Beginning the Endings: Horror shows that back track the history of classic villains.

 

Where did all the bad come from?

  I have been watching Hannibal, and Bates Motel to see how they would play out on TV and so far I am hooked.  We've seen the films that made these characters popular and now that they're all done what else is there to do?  Figure out how they got that way or at least to the point of where we met them, that's what.

    My girlfriend and I are big fans of The Americans, a show about KGB spies and how they are hiding among us in the 80's when we were all afraid of a war with Russia. I grew up in the 80's and so did my good friend who said he doesn't care to watch the show.  I asked why he wouldn't since it was so good to me and he answered; "Because I already know what happens." I guess it's one thing in the real world to be bored with history you lived through, but why isn't that true for horror or fiction?  I totally want to know about anything that happens between Will Graham and Hannibal Lecter before they have their show down in Red Dragon. The build up is interesting and seeing things pieced together to see how long all the lies and mistrust build up to a final battle is pretty awesome to follow, especially if its something you thought ran it's course and the franchise's fifteen minutes are done.

     Recently, Bates Motel has added some nice back story that I completely forgot about from the Psycho films. I forgot Norman Bates was into taxidermy and the last couple of episodes covered how he got into it and a funny scene his mother has trying to convince his taxidermist mentor on how it's not right for him to do, you know since he "taxiderms" her eventually.  I missed the first few episodes so now I want to backtrack and watch them just so that I have all the blanks filled in.  It really does make for good TV, and with all the mind numbing reality nonsense on TV.   I can't complain about someone adapting to some original stories and I hope more horror comes on TV because of it, maybe some Jason Voorhee's getting ignored by camp counselors while he goes for a swim back story or some Freddy Krueger before he becomes the Colonel's original crispy. I didn't watch the Michael Bay produced reboot one, sorry. ( I don't watch anything with his name on it)

    My friends comment still makes me wonder, why I keep watching if I already know what happens? I think it's because when it comes to horror, we horror fans love to watch a train wreck.