Season 1 - 10 episodes
Watch The Midnight Club on Netflix
Created by: Mike Flanagan, Leah Fong
Starring: Iman Benson, Ruth Codd, Igby Rigney, Annarah Cymone, William Chris Sumpter, Adia, Aya Furukawa, Sauriyan Sapkota, Matt Bidedel, Zach Gilford
Rated: TV-MA
Watch the trailer
Plot
A group of five terminally ill patients at Brightcliffe Hospice gather at midnight to share scary stories.
Verdict
This has an intriguing premise; terminal teens tell ghost stories. What makes this good is that their stories expound on who they are, their emotions, and what they fear. It's a great plot device that pushes the plot forward and also manages to frighten without the stories feeling like a throwaway. There are supernatural elements outside of the ghost stories, and that's where the series feels like it doesn't have enough time to conclude those plot lines. Despite that, it's a fun show with a great mood and engaging characters.
Watch It.
Review
Mike Flanagan does it again. He's a master at creating mood in horror. My favorite work of his is easily Midnight Mass, and I'd probably rank this show just below The Haunting of Hill House, but it's still worth watching.
This feels like a show from someone that used to watch Are You Afraid of the Dark?, and with this being set in the '90s I have to believe that's true. Flanagan certainly would have been the right age. There are a lot of 90s references, though that's mainly due to the setting. This is certainly is Are You Afraid of the Dark? for adults. This isn't for kids.
This has a dark premise. Teens with cancer tell ghost stories. I like the premise as I like anthologies, but this isn't an anthology. It uses the stories as a narrative device to develop characters. The stories don't relate to the plot in the real world, but it is a means for the teens to work out feelings. The kids base the stories on what they know, so the same actors play characters in these stories. We slowly learn how much of the stories are about their own lives or inspired by their lives.
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| The Midnight Club shares ghost stories |
Outside of the stories, the teens discover this hospice used to be home to a group of people with ritualistic practices. That provides plenty of mystery and intrigue throughout the series. The question is whether this cult is still around and if any of the members survived.
I always liked Are You Afraid of the Dark?, but the reboot wasn't satisfying. It tried to tie in a serialized narrative outside of the ghost stories, but it didn't work. The Midnight Club gets it right. These stories aren't throwaways, and it adds depth to these semi-autobiographical stories. I did think there would be more to this cult. That plot line certainly feels like it was left dangling. That also makes it seem like this is primed for a second season. I really liked this, but it doesn't end strongly. The last few episodes feel scattered as it tries to tie up the cult story. Despite this, I really enjoyed it, and I can't wait for (what I hope will be) a second season.
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