In a bold detour from our classic creature-feature clashes, this episode of Just The Thing crashes John Carpenter’s icy existential dread into the warm, irony-soaked glow of Wayne’s World. Can a postmodern comedy duo rooted in parody and pop culture survive a deadly force that thrives on isolation and imitation? We dig into the genre dissonance, ask whether you can have too many pop culture references and deep dive into the careers of Mike Myers, Dana Carvey and director Penelope Spheeris. It’s horror vs hangout, tension vs tone, dread vs dudes, and—somehow—it kind of works. Excellent!!!

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

This week, Just The Thing takes on its most superpowered challenge yet: what happens when the ultimate shapeshifter faces the Man of Steel? Joined by book designer and comics connoisseur Chris Gould, Joel and Chris dive into James Gunn’s Superman (2025).

They dissect the film’s overt politics, its gloriously goofy comic-book logic, and why this version of Superman, with all his gentleness, feels genuinely radical in 2025. There's praise for David Corenswet’s performance, a lot of love for Krypto, and a deeply serious discussion about whether Batman is a workaholic.

And yes, they do actually consider whether The Thing could assimilate Superman.

Follow Chris Gould on Instagram

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

This episode on Just The Thing, Joel and Chris are joined by returning guests Alex Jessep and Matt O'Dwyer for a cosmic clash for the ages as the perfect organism takes on the perfect imitator. Ridley Scott’s iconic Xenomorph goes acid-blood-to-tentacle with the Antarctic horror from The Thing. We take the first film as our starting point and then discuss the wider Alien universe before putting the iconic xenomorph in the ring with The Thing.

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

In the brand new series of Just The Thing, writers Joel Jessup and Chris Regan will be pitting the terrifying, shape-shifting alien from John Carpenter’s The Thing against iconic monsters and movie characters from cinema history. Each episode explores a new hypothetical horror showdown—debating lore, abilities, weaknesses, and who’s most likely to survive.

We’re kicking things off with perhaps the most famous monster of all time, Count Dracula. We painstakingly reviewed every movie iteration of the legendary vampire and decided only one could possibly take on our favourite Antarctic nightmare. Yes, it's obviously Gerard Butler’s emo Dracula from Dracula 2000. Can an ancient vampire lord outwit a creature that could be anyone? Will The Thing assimilate the Prince of Darkness, and what would that mean for the rest of us? Also, was the turn of the millennium the greatest time to be alive, or did it mostly feel like you were permanently stuck inside a Virgin Megastore playing nu-metal on an endless loop? Check out the episode to find out!

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

In the last of our bonus episodes before we get stuck into a whole new season, Joel and Chris imagine what happens when a shape-shifting alien crashes the most secretive election in the world. That’s right—we’re putting The Thing into Conclave, the tense political thriller about the inner workings of a Vatican papal election.

As Ralph Fiennes navigates political intrigue and whispered secrets in the Sistine Chapel, we ask: what if one of the cardinals wasn’t just hiding a scandal—but a parasitic alien alter-ego? 

Join us for theological musings, ecclesiastical paranoia, and perfectly respectful Pope vs Thing chat.

Disclaimer: In case it seems weird that we don't mentioned it, we recorded this on 2nd April, before the death of Pope Francis and the subsequent actual conclave. 

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

In this bonus episode of Just The Thing, Joel Jessup and Chris Regan dive deep into Karyn Kusama’s slow-burn psychological horror The Invitation. Join us for a lively chat about super fun subjects like grief, cults, and social discomfort. We ask the question, when would you leave the death cult party? And does the film’s quiet dread and social awkwardness make it more terrifying than The Thing itself?

We also explore what happens when John Carpenter’s The Thing crashes the dinner party, comparing thematic overlaps and wondering whether Logan Marshall-Green’s Will is a low-key MacReady cosplay.

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

In the Just The Thing 2024 Christmas Special, Joel and Chris are joined by Matt O'Dwyer and Peter Regan as they attempt to unwrap Tim Burton's Batman Returns and imagine what might happen if the shapeshifting creature from John Carpenter's The Thing crashed Gotham's most chaotic Christmas party.

Join us as we revisit this wildly dark "kids' movie" from the '90s, marvel at Danny DeVito's grotesque and tragic Penguin, and applaud Michelle Pfeiffer's iconic transformation into Catwoman. We also explore how Batman himself gets overshadowed in his own movie by the film's incredible villains. Did we mention that Christopher Walken is also in this movie?

Stay tuned for a Batman-themed Christmas quiz towards the end of the episode!

Music by Myuu

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris are joined by Geraint D'Arcy, Associate Professor and Head of Media at UEA, where the three originally met as students in the late 90s. Geraint was also the star of Chris and Joel's short film, Bad Day, often referenced on the podcast. Together, they try to understand the 1989 sci-fi film, Slipstream, starring Bob Peck, Mark Hamill and Bill Paxton. Slipstream was a prestigious and much-hyped project, from the producer of Star Wars, Gary Kurtz, and the director of Tron, Steven Lisberger. With so much talent behind and in front of the camera, why is the film so incoherent? Help is at hand via a special appearance from actor Paul Reynolds, who shares his recollection of what it was like to actually work on Slipstream. Finally, Joel, Chris and Geraint attempt to answer the ultimate question - would Slipstream be better with The Thing in it?

Geraint D'Arcy on Instagram
Pages from Geraint's Slipstream Comic

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

It's a Just The Thing first as Joel and Chris finally welcome a guest who actually worked on the film they're talking about: John Jessup, Joel's father!
For most of his life John has been an award-winning advertising creative, but when he was younger he worked at the legendary Pinewood Studios and has lots of fascinating stories to tell! And then we put The Thing in The Devils!
If you like hearing exclusive insights into Ken Russell, Oliver Reed and Derek Jarman, plus many others, this is the episode for you!

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joel and Chris try to decipher Richard Kelly's 2006 puzzle of a film the only way they know how... by adding the creature from The Thing. Will the addition of a shapeshifting, parasitic alien help to make sense of this sprawling, apocalyptic satire? Listen to the episode to find out, just be warned you will be subjected to some ex-film student bitterness along the way.

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Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio