Tread Perilously

Tread Perilously keeps yet another promise by finally watching Small Wonder, but will an episode called "The Suitor" change Erik or Justin's opinion of the series?

When Jamie's nerdy classmate, Warren, catches sight of Vicki, he's immediately smitten. And thanks to Jamie's primer on mushy romance, she reciprocates -- or at least as much as an emotionless "child identicant" can. Will Jamie be able to program her with a tactful way to let Warren down or will the nerdy kid end up in tears? Also, will anyone punish Jamie for his behavior and racially insensitive impressions?

Erik and Justin enter the heart of darkness with one of the worst sitcoms ever recorded. They go over the premise -- both the one cited by the show itself and the one Justin sees buried just underneath. Gambling, the Tyrell Corporation, and Pakistan become important. Justin offers a few thoughts on Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. A surprising examination of Regan Era media and culture breaks out. Erik has a hard time believing actor Dick Christie was a nerd in high school. Denis Villeneuve gets compared to Ridley Scott and Justin learns whether or not he must endure an episode of 7th Heaven next week.

Tread Perilously keeps another promise as Justin finally gets a chance to watch the Doctor Who story called "City of Death."

When the randomizer lands The Doctor and Romana in Paris, 1979, they soon experience a time slip. It leads them to the Louvre, where a plot to steal the Mona Lisa is more than just a plot to steal a priceless painting. Shortly thereafter, a detective named Duggan joins their band as they learn the truth behind the plot, the fabulous wealth of Count Scarlioni, and the origins of all life on Earth.

Drew Siragusa of Fanbase Press joins Erik and Justin for a story he's wanted Justin to watch for many years. The old io9 Doctor Who story rankings re-emerge as "City of Death" rates quite high. Justin discovers on air that Douglas Adams mainly wrote the episode. He also reveals his favorite companions. Tom Baker's revised costume gets reviewed. So does Romana's costume. Drew tries to determine when The Doctor started dropping names of historical figures. Chandler's Law gets invoked. Julian Glover receives nothing but praise as Count Scarlioni. James Bond connections abound. Duggan proves to be a good companion for Romana and Erik mispronounces "Scarlioni" throughout.

Tread Perilously starts a month of "promises kept" by finally taking a look at Highlander: The Series with the low-rated episode called "The Zone."

Duncan and Charlie make their way to "The Zone" when Joe alerts them to a possible Immortal organizing the homeless in the economically depressed part of town. Charlie reveals he grew up in the Zone, but it's very little help as the fully human Canaan cultivates a world of crime and inequality despite speaking words of equality and revolution. For Duncan, it suddenly becomes personal and he vows to bring Canaan down.

Erik and Justin review why The Highlander was the romance approved for cis-het boys in the 1980s. They get lost in a conversation about masculinity, action hero quipping, and 80s genre movies in general. The accents of the Immortals also come into question. Erik explains the loss of the "Drunken Idaho" moment in Denis Villeneuve's Dune. He also offers a few thoughts on Eternals. Justin points out the startling similarities between Highlander and the Buffyverse. The pair suggest some different casting decisions for Aliens and Streets of Fire. Colin Salmon gets praised despite not being in the episode and Michael Shanks makes a surprise appearance.

Tread Perilously's "Creatures of the Night" month concludes with the annual visit to Supernatural. But it stays on theme as Sam and Dean face vampires in an episode called "Bloodlust."

Still grieving their father, the Winchesters hit the road once more. Dean suspects reports of beheadings and cattle mutilations in a Montana town means a nest of vampires. His suspicions are confirmed when they run into Gordon, another hunter who specializes in bloodsuckers. But can he be trusted? And will Dean's sudden need for a father figure lead him to miss critical clues about Gordon and the nest he's tracking?

Justin realizes he made a happy accident thanks to the presence of Sterling K. Brown as a guest star. He and Erik immediately get lost in the "Then" of it all. Their inability to recall the name of the handsome actor who plays the Winchester father calls down technical difficulties from the heavens. Along the way, they evaluate the oeuvre of Steven Soderbergh. Fred Krueger turns out to be a good tipper down at the murder factory. Erik admits his Supernatural "song" is the War of the Angels. Pepper Potts once again gets high marks and the pair try to cast a good therapist for the hunters.

Tread Perilousy's "Creature of the Night" month moves to the swamps of True Blood for its reviled series finale, "Thank You."

As the Hep-V continues to ravage Bill's body, he asks Sookie to use all her faerie powers to end his life. Sookie, of course, needs to think about this for a number of reasons. Jessica and Hoyt tell Bill about their rekindled flame and it leads to an impromptu wedding. Jason, somehow, does not sleep with Hoyt's ex-girlfriend. Meanwhile, Eric and Pam plot their final move against Mr. Gus and pronounce final judgment on Sarah Newlin.

Erik once again watches the last episode of a series first. Will his opinion line up with True Blood fans? Justin tries to recall relevant details about the characters, but also recounts his own viewing habits when the series was on the air. Who's The Boss's Tony Micelli gets re-framed as a serial killer. Deborah Ann Woll and Carrie Preston turn out to be the episode MVPs. Justin tries to outline True Blood's original sin. A brief discussion about The Batman trailer breaks out. Bill's accent gets explored. Justin attempts to re-imagine True Blood with a different tone and liquified sugar-free gummi bears come into play.

Tread Perilously's "Creatures of the Night" month brings Erik and Justin to Mystic Falls for an episode of The Vampire Diaries called "Bring It On."

Still reeling from the death of her brother, Damon convinces Elena to switch off her emotions. But instead of calming her, Elena now gives in to whims and impulses, like trapping commuters so she can feed. Stefan suggests it might be time for her to go back to Mystic Falls High, but that also proves troublesome (as Caroline soon learns). But is all of it just a wind-up so the emotionless Elena can escape from the Salvatore mansion? Meanwhile, Klaus and Damon launch separate searches for Katherine.

Erik and Justin get lost in the Nina Dobrev of it all. Justin immediately deduces that the series is "horny Twilight." A long James Bond digression occurs. Stefan ends up becoming "goofus" but it's tough to call Damon "gallant." Justin tries to cast Ian Somerhalder in a show with Jensen Ackles. Erik declares Scanners to be the best X-Men movie ever made. Klaus fails to impress Justin. The pair attempt to cast a Highlander remake and, despite not appearing in the episode, Justin learns who plays Katherine.

Tread Perilously launches into a vampire-infused Horror Month called "Creatures of the Night" with its first ever episode of What We Do in the Shadows -- the low-rated "Ghosts."

When Lazlo discovers symmetrical book-stacking of his sacred writings, Nadja declares a ghost is present. She organizes a seance only to discover the ghost is the latest incarnation of her often-reincarnated lover. The discovery of a true ghost leads the others to question if they themselves have ghosts since they are technically dead. A second seance provides the answer and a launchpad for comedy as the housemates discover their own disembodied souls.

Erik braves the first of four vampire weeks despite his well-known dislike of the character type (Aro notwithstanding). A new theory about Parks and Recreation emerges. Justin comes through with all the key factoids about What We Do In The Shadows and vampire fiction. Erik reveals some of his controversial opinions. An Alternative Factor moment conjures up memories of Bane and a reason for his disappearance. The new Babylon 5 gets briefly discussed. Erik does find things to like, though, and the vampire roots of Tommy Wiseau come back into play.

Tread Perilously's annual Star Trek month winds down with the Star Trek: Enterprise episode called "Azati Prime."

While using one of the Insectoid pods they recently captured, Enterprise discovers a sphere being built under the ocean of a world in Xindi-controlled space. All agree a suicide run is in order to destroy the sphere, but Captain Archer insists on doing the mission himself. Even a quick jaunt to Enterprise-J will not divert his plan. It, of course, goes poorly and the now-captured captain tries to talk to one of the Xindi leaders about peace. Back on the ship, T'Pol's attraction(?) to Archer leads her to make some bad decisions.

Erik openly doubts Enterprise will be featured in next year's Star Trek month. Justin doubts "Azati Prime" had a beginning or end. Both doubt this is really the third best episode of the series, as voted on by users of IMDb. The 9/11 or War in Afghanistan parallel in Enterprise's third season comes off as ill-advised. It leads, of course, to a History Corner. Land of the Lost gets added to the list of shows and Justin offers a behind-the-scenes look at The Full Peril. Erik's war on Tom Paris continues. He also makes a reference to Star Trek Day. The pair feel for Jolene Blalock's tough circumstances on Enterprise and Connor Trinneer once again proves to be the MVP.

Tread Perilously's annual Star Trek month returns to Star Trek: Voyager for an episode called "Message in a Bottle."

When Seven of Nine discovers a seemingly disused communication system which stretches back into the Alpha Quadrant, she spots an experimental Starfleet vessel. Because a holographic message will not degrade across the vast network, the Doctor is sent along to the U.S.S. Prometheus. Unfortunately for the Doctor, the ship has been commandeered by Romulan agents and his only help is a "Mark II" version of the Emergency Medical Hologram who happens to look an awful lot like 1990s comedian Andy Dick.

Erik and Justin disclaim the presence of Andy Dick. Erik notes stronger Voyager episodes seem to revolve around the Doctor. Justin admits the episode's premise is stronger than the final product. Erik is convinced the Prometheus bridge is the Enterprise-A bridge redressed within an inch of its life. B'Elanna Torres turns out to be a big Frasier fan. A discussion of the Marvel Cinematic Method breaks out because of course. Erik completely fails in an attempt to plug an upcoming book. Tom Paris's subplot gets dissected and Justin determines the secret history of the two Defiant class ships featured late in the story.

Tread Perilously's annual Star Trek month continues with a rare visit to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Unfortunately, it's for one of the program's worst hours: "Let He Who Is Without Sin..."

Dax and Worf's vacation to pleasure planet Risa is disrupted by Bashir, Leeta, and Quark deciding to come along, Worf's bad attitude, and the extremist Essentialist Movement who believe places like Risa are making the Federation "soft." When Worf reads one of their pamphlets, he conflates his current personal problems with Dax as an element of the phantom menace proposed by the Essentialists. Will he help them cause ecological harm to the galaxy-famous vacation world?

Erik is stunned to discover Gerd Shockley is, indeed, in the episode as the leader of the Essentialists. A scene of The Emissary and Odo chatting at the Replimat leads to a surprisingly long digression. The Duras Sisters start an OnlyFans page. The Warriors gets praised while its unfortunate Director's Cut gets panned. Worf's behavior leads to a discussion about jealousy and negative emotions. Lloyd Dobler's Disease gets outlined and Justin once again lauds Cobra Kai. He also reveals one of the reasons for this DS9 episode failing while still holding his favorite Star Trek TV writers accountable. Gerd's opinion of Bajor becomes clear and Erik declares Ross from Friends is the only other character who could screw things up as badly as Worf does here.