Franchise Fiends

The sage concludes in one of the wildest, craziest, deviate-from-the-source-material-ist final episodes of any series we've discussed up until this point. Along the way a librarian tells us how the books are resonating with readers today and Todd's son addresses what it's like having a dad who has seen Breaking Dawn — Part 2 more than 100 times. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut...

It's the end! Well... it's the beginning of the end. Karrie and Lindsay join Todd and Brogan to break down the penultimate entry in the Twilight Saga. We discuss the weird and controversial bits, as well as the weird bits that probably would have been controversial if anyone had not been too distracted by the other stuff to notice. Did you know they covered a real baby in jelly for this? A human b...

Franchised Fiends breaks down The Twilight Saga: Eclipse and in the process eclipse our record for longest episode for the fifth time in a row. We just really like talking about movies, okay??? Today we're joined by returning guest Rachel and new guest Peyton — an honest-to-god novelist whose love of Twilight directly influenced her choice in career — to discuss questions like "Why is this one so...

In the true spirit of the 4th of July, we're talking about a movie that is mostly talking but throws in a few neat explosions at the end. Returning guest Max and first-time guest Suzee join Todd and Brogan to talk about the highs and lows of Twilight's second entry, which is extra exciting for Max who has never seen a Twilight film before. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Fo...

It's Independence Day weekend! You celebrating? Yeah, no, we get it. Neither are we. Would a secret season take the edge off? As previously announced, our regularly scheduled programming will return in October where we'll be exploring the Scream franchise. But we've also been hard at work secretly preparing a full season exploring the Twilight franchise, which Todd has famously managed to watch mo...

It's April Fool's Day, which means we're talking about Fred Walton's April Fool's Day. Is this the Paddington 2 of comedy slashers? A testament to the psychopathy of the upper class? Both? Sabrina and Matt join Todd and Brogan to try and get to the bottom of what at the very least is the coolest poster for a slasher film themed after a lesser holiday. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/jugg...

Today we're joined by Steve Rudzinski and Aleen Isley, the creative duo behind Silver Spotlight Films. They're best known for the CarousHELL trilogy, but they've also produced several Christmas films including A Meowy Christmas, Curtains for Christmas, and the award-winning Amityville Christmas Vacation. One of their favorite Christmas classics is Michael Cooney's 1997 cult classic Jack Frost, whi...

How do you talk about a film that eschews traditional narrative analysis and in fact seems to exist in open defiance of both film criticism and God? If you're Todd and Brogan (and special guests Amelia and Bobby) it involves a number of lengthy tangents, including multiple meandering discussions about 9/11 that — in a Franchise Fiends first — were so bizarre and off-topic that Brogan trimmed most...

Todd and Brogan rank the Saw films and traps. Brogan decides that one of his favorite traps is a Saw IV trap he initially made fun of but came to appreciate after seeing the same concept done much worse in Saw 3D, yet forgets to explain this when actually talking about the trap. A third season is announced. We'll be talking about Scream next October but there will be plenty of specials and surpris...

What better way to celebrate wrapping up the season than discussing the most acclaimed film in the series with two people who don't like the genre? John and Rachel join Todd and Brogan to provide a wholly new perspective as discuss the final film in the series (for now). Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/roboteatsdino Follow John on...

Today we're joined by Max, the secret third member of the Franchise Fiends family. Max does all of our artwork so getting him on the pod is arguably cooler than Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson showing up in a Saw movie. Also... holy shit, Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson showed up in a Saw movie? Let's talk about that. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan on Lette...

Have you ever wished the Saw franchise felt a bit more like a CSI episode? Great news! Today we're joined by Rachel to talk about how Saw took advantage of the seven year hiatus between films to inject itself with some serious direct-to-video/TV movie vibes. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/roboteatsdino Follow Rachel on Letterboxd...

Saw 3D didn't look very good in 3D which is why it was released as Saw: The Final Chapter on home video. It didn't end up being the final chapter, either, but Todd still thinks it was neat and Brogan appreciates Cary Elwes getting a few more seconds of screentime even if he doesn't think much of anything else worked. Also, when was the last time you thanked a podcast editor? Thanks to some ongoing...

In which Brogan admits that Todd was right (in regards to Saw VI being great and nothing else). Anchor and Brian stop by Franchise Fiends to talk about the major upgrade the franchise received after the underwhelming Saw V. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/roboteatsdino Follow Anchor on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/anchor_rancor Foll...

Maybe the real Saw V was the much better movies we watched along the way? Todd and Brogan are joined by Mel and Liz to talk about the first major drop in quality for the Saw franchise, much of which involves reflecting on the better films that came before it. "Well at least there's less arguing about John Kramer's political affiliation." Thanks for noticing! It's because we got most of the debate...

Does Saw IV make any sense? If you're Parker, who has only seen the original short, the answer is (accurately) no. He and Reid join Todd and Brogan to break down the most MCU-esque entry in the Saw franchise and try and figure out just how much of this film only works because it's referencing the three films that came before it. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan...

New faces reignite old tensions for our leads and also a bunch of stuff happens in Saw III. Don't let the debate fool you! Brogan liked this one more then Todd did. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/roboteatsdino Follow Karrie on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/karrie Follow Oso on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/elosonervioso Season art by M...

Does John Kramer really have a moral code or is he just a Republican? Todd and Brogan are joined by Sheldon and Amanda to discuss the details of what will inevitably turn into a season-long debate while also breaking down the change in direction for the Saw franchise and wondering how they managed to pull this large of an ensemble off on so small a budget. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com...

It's a season premiere/partner episode double event! Todd and Brogan get Michelle and Jessica join them to talk about the groundbreaking debut entry in the Saw franchise even though it's not a horror subgenre they're generally interested in. Love is showing up on your partner's podcast. New Saw episodes are dropping every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday until Halloween! Follow Todd on Letterboxd: le...

What better way to celebrate America this Independence Day than by talking about a movie where everything is on fire? That's right! We're talking about Tony Maylam's 1981 cult classic The Burning, which started the careers of Hollywood legends Jason Alexander and Holly Hunter and also unapologetic psychopath Harvey Weinstein. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan on...

He is risen! We're of course referring to Father Damien Karras (played by Jason Miller), who was controversially resurrected in William Peter Blatty's criminally underrated 1990 sequel The Exorcist III. Todd and Brogan are joined by Steve and Kevin (Todd's father- and brother-in-law, respectively) for a deep dive into the slasheriest entry in the Exorcist franchise. Season two (Saw) premieres this...

It's Valentine's Day! So we're getting together to celebrate something we all love: fictional murder. Lindsay and director Christopher Bickel (Pater Noster and the Mission of Light) join us to talk about the 1981 Canucksploitation classic My Bloody Valentine. Season two (Saw) premieres this October, but we'll be celebrating plenty of holidays with you in the meantime. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: le...

This holiday we're visiting one of the greatest Christmas gifts of all: a slasher film starring Mickey Rooney. Oso and Max join Todd and Brogan to talk about why this film is great even if most of it isn't very good. Thanks for joining us on the first year of this journey! See you soon. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/roboteatsdin...

Todd and Brogan conclude the first season with a general discussion of the Child's Play franchise including a series ranking and lists of our favorite kills. We'll be back in October 2025 with Saw but there will be plenty of seasonal specials in the meantime! We'll see you at Christmas. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/roboteatsdin...

The actual end of an era! Today we're discussing the 2019 reboot that is (currently) the final film in the Child's Play franchise. Follow Todd on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/juggernaut323 Follow Brogan on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/roboteatsdino Follow Rachel Malstrom on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/teamboby Follow Amanda on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/oakie Season art by Max Nalow.