Choosing a Victim: Houses, Feasts, Blobs and Dead Kids

One topic that doesn’t come up often in discussions on writing horror is the importance of the victims themselves. There is plenty of writing on characters, but most of the victims in horror aren’t...

Motivation and Stakes in Jaws, Death Spa, and Blue Monkey

If after the first kill in Jaws, the mayor agreed that there was clearly a shark problem and acted fast to get rid of it, then would there still be a movie? Maybe a...
Girl presses her face into mirror

Character Arcs: Are They Necessary?

If you take any Writing 101 course then you will be familiar with the importance of character arcs to fiction. Prose fiction has always been regarded as having quite a bit of leeway when...
Occult

One Missed Pod #31: OCCULT (2009)

In the latest episode of One Missed Pod, Kelly and Zack sit down to talk about Kōji Shiraishi's found-footage horror film Occult from 2009. The film is available on YouTube, as of the time of...
Cursed (2004)

One Missed Pod #30: CURSED (2004)

Don't look now, it's another episode of One Missed Pod! This week Zack and Kelly are watching the 2004 horror film by Yoshihiro Hoshino, Cursed. It's a little movie with an anthology-like spirit about...
The Morgow Rises

Horror Paperbacks for Giant Monster Fans

I made the mistake of re-reading Grady Hendrix’s amazing history of horror paperbacks “Paperbacks from Hell”. Using the word ‘amazing’ may conflict with the word ‘mistake’ to you, but if you were my bank...
Tomb of Dracula

One Missed Pod #29: DRACULA: SOVEREIGN OF THE DAMNED (1980) with guest Brett the...

On today’s episode of One Missed Pod, Zack and Kelly are joined by Brett der Wiese, who had previously guested on the Wicked City and Monster of Frankenstein episodes. They're back together to talk about...
morphin time

Mighty Gamin’ Power Rangers

The super Nintendo is truly the perfect retro console. The sprites and the capabilities of the system allow GOOD games to attain a timeless quality. Sprite art ages better than many of the early...
monster of frankenstein

One Missed Pod #28: MONSTER OF FRANKENSTEIN (1981) with guest Brett the Wiese

On today's episode of One Missed Pod, Zack and Kelly are joined by Brett der Wiese, who had previously guested on the Wicked City episode. This time the gang are talking about Monster of...
black cat mansion

One Missed Pod #27: BLACK CAT MANSION (1958)

In this episode of One Missed Pod, Zack introduces Kelly to the 1958 cat curse movie Black Cat Mansion (aka Mansion of the Ghost Cat. From director Nobuo Nakagawa (Jigoku), the film is a...

Monster Movie Pool Party

So you’ve found yourself blessed with being fully vaxed and ready to get back into the world this summer. There is no better time to put together a pool party. But not just any...
Dark Water

One Missed Pod #26: DARK WATER (2002)

In a new episode of One Missed Pod, Kelly and Zack sit down to talk about Dark Water (2002). The film was directed by Hideo Nakata, based off a novel by Koji Suzuki --...

Toku Tuesday Catch-Up

2021 has been a difficult year to say the least; having had a serious stroke in September of 2020 this entire year thus far has been an arduous process. If I’m not having trouble...
vengeance is mine

One Missed Pod #25: VENGEANCE IS MINE (1979)

In a new episode of One Missed Pod, Zack and Kelly discuss Shohei Imamura's 1979 true-crime serial killer thriller, Vengeance is Mine. Anchored by a frightening lead performance from Ken Ogata, Vengeance is Mine...
Audition

One Missed Pod 24: AUDITION (1999)

One Missed Pod is back! This week Zack and Kelly are talking about the Takashi Miike J-horror modern classic Audition (1999). The two discuss the film's use of violence, mystery, and sexism, but are...

Toku Tuesday: Godzilla Monsters and Protectors #1

When I was looking forward to kaiju in 2021 I had somehow completely left off IDW’s new ongoing comic book  written by Erik Burnham, Art by Dan Schoening, and colours by Luis Antonio Delgado....
the gun deal

IN THE LAND OF LOST ANGELS (2019) film review

Over the last year, the Asian American community has faced a dramatic increase in the number of hate crimes spurred by ignorant men, namely the former president, looking for someone to blame for covid-19....

Ode to the Giant Praying Mantis

One of the few creatures on this earth that terrifies and mystifies me in equal measure is that of the Praying Mantis. They are fearsome looking, especially when they strike out at lightning speed....

Toku Tuesday: Ultramega Issue #1

Par for the course, whenever I make a list of upcoming material I always miss something. In this case I literally missed a GODZILLA comic, which is nigh heresy on my part, however the...

An Interview with Author Alexandra Heller-Nicholas

Welcome back, Scream Scholars. As a part of our continuing education in horror, it only makes sense to reach out to academics who have spent far more time than us considering the genre. It...
Singular Point

Upcoming Tokusatsu and Kaiju Media in 2021

We are entering an unprecedented era of tokusatsu media. Whether it be books, movies, or TV Series, the remainder of 2021 has some huge releases on the horizon. There are a number of smaller...
PG poster

The Absurd Punk Energy of PSYCHO GOREMAN (2020)

Tokusatsu has a wide influence and it is never more clear how wide-reaching it is than when you see a film like Psycho Goreman (2020). It is a love letter to the inventiveness found...
the camper goes up in smoke and flame

Explosive Cruelty in THE HILLS HAVE EYES (1977)

“The first monster that must frighten you is the filmmaker himself” —Wes Craven In the earliest days of my horror movie explorations, there were a handful of directors whose work rose to the very top of...
NOTLD poster

Facing the Darkness in NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968)

Every movie-lover, at their core, has a small collective of films and viewing experiences that define them. Films that forever altered their path in life, irrevocably steering them toward the magic of the silver...
monster madness

Monster Madness

Thrifting is one of my favourite pastimes. Specifically when it comes to looking for books. Spending hours in some dusty basement of a store filled to the brim with books from yesteryear. This is...