Episodes
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George and Kathy Lutz moved into 112 Ocean Avenue in Amityville, New York, in December 1975, roughly one year after its previous residents were shot and killed in their sleep. They fled less than a month later, leaving behind their belongings and claiming to have been terrorized by demonic forces. This story served as the basis for Jay Anson’s 1977 book, which itself spawned nine follow-ups, more than 60 films, and countless parodies and homages.
A half a century later, what’s it like to revisit the non-fiction (?) book that started it all? The Losers’ Club finds that out in the latest episode of their Danse Macabre series, in which they discuss the books and movies recommended by King in his 1981 horror treatise of the same name. Losers Jenn Adams, Randall Colburn, Ashley Casseday, and Ana Marie Cox unpack the disputations, lawsuits, and defenses that color the book’s history, as well as whether you can ever read a story as it was originally intended after its been fed through the pop cultural gristmill. -
The Losers are back in The Stacks for another round for recommendations, digressions, and musings about the joys of the written word. Randall, Ashley, Sammie, and Julia begin by gabbing about some of May's new horror and genre releases and riffing on the latest news from the literary world, including Michael B. Jordan scooping up the rights to some BookTok favorites. Then we share our own recommendations, which span fiction and non, horror and sci-fi, and releases new and old. Two are about video games and one inspired 1987's Angel Heart. Pretty rad. Check out an abbreviated list of our recs below.
Books:
Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes
Falling Angel by William Hjortsberg
Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves by Sophie Gilbert
The Lady from the Black Lagoon: Hollywood Monsters and the Lost Legacy of Milicent Patrick by Mallory O'Meara
The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward
Mary: An Awakening of Terror by Nat Cassidy
Noobs by CG Regan
Polybius by Collin Armstrong
Other recs:
Andor (series)
Book of Love: Book of Love (album)
Dead Mail (movie)
Peter and the Pulsars (band)
Provoker: Mausoleum (album)
Subtle Hints: Subtle Hints (album) -
Episodes manquant?
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Here's a clip from our latest Patreon-exclusive episode that sees your Losers ranking all three Stephen King Hard Case Crime novels: The Colorado Kid, Joyland, and Later. Want to hear the full track? Become a member of The Barrens (Patreon) by visiting www.patreon.com/thebarrens. You'll unlock hundreds hours of exclusive content that includes even more episodes of The Stephen King Archives, our Dark Tower Detour series, dozens of Ka-mmentary tracks for your favorite King flicks, all of our Lobstrosities episodes clawing through those silly King sequels, in addition to spinoffs like The Soul's Midnight, Talkin' Hawkins, and CrichtonCast. Not to mention, dozens upon dozens of locked episodes and one-offs, including a 24-7 Discord community featuring Constant Listeners just like you!
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Check it, there's a dead guy over there. He's talking to us. His mouth and his words don't match up entirely, but if you just listen, he's not hard to follow. Get used to it. They're everywhere. The dead. And they have a lot to say before they're gone forever. The Losers visit New York City and stop by The Manhattan Restaurant of the Mind to pick up Stephen King's third hardboiled crime novel, Later. Join Losers Randall Colburn, Michael Roffman, McKenzie Gerber, and Rachel Reeves as they discuss the new rules of the dead, the book's ties to King's Dominion, and whether or not the twist works or flops. Note: This episode was recorded in Spring of 2021.
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The Losers untie another big ol' Bag of Bones and answer your questions. Questions like: "Did Jud kill Church?"; "Are we getting more Twinner episodes like 'Carrie'?"; and "What are the Losers' favorite episodes?" They're also tasked to replace Roland's ka-tet, inject Stephen King into the Jersey Shore, and cast a whole season of White Lotus with King characters. Good stuff, great fun, Losers' Club. Want to ask them a question on the next Bag of Bones episode? Become a patron at www.patreon.com/thebarrens.
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This months marks the 40th anniversary of Cat's Eye. Directed by Lewis Teague, the 1985 anthology film delivers three memorable adaptations for "Quitters, Inc.", "The Ledge", and the written-for-the-screen-closer "General". Join the Losers as they finally review the King classic as part of their ensuing Long Watch series.
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Play ball! The Losers hit the green with Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan as they revisit their two baseball books: 2004's Faithful and 2012's novella "A Face in the Crowd". For more baseball coverage, head to The Barrens (patreon.com/thebarrens) for Faithful, Too, which sees Justin Gerber journaling this year's season of the Chicago Cubs.
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“If it bleeds, it leads.” In the second of two episodes dedicated to Stephen King's 2020 novellas collection If It Bleeds, Losers Randall Colburn, Michael Roffman, Dan Caffrey, and Jenn Adams discuss the titular and final novella, "If It Bleeds". Together, they parse through King’s true crime era and what the future of Holly Gibney might bring, be it on the page or in another season of HBO’s The Outsider. Note: This episode was recorded in 2020 and is being dusted off for our proper chronological re-read.
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“When an old man dies, a library burns.” Join Losers Randall Colburn, Michael Roffman, Dan Caffrey, and Jenn Adams as they take a call from the grave, busk on the streets of Boston, and abscond to a rustic cabin upstate. In the first of two episodes dedicated to Stephen King's 2020 novellas collection, they review three out of the four stories: “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone”, “The Life of Chuck”, and “Rat”. Be sure to continue their coverage with Pt. 2 that sees them visiting Finders Keepers to reunite with Holly, Jerome, and the rest of the gang. Note: This episode was recorded in 2020 and is being dusted off for our proper chronological re-read.
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If you're anything like us, peace is wandering the stacks of a dusty, cramped bookstore, looking for the next title to lose yourself in. The Stacks, The Losers' Club's new monthly series, aims to evoke that feeling by discussing the month's new genre releases while also sharing recommendations for the books, movies, shows, podcasts, and music they're consuming. Fear not, for this is a spoiler-free zone. Just know that a wish list hates to see us coming.
In its inaugural episode, Losers Randall Colburn, Jenn Adams, Dan Caffrey, and Sammie Kuykendall dish on the latest news in publishing, including James Patterson's collab with Mr. Beast and the new Hunger Games prequel about Haymitch Abernathy. After discussing new April releases from Natalia Theodoridou, Nat Cassidy, Ronald Malfi, and more, they share their own recommendations, all of which you can see below.
Books:
Maeve Fly by CJ Leede
Dead Eleven by Jimmy Juliano
Hell House by Richard Matheson
Mostly Hypothetical Mountains by Josh Tillman
Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay
Strange Pictures by Uteksu
The Winner by Teddy Wayne
Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism by Sarah Wynn Williams
Other recs:
Adolescence (series)
Chaos: The Manson Murders (movie)
Coulda Been Love (web series)
Dark Horse (movie)
Ghosts in the Burbs (podcast) -
You are cordially invited to another unforgettable night of The Kingies! With the '10s now behind them, the Losers must choose the best and worst of Stephen King's output throughout his most recent decade.
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A scoop of Firestarter, a dash of IT, and just a soupçon of Carrie and The Shining — Stephen King’s novel The Institute is like a bowl brimming with the author’s greatest hits. But does it go down smooth? That’s what the Losers’ Club asks in their episode about the 2019 tome, which takes readers inside the eponymous Institute where a mysterious gaggle of doctors, scientists, and thugs subject psychically-touched children to terrible tests, many of which border on pure torture.
Join the gang as they dissect what the story has to say about friendship, U.S. foreign policy, and the youth of today. Questions abound! Can King write modern kids as well as he can those of the ‘50s and ‘60s? How does the paranoia of early books like Firestarter and The Stand factor in here? Does adding “-ster” to someone’s name make for a good nickname? They also comb through the book’s reviews and King’s pre-release interviews to puzzle over the relentless comparisons to the crisis at the Southern border. Weird stuff. -
Losers Randall Colburn, Michael Roffman, and Justin Gerber head to Hollywood King again to discuss the latest developments in King's Dominion, specifically Netflix's Cujo (yes, that's a real thing), Mike Flanagan's The Life of Chuck, Edgar Wright's The Running Man, the 2025 Oscars, the work of Spike Jonze, and god knows what else came to mind.
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This month's book episode is The Institute. In anticipation, we're unlocking this spirited ranking episode from 2023 in which the Losers talk about their favorite Bad Boys in King's Dominion. Instead of listing and ranking, however, we’re gonna let the Boys do what they do best and duke it out with each other until only one remains. As per tradition, the Losers use a March-Madness style Bracket to narrow down the competitors to a grand champion. For more of these kind of bracket episodes, join The Barrens: patreon.com/thebarrens.
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The Losers return to Castle Rock, Maine to dine at a hot new enchilada spot, only to learn about the craziest diet of all time. You see, there's this guy in town who keeps losing weight. And no, his name isn't Billy Halleck. Join the gang as they flip through 2018's quite slim novella Elevation.
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The Losers' Club review Osgood Perkins' highly anticipated Stephen King adaptation The Monkey. For even further discussion on the film, become a member of The Barrens at patreon.com/thebarrens.
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Well, here's a strange detour. Remember Tom Holland's 1995 miniseries adaptation of The Langoliers? We do, too. And we covered it in 2019. In 2021, however, Greek filmmaker Aristotelis Maragkos retooled said miniseries into a 62-minute paper film that Bloody Disgusting's Meagan Navarro calls "a condensed, experimental, and ingenious reworking of the source material." Now, the Losers chime in four years later.
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The Losers get smutty in the latest list episode after they gush about their favorite Stephen King crushes from within the pages. Things take some wild turns in this episode, so get ready!
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Five years later, the Losers re-review HBO's The Outsider.
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The Losers head to Flint City, Oklahoma to record a full-fledged book episode on Stephen King's 2018 novel The Outsider. Together, they weigh in on the balance between true crime and the supernatural, whether Holly Gibney adds or detracts from said balance, and the post-MeToo era's influence on the story.
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