Scream: The TV Series Episode One Recap

Warning this is a recap and will contain spoilers. 

So here we are. The first episode of Scream TV series is in the books. I now have to admit after my initial dread, I am actually quite impressed.

Initially, I was under the impression that the Scream TV series was a continuation of the movies. It isn’t. It’s an entirely new story in a different town. So in essence it’s a spin-off with an all new cast.

The story begins with a viral video of Audrey (Bex Taylor-Klaus) and Rachel making out. It was posted by the high school mean girl, Nina (Bella Thorne). Soon Nina and her boyfriend are knocked off, much like Casey and Steve in the original movie. The deaths are a tad turned down, but still brutal considering the show’s TV-14 rating. Everyone starts to treat Audrey different because they think she’s a lesbian, even though she denies it. After the murder, the students of the high school are questioned.  While to core group is sitting around waiting their turn for mandatory grief counseling, we are treated to the story of a series of murders in the town 20 years ago. A deformed teenager named Brandon James was picked on most of his life. The only one who cared about him was his brother.

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While the core group of characters are sitting around waiting their turn for mandatory grief counseling, we are treated to the story of a series of murders in the town 20 years ago. A deformed teenager named Brandon James was picked on most of his life. The only one who cared about him was his brother. He had many surgeries to try and repair his face and wore a post-op mask in public. He develops a crush on the most popular girl in high school. One night at a school dance he works up the courage to talk to her. He reveals his face to her, and she screams. Five nearby jocks think he’s trying to hurt her, and they jump him. Brandon snaps after all the years of torment and kills them. Brandon is thought to have died in a lake. Sure it’s a little more cliche and Jason-like than Scream, but it’s interesting. Soon we learn Audrey’s estranged friend Emma’s mother is the girl that Brandon James became obsessed with.

Cut to the teenagers partying at the lake. Yes, THAT lake. Audrey is attending, and the talk of her recent scandal ends up bringing out some secrets about the in-crowd. Then the fun begins. There is a scene reminiscent of the set up for Tatum’s death from the original movie. Sadly this doesn’t come to fruition. A nerd gets pass-out drunk, and the jocks strip him to his underwear and put him on the dock out in the middle of the lake. He swims to shore and something pulls him under.

The next day at school Audrey’s estranged friend Emma talks to her and confesses something. She was there the night the video recorded but didn’t take the video. Audrey becomes angry because she feels guilt is the only reason her estranged friend is trying to make up with her. Emma walks away and then she receives a call. Yes, my worries were put to rest. Ghostface is up to his usual ominous tricks. It is then we learn what I assume to be the new rules. Everyone has secrets. Everyone tells lies. Everyone is fair game.

The tradition of multiple suspects is alive in Scream: The TV Series. Is it the new kid in town? Is it the guy with a morbid obsession with serial killers, with a special interest in Brandon James, or is it Brandon James himself?

The best part to me is they used an idea I had thought of. If the Scream movie franchise is teenagers talking about horror movies then naturally the TV series should talk about Horror TV shows. They even go so far as to explain the differences between a slasher movie, and a slasher TV show. A slasher movie is generally 90 minutes long, whereas a TV show is around an hour (45 minutes without commercials). This made sense as to why there were only two kills in an episode, although one off screen. With a TV series, you get more time to get to know the characters and become emotionally involved with them. It hits you hard when they die. So the spacing out of the kills is actually a good move. So if you didn’t like the first episode, don’t give up on it. It can only get better as the tension builds. What’s even better is Wes Craven himself has shown interest in directing an episode.

The most fun about movies, and TV series like Scream: The TV Series is trying to guess who the killer is. At this point, I wouldn’t even hazard to take a guess, and only hope that it keeps me surprised until the reveal.

I went into Scream: The TV Series thinking it would be a cheap cash in on the Scream name, that is really just a teen drama with a light serial killer plot, but Scream: The TV Series has surpassed all of my expectations. That is coming from someone whose favorite is Scream. The cast has a great chemistry much like the cast of the original movie. The cinematography and direction are top notch. Most importantly the show’s script has equal parts of drama, and comedy that fans have come to expect from the Scream franchise.

MTV has made a believer out of me. MTV seems to understand the audience and has given something that both fans of the original movies, and fans whose fist taste of Scream is the TV series will enjoy.  I will now call MTV ScreaMTV, and can hardly wait to see what happens next.