What's going on everyone - Stephen here!
Recently I finally had some free time (I'm sure it was due to some clerical error) and got to watch this new limited series. I'll say right off the top, there were some narrative choices made that I wasn't super stoked on, but all in all this was a VERY fun, and at times, a bit spooky story about a town in Newfoundland / Labrador coast of Canada.
I won't spoil much here, but basically our main character - Calvin (played by the amazing Josh Hartnet)- is from a long line of folks who have lived in towns on this coast and are periodically moved by who you're told is the Canadian Government, but later come to find out it's for other nefarious reasons. What plagues the villages, other than the absolute nightmare that is poverty without much aid and a rough climate/terrain that is the NL coast, is something in the water, and that something has been there A LONG TIME….
What really pulled me into the story of Below outside of the fantastic job that the cast does making you believe the town of Snooks Arm, and the people there are in fact real, is how the story weaves in and out of making you believe this is some kind of supernatural coastal folk tale, and something that can be explained by science. That's the same tactic, or at least to me it felt the same as my favorite show this year, Widows Bay, employed in their maiden season.
I personally love the way these stories have blended in the fisherman/coastal folk tales with plot points that make you wonder IF this story is actually a supernatural tale, or if it's a case of hysteria that can be explained away by science or logic from an unbiased eye. I will say, this argument was definitely put to rest by the end of S1 of Widows Bay, and I would argue, probably the same can be said for Below. The “monsters” are technically real, but by the end, your idea of who/what the monster is, and what their motives are by the end are more clear, even with the ambiguous and open-ended finale.
As I said above, this limited (for now) series isn't perfect, and there were some strange choices made in the story that felt like missteps to me personally. Alot of folks online say its a strong start, but wavers at the end. Ill agree with that critisism, its definitley a bit front loaded compared to a show that stuck the landing perfectly like (and sorry to continue to compare the two…) Widows Bay - BUT, it's far more important to me to highlight the awesome things in this coastal thriller and help promote (in a small way, but still) this show because it deserves more watch time in a world full of slop media. I grew up on a boat, fishing and spent entire summers on the water with my grandfather. I'm a huge fan of all things nautical and this show fits in a fun place between a coastal town supernatural thriller, and a science based mystery along the lines of something like a much less supernatural horror version of the movie Underwater.
I'm a lover of all things Lovecraftian, and this dances right on the doorstep of that while staying firmly in the realm of the very real world of VERY remote fisherman town living, and all of the folk tales and superstitions that come with it. Happy Halloween this week, everyone! Life / work have been absolutely hectic so we haven't had a ton of time to do things in person, but tons of stuff is still cooking here at Boo Bros, we will see you all again very soon!
