“New England’s best kept secret”, reads a glowing review from an acclaimed New York Times travel writer as he visits Widow’s Bay, an isolated island 40 miles off the coast. However, it’s not just the beautiful natural scenery and quaint, charming island town that has been hidden from the outside world.
In an attempt by Mayor Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys) to revive his struggling community, tourists flock to Widow’s Bay. Locals warn against bringing holidaygoers to the island as urban legends and superstitions cast a dark shadow over the town, with many believing it is cursed.
Thinking this is simply an old wives’ tale at first, Loftis soon begins to realize that the locals were right and the horrors of the island have come to life.
“Widow’s Bay” starts as a horror-comedy that is engaging, scary and entertaining from all angles. The combination of clever character development, subtle comedy and horror is a beautiful concoction that makes for must-watch TV.
A driving factor of the series’ success comes from Rhys, who excels as a leading man in his performance as Loftis. Although this must come as no surprise, as he has been consistently reliable throughout his career with star turns in “The Americans,” “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” and “Perry Mason.” He has the rare ability as an actor to set the tone for the whole series. The way in which he seamlessly transitions between comedy and drama is magnetic as he draws the audience into the weird and wonderful world of Widow’s Bay.
The challenge of writing a good horror series is the pacing. The best shows set their stalls out early and hook the audience with anticipation and just enough scares to satiate their appetite, but not go overboard so viewers don’t get bored with overexposure as the story progresses.
“Widow’s Bay” has this artform down to a tee in the earlier episodes, with understated and simple yet unsettling horror. The constant thought in the back of your mind of, “Is this real?” had you hooked and watching for every detail to spot something uncanny or out of the ordinary.
This was encapsulated in Episode 2, when Mayor Loftis stays in a “haunted” inn — one of the most haunted places on the island and supposedly tormented by various malevolent spirits, including a killer clown. In a rare display of courage, Loftis is provoked to prove to the locals that the town isn’t really cursed and spends the night at the inn. During his stay, Loftis sits in the lobby and plays board games with a fellow guest while they have a drink. In this scene, Loftis talks about his upbringing, motivations and failings as mayor as well as his struggles with fatherhood.
However, as we watch the scene unfold, there are subtle hints that everything is not as it seems. It was an extremely captivating scene that showcased the clever character development from writer Katie Dippold as the audience grows a deeper bond with the protagonist. But at the same time, there is an air of unsettling horror which provides that necessary rush of adrenaline.
As the series progresses, it feels as though the show temporarily veers off course and loses what made those earlier episodes so entertaining. ‘Widow’s Bay’ becomes confused with what it wants to be and winds up being an amalgamation of supernatural horror, slasher, psychedelic trips and witchcraft.
While these elements and moments are mostly entertaining on their own, they muddle the overall plot and lead to lots of unanswered questions when the series concludes. The show changed a winning formula when it didn’t need to.
The plot becomes more convoluted from Episode 4 onwards. However, admittedly, that is one of the most terrifying and well-produced episodes as it brings something different and a new layer of horror to the series.
The episode follows the mayor’s right-hand woman and event planner, Patricia Moyer, played by the excellent Kate O’Flynn. It is the first time we get a real glimpse inside the mind of a character who will become integral to the plot going forward. Moyer is depicted as lonely and misunderstood by locals, as she wants to host parties and have lots of friends. However, she is unable to connect with her former high school classmates as she is still grappling with the trauma of escaping from a masked murderer who took the lives of her friends.
It was an incredible performance from O’Flynn that was almost reminiscent of Shelley Duvall. Her character had a warm, bubbly energy, but you can see the cracks starting to show as she slowly descends into madness. It feels as though she is a ticking time bomb and it is only a matter of time before something bad is going to happen.
Just like in Episode 3, you’re drawn to what is happening on screen but start to question reality and second-guess yourself as a viewer.
At the same time, “Widow’s Bay” is slowly peeling away the mysteries and history of its titular setting. You would think these episodes would help make things clearer. But those lore-heavy moments have the opposite effect and further mess with the pacing of the central story.
In a flashback episode, we are taken back to 1702 in the Colonial Era as explorer and founder Richard Warren established a colony on Widow’s Bay. Evil has stalked the island from the moment it was inhabited and many locals believe Warren has consorted with the devil. It is an episode that is full of horror and suspense, but it doesn’t reveal much that wasn’t heavily suggested before or could have been told in five minutes.
In order for them to be effective, flashback episodes need to be vital in moving the plot forward, while also providing context for the situation that our modern-day protagonists find themselves in. It is a gamble because it takes the audience out of the established world that they have grown to know and introduces new characters. Therefore, that emotional connection is disrupted and it didn’t feel entirely justified in this case.
“Widow’s Bay” is a unique series that is thoroughly entertaining with star performances from Rhys, O’Flynn and Stephen Root. Overall, it feels as though less is more as it found its perfect niche in the opening episodes before changing course.
Nevertheless, the first season was promising and has the potential to capture the imagination of horror-loving audiences and there could be potential for future stories to be told on Widow’s Bay.
“Widow’s Bay” premieres Wednesday, April 29, on Apple TV.