Hi all!

Today I am ranking all the episodes from Creepshow Season 1! This Shudder Original series was produced by Greg Nicotero, who brought us The Walking Dead. It is also based on the film by the same name, directed by George A. Romero and written by Stephen King. It features 12 terrifying tales of terror, designed to scare and intrigue viewers. I really like this show. It is fun, spooky and easy to watch. Without further ado, let’s get into it!

Spoilers Ahead!

Update: Click here for my S2 ranking, here for my S3 ranking and here for my S4 ranking. 

1.) The House of the Head 

In first place, we have The House of the Head. It follows Evie, a bright young girl, who owns an enormous dollhouse. One day, she discovers the dolls inside have been moved around. Not only that, their happy smiles have been replaced with fearful expressions, as a new figurine, sporting a ghoulish head, appears out of nowhere. Every single time she checks the rooms, they are in different positions, trying to escape the monster. The nightmare progresses until the creature sets its sights on Evie, forcing her to confront it on a larger scale. This was my favourite tale because I love creepy toys/dolls in horror. It was also very effective in scares. The scene under the bed got me good!

2.) The Companion 

In second place, we have The Companion, which was a close contender for the top spot. Set in 1987, it follows a boy named Harold, who flees from his violently abusive older brother. When he comes across an abandoned farm, Harold discovers a grotesque scarecrow, that manages to come to life. This is the ultimate revenge story, with an interesting twist. I loved the deeper layers to the story and of course, the bloody retribution. If it wasn’t obvious by now, I am a huge fan of the supernatural, which includes killer scarecrows!

3.) Lydia Layne’s Better Half 

In third place, we have Lydia Layne’s Better Half. In my opinion, this is the scariest story from Season 1. Lydia Lane, powerful owner of a private equity group, denies her secret lover (Celia), a promotion over an employee less qualified and deserving. In a rage, Celia argues with Lydia, resulting in her accidental death. Terrified, Lydia attempts to move the corpse into an elevator, disposing of it, but an earthquake causes the power to go out. Trapped in a confined space, with a dead body, our protagonist becomes convinced Celia is going to re-animate and kill her. The tension in this episode was perfect. It made me question until the very end if something was going to happen, or if it was just her manifestation of guilt.

4.) Gray Matter

In fourth place, we have Gray Matter, which was the debut episode of Season 1. It stars Tobin Bell (Saw) and Giancarlo Esposito (Breaking Bad). Enough said! In this story, the pair are waiting out an epic storm, when they encounter a local boy named Timothy. The child mentions his father is sick and doesn’t want to go home to him. It turns out, his dad has a severe drinking problem, that is slowly turning him into a gelatinous beast. The situation escalates as the monster absorbs his victims and multiplies, taking over the world as a flesh-eating demon. It’s both terrifying and ridiculous.

5.) Skincrawlers 

I view Skincrawlers as a story against diet culture. It follows an overweight man, desperate to shed a few pounds. When he learns about a miraculous new treatment, involving leeches ingesting fat cells, he decides to try it. I don’t think I need to say much more. Think the infamous scene from Alien, where the Facehugger bursts out of the stomach. It’s gory, gross and a laugh-riot. The candidates deserved what became of them. It’s a tale of self-absorption and vanity.

6.) The Man in the Suitcase

The Man in the Suitcase was very bizarre. This is where my rankings start to go slightly downhill. It literally follows a supernatural man, trapped in a suitcase, who produces money whenever he feels pain. As you can guess, he is repeatedly tortured to enrich the lives of those he encounters. However, greed comes at a price. There is only so far one can push a mysterious entity, before it pushes back. It was entertaining but super strange.

7.) All Hallows Eve 

All Hallows Eve is a pretty basic Halloween story. It was aesthetically pleasing, but a bit lacklustre in tone. It follows five children who call themselves the Golden Dragons. Every October 31st, they meet at a cemetery in costume and go ‘trick-or-treating.’ We learn fairly quickly they are actually ghosts, haunting the evening they died, due to a prank gone wrong. Creepshow loves its revenge tales. This is just another one not executed (pardon the pun) as well.

8.) The Finger 

The Finger had potential but was too outlandish for my tastes. It follows a bitter man named Clark, who collects lost and abandoned objects. One day, he discovers a severed finger in the middle of the street. He takes it home and over time, it grows into a lizard-like creature he dubs “Bob.” Yes, you read that correctly. The evolved monster becomes quite protective of its owner, killing anybody who angers him. It’s a very odd relationship between pet and human, that was definitely meant to be comedic. but didn’t work for me.

9.) Night of the Paw

Night of the Paw unfortunately didn’t hold my interest. It follows a female murderer on the run, who crashes her car, waking up in a funeral home. The local mortician patches her up, showing her a monkey’s paw, that grants wishes with horrific consequences. She steals it, revealing she was convicted of killing her own husband. She wants to use the paw to revive him. However, it backfires in a gory, violent way. The pacing was far too slow for me to enjoy the pay-off. I wasn’t invested.

10.) Bad Wolf Down 

We are now at the worst three episodes. No shade if you enjoyed them! This one is set during World War II. A group of soldiers retreat into the forest, seeking refuge in an abandoned police station, only to discover it is inhabited by a werewolf. When their enemies track them down, the soldiers allow themselves to be bitten, transforming into lycanthropes, in order to retaliate. Bad Wolf Down wasn’t bad, just not my vibe.

11.) By The Silver Water Of Lake Champlain 

What is with the name of this episode? It’s far too long and clunky. This was the finale of Season 1. I wish I had enjoyed the closing story, but I didn’t. Set in 1984, it follows a teenage girl, mourning her father. It turns out, he died hunting Champ, an alleged monster, that lives in the lake of their hometown. His daughter seeks out the creature, in the hopes of proving her dad wasn’t a madman. This could have been a solid horror tale about a quest to slay a monster, but it wasn’t. Instead, it’s about the teenager’s sadistic stepfather, who tries to take credit for her discovery. The final scene was so bizarre. I wasn’t a fan.

12.) Times Is Tough In Musky Holler 

In last place, we have Times Is Tough In Musky Holler, which has an even worse title than the one above. It follows a used car salesman, who turns a zombie apocalypse into a source of entertainment. He sacrifices those challenging his authority to the flesh-eating monsters, by trapping them on a football field, with their heads poking out of the ground. Aside from the fact that the protagonist was a horrible person, the episode contained far too much dialogue and not enough action. I wanted them to stop talking and just get to it! The only redeeming feature was it starred David Arquette.

Thank you so much for reading. How would you rank the episodes? 

Peace & Love xoxo