Apple TV’s Widow’s Bay Gave Us Its Scariest Episode Yet With Three Crucial Guest Stars – SlashFilm

Spoilers for “Widow’s Bay” Episode 6, “Our Historical past,” and Episode 7, “Seasickness,” comply with.

“Widow’s Bay” is, on this author’s humble opinion, the should watch new tv present of the season. It is turn out to be appointment TV for me, and seeing the most recent hauntings on Widow’s Bay island has turn out to be the brightest spot of each Tuesday.

One straightforward comparability for “Widow’s Bay” is “Jaws” — particularly, the primary half of the film earlier than it heads out to sea. Collection lead Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys) is mayor of the titular small New England village, and he is attempting to drive summer time tourism to the island, à la Mayor Vaughn (Murray Hamilton) in “Jaws.” 

Nonetheless, there is a hazard lurking Tom does not need to acknowledge — and it is no mundane shark, however a centuries-previous curse on the island. Although there’s an ongoing narrative, “Widow’s Bay” has the episodic appeal of an anthology; every episode has targeted on a special supernatural terror afflicting the island. Episode 6, “Our Historical past,” breaks up the narrative stream and in that disorientation delivers the scariest episode but. (No small feat.) 

“Widow’s Bay” has beforehand alluded to the city’s troubled historical past, and this episode goes again to the start — 1702, when the island was first being settled. Naturally, a lot of the major characters are absent. In Loftis’ place is Sarah Westcott Warren (Betty Gilpin), a lady newly arrived on Widow’s Bay and betrothed to its chief, Richard Warren (Hamish Linklater). Sarah does not even get to take pleasure in her marriage ceremony night time earlier than she realizes one thing sinister is afoot along with her new husband.

Behind the digicam is a 3rd important visitor star: horror filmmaker Ti West (“X,” “Pearl”). West delivers an episode that slots in properly along with his different interval piece horror movies, like his Eighties-set breakout function “The Home of the Satan.”

/Movie’s overview of “Widow’s Bay” in contrast the sequence to Mike Flanagan’s “Midnight Mass,” the place Hamish Linklater performed Father Paul Hill, a priest who brings an “angel” (actually a vampire) to his island neighborhood. Granted, “Widow’s Bay” creator Katie Dippold has downplayed any “Midnight Mass” connection in an interview with The Wrap — “I really like ‘Midnight Mass,’ however [Linklater] simply looks like a totally completely different actor in that present to me.”

This time round, he is even scarier! Father Hill was a great man who made some very dangerous selections, and “Midnight Mass” gave him a sympathetic POV. “Our Historical past,” although, is from Sarah’s perspective as she slowly realizes her husband is a assassin in league with evil forces. In “Midnight Mass,” Father Hill was charismatic and caring; in “Widow’s Bay,” Richard Warren is imperious and enigmatic. The episode is mainly a horror story a few girl trapped in a wedding with a person hiding violent secrets and techniques, and he is as scary to us as he’s to Sarah.

Sarah discovering caverns and a torture chamber beneath the Warrens’ house would possibly remind Ti West followers of the horrific climax in “Home of the Satan.” Nonetheless, the 1700s colonial setting had me pondering of Robert Eggers’ “The Witch.” That film derives its horror from the mindset of its Puritan leads, who believed that witches and demons actually stalked them, and that conceding to any temptation in any respect meant everlasting damnation.

“Our Historical past” equally makes colonial superstitions really feel all too actual; on this time, there’s solely meager candlelight to fend off the darkness. That makes this 1700s-set prequel even scarier than different “Widow’s Bay” episodes, which not less than supply the consolation of modernity and familiarity.

“Widow’s Bay” is streaming on Apple TV+.