Join cultural court jesters Mark and Rick for another proud Pride show. We nail the news and herald the headlines, offer up our weekly Hit List with our best-ofs and our bugs-us, and debut a movie review from our very own Prance Thunderbottom.

I recently interviewed Rick Gualtieri, the bestselling New Jersey author behind the Tome of Bill series. Rick has built one of indie horror-comedy’s most beloved franchises around Bill Ryder, a dateless gamer who gets turned into a vampire and becomes the undead world’s most reluctant savior—more than a dozen novels deep and still going strong.

We talked about his origin story, his writing process, the art of making horror funny without defanging it, and why comedy and horror belong together. It’s a great conversation for fans of the genre and anyone curious about what it takes to build a long-running indie series from scratch.

Kiana Schraufnagel is a  leader, volunteer, and advocate whose accomplishments span academics, service, athletics, and personal empowerment. She currently serves as Miss Wisconsin Volunteer 2026, while pursuing her psychology degree at Texas Tech University and performing as a Texas Tech Twirler. Her commitment to service has earned her the prestigious President’s Volunteer Service Award, reflecting more than 1,500 hours of community involvement. A baton twirler and member of Team USA, Kiana has earned multiple national championships, World Championship medals in Liverpool, England, and numerous state and national titles. Beyond competition, she is the founder of True You Empowerment, a platform dedicated to building confidence and self-worth in young people.

Welcome to The Twist and our annual Pride Spectacular. Mark and Rick pull out all the stops for this one. We’ve got news, we’ve got joy, we’ve got Prance Thunderbottom joining the show with his ‘Worst in Show’ feature.

And later, Rick interviews author David Hylan to talk about his new book Small Town Rage — which, based on the title alone, we feel deeply in our souls. David joins us to talk about what happens when the darkness underneath ordinary American life stops being polite and starts getting honest. It is a conversation you do not want to miss.

But first — it is Pride, it is June, the rainbow flags are flying from here to the Delaware and back, and Mark and Rick have things to say about all of it.

Welcome to The Twist and our annual Pride Spectacular. Mark and Rick pull out all the stops for this one. We’ve got news, we’ve got joy, we’ve got Prance Thunderbottom joining the show with his ‘Worst in Show’ feature.

And later, Rick interviews author David Hylan to talk about his new book Small Town Rage — which, based on the title alone, we feel deeply in our souls. David joins us to talk about what happens when the darkness underneath ordinary American life stops being polite and starts getting honest. It is a conversation you do not want to miss.

But first — it is Pride, it is June, the rainbow flags are flying from here to the Delaware and back, and Mark and Rick have things to say about all of it.

This week on The Twist, Mark and Rick cut their losses and ditch their tickets to the Great American State Fair — and they have thoughts. Then it’s all good news as they share their enthusiasm for Eden Sher and Brock Ciarlelli’s Middling podcast, the irresistible rewatch show for fans of The Middle. Plus Rick sits down with Courtney Cordova of Madison’s Henry Vilas Zoo for a conversation about the animals, the mission, and what makes this beloved institution one of the best free zoos in the country. All that and the usual twists on Episode 329.