Tread Perilously

Tread Perilously begins a month of haunting television with the Angel episode called "Rm w/a Vu."

When Cordelia's apartment gets overrun with roaches and Doyle's debts in the favor-based economy catch up with him, Angel offers to help the demon if he can find Cordy a new place to live. As it happens, Doyle knows a guy and she moves into a fab one-bedroom in the Hollywood Hills. It's rent-controlled, too, but it does have one little catch: the ghost of the building's original owner and her hatred of any woman who would come near her son, Dennis. Will Angel and Doyle figure out a way to exorcise the ghost or will Cordy figure out a way to deal with her apartment's quirk?

The haunting at Tread Perilously starts early as Justin and Erik have to re-record the first 20 minutes of the podcast. Doyle's plot drives them both batty as well. Other elements of Angel's early reality create issues for Justin. Erik declares "socially-awkward Angel" as his favorite take on the character. The probability of an exorcist setting up shop in Koreatown leads to one of the better Geography Corner segments. Erik respects actor Beth Grant's commitment to Sparkle Motion and Tommy Wiseau somehow ends up mattering to the proceedings.

Tread Perilously's annual Star Trek month concludes with an episode of Star Trek: Enterprise called "United."

With Trip and Reed stuck on the Romulan droneship, Archer must convince Shran and the Tellarite ambassadors to work together. It might sound simple, but in the previous episode, one of the Tellarites aboard Enterprise shot Shran's life-mate. And once she succumbs to her wounds, the hot-tempered Andorian demands satisfaction. Will Hoshi and Mayweather figure out Andorian customs in time for Archer to intervene or will the Tellatire ambassador taste the cold steel of Shran's ice-axe? And will Trip and Reed figure out a way to take control of the drone?

Erik and Justin are stunned to see Captain Archer make a positive change. They shower Shran -- and guest star Jeffrey Combs -- with praise. Fellow guest star Brian Thompson also wins high marks as a Romulan commander. Erik even praises the new Star Trek: Lower Decks! The appearance of Remans proves successful. The early Star Trek: Deep Space Nine uniforms get critiqued. Justin envisions "Trip-Hulk." The pair examine the Andorian blood-challenge and the species' cold-weather gear. Does it all add up to an episode of Enterprise Erik and Justin actually like?

Tread Perilously's Star Trek month continues with an episode of Star Trek: Voyager called "Timeless."

Fifteen years after the U.S.S. Voyager crashed on Planet Hoth, Harry Kim and Chakotay steal Borg technology to prevent the accident which took the lives of their shipmates. Meanwhile, fifteen years in the past, Harry prepares to test a new quantum slipstream drive. If successful, the Voyager will return to the Alpha Quadrant within moments. Will Harry be able to transmit badly need math to his past self? Will Starfleet arrest the him for high crimes against the Federation? Will Chakotay sell out his ethics to collaborate again? And will Captain Geordi LaForge see honor in what the Voyager survivors intended to do?

Justin learns why Harry gets so few feature stories. Erik immediately gets frustrated by another Voyager episode in which time travel negates catastrophe. Alex Kurtzman's stewardship of the brand leads to an examination of Federation/Romulan relations. The pair debate whether or not the episode's cold open is good. They also try to figure out how a modernized Harry Kim would work. It somehow leads to a discussion of Wil Wheaton's teeny-bopper moment. Erik recasts Neelix as the true Vulcan Kolinahr test and Justin calls out Starfleet for its lack of sexual harassment guidelines.

Tread Perilously's Star Trek month continues with Star Trek: The Next Generation's Season 2 premiere, "The Child."

While transferring the new chief medical officer, Doctor Katherine Pulaski, to the Enterprise, an energy form crosses paths with the ship and decides to become human. Embedding itself in Counselor Troi, she soon experiences a heavily accelerated pregnancy. Meanwhile, an outbreak of plasma plague forces Captain Picard to allow a cargo of dangerous virus samples aboard. Will Troi's alien child disturb the samples? And will it ever admit its reasons for becoming a real boy?

Erik and Justin immediately launch into a discussion of KISS as Erik's impression of Ace Frehley becomes an unlikely guest. The episode's origins as a script written for Star Trek: Phase II get discussed while Dr. Beverly Crusher's absence does not go unnoticed. Geordi's promotion is declared one of the show's smartest decisions. Justin recalls the time he visited the Next Generation set. He also marvels at how an episode ostensibly about Counselor Troi isn't actually about Counselor Troi. Erik both praises and criticizes Brent Spiner's performance in one scene and the pair try to determine what sort of New Wave band Troi's child, Ian Andrew, would front.

Tread Perilously's annual Star Trek month begins with a look at the Original Series episode "The Lights of Zetar."

Love blooms on the Enterprise as Scotty finds himself a lass. But will her sensitivity to a phenomenon the ship encounters while en route to Memory Alpha end his rare moment of romance? Also, will Captain Kirk abide not being the center of attention this week? And while we're asking questions, will Lt. Mira Romaine -- Scotty's girlfriend -- get manhandled once she exhibits signs of "space sickness?" Meanwhile, the space phenomenon shows signs of sentience, but its motives are unclear as its speech tends to sound like a mouth full of Pop Rocks.

Erik and Justin immediately talk about former Doctor Who Peter Davison. They also debate the merits of Star Trek: Discovery. The Southern California air threatens to strangle them both. A mention of episode co-writer Shari Lewis leads to the nearly forgotten Nickelodeon program Turkey Television; but, somehow, not to Lewis's most famous creation, Lambchop. Captain Kirk turns into a romance writer. Scotty and Kirk's patriarchal attitudes are criticized. Erik decries the need for strict series-to-series continuity. John Harrison gets a namecheck and Justin announces he will write a script requested by Patreon subscribers.

Tread Perilously's British Telly Month concludes the only way it can -- with an episode of The Vicar of Dibley called "Songs of Praise."

When a BBC show decides to spotlight the Dibley church, Geraldine realizes she has to hastily assemble a choir. She also starts to imagine chatting up a handsome BBC producer. Meanwhile, David thinks he's chatting up the attractive cameraperson the Beeb sent up to scout the church. And when the programme's producer (Peter Capaldi!) arrives in town, Geraldine gets the impression he might be interested in her. Will her amorous aspirations deep-six the choir recording? Or is there more to the Londonite sophisticate than anyone realizes?

Erik discusses some of the other shows on tap for a potential second British Telly month. Justin doubts Rumpole of the Bailey is a real thing. He also tries to figure out why Peter Capaldi is downplaying his Scottish accent in this episode. Erik makes the case for Courtney Thorne-Smith as a Jenna Fischer All-Star. The pair eventually get to the Dibley character who likes to talk about putting his arm up a sheep. The 90s sitcom quality makes The Vicar of Dibley a hard sell and Henry VIII gets the credit for the first "vicar" joke.

Tread Perilously's British Telly month continues with a trip to Coronation Street and both parts of the episode dated 26 July 2019.

Chesney is confounded when Bernie appears in the front room stark naked. Does this having anything to do with him having a baby with her daughter? Ali learns his date with a local disk jockey went poorly, will it affect his possible romance with local hairdresser Maria? Kevin's house is burglarized while his son is home alone. Will Abi come to their rescue? Meanwhile, Tracy discovers her husband is running a party horse concession on the side -- will it lead to an extravagant purchase?

Erik and Justin declare Abi the MVP of Coronation Street. They also appreciate the more "average" look of the cast. Justin continues to investigate Erik's dislike of Dave Franco. Both try to invent a Britishism for "baby mama." Justin is enchanted by the surprise Latverian character. He also tries to figure out why all the men on the show completely lack for style. Erik assumes the worst of Rick & Morty based on its fans. Justin weakly attempts to get Erik to watch What We Do In The Shadows and the pair gets lost talking about Marvel movies.

Tread Perilously's month of British Telly continues with the episode of The Persuaders! called "Angie ... Angie"

When Lord Brett Rupert George Robert Andrew Sinclair (Roger Moore) and American Danny Wilde (Tony Curtis) arrive in Cannes, Danny bumps into Angie, a friend from the old neighborhood. They celebrate their mutual successes, but it soon becomes clear to Sinclair and Judge Fulton that Angie's success may be thanks to his talents as a gangland assassin. Meanwhile, the judge expects Danny and Sinclair to keep an American union boss alive while he takes in the Cannes Film Festival. Will they accomplish their mission? And will Danny accept that Angie is a no-good hitman?

Erik and Justin imagine Roger Moore and Tony Curtis taking over Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. They also discuss the miscasting of F-Troop's Larry Storch as Angie. Erik ends up becoming very taken with Angie's attractive assistant assassin. The duo chat about their favored James Bond films as it is required by international statute. Justin explains his new fascination with the Eurovision Song Contest, but certain Britishisms continue to confound him. Frankie Five Fishes, The Passive-Aggressive Gangster, makes a surprise appearance. The pair also try to imagine what an award-winning Bulgarian comedy produced during the Communist Era might look like.

Tread Perilously starts a month of British telly with the sci-fi classic Sapphire & Steel and parts 1 & 2 of their "Assignment 3."

Sapphire and Steel are summoned to an apartment block where strange time disturbances have been detected. But the apparent source of the trouble is a vacant flat. Meanwhile, a family unit consisting of a woman, a man, and a child are becoming increasingly agitated by strange noises, a lack of communication from their home base, and the sudden desire to murder one another. And since their home is identical to the flat Sapphire and Steel investigated, where are they? Or, perhaps, when are they? Will time give them time? Or will it make lovers feel like they've got something real?

Justin tries to make sense of the characters and the premise. He also tries to understand the brutalist architecture of mid-20th Century England. Erik gets lost in the square footage of what he considers to be a luxury flat. Justin determines Garth Marenghi's Darkplace is a direct parody of Sapphire & Steel. A reading of Joanna Lumley's CV sounds a little too made up for Justin's liking. He also tries to make sense of David McCallum's hairstyle. Joy Division becomes an important cultural touchstone and pillows turn into murderous swans.

Tread Perilously's Patreon request month winds down with a very special episode of The A-Team called "Labor Pains."

When the A-Team manages to lose Colonel Decker in a chase around the Central Valley, they hide out in a town under the grip of a local produce concern. Soon, Hannibal Smith learns the workers cannot can get their fair share or have the issues addressed by management. The A-Team springs into action as labor unionizers, bringing food to the workers and convincing them collective action will bring about positive change -- particularly as produce baron Ted Jarrett needs his crops picked before the rains come. Can the A-Team help the farmerworkers get their union recognized in time? And will B.A. Baracus build a produce gun?

Erik and Justin get lost when they realize episode co-writer Richard Christian Matheson is the son of acclaimed sci-fi writer Richard Matheson. Justin admits he was not allowed to watch The A-Team as a kid, and is surprised with its extremely pro-union message. The lack of prominent Mexican-American farmworker characters grates on Erik, though. Regan gets invoked once again. The pair tries to determine what the "Los Angeles Underground" really is and what crime the A-Team committed. Erik is surprised to discover "Howlin' Mad" Murdoch is an abrasive character. Both are surprised to discover Colonel Decker's second-in-command is played by Devil in a Blue Dress director Carl Franklin and Erik discusses the gleeful joy behind most Cannon films.