Welcome back from the holidays! We move into 2020 with a nightmarish world populated by psychophants, narcissists, the totally inept, and two people trying to do the right thing at the wrong time. Stilicho will face political hurdles, Alaric will find himself humbled, and the empire paralyzes itself in the face of its greatest threat: itself.  

In what can only be described as a chain of catastrophic decision making, abuses of power, and complete misunderstanding of consequences, the east more resembles an episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia rather than imperial bureaucracy. Alaric will seek recompense for Frigidus, the east will be ruled by the Superintendent of the Sacred Bedchamber, and Ancient Greece will have the "ancient" part forcefully removed. Yikes. 

RHH strikes back after the holidays with a bang: Theodosius and Arbogastes will have a terminal face-off, God chooses sides on a conflict that will shape the next millennia, and we'll get into the nitty-gritty about Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace. Join us for another episode of military violence, tactical fun, and analysis of winter weather formations.

Things go sideways for Theodosius and the tranquility of the empire. The empire is sundered once and for all, emperors will be hanged from their rafters, diplomats strangled in full view of the imperial court, and Arbogastes will reveal his true nature as a 390's Darth Vader. Buckle-up and keep your eyes on the road because this train is going off the rails. 

Mass slaughter of civilians in Thessalonica, the emergent problem of church versus state, and through the strangling of a young political rival the rise of a dark lord all will be present here in Episode 16 of Rush Hour History. Huns will do what they do best, a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde problem will appear, and Theodosius will continue to provide violent, explosive history. We're only just getting started.

Episode 15 of RHH is going to showcase the empire's hottest new addition to imperial power, the consequences of the total slaughter at Adrianople, why you should never canoe at night with sharp objects, and how a job left undone can many times be as dangerous as a job done incorrectly. Theodosius the Great knows the art of the deal, but will he perfect the art of political maneuvering? Stay tuned to find out.

If you listen closely you can hear the nails being driven into the imperial coffin, one by one. Valens leads the empire down a road only to find a dead-end, the Goths exact their vengeance on the east, and the empire will witness the greatest military slaughter in four centuries. Don't expect a happy ending. 

We're all getting diagnosed with a case of Imperial ADD after this episode. Gothic invasions, diplomatic meltdowns, and construction mismanagement that turns into a dining room massacre. It's a precarious situation for Procopius and for any invader that crosses the Rhine on this week's episode of RHH.