Although time doesn’t seem to exist in 2020, the Halloween Animal Crossing update just came out, which must mean it’s October. After tending to those virtual pumpkin patches, take a break by gorging on some candy and starting a new spooky show.
Horror TV has exploded over the past few years and with so many options, choosing a good scary series - meaning it's good and it's scary - can be difficult. Here are a few suggestions for some truly terrifying television to scratch that Halloween itch.
Hannibal
Hannibal is based on characters and events from the Thomas Harris novels. They’ve already been adapted into several feature films, including Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, and Hannibal Rising. The TV version focuses on the relationship between Will Graham, an FBI investigator, and Dr. Hannibal Lecter, serial killer, snappy dresser, and the world’s favorite cannibal.
A fair warning for this series, it is extremely gruesome. How this ever aired on network TV is something of a miracle. Most of the early episodes play out like a grotesque police procedural, with Hannibal helping Will solve some of the grossest murders ever shown on television. Still, there’s more than just a bloodbath here. The characters are interesting and the plot is solid. Hannibal is an achievement in atmosphere and tone. Those that think they can handle the content will want to grab a barf bag, sit back, and enjoy.
iZombie
Loosely based on the DC Comics title of the same name and developed by Rob Thomas of Veronica Mars and Party Down fame, iZombie tells the story of former medical resident Olivia Moore (Liv Moore, get it?). After being turned into a zombie at a boat party, Liv finds that she needs to eat brains to keep her from going “full Romero.” Zombies in this universe temporarily inherit the personality traits and memories of the person whose brains they eat, so Liv gives up her old life for a job at the morgue, where she finds a new purpose by posing as a psychic and helping police with unsolved murders by eating the brains of the victims.
iZombie is better and smarter than any zombie show on the CW has the right to be. It just might be the best zombie show ever produced precisely because it isn’t really a zombie show. Like Hannibal, it largely uses a police procedural format and offers clever writing and compelling characters. This one has a lot more humor thrown in, however. Zombies in popular media of late have been stand-ins for representations of all kinds of otherness. That’s the case here and the last few seasons become an effective allegory for the polarization in Trump’s America. Can the middle hold? Watch this show that’s ostensibly about zombies to find out.
Twin Peaks
Laura Palmer, beautiful high school senior and homecoming queen, is found dead and wrapped in plastic one morning in the small logging town of Twin Peaks. Like everyone in town, Laura has dangerous secrets and it’s up to newly-arrived FBI Special Investigator Dale Cooper to uncover them and figure out who killed Laura. As Cooper gets closer to solving the murder, he begins to uncover something otherworldly about Twin Peaks itself.
Created by David Lynch and Mark Frost, Twin Peaks changed television when it premiered in 1990. It was one of the earlier TV shows to bring film language to primetime. Seeing staples of arthouse cinema on network television meant it was weird and stylized and confusing to most audiences. Of course, it was also part-television, so the story was told in a serialized structure like a soap opera. This made watching extremely addictive. Its eccentric characters and intricate plotlines kept audiences tuned in and wanting answers. For those who haven’t seen this yet, it’s time to pull the trigger. Don’t miss out on one of the absolute best TV series of the past three decades.
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is a gritty reboot of the TGIF sitcom Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Based on the reboot of the Archie Comics title of the same name, this series stars Sabrina Spellman, a half-witch and half-mortal living in Greendale. As her sixteenth birthday arrives, she has to choose between the two contrasting parts of who she is. Can she reconcile her witchy family with her human friends?
Those familiar with the Friday night sitcom version of Sabrina will be quite surprised by the stark change in tone and content in this version. There’s tons more sex and violence, for starters. This is a blood-filled, horror-infused coming-of-age story about a satanic teenage witch. While it occasionally does get a little lost in its own lore and metaphors, the show is totally binge-worthy and there’s an awful lot to like here. Anyone that can stomach a little teen drama with their horror will have a lot of fun with Sabrina.