Sleepy Hollow is the first of many...

First things first, we are still here and we are not going anywhere, we might have been silent for a while but that is about to change, drastically.

And now to more important things, September and October to me always felt like Christmas, it's the time when most things start and unfortunately, sometimes, others end. So let the games begin and for the kickoff I have something surprising.

I hadn't planned on starting this season with a TV series but what are you gonna do?

Sleepy Hollow is a name that we have all heard and naturally associated with the beautifully dark talent of Tim Burton, but one of this seasons premieres takes us to a modern version of the myth.

An English civil war double agent recruited by the forces of good sworn to battle evil in all its shapes and forms, is awakened after two hundred years to finish what he started. Being killed after successfully, or so he thought, stopping one of evil's outbreaks, Incabod Crane wakes up in 2013 Sleepy Hollow only to find out that nothing was or is as it seems.

A new take on an story told many a time with clear influences, artistically speaking, from Pan's Labyrinth and a cast well chosen, up for the task. As the plot thickens we are made aware of secret societies of past and present as well as the importance of the main characters in battling evil in the name of the human race.

Quite captivating in the first few episodes, all that remains to be seen is whether or not it will continue to unravel in a way worthy of our anticipation.

I truly hope so...

Hemlock Grove

Let me start by saying, I love Netflix! Not having to wait 3 to 6 months to watch an entire season; seriously, what could be better than that? I would also like to welcome it to the horror family.

Hemlock Grove is a brand new and horror adjacent. I say adjacent because it's not going to give you any scares, but vampires, werewolves and strange creatures are definitely on the menu.

The ingredients are, as always, a quite small little town, a high school, someone rich, someone poor, and the girl.

I haven't read the book it was based on so I cannot really say how good an adaptation it was, but what I can say is it was not half bad. The relationship between a werewolf, new in town, and an upir (code for vampire) becomes complex right when a series of bizarre killings starts. All eyes fall on the newcomer gypsy since he already admitted to being a werewolf to one of his schoolmates.

Who is killing?

Will the upir realise what it is?

Who is the mysterious mother?

What exactly is Shelley?

Who will get the girl?

What is uroboros anyway?

...and other questions will be answered, or not, in 13 nicely filmed episodes.

Let me just warn all of you it becomes a little tiresome before it reaches it's peak and I wasn't exactly a fan of the finale.

Park Avenue Hell

In the shadows even the most innocent things can reveal their evil side.

One of the things that caught my eye was the transformation of a simple number, a symbol of good fortune actually in some eastern countries, into the very essence of evil in western ones.

New series quite promising so far playing around with the eon old idea of hell's master on earth. Some have everything, some want everything and are willing to do anything for it and others are delusional enough to think that they can make it preserving their ideals and themselves intact.

A building and its occupants on an address quite familiar to most is the main focus on this new horror series. High, middle, low class people live, breath, orchestrate and fear within its walls, walls echoing all the malice of the previous tenants. Trapped souls will find release for their murderous instincts, sadistic killers will manifest to seal the fates of those who could not see past their longing for success.

The road to hell is paved with nothing but good intentions..

ASYLUM

It's back!

Autumn has come and with it every little pleasure and torture that we've missed; even a couple of new ones!

I know we have been silent for very long, but all that is about to change.

I can't speak for Gnome, but my reason for keeping quiet for so long was because I was impatiently waiting for it to begin. It didn't feel right writing about anything else.

It's here and as far as I can see it's come back with a vengeance. Only the first episode has been aired so far but it has already sunk its claws into my conscience. I have religiously been following every little teaser of this season, scattered information here and there about the plot, the actors, the production, and every time I thought I had an idea of what to expect something else was announced, something different appeared in the teasers - drove me mad.

Love the new setting, and the whole 60's air to it. Also loving the fact that it's much more aggressive as far as social issues are concerned. No taboos, no holding back; it creeps you out in whole new way since we still don't know exactly what to expect. Only the surface has been scratched so far and it's already bloody.

Maybe I'm expecting too much I don't know, what I do know is that it's given me incentive to start dealing with all the others, yes even the torturous ones.

So let the games begin!

Top 5 Best Horror Series

This season has come to an end and with it all my hopes of entertainment for the hateful summer to come (as far as TV is concerned of course). So finding myself in dire need of a distraction and in an attempt to prove to our readers that we shall never silence, I venture two sets of top fives with the best and, my personal favorite, the worst horror related TV series of the year!

So I hereby give to you my best...

 Number 5

BEING HUMAN

In lack of a fifth series actually worth giving it the time of day or, in this case, night I can only give you, since I am bound by the number, one that was merely watchable. I know that I haven't even mentioned it all this time, a fact which by itself speaks volumes, but it being so indifferent actually got it a spot in the blog!

The tale of yet another tortured dark soul straggling with the beast within along with a werewolf and a ghost setting up house pretending to be human. I must say I am more partial to the original British version since the cast in the American one fades in comparison.

Number 4

GRIMM

Not a great start but good enough to catch my eye, and a much more interesting ending to land it in number four. Wolves, trolls, ogres, witches with a german twist and a secret society or Wesen elite if you like, pulling the strings and threatening war on humans. Did you really think that Grimms were the brothers who wrote all those fairy tales you grew up listening to?

Number 3

SUPERNATURAL

Call me sentimental but there is something about those Winchester boys that no matter how lame the script is it always saves the day! I pretty much avoided talking about this season in the hopes of a comeback by the end of it. False hopes as it turned out, but, still, those boys have a great sense of humor...

Number 2

THE RIVER

If you told me a few months ago, right about when it aired, that it would be one of my favorites I would have laughed in your face. As it seems I should not form opinions based on only one or two episodes - even though I still believe those first ones do set the mood for what is to follow - but I should really start giving second or even third chances. It started pretty weak but by the last few episodes I found myself hooked and wanting for more.

Number 1

AMERICAN HORROR STORY

I am at a loss for words. I can't find anything else to say than you must watch!!

The River

This was one of the things I convinced myself not to write about during my dark days. I'm glad I did.

After watching the first episode I certainly wasn't expecting to get carried away by the flood; I pretty much wanted to escape with a handmade raft!

I must admit though that I did change my mind after watching a couple more. I was a bit put off with the all "magic is out there" thing at first but they handled it pretty gracefully at the end if you ask me.

I actually like the Blair Witch filming moments since they don't make me dizzy, and the idea of digging deeper into the mystic properties of an uncharted part of the world did not leave me unmoved.

Sometimes it goes a little overboard with said notion (I'm attributing that to the infancy of the program, testing the waters) but other than that I believe it could turn into a quite strong candidate for my top 5 greatest shows of the season (which I will be posting at the end of it!).

Enough said and written, it's different and getting more interesting as it goes so give it a try!

Death Valley and the horrors of horror

There are many side effects to being deprived of actual human contact as well as many days of constant fever. One of those side efects is hating everything new you see or read.

So, after careful consideration I've decided not to post anything I' m not absolutely sure about. (And believe me I've seen a lot these past few days).

I've seen films that deserve a closer look -given my state of mind at the time- I've seen new series I didn't really like that much, but said to myself don't be too quick to judge, give it another episode or two. I've started reading books I wanted to close shut after 20 or 30 pages, but put them away till everything went back to normal again. . .

There is though, one single thing that I hated so much and with every painful breath I took that I had no choice but to write and warn people about.

Welcome to "Death Valley", a seemingly not so bad idea but given in such a poor, stupid, tasteless, non creative way, that it actually gives a bad name to the people responsible for such an insult to fans of horror everywhere.

I don't know where to begin, so I will talk about what awful thing comes first, second and so on to mind.

Let's see, dialogues; who wrote them? I really would like to meet the people MTV has in its payroll.

Characters; really? Cops looking for doughnuts in the middle of a zombie chase, or looking at porn during an attack? Is that supposed to be funny?

Actors, well I'd rather be silent on that one...

Well, I should have known that it would be a disaster the minute I realised MTV had its claws into it, nevertheless I gave it a shot (serves me right not to trust my instincts!).

Anyway, a word of caution to all of you out there, time is too precious to be wasting it but if for some reason you find yourself wanting to watch it, by all means watch away, just remember you had been warned!!!

PS: Any different opinions would be more than welcome.

Classics for a New Year

Happily all the X-mas joy is finally gone. Sadly though, the end of the previous year called for the ending of the only thing I actually liked watching. So after the last Christmas episode of the season of my newly favorite American Horror Story I found myself looking for solace.

Nothing could comfort me, no books, no games, nothing. There was nothing left to do but turn to the classics, and so I did!

I brushed up on my black and whites starting with my all time favorite Nosferatu!

Excessive make-up, lack of voices and the ever haunting face of Max Schreck in the first attempt of telling a story so unquestionably linked to the horror genre.

I kept on in the same pace with films like The Student of Prague and others... and somehow I ended up with Rosemary' s Baby, remembering how life imitates art..

Time went by and the new year came. Hopefully it will be a creative one book - film - series - gamewise.

How did you fair over the holidays?

American HORROR Story

It took me months to get my hands on it, but now that I have finally done so, I don't think I'll ever let go!

Once I got wind of American Horror Story I was mortified to sit and watch because I was up to here with all those second class series claiming to belong to the horror genre. So it obviously took me too long to decide to actually give it a go.

I wasn't expecting much; actually I wasn't expecting anything, so imagine my surprise when I found myself watching one episode after the other. It was daytime when I began and way past midnight when I switched off my DVD player!

Creepy, disturbing, violent, haunting, unexpected, you either love it or love to hate it, but either way there is no forgetting it!

It is a first for me, waiting impatiently for the next episode of any series. But don't take my word for it, seeing is believing so I will be waiting to hear from you, are you lovers or haters?

Who's afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

We all grew up listening under our covers, time and time again, to the same bed time stories. Fairy tales about misunderstood monsters, love scorned witches, hungry wolves and all kinds of dark and troubled creatures, and battles between good versus evil in which good always prevailed.

What if not all of those stories were, indeed, stories? What if there was not only a little, but a lot of truth in them? What if those fairy tales were not the end? What if there was a whole world out there that we have just chosen to forget or even not see? That's a very interesting notion, don't you think?

That is exactly what the brand new series "Grimm" is all about. Taking all those twisted villains who haunted our childhood dreams, giving them not only life, but also a hold of our adult nightmares.

Though it is too soon to decide whether I like it or not, I must say that I am intrigued. . .

Remember Friday the 13th?

Lately I've been thinking a lot about when I was younger. Maybe it's the summer, the heat or even overexposure ti the sun always making me feel reminiscent; whatever the reason I found myself thinking about years past. I tried to remember what were the series I used to look forward to watching and then I remembered!

Every Friday night at about 11 o'clock me and my brother would get under our covers, switch on the TV and wait impatiently for this:

"Lewis Vendredi made a deal with the devil to sell cursed antiques. But he broke the pact, and it cost him his soul. Now, his niece Micki, and her cousin Ryan have inherited the store... and with it, the curse. Now they must get everything back and the real terror begins."

Those were the words introducing every single one of the episodes, setting the mood for what was about to follow.

The two cousins were left with the task of collecting every-single-one of the cursed objects. Event hough their powers seemingly helped those who posses them to prosper and avenge, their real purpose was to collect both the souls of the innocent and those of their less-well-meaning owners.

An American-Canadian production, Friday the 13th was beautifully made, won numerous awards for its visual and graphical effects and was nominated for a lot more over the years. Its great storyline -always with a pinch of humor- sometimes toyed with what was acceptable for network television, thus making it an even more interesting show!

So if you are already hating summer and the absence of anything evilish on TV, then by all means give it a go and I guarantee you won't regret it!

A Supernatural Comeback

Season 6 of the series and the drama goes on!

As anticipated Sam is back, or is he? Well something is back!

Eight episodes in the series and god is nowhere to be found. Rebellious angels roam the earth having given in to temptation and using every divine weapon imaginable. Demons are loose with no shepherd as well. Heaven and hell in turmoil and human kind stuck in the middle being collateral damage.

I'm liking the idea of angels with human pettiness acting like abandoned children trying to get the attention of the absent father, playing with their “toys” without caring about the consequences.

What I'm not liking is the resurrection of yet another member of the Winchester family! How many are there any way?

Just stop bringing people back from the dead!

It's the start of a new Vampire Season

I was dreadfully awaiting for this season's episodes of "The Vampire Diaries". And I must confess that it took me this long to write a whole new review because I physically couldn't watch any of them until recently. The memory of last season was still so painful that it only became worse when I saw that the series was scheduled for a second one!

But still, I built up my courage and sat to watch seven episodes in a row...

I was hoping for a new twist of things or maybe something different to make me change my mind and begin to see it in a different eye. In a nutshell I was hoping for a miracle!

No miracle here...

Same old, same old. After the first episode I started watching the rest in fast forward, again! Nothing to sparkle any kind of interest. Nothing new or unexpected. Nothing to persuade me that this is anything else but a poor attempt to transfer a (not so good if I may say) film on TV and gain from its success (which I do not really understand!).

I will, against my better judgment, keep on watching the series. I will keep on putting myself through this. Not because I expect anything to change or because I have time to waste, but because I would love nothing more than to have the chance to write more pieces like this one in the future!

It's the Walking Dead Premier!

The Walking Dead, the TV version of it to be precise, premiered this very Halloween on TV, and though I really don't know whether it was a commercial success or not, I must admit this was way better than anything I expected. The first episode showcased the series' faithfulness to the -excellent- original material, its well casted actors, the rather amazing production values and some of the best zombies you've ever seen. It's the first time since Romero's early masterpieces that the undead have been depicted in such a beautiful, terrifying and sadly human way.

This also happens to be the first modern horror TV series that, despite targeting the mainstream, chooses a sedate character-centric pace and prefers to develop its setting instead of focusing on a barrage of action scenes. Oh, and it's far gorier than expected.

The plot, centering on a contemporary sheriff's deputy who wakes up in a hospital right after the zombie apocalypse destroyed everything he knew, is, well, truly interesting and will not be spoiled here. I will though let you know that things will very soon pick up and that the simple struggle for survival against zombies will very soon turn into a story about human passion, bravery and -mostly- the evil that men do.

The Making of The Walking Dead Documentary (in two parts)

The Walking Dead series will premier this very Halloween and to say that we here in the Chamber are excited is an understatement. Then again you should have guessed that. The following making of documentary should get you in the appropriate mood too. The show looks more than promising.

Lost Girl – A brand new series

A new supernatural related series aired a few weeks ago in the U.S and I have been patiently awaiting to write this review. I decided to wait a bit, watch a couple of episodes first before I render my verdict.

And so I did. I've watched three whole episodes and I dare say that I am ready.

Cleverly playing with the title, “Lost Girl” introduces us to a world where the “Fae” (meaning all supernatural creatures) are divided into two groups, the dark and the light. Having been hidden since birth, a succubus named Bo finds her self being the object of desire of both sides. After passing tests and getting a crash course on what it is to be a fae she decides not to chose sides, but to remain neutral having a human on her side. And even though everything seems to be running smoothly the audience is made aware that the girl has a secret destiny that even she is not aware of.

Not a fan of the cast or the plot so far, but I've decided to hold my horses and give it the benefit of the doubt before I start being my usual self.

So bare with me for a while and I'll get back to you.

The Walking Dead TV Show

Our more faithful readers should remember the gory Walking Dead comic books, that rather excellent take on zombies and humanity's contemporary tendencies for self-destruction. Well, good news everyone! The Walking Dead TV series is just around the corner and seems to be more promising than a particularly promising thing. The first episode of the six episode series will premier this Halloween (Oct. 31) and will introduce viewers to a dark, gory, shockingly violent, (at times) touching, cruel, zombie-infested, post-apocalyptic world, and the rag-tag group of survivors that will be the seeries' protagonists.

At the helm of the how you will pleased to find director-writer-producer Frank Darabond (The Green Mile, The Shawshank Redemption), who is supported by a talented cast, that includes Andrew Lincoln, Jon Bernthal, Sarah Wayne Callies, Laurie Holden, Jeffrey DeMunn, Steven Yeun and Emma Bell.

To find out more about the Walking Dead you could do much worse than visit its content-packed official site. Imdb also sports some useful info, though you'd better start by taking a look at this lovely trailer:

Just Don't!

Well there are friends to listen to and there are others... not so much. Alas, I found myself listening to the wrong ones! Their advice? “Watch the Vampire Diaries!”. Little did I know I would regret the moment I decided to.

What do I have to say about it? Well, I have new found respect for True Blood!

Yes, yes, I know I was the one ripping it to pieces a few weeks ago, but, partly due to its rather surprising bouncing back to normal this season, and partly due to knowing what else is out there, yes, I do have new found respect!

What can one say about the tragedy called Vampire Diaries? A lot, trust me!

Where do I start? Let's see, plot non-existent. Beverly Hills meets Twilight and believe me they went to a lot of trouble to find the twin brother o Robert Pattison (as if we were ever in need of another one!).

Lame high school dialogues, teenagers in heat and the same old drama of a “good natured” vampire struggling to connect to his human side.

My personal struggle? To find anything remotely interesting about this.

A love triangle is the main feature of the first (and hopefully last) season. People looking like vampires, vampires walking around in sunlight (where have I seen that before...?), witches helping vampires and then hating them, and I don't know what else, makes for a very painful pastime.

What was worse than watching the first episode, was the idea that I had to watch the rest in order to have a rounded opinion. And I did (in fast forward mostly). I actually went through it and I'm not proud.

The things I do for you all!

Supernatural ?

Still on the subject of TV series...

What can one say about the hit series Supernatural?

The first season unveiled a promising world of ghosts and unearthly creatures backed up by a starting point, which slowly made sense throughout the season introducing us to the drama of the Winchester family.

Second season and the all absent father makes his appearance, as the story of a cursed family is now fully on display (or so we thought).

Third season and the mythology changes as demons take over almost every episode, but still the story unravels with more focus on the the family itself and the importance of the little brother's destiny.

Fourth season and here is when it starts going south... People came back from hell, angels appear fighting with demons fighting with mortals fighting with each other whilst the viewer tries to make sense of a family story now made more complex .

And the plot thickens, people die, come back, die again and come back vigilant. This back and forth along with a lot more comic elements than in the previews seasons (not so comic if I may say) and a long hard search for God, makes for an even souther 5th season.

Series finale? But the boys save the world of course by stopping the Apocalypse without delivering the happy ending everyone was expecting, but with a hint of God's presence and help along the way. And while this season was announced to be the last of the series, there has been rumor of a 6th one since a small window was left open at the very last scene.

Would it be wise to feed viewer's expectations for yet another season? Hard to tell. One thing's for sure though, save for the last two seasons it was a force to be reckoned with.

PS: Just please leave God and the commuting to hell and back aside!

Quoth the Raven

FOLLOWING THE GOOD OLD RECIPE?

Fangs, meanads, shape shifters, mortals, superhuman powers, werewolves...

ingredients in a TV soup trying to introduce a world of love, hate and betrayal.

Does it really work though?

After two mediocre seasons, True Blood continues following the same old recipe, taking advantage of all the cursed beings that the human mind has ever created.

Werewolves are the main feature in this season's premiere in hopes of renewing interest in a series meant for 15-year old misfit girls.

Regardless of the series's success in the U.S there are those whose voices cannot be silenced. Those who actually believe that stuffing lore of dark creatures in a simple script does not guarantee an outcome worthy of their appeal...

Quoth the Raven