Episode 30: George Pelecanos and The Odyssey

Crime fiction legend George Pelecanos sat down with us to talk about his latest novel, The Blue Flame, and his approach toward writing for the page and screen. George’s attention to realism and reflecting the world as it is makes him one of the greats in this genre (even though he killed off so many characters on The Wire). 

Then: How dare an expert on The Odyssey (8th Century BCE) have opinions about The Odyssey (2026) that don’t align with those of fans of The Odyssey (2026). We critique the critics criticizing a critic. 

The Blue Flame is out now.

Works cited this episode:

Hard Revolution, George Pelecanos
Red Harvest, Dashiell Hammett
Yojimbo, dir. Akira Kurosawa
A Fistful of Dollars, dir. Sergio Leone
Miller’s Crossing, dir. The Coen Brothers
Last Man Standing, dir. Walter Hill
The Maltese Falcon, Dashiell Hammett
The Thin Man, Dashiell Hammett
“Honaloochie Bookie,” Mott the Hoople
“Cleaning up,” S1E12, The Wire, created by David Simon
“Middle Ground,” S3E11, The Wire, created by David Simon
Treme, created by David Simon
Creed, dir. Ryan Coogler
The Odyssey, Homer
The Odyssey, dir. Christopher Nolan
“An Uncomplicated Man,” Emily Wilson, London Review of Books
“Kicking up Cosmic Dust,” A.O. Scott, New York Times
O Brother, Where Art Thou, dir. The Coen Brothers
Jurassic Park, dir. Steven Spielberg
Blonde, Joyce Carol Oates
Predator Badlands, dir. Dan Trachtenberg
Interview with the Vampire, dir. Neil Jordan
Circe, Madeline Miller
The Epic of Gilgamesh
Interstellar, dir. Christopher Nolan