Speaker 1: All right, So are you ready to get a little spooked,
because tonight we are diving into the world of urban legends.
Ooh fun, those stories that you know, make you double
check your locks and sleep with the lights on. Yeah, definitely,
You've got a whole bunch of them done, packing everything
from those ghostly hitchhikers to creatures that'll make your skin
crawl and everything in between.
Speaker 2: I think what fascinates me most about urban legends is
there like modern day folklore, you know, totally. Yeah, they
get passed down, they get embellished, they evolve over time,
and a lot of times they reflect our deepest fears,
you know, and anxieties that we have as like a society.
Speaker 1: And as people.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's pretty interesting.
Speaker 1: Let's just jump right in. Yeah, let's do it. Why
don't we kick things off with a classic The Hook?
Oh yeah, the one I'm talking about where the couple's
parked out in the middle of nowhere. Radio's playing and
oh yeah, there's a spooky warning about an escaped killer
with a hook for a hand, and then all of
a sudden they hear a scratching sound.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: Classic.
Speaker 2: It's a tale as old as time, right, or its
as old as cars. But yeah, it really plays on
that that fear that we all have.
Speaker 1: Being isolated, being vulnerable, and.
Speaker 2: Even when you think you're in a safe space, danger
can still find you.
Speaker 1: It can so and that that image of the hook,
you know, is so powerful. It is because it's not
just a weapon. It's almost like the symbol of how
easily something brutal can just rip into your life.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: And speaking of brutal, let's move on to a legend
that takes betrayal for a whole new level. N Oh,
have you heard of this one? I have. It comes
from India, and it centers on this vengeful spirit that
is disguised as a bride. Yeah, and she prays on
these unsuspecting individuals who often open their doors to strangers,
which is really scary because like, you never know, you
really don't. I even read that writing her name on
your door is supposed to ward her off. Oh wow.
It's kind of like the symbolic barrier against the unknown, right,
which is I feel like a lot of these legends
are about.
Speaker 2: Right, Yeah, absolutely, like Notliba in particular really does reflect
that fear of the unknown, right, Yeah. And also the
fact that even something that seems harmless, like a bride
could actually have, you know, really bad intentions. And it
also speaks to a bigger, I guess, a bigger theme
in Indian culture. And that's like the importance of hospitality. Yeah,
and like welcoming people in. So to violate that is
a big no, no, big no no. So I think
that's really interesting.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's kind of like a cautionary tale about trusting
the wrong person. It is, yeah, you know, for sure.
So let's switch gears completely. Okay, let's head over to
Japan for a legend. That's just pure nightmare fuel. Okay, ready,
take take.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, this one's scary.
Speaker 1: This is scary. Yeah. So Ticky Tick is a vengeful
spirit with a very tragic backstory.
Speaker 2: It is tragic.
Speaker 1: So imagine a woman who is cut in half by
a train.
Speaker 2: Oh my gosh.
Speaker 1: Her rage and pain fuel her spirit in the afterlife. Wow.
So that's scary. I read that her upper body scuttles
around on her hands or elbows. I've heard that too,
making this awful teak teak sound as she moves. That's terrifying,
I know. Yeah, and she seeks revenge on those who
cross her path. Right, and said she moves so fast
you'll never see her coming. Yeah, that's what makes it
so scary. I know, you just never know. Okay, I'm
officially creeped out. Yeah me too. Maybe we need something
a little less dismembered. How about a creature that's as
real as it is horrifying. Okay, I like it. The
rat King? The rat King. Do you hear of this?
I have? So this isn't just a figment of our
collective imagination. This is an actual phenomenon where rats become
entangled by their tails, forming this grotesque super.
Speaker 2: It's like something out of a horror movie.
Speaker 1: I know, it's the stuff of nightmares. Yeah, but it's real.
Speaker 2: It is real.
Speaker 1: It's crazy, and I read there have been documented cases
of rat kings throughout history.
Speaker 2: Yeah. I think that's what's so creepy is that it's
it's real, Like it's actually a real thing that happens.
Speaker 1: I think it just proves that reality can be just
as strange and terrifying as fiction.
Speaker 2: Absolutely. I think the rat King also embodies another fear
that a lot of people have, and that's like infestation, right,
you know, It's like this idea that all these individual
creatures can combine into this monstrous entity.
Speaker 1: It's like nature going to ry.
Speaker 2: It's like nature going wrong, and it's scary.
Speaker 1: Okay, let's move on from rats, we please. Okay, So,
speaking of terrifying things in real life, Okay, let's talk
about a legend that hits close to home for a
lot of people, especially students, the roommate. This one plays
on the fear of the unknown, particularly the vulnerability of
sharing a living space with someone you might not truly know,
right because you just you never know, you never know. Yeah.
I remember hearing this story all the time in college.
It's about a student who finds their roommate murdered with
this chilling message written on the wall.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, and that message is scary.
Speaker 1: What is it?
Speaker 2: It's like, aren't you glad you didn't turn on the light,
Oh my gosh, suggesting that the killer was.
Speaker 1: There right and watching the whole time and you were sleeping. Yeah,
oh gosh.
Speaker 2: It makes you think twice about turning off the lights.
Speaker 1: It really does, doesn't it. Yeah?
Speaker 2: You know, it makes you wonder like who can you
really trust?
Speaker 1: Yeah?
Speaker 2: And is anywhere really safe?
Speaker 1: No? So okay, I think we need to lighten things
up a bit. Okay, Yeah, how about a good old
fashioned ghost story. I love a good ghost story. The
vanishing hitchhiker anyone. This one has so many variations, it does,
but the core elements remain the same. You pick up
a hitchhiker, they vanished without a trace, and you're left
with this chilling feeling that you've encountered something beyond the
realm of the living.
Speaker 2: Right, and sometimes they leave behind an item, yeah, like
a personal item, or even like a warning, right about
something that's gonna.
Speaker 1: Happen, about some impending danger. Yeah, it's like a glimpse
into another dimension or a glitch in the matrix.
Speaker 2: Is It's like you've seen something that you shouldn't have
seen totally, you know. Yeah, I think it really taps
into our fascination with the unexplained. Yeah, you know, like
the fact that there are these spirits or these echoes
of the past. Yeah, that could be you know, intersecting
with our present. Is kind of cool and scary at
the same time.
Speaker 1: It is, right, all right, So that was ethereal. It
was very theoreal. Let's switch gears to something a little
more tangible, okay, but no less freepy. I'm talking about
the legend of the spider bite.
Speaker 2: Ooh, this one's not for the faint of.
Speaker 1: Heart, definitely not.
Speaker 2: Oh.
Speaker 1: It plays on our primal fear of insects, particularly spiders especially,
and the unsettling idea of something lurking beneath our skin. Yeah,
I know this one, you know it. So the story goes,
someone gets bitten by a spider and later the bite
bursts open. Oh no, revealing a horrifying swarm of baby spikers.
Speaker 2: Oh that's so gross.
Speaker 1: I know, it's awful.
Speaker 2: It's a nightmare.
Speaker 1: It's a visceral image. It's like a nightmare brought to life.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: It and it speaks to our anxieties about infestation, losing
control over our own bodies, the fear of the unseen
multiplying beneath the surface. Absolutely. Okay, I think I need
to take a deep breath after that one.
Speaker 2: Yeah, me too.
Speaker 1: Maybe something a little more melancholy. What about Lalrona oh
La Lorona, the weeping woman. Yeah, a tragic figure from
Mexican folklore. Right. So, she wanders near waterways searching for
her drowned children, and her mournful cries are a harbinger
of doom.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's truly a haunting story.
Speaker 1: It is. It really is so driven by guilt and despair.
She said to kidnap children, mistaking them for her own, right,
is so sad. Yeah, it's really sad and scary. Yeah,
it's a reminder of the enduring power of grief and
the dangers that are lurking in the natural world.
Speaker 2: For sure.
Speaker 1: Love their own is so complex though. She is because
she's both terrifying and pitiable at the same time. It is,
you know, yeah, and I think she represents those devastating
consequences of loss and the blurred lines between love and madness.
Absolutely all right, I think we need a light in
the mood again. Okay, yeah, let's do it. Let's head
back to the bathroom mirror for a classic.
Speaker 2: Okay, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary.
Speaker 1: So, this ritualistic legend involves chanting her name in front
of a mirror, daring her to appear. It's a rite
of passage for a lot of people. Is a test
of courage, a way to confront the unknown, for sure.
I remember trying this as a kid.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah.
Speaker 1: The anticipation in fear build with each repetition of her name.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's like you're really daring something to come out.
Speaker 1: Yes, right, it's a dare to see if you have
the guts to summon something from the other side. Yeah,
you know.
Speaker 2: I think it's also interesting that it's usually done in
a bathroom, which is already kind of a creepy place.
Speaker 1: Yeah, totally.
Speaker 2: It's like a private space, right, a place where we
confront our own reflections, literally and.
Speaker 1: Figuratively, literally and figuratively, yes.
Speaker 2: And then you're inviting something into that space, So it
just makes it extra creepy, it does, you know, and
bloody Mary herself, who's often depicted as this vengeful spirit
covered in blood. Yeah, it kind of reinforces this idea
that you're breaking a taboo, right, that you're crossing a
line that you shouldn't cross.
Speaker 1: Like a dare gone wrong. Yeah, with potentially terrifying consequence.
Speaker 2: Absolutely.
Speaker 1: So Okay, I think we've covered some serious ground here.
Speaker 2: We have.
Speaker 1: Yeah, we've gone from vengeful spirits to creatures that'll make
your skin crawl. Yeah. Up. This first part of our
deep dive d with the creature that has captured the
imaginations of many, the chupacabra. Oh, the chupacabra embodies our
fear of the unknown, it does, and the unsettling idea
of a predator lurking in the shadows said to inhabit
the Americas. It's off the blame for the gruesome deaths
of livestock, Yes, with their bodies drained of blood. Aw,
it's freaky. So I remember when the chupacabra craze hit.
Oh yeah, it seemed like every strange animal sighting was
attributed to this creature. Is there any real evidence to
suggest it exists?
Speaker 2: Well, you know, while a lot of sightings have been
attributed to misidentified animals, like especially ones suffering from mange, right,
the legend persists that does, which I think is really interesting.
Speaker 1: It is interesting.
Speaker 2: It speaks to our desire, I think, okay, to find
an explanation for the strange things that happen in the world,
especially the things that we can't easily explain, the.
Speaker 1: Things that we can't categorize right exactly. Yes, It's like
we need these mysteries to remind us that there are
still things out there that we don't understand for sure,
and sometimes the not knowing is the scariest part of all. Absolutely,
We've got plenty more creepy tales to uncover, Yes, we do.
Stay tuned for Part two of our deep dive into
urban legends