Binary System Podcast

We actually went to see Backrooms before it left theaters, so now we've got to go into everything we loved about this smart, scary, INTENSELY WEIRD film.
We also get into the solution to the locked room mystery on Welcome To Night Vale, which seems a little hand-wavey but that may be a red herring.

Binary System Podcast #511 – Backrooms, and WTNV #290 “A Solution” | Pixelated Geek We're so glad we actually went to see Backrooms while it was still in the theater, partly because it's exactly the kind of horror movie we like: scary, light on the gore, smart, just enough jump scares, and most of all intensely WEIRD. It's deliciously unsettling and we could just marinate in that u...

"...a mind bending slow burn thriller that captivated me from start to end, even with a slight fault that prevents it from being a full-on masterful film."

Hugh gives Disclosure Day an A, check out the full review!

Review – Disclosure Day | Pixelated Geek Directed by Steven Spielberg, Disclosure Day follows a targeted whistleblower, Daniel Kellner (Josh O'Connor), who possesses drives containing classified files proving the government and a shadowy corporation called Wardex have covered up extraterrestrial contact for decades. Teaming up with rogue o...

"...Fern definitely thinks it would've been a hell of a lot better to have stayed home and had the awkward conversation with her friends, because the trip is monumentally uncomfortable and people keep trying to kill her..."

Elizabeth reviews Travis Baldree's Brigands & Breadknives.

Review – Brigands & Breadknives | Pixelated Geek Fans of Travis Baldree's Legends & Lattes (deliciously cozy fantasy) and Bookshops & Bonedust (also cozy fantasy, but with more zombies) will find a lot to like about Brigands & Breadknives, even though it's the least cozy of the trilogy. On purpose! Setting up a coffee shop or rescuing a struggling...

This week we're recapping the season 1 finale of Pluribus and boy howdy this episode never went where we were expecting. When do we get season2??

Binary System Podcast #510 Pluribus Episode 9, Season Finale | Pixelated Geek What do you know, we actually managed to finish watching a season of TV less than six months late! And wow, what a season. Pluribus has had some amazing episodes, with a story that's been both delightful and heartbreaking and which never went where we were expecting. So it really means something to....

"Two of the remaining three novelettes this year could be considered dystopian (depending on how negatively you view the universe of Martha Wells’s Murderbot series), and the third takes place in America in what could be called the Golden Age, just not for everyone."

Kathryn reviews the Hugo-nominated “Never Eaten Vegetables” by H.H. Pak, “Rapport: Friendship, Solidarity, Communion, Empathy” by Martha Wells, and “The Millay Illusion” by Sarah Pinkser.

2026 Hugo Awards – Three More Novelettes | Pixelated Geek Two of the remaining three novelettes this year could be considered dystopian (depending on how negatively you view the universe of Martha Wells's Murderbot series), and the third takes place in America in what could be called the Golden Age, just not for everyone. "Never Eaten Vegetables" - H.H. Pa...

On this week's Night Vale recap, we talk about how Jalen's being awfully nice about getting arrested for the murder his doppelganger (probably) committed.

Then we jump into Pluribus episode 8, and how hard it is to stay stubborn when an ENTIRE PLANET is nerding out about your book

Binary System Podcast #509 – WTNV #289 “The Collection Plate” and Pluribus Episode8 | Pixelated Geek On this week's Night Vale recap, Jalen is being awfully understanding about being in jail for a murder his dead doppelganger (probably) committed. But a secret ally is sending clues that could help Cecil solve the case, if Cecil can stop obsessing about his stapler long enough to figure it out. And....

"...Ella is an intangible knot of yearning in the shape of a sixteen-year-old’s ghost, and she takes every chance she can to feast her eyes on all the marvelous scenes available to someone who can walk through walls."

Kathryn reviews Freya Marske’s Cinder House.

Review: Cinder House | Pixelated Geek How does a house, lacking flesh, feel fury? I went into Freya Marske's novella completely cold, and I thought maybe this was going to be a humorous retelling of Cinderella. Ha ha, a poor house that has to slave away for its evil stepmother and two evil stepsisters, how droll. Nope. This particular r...

"...It’s fun, gritty, smart, sleek, stylish and not afraid to go Cage Crazy in a self-contained universe..."

Hugh gives Spider-Noir season 1 an A, check out the review!

Review – Spider-Noir Season 1 | Pixelated Geek Created by Oren Uziel and Steve Lightfoot, Spider-Noir follows Ben Reilly (Nicolas “F**king” Cage), an aging, down-on-his-luck private investigator, who grapples with his past life as the only superhero in 1930s New York City, the Spider. When an exceptional case comes his way, Ben must become t...

First up this week we recap a Night Vale episode that's so freaking clever we can't stand it, a hard-bitten gumshoe film noir mystery with all the tropes. Watch out for the nickel-weasles.
Then we recap Pluribus episode 7, which keeps breaking our hearts in the most unexpected ways.

Binary System Podcast #508 – WTNV #288 “Doubles Anonymous” and Pluribus Episode 7 | Pixelated Geek The investigation into the murder of Marcus Vanston is moving ahead at breakneck speed. And for this week only, Cecil's covering the latest developments in a hard-boiled, film noir style that only gets weirder (and more fun) when you add Night Vale's tendency to mess with metaphors (we WILL be tryin...

“Let’s take a break from hard-hitting topics for a while and bring in some frikkin’ whimsy."

Kathryn reviews the Hugo-nominated novellas "The River Has Roots" by Amal El-Mohtar, and "Murder by Memory" by Olivia Waite.

2026 Hugo Awards Novellas: The River Has Roots, and Murder By Memory | Pixelated Geek Let's take a break from hard-hitting topics for a while and bring in some frikkin' whimsy. The novellas by Amal El-Mohtar and Olvia Waite have wildly different settings: a small town on the border of Fae and the banks of a river where the water is highly-concentrated magic, versus a detective story....