Apple TV’s hilarious new horror series is a small-town comedy unlike anything on TV

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Commentary: Widow’s Bay is a smart and wicked genre mashup that delivers epic scares and laughs, and pays homage to Stephen King, Twin Peaks and Jaws.

Aaron covers what’s exciting and new in the world of home entertainment and streaming TV. Previously, he wrote about entertainment for places like Rotten Tomatoes, Inverse, TheWrap and The Hollywood Reporter. Aaron is also an actor and a stay-at-home dad, which means coffee is his friend.

It’s been a while since horror series caught my attention, really caught my attention. We live in a time where genre programming seems plentiful, but formulaic – where the algorithm can dominate originality. It’s important to say this, because I discovered a new horror show that, thanks to its familiar aesthetic, feels fresh, original and demands my full attention.

I’m talking about Widow’s Bay on Apple TVand if this is the first time you’re hearing about the series, the best way to describe it is to ask: what if Parks and Recreation was created by Stephen King? If this question stopped you in your tracks, then you’ll want to read what I have to say.

This is a show that mixes the small-town sensibilities of The Andy Griffith Show with David Lynch’s Twin Peaks. It’s picturesque like the beach scenes from Jaws; it’s terrifying like the shark scenes in Jaws.

Bold statement, ahead: This is the best new horror series on television, and there’s nothing else like it.

Read more: Apple TV: 16 Best Sci-Fi Shows You Should Stream Right Now

Widow’s Bay follows Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys), the mayor of the struggling coastal town, who works tirelessly to make it the next Martha’s Vineyard. Despite its best efforts, the fishing village simply cannot live up to this iconic tourist attraction. Aside from the conflicts and complications of municipal work like this, Tom’s drive to succeed in reorganizing the town is overshadowed by local legends of monsters, bogeymen, and other similar omens stemming from a centuries-old curse.

To delve into these details would be to unleash major spoilers, and since the series is still airing – new episodes arrive on Apple TV every Wednesday – I’d prefer not to spoil the experience for you. What I will say, though, is that Widow’s Bay should be a bigger part of the conversation. It’s a real sleeper hit, and audiences should wake up and take notice.

If I had to categorize Widow’s Bay, I would say that it is a horror comedy. But not in the overt, blood-splattered, farcical way that most horror comedies behave. There’s a Twin Peaks/Picket Fences quality to the show that allows the humor to arise and surprise you in the most unexpected places.

While the comedy isn’t exactly laugh-out-loud funny – it’s much more idiosyncratic and offbeat than anything else – there were a few moments where I giggled uncontrollably at the things playing out on screen. You can tell there’s a deep understanding of the horror genre and its tropes from those behind the scenes of this show, which leads to smart choices and moments that feel like baseball winks to the audience.

Widow’s Bay is on point, and that’s what makes it so good.

The Apple TV series comes from creator and writer Katie Dippold, who cut her teeth on Parks and Recreation, which makes perfect sense when you dive into that show. She brought in directors like genre favorites Ti West and Hiro Murai to bring their visual sensibilities to the mix.

Ultimately, though, the real standout elements of Widow’s Bay are its cast. Matthew Rhys, who showed his insidious side in The Beast in Me from Netflix last year, he subverted expectations and relied on great outsider energy as the city’s mayor. The comedy that arises from his perplexity is not overt because his internal conflict arises from deep pain and the denial that accompanies it. This combination, along with his desire to make the city better, is the right formula to encourage the viewer to support him and embark on this crazy adventure.

Stephen Root is a joy to watch as Wyck, the hardy fisherman who carries the island’s history on his back. I mentioned Jaws earlier, and several elements of the series honor the classic film. Root’s performance is part of that as he delves into Quint’s quirks that drive Wyck, and he’s so good here that it would be worth watching the series just for him.

That said, it’s Kate O’Flynn’s Patricia who steals the show. The bumbling town hall assistant is the energetic middle ground between Tom and Wyck, and her work on the show turns the stars. Patricia has layers beneath her grumpy exterior that dominate the screen — whether she’s throwing a Wiccan death party, running for her life in the middle of the night, or brandishing a shotgun over the scorched ashes of a monster.

Oh, and there are monsters. Widow’s Bay features an assortment of frightening threats ranging from ghosts and killer clowns to an undead pilgrim and murderous bogeyman that I alluded to above.

Reading the sentence above may make this article seem like the show is just throwing an assortment of scary monsters on screen to see what sticks. Let’s be real: There are times when this happens, but the show spreads its story throughout the episodes, pointing to a deeper curse that has plagued this island for centuries.

Widow’s Bay is an amalgamation of so many genre elements and references to other things that, in the wrong hands, it could easily feel formulaic. But that’s not the case. It’s a sight that feels familiar but still feels fresh. It’s scary, like Stephen King at his best; It’s spooky like a ghost story at a campsite. Still, it’s a surprisingly fun ride.

Aaron covers what’s exciting and new in the world of home entertainment and streaming TV. Previously, he wrote about entertainment for places like Rotten Tomatoes, Inverse, TheWrap and The Hollywood Reporter. Aaron is also an actor and a stay-at-home dad, which means coffee is his friend. See full bio