10 Reasons Why You Should Be Watching Scream: The TV Series

Everyone who's anyone has seen the Scream movie series which started in 1996 and released it's fourth movie in 2011. What most people might not know is that MTV created  Scream: The TV Series which ran season one on MTV from June to September 2015. For whatever reason the MTV Canadian channel didn't carry this series so when I found it on Netflix Canada this past weekend, I was overjoyed. 

I hate to say that I'm very critical when it comes to new TV/Movies but when you review (at least) 80% of everything you watch, you tend to know what works, what doesn't and how things could have improved. I grew up with the Scream series and it's always been one of my favorite horror series to watch. After watching the horrifically terrible Scream Queens with top name stars (like Jamie Lee Curtis) on a high budget, I'll be honest in saying I was scared to watch this series. I hate watching things that I love get rebooted terribly and with this series containing a lot more likeness to the original movies then Scream Queens, I was really nervous.

Not even 10 minutes into the pilot episode and I was loving everything about this series. I thought I'd change up my normal TV review style this time (because I've blazed through 8 of the 10 episodes of season one already) and instead do: 

10 Reasons Why You Should Be Watching Scream: The TV Series

1) Pop Culture References

Obviously my love for pop culture is clear considering my blog's name and contents. One of the best parts of this series is the fantastic writing and usage of pop culture references. I hate when series's shy away from using actual titles when referring to things like "that zombie show" instead of just saying "The Walking Dead". This series doesn't shy away from any references but instead they talk like I do. All the characters are well versed in their pop culture knowledge and use it in the daily language.

Jake: "Christian Grey's Red Room of Pain awaits you!"
Brooke: "Ew. That would literally be like doing my brother"
Jake: "Ah, so Game of Thrones? I'm cool with that!"

In addition to pop culture references, the characters are aware of real life events including some histories most notorious serial killers.

Emma: "I got this in the mail"
Noah: "A yearbook? That's not so weird"
(Emma opens the book revealing cut-out faces)
Noah: "Oh, holy Manson family album!"

2) Characters Are Self Aware

This series is my new Pretty Little Liars now that the mystery of who "A" is was solved. Who is the killer in this series? I know I will spent countless hours coming up with my list of killers and motives and theories because I cannot stop thinking about it. The best part is that every time I'm convinced of a new killer or theory, someone in the show suggests it which blows my theory to hell and brings me back to the brainstorming. When I was convinced early on that it was the boyfriend (like in the original movie) a character then brings up how clichéd it would be to be the boyfriend. The characters in this series are self aware and KNOW the horror movie rules that have been taught through movies over the years.
Jake: "This place is big. We should split up"
Noah: "Said no one who survived a horror movie ever"

Uniquely, the characters don't pretend to have never heard movies and even reference (by name) TV shows like Pretty Little Liars and movies like Psycho. 

Noah: "A lair is an extension of the killers psychosis: the root cellar in Psycho, Kevin Spacey's apartment in Se7en, Hannibal Lecter's kitchen. I mean, every fictional character has one."
Emma: "So he's been living here?"
Noah: "I highly doubt it. No, this looks staged. I mean, you see lairs on TV, not in real life. Take Pretty Little Liars. They're always chock-full of bloody clues and creepy, unrealistic icons. I mean, seriously, how would "A" get her hands on four Victorian dolls that look just like the main characters? Where do you shop for that?"
Audrey: "Evil American Girl doll store?"

3) Decent Gore

I was pleasantly surprised that the gore was right on point. Not Tarantino amount of blood and gore but Scream movie amount of blood and gore. It wasn't toned down because it was on TV and I've yet to see a scene where it looks cheap or fake. 

4) Less Exaggerated Mask

When I heard that the series was changing the movie Scream mask to an original one, I was kind of pissed. After watching this series though, it works so much better (especially story wise) then the original one ever did. The one for this series is a surgical mask and although it looks close, it's features aren't as exaggerated as they were on the original mask and I think that it actually looks like something that would be easy to find for a killer to use.

5) Contextually Humorous

Again, unlike Scream Queens whose humour wasn't related to the series at all (or funny) this series used quotes that ACTUALLY make sense in relation to this being a horror series:

Nina: "Call 911" 
Phone: "Calling Pottery Barn" 

(music is suddenly playing over a sound system)
Noah: "Cue creepy murder music. I knew something was missing"

Emma: "My perfect boyfriend slept with the deceased"
Kieran: "Necrophilia is a problem"

Emma: "He brings soup to school in a Thermos"
Noah: "Villains need to eat too. Kingpin eats, the Joker eats, Bain probably doesn't because of his mask so it's probably some sort of nutrient milkshake"

6) Legitimately Scary

I'm not going to lie, I prefer watching this series under the comfort of a big blanket with a large frying pan sitting beside me (Tangled style). It's scary just like the movies were and unlike most TV series or movies, there aren't as many fake-out scenes as I thought there would be. 

7) Smart Choices

They really thought about their target demographic when they wrote this series. They found a way to keep the old fans, introduce new fans and picked a network that would allow them to do both. MTV (and now Netflix Canada) are both the perfect locations to hit the 18-31 year old demographic WITHOUT needing huge rating or big name guest stars. Plus they use my favorite TV strategy where they aren't afraid to kill off main cast members. Granted I'm 99% sure that Emma will not be killed off (as she's the new Neve Campbell) but everyone else is free game and I never know who's on the chopping block next.

8) Reinvented An Old Classic Without Changing What Works

Although there are similarities between this series and the original movie series, there are also original elements that keep surprising me. The back story isn't the same, the characters aren't the same, in fact the town is not even the same but they made it work. They were able to change the story up with tweaks but keep everything that worked.

9) 90s Feel

This series has such a retro feel to it but kept in mind the new generation. In the pilot episode Emma was originally stalked by text message and the episode dealt with a "make out" video going viral and the cyber bullying that came with it which wasn't something that was around at the time of the original series. But the stalker scenes, phone calls in multiple episodes and the killing sequences makes it feel like we never left the 90s.

10) Characters Look Believable

As much as I love Pretty Little Liars, one of my least favorite parts about that series is that the girls wear fancy outfits (that probably cost thousands and are usually never seen twice) and wear faces full of make-up. Nobody looks like them in the real world. These Scream characters could have stepped right out of a real high school. They have NORMAL amounts of make-up on and some of the clothes they wear look like items I have in my closet which just makes them feel more relatable and allows the audience to connect with them on a level that I can't with Liars.


I am so used to picking apart shows for my reviews based on what works and what doesn't and there are some series that I tear down while watching them because of their poor choices. (yes, Walking Dead, I'm talking about Sunday's season premiere where the zombies were literally killing THEMSELVES by walking into a metal wall.) There's very few things about this series that I dislike with the most prominent one being the casting choice for Emma's mother. I just don't think she fits with the series or comes off as believable as the others. Overall, this series is killer (pun intended) and extremely underrated. If you are a fan of the original Scream series, a fan of shows such as Pretty Little Liars, a fan of the horror genre or just looking for a good scare, this is the show for you. It's well worth your time and I promise, it'll be a scream!

Pilot Episode- 9/10

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