This week on WVIA Pop Shop, Allan Austin and Patrick Hamilton enter Raccoon City for the newest Resident Evil movie—the eighth film in the franchise and its second reboot.

The story follows Brian, an ordinary medical courier whose last-minute delivery sends him straight into a viral outbreak filled with monsters, terrible decisions and increasingly deadly obstacles. But rather than only asking whether Resident Evil successfully translates the video games to the big screen, Allan and Patrick use the movie to explore a much bigger question: why are audiences connecting so strongly with horror right now?

Could the rise of horror and decline of superhero movies be connected? What do monsters reveal about the fears and anxieties of the culture that creates them? And why might stories about ordinary people trapped by forces beyond their control feel especially relevant today?

Then, after the spoilers begin, the guys look at how Resident Evil borrows the visual language and mechanics of video games—from first-person perspectives and NPC-like supporting characters to levels, puzzles and increasingly difficult monsters—and debate whether those ideas actually work as cinematic storytelling.

Plus: can Patrick's experience playing Resident Evil overcome the movie's very thin plot? And can Allan survive 90 minutes of watching people make terrible decisions?

⚠️ Spoilers begin after the Kirby Center segment.

This week on WVIA Pop Shop, Allan Austin and Patrick Hamilton take on Practical Magic 2, the long-awaited sequel to the 1998 cult favorite starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman.

Sally and Gillian Owens are back, but so is a familiar problem: a family curse they thought they'd broken decades ago. As a new generation of the Owens family confronts its consequences, Allan and Patrick ask whether the sequel successfully recaptures the magic of the original—or simply repeats it.

Along the way, they wrestle with continuity problems, messy storytelling and what makes a sequel worthwhile. Then, after the spoilers begin, the conversation turns to the idea at the heart of both Practical Magic films: sisterhood. Why does this story resonate so strongly with its audience despite its narrative flaws? Can emotional connection matter more than storytelling logic? And what does the sequel have to say about identity, allyship and the importance of spaces built around shared experience?

Plus: Allan thinks you need to stop worrying about the plot and feel the vibes. Patrick very much disagrees.

⚠️ Spoilers begin at 16:38.