We finally got here, folks! We made it through two necessary weeks of historical foregrounding, and now we are FINALLY talking about the Satanic Panic episode! This week, John takes us through the episode and explains why all that historical background was necessary. Mysterious deaths and occult shenanigans happen in a small town, and our favorite agents are there to uncover the devilish mystery. Strap in, folks!

Oh, don't even get me STARTED. You aren't ready. We weren't ready! You ever lift up a concrete slab, and find a bunch of bugs skittering in the dirt? It's kind of like that, except instead of bugs, it's the horrors of American Evangelicalism and the American childcare system.

Cohosts:

John Watson (they/them)

Bill Eldridge (he/him)

Mae Barnes (she/her)

In preparation for our discussion about the episode "Die Hand die Verletzt," aka "The Satanic School Board Episode," we have some necessary background to cover regarding the history of what is known as the Satanic Panic in the US. Therefore, we have made this episode for one person in particular: Steve Rogers, aka Captain America. Listen to us as we tell our friend Steve about the truly miserable horrors that lay in the heart of American panic culture.

Cohosts:

John Watson (they/them)

Bill Eldridge (he/him)

Mae Barnes (she/her)

CW: Elder abuse and sexual assault

Welcome back to part two of our discussion about Excelsis Dei! More wine is consumed, more absolute nonsense is discussed, and revelations about the likely racist naming convention used on a particular member of the cast that sends our poor cohosts into despair. Also, of course, the villain has always been Capitalism.

Cohosts:

Bill Eldridge (he/him)

Mae Barnes (she/her)

John Watson (they/them)

CW: discussion about sexual assault and elder abuse

That's right. We are starting with a CW, because that is just how this episode is. Mulder and Scully investigate a sexual assault upon a nurse at an nursing home--one performed by an invisible assailant. Curious goings on have been happening at Excelsis Dei, the most disturbing of which involve elder abuse and a mysterious cure for dementia that accidentally opened up attacks from the deceased. This episode is perhaps one of the more bafflingly bad ones, so much so that we had to split it into two parts. Don't worry, you'll get the rest next week!

Cohosts:

Bill Eldridge (he/him)

Mae Barnes (she/her)

John Watson (they/them)

Chris Carter saw a cool volcano roving robot, and thought, you know what would make a good episode? A cross between The Thing and Apocalypse Now! Bradley Whitford guest stars in an episode that has Mulder and Scully head to a volcanic research lab, only to discover a parasitic fungus outbreak that results in some truly grisly body horror. We talk about the overall unevenness of the episode, alongside a lengthy conversation about why cosmic horror works sometimes, and doesn't at other times. The horror! The horror!

Cohosts:

Mae Barnes (she/her)

Bill Eldredge (he/him)

John Watson (they/them)

You know what? We had too much to say about this absolute trashfire of an episode of primetime 90's television, so we decided to just record us doing just that. Now eat your peas, dammit! You're gonna hear us talk about weird death fetishism, and you're going to LIKE IT.

Cohosts:

John Watson (they/them)

Bill Eldridge (he/him)

Mae Barnes (she/her)

What could be better than spooky Romanian folk religious practices and les enfant terribles? Mulder and Scully investigate the death of a young child of a state department worker, and the supernatural phenomenon surrounding his older brother Charlie. Wacky Romanian Grandmas, family secrets, and improper ritual sanitary practices abound.

Cohosts:

Bill Eldridge (he/him)

Mae Barnes (she/her)

John Watson (they/them)

In the final part of John's 3-part analysis on modern profiling and serialized/mass violence, we finally come to their favorite episode. A spate of strange necrophilic activity catches the attention of Mulder and Scully, and this hits Scully particularly close to home due to her recent abduction and resultant PTSD. Probably one of the darkest episodes of the season, but also it is X-Files at it's schlockiest.

We are BACK in the good old Aubrey, Missouri! That is probably the first time anyone has ever thought that particular idea. Anyways, this is part 2 of our conversation about this car crash of an episode, in which we talk more about serial killers, genetic memory, and the eugenics of it all. I know it's probably a bit predictable -- take a drink every time we mention eugenics on the show!-- but it's a fantastically bad episode and we had a lot of fun talking about it anyway.

Cohosts:

John Watson (they/them)

Mae Barnes (she/her)

Bill Eldridge (he/him)