Lore Season 1 Review: Nothing Is Scarier Than The Truth

"Lore" season 2 drops on Amazon on October 19th-- so now seems like a good time to review the first one. "Lore" is a TV adaptation of a podcast series. It's an anthology so each episodes is a stand alone story. What makes the series interesting is that it's based on actual real life events. The intro text reads "Everything you are about to see is based on actual people and events".

The stories are told via a combination of archival footage, reenactments, animation, and voiceovers (by Aaron Mahnke--who also created the podcast). Click here to check out the audio version. There are 96 episodes to date. "Lore' won the 2015 and 2016 "Best Of" awards from the Academy of Podcasters. A new episode is released every two weeks on a Monday.

What scares me most of about these stories is how those who: didnt fit in, were not well behaved, had medical conditions, were too smart or too independent or too powerful or too pretty, were single or childless or generally stuck with an abusive spouse were targets. There was no hope for their escape.

An added bonus of the series are the familiar faces portraying many of the characters. There's Robert Patrick, Holland Roden (Zoe from "Channel Zero: Butchers Block"), Colm Feore, and Kristin Bauer von Straten ("True Blood").

Sure vampires, werewolves, changelings, ghosts, and sentient dolls arent real (at least to me). But the fear people have for them definitely is. On a related note: Robert The Doll can be viewed at the East Martello Museum in Key West, Florida-- if you dare. You best not disrespect him or there may be hell to pay.

Grade: 4 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). A few critics have commented that the pace of the show is too slow. Some note that the show has issues converting its audio format into this current state and holding viewers attention. Overall, I still enjoyed the series though-- and with just six episodes it's a super fast watch.

The most horrific episode for me was "Black Stockings" where a poor Irish woman with tuberculosis is accused of being a changeling by her husband. She desperately tries to prove it's her but to no avail. He eventually beats her to death and sets her on fire. Rough stuff to watch. How many poor women have faced a similar fate throughout history? I have the feeling this episode is going to stay with me for quite a while.