Worst to Best Radiohead Albums

After years of waiting, nothing came. Until last week when all hell broke loose in the best use of using opaque in living memory.

Yes folks, Radiohead are back with their latest, as of now, untitled ninth album. After a five year long absence which has seen Coldplay release three albums, the Marvel cinematic universe finish it's first and second phases and inexplicably; this once rarely read opinion piece blog mostly focus on rarely read music reviews.

Worst to Best Weezer Albums

Weezer have always been a running joke in the music press. A band that had an unbelievable start in the mid-nineties before crashing, trying a more mainstream sound and failing miserable with a sadly accurate period dubbed the decade of decline.

Sure, frontman Rivers Cuomo still sounds like a lovelorn twentysomething fresh off the campus scene over twenty years since the band's debut album and, whilst the band should be applauded for at least trying new things, they're undoubtedly at their strongest when sticking to their formula of killer riffs and nerdy lyrics.

Worst to Best Morrissey Albums (...Including Bona Drag)

Despite eating meat, my hatred for PETA, my generally cheery demeanour; I am a massive fan of The Smiths and a massive fan of Morrissey's solo career.

Retcon-Nation's Five Biggest Nitpicks, Inconstancies and Problems with Breaking Bad (...that aren't Chemistry related)

Tomorrow (or today for our American/Canadian readers) is judgement day. Years in the making, hyped to Soprano-levels and with plenty of unanswered questions, Breaking Bad reaches it's dramatic conclusion and, much like you, I cannot wait...despite the fact that I'm going to, but I digress.

Top Ten Horrifying/Disgusting/WTF Moments in Resident Evil

2012 is a big year for gaming. Each week there’s something new to behold, a story about the next big thing, hints of the direction huge series’ will take in their steady evolution, how the big three console developers plan to one-up each other and claim victory in this crazy little thing called the “console wars”

One of 2012’s biggest releases Reece and I will be looking out for is Resident Evil 6. The long running survival/action-horror series had its humble beginnings as a shoddy Playstation title with player controlled characters that moved like tanks against mindless, shambling, grotesque zombies and worse in a haunted, claustrophobic mansion.

But since its humble beginnings; Resident Evil has mutated into one of the biggest franchises in gaming. Expanding it’s horizons with tighter gameplay, a less cheesier story and some absolutely horrifying moments, Resident Evil holds in it’s decaying hands a legacy that spans just under two decades of critical adulation and a cult following which can’t get enough of stopping Bio-Weapons from taking over the world.

With the eighth title on the horizon as a potential Game of the Year, this is Retcon-Nation’s top ten, most horrifying, disgusting and complete WTF moments in the main series, from Zero to Five (excluding Revelations as neither of us have played it yet).

Album of the Year 2011

It’s been a year of disappointment in terms of releases this year. Oh sure, there’s been a few very good albums for well-established artists. Some; who had amazing debuts have also delivered very entertaining follow-ups. Then there are issues with well established artists who have fallen at the peak of their own hype and delivered something disappointing or in some cases, truly horrifying.

I’ve listened to forty-two new albums this year (and depending on your own preferences; this is either mind-blowing or incredibly small). Although I tend to listen to more mainstream alternative artists (Radiohead, Coldplay, Snow Patrol etc), I also listen to obscure Pitchfork favourites (Girls, Fleet Foxes (if you can call them obscure), Driver Drive Faster etc). I even managed to cram some metal and rap (not together…never together) just to immerse myself in different genres in the hopes of finding a true gem amongst a steady pile of boredom.

There have been a large number of albums I consider very good which is reflected on this site for earning an eight out of a possible ten.

Out of all forty-two though, only one gained a nine and thus, is undeniably, my favourite album of the year and that album is…

Xenomania! '11: Alien 3

I once said in the review for Toy Story 3 that film trilogies never work. It can be a combination on plot threads left ultimately unfulfilled, bizarre, outlandish character developments, rehashing the previous entries in the franchise or simply being unjustified in existence.

But rarely can a film encompass all the points above with such spectacularly, terrible results than Alien 3. I mean, holy roman empire, this is bad. When me and Reece sat down to watch this on Saturday; I warned what was to come ahead, but it still came no where close to the actual quality of the film.

In a sentence: How on Earth can a film about a visually striking creature which rapes it's victims to procreate be so mind-numbingly boring?

The answer:

For one thing; all the events of Aliens are basically jettisoned into the vast void of discontinued plot threads, negating them from existence. Warning bells screech in the opening credits when only Sigourney Weaver and Lance Henriksen are mentioned. Then within ten minutes, the film does the unthinkable and says all the previously well established and likeable characters (minus a mangled Bishop) are dead (Newt gets Women in Refrigerator-induced treatment when her corpse has an autopsy for the audience's pleasure...niiiiiicccccceeee!).

So from the offstead, Alien 3 commits the cardinal sin of undoing all the work of the previous film. It's nowhere near as bad as the transition between Highlander and it's first sequel but it's on the same lines.

But this is just the start. The film wholly takes place on a prison planet, where the near thirty, all male inmates are described as "Rapists, murderers and child molesters". So yep, the characters we want to see survive the events unfold are basically irredeemable and aren't worth saving.

The film tries to throw a curveball by showing the inmates have embraced a religious philosophy that's part Harold Camping, part Friar Tuck. This leads to several long-winded scenes with main believer Dillion holding funerals or speeches that basically amount to "We're all screwed, but at least we'll be near God".

See, the main problem with Alien 3 is it tries to combine the tension of the original with the action of Aliens. The action is questionably scaled back to just one, poorly rendered CGI Xenomorph (this time emerging from a dog or an ox in the Director's Cut) which not only looks ridiculous and dated, but also makes the situation less grandeur from the hordes of monsters in the previous film.

The tension meanwhile is non-existant. The main focal point at the start is Ripley having a vagina and the inmates not seeing a woman for years. This is quickly glanced over with the discovery of the alien and then the film tries to evoke the spirit of the original by having an enemy in the shadows which could strike at any time.

This would work if the characters were likeable and engaging minus Ripley and then in the third act, it's discovered Ripley is immune to the Xenomorph's advances, therefore negating any tension in the film to zero and making any events entirely pointless.

It's only the last five minutes that are interesting and even then, it's more of a way to close the franchise off beyond any questionable doubt (more on that irony next time). On the whole, it's a poorly executed result of a poorly executed idea. The film is far, far too long, lacks any remotely likeable characters and the action sequences lack the bombastic thrills of it's predecessor.

And above all else, it's boring. Sleep inducing, soul draining and mind-numbingly boring.

Ripley's Believe It or Not!: Alien 3 is the only film in the franchise that doesn't take place years after it's predecessor and, to it's credit, Ripley is still the level-headed gal we left at the end of Aliens.

The major development in Alien 3 is Ripley being given a queen embryo, therefore making her a walking time bomb but also causing the attacking Xenomorph to completely avoid her (as she puts it "It won't attack it's future").

After this discovery; Ripley becomes suicidal, simply to prevent the Queen from emerging. She hunts down the Xenomorph as a means to die but the beast avoids her. She asks Dillion; a confessed rapist and murderer of women to kill her, but he refuses on the grounds of plot convenience.

By the end, the company arrive and despite the original Bishop's plea to take the creature, she sacrifices herself in molten lead, taking the Queen with her. Naturally, the idea of someone melting would normally finish that character, but this isn't the end of Ripley...to a certain extent.

Game Over Man!: The major change to the Xenomorph in Alien 3 is that it's now quadrupedal (since it's inherited it's parentage from a dog/ox). This basically fully establishes that Xenomorph's take on traits from their hosts (if you didn't already notice the subtle visual hints in the previous film).

Also, the previously established behavioural patterns in having the alien not kill all it's victims but return them to a nest is either retconned, partially forgotten or fully noticed as this Xenomorph basically kills everything it sees.

I'd like to say the latter as there's no Queen and therefore, no nest to return potential hosts hence why it kills everything but I think they just wanted to have the Alien as more of a simple monster, hence why it's probably the former.

Also, as if i've not said it enough, it seems Xenomorph's won't attack those carrying queens. It seems even they have a concept of regicide.

But minus that, there's very little newly stated facts to the Xenomorph's. If it makes you feel better, the next film will have a far more extensive look at behaviour and evolution.

Overall: Alien 3 is bad. Really, really, really bad. It's boring, lacks the tension, horror and terror of the previous two films and is an archetype of how not to do a sequel. It's so bad, it makes the next and final entry on this list look like Citizen Kane.

So join us tomorrow for Citizen Xenomorph!

...

I mean Alien Resurrection.

Xenomania! '11: Aliens

Whilst Alien is an oddity for being the first in a franchise where it's predecessor's are different genre's, James Cameron's sequel Aliens, is an oddity in it's own right for being one of those rare films which surpasses the original in entertainment value.

Rather than induce the slow-burn that Scott had accomplished with the original to create tension; Cameron calls Aliens "Forty miles of bad road". It's over an hour longer, has forty minutes at the beginning to re-establish Ripley as a character and, with the film now fifty-seven years in the future, cover the events to set the stage for the main chunk of the film's story.

Once the film is done explaining the universe, it's basically two hours of pure, unadulterated terror. Rather than tension, the film puts it principle players in scenario's that are practically impossible to survive, constantly. From the opening futile battle in the cooling tower to the film's final moments; it's no-win situation after no-win situation with narrow escapes and brief blemishes of hope.

This is made all the more engaging and captivating with having nearly all of the cast likeable. Whilst the Marines are your stereotypical obnoxious, loud and trigger happy crew (fun fact; Cameron asked everyone to read Starship Troopers before the film. Now watch both back to back and see the similarities), the combination of having them partially endearing and the scenario being so horrible makes you want to see them survive, even if they're main purpose is to up the ante and serve as a body count of the antagonists.

Aliens also brings back the idea of an antagonist in human form; this time in the form of smarmy business folk. From the first few moments where Ripley's entire story on Nostromo being declared mostly fabricated in a business meeting to Carter Burke's utterly horrifying actions on LV-426; Corporate America has never been more cruel (to the point where Ripley wonders which is worse; the Company or an alien race that procreate by raping other species...you be the judge!) and gosh darn it, it's what this film needed!

On the whole; Aliens is practically flawless as an action movie. Although you can argue that it's simply a precursor to the slightly superior Terminator 2 (evil race of antagonists, strong female character, good-if-at-times-morally-questionable robot, strong female character and good-if-at-times-morally-questionable robot defending innocent child and Michael Biehr), Aliens maintains elements that made the original good but changes the overall formula enough to make it not only worthy enough to exist in the universe Scott established, but make it a more thrilling, engaging and enjoyable film.

And just think, this was guy who eventually made Avatar and Titanic! Talk about how times change!

Ripley's Believe It or Not!: Whilst Ripley was basically a lucky if slightly sympathetic survivor in Alien; Aliens is where the Ripley everyone knows and loves comes into fruition. From the opening moments, we discover Ripley's daughter has died in the time she remained in hypersleep. Although she briefly grieves over her loss, the film focuses more on her post-traumatic stress of the events of Alien; including vivid and horrible nightmares in the opening act.

With the proper introduction of Newt in the second act, Ripley plays the motherly role. It's a stroke of genius by Cameron as Ripley is now an archetype that the audience can fully relate to (unless Norman Bates is watching the movie) and embrace.

She comes across as sympathetic, gentle, vulnerable and determined to protect her adopted child compared to the pure working ethic in Alien. Her finest moment in the entire series comes at the end as she storms into the Queen's nest, threatening her children for the sake of one of her own before finally battling her antithesis in a mechsuit to save the others (also stating one of cinema's best lines in the process).

She still retains her logic in the original although again, it's increased for the plot's sake and allowing the audience to project their thoughts to the other characters. She an advisor for the Marines, but even before the opening battle, she's fully aware of the Xenomorph's powers and constantly tells the crew to be more careful. When it all goes belly-up, she takes command for the operation from the C.O to rescue the survivors.

She also has, without sounding like a 'shiper; a strong relationship with Corporal Hicks. It's never really hinted at, but the pair get along well, share the same ideals in terms of operations and he plays up to her stronger character traits (which is made all the more tragic with Alien 3, but that's a point for next time).

Finally, after her violent clash with Ash on the Nostromo, she remains sceptic/vehemently against the use of newer model Bishop throughout the film. In fact, it's only until the film's final moments that Bishop's loyalties are made clear and her character can grow past her previous experience with androids.

Overall; a huge shift in character but necessary, believable and entertaining.

Game Over Man!: Whilst the Xenomorph's here are practically the same as the one in Alien; the social structure and Species hierarchy is revealed in Aliens and in short; Xenomorphs are ants.

It's revealed that a...family of Xenomorph's (I guess)? Anyway, the family has one huge Queen (complete with huge penis-like Ovipositor and egg sac..Giger would be proud!) which lays the eggs (without the need for procreation).

The regular Xenomorph's will then capture hosts, encase them in mucus at the nest (which has to be somewhere hot, in this case a nuclear-powered atmosphere reactor) , ready for the Facehugger to spring out and gestate and then spring out again as a chestburster.

See Aliens, unlike the original cut of Alien and it's sequels, doesn't really show human's dying at the Xenomorph's hands minus self defense. Instead, they kinda take them away screaming and let the next generation inadvertently do it. This also allows events like Newt's capture near the end to make sense and the prospect of saving those captured (although again, Newt is the only one successfully rescued).

And on a slight note, it seems they're capable of reasoning, although primitively. Ripley threatens to torch the entire nest unless she is allowed to go free with Newt and the Queens tells her guards to back off and allow her. They also seem familiar with the concept of revenge as Ripley still torches the nest and the Queen gives chase, ripping off the egg sac and ovipositor in the process...niiiiicccceeeee!

Overall: Aliens is fantastic. It's a film that never loses it's appeal on multiple viewings, has plenty of memorable moments and is a welcome change of pace from the original. If you haven't seen it already, do so, immediately! You'll enjoy it from start to finish.

But like all good things, it has to end and it's kind of ironic that Aliens is the series high; because the next in the franchise is easily the worst. Check back soon as the the series returns to it's singular title with Alien 3.

Altogether now:

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Xenomania! '11: Alien

The first Alien is an oddity. I know that sounds rather strange as it’s the first in a line of four movies (or six if you include the atrocious vs. Predator duo) but the original, in comparison with its predecessors; is a straight-up horror film.

Compared to the all guns blazing sequel which would partially carry over into Alien 3 and return entirely for Resurrection, Alien is a film which challenges it’s viewers to delve into an environment of isolation with seemingly no escape, against a foe of disturbing proportions.

This despite the human character’s being barely fleshed out over the half an hour before Kane is impregnated by the Face-Hugger (which leads to possibly the most gruesome screen debut in cinematic history), you generally feel sorry for their circumstances.

This mainly comes down to the crew being a compilation of your everyday, relatable worker rather than say, scientists who basically asking for it (the Nostromo is the equivalent of a tow truck and only landed on planet under direct orders from the unknown company).

Even Ash, who serves as the main human antagonist (although it’s gruesomely revealed he’s an android in the third act), always remains within this inner circle of people to work, but still remains loyal to his employers above all else, something many people will find relatable as the office suck-up.

But of course, the most memorable moments of the film involve the new discoveries of the said Alien. Starting off with killing Kane, it begins life on the ship as more of an unknown pest; small, quick and something seemingly easy to resolve with such a robust crew.

As the film continues, more details of the Alien are revealed and by the end, despite learning so much and witnessing so much death and jumps, we’re still left in the dark on what else this visually stunning and consistently disturbing creature is capable of.

Even at the end, the creature doesn’t die with the hero/heroes standing triumphant of their vanquished foe; instead, Ripley moves from one isolated, contained ship to an even smaller ship and is forced to flush the thing out into space, finds solace in entering hypersleep with her cat and is happy with the prospect of drifting for a number of years.

On the whole, watching Alien today is still an unusual experience. Like all great horror movies, it stands the test of time as the basic formula would still work nowadays. But what holds it back is the lack of mystery.

The film’s success is it’s own curse as the journey through the unknown is gone with the Alien entering public conscience; from the iconic Chestburster all the way to it’s mesmerising decent from the ceiling, it’s been parodied, mentioned in iconic lists and studied, but the introduction to Alien is still a unique experience despite each passing decade.

It’s a well directed, well orchestrated and well acted debut for the Alien Quadrilogy. But the horror elements would be shifted in the years to come in favour more pure terror and adrenaline, beginning with James Cameron’s foray into the franchise and the idea of more people fighting multiple Aliens.

Ripley’s Believe It or Not!: You wouldn’t guess Ellen Ripley would be the human face of the franchise from her original outing. Rather than the guns blazing action hero of Aliens or the unusual entity in Resurrection, Ripley here is a regular worker whose gender means nothing to the overall character (much like everyone on the ship)

She shows logic when Kane is attacked on the planet by wanting him quarantined only for Ash to over turn the decision, she constantly creates idea’s to stop the Alien from wandering around the ship killing crew members, but shows pure, unadulterated fear when the gravity of the situation deepens. Even when she kills Ash, it’s a horrifying murder against an almost unstoppable machine.

Overall; a likable if not too particularly distinctive character. One who would receive more depth with Aliens and Alien 3.

Game Over Man!: The basic lifespan of the Alien (or Xenomorph in future instalments) is revealed in the original film along with several characteristics which would set the foundations for one of sci-fi’s best loved monsters.

Beginning life as a fleshy egg (that would originally resemble a Vagina…yeah Giger is pretty weird), a Facehugger with acidic blood impregnates victim by forcibly entering an embryo down the victim’s throat (so yep, this new born Alien is a rapist too, niiiiiiccccee).

Said Facehugger dies, victim can act normal for a number of hours before the embryo grows enough to burst open out of the victim, killing them. Appropriately titled Chestburster will molt and grow-up fast (the alien grows from a foot to over two metres in a matter of hours in the film).

Newly evolved monster is fast, silent and takes on characteristics from its victim’s species. In this case; an androgynous look with features likes human fingers, walking hunched but on two legs and a lack of sexual organs...minus that phallic looking head (species inheritance would be further explored in Alien 3).

For plot convenience, the Alien has acid blood which can burn through steel (hence the lack of firearms in the film in case of combustion in Space) and displays some intelligence (it follows Ripley to the escape pod for a final showdown rather than remain on the Nostromo’s).

It also has a retractable tongue with a small pair of jaws for double the biting action!

Also in the Director’s cut, the entire life cycle was shown with a cocooned Brett being converted into an Egg and Dallas being used as a host for the eventual Facehugger. This was dropped entirely with the advent of Aliens but in context, creates a disturbing idea that every egg on the Space Jockey’s ship was a victim of a previous attack.

Overall: Horrifying and uneasy viewing with a strong, relatable cast and an introduction to one of most unique and disturbing entities on cinematic history, Ridley Scott’s Alien is a strange, grotesque but enjoyable introduction that paves the way for one of Sci-Fi’s biggest franchises. Up next; Aliens

Zombiethon '10: Dawn of the Dead

Dawn of the Dead can be summarised in two words: Consumerism and Materialism. It can also be placed amongst the small group of sequels that are better than their predecessors which was quite a feat even back in 1979.

It's also a strange sequel as the only things that carry over from Night... is the premise. None of the characters from Night... or anyone related to them make so much as a references in Dawn... which not only means you can watch Dawn without worrying about dangling plot threads, but it also means that like Night..., no one is fully safe and anyone can die at any given time.

Set an undisclosed amount of time after the initial outbreak, the world is slowly going to hell, martial law has entered several American cities and the dead are still rising. Two SWAT members and a couple decide to flee the cities and end up hauled up in a mall.

From the offset, Dawn... is a much better film than its predecessor. All the dread and tension of the first is still there, but there's a much greater sense of urgency and the action is a lot more fast paced which is much easier on the eyes.

All four main characters are intensely likable this time around which also raises the audiences hope that they'll make it through an ever decreasing situation. Tom Savini (who was drafted to Vietnam and missed out on Night...) is on hand with the special effects which must have been mind blowing at the time. Even now in retrospective, there's a real beauty in his work (even with the bright red blood).

On the whole, Dawn... is not just a great zombie flick, its a great film, easily one of the best in the horror genre. Although again like Night..., it has aged, it has a certain unmistakable charm to it that even after repeated viewings, it doesn't wane or bore, it simply becomes more entertaining which after the initial scares, is something to be cherished in a horror film.

Social Commentary:

Materialism is the obvious one. Our heroes spend the majority of the film in a shopping mall which is full to the brim of items they need and don't need. But once the excitement disappears and they have everything, they become bored and desperately want to leave.

Consumerism is again tied to the shopping mall. Our group constantly race to different stores in order to get the things they need or luxaries. The zombies are stuck outside, sometimes even clawing at the glass desperately trying to enter (although not for the products, but more the people themselves).

Racism is touched upon at the start of the film with the apartment block with one SWAT member gradually going insane and wondering why they get to live in an apartment in the first place.

Sexism is briefly touched upon with Fran finding herself left out of the boys plans to be rid of the zombies and secure the mall. Eventually Fran is trained to fly the helicopter (which becomes crucial in the final moments of the film).

The ethics of death are also prominent. The initial attack on the apartment block is down to people not handing over their deceased loved-ones as Peter puts it "they still believe there's a respect in dying" with a reverend holding several zombies in the basement. When Roger is bitten, he suddenly finds himself in the same position as someone terminally ill and is also treated in the same manner.

There's also the prospect of bombing major cities with nuclear weapons as a means to be rid of the zombies. Dawn... was created during the middle of the Cold War where similar apocalyptic scenarios were a constant threat.

Zombie Evolution:

The zombies appear to congregate at the mall as "it was a special place to them" according to Stephen

There are several segments with people debating on television about the zombies. A Government doctor is keen to point out that the zombies attack only the living and thus their behaviour isn't cannibalism as cannibalism implies an inter species activity.

Whilst in Night..., the government believes the zombies may be the result of a satellite from Venus burning up in the Earth's atmosphere, Peter believes the outbreak might be more akin with a doomsday scenario. He chillingly references a warning his grandfather (a voodoo priest) gave him when he was younger referring to the dead walking.

The zombies show far less intelligence here than in Night... (almost to the point of comedy).

When Stephen returns as a zombie, he remembers where the others were hiding upstairs and possibly, inadvertently, leads a group of them to where Peter and Fran are hiding. Memories will become a massive feature in then next film of the franchise; Day of the Dead.

Zombiethon '10: Night of the Living Dead

The grandaddy of them all and the only film on this list you can legally watch on Youtube, Night of the Living Dead is the first in Romero's Dead series and sets all prerequisites needed for the franchise including social satire, buckets of blood and gore (or in this case, chocolate syrup and roasted ham) and somewhat slow zombies.

On face level, Night... is a throwback to the fifties Saturday matineé horror movies; you have several damsels in distress, a level headed antagonist surrounded by people who should have died long ago from a severe lack of functioning brain cells and bizarre monsters.

On that same face level however, the film is notoriously gory and horrifying for something from the sixties. Radio broadcasts constantly update the group of characters (and us for that matter) on what exactly is going on beyond the farmhouse with each becoming more horrible than the last (with each update being recreated soon after).

There's a huge amount of tension and dread throughout the film. Our heroes (if you can call them that) are trapped in a somewhat haunted house, the ongoing threat outside is amassing and as time goes by, any chances of escaping deplete by the minute.

It's strange watching Night... now because like many older horror movies, it's difficult to watch due to it's age and the fact its in black and white. With time however, the film's horror has been replaced with a retrospective bleakness which does, in a strange sense, seem fresh and new.

On the whole however, it's an OK film. It does have some cheesy moments and a few bad editing choices but it's worth seeing, just to see where the modern day zombie shambled from.

...and just to show how fantastic of a sequel Dawn of the Dead is, which is thankfully coming up next.

Social commentary:

The Vietnam war for the ongoing broadcasts and updates against the antagonists.

Film historian Robin Wood believed the zombies represented a look at capitalism (with devouring other people being the obvious evolution of that, I guess).

The main protagonist (and easily the best character) Ben is black which was strange for the late sixties (even when you take into account Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X were prominent during the sixties). He doesn't run into any direct racism but the ending of the film is sadly ironic.

By the end of the film, it shows the army and several rednecks seemingly gaining control of the situation by shooting everything on site. Remember folks, at the end of the world, grab your gun and your best hat!

Zombie Evolution:

Foundations are set folks; the recently deceased are somewhat slow (although the very first zombie gives off a pretty good chase to Barbra), can crudely use tools and eat living people (although one strangely eats maggots).

A bite from one to a living person will turn that person into a zombie. They have apparently no comprehension or memories of their previous lives and will attack anyone, family included.

Only severe trauma to the brain can stop a zombie or completely incapacitating it (in this case, lots of fire).

Zombiethon '10

In a break from discussing Nintendo games and Doctor Who, Halloween is almost upon us and this year, your dynamic duo at Retcon-Nation have taken it upon ourselves to scare/laugh ourselves stupid with a monstrous undertaking.

This year, we'll be watching all six of George A. Romero's Dead films, it's spoof Shaun of the Dead and British collumist Charlie Brooker's take on the zombie mythos Dead Set.

Seven films, one mini series, a thousand corpses and more social commentary than Wikipedia, join us all over the weekend for sporadic updates, reviews, thoughts and more in Retcon-Nation's Zombiethon!