"Brand New Cherry Flavor" Review: The Strangest Thing I've Seen In Some Time...And I Love It!

"Brand New Cherry Flavor" is currently available on NetFlix. It's an eight episode series based on a novel by Todd Grimson. The showrruners are Nick Antosca and Lenore Zion (Channel Zero) so you know it's going to be bizarre.

The series takes place in the 1990s. Episode 1 opens with Lisa Nova (Rose Salazar) heading to LA to follow her dreams of becoming a screenwriter/director. She hooks up with a producer right away and seems on the fast track for fame and fortune. But the dude turns out to be a major sleeze and gives her the brushoff after she spurns his advances. She visits a strange witchy woman named Boro/Jennifer (Catherine Keener) to place a curse on Lou Burke (Eric Lange).

And this is where things start to get cray cray. There's vomiting kittens (yes, you read that right). Many upchucked white kittens are the price of Boro's services. There's also zombies (who protect protect Boro). There's other weirdness but you'll have to see it to believe it.

We eventually learn Boro's story (as told by Boro so I'm not so sure how reliable it is). He/she/they is some 1000 years old. The story begins in South America. Boro meets a jaguar in the forest and has sex with it.. because... I don't know why. The jaguar gives him magical powers and he becomes King. But in return the jaguar wants to eat his wife. He disguises another woman as his wife but the jaguar is not fooled. The jaguar eats his wife and nearly kills him. Boro is able to use his powers to jump into another body. And that's what he's been doing every since.

Why is Boro so fascinated with Lisa? Lisa may also be some sort of magical being. Her mother is unknown. Something different is definitely going on with her. Maybe Boro wants to inhabit her body but Lisa is too strong. Boro settles for Mary Gray instead. Remember Mary is Lisa's former lover. She gouged out her own eye during a peyote trip while making a student movie with Lisa. What is Mary/Boro's next move? Is she still after Lisa?

Grade: 5 Monsters (out of 5). Excellent! "Brand New Cherry Flavor" is one crazy acid fueled trip. I have idea what's going on and that's OK. I'm interested in the ride and not the destination. Rose Salazar is excellent in the role of Lisa. Will there be a season 2? The door is left open in the finale. Lisa boards a plane to Brazil to connect with her past. I really, really hope there's more of this show. I'm interested to see much more of this crazy world.