Merry Christmas Violence! Yes, it’s the annual somewhat festive special, this year covering The Peripheral (no Christmas content) and the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (lots of it).

But first, Nick’s finally finished watching The Americans after more than a year, while Alastair’s returned to Denmark’s most haunted hospital in The Kingdom: Exodus. Which does take place at Christmas!

After all that, they log in to The Peripheral (9:45), Amazon’s new cyberpunk thriller based on a William Gibson novel. Includes lengthy chat about the plot and themes, plus spoilers for a big plot turn in the second episode.

Last of all, Nick and Alastair finally embrace the season with the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (23:27). Did it make them feel the warmth and love of the holidays? Is Santa in it?

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This fortnight, Nick and Alastair knuckle down for some premium telly with new Star Wars series Andor and eagerly awaited boat show 1899.

But first, Alastair’s seen unsettling food movie The Menu, while Nick’s catching up with Star Trek: Lower Decks season 3.

And then they finally join the Rebellion with Andor (8:55), the new amazingly reviewed Star Wars series about the early radicalisation of the character from Rogue One.

Finally, they’ve also seen all of 1899 (26:13), the new series about mystery on a boat from the creators of their beloved Dark. Can it possibly live up to that legacy? Be aware, they go into full show-ruining spoilers from 33:57.

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This fortnight, Nick and Alastair take in an exquisite menu of famed predators, with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and The Bear.

But first, Nick read the first storyline of Public Domain, an excellent new comic about comics by Chip Zdarsky, while Alastair’s watched a subtitled movie for once, this time the new version of All Quiet on the Western Front.

After all that, they take their seats for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (10:31) to see how the secret country looks without beloved monarch Chadwick Boseman, somehow without spoiling much of the plot for once.

After which, they ready their napkins for some high-class dining with excellent new high-tension kitchen-set comedy-drama The Bear (29:07).

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This fortnight, Nick and Alastair (belatedly) celebrate one hundred years of the BBC with Doctor Who: The Power of the Doctor and Ghosts series 4!

But first, some sacrilegious non-BBC viewing, as Alastair watches acclaimed new movie Decision to Leave, while Nick finishes off House of the Dragon season 1.

After which, they clamber into the TARDIS and prepare to face their mortality with Doctor Who (10:06), including scattered spoilers throughout. In their defence, it did air 2.5 weeks ago.

Speaking of life after death, there’s a lot of that going round in Ghosts series 4 (28:26). It was Nick’s #1 TV show of 2021, can they keep up the quality?

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Nick and Alastair tackle some big TV shows this Halloween, with Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and Werewolf By Night. At least the last one is appropriate for the season.

First though, Nick’s dragging another franchise into it with Harley Quinn season 3, while Alastair brings us his annual thoughts from London Film Festival, including the one film Nick also saw there: Emily the Criminal.

But never mind that, they’ve got a lot of TV to get through, starting with The Rings of Power (13:36), a polarising prequel to Tolkien’s genre-defining fantasy novels.

And then move on to She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (27:33), which might’ve inspired almost as many arguments, before finishing on Marvel’s other seasonal release: spooky one-off Werewolf By Night (39:41).

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This fortnight, Nick and Alastair are trapped inside a basement in Inside Man, not to mention the metaphorical cage of their own grief in After Yang.

But first, Alastair’s gone for a trip to Pyongyang in the graphic novel by Guy Delisle, while Nick’s keeping on the theme of crime with Only Murders In The Building season 2.

And then it’s time to hole up and watch new BBC crime series Inside Man (14:36), a chance for Nick and Alastair to reconnect with oft-discussed writer Steven Moffat and find out his approach to murder. Surprisingly, they avoid spoiling the ending, but do talk about the plot of the first episode in moderate detail.

Finally, they’ve also watched After Yang (31:54), a sad (but good) sci-fi film about the passing of a robotic family member.

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Nick and Alastair abandon the real world once again for one of their occasional recommendation specials! This time, they return to some beloved franchises during their eighties era, with Spider-Man: Kraven’s Last Hunt and Doctor Who: Earthshock. (Be aware – there are spoilers for the then-shocking endings of these 30+ year old stories. Enter at your own risk.)

But first, a pitstop in the current century, as Nick reads all 193 issues of zombie mega-epic comic series The Walking Dead, while Alastair investigates new Netflix spy show Kleo.

And then Nick takes us back to a better, darker, sadder time, as we get buried alive with Kraven’s Last Hunt (14:36), the classic Spider-Man story by J.M. DeMatteis and Mike Zeck.

Lastly, Alastair improves the lighting (up to a point) with unique Doctor Who serial Earthshock (30:23), as the Cybermen return for revenge, so angry that they’ve pulled off all their cling film.

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This fortnight, Nick and Alastair effortlessly interweave the real and the fantastic with House of the Dragon and Thirteen Lives.

But first, some updates from the TV coalface, as Alastair watches the final season of Locke & Key, while Nick takes in the likely-final season of Westworld.

And then it’s back to the brutal world of Game of Thrones, but this time only the actual gaming for the throne without any other guff, in new spin-off House of the Dragon (12:23). But only the first three episodes, as that’s what’d aired when they recorded.

Lastly, Nick and Alastair are going deeper underground with Thirteen Lives (26:39), a movie about a bunch of kids trapped down a mine in Thailand. If that sounds familiar, it’ll be because it really happened.

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This fortnight, two of the big TV events of the year hit Nick and Alastair all at once, with Netflix’s adaptation of The Sandman and the final few episodes of Better Call Saul.

But first, Nick’s inevitably watched the first two episodes of She-Hulk from Marvel, while Alastair’s seen Where Is Anne Frank.

And then they drift off into The Dreaming with The Sandman (12:11) to see how this latest attempt to film an ‘unfilmable’ comic is gonna go.

Lastly, after covering it since the distant past of MFV #2, Nick and Alastair finally bid farewell to Better Call Saul (27:49, full ending spoilers from 32.41).

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This fortnight, all the latest four-letter-titled movies fresh from the cinema, with sky-horror movie Nope and Predator prequel Prey.

But first, Alastair’s back at the cinema yet again with Bullet Train, while Nick’s watching a TV show with episodes longer than most movies – yes, it’s Stranger Things season 4. Oh, and at the other end of the length spectrum, he’s also briefly covering Marvel animated short series I Am Groot.

And then they’re into the discourse with passion, starting with Nope (13:23), the new movie from Jordan Peele about staring upwards nervously. Including hardcore movie-ruining spoilers from 16:00 onwards, you have been warned.

Lastly, time to leg it into the forest with Prey (32:33), the next in the intermittent Predator franchise. But rumour among the trees says this one might be… good?

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