This episode originally broadcast on June 18, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/06/binary-system-podcast-511-backrooms-and-wtnv-290-a-solution/

We're so glad we actually went to see Backrooms while it was still in the theater, partly because it's exactly the kind of horror movie we like: scary, light on the gore, smart, just enough jump scares, and most of all intensely WEIRD. It's deliciously unsettling and we could just marinate in that uncanny anti-nostalgia for ages.

But we also love that we get to see the collaborative speculation happening on the internet in real time; not just the discussions on memory and trauma, but also the questions the movie leaves unanswered: what does the ending mean? Where exactly is the entrance to the Backrooms? Was it copying Clark before he started exploring...or is it also messing around with time...?

But before we jump into the Backrooms (...not literally, yikes..) we have a quick recap of the latest Night Vale, which gives us a solution to the locked room mystery, but leaves us with a few questions there as well. (First and foremost, is the solution really that hand-wavey, or is that another red herring?)

This episode's outro is a clip from just laying there. by Mark Lingard.

We mentioned Vaporama Vision a few times this episode, they're our current favorite Liminal Spaces artist.

Some of our favorite Backrooms fanart so far is:

Bojack Horseman / Backrooms mashup

Amazing Digital Circus / Backrooms mashup

A portrait of the director

As for Portal quotes, if you look up Cave Johnson you can find tons of J.K. Simmons' audio, this is a pretty comprehensive one.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan's castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, and Instagram!

This episode originally broadcast on June 11, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/06/binary-system-podcast-510-pluribus-episode-9-season-finale/

What do you know, we actually managed to finish watching a season of TV less than six months late!

And wow, what a season. Pluribus has had some amazing episodes, with a story that's been both delightful and heartbreaking and which never went where we were expecting. So it really means something to say that the season finale managed to be the most surprising episode of the show so far. In amongst Carol having a tropical vacation with her chaperone and butting heads with her would-be fellow freedom fighter (Manusos, snapping your fingers at someone is rude, use your words), there were no fewer than three moments that knocked us back a step, even though the seeds for them had already been planted without us even realizing that's what they were.

This episode's outro is a clip from Mechanical Static by TeknoAXE

It can be really easy to slip into doom and despair at the state of the world right now, but there are things you can do to help. Check out Stand With Minnesota for links to fundraisers and other ways you can show your support. If we haven't made it abundantly clear where we stand on this, FUCK ICE.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan's castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram!

This episode originally broadcast on June 4, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/06/binary-system-podcast-509-wtnv-289-the-collection-plate-and-pluribus-episode8/

On this week's Night Vale recap, Jalen is being awfully understanding about being in jail for a murder his dead doppelganger (probably) committed. But a secret ally is sending clues that could help Cecil solve the case, if Cecil can stop obsessing about his stapler long enough to figure it out. And if they don't get murdered by the real killer, of course.

Then we dive into Pluribus episode 8, and go over all the new information about the Hive Mind that Carol's uncovered, and how tough it is to stay stubborn and distant when an ENTIRE PLANET is nerding out about your book.

This episode's outro is a clip from Entering the Treeline by Visager.

Clarification: yes St. Alia of the Knife is dune. Elizabeth was thinking of Arya Stark.

It can be really easy to slip into doom and despair at the state of the world right now, but there are things you can do to help. Check out Stand With Minnesota for links to fundraisers and other ways you can show your support. If we haven't made it abundantly clear where we stand on this, FUCK ICE.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan's castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram!

This episode originally broadcast on May 28, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/05/binary-system-podcast-508-wtnv-288-doubles-anonymous-and-pluribus-episode-7/

The investigation into the murder of Marcus Vanston is moving ahead at breakneck speed. And for this week only, Cecil's covering the latest developments in a hard-boiled, film noir style that only gets weirder (and more fun) when you add Night Vale's tendency to mess with metaphors (we WILL be trying to work "the hornet's fedora" into conversations from now on.)

Episode 7 of Pluribus is less quirky and more beautiful, heartbreaking, and grim, as Carol and Manousos each choose their own methods for resisting the Hive Mind and getting on with their lives. And oddly, both of them reach a similar kind of failure.

This episode's outro is a clip from Baroque Ballroom by TeknoAXE.

It can be really easy to slip into doom and despair at the state of the world right now, but there are things you can do to help. Check out Stand With Minnesota for links to fundraisers and other ways you can show your support. If we haven't made it abundantly clear where we stand on this, FUCK ICE.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan's castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram!

This episode originally broadcast on May 21, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/05/binary-system-podcast-507-the-amazing-digital-circus-episodes-6-7-and-8/

If we had to recap the last three episodes of The Amazing Digital Circus VERY quickly, we'd say episode 6 is delightfully violent, episode 7 is a kick in the heart, and episode 8 is terrifying.

We mention at the beginning of the episode that there's no need to recap all three point by point. So we totally recapped them point by point. In detail. (Massive spoiler warnings of course.) In our defense, we only started watching this show a couple months ago. We had to cram into one hour all the freaking out that the rest of the fans have been doing FOR TWO YEARS.

After the recap we remind everybody that Transformers: The Movie - The Apology Tour is coming up soon, so go find yourself a new Transformers shirt.

This episode's outro is a clip from Tense and Falling from Free the Muses.

Correction: Hugh's already been to MegaCon. He's headed to SuperCon!

It can be really easy to slip into doom and despair at the state of the world right now, but there are things you can do to help. Check out Stand With Minnesota for links to fundraisers and other ways you can show your support. If we haven't made it abundantly clear where we stand on this, FUCK ICE.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan's castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram!

This episode originally broadcast on May 15, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/05/binary-system-podcast-506-wtnv-286-hey-does-anyone-hear-that-sound-behind-the-sky-and-the-amazing-digital-circus/

"Does anyone hear that sound behind the sky?"

(Get used to hearing that question if you listen to this week's Welcome To Night Vale, because Cecil asks it a lot.)

There are some updates on the Marcus Vanston murder investigation, cooking tips involving mud, and the Philosophical Society is gonna get you to break your attachments to worldly wealth, even if they have to bribe you to do it. But mostly there's this sound, up past the clouds and the satellites. The noise is a lot like things that have no business having sounds, like what the smell of electricity sounds like, and the only thing we know for sure is that it's somehow a lot worse when we stop hearing it.

Then we're off to The Amazing Digital Circus episodes 4 and 5. This series has kind of eaten our brain lately, so we're just going to have to watch the entire weird season before we can move on to something else. (Bonus: episode 5 is the one with corn.)

This episode's outro is a clip from Jiggled by Grumplefunk.

We found an entire playlist of the Amazing Digital Circus Intermission video set to different songs and you need to watch all of it.

It can be really easy to slip into doom and despair at the state of the world right now, but there are things you can do to help. Check out Stand With Minnesota for links to fundraisers and other ways you can show your support. If we haven't made it abundantly clear where we stand on this, FUCK ICE.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan's castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram!

This episode originally broadcast on May 7, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/05/binary-system-podcast-505-new-york-2026-and-the-amazing-digital-circus/

It took ten years, but both the East Coast and West Coast branches of the podcast got to meet up in Manhattan once again for a weekend of museums, comic book shops, subway ficus, fancy islands, sidewalk cocktails, surprise concerts, private hot pot rooms, and treehouses.

We also watched three episodes of The Amazing Digital Circus and boy is Elizabeth wishing she'd watched them sooner.

This episode's outro is a clip from Live More by Ketsa.uk.

It can be really easy to slip into doom and despair at the state of the world right now, but there are things you can do to help. The situation in Minnesota isn't in the news as much but they're still suffering, check out Stand With Minnesota for links to fundraisers and other ways you can show your support. If we haven't made it abundantly clear where we stand on this, FUCK ICE.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan's castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram!

This episode originally broadcast on April 30, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/04/binary-system-podcast-504-pluribus-episode-6/

We've really got to hand it to the creators of Pluribus. This episode took a dark turn; the Hive Mind may be the vanguard of an alien invasion that's either very efficient, or very much not efficient at all. Either way, steps have been taken to try to keep all seven point something billion hosts on the Earth from starving to death, and the reveal manages to avoid showing anything gory while still being really, really disturbing.

You'd think that would be the only thing on Carol's mind, but let's face it, loneliness sucks. The Hive mind is currently not speaking to her, and the rest of the class has decided to not invite her to their gab sessions, which means the entire world doesn't want her around, and that shit stings.

Listen in as we talk about gorgeous parties in Vegas and short-circuited storylines, with some digressions to discuss Spanish grammar and wonder how the heck you get FaceTime to let someone into a call?

This episode's outro is a clip from Serenity by TeknoAXE.

It can be really easy to slip into doom and despair at the state of the world right now, but there are things you can do to help. The situation in Minnesota isn't in the news as much but they're still suffering, check out Stand With Minnesota for links to fundraisers and other ways you can show your support. If we haven't made it abundantly clear where we stand on this, FUCK ICE.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan's castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram!

This episode originally broadcast on April 23, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/04/binary-system-podcast-593-wtnv-285-our-ice-cream-truck-of-infinite-sorrows-and-pluribus/

On this week’s Night Vale recap, when the creepy ice cream truck appeared we thought it was one of those awful stories about creepy ice cream guys preying on people. It’s not. IT’S SO MUCH WORSE.

After that we have a spoiler-filled recap of Pluribus episode 5: how did the Hive Mind react to Carol’s stunt with the truth serum? With the biggest, most passive-aggressive breakup EVER.

Plus there’s segues into phone scammers and safe words, books about paladins, Netflix kids accounts, and a loooooong tangent about Torchwood and how we’re still pretty mad at them for all the torture porn.

This episode's outro is a clip from Undimmed Eyes by Pamela Yuen.

It can be really easy to slip into doom and despair at the state of the world right now, but there are things you can do to help. Check out Stand With Minnesota for links to fundraisers and other ways you can show your support. If we haven't made it abundantly clear where we stand on this, FUCK ICE.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan's castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram!

This episode originally broadcast on April 16, 2026. The original podcast post is here: https://pixelatedgeek.com/2026/04/binary-system-podcast-502-pluribus-episode-4/

This week Pluribus continues to break our hearts while also expanding on the impossible situation Carol finds herself in. There are some hard choices made and quite a lot of betrayal (although does it count as betrayal if you’re trying to fix the entire human race? And who exactly gets to make the choice about whether or not someone needs to be fixed?) Mostly Carol learns just how careful you have to be when asking for the whole entire truth from someone who can’t lie.

And of course we have to talk a bit about the Artemis II mission and how freaking magical it is to have the entire world cheering when four astronauts come back from six minutes of radio silence and splash down safely.

This episode’s outro is a clip from Lite Flight by TeknoAXE.

It can be really easy to slip into doom and despair at the state of the world right now, but there are things you can do to help. The situation in Minnesota isn’t in the news as much but they’re still suffering, check out Stand With Minnesota for links to fundraisers and other ways you can show your support. If we haven’t made it abundantly clear where we stand on this, FUCK ICE.

Looking for a present for that hard-to-shop-for person? Want to buy them (or yourself) a square foot of a castle in Scotland? Look no further! You can support the restoration of Dunan’s castle, legally call yourself Lady or Laird, AND if you use this link to get there, you can support this podcast too! ScottishLaird.co.uk.

For updates, fan art, and other randomness, come follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Instagram!