Lucio Fulci is often remembered as the “Godfather of Gore” or the director of ruptured eyes, melting flesh, and apocalyptic endings. But my guest today says we don’t really know the real Fulci, and there’s so much more to this important figure in horror.

Matt Rogerson has written extensively on Fulci’s relationship to faith in his new book Fulci’s Inferno: Fulci's Inferno: Faith in the Films of a Horror and Giallo Auteur.

And in this episode we explore how Catholic imagery, spiritual crisis, and Dantean architecture shape films like The Beyond, City of the Living Dead, Zombi 2 and more.

Listen if you want to understand why Fulci’s horror feels less like shock and more like a horrific revelation.

*This episode contains spoilers for:

Don’t Torture a Duckling

…but as Matt says, you’ve had since 1972…

Find Matt @bavalamp and @1428publishing on Instagram

💀💀Follow us on Instagram @spooky.scholars

💀Join the ongoing conversation and LIVE salon each month at spookyscholars.com

🖤Full show notes at patreon.com/spookyscholars

In this episode we’re with Canadian historical fiction author, Cinda Gault.

Cinda schools us on incredible Canadian women of history we all should know more about and how she is remedying that with her fiction.

We also discuss the roots of the horror genre, slaying vampires, 18th century final girls, Canadian abortion law, and Cinda's own incredible work in the feminist movement in the 1970s.

Cinda brings a deep reverence for women’s stories, and through her historical fiction, she continues to illuminate the voices that history tried to hush, but that refuse to stay silent.

This episode is spoiler free!

Follow Cinda on Goodreads:https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/6170707.Cinda_Gault

💀💀Follow us on Instagram @spooky.scholars

💀Join the ongoing conversation and LIVE salon each month at spookyscholars.com

🖤Full show notes at patreon.com/spookyscholars

Are we (already) letting AI replace us?

In this episode, I explore the growing cultural shift toward AI companionship, AI relationships, and emotional automation. Artificial intelligence is increasingly over-stepping into our world and now, even into roles once reserved for real human intimacy and connection.

But this episode isn’t just about digital horror or even AI ethics or even the future of technology.

It’s about language and how we’re using computer and robot terminology to describe human emotions and behavior: We “process” grief. We “download” information. We “optimize” relationships. We talk about burnout as "a system crash" and treat heartbreak like "corrupted data" to "file away" as a lesson for the future.

In the end I’m really wondering: as automation expands beyond labor and into love, what does that mean for human connection, empathy, and identity?

Are we building machines to act more human, or are we training ourselves to feel less?

*This episode contains MAJOR spoilers for:

• Companion (2025)
• M3GAN 2.0 (2025)

💀💀Follow us on Instagram @spooky.scholars

💀Join the ongoing conversation and LIVE salon each month at spookyscholars.com

🖤Full show notes at patreon.com/spookyscholars