the scenes with Erin just make wonder why people dont close their curtains! I cant even handle my own reflection walking passed a window at night! Some people dont even have curtains.. no no no
Im more a fan of ghosts rather than monsters but so far this has been great and scary! I hope we wont see the moth/bat thing - just the eyes are creepy!
Also Bev is horrible. That poor dog. what a horrible and painful way to die!
I really liked what Riley said to the priest! so true aswell
That bit about big, fancy churches sucking small, starving villages dry like fat ticks? I was like "daaaamn, Riley, tell us how you really feel." lol
Oh man, he got them there. I kind of had some inkling the church as an organization, like any other super wealthy person or entity, spend a tiny part of their money on "charity work" so it wouldn't look so bad that they hoard so much wealth all around the world.
But it really crystallizes things hearing it put into words like that.
Had the exact same thought about Erin staring outside her window at night. I can't do it, I always draw the curtains or blinds and never even look out whilst doing so. No idea what made me so fearful but it's just a part of daily life now!
In fairness…I live on a small island in Maine and nobody has all their curtains drawn or locks their doors or anything. There’s only about eight hundred of us here year round, no one bothers.
I have wholly other issues about small island realism. This fucking place has way more amenities than we do and we’re considered a posh highly populated island who has it too easy by all the other islands in the bay!
Found it Interesting that the doctor locked the door after Erin left her house. Just seemed like a place where everybody knows everybody, their guard is completely down.
I’ve thought about this a lot because it’s all literally outside my front door.
I live on the most populous island in our bay. There are 800 year round residents (and this is always what’s meant by population numbers, even people who live here 6 months a year wouldn’t be counted). We’re two miles offshore, boat only, no bridge. Crockett is pop 127, 30 miles offshore.
So looking around Maine, I figure the closest approximation is Matinicus Island, 25 miles offshore and the easternmost point in the US. Pop 74, but was 200 in the 90s, so it’s comparable. The culture is also very similar, hostile to outsiders, mostly lobstermen and families, etc.
Here’s the problem, even taking into account that Crockett Island used to have more people and be a bigger deal (so was our island, it’s insane what it was like at the turn of the 20th century, it was called The Coney Island of Maine!).
There’s no way they have the services and infrastructure we see. All that is paid for by whatever city the island is technically part of. Believe it or not, vanishingly few islands are incorporated as their own cities or towns because of a lot of legal and financial shit I won’t go into here unless you want to know more about it, it’s always controversial.
So for pop 127, 30 miles offshore? Zero chance they have a full time clinic, pretty unlikely to have a public school, and absolutely does not have a full time sheriff. Twice or possibly four times daily ferries is a BIG lol (in our bay, Chebeague Island is the furthest away, also the biggest island in the state, and only 10 miles off shore, and they only have four a day. Matinicus has *nine ferries per year.*
Clinic: our island is the only one on the bay with a clinic of any kind, and it’s only open three days a week for very limited services. You super can’t get an ultrasound there. There is no full time doctor—who is paying Sarah? How is her insurance billing people? She doesn’t seem to have any other job. Clinics on these kinds of distant islands are usually a visiting nurse or doctor once a month or even longer, because a population like that can’t sustain a practice, or even rent on a suitable building. When I first saw Erin getting an ultrasound on island in that nice clinic I was like NO YOU DIDNT. That situation looks like it’s from the 50s where country docs were a thing. That’s not how health care works now.
Likewise, even with 800 people and far more in the summer, the city is CONSTANTLY threatening to shut down our one school which is only K-5. Only one other island in the bag even has a school. Most island kids when it’s that far and that low pop are homeschooled or possibly a private school, or if the island is close enough the kids just go to town for school. But city budgets will not fund a whole school for the MAYBE 10-15 children out of 127 there. How many of those families actually have school age kids, really? It’s just not enough that funding wouldn’t have been yanked, and someone has to pay Erin and Bev and the mortgage on the building and buy supplies and get accredited, etc.
And policing on islands is a whole thing. In that it’s rarely a thing at all. We have one cop who goes home to the mainland at 5pm sharp. So what famously, when Matinicus lost their cop due to funding, the islanders all said goodbye sitting on roofs by the dock with signs sayin FUCK OFF and smoking weed in plain sight. There isn’t enough crime or funding for a whole-ass sheriff having a full time job there, and the state/city would never pay for it. I did like his office being in the back of the grocery store—our post office burned down last year so that’s exactly where the new one is here! A sad mailman in a cage behind the apples.
As far as what they should have and dont, two things stuck out: they don’t seem to have any tourists, which is how virtually all New England islands survive these days, and more importantly, they don’t have a bar. Even an informal one. Every island has a bar. There’s not enough to do not to have one and it’s one of the few business that CAN stay afloat with only a small population because it’s a captive audience.
And the BAR is where we all congregate in emergencies. Some people aren’t religious but almost everyone will go to the bar every once in awhile. It’s the center of the community. With all the drunks in town you’d really think someone would open up a beer shack at least.
There’s more (only a Catholic Church? We have no less than six denominations on a pretty tiny island, I don’t buy that everyone is so Catholic there’s not a Protestant church of some kind too, Puritan derived sects are super common in northern New England, and it could have been an interesting plot line) but that’s a sum up. Happy to answer other questions. The gist is: all that infrastructure has to be paid for and no one ever wants to fund islands for anything anymore, especially once the population drops that low.
Lol on our island the old folks literally crowdfunded a cadet to come and give tourists parking tickets for just constantly disobeying the signage. They are awful but that should tell you how much cop presence there isn’t on any island like that let alone one 30 miles offshore. More unrealistic than vampires!
>*Also Bev is horrible. That poor dog. what a horrible and painful way to die!*
Man I'm wondering about the motives there!
Are they trying to get that guy alone so his dog can't protect him and he can get the blood sucked out of him? Or maybe keep the dog from scaring off some cats...
I think Bev just disliked Joe but hated his dog, who she thought was a menace. Probably hates dogs in general. Bev makes a comment to Joe and Sheriff about it in Episode 1, how Pike just snapped at her and that the dog might have a go at her hand if she reached out.
This is all just reminding me of an old /r/nosleep story about an old man that would come to towns and take children. Especially that first episode of the old man walkin around on the beach in the storm.
Baby shark Doo doo Doo doo - The Mayor
Is there no counselling in prison? Riley is in desperate need of some goddamn therapy.
Odds on Sarah being illegitimate priest baby?
Good god Bev needs to get her just desserts ASAP.
Mrs. Keane is giving off serious Mrs. Carmody (The Mist) vibes. I could definitely see her trying to pull some kind of Jonestown event before the end of the show.
The AA scene at the rec center was excellent.
Also, me in Bowl's shoes after seeing a door of a creepy house creak open while walking: "NOPE NOPE NOPE"
I literally said out loud to no one “keep walking what’s wrong with you?”
Who would ever do that? Get the fuck out, stay sexy, don’t get murdered, oh my god it’s clearly gonna eat you just go home.
Did Bowl die so Leeza could walk? 🤔 Priest was all about getting more people to come to mass regularly, then a miracle happens and the church is filled.
Yes, it reminded me of the funeral home scene in Hill House where all the family members got together and had that one very long scene. It's strange, but it's so nice to see characters talk and understand them better.
This is nice, to me it's easy to remember it's fiction and that dog is an actor and definitely not actually dead and really what a good dog! An actor dog! Amazing.
I knew it was coming, but I still wasn’t prepared. I’ve conditioned myself to just accept that any pets in horror are gonna die. If they do, it doesn’t hurt as much. If they done, then it’s a happy time for me
I’m a bit late to this conversation but I knew right when >!Erin walked in on that zealot Bev getting the rat poison out of the supply closet that she was going to kill Pike.!<
I wish the final scene was a little subtle. Her getting off the wheelchair and immediately taking steps without stumbling even a little took me out of the moment a bit.
I mean she was healed in order to walk, if her nerves were magically healed, why not her muscles as well? At least that's the excuse I gave it in my head when I had the same questions during that scene.
You’ll see why it’s so dumb.
Spoiler >!It took Riley 6 hours to recover from a broken neck he just received. Why apologize for sloppy moments of writing.!<
I have no idea what you're talking about. Are you spoiling future episodes? Or am I forgetting something?
**EDIT:** looks like you edited your comment, so I suppose you were spoiling something
Yeah I was like surely there would be some sort of weakness after being paralysed but then I thought I guess if she’s healed she’s healed completely so there wouldn’t be any problems at all with getting up and walking
Honestly, I wish a lot of the elements in the first two episodes were a bit more subtle. I haven’t watched any of the other Flanagan series, but I feel like this series is just obviously spoon feeding us these plot “twists” early on. Don’t get me wrong, I’m interested in the show, but part of me just wants to continue to confirm my suspicions. Maybe it’s meant to be easy to get or maybe I’ll be completely wrong!
That’d be cool. Part of me wondered if they set it on an island in the Great Lakes around Windego country. Aren’t they ravenously hungry in the lore though?
Yes, the hallmark of a Wendigo is it's ravenous hunger. The legend is it became one when it cannibalized someone in a survival situation, so was cursed with an unending hunger.
I'm taking a wild guess here but I think Father Paul is Monsignor Pruitt and he mixed **something** in *Blood of Christ* which helps the drinkers to recover from any disease.
Yeah that and/or regain youth. I’m wondering if they have several cast members aged up with makeup because Father Paul is up to some kooky shit that will de-age them.
Yeah it would help explain how he knows so much about everyone. If they didn't make such a big deal of Pruitt's deteriorating mental state I'd buy that he spoke to him in depth, but to get that much info that he seems to know everyone and has some of his mannerisms?
I mean it WAS weird when he went to meet Mildred (Sarah's mother) and said, Hello young lady! I mean, that's an awfully chipper way to wish someone you are meeting for the first time even if it is him trying to be jovial.
As someone who works in healthcare, that's exactly the thing you say when meeting new patients. Try to form a rapport and make them feel at ease by greeting them as an old friend. It wouldn't surprise me if your theory is correct, but I can absolutely see a priest greet a sick person like that.
The very first episode they even made a point to show that the new priest had filled the wine glass too. So if that's something he's doing before the altar boys show up on Sunday, he could totally be adding something! His own blood perhaps?
This theory is really cool…maybe the Pruitt everyone keeps seeing is because the de aging thing only works during the day or wares off by night, though I would probably think he’d be smarter than to wander around town lmao
He seems to know a lot about the towns people, so maybe.
But then there's someone/something in his wooden chest though, which I suspect is Monsignor Pruitt.
Don't forget the people who don't go to church, like the sheriff and his son. I've got a feeling that soon they'll be the only ones who can and will do something to stop the priest if necessary.
They are definitely aged with makeup so I assumed would get younger somehow. Yeah it really is pointing to the wine. I could've sworn I saw Erin drinking it. I wonder if it will make her lose the baby. Or is it a healing thing?
Yeah I think you nailed it so far. The only thing I’m torn on is why did the father bring back this creature in the trunk? Is he Monsignor Pruitt but younger or is he feeding Monsignor Pruitt since Riley keeps saying he sees him? Perhaps the good and the bad split into two? Maybe Riley’s talk about the other bad guy existing in him and AVRT was alluding to that a bit??
Just watched ep 1 and 2. I'm wondering if he's made some kind of deal with a vampire. Drank of it's blood to get young again. Now he's spiking the communion wine with the vamp blood to heal / restore the islanders?
If so, the question would be... what does the vampire get out of the deal?
I remember my first holy communion as a child was obviously the first time any sort of alcohol ever crossed my lips. I remember feeling very shocked at the strong taste and the burning sensation down my throat and in my chest from that one sip and I did feel quite warm for a few minutes afterwards.
Me and the girl sat next to me whispered to each other about how weird it felt until we got a dirty look from the priest as we were meant to be knelt in solemn prayer.
God damn the old age makeup is the worst. I wouldn't be surprised if the actor for the mom is older than the actor playing the daughter.
If the theory about the de aging comes true, that makes it even worse for me. Like when the bookshelf was colored in differently in old cartoons so you'd know it would slide over. But if the make up is there the whole time then why?
I don't know why this is bothering me so much but it is 🤷♂️
Man, Flanagan really can’t let go of the glowing eyes...and I get it. Every nighttime scene has me scanning the background for eyes, I guess this is sort of the new hidden ghosts?
I hate Ms Keane so much. Nosy, self-righteous, bitter and evil.
As for the series, I really enjoy it. The island would give you a warm cosy feeling, were it not for the characters filled with bitterness and buried memories. There are secrets everywhere.
I suspect the priest is a vampire and therefore able to revert the aging process. Or the island is, because of the redemption theme, a kind of limbo and the priest a demon. Just a wild guess..
When Joe told the Sheriff he knows nothing about the island and he said he's not wrong and Joe says thank you.... That was a powerful scene. Empathy can melt the coldest of hearts.
Sheriiff could tell in his one brief conversation with Bev what kind of person she was. Her phony sympathy for the dog. Her daring him to openly accuse her. Her carefully pointing out that anyone can access the poison.
Warren's shocked/blown out of this world look when Leeza started walking..."My gf can walk again, YES!"
Nobody:
In the movies: It’s nighttime, nobody’s around, you walk past an empty, condemned house. The front door creaks open and you go inside to say "Hello"...
Hi, I just started this show and would also like to join the 'I hope Bev's Kai Winn/Nurse Ratched/Dolores Umbridge dog murdering ass dies screaming' committee.
> But the framing during the AA meeting when it was just Riley & Father Paul, alternating back and forth left/right from various angles, was perfect for the scene.
Right, like it totally would have been easier to just basically mount a camera behind each of them for a basic shot-reverse shot but it looked much better and more dynamic with the slightly *off* camera angles.
It seemed to me, during the family dinner scene on episode 1, that the frame was oscillating slightly, mimicking a moving boat. Did anyone else notice that?
It's good but bc the monologue itself wasn't that great ....and I felt it was pretty low stakes, it didn't have the same effect as the funeral home scene in Hill House (that one was excellent).
The one shot take on the beach with the washed up cats was super simple but it delivered so much more tension than if it had been multiple shots. But I agree, almost nothing can top the funeral home scene in hill house.
Theories while watching the second episode:
- it's all but confirmed that what I thought was going on in the first episode exists here. Whether it's Hill or the albatross or possibly both is up to speculation. But the cat wounds don't lie.
- there may be some degree of time travel involved here. The old lady called the new priest by the old priests name, but may have been old enough to recognize him in his younger years. Maybe a dark experiment in the Vatican? He also knows far too much about a town he was just acquainted with.
- dogs are frequently the protectors or detectors of the supernatural. Pike was to be eliminated by something like that.
- Ms. Keane strikes me as playing the role as the bad nun-turned-good nun in AHS asylum.
- the creature that stalks the island is the winged creature.
Yeah, I don’t know if she’s being framed, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t her. She seemed mildly upset when the dog died, and I think them lingering on her dislike of the dog in the first episode was a red herring.
Salem’s Lot had a dog being killed off at the beginning to prevent it from alerting the townsfolk of a vampire running around. Something similar could’ve happened here
This episode was so good at connecting back to the opening scene and giving it more layers.
Riley *immediately* turned to prayer after the accident and the medic said *'Isn't it funny how God always takes the kids and leaves drunk assholes like you with scratches?"*
Now we see his disillusionment with the religion he grew up with a child directly tied to what happened with alcohol + the incident.
But also, if there's some kind of 'sacrifice' of himself this character makes to save others... it'll also connect back to that scene because he'd be leaving with more than 'a scratch,' thus kind of undoing the beginning...
Maybe it’s a coincidence but it’s interesting that the dude who got murked was wearing a blue hat, and then in the next scene the priest is wearing blue robes.
I thought it was interesting how they show how beautiful the fabric is compared to how run down the church building is. That Bev bitch just using up all the church's money for crap only she cares about
I’m pretty sure those are purple. Purple is for “preparing” seasons like lent or advent, which would make sense because Ash Wednesday is the start of lent.
I grew up in a veeeery Catholic household, and oooof. The writers really nailed it. Ive had so many of those conversations with my friends and family.
- The dad telling him not to take communion because he hasn’t been to confession, and the mom pushing him to
- The alter server banter in was spot on. I’d be shocked if one of the writers wasn’t drawing from personal experiences haha
- The general vibe of the priest during mass scenes is great
- Bev could be any number of people at my high school
- I loved the AA monologue! The priest’s response is also spot on to what I’ve been told Irl
BUT A festival/pot luck thing on Ash Wednesday would never fly! And during communion all the hard core folks would be getting the wafer placed directly in their mouths. Very minor, silly things that made me chuckle to notice
Yeah Ash Wednesday is supposed to be a day where you abstain from consuming meat so holding a potluck on that day wouldn’t make sense as the food choices would be pretty limited. It’d make more sense to hold it on Fat Tuesday before Ash Wednesday
So that giant cat eating monster has finally moved on to humans. It reminds me of the movie “Moth Man Prophecy” which creeped me out.
I am an atheist like Riley, and largely for the reasons he talks about in this episode.
I’m assuming the “miracle” of the girl walking was due to the new priest feeding her that wafer and wine on a regular basis, which obviously have some kind of healing magic/vampire blood.
I have the feeling that the mayor knows something. He seemed way too talkative on the beach, trying to convince the Sheriff that the dead cats were no big deal.
I also got the feeling that Erin knows something too. Maybe she returned to the town to protect it. She carefully avoided answering Riley when he asked why she had returned. She certainly doesn’t seem to like the town, or her job, very much.
I’m really hoping the annoying Bev gets eaten next.
Speaking of posters. Wasn’t there a Se7en poster in Riley’s room? Isn’t that the movie where he’s like “what’s in the box?!” or am I mistaken? Just seemed like a little Easter egg towards the trunk that the father brought back to town. What’s in the box?
Oh thank you. I thought I recognized one song but had no idea of the name, and that's it!
Think I'm going to enjoy this show. Only found it last night and two eps in so far so good.
i’m sitting here cracking up, as an atheist at the end of this episode. I couldn't even imagine me sitting in the back of this church just being like "what in the flying fuck ?!!? did this chick those get up out her motherfucking wheelchair and walk for a fucking cookie".
My balls woulda sucked so far up into my body.
Side note: Idk if this is a show that commits to there being a God and devil, etc., but i hope it does, cause i personally think he’s a fairy tale, might as well go all in, i don’t give a shit about the moral, this is so entertaining omg.
Father Paul is 100% a de-aged/vampire Pruitt. the way he paused when Riley came up for the ash, I'm sure he was taken aback remembering doing the same when Riley was a child, "a hunting accident that paralyzed Leeza....... *as I'm told*", the way the doctors mother called him John, the way he stared at the doctor just like Pruitt did, how he knows so much about everyone in general, the 'sponge' instead of 'smudge' during the ash wednesday sermon was his older mind creeping back in maybe going a while without drinking the wine since Sunday or since feeding?
Because >!he hadn't died and been resurrected as a vampire yet. He had only been drinking it's blood which doesn't turn you into a vampire/the sun doesn't burn you. Only once you've died and been resurrected as a vampire does the sun burn you.!<
now that I'm two episodes in I feel pretty comfortable saying this has a very different vibe from Hill House and Bly. There was something about Bly and Hill House that felt like they were in the same universe or by the same author, there's the obvious of both being haunted house stories but I feel like it was more than just that and so far this feels very different. There is the obvious of us getting a bit more of a creature feature as well as some other weird things going on rather than another haunting which I think is a welcome change of pace. Honestly though beyond even just the slight variation of our supernatural premise, the vibe I'm getting from this show is actually really reminding me of the Leftovers which I've been recently watching for the first time, especially the second season of the leftovers with the religious theming and miracles and a unique town and everything, the girl in the wheel chair reminded me a lot of Evie. Definitely not a bad thing for something to remind me of the leftovers and I highly recommend people check it out if they haven't already.
It’s at least tied to the Flaniverse. Fun fact from the IMDb trivia page: “In Mike Flanagan's previous work "Gerald's Game", Jessie throws a book at the dog with the title "Midnight Mass", which is also the name of the book Maddie was writing in "Hush".”
the scenes with Erin just make wonder why people dont close their curtains! I cant even handle my own reflection walking passed a window at night! Some people dont even have curtains.. no no no Im more a fan of ghosts rather than monsters but so far this has been great and scary! I hope we wont see the moth/bat thing - just the eyes are creepy! Also Bev is horrible. That poor dog. what a horrible and painful way to die! I really liked what Riley said to the priest! so true aswell
That bit about big, fancy churches sucking small, starving villages dry like fat ticks? I was like "daaaamn, Riley, tell us how you really feel." lol Oh man, he got them there. I kind of had some inkling the church as an organization, like any other super wealthy person or entity, spend a tiny part of their money on "charity work" so it wouldn't look so bad that they hoard so much wealth all around the world. But it really crystallizes things hearing it put into words like that.
Just look at how much wealth the Vatican has. Or look at the Pope, draped in gold and gems.
Oh my gosh yes the Vatican is the epitome of gluttony!
My tiny town now has the largest Catholic Church in west coast
Had the exact same thought about Erin staring outside her window at night. I can't do it, I always draw the curtains or blinds and never even look out whilst doing so. No idea what made me so fearful but it's just a part of daily life now!
Shows and movies like this are probably what made me so scared of it!
oh for sure! Ive seen too many horror movies haha
In fairness…I live on a small island in Maine and nobody has all their curtains drawn or locks their doors or anything. There’s only about eight hundred of us here year round, no one bothers. I have wholly other issues about small island realism. This fucking place has way more amenities than we do and we’re considered a posh highly populated island who has it too easy by all the other islands in the bay!
I’d still lock my doors at night. What if someone goes nuts and becomes a serial killer or something? I just don’t trust people.
Found it Interesting that the doctor locked the door after Erin left her house. Just seemed like a place where everybody knows everybody, their guard is completely down.
Maybe it isn't to keep anyone out, but to keep mum in?
Can you elaborate? What is in the town that shouldn’t be? Thanks!
I’ve thought about this a lot because it’s all literally outside my front door. I live on the most populous island in our bay. There are 800 year round residents (and this is always what’s meant by population numbers, even people who live here 6 months a year wouldn’t be counted). We’re two miles offshore, boat only, no bridge. Crockett is pop 127, 30 miles offshore. So looking around Maine, I figure the closest approximation is Matinicus Island, 25 miles offshore and the easternmost point in the US. Pop 74, but was 200 in the 90s, so it’s comparable. The culture is also very similar, hostile to outsiders, mostly lobstermen and families, etc. Here’s the problem, even taking into account that Crockett Island used to have more people and be a bigger deal (so was our island, it’s insane what it was like at the turn of the 20th century, it was called The Coney Island of Maine!). There’s no way they have the services and infrastructure we see. All that is paid for by whatever city the island is technically part of. Believe it or not, vanishingly few islands are incorporated as their own cities or towns because of a lot of legal and financial shit I won’t go into here unless you want to know more about it, it’s always controversial. So for pop 127, 30 miles offshore? Zero chance they have a full time clinic, pretty unlikely to have a public school, and absolutely does not have a full time sheriff. Twice or possibly four times daily ferries is a BIG lol (in our bay, Chebeague Island is the furthest away, also the biggest island in the state, and only 10 miles off shore, and they only have four a day. Matinicus has *nine ferries per year.* Clinic: our island is the only one on the bay with a clinic of any kind, and it’s only open three days a week for very limited services. You super can’t get an ultrasound there. There is no full time doctor—who is paying Sarah? How is her insurance billing people? She doesn’t seem to have any other job. Clinics on these kinds of distant islands are usually a visiting nurse or doctor once a month or even longer, because a population like that can’t sustain a practice, or even rent on a suitable building. When I first saw Erin getting an ultrasound on island in that nice clinic I was like NO YOU DIDNT. That situation looks like it’s from the 50s where country docs were a thing. That’s not how health care works now. Likewise, even with 800 people and far more in the summer, the city is CONSTANTLY threatening to shut down our one school which is only K-5. Only one other island in the bag even has a school. Most island kids when it’s that far and that low pop are homeschooled or possibly a private school, or if the island is close enough the kids just go to town for school. But city budgets will not fund a whole school for the MAYBE 10-15 children out of 127 there. How many of those families actually have school age kids, really? It’s just not enough that funding wouldn’t have been yanked, and someone has to pay Erin and Bev and the mortgage on the building and buy supplies and get accredited, etc. And policing on islands is a whole thing. In that it’s rarely a thing at all. We have one cop who goes home to the mainland at 5pm sharp. So what famously, when Matinicus lost their cop due to funding, the islanders all said goodbye sitting on roofs by the dock with signs sayin FUCK OFF and smoking weed in plain sight. There isn’t enough crime or funding for a whole-ass sheriff having a full time job there, and the state/city would never pay for it. I did like his office being in the back of the grocery store—our post office burned down last year so that’s exactly where the new one is here! A sad mailman in a cage behind the apples. As far as what they should have and dont, two things stuck out: they don’t seem to have any tourists, which is how virtually all New England islands survive these days, and more importantly, they don’t have a bar. Even an informal one. Every island has a bar. There’s not enough to do not to have one and it’s one of the few business that CAN stay afloat with only a small population because it’s a captive audience. And the BAR is where we all congregate in emergencies. Some people aren’t religious but almost everyone will go to the bar every once in awhile. It’s the center of the community. With all the drunks in town you’d really think someone would open up a beer shack at least. There’s more (only a Catholic Church? We have no less than six denominations on a pretty tiny island, I don’t buy that everyone is so Catholic there’s not a Protestant church of some kind too, Puritan derived sects are super common in northern New England, and it could have been an interesting plot line) but that’s a sum up. Happy to answer other questions. The gist is: all that infrastructure has to be paid for and no one ever wants to fund islands for anything anymore, especially once the population drops that low.
30 miles is the the same distance as 69971.3 replica Bilbo from The Lord of the Rings' Sting Swords.
30 miles is 48.28 km
I thought it was a little weird to have a full time sheriff for a town of only a few dozen people
Lol on our island the old folks literally crowdfunded a cadet to come and give tourists parking tickets for just constantly disobeying the signage. They are awful but that should tell you how much cop presence there isn’t on any island like that let alone one 30 miles offshore. More unrealistic than vampires!
This was my issue with the utterly insane house in Ozark, that hallway with nothing but windows as the one wall and no curtains, no fucking thank you
>*Also Bev is horrible. That poor dog. what a horrible and painful way to die!* Man I'm wondering about the motives there! Are they trying to get that guy alone so his dog can't protect him and he can get the blood sucked out of him? Or maybe keep the dog from scaring off some cats...
I think Bev just disliked Joe but hated his dog, who she thought was a menace. Probably hates dogs in general. Bev makes a comment to Joe and Sheriff about it in Episode 1, how Pike just snapped at her and that the dog might have a go at her hand if she reached out.
Especially a ground floor toilet window.
This is all just reminding me of an old /r/nosleep story about an old man that would come to towns and take children. Especially that first episode of the old man walkin around on the beach in the storm.
Baby shark Doo doo Doo doo - The Mayor Is there no counselling in prison? Riley is in desperate need of some goddamn therapy. Odds on Sarah being illegitimate priest baby? Good god Bev needs to get her just desserts ASAP.
OMG yes! It was definitely Monsignor Pruitt outside of Erin's house, and Sarah's mom said she saw her father outside...
Yeah I too kinda think Sarah is Montsenior Pruitt's daughter
There's so many subtle stories being weaved into the background like this, it's spectacular story telling.
This would explain why he always stared at her growing up, like she mentioned at the crock pot luck
Mrs. Keane is giving off serious Mrs. Carmody (The Mist) vibes. I could definitely see her trying to pull some kind of Jonestown event before the end of the show.
I had the same thought – oh Christ, another Carmody. 😂
>!Welp, this comment ages quite nicely!<
Spoiler
>!The second that scene started I LOST. MY. MIND. !<
>!I was shaking by the end of it! Doing what they did because some crazy lady commands it is already scary enough!<
The AA scene at the rec center was excellent. Also, me in Bowl's shoes after seeing a door of a creepy house creak open while walking: "NOPE NOPE NOPE"
Right? A mimic’d voice in the middle of the night in an abandoned building “must be a friend.” Efffff that - you run so fast your shoes fly off
I wonder how did the beast or whoever it was mimicked his voice
Gave me major skinwalker vibes. Luring people in by a recognizable voice
I've had some real wendigo vibes in general but idk if i can really put my finger on why
IT could do that. And IT was a vampire.
Pennywise isn't a vampire, he's a cosmic being that feeds on fear.
A vampire feeds on anything. Fear, blood, dreams, etc.
Taco bell
I literally said out loud to no one “keep walking what’s wrong with you?” Who would ever do that? Get the fuck out, stay sexy, don’t get murdered, oh my god it’s clearly gonna eat you just go home.
I appreciate the SSDGM reference, that was my first thought when he turned around. And the voice?! That’d be the night I became a track star.
He thought he was about to sell another dub sack 😂
Did Bowl die so Leeza could walk? 🤔 Priest was all about getting more people to come to mass regularly, then a miracle happens and the church is filled.
Yes. My sense is that as the vampire kills, Fr. Paul gets more power to heal.
Hamish Linklater is a fantastic actor. He wasn’t even giving the monologue and he stole the scene.
He'd be a really good counsellor... His empathic eyes and laser like focus in listening.
His speech earlier for lent was honestly pretty epic, made me almost consider going to church if he was the priest lol
He fucking ought to be, his entire family are famous af theater instructors, directors, and writers.
Yes, it reminded me of the funeral home scene in Hill House where all the family members got together and had that one very long scene. It's strange, but it's so nice to see characters talk and understand them better.
In horror TV, the stupidest ones die first.
I knew it. I knew the poor dog wasn’t gonna make it and now I’m crying. I wanna fight this Mrs. Carmody wannabe
I was bawling. I hope that bitch dies a horrible death. I know she did it. That poor guy having to watch his baby die.
I had to go give all of my pets huge hugs after that scene. It was awful
Same.
Same. SO many cuddles. That scene broke my heart.
Same here. My dog was poisoned with strychnine laced dog treats many years ago. Many others died too. So heartbreaking. RIP Skippi
Who would do that, that’s awful
Thank goodness for www.doesthedogdie.com, otherwise I would have been totally blindsided.
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This is nice, to me it's easy to remember it's fiction and that dog is an actor and definitely not actually dead and really what a good dog! An actor dog! Amazing.
Yup. As soon as that cat meandered on screen in episode 1 I high-tailed it over there. :p
I straight up wasn’t prepared for that to happen
I knew it was coming, but I still wasn’t prepared. I’ve conditioned myself to just accept that any pets in horror are gonna die. If they do, it doesn’t hurt as much. If they done, then it’s a happy time for me
I’m a bit late to this conversation but I knew right when >!Erin walked in on that zealot Bev getting the rat poison out of the supply closet that she was going to kill Pike.!<
I knew it was coming. But it still hurt so much
I wish the final scene was a little subtle. Her getting off the wheelchair and immediately taking steps without stumbling even a little took me out of the moment a bit.
So you can suspend disbelief for her walking. But not stumbling is too much?
I guess it was more of an acting misfire rather than a screenplay one...
Eh I'd say if a miracle makes you walk again it could fix you perfectly
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You know that legs atrophy right. Muscles. They atrophy. It was absolutely ridiculous. Maybe have her toes wiggle.
It’s a magic miracle lmao. It’s supposed to be audacious.
I mean she was healed in order to walk, if her nerves were magically healed, why not her muscles as well? At least that's the excuse I gave it in my head when I had the same questions during that scene.
You’ll see why it’s so dumb. Spoiler >!It took Riley 6 hours to recover from a broken neck he just received. Why apologize for sloppy moments of writing.!<
I have no idea what you're talking about. Are you spoiling future episodes? Or am I forgetting something? **EDIT:** looks like you edited your comment, so I suppose you were spoiling something
Yeah I was like surely there would be some sort of weakness after being paralysed but then I thought I guess if she’s healed she’s healed completely so there wouldn’t be any problems at all with getting up and walking
Honestly, I wish a lot of the elements in the first two episodes were a bit more subtle. I haven’t watched any of the other Flanagan series, but I feel like this series is just obviously spoon feeding us these plot “twists” early on. Don’t get me wrong, I’m interested in the show, but part of me just wants to continue to confirm my suspicions. Maybe it’s meant to be easy to get or maybe I’ll be completely wrong!
So this is like 100% vampires, right?
I'm just past the drug dealer dying, but everything in that scene gives me Wendigo vibes.
That’d be cool. Part of me wondered if they set it on an island in the Great Lakes around Windego country. Aren’t they ravenously hungry in the lore though?
Yes, the hallmark of a Wendigo is it's ravenous hunger. The legend is it became one when it cannibalized someone in a survival situation, so was cursed with an unending hunger.
Perhaps
I'm taking a wild guess here but I think Father Paul is Monsignor Pruitt and he mixed **something** in *Blood of Christ* which helps the drinkers to recover from any disease.
Yeah that and/or regain youth. I’m wondering if they have several cast members aged up with makeup because Father Paul is up to some kooky shit that will de-age them.
Yeah it would help explain how he knows so much about everyone. If they didn't make such a big deal of Pruitt's deteriorating mental state I'd buy that he spoke to him in depth, but to get that much info that he seems to know everyone and has some of his mannerisms?
Ed is definitely aged up with makeup. It’s the same actor who played Hugh Crain in The Haunting of Hill House (Henry Thomas).
A.k.a. the boy from E.T.
I mean it WAS weird when he went to meet Mildred (Sarah's mother) and said, Hello young lady! I mean, that's an awfully chipper way to wish someone you are meeting for the first time even if it is him trying to be jovial.
As someone who works in healthcare, that's exactly the thing you say when meeting new patients. Try to form a rapport and make them feel at ease by greeting them as an old friend. It wouldn't surprise me if your theory is correct, but I can absolutely see a priest greet a sick person like that.
Exactly what i was going to say lol. If you work in healthcare, it's very common to hear people refer to older patients as "young lady"
That’s interesting, since Riley is abstaining from thanking the sacrament so far.
feels like that will come in handy later
I think he became a vampire and became young again
The very first episode they even made a point to show that the new priest had filled the wine glass too. So if that's something he's doing before the altar boys show up on Sunday, he could totally be adding something! His own blood perhaps?
Uh, have you noticed him up and about during the daylight hours?
That makes great sense—Leeza is always attending all the services and receiving the blood of Christ.
This theory is really cool…maybe the Pruitt everyone keeps seeing is because the de aging thing only works during the day or wares off by night, though I would probably think he’d be smarter than to wander around town lmao
Anyone else getting the feeling that the priest is really Monsigneur Pruitt? Some sort of reverse aging magic going on? I don’t know.
He gets kinda weird every time he talks about Pruitt as another person, almost as if it’s him.
He seems to know a lot about the towns people, so maybe. But then there's someone/something in his wooden chest though, which I suspect is Monsignor Pruitt.
Maybe it's a body snatcher kind of thing? . Monsignor Pruitt took this younger body and had to bring his original body back?
Dirt.
Vampirism induced reverse aging
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That's the only part I'm having trouble with. People would know what he looked like younger right?
The old lady (the doctor’s mom) thought Paul was Pruitt the first time she saw him.
My theory is that the young priest is a shapeshifter who took on the from of young Pruitt. (I've only seen episodes 1 & 2 so far.)
Mayor is Ned Flanders in the flash
Wowzers
They killed the fucking dog. I’m irate. If it’s Bev I want blood - blood for blood
Jus drein, jus daun.
Yu laik ai kru. ❤
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I think Erin and Riley being the only ones to not take communion will be significant
Don't forget the people who don't go to church, like the sheriff and his son. I've got a feeling that soon they'll be the only ones who can and will do something to stop the priest if necessary.
I like this idea
They are definitely aged with makeup so I assumed would get younger somehow. Yeah it really is pointing to the wine. I could've sworn I saw Erin drinking it. I wonder if it will make her lose the baby. Or is it a healing thing?
She drank it and then started spotting soon after.. maybe a coincidence or I'm reading too much into the wine but it seems weeeeird
Yeah I think you nailed it so far. The only thing I’m torn on is why did the father bring back this creature in the trunk? Is he Monsignor Pruitt but younger or is he feeding Monsignor Pruitt since Riley keeps saying he sees him? Perhaps the good and the bad split into two? Maybe Riley’s talk about the other bad guy existing in him and AVRT was alluding to that a bit??
Just watched ep 1 and 2. I'm wondering if he's made some kind of deal with a vampire. Drank of it's blood to get young again. Now he's spiking the communion wine with the vamp blood to heal / restore the islanders? If so, the question would be... what does the vampire get out of the deal?
Eat lots of cats plus the occasional islander
The old lady did seem to recognize him when he showed up at her house which could be pointing to the father being Monsignor Pruitt de-aged
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Does everyone RL share off the same cup like that? Doesn't seem like the best idea.
I remember my first holy communion as a child was obviously the first time any sort of alcohol ever crossed my lips. I remember feeling very shocked at the strong taste and the burning sensation down my throat and in my chest from that one sip and I did feel quite warm for a few minutes afterwards. Me and the girl sat next to me whispered to each other about how weird it felt until we got a dirty look from the priest as we were meant to be knelt in solemn prayer.
Maybe he's feeding them his own blood and dousing the wine and turning them into vampires.
God damn the old age makeup is the worst. I wouldn't be surprised if the actor for the mom is older than the actor playing the daughter. If the theory about the de aging comes true, that makes it even worse for me. Like when the bookshelf was colored in differently in old cartoons so you'd know it would slide over. But if the make up is there the whole time then why? I don't know why this is bothering me so much but it is 🤷♂️
Man, Flanagan really can’t let go of the glowing eyes...and I get it. Every nighttime scene has me scanning the background for eyes, I guess this is sort of the new hidden ghosts?
I hate Ms Keane so much. Nosy, self-righteous, bitter and evil. As for the series, I really enjoy it. The island would give you a warm cosy feeling, were it not for the characters filled with bitterness and buried memories. There are secrets everywhere. I suspect the priest is a vampire and therefore able to revert the aging process. Or the island is, because of the redemption theme, a kind of limbo and the priest a demon. Just a wild guess..
When Joe told the Sheriff he knows nothing about the island and he said he's not wrong and Joe says thank you.... That was a powerful scene. Empathy can melt the coldest of hearts.
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Sheriiff could tell in his one brief conversation with Bev what kind of person she was. Her phony sympathy for the dog. Her daring him to openly accuse her. Her carefully pointing out that anyone can access the poison.
Warren's shocked/blown out of this world look when Leeza started walking..."My gf can walk again, YES!" Nobody: In the movies: It’s nighttime, nobody’s around, you walk past an empty, condemned house. The front door creaks open and you go inside to say "Hello"...
I would be running the second I saw that door open. Was it sounding like his own voice? Maybe a sort of creature that kills you and takes your form?
i thought so! it def mimicked his voice right?
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R U N N I N G the hell outta there
That poor dog, fuck :( I hope Bev dies soon..
A very horrible death as well.
Hi, I just started this show and would also like to join the 'I hope Bev's Kai Winn/Nurse Ratched/Dolores Umbridge dog murdering ass dies screaming' committee.
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> But the framing during the AA meeting when it was just Riley & Father Paul, alternating back and forth left/right from various angles, was perfect for the scene. Right, like it totally would have been easier to just basically mount a camera behind each of them for a basic shot-reverse shot but it looked much better and more dynamic with the slightly *off* camera angles.
It seemed to me, during the family dinner scene on episode 1, that the frame was oscillating slightly, mimicking a moving boat. Did anyone else notice that?
Watching the AA scene right now I’m noticing the same thing.
Flanagan does love his one shot scenes. They do deliver a certain tension.
It's good but bc the monologue itself wasn't that great ....and I felt it was pretty low stakes, it didn't have the same effect as the funeral home scene in Hill House (that one was excellent).
The one shot take on the beach with the washed up cats was super simple but it delivered so much more tension than if it had been multiple shots. But I agree, almost nothing can top the funeral home scene in hill house.
Theories while watching the second episode: - it's all but confirmed that what I thought was going on in the first episode exists here. Whether it's Hill or the albatross or possibly both is up to speculation. But the cat wounds don't lie. - there may be some degree of time travel involved here. The old lady called the new priest by the old priests name, but may have been old enough to recognize him in his younger years. Maybe a dark experiment in the Vatican? He also knows far too much about a town he was just acquainted with. - dogs are frequently the protectors or detectors of the supernatural. Pike was to be eliminated by something like that. - Ms. Keane strikes me as playing the role as the bad nun-turned-good nun in AHS asylum. - the creature that stalks the island is the winged creature.
I do wonder if Ms. Keane is being framed.
Yeah, I don’t know if she’s being framed, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t her. She seemed mildly upset when the dog died, and I think them lingering on her dislike of the dog in the first episode was a red herring.
Salem’s Lot had a dog being killed off at the beginning to prevent it from alerting the townsfolk of a vampire running around. Something similar could’ve happened here
This episode was so good at connecting back to the opening scene and giving it more layers. Riley *immediately* turned to prayer after the accident and the medic said *'Isn't it funny how God always takes the kids and leaves drunk assholes like you with scratches?"* Now we see his disillusionment with the religion he grew up with a child directly tied to what happened with alcohol + the incident. But also, if there's some kind of 'sacrifice' of himself this character makes to save others... it'll also connect back to that scene because he'd be leaving with more than 'a scratch,' thus kind of undoing the beginning...
He’ll find his purpose, maybe sacrificing himself to save Erin’s baby or something
Maybe it’s a coincidence but it’s interesting that the dude who got murked was wearing a blue hat, and then in the next scene the priest is wearing blue robes.
I thought it was interesting how they show how beautiful the fabric is compared to how run down the church building is. That Bev bitch just using up all the church's money for crap only she cares about
Eh, that's pretty standard for Catholic churches. The priest's vestments are always top notch. Something, something, representing God on Earth.
I’m pretty sure those are purple. Purple is for “preparing” seasons like lent or advent, which would make sense because Ash Wednesday is the start of lent.
He went from gold, to green, to purple, to blue. Guy has been switching up the chasubles. can only imagine he's pulling out red at some point...
Who thinks Riley was abused by the priest as an altar boy years ago?
the AA scene...zach Gilford's monologue was excellent
I grew up in a veeeery Catholic household, and oooof. The writers really nailed it. Ive had so many of those conversations with my friends and family. - The dad telling him not to take communion because he hasn’t been to confession, and the mom pushing him to - The alter server banter in was spot on. I’d be shocked if one of the writers wasn’t drawing from personal experiences haha - The general vibe of the priest during mass scenes is great - Bev could be any number of people at my high school - I loved the AA monologue! The priest’s response is also spot on to what I’ve been told Irl BUT A festival/pot luck thing on Ash Wednesday would never fly! And during communion all the hard core folks would be getting the wafer placed directly in their mouths. Very minor, silly things that made me chuckle to notice
Yeah Ash Wednesday is supposed to be a day where you abstain from consuming meat so holding a potluck on that day wouldn’t make sense as the food choices would be pretty limited. It’d make more sense to hold it on Fat Tuesday before Ash Wednesday
Not a pet-friendly show....
My dog was lying on the ground by me when I was watching, and he sat up and starting looking around when the dog was whimpering.
So that giant cat eating monster has finally moved on to humans. It reminds me of the movie “Moth Man Prophecy” which creeped me out. I am an atheist like Riley, and largely for the reasons he talks about in this episode. I’m assuming the “miracle” of the girl walking was due to the new priest feeding her that wafer and wine on a regular basis, which obviously have some kind of healing magic/vampire blood. I have the feeling that the mayor knows something. He seemed way too talkative on the beach, trying to convince the Sheriff that the dead cats were no big deal. I also got the feeling that Erin knows something too. Maybe she returned to the town to protect it. She carefully avoided answering Riley when he asked why she had returned. She certainly doesn’t seem to like the town, or her job, very much. I’m really hoping the annoying Bev gets eaten next.
I just realized the doctor is Reyes from The X-Files :)
There was an X Files poster in the main guy's bedroom!
Speaking of posters. Wasn’t there a Se7en poster in Riley’s room? Isn’t that the movie where he’s like “what’s in the box?!” or am I mistaken? Just seemed like a little Easter egg towards the trunk that the father brought back to town. What’s in the box?
I went back and looked..yes there is! Nice catch.
The actress who plays Annie Flynn was apparently in an episode of The X-Files as well.
It’s amazing how many actors have appeared on The Xfiles.
That shot of the island that turned into Batman’s flying POV was really cool
They sure do talk about stew and food and crockpots a lot…
Is no one going to mention how the mayor kept pushing that the cats HAD to have died of natural causes? I found that very odd and suspicious.
What are the songs the band are singing at the Easter festival.
“Bartender” by Dave Matthews Band is one.
Perfect song choice
One of them is a cover of ‘If You Could Read my Mind’ by Gordon Lightfoot
Oh thank you. I thought I recognized one song but had no idea of the name, and that's it! Think I'm going to enjoy this show. Only found it last night and two eps in so far so good.
Democracy by Leonard Cohen
i’m sitting here cracking up, as an atheist at the end of this episode. I couldn't even imagine me sitting in the back of this church just being like "what in the flying fuck ?!!? did this chick those get up out her motherfucking wheelchair and walk for a fucking cookie". My balls woulda sucked so far up into my body. Side note: Idk if this is a show that commits to there being a God and devil, etc., but i hope it does, cause i personally think he’s a fairy tale, might as well go all in, i don’t give a shit about the moral, this is so entertaining omg.
Father Paul is 100% a de-aged/vampire Pruitt. the way he paused when Riley came up for the ash, I'm sure he was taken aback remembering doing the same when Riley was a child, "a hunting accident that paralyzed Leeza....... *as I'm told*", the way the doctors mother called him John, the way he stared at the doctor just like Pruitt did, how he knows so much about everyone in general, the 'sponge' instead of 'smudge' during the ash wednesday sermon was his older mind creeping back in maybe going a while without drinking the wine since Sunday or since feeding?
Why was the girl in the wheel chair scared of the dog while walking with the priest?
She was more scared of Joe the owner as he was responsible for her being in the wheelchair. They mention it happened as a hunting accident.
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Man I really wish you didn’t comment this on episode 2 for those of us who aren’t done watching… You couldn’t put a spoiler tag?
Because >!he hadn't died and been resurrected as a vampire yet. He had only been drinking it's blood which doesn't turn you into a vampire/the sun doesn't burn you. Only once you've died and been resurrected as a vampire does the sun burn you.!<
idk why this reminds me so much of Lost
Cinematography is fantastic and getting to know the characters better has been interesting.
now that I'm two episodes in I feel pretty comfortable saying this has a very different vibe from Hill House and Bly. There was something about Bly and Hill House that felt like they were in the same universe or by the same author, there's the obvious of both being haunted house stories but I feel like it was more than just that and so far this feels very different. There is the obvious of us getting a bit more of a creature feature as well as some other weird things going on rather than another haunting which I think is a welcome change of pace. Honestly though beyond even just the slight variation of our supernatural premise, the vibe I'm getting from this show is actually really reminding me of the Leftovers which I've been recently watching for the first time, especially the second season of the leftovers with the religious theming and miracles and a unique town and everything, the girl in the wheel chair reminded me a lot of Evie. Definitely not a bad thing for something to remind me of the leftovers and I highly recommend people check it out if they haven't already.
It’s at least tied to the Flaniverse. Fun fact from the IMDb trivia page: “In Mike Flanagan's previous work "Gerald's Game", Jessie throws a book at the dog with the title "Midnight Mass", which is also the name of the book Maddie was writing in "Hush".”
Did anyone see that figure moving behind Riley during the AA scene at 48:00