Spoiler-Free Review of “Hysteria!” on Peacock: Bruce Campbell and Julie Bowen Star in this Bizarre Series

*This is a spoiler-free review so feel free to read on!*

“Let’s Be Satanists…”

Hysteria! premiered on October 18th 2024 on Peacock with all eight episodes available to stream now. The horror thriller series stars Bruce Campbell, Julie Bowen, Anna Camp, Emjay Anthony, Kezii Curtis, and Chiara Aurelia. Each episode runs for approximately 50-55 minutes.

When a football player goes missing, a small town begins to blame anyone influenced by the occult, including a Satanist rock band made up of teens.

Here is the trailer:

Hysteria! has a fun cast and a decent enough premise just in time for Halloween, but is it worthy of your next watch? Let’s find out…

The Pros:

Images courtesy of Peacock

Starts off with lots of potential.

This series is set in the 1980’s and I loved the soundtrack. I thought the opening was really creepy and weird, drawing me in to another place and time. I also really liked how this show drew from other iconic movies in the horror genre. It paid tribute to this era in a fun way and I enjoyed the band’s songs!

Images courtesy of Peacock

Bruce Campbell and Julie Bowen…

They’re the reason I tuned in and the reason I stuck with this series as long as I did. I love both actors and it was great to see them together in this. Anna Camp is always fun as well (although I’ve seen her play this exact same character before in True Blood).

The Cons:

Images courtesy of Peacock

Misused its best players…

As much as I love Bruce Campbell and Julie Bowen, I had mixed thoughts about their characters. I really missed Bruce Campbell’s sarcastic charm and humor and I think this series should have let him shine in that department. He did a solid job as the sheriff, but it also felt really flat at times. I liked Julie Bowen’s character, but even here I was searching for something more. It might have just been the content, but I was left feeling disappointed.

Extremely slow with too much fluff.

I hate when series do this. I think that this show was trying to be the next Stranger Things and it failed to reach anything close to that. There were some fun and dark moments, but it took long to get anywhere. I was fine with the ambiguous ending (although I have mixed thoughts on it), but I was completely drained of energy by the time I got there. The episodes were WAY too long and there were too many of them in my opinion, dragging things out unnecessarily.

So am I in or out?

Images courtesy of Peacock

I’m 50/50 on this one…

Hysteria! is a confusing watch, but it does have some darker fun moments sprinkled in if you’re looking for something to binge-watch during spooky season.

I really wanted to like this one, but it went in too many different directions without ever really hooking me.

I hope you enjoyed the review and feel free to post your own thoughts and theories on Hysteria! in the comments section below. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

This competition is killer…

When former friends, Shay and Adriana team up to participate in a Halloween scavenger hunt with a cash prize, they temporarily put their differences aside to outsmart their opponents. However, they soon start to realize that a dangerous threat is playing their own version of the game, stalking them during each hunt.

Winning is now a necessity as their lives are at stake. As old wounds and memories re-surface, Shay and Adriana attempt to unmask the threat before the night is over, but soon learn that Scream Hunt is not done with them just yet…

My young adult horror thriller is out now! I hope you enjoy!

Scream Hunt is available here!

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Spoiler-Free Review of “The Outwaters” on Demand: Trippy and Far-Out Found Footage Flick

**This is a spoiler-free review so feel free to read on!**

“It is weird out here…”

The Outwaters released in theaters on February 9th 2023 and is now currently available to watch on Demand or on Screambox. The found footage horror film stars Robbie Banfitch, Angela Basolis, Scott Schamell, and Michelle May. It runs for approximately an hour and fifty minutes.

A group of campers in the Mojave Desert start to experience weird sounds and hallucinations, leading them toward a descent into a never-ending nightmare.

Here is the trailer:

The Outwaters is bizarre and extreme with some terrifying moments, but is it worthy of your next watch? Let’s find out…

The Pros:

Images courtesy of Screambox

Visually stunning moments.

The use of light worked really well in this particular setting. There were some moments that were absolutely breathtaking to witness on screen. I enjoyed some of the camera visual effects and the use of sound was pretty unique here.

Extreme, jaw-dropping moments.

It definitely took a while to get there, but there were some gross and gory moments that chilled me to my core. I still have one particular image stuck in my head that will definitely be giving me a few unwanted nightmares…

The Cons:

Images courtesy of Screambox

Uneventful first half…

Like most found footage films I have watched, absolutely nothing goes on for the first hour of this movie. I would have preferred to witness some more meaningful conversations between the characters so that I actually cared about what happened to them. I was really bored until we hit the hour mark.

Dizzy camera effects.

I have come to expect this with found footage films so I can’t really complain too much here, but I felt dizzy after a while. Even though I appreciated the use of sound over visual effects at times, a lot of the terrifying moments happened in complete darkness, which was a little disappointing. I’m also still not sure what really went on, which made this a confusing watch for me.

So am I in or out?

Images courtesy of Screambox

I’m 50/50 on this one…

Trippy and horrifying with some genuinely disturbing content, but I wanted a lot more here.

This will be one of those movies that people either love or hate. If you enjoy found footage films, I think you’ll appreciate this entry, but if you’re not a fan of the genre, you don’t need to rush to see this one.

I hope you enjoyed the review and feel free to post your own thoughts and theories on The Outwaters in the comments section below. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

PLAY BY THE RULES…STAY ALIVE…

A harmless night of fun turns deadly for six college friends but the game has only just begun. Take a mystery thrill ride right from your own living room. Dash and Seek is out now! I hope you enjoy!

READ IF YOU DARE…

Dash and Seek is available here!

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