This Netflix Original drama is the latest installment in the classic Japanese horror franchise Ju-on. This time, a paranormal investigator's data reveals an eerie connection between a string of horrifying incidents that occurred between 1958 and 1997: they all stemmed from the same house. Set over the course of 40 years, the series explores the nature of these incidents, building on the established premise of the Ju-on movies and cranking up the terror to new heights =with references to actual tragedies in Japan's recent past.
this series has a lot going for it in theory. First of all this is a Japanese series that was made by the Japanese, so none of this American remake bullshit. all the characters can speak there native language, and it lends a lovely bit of authenticity to this series. another benefit is the show consists of 6 30 minute episodes, which basically makes this a chopped up 3 hour long movie.
so far everything sounds great, right?
right?
EPISODE ONE
i can only really comment on the pilot episode right now, but this is definitely a promising and ridiculously dark start. we introduced to some surprisingly strong characters, and a good taste of exactly how dark shit is going to be. extremely sudden and violent child abuse, a mother who blames her daughter for seducing her father to rape her, and that's just scrapping the surface. Shows set in the 80s like this one usually feel nostalgic and comforting, but every setting in the show feels just as bleak as the subject matter itself. its a great pairing of themes and pallet, and I'm curious to see just how crazy dark things will get further on
also how the fuck am i supposed to be scared of the cat mansion. i hope when i die, i get my very own (allergy free) cat mansion
Fuck that cliffhanger is gut wrenching
EPISODE TWO
well its exactly what i thought was happening.... Jesus i don't know I'm ready for this shit
This show makes several references to tragedies ins japans past, and i really wish i could find more info on exactly what events are taken from the real world. thankfully this episode makes that perfectly obvious, so hopefully going forward it will be similarly obvious. besides that, that's not to much to say about this episode i haven't already said. the nightclub setting is an interesting addition to things, and we get a better look at how the relationship between the rapist and his lady accomplices works. this was undoubtedly the thig i was the most curious about, and I'm glad the show spent so much time digging into there motivation.
all and all, another solid episode.
I could keep doing this for all of the episodes, but i will save myself the writing and you the reading and just skip to my
-----FINAL THOUGHTS-----
This show is nasty as fuck. a lot of horror movies have moments that make me scream "Jesus Christ oh dear god no" but this show has at least on of those moments an episode. the concept of You cant do that on TV doesn't exist here, which makes this whole show deeply squeamish and dark. but the show isn't just a gross out gore fest, at its core this show is an effective crime drama of sorts. even the characters that basically just pad the body count get a well developed motivation, and all and all its on par with the rest of the grudge movies tone and story. normally a show would have you eager to get to the final episode to see how it all ends, but the more i watch the less i find myself caring. its basically just a different retelling of the same story we have seen in every other JU-ON movie, and ultimately this show doesn't need to exist.
its not poorly made, its not poorly acted, its fairly well directed, but again its unnecessary.
7/10
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