The New Season of <i>Serial </i>Is Here

The first season of the podcast Serial told the story of the little-known murder case of Hae Min-Lee in weekly installments; it was an improbably huge sensation, even if some people around here hated it. Today, the second season premieres, and as previously ( and rudely) leaked to, uh, Maxim, it will tell the story of Bowe Bergdahl, the Army sergeant who in 2009 went AWOL from his post in Afghanistan, and was captured by the Taliban and held for five years. Hoo, boy! That’s pretty heavy stuff for your morning commute.

This week’s episode begins the story from Bergdahl’s perspective, with Sarah Koenig returning as the narrator. You can download the first episode here. I’ll be interested to see how a story that has already been exhaustively cataloged in the news will unfold in this format. Hopefully some people around here like it a little better this time.

Image via Getty