Kinda biased here. I love Stephen King. A long-time fan of his, for real. I haven't even read all of his books, but what I have read so far is amazing. The guy has this huge talent with creating characters, developing them and putting them in the direst situations. Really, he puts breath in them like only a god can. And he's basically a God of the written word, Bible aside.
Saying that I have to say I'm not really surprised by the awesomeness of this new show, Castle Rock. It is not unlike Under the Dome or The Mist, however, it's very much different. I'll say that this show is much more ominous than the others and keeps its secrets quite well. I'm not saying that the other shows aren't good at that, just explaining that I'm more impressed by what's put forth in this latest iteration of King's stories.
He seems to want to pull many stories together from the multi-verse he's created. That's awesome because maybe it will tie up some loose ends that have baffled people for years. (i.e. where is the Turtle or is IT really female?) That's gonna be a stretch, but that would be cool.
So in this first episode, we hit the ground running with my guy Dale Lucy, played by Terry O'Quinn, of LOST fame. He immediately commits suicide. I mean, it's within the first 10 minutes. And the way he does it seems really extravagant, like more of a show than anything. I don't think I've ever seen a suicide done in such a way in any movie. I'm still wondering why such a show of it? Was he sending a message? It has to mean something.
Later on, we are introduced to the protagonist, Henry Deaver (Andre Holland), the adopted son of Pastor Matthew Deaver and his wife, Ruth, played by the great Sissy Spacek. Henry is now a lawyer that represents a specific set of clients, but has stayed away from Castle Rock. The Kid, played by Bill Skarsgard, who also played the most recent version of Stephen King's IT, is very convincing as the perceived antagonist. He speaks very little and seems so eerily confused that it completely sets the mood of the show from there. He asks for Henry by name when he is found locked away in a dark hole of a long-abandoned section of Shawshank.
Henry obviously has some issues coming home and is even hesitant about going to see his mother. It is obvious to me why, as his father disappeared around the same time he did, but wound up dead. Henry had no memory of what occurred, thus bearing the scorn of those that knew his father, and the quiet suspicion that he was responsible.
Dennis Zalewski, a guard in the prison, is sympathetic to The Kid and skeptical of the new prison warden. He is the one who notices that The Kid has escaped and killed a few guards. Still, with no reason to be there and no records, it is likely that he would go free, anyway lest the prison be the center of a scandal. And we see in a flashback, the now deceased Lacy tell The Kid to ask for Henry Deaver when he is found.
Of course this sets us up for a thrilling chase for reasons and collaborators, which is a marvelous way to begin the series. I was really excited that Hulu decided to run this show, and I had been anticipating it ever since it was announced. I'm actually all caught up but I wanted to put this post down to center myself and others on what's going on, just for posterity's sake. That way, when something is confirmed, I can refer to this afterward.
JJ Abrams brought his A-game. It's a great show and I hope you enjoy it! I'll be covering all the rest of the episodes from 6 to whatever from now until the show is finished!