TV SERIES REVIEW: THE FOLLOWING SEASON 2

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TV is not what it used to be and the level of violence allowed on the small screen has increased dramatically. But THE FOLLOWING takes us on a whole different gory level with bodies piling up by the dozen with each new episode.

But there’s another creepy thing about THE FOLLOWING. It is how normal it treats the killers. In a way it is soap opera for psychopaths. It is not trying to understand them, but instead offering us a daily routine of the crazies. They befriend each other, fall in love and break up, go shopping and cook dinner - all just like us “the normal” people.

For those who had not seen the first season the premise is a simple one - a good cop Ryan Hardy is trying to catch charismatic leader of the serial killers cult - Joe Carol (names Hardy and Carol are of course references to the classic literature).

Joe Carol had died in the end of the first season and the biggest twist this year around is to introduce us to a new threat. Is Joe’s cult still alive? And Joe himself? Did he fake his death?

The answer would be an eminent spoiler, and the unexpected twists are all that THE FOLLOWING is about. Sometimes it even feels it is trying too hard and a single episode seems to be so overloaded with cutting, slashing and betrayals that it seems pushing the envelope even for those who abandoned their hopes to see something believable on screen.

But there’s one thing THE FOLLOWING does well - it’s entertaining. It will definitely give you your weekly fix of adrenalin wether you are hardcore horror fan as myself or a novice to the genre. The key episodes were written by the creator of the series Kevin Williamson himself (the man behind the SCREAM franchise). The man’s writing is good, however he does recycle the characters from his previous works - the ambitions journo Carrie Cooke is Gail Weathers from SCREAM reincarnated.

The series feature many “women in peril” episodes, put female protagonists and villains in THE FOLLOWING are strong fighters and can stand up for themselves at any time. The showdown between the two female leads closer to the end of the show is an absolute highlight and worth the time spent with them.

When so many shows coming up and being cancelled this year THE FOLLOWING had a weak start, but have build up if not to something new, but genuinely exciting.  It is inevitable that with the closure of so many story arcs in season two the third season will have to do something truly original to carry on, but will the fans want a big change? With Kevin Williamson writing the opening episode I trust no one will be disappointed.