
Mark as Played
July 9, 2024 • 64 mins
Things have taken a turn on The Acolyte, as a ruthless villain reveals himself — in more ways than one. In this episode, we discuss the middle act of The Acolyte, including a stunning fight on a forest planet and a fascinating dark-side seduction on a hidden world. We delve into Qimir’s insidious ideology, Mae’s messy behavior, and what, exactly, Osha could possibly be thinking. Plus, we’re nervous about Sol, and Haley has a f...
Mark as Played
June 17, 2024 • 60 mins
Three episodes in, The Acolyte is taking Star Wars in a bold new direction with fresh characters and a disturbing but thought-provoking premise. Join Eric, Grace, and Haley as we break down the complicated relationships between the main characters, debate the portrayal of an exiled witch coven, and try to predict where the show is heading. Grace is on a social media break, so it’s up to Eric and Haley to fill her in on the awf...
Mark as Played
May 28, 2024 • 62 mins
What’s it like being in love with a huge Star Wars nerd? To celebrate our fiftieth episode, we’re talking about the role that Star Wars plays in our personal lives, and we’re joined by three special guests: our partners. From first dates and pandemic TV marathons to naming cars and doing bad impressions, our significant others pull back the curtain on how our love of Star Wars manifests beyond the microphones of Hoth Takes. Pl...
Mark as Played
April 22, 2024 • 47 mins
Disney is following Tales of the Jedi with Tales of the Empire, opening up new opportunities for Tales anthologies focused on other corners of the galaxy. Given the recent focus on the dark side, we decided to pitch our best ideas for anthologies about our favorite overlooked villains. But what starts as an episode about a future Tales anthology quickly snowballs into a brainstorming session about much wackier concepts — and e...
Mark as Played
March 12, 2024 • 44 mins
With the upcoming Star Wars TV show The Acolyte in the news recently, Eric and Grace sit down to discuss their hopes and expectations for the franchise’s first mystery thriller. We talk about the storytelling potential of a wide-open time period, the challenges of humanizing villains without glorifying them, and whether and how Disney will use the show to plant the seeds of the prequels. Plus, inspired by The Acolyte’s mature ...
Mark as Played
February 14, 2024 • 57 mins
For as long as the stars have been warring, they’ve also been loving. So why has the Disney era of Star Wars had noticeably fewer romances, including multiple frustrating missed opportunities in the sequel trilogy? To celebrate Valentine’s Day, we’re diving into the topic of romance in Star Wars. We explore the challenges of writing romantic relationships, the factors that might be discouraging Disney from emphasizing love sto...
Mark as Played
January 25, 2024 • 48 mins
You can tell a lot about a person’s Star Wars fandom by what they put on a top-five list. In this episode, Eric, Grace, and Haley share, explain, and defend their five favorite examples of various Star Wars themes, debating the best criteria to use and the most controversial omissions from each other’s lists. As we discuss the reasons for certain inclusions and exclusions, we revisit memories from our own journeys with Star Wa...
Mark as Played
November 30, 2023 • 51 mins
We’re wrapping up our discussion of Ahsoka’s first season with a look at the secondary characters and B-plots that tied the show together. Did Baylan Skoll and Shin Hati break new ground as villains? How much did Hera even matter to the story? And did the series do a good job of exploring the nuances of New Republic galactic security debates, in which our warrior heroes are often working against democracy? For the most part, E...
Mark as Played
October 27, 2023 • 58 mins
The Disney+ series Ahsoka debuted to high expectations, but did it do justice to the fan-favorite Star Wars characters that it revisited? For Eric, Grace, and Haley, the answer — at least when it comes to three of the show’s most important characters — is no. Join us as we dig into what worked and what didn’t with Ahsoka’s portrayals of Ahsoka Tano herself, Sabine Wren, and Grand Admiral Thrawn. Eric and Grace disagree about t...
Mark as Played
September 30, 2023 • 65 mins
There are hot takes, and then there are truly hoth takes. In this episode, Wired security reporter Lily Hay Newman returns to Hoth Takes to defend one of the most controversial Star Wars claims we’ve ever heard: that The Book of Boba Fett was a good TV show. Lily loved how the show played with different forms of storytelling, and she came away from it with a newfound interest in Boba Fett. But here on Hoth Takes, she has some ...
Mark as Played
August 30, 2023 • 56 mins
How do you tell a story of change without alienating fans who like things the way they are? Disney has faced this dilemma multiple times since buying Star Wars, and the results haven’t always been impressive. From Luke Skywalker in The Last Jedi to Ahsoka Tano in her new Disney+ series, storytellers have struggled to depict characters growing and changing while maintaining the core traits that made those characters so popular....
Mark as Played
Popular Podcasts
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!