The guys get the new year started off with a heavy dose of dark fantasy/sci-fi, tackling 1985’s creepy and magical Return to Oz, the first season of Vince Gilligan’s Pluribus, and the epic conclusion of Stranger Things.

Steve’s Required Viewing pick is the small-town horror/comedy Ick, which concerns a bunch of people whose quaint, sheltered world is infested with malevolent forces that have slowly grown in power over countless years (gee I wonder what that’s like), and the guys discuss that before moving on to Wake Up Dead Man, the latest Benoit Blanc murder mystery from Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig, with another all-star cast and a lot to say about the nature of belief, centered on a small, hyper-religious cult of personality that threatens to corrupt everyone it touches (gee I wonder what that’s like). The guys also take a moment to admire the amazing career of the irreplaceable Rob Reiner.

Ron, Steve, and John gracefully dive in slow motion with their guns blazing in the direction of John Woo’s 1992 bullet festival, Hard Boiled. Do the Schmovie guys have what it takes… to be a cop? Then they kick around a couple recent news items and dig in to other stuff they’ve seen. Kind of the usual format.

Ron, Steve, and John put on their tennis shoes and tiptoe around to live up to the title of this week’s Required Viewing pick, the cozy tech heist caper Sneakers. Then Ron and Steve make a quick trip to OZ for their thoughts on the hotly-anticipated (and oddly divisive) Wicked: For Good.

Ron, Steve, and John got to see an advance screening of Edgar Wright’s re-adaptation of Stephen King’s 1982 novella, The Running Man! And in this special .5 episode, they meet up in John’s car for a post-movie conversation that touches on the strengths and weaknesses of the film, Glenn Powell’s star power, and how this take differs from the 1987 Schwarzenegger-led version.

After snacking on a couple recent news tidbits, the guys ride along with the beleaguered paramedic protagonists of Steve’s Required Viewing pick, Code 3. Then it’s an update on the third episode of Welcome to Derry and a few thoughts from John regarding Guillermo Del Toro’s passion project out on Netflix today—a very personal take on Frankenstein.

Ron’s Required Viewing pick is Good Boy, a new horror film that focuses on a dog’s point of view, starring a lovable canine actor who deserves all the treats. After that topic, it’s time to check back in on the supremely messed-up happenings in Stephen King’s Derry, Maine, followed by a brief rundown of other stuff the guys have watched.

The guys tunnel down to the underground city of Midian to check in on Clive Barker’s Director’s Cut of his dark fantasy epic from 1990, Nightbreed, and then follow the usual format of rattling off thoughts on whatever else they’ve watched, including Ron’s take on Tron: Ares and John’s spoiler-free look at the debut episode of HBO Max’s IT prequel series, Welcome to Derry.