The 8 episodes can be summarised as the following:

A mother is forced to deal with the grief of her son drowning, while those around her try to help present and past wounds heal. She experiences moments of closure and finality. But this inadvertently develops a growing bloodlust that she tries to suppress, while also contending with the mysterious figure that resides beyond the woods of Camp Crystal Lake. We learn about her backstory, the town’s ghost stories and watch as the death toll climbs.

Now, this is how A24 summarises the show, linked here:

A prequel to the Friday the 13th franchise, Crystal Lake follows single mother Pam Voorhees, who has been unable to shake her grief after her young, sickly son Jason tragically drowned in the town lake almost a year before. When two strangers arrive at Pam’s door digging into her past, a disturbing chain of events are set into motion, leaving the townspeople of Crystal Lake wondering: just who is Pam Voorhees?

I should note that this is more so a reboot or reimagining, rather than a prequel series, as there’s many plot contrivances that wouldn’t fit into the main film canon.

Atmosphere and colour:

The atmosphere is truly incredible within this series. I enjoyed the period piece element on full display, as the 1970s is boisterous and bold. Pamela’s flared jeans, Levon’s striped yellow quarter-zip shirt. All of this oozes the time and place. Meanwhile, in the original Friday the 13th, although we presume that it is set in 1980 summer, the zeitgeist feels contained and subtle in favour of building suspense. Both approaches work, but I believe that Crystal Lake revels in its historical framing far more.

The colours are bright and saturated, offering visually stunning costume design and set dressing. Perhaps for some, this high-production value takes away from the magic of what made the original film work for audiences. But I also believe that we as fans have been through a turbulent journey – what with the huge lawsuit that indirectly shut down the video game counterpart – and so we need a subconscious reason to be engaged.

I suspect that if the colours were more muted and restrained, it would be an unfaithful representation of the 1970s culture and viewers would deem the show as somewhat generic. This isn’t to say that Crystal Lake betrays the original for a starkly different portrayal. For instance, the title cards offer so much nostalgia to the distinct stylistic choices (e.g – freeze frames, 3D text, glass shatter effect). Particularly, Episode 1’s title card around the 14 minute mark that feels like a love letter to the films.

The world itself feels lived in and contained, representing that small-town vibe incredibly well that doesn’t tarnish the legacy. Peacock’s video ‘Bringing Death to Life with Practical Special Effects [SPOILERS]‘ states how they had gone back to the original film’s shooting location of Blairstown, being forced to revert it back to its initial look and feel (1:09-1:21). And you can truly engage with that passion and feel the love and care that this production had.

Writing and characters:

Back then, the Friday the 13th franchise was very camp. We didn’t watch it because we intended to dissect the deeper psychological motivations of our killers, or to receive an interesting character arc within the runtime. The closest we get to that is Tommy Jarvis. For the films and their formulaic structure after Part 2, that task was predominantly impossible without jeopardising their own conventions.

Cut to the present. Crystal Lake is a modern day TV show. We as audiences expect something a bit more highbrow, something which even the slasher subgenre must accommodate for. Fortunately, A24 is a production company that likes to explore and take creative risks. Here, the show puts to the surface and advances themes of trauma, redemption, motherhood.

And it does so with some great acting. Pamela is no longer this faceless figure who is revealed at the very end. Nor is Jason a child described purely through exposition and that iconic dream sequence on the canal.

And the show is surprisingly well-paced (despite some filler storylines), as I managed to watch all the episodes in one day.

No, no. Linda Cardellini kills it in this role as Pamela Voorhees. Emphasis on the kill. Perhaps you could argue that this falls into the convention of ‘characters can’t be evil for the sake of being evil’ (i.e. not being similar to that of Michael Myers). But I think when you have a villainous protagonist who is so emotionally driven, it is hard not to try and develop that character into something more profound. While Betsy Palmer will remain iconic, Cardellini has cemented her position as a fully realised horror icon we can root for.

And Callum Vinson as Jason? You can’t help but love him. There has always been a sympathetic view of Jason Voorhees as this broken killer that succumbs to rage and anguish from his years of bullying. Once he drowns, he returns as this vengeful monster that remains traumatised and impulsive. Jason Voorhees as a character I believe can be interpreted through labelling theory, as he wasn’t born evil – like is implied with Michael Myers in most canons. Rather, he became what society had set him up to be: the ‘other’.

In this show, it can be argued that Brad Kane characterises him to that of Blumhouse’s interpretation regarding Michael Myers, by describing him as not human and almost demonic. Here, the characters cannot justify the implausibility of Jason returning, and so they don’t know how to even comprehend that ‘thing’ in the woods. Once again, perpetuating this idea of deviance onto Jason by implying he is savage and uncivilised now.

The rest of the cast are good at what they do. For instance, William Catlett as Sheriff Levon Brooks, or ‘Lee’ as Pamela calls him. Although his storyline is a little uninteresting and ‘filler’, I do like him as a character, even though I think he’s a bit boring at times. I also don’t really care too much for him and Pam, despite really attempting to.

His sister Brianna – played by Devin Kessler – had a more interesting storyline in my opinion, as her journalistic background allowed hers and Pamela’s stories to converge into the final arc. But the weakest part for me was Dr Landau, as he felt more so like a plot device meant to develop the espionage plotline. Regardless, the slow unravelling of who these mysterious people after Pam are is an enjoyable watch, and adds something new to the original.

Meanwhile, the younger girl Grace – played by the wonderful Gwendolyn Sundstrom. I liked her at first, but she then just started to irritate me and felt as though she took up too much screen time; she was a great actress, and her portrayal as an easily swayed child felt authentic. Although, this doesn’t diminish the fact that I disliked her towards the end.

I didn’t feel invested in these supporting characters introduced throughout, particularly the hippies who befriend Grace and the counselors, such as Claudette and Barry. Perhaps that is the point, so we can root for Pam, but to me, they felt underdeveloped and ultimately there to pad out the runtime.

Kills:

Now, of course, the kills. I do believe that they can be a bit too excessive and over-the-top. The use of CG blood here is clear, and so that may deter you from continuing onwards. After all, Tom Savini is a household legend for his practical effects within the respective films.

Here on this production, they had Makeup Effects Designer Dave Presto, described by Kane as an “80s movie geek” (1:31-1:33). His work allowed them to create astonishing SFX makeup effects. Presto states how the production wanted as much practical work as possible, which resonated with him and gave an opportunity to modernise older techniques. To build on this, Special Effects Supervisor Johann Kunz remarks how “Practical effects gives everybody something to react to on set. The actors have something to react to” (1:52-1:58).

I recommend watching the entire video here, as it is always interesting to learn the art of filmmaking.

But for me, the usage of some CGI didn’t take me completely out of my viewing. Don’t get me wrong, the kills are just as gnarly for the expectations of Friday the 13th fans and for modern slasher standards. However, I can understand why some may be frustrated by this. The only exception of CGI I will understand why it was used is in relation to a wild animal, for obvious safeguarding measures.

Jason’s new origin story:

The pilot is immediately captivating, drawing you in with the literary device of in-media res, as Pamela is drenched in blood. We don’t know why this is the case, until two men arrive and become lambs to the slaughter. To make matters more perplexing, Pamela delivers the rhetorical question of “What did you do?”. Eventually, we learn that they were sent by her husband Elias – played by Hamish Linklater – as part of the organisation Bellflower Chemical, who have been chasing her and Jason after escaping their sickening experimentation.

Then, it is revealed towards the end of the show that the reason why Jason can withstand so much damage and have the ability to be resurrected is because he became a test subject for Bellflower’s workers. The big joke circulating around online is that Jason is now a cockroach. Which, in turn, I suppose he kind of is. This is because Elias’ research (codenamed Project Argonaut) was concerning the threat of nuclear destruction from Russia during the Cold War. Here, he was attempting for 8 years to try and replicate a cockroach’s survival against an atomic blast onto humans.

The premise feels reminiscent of Fallout’s retro-futuristic experimentation themes, but I like this attempt to realistically explain Jason’s invulnerability. I prefer this over the Necronomicon explanation given in Jason Goes to Hell, which was a fun Evil Dead nod but didn’t feel earned or built up throughout the films themselves. Now, I’ve not read the comics but from what I know, this portrayal of Elias as a weaselly, pathetic man that craves social hierarchy contrasts the comic book’s stereotypical alcoholic with anger issues. And for me, I like this difference, even if I don’t know the full extent of his comic counterpart.

Nonetheless, you as an audience member despise Elias, who I must admit portrayed a strong sense of entitlement and bitterness very well, which made his demise all the more rewarding.

However, one aspect I felt was not required was how the pills that Elias was giving Pamela had began to alter her brain chemistry, where she became more willing to kill another human being. I think inherently that after seeing what had happened to her son and what was happening in the labs, she would kill to protect her child without question. In that situation, I imagine any parent would act in such a way to look after their children.

Playing around with the F13 canon:

As I mentioned in my non-spoiler review, this TV show is set within the 1970s. And embraces it. But it doesn’t work as a coherent prequel to its respective film precursors.

In the first film, we open up to the year 1958 in Camp Crystal Lake, ultimately leading to the two counsellors Claudette and Barry sneaking off to make out in the barn. They are killed by Pamela, culminating in that iconic freeze frame of Claudette’s screaming mouth that slowly zooms in.

Compare this to Crystal Lake. It is set 8 years before the original Friday the 13th film (which released in 1980), placing it in 1972. Here, Jason’s drowning has been shifted from the 1950s to 1970s, meaning that the dates won’t fit with the original film chronology.

And instead of a freeze frame of Claudette’s screaming mouth, it has been updated to that of Pamela’s in the water as she fails to find Jason’s body in the water. The only time we return to the 1950s is during Pam’s pregnancy, as she was forced to comply with Bellflower and her husband’s orders.

Moreover, Claudette and Barry are accidentally killed by the young girl Grace (while she was on drugs), and Pam is instead responsible for cleaning up the crime scene. These are fun subversions as diehard fans are left to be on their toes. Particularly, that moment of Pamela walking up into the barn with the sweater, to then pull the old switcheroo and show Grace be the one to commit that act of violence was shocking.

Yet, due to these differences being so distinct to the original, plot inconsistencies begin to line up.

Ending:

I imagine people were just as shocked as I am to see Linda Cardellini remain with an intact head. Additionally, the use of sackhead Jason was a welcome shock, bridging the gap between the original and Part 2. It makes me wonder if Season 2 (on the off-chance we do receive it) will focus on the original film’s events via Pamela on another murderous quest, ultimately completing her story with Alice and a swift machete swipe.

Again, we will have to see what Peacock decide to do. I would love a Season 2. But for now, the woods belong to her and Jason. Even if Ralph has set up shop there, in hopes of sharing his war stories for those unfortunate to trespass.