Deep within the bowels of Gruesome Magazine headquarters, an elusive ghostly creature lurks. The Grue Crew can’t put their finger on what it is. Some say it’s a Batman style superhero lurking for justice in the corners. Others say it’s a vampire with massive fangs using the evasiveness to further draw you in. Plenty of others just say it’s Doc roaming the halls to the fridge at night. Regardless, this indefinable creature is something many try to figure out. Little do they know that that creature metamorphosizes from week to week. Yes, you the fan choose the form of this creature and The Grue Crew spend the last moments of Horror News Radio  trying to guess what it is. All of you forge the…  Phantom Factor! Here are the rules:

1. I’ll put up a call to action post like this one announcing a topic.
2. This topic (The  Phantom Factor, as it were)  will be based around a favorite horror/genre character, actor, director or even film.
3. The listeners will post suggestions in the comments of social media or this very post.
4. I will pick three suggestions from those listed.
5. On Horror News Radio, I will have list three facts about each mysterious figure that the other Grue Crew members will try to guess. Each fact is in descending order of vagueness.
6. Those who guess from the first fact — the vaguest one — will receive three points. Then two points at the second fact. One point at the final. If no one guesses by that point, no one receives any points
7. Those who enter will be in contention for a random drawing to win a prize at the end of the month! See below for more details.

This Week’s Topic

This week the subject of Horror News Radio 258 is  The Strangers: Prey at Night. The sequel to the 2008 sleeper hit home invasion horror film that everyone is asking “is this a sequel to that Liv Tyler movie from a decade ago?” is here for everyone to be confused by! In honor of this film and the titular Strangers’ iconic masks, the topic for the week is Macabre Masks of Horror. So, any kind of famous masks – whether they be on a serial killer or a victim or whatever – are eligible. Submit your answers by Monday March 12th at 8:00 pm EST and be in contention for this week’s edition.

This Month’s Prize

Our prize for March is a copy of the book  The Ultimate Guide to Strange Cinema  by Michael Vaughn. This book is a film guide organized by genre, including comedy, horror, action, drama, fantasy, and sci-fi with 300 reviews of genre films from all over the world, 160 photos, and exclusive interviews and quotes from the people behind some of the most offbeat films ever made. If you live in a US address, you’ll be entered in a random drawing to win this lovely book!

Thomas Mariani

Thomas Mariani is a born geek, with a bit of nerd mixed in here & there. A native of the (less) swampy parts of Florida, Thomas has always been a fan of films, television & other sources of media ever since he was a child, having been raised on Jim Henson, Star Wars and the basic cable cartoons of the ’90s & ’00s.

Some of his favorite horror films include Evil Dead II, Poltergeist and An American Werewolf in London. He already has experience writing and podcasting about pop culture, which you can read/listen to on sites like www.oneofus.net, www.horrornews.net or even on twitter as @NotTheWhosTommy.