Octoberfest Five: 5 Fab Men of Current Horror TV

The Creature - PENNY DREADFUL

While there are a plethora of really interesting characters on Showtime's ode to Victorian horror literature, when pressed I would have to choose the mournful and melancholy - yet extremely dangerous - John Clare, a.k.a. The Creature (Rory Kinnear).  His torturous existence by the hands of Dr Frankenstein has brought him nothing but confusion, sadness, and hardship.  Fitting into the world when you are essentially a monster has not been easy for our Mr. Clare, but there have been wonderful "normal" moments, particularly when he ound a friend in Miss Ives, reciting poetry and commiserating together about the cards they have been dealt.  The clarity of his anguish is ever-present, which makes his character one of the most intriguing and magnetic on television today, regardless of genre.

Bennet Drake - RIPPER STREET

Ripper Street is the one show you're not watching, but should be.  Set just a year or so after the Jack the Ripper case, it surrounds detectives working the Whitechapel beat, trying to deal with the sordid and horrific memories of the Ripper while attempting to keep up with the current state of dismal life in Victorian London.  With impressive performances from its three male leads, it was tough to choose one to highlight. But I feel the layers of Detective Inspector Bennet Drake (Jerome Flynn) make him the most interesting character of the lot.  As a former street thug who boxed his way into paying his rent and was married to a former prostitute,  he was devastated when his wife died.  Hence he rededicated himself to his career and tries to be the voice of reason of the three partners.  But sometimes that fails him and he has to take matters into his own, rough hands.  Falling in love again has helped steer him back on track, and his promotion in H Division has finally found him peace. He really is one to watch.

Daryl Dixon - THE WALKING DEAD

I'd be remiss if I forgot Daryl, and though he seems like a really obvious choice, I have to give credit where credit is due.  Daryl somehow ended up being the heart of TWD.  Fans adore him, enough to threaten anarchy if he were to be killed off.  With his trusty crossbow on his back, Daryl started out being a nasty redneck unsure of whether or not he wanted to fall in with the group and stick together. But once his brother Merle is killed off by zombies, he starts to come out of his shell and becomes a vital member of the core assembly of misfits fighting the walking dead.  These last few seasons we have witnessed true emotion from Daryl, as he grew close to Beth and lost her, and his almost inevitable relationship with Carol unfolds.  Brutal when he has to be, mysterious when he needs to be, and dependable - always.  For me, it's true when they say "If Daryl dies, we riot!"

Norman Bates - BATES MOTEL

I simply can't believe how much this show has grown on me in the last few years.  Psycho is one of my favorite movies (sitting at #2 with me and going nowhere soon), and Norman Bates is my favorite character in horror, hands down, so to expect a lot from another series plucked from Robert Bloch's masterpiece novel is asking quite a bit.  But the casting in this show is sublime.  Freddy Highmore as Norman is a revelation.  At this point of the series, he has everything down - the straight-backed walk, the nervous laugh, the stuttering speech, the uptight and agitated personality...and now he is morphing right into Anthony Perkins, with the last few episodes being his best yet.  When he does things like peeking into one of the motel rooms as someone takes a shower, hanging out in the basement perfecting his taxidermy, or when he gets up and makes blueberry pancakes at the ass-crack of dawn - in his mother's housecoat...he is Norman personified.  And I can't wait to see what's next!!

Tate Langdon/Kit Walker/Kyle Spencer/Jimmy Darling/James March
AMERICAN HORROR STORY

It may be a secret, but I'm letting the cat out of the bag.  I love Evan Peters. From the first season with the show playing a tormented and eventually homicidal teenager to his most recent turn on the Freak Show incarnation as "lobster-hands" Jimmy Darling, he transforms himself into someone different. Someone who always seems to have a heart of gold.  Even when he shoots up his high school in Murder House, he is still able to find love with the young Violet Harmon and shows an affectionate, yet melancholy side to his persona.  It's hard not to fall for the young Peters, able to warp into totally diverse characters and charm his way into our hearts. Even though he is seemingly playing a version of a monster in each season, you can't take your eyes off him in every scene - he's magnetic.  I can't wait to see how all the colors of his personality shine in AHS: Hotel.

Horror TV: The Future Looks Bright (and Bloody!)

Daryl (Norman Reedus) is proficient in taking out walkers on THE WALKING DEAD

There's never been a better time to be a horror fan  - or a more appropriate time to try to put out a new show in the horror genre. With the resounding success of such shows as Dexter, True Blood, and most recently American Horror Story and the wildly popular (and critically acclaimed) The Walking Dead, horror has proved it is very much alive and well and prospering on the small screen. In fact, The Walking Dead is averaging over 10 million viewers an episode - a feat unheard of for a cable television show, let alone a horror product. Even more impressive is that it is in contention to rival The Big Bang Theory as the top-rated scripted show. TWD is currently the number one show among 18-49 year olds. And it's not even on one of the big four networks.  Seriously, WHOA! And I know I'm not alone when I say this season has been its best yet!

The success of the aforementioned shows, as well as newer shows like the genre-bending Once Upon A Time, Grimm, and this season's 666 Park Avenue (just canceled, unfortunately) are making it more acceptable than ever to be a horror fan.
The teen rage shows such as The Vampire Diaries, this fall's newbie Beauty and the Beast, and the long-running Supernatural continue to guide new generations to appreciate horror and turn them into long-term fans.
And now, we have three new shows to look forward to in the near future that are nothing if not horror.

HANNIBAL (Mads Mikkelsen)  inspects the flatware.

HANNIBAL tries to draw new blood from the character of  Dr. Hannibal ("the cannibal") Lecter - whose character rose to fame under the sublime (and Oscar-winning) performance of Sir Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs. In the upcoming take on the story, the unstable doctor Lecter works closely with Special Agent Will Graham - a criminal profiler from the FBI.  Lecters special skill set will become an asset to Graham, though the two are bound to clash eventually when their personalities, as well as Lecter's other hobbies, come to light. Though I wouldn't want to have the unenviable task of attempting to bring life to such an iconic character as Hannibal, Mads Mikkelsen (the Danish actor who portrayed the crazy-cool, bleeding-eye villain in 2006's Casino Royale) has been cast as the serial killer shrink, and I'm on board with it, as Mads just reeks a creepy vibe.  Also cast is Hugh Dancy (aka Mr. Claire Danes), who is set to play Agent Graham, and Laurence Fishburne will portray Agent Jack Crawford. Looks interesting, to say the least.

Freddie Highmore and Vera Farmiga relax near the BATES MOTEL

In BATES MOTEL (A & E, 2013), we get yet another take on the life of Norman Bates and his dear mother.  Freddie Highmore (Finding Neverland, Charlie & the Chocolate Factory) will bring on the weird as Norman, and Vera Farmiga will star as his beloved mama, Norma. Billed as a prequel to the famous Hitchcock film, it has Norman as an awkward 16 year old who is having trouble adjusting to his new school (and his new town, apparently - as we discover when we meet the sheriff and his deputy who are keeping a close eye on Norman). Also in the picture will be Norman's older brother Dylan (Max Theriot), who apparently is a bit of a bad ass himself.  But I have my doubts he's as disturbed as our pal Norman is. As a rabid fan of Norman Bates, I will have to do a mental adjustment to accept anyone but Anthony Perkins as Norman. But I am wildly curious about this series and you can bet your butcher knife I'll be parked in front of the flat screen when this series premieres next fall. (Might get my shower out of the way beforehand, though...)

Kevin Bacon and James Purefoy star in THE FOLLOWING this January

And in THE FOLLOWING (Jan, 2013- FOX), Kevin Bacon stars as an FBI agent on the trail of a serial killer (James Purefoy, Rome) the likes of which the world has never seen before.  This baddie has discovered a way to reach out to other serial killers and - for lack of a better phrase - band them together to wreak collective havoc on the United States.  In my book, anything with Kevin Bacon in it is bound to be interesting, as I have enjoyed his many forays into the darker side of cinema - and now he's checking into the small screen.  Bacon's retired FBI profiler is brought in to try to find an escaped serial killer that he caught years ago.
This psychological thriller is getting a lot of advance buzz, and most of it seems to be on the positive side.
Bizarrely enough, it's brought to us by Kevin Williamson - more famous for his teen shows like Dawson's Creek and The Vampire Diaries. But I don't think I'm being too bold in saying that I have a feeling it's a long way off from those shows if Kevin Bacon is starring.  It also stars Shawn Ashmore (The Ruins, Frozen, Mother's Day) and Maggie Grace (LOST, Taken).

So, horror fans, get ready for some small screen horror, and in light of all the violence and gore that network shows like American Horror Story and in particular The Walking Dead get away with these days, we could be in for a real treat.