Creepshow 2 was released on May 1st, 1987, nearly five years after the original Creepshow. Based off the EC Comics of the 1950s, the series was a big hit among fright fans, particularly for its blend of humor and horror. Although an unofficial second sequel, Tales From the Darkside: The Movie (directed by Creepshow composer John Harrison, more on him in a bit), premiered in 1990 and a terrible, truly unofficial straight-to-home-video Creepshow III came out in 2006, we haven’t had a genuine follow-up to the original two films in 32 years. That is, until now.
About a year ago, it was announced that Greg Nicotero, the effects guru behind The Walking Dead, would be bringing Creepshow back as an anthology series on the horror streaming service Shudder. Nicotero had a personal connection to the franchise, as he had worked on the original under mentor Tom Savini, so it seemed like the series was in good hands. In contrast to the Netflix release model, though, Shudder would release the episodes once a week throughout October. For an anthology series like this, I think this strategy is the right one.
The collective anticipation of horror fans finally culminated on September 26th, as Creepshow officially debuted on Shudder. The series kicked off with a bang, too, as the premiere episode featured a pair of terrific tales. The first of the two is a short story from Stephen King’s 1978 collection Night Shift, “Gray Matter,” directed by Nicotero himself. The story takes place in a nearly deserted small town about to be slammed by a major snowstorm.
As a trio of older townspeople are hunkered down in a local shop, a teen boy comes into the store to pick up a case of beer for his father, something he’s done regularly for a while. This time, however, he confides in the three that he doesn’t want to return home to his alcoholic father. Seeing that he is clearly frightened and shaken, the two gentlemen (Tobin Bell, Saw, and Giancarlo Esposito, Breaking Bad) decide to take the beer to him themselves.
The boy, Timmy (Christopher Nathan), stays behind and reveals to the shop owner (played by original Creepshow actress Adrienne Barbeau) that his dad has become more and more dependent on the beer over the years and has changed into something monsterous. After the two men arrive at the home of the father, Richie (Jesse C. Boyd), they realize just how much of a monster he has become. The story builds terrifically towards the big reveal, which, as you might expect, is done with some excellent practical effects by Nicotero’s crew. It’s a captivating tale and one that does King’s beloved short story justice.
The second story, despite being smaller in scope (literally), is actually even stronger than the first. “The House of the Head” begins as we look in on the seemingly mundane dollhouse of a young girl Evie (Cailey Fleming). Complete with a father, mother, son, and dog figurine, nothing seems out of place in the miniature mansion. That all changes when Evie takes a look throughout the house, as she frequently does, and notices a small object that seems very out of place: a tiny severed head. She dismisses it the first time, but when she comes back to the house later, the head, as well as the other figurines, have moved around. She also notices that the severed head has real blood dripping from the cut.
With each subsequent viewing, Evie becomes more and more alarmed with the proceedings in the dollhouse, especially after adding in some new figurines meant to “protect” the family from the conspicuous cranium. Directed by John Harrison, composer of 1982’s Creepshow, and written by Josh Malerman, author of last year’s smash novel-turned-film Bird Box, the story unfolds in such a slowly unsettling way that it leaves viewers absolutely riveted by what is happening to this faux figurine family. It is a great case study in slow burn horror.
The episode begins with a shot of the infamous crate from the original film’s anchor story, Stephen King’s “The Crate,” only this one does not contain a terrifying monster but rather back issues of the Creepshow comic book. Our host, the Creep, a variation on the grim reaper-esque host of the first film, selects a comic out of the crate and we are on our way.
In fact, the first episode is littered with Easter eggs from the franchise. I spotted the ashtray from Creepshow (used to kill Nathan Grantham in the segment “Father’s Day” and then reappearing throughout the other stories), a shot of a boy who looks like Billy from the wraparound segments of the first film “playing” with a voodoo doll in the comic, and a mini “Old Chief Wood’nhead” from the story of the same name in Creepshow 2. The show looks and feels just like the original films did, with comic panels and page turning sprinkled throughout. My one nitpick would be the score, which I wished had hewed closer to the magnificent score of the first film.
Overall, I think fans of the films will be very happy with what Nicotero and crew have served up for us. Creepshow. It’s the most fun you’ll ever have being scared! Again.
Related Article: The Lasting Legacy of Creepshow and How it Set the Stage for Horror Anthologies
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