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Hero Hero Ghost Show! is an Asian horror-focused podcast examining movies of all eras from these diverse and fascinating cultures. We try to provide some cultural context and have a little fun along the way.

 

  • The Dark Parade #39: Bloody Muscle Body Builder in Hell - Richard Glenn Schmidt returns for a look at the gonzo J-horror silliness that is Bloody Muscle Body Builder in Hell. We discuss the joys of earnest rip-offs, the downsides of polo shirts on muscular bods, and oh so much more! Bloody Muscle Body Builder in Hell is available streaming on Shudder, so don’t be shy […]
  • over your dead body The Dark Parade #25: Over Your Dead Body - It’s Miike time again, and that means bringing in Asian horror enthusiast Derek Bourgeois for a look at Takashi Miike’s Over Your Dead Body. We talk about the blurring of the real world and that of the play represented, dig into the themes of the movie, and wrap up with three things you might not […]
  • The Vampire Doll The Dark Parade #21: The Vampire Doll - We wrap up our inaugural Listener Request Month with a return to some Asian horror roots with a look at part one of The Bloodthirsty Trilogy and The Vampire Doll. Joined by Don Anelli, we look at the Hammer horror origins of the movie, the amazing Gothic vibes, and how fun it is to see […]
  • prisoners of the ghostland review Legion Podcasts: The Prisoners of the Ghostland Review - Get ready for the (mildly) crazy, it’s the Prisoners of the Ghostland review! It was a match made in movie Heaven. Sion Sono, the auteur behind Suicide Club and Exte and the underappreciated Tag teaming up with Nicolas Cage, an actor who embodies a peculiar bravado. Pepper that cinematic meal with Bill Mosely and Sophia […]
  • A Page of Madness Hero Hero Ghost Show: A Page of Madness - On a new episode of Hero Hero Ghost Show, we kick off a sub-series called Ghost Show Classics with a look at the influential and surreal silent-era film A Page of Madness from Teinosuke Kinugasa. I look at everything from the effect of firebombing on silent Japanese cinema to the roots of this once-lost classic […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show: One Missed Call 3 - Welcome to the finale of our look at the One Missed Call series with One Missed Call 3. Joined once more by Derek Bourgeois, we take a look at this final sequel, look back at the series as a whole, and discuss the best in Asian horror movies series. Also, Derek gives some of his […]
  • one missed call the television series Hero Hero Ghost Show: One Missed Call The Television Series Part 2 2005 - Derek and Bo are ack to finish a look at 2005’s One Missed Call The Television Series. We celebrate Tokumei Watch, parse out all the twists and turns, and evaluate the series as a whole before next episode’s One Missed Call finale, One Missed Call: Final! You can subscribe to Hero Hero Ghost Show on Apple […]
  • one missed call the television series Hero Hero Ghost Show: One Missed Call The Television Series Part 1 2005 - We are joined once more by Derek Bourgeois to explore the hard-to-find but wonderful One Missed Call The Television Series aka Chakushin Ari. We talk the novelization, the similarities with Miike’s film and how terrific Yokumei Watch is. You can subscribe to Hero Hero Ghost Show on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, Podchaser, iHeartRadio, and Google Podcasts. Catch up on back episodes […]
  • one missed call 2 2005 Hero Hero Ghost Show: One Missed Call 2 2005 - Just when you thought it was safe to answer your cell phone… it’s One Missed Call 2 2005! Returning champion Derek Bourgeois is back to comb over this tale of ghosts and curses, cell phones and coal mines, confusion and disappointment. Without the hand of auteur Takashi Miike at the helm can the One Missed […]
  • one missed call 2003 Hero Hero Ghost Show: One Missed Call 2003 - We’re kicking off a new run of shows examining the One Missed Call series, and this is gonna be a good one! We kick off with the Takashi Miike banger One Missed Call 2003, and this movie will do anything for a scare. We talk about everything from the lighting to the Fulci nods with […]
  • tag 2015 Hero Hero Ghost Show – Solo Sono: Tag 2015 - Welcome to a Hero Hero Ghost Show side show – Solo Sono! We’re unpacking a movie from Japanese auteur Sion Sono and what better way to start than with a recent head trip of a film by the name of Tag 2015. There are mass decapitations, Lynchian character changes, pig-headed weirdoes and so much more. […]
  • the child's eye Hero Hero Ghost Show: The Child’s Eye - Richard Glenn Schmidt returns to round out our series on The Eye films from Danny and Oxide Pang. This last entry is The Child’s Eye, and it eschews the farting ghosts of The Eye 3 for a more defined narrative and some 3D gags. Also, we somehow end up talking about our shared love of […]
  • the eye 3 Hero Hero Ghost Show: The Eye 3 - Welcome to our continuing journey through The Eye series on the Asian horror podcast, hero hero Ghost Show. Up next, The Eye 3, a surprising and often silly sequel. Joined on this journey of the ocular occult by Hello! This Is the Doomed Show’s Richard Glenn Schmidt, we strive to make sense of this odd […]
  • The Eye 2 Hero Hero Ghost Show: The Eye 2 (2004) - Hero Hero Ghost Show continues our series on The Eye film series from the Pang Brothers. Up next, The Eye 2 (2004), a shift away from ocular horror to further explore the world of the dead. There’s an unlikable protagonist, some quality scares, and plenty of crazy. Jump in! You can subscribe to Hero Hero […]
  • the eye 2002 Hero Hero Ghost Show: The Eye 2002 - Hero Hero Ghost Show kicks off a new series of reviews with The Eye 2002.
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show Review: Train to Busan Presents Peninsula - In this very brief episode, it’s time to take a look at Train to Busan Presents: Peninsula here on Hero Hero Ghost Show. There are some mild spoilers ahead, but only general plot points, and some ensuing disappointment… Podcast: Play in new window | Download
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show: Bonus – A Blood Pledge with Richard Glenn Schmidt - Our time creeping through the Whispering Corridors series ends with the fifth installment, A Blood Pledge aka Yeogo goedam 5: Dong-ban-ja-sa. We wind our way through the story of this ghostly tale of suicide and key-worship before pondering a few blood pledges of our own, and we wrap things up with a ranking of the […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show: Bonus Episode – Voice w/ Richard Glenn Schmidt - We return with another installment in the Whispering Corridors series, aka a bunch of Korean horror movies set in high school with lesbian overtones. This time, we’re talking a ghost story involving an unreliable spook and, naturally, talk turns to toilet paper and Richard Jaeckel. Podcast: Play in new window | Download
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show – Bonus Episode: Wishing Stairs with Richard Glenn Schmidt - Hero Hero Ghost Show returns with a continuation of our bonus series looking at the Whispering Corridors series. Faithful ally Richard Glenn Schmidt is on board again for the third entry, Wishing Stairs. While we intended to do both this film and the follow-up, Voice, but we were so enamored by Wishing Stairs, we made […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show – Dark Water - Welcome back to Hero Hero Ghost Show! We have a great one this time around. Mike Marryman is here to talk Hideo Nakata’s Dark Water. Cort Psyops shows up in The G-Spot to talk Invasion of Astro-Monster.  And no show would be complete without a look at divorce in Japan. So, what are we waiting for? […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Meatball Machine and Kodoku Meatball Machine - It’s here! A brand new episode of Hero Hero Ghost Show has arrived! We welcome Jerry Herring of Kill the Cast and Underwater Kaiju from Outer Space fame to chat about the bananas films, Meatball Machine and Kodoku Meatball Machine. We try to make some sense of the J-splatter silliness and manage to divert into […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show – Thirst - Welcome back to Hero Hero Ghost Show!  This time around, we have a star-studded slam-bang episode!  First, Cort joins us in The G-Spot to talk Mothra vs Godzilla (aka Godzilla vs the Thing) before we welcome Duncan McLeish for a discussion of Chan-wook Park’s Thirst.  There’s mah jongg parties, armpit licking and much, much more…   Warning!  Things get […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show: King Kong vs Godzilla - Join Cort Psyops and myself for a look at the first Technicolor appearance of the Big G, and he’s brought a monkey along for fun!  We talk parasol weakness, non-habit forming narcotic berries, the Smog Monster goes to rehab, bad Hokkaido vacation packages, amazing octopi, Kong’s wicked berry habit, bad Brando, Elvis Kong, the benefits […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show – Bonus Episode: Whispering Corridors and Momento Mori with Richard Glenn Schmidt - Welcome back to a brand new bonus episode of Hero Hero Ghost Show.  Now in a world where no new Tomie films exist (much the shame), Richard Glenn Schmidt returns to tackle another female-centric series of films.  This time, we look into the world of all-girls high schools in South Korea with the Whispering Corridors series.  […]
  • Hero Hero Who Will Ghost Survive? w/ Kurando Mitsutake - Here for a super special bonus team up episode of Who Will Survive? and Hero Hero Ghost Show! Marco, Paul, and Bo are joined by writer/director Kurando Mitsutake. After discovering his movie Gun Woman and falling in love with it, we needed to see more from Kurando. Luckily our paths crossed and we were able […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show – Exte: Hair Extensions - Welcome back to a new episode of Hero Hero Ghost Show! We pay respects to Ren Osugi before diving into a the Sion Sono/Ren Osugi film, Exte! Haunted hair, family drama and rampant abuse form this tale of a vengeful spirit that also serves as a surprisingly radical take on J-horror in general. Also, we […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! – Godzilla - Welcome to Hero Hero Ghost Show!, a podcast all about Asian horror, and this time around we’re going straight to Tokyo Bay with special guest Cort Psyops from Cinema Psyops to get under the scales of a temperamental gentleman named Godzilla.  Did you ever wonder who came up with Godzilla in the first place?  Or what […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! – Tomie vs Tomie & Tomie Unlimited w/Richard Glenn Schmidt - It’s Bro-mies before Ho-mies when Richard-mie joins Bo-mie for our final trip into the realm of Tomie, the cinematic adaptations of Junji Ito’s manga.  And we are going out in style, friends and neighbors.  In addition to discussing two of the more interesting entries into this series, we talk a little gialli, discuss which in the […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Bonus Episode – Tomie: Beginning & Tomie: Revenge - Welcome back, everyone!  In further proof of our obsession with Japanese love demons, I am joined by Hello! This is the Doomed Show’s Richard Glenn Schmidt for a stroll down Tomie lane.  This time, we examine films six and seven (!) of the long-running series of films, this time helmed by original Tomie director Ataru […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! – Suicide Club - We’re back, and this time… it’s personal!  Well, if not personal, certainly weird.  We’re talking Sion Sono’s Suicide Club with Black Annis’s Misty Marchant, and we cover this thing like pros, including why Genesis set up shop in a bowling alley, Charles Manson trivia, the gleeful black comedy of this movie and fun talk about suicide! […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Valentine’s Day Special: Sadako vs Kayako - Welcome back to Hero Hero Ghost Show!  I’ve been away a while, but back in time to celebrate a day of togetherness… and what better way to celebrate than with the two women that perhaps best represent Japanese horror?  That’s right, we’re talking Ringu vs Ju-on, yurei vs yurei… it’s Sadako vs Kayako! In a solo […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Tomie Special #2 – Tomie: Rebirth and Tomie: Forbidden Fruit - Welcome back to Hero Hero Ghost Show!  Relieved of solo duties, I am joined by Hello! This is the Doomed Show‘s Richard Glenn Schmidt for our second venture into the land of Japanese love demons.  We begin with Takashi Shimizu’s wonderful take on the Tomie story, Tomie: Rebirth, and it’s amazing set pieces and horrible gift-giving ideas. […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Season Two: Episode Four – Carved: The Slit-Mouthed Woman - The solo train keeps rolling, but enough bonus content, let’s do a real episode!  This time out, we take a look at a listener request in the form of Carved: The Slit-Mouthed Woman.  Based on an urban legend, the movie is a weird blend of urban fairy tale, slasher and treatise on child abuse… maybe?  We […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Season Two – Special Episode: Imprint and Stacy: Attack of the Schoolgirl Zombies - Here we are, just the two of us.  Sure, we usually have some guest yammering on about one movie or another, but if we could distill the show into its purest state, something that could lead to the dawning of a new age?  Or, you could just join me for a solo show in which […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Season Two: Episode Three – Evil Dead Trap - Ah, Asian horror…  With its technicolor lighting and Goblin-esque scores, the brutal killings, the maggots on the ceilings…  Hey, wait a second!  That doesn’t sound like Asian horror at all!  And that’s just what makes 1988’s Evil Dead Trap such an oddball piece of cinema.  The movie director Toshiharu Ikeda swears was not influenced by countless giallo movies […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Season Two: Episode 2 – Tetsuo the Iron Man - Welcome back to Season Two of Hero Hero Ghost Show!  Boy howdy, do we have a weird one tonight – the seminal Japanese body horror/cyberpunk/splatter movie, Tetsuo the Iron Man.  This is one of those movies people intend to see, yet never quite get around to it.  Along with my co-host Gary Hill (of Two Drink […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Season Two Premiere: Ringu - Hey Ghost Show Heroes!  We are back for a new ten-episode run of the best and strangest in Asian horror, and we’re starting with a bang.  That’s right, it’s Ringu, the movie that made us all scared of long haired girls in wells.  We dig into the iconic moments of the film, diabeetus ghosts, raising your […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Bonus Episode #2 – Tomie: Another Face and Tomie: Replay - Hey there, Ghost Show Heroes!  We’re still getting things ready for Season Two, but that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve your fair share of Asian horror goodness.  To keep you tantalized, I have enlisted the help of both a Japanese love demon named Tomie and an American love demon named Richard Glenn Schmidt (he of Hello! […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! – Bonus Episode #1: Colette Balmain - You may not immediately recognize the name of our guest, but you will after this episode!  Colette Balmain is a speaker and author specializing in Asian horror and literally wrote the book on the subject.  Her book, Introduction to Japanese Horror Film, is preparing for its second edition release and has been an invaluable tool […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Episode 13 – Tomie - Welcome to the final episode of season one!  It has been a long and winding road, but we find ourselves at the end (for now) and in the arms of a love demon named Tomie.  Joined by Richard Glenn Schmidt of Hello! This is the Doomed Show! fame and resident Tomie expert, our heroes examine […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Episode 12 – Pulse - The penultimate episode of season one of Hero Hero Ghost Show has arrived!  Joined by David Anders of Devour the Podcast fame (or infamy), we sit down to talk about the Japanese ghost apocalypse film, Pulse.  We talk about the film’s creepy imagery, the existentialist horror of the film, how ghost unions work, how anyone would […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Episode 11 – Ichi the Killer - Way back in episode one, I promised Takashi Miike would return, and boy is this a return worth waiting for.  Ichi the Killer is part mob story, part twisted father/son fable and all blood-drenched (among other fluids).  This movie, and the episode, are not for the faint of heart as we dive into the extreme […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Episode 10 – Battle Royale - This is not a test!  A brand new episode of Hero Hero Ghost Show is here and, brothers and sisters, it is a classic on the menu tonight.  Kinji Fukasaku’s Battle ROyale is a brutal, taboo-shattering slice of Japanese cinema and has earned the moniker ‘classic’ since it’s 2000 release. Joining us is Ricky Morgan, from Hail […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Episode 9 – Kuroneko - Welcome to the latest episode of Hero Hero Ghost Show! This time around, we set the Asian horror wayback machine (AHWM) to 1968 and the Kaneto Shindo ghost story, Kuroneko.  Joined by The Podcast Under the Stair’s Duncan McLeish, we dive into the traditional aspects of the story, what we would do for a goblin cat, […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show! Episode 8 – Hausu - Welcome back to Hero Hero Ghost Show!  So, apologies for the delay in getting the latest episode to you, but scheduling and life conspired to derail us for a couple of weeks.  We’re back with a vengeance, however.  This time around, Kiss the Goat and Screen Kings host Jeffrey X Martin joins us to discuss […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show!: Episode 7 – Uzumaki - Welcome to a brand new episode of Hero Hero Ghost Show! This episode, we’re exploring the twisted (heh!) mind of Junki Ito and the film adaptation of Uzumaki.  Joined by Brian Sammons, expert editor and co-host of Evil Episodes and The ABCs of Hidden Horror, we dive into the weird world of a spiral-afflicted village.  Buckle […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show!: Episode 6 – Dream Home - Welcome back to Episode 6 of Hero Hero Ghost Show!  Boy, do we have a good one today.  I’m joined by Zena Dixon of Girls Will be Ghouls (a podcast you can find right here on LegionPodcasts.com) to discuss Dream Home, a Hong Kong slasher from 2010.  We talk about our mutual love of House, […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show!: Episode 5 – Phone - Welcome for round five of Hero Hero Ghost Show!  We now turn our eyes to an oft-used trope in Asian horror cinema – the technological as a source of terror.  For our first foray into techno-horror goodness, I’m joined by Ricky Morgan of the Hail Ming Power Hour to discuss Phone, a story of ghosts, […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show!: Episode 4 – Ju-on - Welcome back, Ghost Show heroes!  First of all, thanks to all who have been listening and offering feedback.  You guys are the best!  Enough pandering, though, we have ghosts to talk about!  In particular, Taeko, Kayako and Toshio, the unholy trinity of spooks in Takashi Shimizu’s Ju-on.  Dave Zendano of the Exploding Heads Horror Podcast joins […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show!: Episode 3 – Versus -   Welcome to Episode 3 of Hero Hero Ghost Show!  This time around, we’re talking Ryuhei Kitamura’s chanbara-inspired bouillabaisse of weirdness, Versus.  Is this the perfect introductory film to Japanese horror?  What’s with the kicking guy?  Is our lead character as feminist as he claims to be?  Also, we talk the origins of the film […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show: Episode 2 – Tokyo Gore Police - Now that we’ve broken the seal on Asian horror with Audition, it’s time to embrace the weird of Tokyo Gore Police, a movie that boasts Cronenberg levels of body mutation and injury.  Is the movie political, or is it the cinematic fever dream of director Yoshihiro Nishimura?  Can the plot be deciphered by mere mortals?  What’s the […]
  • Hero Hero Ghost Show: Episode 1 – Audition -   Welcome to Episode 1 of Hero Hero Ghost Show!  This podcast is devoted entirely to Asian horror cinema, and we’re not screwing around on the premiere episode.  We’re talking Takashi Miike’s Audition, joined by Duncan McLeish of Chronicle and The Podcast Under the Stairs.  We discuss the story, the uniquely Japanese cultural significance of the […]
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