If FROM were any other network than the little-used streaming service MGM+, this would be a bonafide hit. As is, it’s a little-seen horror series that deserves audiences’ attention this Halloween.
I loved the journey of the TV show LOST but hated the destination. I was skeptical when I heard that LOST producers Jack Bender and Jeff Pinkner were reuniting for a horror thriller with former castaway Michael (Harold Perrineau). Yet, I’ve binged and am up to date on the latest season of FROM (currently on S3E4, the best of the new season).
The story structure and framing owe a lot to LOST. After 2 and 1/2 seasons, audiences still have minimal answers and a slew of characters with which you will develop a love/hate relationship. The key differentiator is that FROM is 100% an R-rated bloody horror that owes its genre-like style more to THE WALKING DEAD than LOST. And because of that, the key hook to the show outside of its mystery is its willingness to kill off lead characters just as their stories are about to start. That element is enough to drive audiences “from” start to whenever this show finishes.
Sadly, all three seasons of FROM lose their way due to its slow-burn horror genre-trapping. Characters discuss many dumb things, with trivial conflicts to pass the time while we wait for another violent after-dark killing. Why can’t this group simply call a town meeting NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS-style and get it all out on the table? At times, it’s frustrating TV.
That said, audiences will love the cliffhanger at the end of season two and the bloody mess of S3E4. The creators appear to have learned their lessons from LOST and are closing the loops on some mysteries faster while opening several “far away tree” doors to others.
As season three reaches its halfway point, I’m hopeful that FROM will move “from” the past to the future tense, TO. And I encourage audiences to seek out this bloody good time with scary psychological monsters. It’s not prestige television, but it’s a spooky thrill ride that’s sure to be binged by future horror aficionados.
It’s available on MGM+.
