Adrenaline, horror-seeking junkies, gather around! I know we are still a month away from Halloween, but there's nothing wrong with pre-celebrate the spooky season by watching some horror series, right? Why get spooked for an hour or so when you can slowly feel the suspense rushing through your body through these lengthy series?
American Horror Story
Every year since 2011, producer Ryan Murphy has dedicated his life to continuously creating a new season for America's most loved horror series, American Horror Story. The classic, of course, I have to put this one onto the list. If you are not familiar with American Horror Story (AHS) yet, you can start to knock your way into their door because it's safe to say that AHS has become a story one will never get tired of watching. Each season is conceived as a self-contained miniseries which follows a different set of characters and settings in the same fictional universe, with some plot elements of each season loosely inspired by true events. Spooky!
First embarking their journey with "Murder House", the story centers on a family that moves into a house haunted by its former occupants in 2011—totally a cult favorite, including mine. The second season, "Asylum", takes place in 1964 which showcases the stories of patients and staff of an institution for the criminally insane—their best one, up to this day. "Coven", their third season, follows a coven of witches who face off against those who wish to destroy them—a bit dull and light, but still likable. Their fourth installment, (also) one of their best seasons, "Freak Show", takes place in Florida during 1952 and centers around an American freak show and their struggle for survival. Their most famous one, thanks to Lady Gaga's special role, "Hotel" focuses the story on the staff and guests of a supernatural hotel. The rest of the season are titled "Roanoke", "Cult", "Apocalypse", "1984", and their latest one which is also their tenth season, "Double Feature".
The Haunting of the Hill House
Into supernatural horror occurred in a big spooky mansion? You got it! Loosely based on the 1959 novel of the same name by Shirley Jackson, the plot of The Haunting of The Hill House alternates between two timelines, following the story of five adult siblings whose paranormal experience at Hill House continues to haunt them in the present day. Back when they were little, they had experienced disturbing paranormal phenomena that resulted in a tragic loss for the family. Since they're back in the Hill House because of some tragedy, they are forced to confront how their time in Hill House has affected each of them. It also follows flashbacks depicting events leading up to the eventful night in 1992 when the family finally fled from the mansion. You can also watch the spin off to Haunting of the Hill House, The Haunting of the Bly Manor, available only on Netflix!
Archive 81
This Netflix original series focuses on the story of an archivist that took a job in restoring damaged videotapes which required him to stay at an isolated house in the middle of the woods—suspicious! Throughout his time on the job, Dan is being monitored by his boss through CCTV. The audiotapes Dan starts working on are over two decades old and contain interviews conducted by someone named Melody Pendras in the 1990s with residents of an old mysterious Manhattan apartment, the Eldritch Visser building. So yes, expect some spine chilling found footage, as Melody interviews strange and eccentric people that live inside the building. Archive 81 is based on the podcast of the same name that began in 2016. The suspense is really wild on this one, and it's only eight episodes long so better start watching!
Fear Street Trilogy
Ok, I cheated a little. This one wasn't exactly a series but rather a trilogy, an engaging one for sure, especially if you're into slasher movies! Considering the horror factor in this one isn't as electrifying as the other options, but the adventure is still pretty worthwhile. The trilogy divides the story into three different time period, 1994, 1978, and 1666, which follows the story of a group of teenagers in Shadyside who are terrorized by an ancient evil responsible for a series of brutal murders that have plagued the town for centuries. Cleverly, it will unveil the incidents that terrorized the town in present to past manner in the right pace without erasing the curiosity within you about the mysteries waiting to be unsolved.
