The Midnight Club - A Review
Slight spoilers ahead, be warned.
This past October, a new show came out on Netflix, The Midnight Club. The show was written and produced by the same people known for making The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Blye Manor and Midnight Mass. The show features a similar feel to those shows, featuring ghosts and other ghouls.
The plot revolves around a group of terminally ill teens as they manage their final weeks alive. In this time, they find clues to the history of the house they are staying in. There is this hidden evil in the house's history, which comes to be understood as the characters find more clues.
The cast does an excellent job throughout and manages to portray the characters perfectly. They do each role respectfully regarding each character’s disease, which can be refreshing in the modern age. The cast is made up of a diverse group which can be a refreshing sight in modern media where a white majority is shown. The group does an amazing job in their roles surrounding the show.
The story can be lacking at times because it can feel stretched thin. There is this disconnect when they tell stories during the titular Midnight Club meeting, which can sometimes disconnect the plot. One good parallel that comes from it is that the stories exist to share more about the individual characters. There is this note of symbolism throughout the stories as they relate to what happens in the main plot and each character’s history.
One notable idea that the plot portrayed was the idea of death as this physical manifestation. When a character is found close to death, they often see this physical manifestation. In the case of Anya, it is shown as this dark shadow there to consume her. When it comes to Ilonka, she sees the ghosts of an old man and woman (which are also tied to the house's history). Death becomes this normal thing to be understood by the group as they see the original group they had upon arriving change entirely, founding this idea that death comes soon for them.
Overall, the show was made very well, some things could have been done better; however, it set itself up for a second season. This show is one to watch if you need a thriller to keep you watching. The cliffhangers found can lead the ten-hour-long series to go by like that when you do not want to stop. Check it out if you have a chance so you can better understand the story and why so many people are interested.
