The Cosmic Turtle Podcast

Joe Rechtman
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Books
  • Updated Weekly

Weekly readings and deep dive discussions of Stephen King's Dark Tower series, and what we can learn from this story that means so much to so many people. Hosted by Joe Rechtman and Dan Hanson.

Episodes

  1. 3d ago

    Guardians of the Dark Tower Galaxy

    Roland nodded. His long, lined face was grave. “At this nexus lies the Great Portal, the so-called Thirteenth Gate which rules not just this world but all worlds.” He tapped the center of the circle. “Here is the Dark Tower for which I’ve searched my whole life.” THIS WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE : Final Shuffle + THE WASTE LANDS: Book One 1.i-1.xxiii Finishing up The Drawing of the Three and beginning their journey through The Waste Lands, Joe and Dan find themselves with quite a lot to talk about this week. They discuss the idea of Roland being a proxy for Stephen King. They talk about the gunslinger’s creed from Susannah’s shooting lesson, bear down on the Ka-Tet’s encounter with Shardik, and have some fun speculating about the other guardians of the beam. Joe even floats a theory about a possible thirteenth guardian and posits the possibility that Harambe was protecting one of the beams. NEXT WEEK’S READING THE WASTE LANDS : Book One 1.xxiv-2.xv CONTACT Email: CosmicTurltePod@gmail.com Twitter: @CosmicTurtle19 Threads & Instagram: @CosmicTurtlePod Original Blog: ChurchOfTheCosmicTurtle.com CREDITS Hosted by Joe Rechtman & Dan Hanson Music by Phil Hamilton Edited by Joe Rechtman

  2. Sep 28

    A Ka-ntroversial Question: Is Jack Mort the Savior of the Universe?

    “What mattered was the thing which pushed change into the ordinary course of things and sculpted new lines in the flow of lives… and, perhaps, the destinies not only of those struck, but of a widening circle around them, like ripples from a stone tossed into a still pond.” THIS WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE: The Pusher 1.iii-4.xvii Covering some of the most action-packed chapters they’ve read so far, Dan and Joe take a closer look at the idea that Roland might be Ka personified. They also chat about what makes Jack Mort tick, and analyze the dynamic between him and Roland before moving on to the unserious segments. And apologies in advance for all the Ka puns, Dan and Joe know it’s the lowest form of ka-medy but they just ka-n’t help themselves. NEXT WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE : Final Shuffle + THE WASTE LANDS: Book One 1.i-1.xxiii CONTACTS Email: CosmicTurltePod@gmail.com Twitter: @CosmicTurtle19 Threads & Instagram: @CosmicTurtlePod Original Blog: ChurchOfTheCosmicTurtle.com CREDITS Hosted by Joe Rechtman & Dan Hanson Music by Phil Hamilton Edited by Joe Rechtman

  3. Sep 21

    "I Think Roland Actually Makes A Bigger Mistake" (The Drawing of the Three Part IV)

    “Might as well try to drink the ocean with a spoon as argue with a lover.” THIS WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE: The Lady of Shadows 3.vii-4.xviii + Re-shuffle + The Pusher 1.i-1.ii Starting off with some general Dark Tower palaver, Joe and Dan discuss their personal rankings of the books, along with their favorite characters and scenes from the series. Then, moving on to this week’s pages, they identify a recurring theme: the futility of debate and the key to making a convincing argument. They get a little critical of some of the decisions Roland makes as he, Eddie, and Odetta/Detta continue up the beach, and they discuss what might have happened if Roland had managed to get Eddie through the third door with him.  NEXT WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE : The Pusher 1.iii-4.xvii CONTACT Email: CosmicTurltePod@gmail.com Twitter: @CosmicTurtle19 Threads & Instagram: @CosmicTurtlePod Original Blog: ChurchOfTheCosmicTurtle.com CREDITS Hosted by Joe Rechtman & Dan Hanson Music by Phil Hamilton Edited by Joe Rechtman

  4. Sep 14

    "Odetta and Detta Both Really Need Some Weed" (The Drawing of the Three Part III)

    “Roland nodded. He liked shrink better. Because this Lady’s mind was too large. Twice as large as it needed to be.” THIS WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE: Shuffle + The Lady of Shadows 1.i-3.vi Joe and Dan examine ideas of denial and self-delusion, a prevalent theme in this week’s pages. As Odetta Holmes and Detta Walker enter the story, they also take a look at the way she’s written and chat about what facets of her character might not have aged too great. And as always, they get a little goofy in the back half of the episode, sharing their Dark Tower blunt rotations, porn parody titles, trivia questions, and more. NEXT WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE: The Lady of Shadows 3.vii-4.xviii + Re-shuffle + The Pusher 1.i-1.ii CONTACT Email: CosmicTurltePod@gmail.com Twitter: @CosmicTurtle19 Threads & Instagram: @CosmicTurtlePod Original Blog: ChurchOfTheCosmicTurtle.com CREDITS Hosted by Joe Rechtman & Dan Hanson Music by Phil Hamilton Edited by Joe Rechtman

  5. Sep 7

    "Roland Has An Impeccable Embouchure" (The Drawing of the Three Part II)

    THIS WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE: The Prisoner 4.iv-5.xxv ““It’s up to men to build things, paisan. It’s up to God to blow them down.” - Enrico Balazar The breakneck pace of book two continues as Roland and Eddie turn the tables on Jack Andolini before going back through the door to wage war against Balazar and his gentlemen. In this episode Joe and Dan dig into the character of Il Roche and explore how things could have ended up for Henry Dean if his brother and the gunslinger had managed to save him. They break down the shootout in the Leaning Tower and discuss what might have happened to the two surviving members of Balazar’s ka-tet.  NEXT WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE : The Lady of Shadows 3.vii-4.xviii + Re-shuffle + The Pusher 1.i-1.ii CONTACT Email: CosmicTurltePod@gmail.com Twitter: @CosmicTurtle19 Threads & Instagram: @CosmicTurtlePod Original Blog: ChurchOfTheCosmicTurtle.com CREDITS Hosted by Joe Rechtman & Dan Hanson Music by Phil Hamilton Edited by Joe Rechtman Thankee-Sai to Stephen King for the Dark Tower series

  6. Aug 31

    "Don't Be A Captain McDonald" (The Drawing of the Three Part I)

    THIS WEEK'S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE: The Prisoner 1.i-4.iii “There was deep steel in Eddie Dean, junkie or no junkie.” One of Joe and Dan’s favorite characters enters the story as they follow Roland up the beach of the western sea. In this episode they enjoy a hypothetical chat about whether Eddie would have gotten through customs if Roland had never interfered with his life. They also discuss how these pages function as a survival guide for situations in which little is certain, and speculate about Jane Dorning’s potential as a gunslinger before getting into their unserious segments at the end of the show. NEXT WEEK’S READING THE DRAWING OF THE THREE : The Prisoner 4.iv-5.xxv CONTACT Email: CosmicTurltePod@gmail.com Twitter: @CosmicTurtleBlog Threads & Instagram: @CosmicTurtlePod Original Blog: ChurchOfTheCosmicTurtle.com CREDITS Hosted by Joe Rechtman & Dan Hanson Music by Phil Hamilton Edited by Joe Rechtman

  7. Aug 24

    "Orcs Bad; Slow Mutants Good" (The Gunslinger Part III)

    THE GUNSLINGER: Chapters 4.iii - End of Book + THE DRAWING OF THE THREE: Prologue “Go then. There are other worlds than these.” - Jake Chambers As we wrap up The Gunslinger and move into The Drawing of the Three, this week’s episode covers a handful of iconic scenes from the series. Together, Joe and Dan dig into questions about Gilead’s education policies, Gabrielle Deschain’s love affair with Marten Broadcloak and the possible motivations behind it. They discuss the validity of Roland’s guilt over what happened to Jake under the mountains, and palaver about the palaver in the Golgatha on the other side. NEXT WEEK’S READING: The Drawing of the Three The Prisoner 1.i-4.iii Email: CosmicTurltePod@gmail.com Twitter: @CosmicTurtleBlog Threads & Instagram: @CosmicTurtlePod Original Blog: ChurchOfTheCosmicTurtle.com CREDITS Hosted by Joe Rechtman & Dan Hanson Music by Phil Hamilton Edited by Joe Rechtman

  8. Aug 17

    "Roland Is A Little Sub Like 'Tell Me What To Do Daddy'" (The Gunslinger Part II)

    The Gunslinger: Chapters 2.iii-4.ii “Only a corpse can speak true prophecy.” It’s a good thing Roland Deschain never ended up in L.A. because he would get wayyy too into astrology. In this episode, Joe and Dan dig into Roland’s obsession with prophecies and ponder whether or not the gunslinger has true agency in this story. They compare Roland and Jake’s respective father figures, dig into the nuances of the conflict between Gilead and John Farson’s faction, and introduce a new recurring segment: The Dark Tower Cookbook. NEXT WEEK’S READING: The Gunslinger 4.iii-End of Book & The Drawing of the Three Prologue Email: CosmicTurltePod@gmail.com Twitter: @CosmicTurtleBlog Threads & Instagram: @CosmicTurtlePod Original Blog: ChurchOfTheCosmicTurtle.com CREDITS: Hosts: Joe Rechtman & Dan Hanson Music: Phil Hamilton Editor: Alain Smithee

  9. Aug 10

    "You Can't Tell A Story Without An Audience" (The Gunslinger Part I)

    THE GUNSLINGER: Chapters 1.i-2.ii “The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed…” To kick off this spoiler-heavy podcast—a discussion show devoted to Stephen King’s Dark Tower books—we decided to start our palaver at the end, sharing our thoughts on the conclusion of this epic sci-fi/fantasy series. We question the reader’s role in the fate of Roland and his Ka-Tet, we grapple with the differences between the original and revised editions of The Gunslinger, and lament old long, tall and ugly’s inability to appreciate good art. Finally we have some fun with a few unserious weekly segments. If you’re a fellow fanatic of Sai King’s magnum opus, go ahead and click that ‘follow’ button because you’ve finally discovered the unfound podcast you didn’t know you were looking for. NEXT WEEK’S READING THE GUNSLINGER: Chapters 2.iii-4.ii SHOW NOTES 5m - Recap of this week’s reading 10m - Exploring the ending: optimistic vs. pessimistic interpretations 15m -  Community poll: are fans hopeful or cynical about the ending? 21m - The role of storytelling in the Dark Tower books 28m - The original vs. the revised edition 31m - Exploring Different Interpretations of the Text 36m - “Do I make you horny baby?” 40m - Addiction and compulsion in the Dark Tower 48m - Roland Deschain's relationship with art 57m - Weekly segments 1h15m - Our favorite non-Dark Tower multiverse stories 1h18m - Episode wrap-up LINKS & RESOURCES This list of differences between the original published text of The Gunslinger and the 2003 revised edition. Check out Joe's original blog here. CREDITS Hosts: Joe Rechtman & Dan Hanson Music: Phil Hamilton Editor: Alain Smithee This episode was sponsored by Papa Doc’s Beans™

  • 9 Episodes

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About

Weekly readings and deep dive discussions of Stephen King's Dark Tower series, and what we can learn from this story that means so much to so many people. Hosted by Joe Rechtman and Dan Hanson.

Information

  • Creator
    Joe Rechtman
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    9
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Joe Rechtman
  • Show Website
    The Cosmic Turtle Podcast