In a rare non-celebratory episode, we welcome the co-writer/star/director of the hilarious flick, BAD CGI SHARKS, Jason Ellsworth to join us in a critical discussion on some of the LESS impressive FX we've seen in movies. These are the sequences that are so jarringly inadequate, they hit like a Mac truck, smashing any semblance of immersion to smit…

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), The Golem (1920), and Waxworks (1924). In the very beginning of cinema, it was the German filmmakers who took cinema to the next level, even when it was still in its infancy. Creating strange angles, weird landscapes and buildings, and bizarre stories, these filmmakers gave audiences something completely new and …

A 'beat 'em up' or 'brawler' is a style of video game where the player character walks from left to right, beating up a seemingly endless number of enemies, until reaching the inevitable boss encounter at the end of the level. Simple, repetitive and addictive as heck, this genre of games were very popular in the late 80s and early 90s with beloved …

In the mid 1950's an overzealous witch hunt took place in the United States focused on the corrupting effects of comic books on young people, which ended in horror comics being banned from the shelves by a draconian comics code. But why? What did those comics contain that got people so riled up? Well, it depends on who you ask. WE asked Dr. Dan Yez…

Rotting in the BRIG this week, we have another returning guest, Paul R. McNamee! Paul is a talented author and lover of all things pulp… who’s short stories have appeared in multiple anthologies and magazines including STORYHACK, WEIRDBOOK, and BLOOD ON THE BLADE. And in 2021, he released the superhero novel Hour of the Robot!. His brand new collec…

The X-men theme that was just too big for one episode continues! In this second action-packed installment of our X-Men Cartoon Apocalypse, we celebrate 2 more of the 4 major X-men cartoons! As with last time, each host will present a favorite episode from each. Joining the team just time is new recruit and X-Men über fan, Kevin "Kex" Hayes! For thi…

This idea has been brewing for a while and it was just too big for one episode! This action-packed episode celebrates 2 of the 4 major X-men cartoons! Each host presents a favorite episode from each with the help of our very special guest... our returning pal and constant poster Santino "The San Man" Mancebo! For this first part, we are covering...…

Them! (1954), The Deadly Mantis (1957), and The Black Scorpion (1957) The decade of the 1950s gave horror fans a ton of different giant monster flicks, but usually taking something seemingly harmless, such as ants or grasshoppers, but somehow, someway, are mutated into growing into gigantic proportions! We had giant spiders, praying mantis, mollusk…

Good friend of the show, Josh Nealis (from Cutthroat Comics) makes Ridoctopus history by becoming the only person to get locked in THE BRIG for a THIRD TIME! He talks candidly with Parasite Steve about his latest books "Gloves Off: Going Toe-to-Toe with Cancer", "Judy and Her Irrational Fears" the final issue of his "Turkey Sharks" comic series and…

Roger Corman did it all and he did it in spades. Whether you call him the King of Cult or the Pope of Pop Cinema, it's no exaggeration to say that Corman had an output unmatched by anyone in the industry. And while he is perhaps known as much for his schlock as his amazing Poe Cycle with Vincent Price, one thing is for sure. The man constantly did …

Splinter (2008), Thanatomorphose (2012), and Contracted (2013) When discussing films that deal with body horror, David Cronenberg and his work usually come up in the conversation. How can he not, when so many of his earlier films all dealt with some sort of body horror, mutations, and transformations? But there are plenty of films that go above and…

This week, in THE BRIG… Deader is Better! We welcome the co-creator of the world's longest continually running series of collectible horror themed dolls. The Living Dead Dolls. Make no mistake, folks… this is a guy who makes nightmares come to life, New Jersey’s own… Damien Glonek! Ever wondered how you can turn a quirky little idea into a vast 26 …

The 1980s and 90s saw the release of an unprecedented number of cartoons, movies, toys and games starring DINOSAURS! And unlike the adventure films of the 60s & 70s these projects took everyone's favorite extinct behemoths out of their hidden savage land environments and made them cool again. Mashing them together with genres like science fiction, …

It's 11:00 in Nosgoth. Do you know where your vampires are? This week's motley crew includes Parasite Steve, Synopsis (Boss Rush Mode) Grim and Lady Carianna (in her first appearance)! All three have stocked up on Hearts of Darkness and have a serious blood lust for the classic PS1/PS2 series known as THE LEGACY OF KAIN! These gothic dark fantasy t…

Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954), Revenge of the Creature (1955), The Creature Walks Among Us (1956). And now, we come to the end of our Universal Monster episodes, having made our way through all the Dracula, Frankenstein, Invisible Man, Mummy, and the Wolf Man films, we now take a dive into the Black Lagoon! Coming out a little less than a d…

The GODFOE Universe: APOLLYON 20XX is a gritty new indie comic from the team of artist Joshua Adams and writer Dan Evans. For this episode, the book's artist Joshua give the lowdown on this massive media-panning project, which will eventually span comic, novels, films and even video games. Is that ambitious enough for ya?! For more info on this awe…

Our secret nerdom revealed at last! We at the Retro Ridoctopus cephalopodcast are all huge geeks about animals and all sorts of creatures that walk, crawl, swim and fly over this fantastic blue marble we call Earth! For this science-centric episode, the Octo-hosts each pick 4 animals we think are the most fascinating and share a bunch of fun facts …

Obviously, many of us film fans see movies in theaters througout the year, whether it be at a national chain or at an independent, arthouse theater - or both. Some of us are even hitting film festivals, special screenings, and for the truly unhinged cinephiles, film marathons. For these kind of events to happen though, there have to be some mad gen…

This week, down in the dank and the dark of that den of madness we call the BRIG… we've got the wicked cool Renee S. DeCamillis! Renee is a talented writer and editor of all types of horror, the author of numerous published short stories and her recently released debut novel, Chisel The Bone. And as if that wasn’t enough, she’s also the rhythm guit…

Is it Duck Season? Wabbit Season?! With over one thousand episodes of Looney Tunes and Merry Melodies you never have to choose! Before the pig pops out of the drum... we'll build blocks of episode-picks around 4 of the most legendary characters! We'll talk some history, personal memories and fun facts about these screwball heroes of the Golden Age …

The Ghost of Sierra de Cobre (1964), Crowhaven Farm (1970), and Cruise into Terror (1978) With this being our 3rd episode covering these little television terrors, one would get the idea that there is a lot of teleplays, or TV-movies, out there that deserve our attention. And you would be correct! From the '60s into the early '80s, there was a plet…

In the 90s was when the anime floodgates opened in America, when programs like FOX KIDS started playing blocks of Japanese cartoons! But did we really need to catch 'em all? Shows like Shaman King, Yu-Gi-Oh, Digimon, Monster Rancher and even (the best left forgotten) Fighting Foodons were trying to cash in on the enormous Pokemon craze. But there w…

During conversations with serious film collectors, you might hear terms like inter-positive, or first negative, or even OCN, and have no clue to what they actually mean. Don’t feel bad because a lot of us are in the same boat. These are some of the many terms used when discussing the preservation and archiving of films, not to mention the amount of…

When it comes to classic RPG series, Final Fantasy is always in the conversation. This long running series has achieved LEGENDARY status with 16 main titles and a Bahamut-sized hoard of sequels and spin-offs. This week, with the help of our Retroid Bobby MacGibbon, we'll spotlight our favorite games, characters and even summon monsters in the serie…

This episode is dedicated to someone who has been my second Mother since I was ten years old, Parasite Steve and 8 Bit Alchemy's Mom Nancy. Please check out Crow's Nest: Our Mom's Favorite Games first as I play the music from the games mentioned in that episode plus some of the music that reminds me of her. I also share some personal memories and s…

Parasite Steve leads a sprawling discussion between two true-blooded fans, who unabashedly gush over both movies and books in the horror genre! Not every kid learns to read with Salem's Lot, but our guest this week is exactly that cool! When journalist Michael Miller isn't writing an article or interviewing one of horror's top stars, you can bet he…

Chained (2012), Honeymoon (2014), and Relic (2020) With over 60 episodes so far in our podcast history, we realized that in all that we covered, we had never covered anything by a woman director. We knew we needed to change that. Going through the history of women directors, we realized that not only wasn't something new, but have been working in t…

Even before the internet, rumors about weird stuff in video games were always swirling around the playground. Sometimes it was how to get a new character or access to part of a stage. Other times it would be a code for more lives, a secret boss fight or even just some crazy glitch. But how many of those tantalizing tricks and tidbits ended up being…

Xardion isn't exactly a classic of the SNES, but 8-Bit Alchemy & Parasite Steve recently discussed it as one of the games their mother used to love and was actually able to beat. Well, thanks to much perseverance and level grinding, when if comes to this bizarre Run and Gun RPG Platformer, the boys are now (almost) as cool as she was! This game is …

With host 8-Bit Alchemy at the wheel, the crew hits the road. We've got plenty of snacks, a trunk full of AA batteries and our favorite classic portable video game systems! Our companions are the Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, the DS, the Game Gear, the PSP and on this long and lonesome highway, we're gonna play 'em all! Oh did we mention that Nintenj…

Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943), House of Frankenstein (1944), and House of Dracula (1945). Some say that the monster rally films marked the end of the Universal creature features, which could partially be true, but we feel it is for different reasons than the actual films themselves, and they still have a lot of merit to them. While the stu…

Noy Jitat! Pirates of Dark Water is a pirate fantasy adventure series by Hanna Barbera, which originally aired between 1991 and 1993. And since our very own Coopster Gold happens to be a HUGE fan of the show, he's at the helm with one eye set on ADVENTURE in the land of Mer! So grab your nearest monkey-bird and settle into the CROW'S NEST for a com…

Dedicated to the only person we know who could beat Xardion, our mom Nancy. This is a Crow's Nest that's not only totally on brand, but functions as a bit of therapy for the hosts. As tribute to the mother of Parasite Steve and 8-Bit Alchemy, the boys endeavor to spotlight all the random video games she loved over the years. Expect NES, SNES, Turbo…

This truly is a great time to be alive as a crazy cinephile. Just about every day, new amazing looking releases of some of our favorite films are announced, as well as some almost forgotten films brought back from the edges of obscurity for a whole new generation of fans to enjoy. And one of the companies at the forefront is Severin Films, who cont…

With the Green Witch of the Shire (AKA Greenie) on deck, our new host Coopster Gold takes the helm for the first time, setting his spyglass on those swashbuckling, scallywags that once sailed the seven seas. YARRR, of course we be talking pirates! After some basic history on the real deal, we begin building our own personal crews (fantasy football …

Dr. Terror's House of Horrors (1965), The House that Dripped Blood (1971) and Tales from the Crypt (1972) Amicus Productions was most known for their anthology films, even though that was a small percentage of the types of films they did make in over the years. But because of the quality of the films, the power of the stories they were based on, an…

If you don't know what the difference between EXTREME HORROR and SPLATTERPUNK is, author Thomas R. Clark is here with the low down! For about two hour hours, we chat about the craft, what he digs about the extreme stuff and his newest Splatterpunk collection, Immoral Dilemmas! And later on, we dive headfirst into a sprawling discussion about that b…

Sometimes, bad movies are the most fun you'll have in front of a small screen. All you gotta do is grab some like-minded friends and good times can be had by all. And while your personal mileage may vary, is there a science to the phenomenon? A credible explanation as to what separates the Good-Bad from the downright awful? Eh, who cares. In the sp…

Bigfoot (1970), Creature from Black Lake (1976), and Abominable (2006). Tales of a mysterious, giant beast that wanders the wooded areas of the U.S., has never really proven to exist, but even to this day, is believed by many to really be out there, still hidden from mankind. Starting with Bigfoot in 1970, our furry giant became the subject of many…

Down in the eldritch unknown of the BRIG… we have a writer, monster hunter and lover of staring too long into the abyss! Rey Nichols is the author of the Apollo Grant books and is here to talk all about the newly released third in that series GRANT NO QUARTER! And if you stick around to the end, you'll find out how she got to be 2 degrees from Kevi…

It's season 6 and the start of a whole new era of Ridoctopus with our new host Justin Cooper (AKA Coopster Gold)! Our man from Shytown wastes no time settling in as we celebrate some mean pinball video games. But there's no need to drive to your nearest amusement hall because these games can be played on such home platforms as the original Nintendo…

Satan's Slave (1976), Prey (1977), and Terror (1978) There are a lot of directors out there that might not have a huge filmography, or even be that well known to the general population of film fans, even in the horror genre. So there is always room to discover them! In this episode, we take a look at three films by British independent director Norm…

Another year ending means another Wrap Up episode where we go over our top picks for the year, as well as discussing some other titles we've seen in 2023. While most of the films we do cover here as our favorite viewings for this year are from the last few years, they are not all from 2023. But as we've pointed out many times before, if you're watc…

What can we say? We just didn't want this season to end... After copious amounts of reminiscing over another amazing year, we dive into our annual final topic. Like every year, we asked you for voice mails, giving your quick reviews of a classic movie you watched for the first time this year. Every single year, this block gets longer and longer and…

Tower of London (1962), Ghost Nursing (1982), and Stir of Echoes (1999). Believe it or not, but it's a tradition to tell spooky stories around Christmas time. Just think of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol! While some tales might be told to give one pause about how they are acting towards others, to maybe change your ways, or some told to pass on…

To celebrate the release of Godzilla Minus One and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, we've got an episode so full of kaiju mayhem, we had to split it into two parts! Back for the conclusion of this epic journey is our buddy Aldo, who continues to flex his superfan knowledge along the way. This time, Nintenjoe and Parasite Steve deliver the goods on the …

To celebrate the release of Godzilla Minus One and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, we've got an episode so full of kaiju mayhem, we had to split it into two parts! Along for this epic journey is our pal Aldo, who takes us through the first 15 Godzilla movies (which comprise what is known as the Showa period) starting with the original Gojira in 1954, …

The Werewolf of London (1935), The Wolf Man (1941), and She-Wolf of London (1946) When the night falls and the full moon rises, it is time to talk about werewolves. Not just any werewolves, but the ones that came from Universal Studios. While still riding the wave of their successes with the horror titles of Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy, and Th…

There are few events in horrordom quite as joyfully gluttonous as the Black Friday sales put on by our favorite boutique film labels. As the season approaches, speculation on social media and in rapid-fire in-person conversations reaches a fever pitch. What new films? What new merch? What great deals? We dream of horrors we might own someday like w…

For our last BRIG of season 5, Parasite Steve welcomes an old & dear friend who just happens to be another insanely talented writer! Morgan Sylvia is an author from Maine with numerous published works including novels, short stories, poetry collections and everything in between. Whether she's writing long or short form, one thing is clear, the qual…