Third Channel Podcast

You were not content with the stories, so I was obliged to come. Join PJ and Derek as they step up to the mirror to summon Bernard Rose’s Candyman (1992). In this episode the guys discuss Tony Todd’s iconic performance, Philip Glass’s hypnotic score, and the film’s unsettling use of Chicago’s Cabrini-Green as both setting and symbol. Candyman transforms a slasher premise into something far more un...

Have you ever heard of The Three Sisters? Join PJ and Derek as they descend into the nightmare of color and sound that is Dario Argento’s Inferno (1980), the second chapter in the Three Mothers trilogy. In this episode the guys wade through flooded ballrooms, cursed apartments, and brutal eruptions of violence to unpack Argento’s uniquely dreamlike approach to horror, where reason dissolves and at...

There are some things that man is not meant to splice. This week PJ and Derek are joined by special guest Charlie as they dive headfirst into the pure cinematic mayhem of Joe Dante’s sequel that gleefully tears up the rulebook in Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990). In this episode they explore how Dante uses slapstick violence, mutant gremlins, and nonstop parody to mock sequels, media culture, corp...

Look Mister, there are some rules that you’ve got to follow. Join PJ and Derek as they unwrap the strange magic that is Joe Dante’s Christmas classic Gremlins (1984). In this episode the guys discuss why the gremlins themselves are both hilarious and genuinely unsettling, and how the movie pushed boundaries for what mainstream horror could look like with its blend of holiday cheer, creature-featur...

It's like a virus. So what do we do with any virus? Quarantine. We isolate it and then we kill it. Join PJ and Derek as they revisit the Norwegian outpost of The Thing (2011), Matthijs van Heijningen Jr.’s chilling prequel to Carpenter’s iconic masterpiece. In this episode the guys unpack the film’s strengths and missteps, from its tense early moments and creature concepts to the infamous shi...

If I was an imitation, a perfect imitation, how would you know if it was really me? This week PJ and Derek are joined by special guest Bug as they venture into the icy isolation of John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982). In this episode, they explore how a simple survival scenario transforms into a suffocating nightmare through its tense atmosphere, groundbreaking practical effects, and how its themes...

And as he had for thousands of years, Krampus came not to reward, but to punish. Join PJ and Derek as they explore how Michael Dougherty transforms seasonal cheer into claustrophobic dread in Krampus (2015). In this episode the guys unwrap the film’s blend of dark humor and folkloric horror, break down its spectacular creature effects, and discuss how a story about family dysfunction spirals into...

Show some enthusiasm. Thanksgiving is an institution here. Join PJ and Derek as they carve into the holiday slasher that proves no tradition is safe in Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving (2023). In this episode the guys unpack the film’s evolution from a notorious faux trailer into a full-blown horror feature, complete with its masked killer, standout set pieces, twisted sense of humor, and practical gore se...

You are receiving this broadcast as a dream. Join PJ and Derek as they descend into the forsaken Los Angeles church at the heart of John Carpenter’s Prince of Darkness (1987). In this episode the guys attempt to unravel the blending of quantum theory with ancient theology, the unsettling dream broadcasts from the future, and the suffocating sense of inevitability that gives the movie its slow-burn...

Do you read Sutter Cane? Join PJ and Derek as they crack open the reality-warping nightmare that is John Carpenter’s In the Mouth of Madness (1994). In this episode the guys unravel the film’s blend of psychological horror and cosmic dread, with its nods to Lovecraftian mythology and Stephen King’s small town terrors, that explores the nature of fear, the power of fiction, and the terrifying possi...

During the spookiest time of the year there are a few guidelines all ghosts and goblins should follow. Join PJ and Derek as they light another jack-o’-lantern and carve into Michael Dougherty’s cult anthology Trick ’r Treat (2007). In this episode the guys unravel how the film’s intertwining stories reinvent Halloween mythology, the eerie atmosphere that captures the spirit of Samhain through its...

Happy 1 Year Anniversary to Third Channel Podcast. Join PJ, Derek, and Producer Ty as they catch up on a year of horror. In this episode the guys talk about what they’ve achieved in the last year, which horror films from this year are their favorites, what the next year of franchises looks like for the Third Channel, and what Ty truly thought of Jaws . 📺 Join us on Third Channel Patreon to suppor...

Time for Haddonfield to start healing. Join PJ and Derek as they confront the decisive finale of David Gordon Green’s trilogy with Halloween Ends (2022). In this episode the guys peel back the mask to reveal the legacy of trauma, the controversial rise of Corey Cunningham, and the final confrontation between Laurie Strode and Michael Myers. But what does “the end” really means if evil never truly...

For the past forty years you’ve let the idea of this… Boogeyman, consume you. Join PJ and Derek as they descend into the chaos of David Gordon Green’s Halloween Kills (2021). In this episode the guys unpack the film’s chaotic mob mentality, through its themes of fear and vengeance, and debate whether the social commentary lands in one of the most divisive entries in the franchise where Evil Dies T...

There's a reason we're supposed to be afraid of this night. This week PJ and Derek are joined by special guest Bug as they revisit Haddonfield to dissect David Gordon Green’s Halloween (2018). In this episode, they explore how this film reimagines Laurie Strode not as a victim, but as a survivor shaped by trauma, its bold retconning of the franchise mythology, and the return of Michael M...

How would you like to join us in the definitive Nightmare? Join PJ and Derek as they venture into the meta-reinvention of Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994). In this episode the guys dissect this self-aware slasher that blurs the line between fiction and reality, how Craven resurrected Freddy as a darker, more ancient evil, the film’s commentary on horror cinema itself, and Heather Langenkamp’s ret...

Jason Voorhees. He killed nearly 200 people and simply disappeared without a trace. This week PJ and Derek are joined by special guest Dylan as they leave the campground for the cold vacuum of space in James Isaac’s Jason X (2001). In this episode the guys dissect the gleefully gory kills, bizarre futuristic setting, cyborg upgrades and nanotech nightmares that make this a misunderstood cult gem....

Oh, God, y'all, two killers? We're not safe awake or asleep. Join PJ and Derek for the long-awaited, bloody showdown between slasher icons in Ronny Yu’s Freddy vs. Jason (2003). In this episode the guys dissect the years of studio delays and scrapped scripts, the tonal clash of dream logic and slasher brutality, and how the film walks the line between fan-service spectacle and franchise...

The only way to kill Jason Voorhees is to destroy his heart. Join PJ and Derek as they uncover the corpse of Adam Marcus’ directorial debut, Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993). In this episode the guys unpack the demonic retcons, ancient evil, and the chaotic mythology no one saw coming of a franchise on the brink… in the movie that nearly sent it to hell for good. 📺 Join us on Third Cha...

Time to start all over again... Every town has an Elm Street! Join PJ and Derek as they enter the flawed dreamscape of Rachel Talalay’s directorial debut, Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991). In this episode the guys unpack the bizarre tonal shifts, cartoon aesthetics, and surreal backstory reveals that make this film one of the most divisive entries in the franchise. Is this a self-aware sw...

There is a maniac trying to kill us. Welcome to New York. Join PJ and Derek as they set sail for the Big Apple in Rob Hedden’s Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989). In this episode the guys unpack the misleading title and bizarre creative choices that led to toxic waste, teleporting slashers, rooftop beatdowns, and revelatory visions. Was Jason's trip to New York a brillian...

Your birth was a curse on the whole of humanity. Join PJ and Derek as they discuss Stephen Hopkins’ visually ambitious entry to the franchise A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child (1989). In this episode the guys unpack the film's dark visual aesthetic, its inventive and grotesque death scenes, and the deeply unsettling themes of teen pregnancy, trauma, and inherited evil. 📺 Join us o...

There's a legend around here. A killer buried, but not dead. Join PJ and Derek as they discuss John Carl Buechler’s bloody blend of slasher carnage and psychic powers in Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988). In this episode the guys unpack the film’s infamous production woes, the MPAA’s savage censorship, and Kane Hodder’s destructive debut as Jason Voorhees pitted against a trouble...

You shouldn't have buried me. I'm not dead. Join PJ and Derek as they descend into the surreal dreamscape of Renny Harlin’s A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (1988). In this episode the guys unpack how the Dream Warriors meet an untimely end, leaving a new final girl to avenge the grotesque dreams of her friends deaths from Freddy who evolves from nightmare figure to rockstar...

Jason belongs in Hell - and I’m gonna see to it that he gets there. Join PJ and Derek as they discuss Tom McLoughlin’s resurrection of horror’s most iconic slasher in Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986). In this episode the guys dig up the fan favorite that electrified a dying series, fusing Gothic horror, meta humor, and a rock soundtrack to create a sequel that’s as self-aware as it is b...