BONUS EPISODE: Talk to Me (2023) with Gretchen McNeil

Who doesn’t love a party?  And what’s better at a party than a good party game, especially one that involves grasping an embalmed hand and speaking the words, “Talk to me.”  For the full effect, you then say, “I let you in” and allow yourself to be fully possessed by whatever lies beyond the spirit realm.  It’s terrifying, but also a total rush, provided you keep your trip under 90 seconds.  For Mia, it's a welcome distraction from a rough year. She recently lost her mother for reasons unexplained, and her best friend Jade’s little brother Riley keeps tagging along with them to parties.  Jade and Riley’s mother is concerned the kids might be into something nasty, like pot, or booze.  Little does she know, the kids are into something far more addictive, and when one of the games goes a little too far, all hell breaks loose, unleashing spirits best left undisturbed.

Intro, Math Club, and Debate Society (spoiler-free): 00:00-25:33
Honor Roll and Detention (spoiler-heavy): 25:34-1:08:36
Superlatives (spoiler-heavier): 1:08:37-1:28:42

Directors Danny & Michael Philippou
Screenplay Danny Philippou & Bill Hinzman
Featuring Chris Alosio, Joe Bird, Otis Dhanji, Alexandra Jensen, Marcus Johnson, Sunny Johnson, Ari McCarthy, Miranda Otto, Zoe Terakes, Sophie Wilde

Gretchen McNeil is the author of several young adult novels including Dig Two Graves, Possess, 3:59, Relic, Get Even, Get Dirty, and Ten, as well as the horror/comedy novels #murdertrending, #murderfunding, and #noescape. Her most recent novel is Three Drops of Blood, pitched as a YA Rear Window, and she has yet another book in the works, titled, They Fear Not Men in the Woods. "Ten: Murder Island," the film adaptation of "Ten," premiered on Lifetime, and Get Even and Get Dirty have been adapted as the series “Get Even” and “Rebel Cheer Squad: a Get Even series” for the BBC and Netflix. Her next book, Four Letter Word, arrives in March 2024.

Our theme music is by Sir Cubworth, with embellishments by Edward Elgar.  Music from Talk to Me by Cornel Wilczek.

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