TV Series Review: Scream – Halloween Special

The Scream TV Series is a show that didn’t know how to end, a series that was initially interesting but was so dragged out to such an extent that any good will it had built up was lost. Laughable plot points, characters that became parodies of themselves & under-whelming killers.

That Season 2 ended with questions still unanswered & a hint to a future series was one of the most disappointing moments of the entire 12 episode run.

Well it seems as though many agreed & season 3 doesn’t look like it’s going to happen. Instead, in an attempt to clear things up we have this…the Halloween special. All the questions will be answered, everything tied up nicely to a hopefully satisfying finish.

Yeah, right…

You can read our reviews of the first two seasons below. This review will contain spoilers for those two series’ obviously.

Scream – Season 1
Scream – Season 2

Opening with Season two’/ killer, Kieran Wilcox being sent to prison for an extraordinary amount of time (ten life sentences to be served consecutively) it’s not long before a masked killer (wearing the same Brandon James mask) is killing the guard & releasing Kieran.

If you needed to know just how far off the deep end Scream has gone, this opening few minutes are proof that the writers have well & truly lost the plot. The killer somehow gets into the holding cell that Kieran is sent too, hides in the space above, kills the guard before turning the knife on Kieran.

Now bear in mind that Kieran is a multiple murderer & the media circus surrounding him would be crazy (the guards have a conversation about it too). Getting near him would be absolutely impossible let alone hiding in the obvious space above him. The only way this could possibly work is if it was someone with access but by the end of the episode it’s shown that was most certainly not the case (something I also have a huge problem with too)!

To make the whole opening even worse though Kieran getting killed within the first few minutes makes the final scene from season 2 pointless.

So with a new killer (maybe?) on the loose cleaning up the mess that is Lakewood we revisit the survivors roughly a year after the events of season 2. Everyone’s life is pretty much in the exact same place it was before except Audrey now has a girlfriend (suspect number 1) & Noah & Stavo are getting pressured by their publisher to come up with more murder related stuff (suspect number 2).

It’s this writers block angle for Noah that sees our survivor group go for a weekend trip to a remote island where the legend of Anna Hobbs exists. Stavo & the publisher believe this story is the next big thing for them so hope being there will help Noah get inspired.

Yeah, pretty flimsy right?

On this island they meet the reclusive Alex Whitman (suspect number 3) who is so reclusive that he wanders the island, meets up with Emma several times & goes fishing often. Desperate to get as many angles as possible in this lengthy episode Emma & Alex get a fast-track romance that is designed to make her look like an idiot again & him to come across as a killer every other scene.

Anyway, the legend of Anna Hobbs is up for dispute, it’s implied that it’s a bigger deal but it just isn’t that interesting. It’s there to give the killer a new mask & weapon.

What we get is a boring, cliche filled episode that tries its hardest to undo any good will that was left by the second season. Pointless is what comes to mind & it fails to clear up much of the bigger questions. To make matters worse it chooses to leave two major plot points open by the end!

Both are absurd & raise even more questions but questions that you’ll find you no longer care about getting the answers too. What started as a smart & exciting refreshing re-thread of a tired movie series & formula has collapsed into itself, unable to come up with any clever answers to the mess it created before.

It’s unwillingness to kill any major character adds a sense of disbelief to the whole proceedings too. Where is the tension if you know Noah, Audrey, Brooke & Emma are all going to make it through another killing spree? They never seem to be in danger & the killers threat level drops significantly when it comes to dealing with them.

Does it spill blood? Yes, the kills that do happen look good but it means nothing when the story is so bland. Characters that you once enjoyed are just going through the motions, saying their lines to get this over as quickly as possible.

You’ll feel the same, desperate to get it over with.

Please…no more.