Welcome back, campers! Grab your machetes, hide your chocolate bars, and definitely don’t wander off alone into the woods, because in this week’s episode we’re diving headfirst into one of the weirdest and most controversial entries in the Friday the 13th franchise: Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning. That’s right—Jason Voorhees is dead (allegedly), but that doesn’t mean the body count is slowing down. In fact, the only thing multiplying faster than the kills in this movie is the confusion over who’s actually doing the killing. Spoiler: it’s not who you think… and also not who you want it to be.

This episode, we’re strapping on our camp counselor whistles and taking you on a tour through the asylum of Tommy Jarvis’s post-trauma psyche. Poor Tommy just wanted a little peace and quiet, but instead he gets a halfway house full of characters who feel like they wandered in from completely different movies: there’s the leather-clad greasers who look like they took a wrong turn out of Grease 2, the random angry redneck mom screaming at her son to shovel chicken slop, and of course the infamous chocolate-bar-swinging Joey who manages to meet one of the most absurdly brutal fates in horror history. We break it all down—every bizarre subplot, every head-scratching creative choice, and every death scene that makes you go, “Wait, why did that just happen?”

But don’t worry, we’re not just roasting this movie (though it deserves a good roasting). We’re also giving it its due credit: the kills are plentiful, the sleaze is cranked up to eleven, and there’s a weird charm in its chaotic energy. From garden shears to road flares, Part V is basically a slasher smorgasbord where no weapon is off-limits. We even get one of the most outrageous outhouse scenes in horror history—seriously, has there ever been a scarier place to sing along to yourself while doing your business? Probably not.

And then, of course, there’s the big reveal: the “mystery killer.” Was anyone buying it? Did anyone walk out of the theater thinking, “Wow, what a satisfying twist!” Or was it more like, “Wait, who the hell was that guy again?” We’ll talk about the Scooby-Doo-level unmasking, why fans at the time were furious, and whether or not Friday the 13th really needed a “new beginning” that turned out to be more like a weird detour. Throughout the episode, we sprinkle in some laughs, some chills, and some genuine appreciation for this much-maligned entry. Because here’s the thing: while A New Beginning might not have Jason in it (unless you count dream sequences and hallucinations), it’s still a fascinating time capsule of mid-80s slasher excess. The film is sleazy, cheesy, over-the-top, and occasionally so bad it circles back around to being good. And really, isn’t that what we love about horror in the first place?

So tune in as we unpack the madness. We’ll share our favorite kills, our least favorite characters (sorry, Joey), and even debate whether this movie would have been better if Jason had been resurrected in true supernatural fashion. We’ll also touch on how Part V paved the way for the next chapter (Jason Lives), where the franchise finally embraced its undead campfire legend status. In the end, A New Beginning may not be the most beloved Friday installment, but it’s definitely one of the most unforgettable—and we had a blast hacking our way through it.

So grab your sleeping bag, keep your eyes peeled for ambulance drivers with suspicious motives, and join us around the campfire (or maybe just the nearest porta-potty) as we relive the madness of Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning. Remember: in the woods, no one can hear you scream… but they can definitely hear you singing in the outhouse.