When my mom thought it was time to confront her fear head-on, she meant watching “The Exorcist” in its entirety without closing her eyes. When I asked her why “The Exorcist” scared her so much, she replied, “Ghosts aren’t real; demonic possession is.”
Spoken like a true-blue Catholic, right? Well, even my Protestant dad found “The Exorcist” hard to shake off, too. He had read the book, and was so terrified that he swore he could feel his bed shaking.
As far as horror films go, there are many sub-genres with varied stories involving garden axe murderers, evil clowns, soul-sucking haunted houses, flesh-eating swamp monsters, and brain-obsessed zombies.
The subject of demons, possession and exorcism seem to be in a league of their own, sparking a fear that cuts deep into one’s bones.
It was only fitting that “The Walking Dead” creators would have demonic possession as subject in their new show, “Outcast.” After all, they turned zombies into a weekly frightfest that gained a cult following.
“Outcast” stars Patrick Fugit (“Gone Girl,” “Almost Famous”) as Kyle Barnes, a reclusive loner with a troubled past who has returned to his hometown in Rome, West Virginia.
The town has been plagued by a series of horrific events involving badly behaving children, and by bad behavior we don’t mean abusing iPad time.
The series’ pilot episode starts off with a scene that is definitely not for the squeamish. We won’t spoil it for you, but it involves a cockroach, an unusual killing method, and a loud crunch.
The pilot also sets up the show’s season-long mystery perfectly, leaving you eager for the next episode.
“Outcast” has a similar bleak and isolated mood as that of “The Walking Dead,” but the show’s mythology is its own. It’s interesting to see how a show that focuses on exorcism and demonic lore will fare, especially one that is hell-bent on scaring the bejeezus out of you—every week.
We’ve encountered a few horror TV series that started off scary but had to taper off and introduce lighter fare in between episodes to capture a broader audience. Series that have gone this route have also necessitated breathers in the form of disconnected Monster of the Week episodes, so it will be interesting to see how Robert Kirkman and team will tackle this.
If you’re looking for a new series to get your heart pumping, make sure to check out “Outcast” on Fox every Saturday at 8:55 p.m. Don’t watch it alone and keep the lights on.
