The Fall of the House of Usher - Spoiler Review | Flanagan's Best Since Hill House

[@jflanagan81]

Appreciate you watching! And thank you for the shout out

[@SteveVarleyShow]

Thanks for the amazing work you have given us again!

[@neilstinston1457]

Sick

[@Kitty-f7v]

I like Juno in the story as she initially is portrayed as someone after Roderick’s money but turns out she’s just a genuine girl and it was Roderick who was using her and not the other way round.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

yes!

[@Caerdrys]

Definitelty. I felt that way about all the spouses. Her, Bill, and Fredrick’s wife. You initially just assume they married to get wealthy, but it later is revealed that Ushers are just ultimate users.

[@luxusken05]

Evrybody was doing horrow and she was giving dark comedy lol I love her

[@angeltomlinson6354]

@@Caerdrysgood catch!

[@calamari89]

Same. I hate the gold digger trope, and the happy ending for her was well deserved

[@Silvanfan]

What I liked about Pym was that when Verna revealed that she was, in fact, NOT in that body bag he'd made of her, he simmered down REAL fast. The Ushers may have gone into denial, and moved into the "Do you know who I am!?" realm, but Pym, the muscle, was nothing but respectful. Even though he was the one who gathered all the intel on her existence over the years, he doesn't make a peep about his own superstitions of there being more to this world. When he rejected her offer, he was INCREDIBLY sincere and respectful, ending it with "If it's all the same to you", meaning that he's recognizing her power, and being humble in the face of her. He might have been the first person (or maybe one of the few) who ever rejected her offer, and I think that's why she sincerely (and gently) thanks him after his rejection. Lenore also does not react strongly to Verna's appearance in her room. Another Usher would have called for security, or tried to threaten Verna with power or money. Lenore listens to Verna, and is probably quite baffled, but is so innocent and good. Verna killing Lenore shows that she would have killed the other Ushers whether or not they had taken listened to her and made peace/did good. But their deaths wouldn't have been as vicious or painful if they did. I think she was offering them a painless death. But they all chose violence/skullduggery in some form or the other. I also think that Roderick's bloodline haunt him while he's talking with Auggie specifically when he deviates from the story or tries to deny his culpability. When Auggie starts to consider that the children's death was his fault because he hinted at an informant, Roderick (I hope I'm remembering correctly) hints that it might be, but then one of his children haunt him, shocking him into telling Augie the truth. Even at the end in the board room, they show up when Roderick has to face the reality that he has, in fact, killed Millions of people. This show was such a good one! I don't agree that Goldbug was predictable. I knew that it was her turn to die (I mean, we were down to two kids, and sure the show up till now had been formulaic), but I really didn't know how it was going to happen. Sure, Tamerlane's ghost was walking on glass, but I didn't think the glass was connected to her death. Honestly thought she was going to die in some sort of erotic auto-asphyxiation type deal by falling asleep while choking herself. If anything, the Pit and the Pendulum had far more on-the-nose foreshadowing, as the episode opens with Lenore and her mother watching a movie where a man escapes being cut by one of those swinging pendulums. Because I was binging on Netflix I didn't see the name of each episode, so it's only when I paused it to get some water is when I saw the name of the episode and guessed how Frederick would have died XD

[@erikavasquez914]

It’s like you took the words out of my mouth! Agreed! Especially your take on Pym and his interaction with Verna. He most certainly went out the most humble.

[@carlosriveraauthor]

Roderick hinted that after Annabelle Lee lost the children and they left her, she ended her life. If you look at her she hasn't aged almost at all. So it wasn't too long after for her to do this. The "Annabelle Lee" poem CRUSHED ME. I cried here and at Lenore's scene. Especially because with Lenore my husband and I realized this was happening like two minutes before she met Verna. I LOVE it when an author does something so cruel, but which you can't say is "unfair". The rules were clear. There was no backing out. No convenient cheats. They made a deal. The deal was fulfilled. I hate it. But I was told and I was still caught off guard.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

hey great catch with the age, thank you for pointing this out

[@legendofayda]

I think the damage to the back of Annabelle’s head is an exit wound from a bullet. It’s heavily insinuated that unalived herself and I think that was meant to be confirmation that she shot herself in the mouth.

[@aimeem]

It reflects the hole in the back of Ali's (the surgeon, Vic's girlfriend) head too

[@ndogg20]

Reminds me of the ghost kid from The Sixth Sense who talks about showing off his dads gun, only to reveal a huge exit wound in the back of his head when he turned around.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

woah..

[@alwaysm.i.a10]

I don't think Pluto the cat ever died. At one point they say she runs off whenever the doors/windows(?) are left open. I think he hallucinated everything and that that was her climbing on Napoleon at the end, not Verna.

[@QuikVidGuy]

people keep saying Leo JUMPED He didn't jump, he threw himself off balance in his rage. There was no intent other than evil.

[@angeltomlinson6354]

I agree! He fell to his death after lunging for the cat. He was so blinded by his rage that he couldn’t even see that he was about to fall over the balcony

[@Emidotmov]

The shot of the rain that then turns into the bodies falling… the gasp I guspt…

[@ElonBillZuck]

That's the biggest highlight of the show, nothing else

[@carlosriveraauthor]

True. I have watched many horror movies and TV shows, and I can say that was something NEW. I had never seen a scene like that. The way they flooded the streets, piling up to about a third of the building's height. It was just jaw-dropping

[@carebearnc]

It's also very smart the connection between Edgar Allan Poe's own heroin/opium addiction and how we're dealing with it even more today with all the painkillers/opioids. The series was brilliant. Carla Gugino is perfection! ❤🐦‍⬛

[@acWeishan]

I would say this show in large part is about the boomer generation and their decision to move from their startings as the WE generation to the 80s decision to become the ME generation and pretty much destroy the world and leave the tab to be picked up by future generations. I don't think it an accident the deal is made on the eve of 1980. It was a big transition.

[@indiashante1560]

This!!!!

[@silviaetna9874]

Agree

[@SteveVarleyShow]

nailed it!

[@chelscara]

I also appreciate, in Madeline’s last speech, it shows how far she’s come from her poverty that she just has lost touch with reality. No thought for people that literally can’t afford to try and shop “ethically”, cant access the safest prescription drugs, insurance covered the prescription but no therapy so the addict just switches addictions, etc etc. she’s so smart, but only in ways that make herself feel better; to the truth she’s completely blind.

[@jacksonmcnuggets7488]

Oh she knows the truth she just pointed out the raw nature of human beings

[@thereaIitsybitsyspider]

Camille was my favorite. She owned her gruesome end.

[@b4rbarbar]

Yeah, she was the only one (out of all the siblings) that sorta accepted her fate and while it was horrific, she had more agency over how she got there and how inevitable it was, without being straight up deceived or driven mad

[@Discoball_Glitter]

After watching Dopesick and Painkiller, it’s pretty obvious that in this show Furtunato Pharmaceuticals =Purdue, Ligodone=OxyContin and this show might as well been titled ‘The Fall Of The House Of Sackler’. I can appreciate how for Mike Flanagan that lawsuits ,monetary losses, having their names removed from museums etc. aren’t enough to punish Big Pharma and The Sacklers, so he brought in Poe’s elements of supernatural and horror to illustrate his wishes of how they could actually be punished. It was a fun October 🎃 watch

[@AstroNatNM]

I love this! I just finished reading the Empire of Pain about the Sackler family and it was so awesome to watch the supernatural experience thru this series.

[@mcbean1]

The only problem is that it didn't depict the characters as being that kind of evil and so it was a bit ill fitting and just tacked on

[@erinc.1610]

I love the use of color in each siblings death! I think it was a huge nod to the actual short story The Masque of the Red Death. In that story, each of the rooms in the palace was a different color, with the final room being black and scarlet and had a huge clock in it. The figure in the skull mask walks through each room, and by the time the clock in the black room strikes midnight, everyone in the palace is dead. Each sibling was assigned a deep color saturation, and they all end up dead. I know Mike Flanagan himself said that the deaths had nothing to do with the seven deadly sins... so im pretty sure its a wonderful nod to the way EAP wrote that story and how arragance can't stop death. 😊 I LOVE THIS SERIES

[@runawaylady1833]

I agree with you on how you rate his shows. This is definitely my second favourite, and Hill House is my No. 1, not just because the bent-neck-lady was jaw-droppingly brilliant, but the episode with that long take was masterful. Very sad they didn't get the awards they deserved.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

i still get so angry thinking about them not giving these shows emmys cause its horror

[@thereaIitsybitsyspider]

Tammy was killed by the bad feng shui of having mirrors pointed at the bed

[@luxusken05]

My MVPs are the two madelines. The actresses did such a phenomenal job. That dialogue from old Madeline right before they died was something else, made me agree with her a little bit. Also Ruth Codd as Juno was hilarious, I felt like everybody was doing horror and she was doing dark comedy LMAO.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

i agree, they were both fantastic

[@SM-BSW]

Fun fact, Toby Damnit is the name of a Poe character from "Never Bet the Devil Your Head".

[@Katpiratefan275]

Not sure if you caught this in each of the siblings deaths, but they each have a color saturation connected to them and i know they each die in a EAP manner, but i wonder if there also may be a connection to the seven deadly sins. Prospero has a red saturation, Tammy had Green, Freddie's was Blue, and I think Vic was Orange, i could be wrong. Worth watching a few more times to catch the color

[@rigwellasiedu3458]

Yeah, their deaths mirrored the seven deadly sins. Prospero died because of his orgy (lust). Camille died because she was jealous of her sister, Vic and wanted to bring her down (envy). Napoleon became paranoid and his anger at the cat led him to destroy his house and fall to his death (wrath). Vic was an egomaniac and more focused on fame than saving lives. She stabbed her heart, the symbolic seat of (pride). Tammy kept struggling with sleep and Verna clearly told her just before her death that she could now go to sleep with the glass shards killing her (sloth). Freddie abused drugs and Verna took advantage of that with that "more, more, more" scene (gluttony). Roderick and Madeline condemned themselves and their bloodline because of their ambition, and this even affected the innocent Lenore (greed).

[@Ms_lalalalauren]

I came here to say this!!! So glad i wasn’t the only one who noticed lol

[@Nistin2776]

I've seen this pop up a lot which is totally understandable as I picked up on that too, and Flanagan recently responded to someone who asked around the deadly sins with; "Hi! I’ve heard this a few times today - I’m sorry to say that it was NOT our intention to have the Usher kids represent the 7 deadly sins. Roderick only has 6 children, for one thing, and I got most of my religious horror out of my system in Midnight Mass (plus, no one will ever do the seven deadly sins better than Se7en, so why bother?). I’m always happy to see people digging into the work, and typically don’t want to dissuade someone from whatever meaning they find there, but in this case I’d be lying if I said that was our intention."

[@redrobin0107]

@@rigwellasiedu3458personally I would switch Tammy and Freddie around.. Tammy was very business minded and only focused on Goldbug (despite her whole family dying 💀) and also wanted Bill to be perfect for her despite how she treated him (Gluttony) Meanwhile Freddie always expected himself to be the Furtonato heir despite doing no work himself (sloth)

[@Deon82]

Leo's must've been black

[@michaelcobb1559]

One of the Best lines was when Frederick calls, Perry Gucci Caligula. Also Tamerlane saying "why is she talking? She really shouldn't be talking." 😂

[@cindimams4394]

Carla Cugina was phenomenal in this. She’s such a great actress. I loved this series definitely up there with hill house.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

she is crazy good

[@BrytteM]

The absolute extra irony of Victorine being compared to Mother Theresa because she ALSO caused rampant harm on the nebulous goal of her own delusions, so...

[@tbam73]

Mark Hamill as Prym isnt getting the props he deserves on these reviews

[@ARTSIEBECCA]

I agree, I didn't even realize it was him until I looked up the show.

[@eszterczifranics6339]

Hill House and this was the scariest and they were both great. But Bly Manor and Mindnight Mass was my two favourites. I watched them many times and never get bored. I love the versatility of Mike Flanagan and can’t wait the next one!

[@ndogg20]

Got to agree. While some were disappointed, as I was at first, that Bly Manor wasn't the same whoopee cushion of jump scares that Hill House was. Instead of doing another Hill, Bly went into a deep haunting setting as opposed to just scares. I was still thinking about Bly a week after seeing it and caught on, and that was the problem, it didn't happen while viewing. Which is where Midnight Mass succeeds, it does has that feeling of eternal dread from the start.

[@GenghisWanghis]

​@ndogg20 midnight mass is so damn good. The creeping Dread so well done. Wish Salem's Lot was done justice like that

[@grabdaCikan]

Agreed.

[@Night_Skinned]

This season was an absolute masterpiece! The weaving of Poe's work was *chef's kiss*

[@spiceshewrites]

3:37 I didn't take him saying that his children told him the stories about their deaths as them sitting down and having a chat, I think from the first episode, it was clear the children were haunting him, and through the episodes, they scared/ rattled him - therefore I took this "telling" more as they tortured him with the reproach. 6:52 Really loved this - Roderick became the man he hated. YESSSS! 10:50 They wanted to change the world, they never mentioned "for good". It caught my attention while watching, really important detail.

[@mcbean1]

Sure they didn't specify for good, but nor did the stories establish them as so evil as to do what they ended up doing

[@erinc.1610]

That scene in the Rue Morge... when Verna slowly transformed into a chimp... WAS AMAZING

[@joyce2837]

i’m a huge flannigan fan but the one negatives that i could always count on him for besides run-on monologues are dead cats (which still haunts my dreams) so the eventual cat justice was especially fun and rewarding to watch. it was hilarious when leo finds the replacement black cat and thinks it looks identical to pluto tickled my cat lady heart.

[@silviaetna9874]

I like your take. They had it good compered to their parents and lost track of important values, little by little

[@chad63]

i think that the cat not being recognised by his partner even though replaced was a mirror to their boss not recognising the taste of the expensive alcoholic drink being poisoned even though they claim that they love those particular thing it hints that they are fakes

[@tyizzle80]

I watched this entire series in a Day and a Half.

[@Amanda3280h]

Same!!

[@tarraturner670]

I literally sat on the couch yesterday with my husband and watched the entire show morning to night. 😂

[@joecastro9977]

I was a straight through-er as well. Really great television.

[@chrisbailey9911]

Finally somebody is talking about the similarities with Succession. It's uncanny at times, you could take shots from Usher and put them into succession and you wouldn't notice it's not the same show, especially with the music. Even Tammy and Bill are so close to Shiv and Tom. The personalities, the looks, it's an obvious nod to Succession and I love it.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

wow really, not many people pointing that out eh?!

[@Chadsolderbrotherbrad1111]

The evil sister was the best

[@tigerlilly9038]

which one...😂😂 the OG ..or the "spawned" evil sibling sisters..

[@radhiadeedou8286]

​@@tigerlilly9038exactly which one? I really have no idea who they're talking about

[@tyizzle80]

Man Loved this show . The acting was A1 from top to bottom Young and okd characters. And the Ending was sad and fullfilling at the sametime. It wasnt a happy ending but it was exactly how it should of ended. Flannagan knows how to write disfuntional Privilege familys so freaking well. And Roderick had me going from thinking he was a Piece of Crap to Thinking he was actually good then back to a Piece of 💩 again There arent too many Characters that can pull that off so well with me. Usually If I like you I like to and if I dont I dont . Only Character that kind of did this for me Was Jaime Lassiter's but that process happened i er several seasons. Flanagan knows how to Inock these Miniseries out the park. The Dialogue was Poetic and Lenore situation broke my heart. But Juno gave me some satisfaction of a happy ending because only her,Lenore, Anabel and Dustin were descent people.

[@janechoy2073]

Emmys for Carla Gugino and Mark Hamill!!!

[@alpacamale2909]

The only miscast here was young Roderick. it should have been Jimmy Simpson

[@kredivinity2486]

I like house of usher better than hill house...hill house started Dragging at certain points, but it had more scares than usher Where as Usher just drew you in even the moments of straight Dialogue and Monologues were interesting and the jump scares really HIT. They were both good but House of Usher was just the better show

[@nicolas.grisanti]

I LOVED it! This is in my favorite Flanagan's shows with Hill House and Midnight Mass (and i really liked Bly Manor and Midnight Club is maybe the weakest, but wasn't half bad like some people say). As always, amazing performances from all the cast, and in this case, Carla Gugino and Bruce Greenwood give Emmy worthy performances.

[@Amanda3280h]

I’m in the 4th ep of Midnight Mass and still not feeling it :( I was really excited. But agree on the rest, I LOOOVE Fall of the House of Usher I think my #1 and followed by Hill House and Bly Manor. Haven’t watched Midnight Club! On my list 😊

[@TaxemicFanatic]

​@@Amanda3280hit's so weird how people prefer certain series. Midnight Mass is my absolute favourite. I just love the tone and the philosophical and religious themes. Then I love Bly second best, above Hill House.

[@sirsplintfastthepungent1373]

I really wanted August to be behind the family's demise, having brewed the perfect revenge plan that made Roderick think it was all his fault. The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge.

[@cbotsalot4078]

The Fall of the House of Usher is brilliant and great fun, but since the Ushers are so shallow, I found it hard to relate to them. In that sense, it didn't haunt me like great scenes in his other works. My personal ranking: Hill House > Midnight Mass > Bly Manor > House of Usher

[@SteveVarleyShow]

thanks for sharing!!

[@b4rbarbar]

That's so interesting because, for me, the fact that I could not relate to them made the horror so much more cathartic, which doesn't happen in the other Flanagan shows. I loved them all, but House of Usher takes the cake for me both because of the sheer fun of seeing terrible people being brought down a peg and all the poe references which warmed my little black heart. I got a very similar vibe of 'eat the rich' that you get from 'the menu.' of course, it doesn't really solve anything in the end, but, my god, the satisfaction...

[@cbotsalot4078]

@@b4rbarbar (SPOILERS) I agree, the series was so much fun! Seeing the family get what’s theirs in such a brutal fashion and indulging in it is such a horror genre specific treat. It's a very on brand, morbid, wonderful love letter to Poe’s works too, getting front row seats to watch the downward spiral of the wicked. I set some unfair expectations going in, which may have affected my viewing experience to be honest, since Flanagan often deals w/ heartfelt but deeply flawed characters that come to terms w/ their trauma. It’s kind of my favorite horror format. I hope I’ll enjoy this season more on a second viewing. My biggest problem was that the majority of the children had little depth. I wish we had more time to get into their heads, but maybe sympathy would kill some of the enjoyment in their deaths? What do you think? My favorite moment was the downright chilling final monologue of Roderick’s. After he finishes his insane confession and the visits from his children are over, he remains prideful. Got to love the dark arch. I am curious what some of your favorite scenes are and why if you have the time.

[@b4rbarbar]

@@cbotsalot4078 Yeah, you're right that it's quite a departure from the other Flanagan shows, the only death that was truly heartbreaking was Lenore's. I really liked Verna's monologue there telling her how her mother would make a good recovery and go on to help millions of people on her honor. It's a small sliver of hope that hits that much harder after you see how terrible everyone else in her family was. As for the Roderick's children, I think above all, I loved how visually striking and distinctive they all were. It gets established right away when they're all present at the trial. My favorite was Camille, I think, and it's probably also the performance from Kate Siegel that I liked the most. She is also the only one out of all the siblings that gets to somewhat accept her fate and is not tricked or driven mad instead. The sibling whose death was almost the total opposite was Leo's, which makes some sense because he was arguably the least morally corrupt character and seemed to genuinely feel some affection for others in his life (tho he still isn't good or even neutral by any stretch of imagination). The fact that his death was pretty much all induced by hallucinations and increasing madness felt like it robbed him of agency and he could have been hit by a truck for how random and disconnected from his character it was. It might have been interesting to see his death coming more from his general attitude of complacency or maybe more directly tied to his drug use..? I'm not sure. I guess this goes to your point that the children didn't have a whole lot of depth, which was less of a problem for Camille or Prospero imo because there was enough there for us to connect the dots and their deaths tied directly to their flaws. I'm racking my brain and for the life of me, I can't settle on a favorite scene. In a way, I think it's because this was a very bingeable show that really takes place over the course of just one night during Roderick's confession to Auggie. One thing that I really liked throughout was the silly humor that appeared sometimes - like, I really liked the whole scene where Roderick and Madeline are trying to identify who Verna is and he goes 'enhance' while viewing a photo in the monitor and whoever it was has to explain that really isn't a thing. Not only is it funny, but Roderick is visibly pissed off that this magic doesn't exist, which adds to his characterization that he is so high on power that he resents when reality doesn't bend to his whims. Interestingly, out of all the Ushers (except Lenore), Roderick is both the worst offender (at least in terms of scale) and also the one that had the potential to be the best. I mean this in the way that Madeline was clearly the one pushing him from the start and that, had things been a little different, he might have turned out to be a loving father and husband to Annabel Lee and have found true happiness and maybe also fulfillment from his poetry. Another aspect of this is that he consistently says Lenore is the good one and he's proud of her even when their goals run in opposite directions. I do really like the scene where Madeline tried to 'kill' him (he agreed, but it was her initiative) because it shows how she was really ready to sacrifice anything and everyone, even if it was futile. She also tells him 'you're a king, you're a legend' repeatedly which I thought was great because it mirrored the way she used flattery was she was younger to get the people around her to trust her and do as she says. This was super rambling but hopefully you find it of some interest. I definitely also need a second viewing of the show, but yeah, it was really fun to watch all these rich siblings stumbling towards their deaths!

[@Marco.91]

One cool thing i noticed is that the episode thumbnails actually show you which of siblings dies next.

[@gamera2020]

I actually thought that Roderick looked horrified by what Victorine did to her girlfriend.

[@jerpica.d6735]

I binged this whole show last weekend and I've been dying to hear other people's opinions

[@DescryMirare]

I really needed to see this again 😔 thanks, steve

[@davismorgan99]

This show goes just above hill house and below midnight mass for me. Absolutely fantastic and a great way to end his collaboration with Netflix.

[@alefzeke]

I didn’t like how heavy handed the social commmentary became at the end. It kind of lost every veil of subtext. And I didn’t find it right that Madeline did the whole consumer bit. Like that whole defensive rant would depend on guilt which she never showed

[@b4rbarbar]

While I loved this show, I HATED the line of 'I told one of my clients he could shoot someone on 5th Ave and he would get away with it.' that was just cheap and I refuse to engage with the notion that Donald fucking Trump spiked Verna's curiosity at all.. Like, please, don't cheapen this masterpiece. That line should have been removed...

[@CreativeUsernameEh]

@@b4rbarbar I mean, he actually said that though. Makes you wonder lol.

[@charnellalexander199]

Has anyone pointed out how each of Roderick's children represented 6 of the 7 deadly sins? Prospero = Lust. Camille = Anger (Verna literally asks her why she's always so angry) Leo = Sloth (just laying around playing video games and drinking) Victories = pride (She refused to admit her heart sleeve didn't work) Tamerlane = Envy (She was so jealous of Verna) Fredrick= Gluttony (He kept putting more and more drugs into his body) & finally Roderick himself represented Greed. This show was so well done!

[@TheMetalwolf77777]

I love how it's a TV version of Allan Poe

[@cocoliko]

Oh gee! One hour long review! Im gonna listen while i wash the dishes fold the clothes sweep the floor clean the chimney drink whiskey and honored thy sister ala cleopatra as she should!

[@SteveVarleyShow]

hahah love it!

[@gamera2020]

Too bad it's constantly interrupted with ads.

[@tyizzle80]

What scary about this was really the dawning on me that Big Coroporations and the Leadership at the top think eactly like the Ushers that was the scariest oart of the show to me. The Reality of how this could be happening with Several Corporations as we speak. Thatss Scary AF to me.

[@Peanut_taco_muffin]

Carla Gugino was absolute perfection in this role and she was beyond incredible in every single “role” within this series. She essentially played 7+ characters and she is incredibly convincing and captivating every second she’s on screen. I literally can’t take my eyes off of her and I’ve watched every episode multiple times. She is also unbelievably stunning and I can’t believe this woman is 52. Not that 52 is “old”, but she literally looks more beautiful now than she did in her 30’s and her body is insane- just as an aside. I wish I looked half as good as her now, in my 30’s. I wanted to see that much of Kate Siegal also- I’m just obsessed with her and think she’s incredibly talented. I mean, literally everyone in this series (and most other Flanagan productions) was perfectly cast because they are all talented enough to pull off just about any role. SO good, 10/10 and that’s rare.

[@tattedupluv]

I was concerned before watching that since I was deeply familiar with Poe's stories I would already know the end before it comes. I was extremely impressed how Mike handled the storyline. Even though I may have known specific character's storylines and their ends he still was able to keep me engaged and wanting to see how they played out. Of course there were still surprises due to Mikes directing and writing. I found I was even more excited to see the things I already knew from the stories. I was excited to see the characters come to life and even more so the deaths playout. I totally agree it was perfectly cast.

[@greentiger332]

One thing about Leo's denial that I caught, in episode 3 he talks about how he isn't like the rest of the family because he makes video games. We then see though out episode 4 that he really is exactly like the others as he tries to use his money to cover up his mistake and is willing to cut his boyfriend out of his life when he complains about his over use of drugs. To add to that, painkillers are all about ignoring the pain of your body for a little bit, while Leo's video games are often times used for escapism like the rest of his drugs.

[@Baskerville1000]

Wtf? Sorry to contradict here but I freakin loved Kate Siegel in Midnight Mass! She is my favorite actress in the Flanagan Series, so I was rather disappointed to see her in the current short lived role of just another spoiled Usher child. Don’t get me wrong here, in many other aspects (not all) The fall of the house of Usher is absolutely fantastic and might be Flanagan’s best.

[@Mable-kx1qi]

Midnight Mass is his best in my opinion and Kate Siegel was a tour de force in it.

[@Baskerville1000]

@@Mable-kx1qi exactly 😎👍

[@SteveVarleyShow]

just didnt think she fit the part in bly at all

[@Baskerville1000]

@@SteveVarleyShow Ok her role as Viola in The Haunting of Bly Manor That was my least favorite role for her but I still think she did a decent job here.

[@b4rbarbar]

She is a great actress and she definitely played a great Erin Greene in MM, but I love to see her in more nuances roles a la what we saw here or Theo in Hill House. Kinda same goes for Samantha Sloyan, she makes a great devious one. Seeing her playing a normal, good woman in Hill House is kinda whiplash after MM and the Midnight Club

[@morganleanderblake678]

I'm so glad Roderick got recast. Frank Langella is one of the only actors I've ever met and he was a complete and total #(%$*& at a fan event. I wasn't going to watch it.

[@TallyDrake]

The only unfortunate part of the cast change is that all the young Rodericks look far more like Langella than Greenwood. Before I learned of the cast change I thought they did a poor job of casting the young Rodericks looks-wise.

[@PhlesheBone]

I got so much shxt for saying Kate was miscast in Midnight Mass lmao I didn't see your review for it so this is validating

[@gamera2020]

"You are so small " was also what Rufus said to Madeline when she pitched him her ideas.

[@Silvanfan]

Yeaah I was 100% certain that Annabel Lee pushed a pistol as far back as it would go and shot herself in the mouth, hence the exit wound in the back of her head, but her tongue and the front of her face being unaffected.

[@JamieBarrington]

I just finished it today and it was great! I agree, those last two episodes were fantastic. I could never finish Midnight Club, so I'm happy to have a Mike Flanagan show I can enjoy this spooky season. And I'm also glad the monologues were trimmed down too. Don't get me wrong, I actually loved Midnight Mass, but it's one I can't rewatch because they get waaay too long winded.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

happy you watched jamie and liked it! great to hear from you again

[@calamari89]

Omg the comparison between Pim and Mike is SO accurate

[@purplehaze455]

Your review is a masterpiece! Good job, lad! Very nice!

[@SteveVarleyShow]

mean so much, thank you

[@carmenhoma1782]

Yes please! I freaking loved this!! Am I alone? I was like “AGAIN” as soon as the raven flew at me!!!!!

[@SteveVarleyShow]

not at all, it was great!

[@seblahideh]

I'm not good at guessing plot endings and twists, but this show and it's ending was almost entirely predictable from start to finish. The finale and payoff was still so good and the series as a whole was so well done that I didn't even mind it though.

[@b4rbarbar]

It's almost like Flanagan going on a dare: 'I bet I can spoil everything for you in the first episode, and you'll still be hooked.' like ligodone maybe? 🤔🤔

[@vickygirl1203]

This was a great review. I loved this series.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

thanks vicky. nice to hear from you !

[@gypsydanger1013]

I absolutely ADORED Juno. She was adorable. I love how shes easy to mistrust in the beginning as a much younger junkie who got lucky enough to marry this extremely rich Opioid kingpin of the world. Like this is a junkie's ultimate meal/addiction ticket. But it turns out that what she really wanted was a family and hated the enormous house when Roderick wasnt in it, desperately wanted to quit the painkillers, and was nothing but loving and supportive to all the Ushers, even when they abused her and called her "it". You know she's got to have massive trauma from being on the street and selling sex for drug money, but instead of letting her trauma make her cruel and bitter like everyone else, it just made her a kinder, wiser person. She's by far the best girl in this show. Lenore is genuinely sweet too, but Juno really did claw her way up from the very bottom.

[@asan1050]

Steve Varley , Thanks Much!

[@lydiaquinn2892]

I’m so excited to watch this now. Finally have time. Thank you Steve!

[@Chadsolderbrotherbrad1111]

The ending is good but the show is a little weird and kindaslow

[@simbalesliechoto8663]

Easily the best season finale of the year.

[@tigerlilly9038]

I thought it was absolutely brilliant.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

it was!

[@calamari89]

I LOVED this show. The haunting of hill house is my favorite book of all time and I loved how in the show there were those little touches from details of the book. Before each episode of this show, I read the Poe short story and it added so much to the endings of each character. I also liked how it seemed like each kid was associated with either a deadly sin or cardinal virtue.

[@marknovak6498]

Were the deaths youngest to oldest character. Sort of wish, the wife had escaped the acid shower and carry guilt in silence.

[@myiaspeight6392]

Yes I think that would’ve been awesome!

[@lunesterv5802]

You didn't seem to have watched the show then. Frederick's wife was given the option to run or escape and chose not to. As part of that consequence, she was severely injured and tortured by Frederick, who developed this belief she cheated on him (though we never actually saw her do anything other than be at the wrong place at the wrong time, intentions otherwise). She does carry that guilt as she loses both husband and child as the show moves forward, and it wouldn't have been as compelling or driving, nor would Verna have been as vicious, without these driving points.

[@marknovak6498]

@lunesterv5802 I watched the show. I have no time for lectures. Read what I said and think this time. I should not have to recap an episode to have a thought out opinion.

[@marknovak6498]

@lunesterv5802 i am seriously considering just following certain youtubers ever again. I should not be accused not seeing a show at a all just because i saw some storytelling options better than a wtf ham fisted mess of pulling a burn victim out of intensive care.

[@Shukri-The-Great]

I agree the usher children deaths were youngest to oldest in my opinion , so the party boy is clearly the youngest of the usher children then the media girl , gamer dude, heart lady, goop wannabe, Freddie the abuser. I feel so bad for the wife . Imagine being in the hospital recovering and finding out your only child just died

[@thebarky1988]

Do you think Leo really killed his boyfriend’s cat or do you think it was Verna?

[@Nina201069]

Good job at explaining all the episodes. Thank you🌺

[@SteveVarleyShow]

So nice of you

[@PourItIn_MyTrophies]

Loved this review. Made me feel like I did not watch the show lmao in a good way. Brought great view points and answers I wouldn’t have even thought or considered if I had.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

means a lot, thank you

[@syncue5411]

This is Flanagans best since Hill House

[@laurenescarcha3246]

My entire day off was binging this

[@chancelachance765]

House of Usher was unbearably predictable. Not a single surprising twist. Hill House is still the best but Midnight Mass was fantastic and so was By Manor. Couldn’t even get through Midnight Club

[@crystaldana3235]

Sooooooo GOOD!!!! ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@ManyvanhKeovongsa]

That why nobody likes Juno because she only married Rockrick for the money and took over the company and took everything from his children

[@mcbean1]

Am I the only one left disappointed? I feel that the mystery element was at best surface level which is what I was looking forward too. Sure the acting is good and the episodes are shot well, but I kind of feel like that should be expected as standard.

[@elliegallagher9392]

Really good video. Love your reviews on the handmaids tale as well. ❤

[@SteveVarleyShow]

thats so kind. praise be

[@Oonagh72]

This is the rare show I would love a prequel. I would love to see how they all came to know their father and how those relationships worked out.

[@scottlette]

It was a very American revenge porn story. I did enjoy it, but I did so knowing that this series appealing to my darkest side.

[@alexandraetienne9540]

I love how you did this series justice 🖤

[@SteveVarleyShow]

thank you :)

[@CarolineCaudill-go6qv]

Any of you that have negative comments, obviously are not readers of Edgar Allan Poe, nor even understand any of his stories tells or poems. Maybe you should read his works because this miniseries is absolutely brilliant. The negative comments are literally coming from ignorance and coming from people who have absolutely no idea About arts and someone was able to take a renowned writers works and author who no one can hold a candle to and create this incredible miniseries ingeniously do what they did. This is talent. This is creativity, so anyone who is making negative comments especially about Morrie who obviously had an asshole for a husband and thinks that she deserves worse are you serious he pulled her teeth out with pliers, injected her with cocaine. Are you serious? I suggest all of you who have negative things to say maybe you should actually read Edgar Allan Poe every story every poem everything he ever dead, before speaking in a negative fashion, because with this Director dead was genius to be able to take the Works of Edgar, Allan, Poe, and pull all of it together in a mini series, and have as many Easter eggs as he did, and relate the characters to each of his stories and poems that he wrote everything he did in his mini series related back to some thing that Edgar Allan Poe wrote about that is genius obviously the people who are negatively speaking about so many series did not get past a third grade level, and only understand see Dick and Jane run up the hill

[@radhiadeedou8286]

Or maybe Poe himself would think this series is a sh!tshow. The problem isn't his work, it's everything else. I also want you to know that anyone who ever had a conversation with you, despises you. Please get help.

[@aarkwrite7240]

Nevar cross Verna the Raven

[@thetruth5098]

It was awesome. Cudda used a little less sex but awesome

[@tcf_iceland]

This was a great review! I just finished the show a couple of days ago, and I realized on episode 5 that I hadn't been paying attention well enough. I was so thrilled after finishing the last episode I went straight to look at reviews and easter egg videos and now I'm going to watch again, every episode. I have a feeling I will watch this a few more times 😂😂😂

[@SteveVarleyShow]

that means so much, thank you

[@chanelhenderson8460]

It was absolutely amazing

[@silviaetna9874]

I loved this show so much. I watched the tv show about the Sackler family with matthew broderick and uzo aduba and I loved that too. And i don’t mind at all that these two shows coexist because we really need to understan what big pharma is doing to all of us. So the more the marrier. The reason I loved this is because the edgar allan poe inspiration mixed with this real story is so original, so well executed. I was in awe! I love literature, i love gotic literataure and to see that youncan still adapt all of this in a modern way is exiting. As you said there is succession vibe to it, and succession is inspired by shakespeare, in my opinion especially king lear so also this has, apart from Poe, Shakesperian elements: the supernatural, like ghosts , Prospero , the name of the protagonist of the tempest and so on…

[@TallyDrake]

Prince Prospero is the main character in The Masque of the Red Death.

[@LibertyRapsher]

Surprisingly a pretty decent show and I'm a picky bastard. I liked it more than the Haunting of Hill House (it's been a while and I only watched it once)... but everything ultimately being about mental illness as opposed to actual hauntings killed the experience for me. And I wouldn't have cared if it was presented in such a way to where it was ambigious or we don't know until the end... but relatively early on it became apparent and it ruined the experience for me. Or even if it was so called mental illness where those who are mentally ill are genuinely being attacked, hence they're not actually mentall ill, But for the hauntings to be a mataphor for mental illness killed the suspense and put the show on a bad note when looking at the final product.

[@vickonstark7365]

👍🏼

[@gloriamaria169]

Loved the show! And I enjoyed your episode by episode review! 👍🏼

[@SteveVarleyShow]

means much, thank you

[@sadiqurrahman9741]

Great review as always.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

grateful for your support

[@selena___]

Thanks for the detailed review!

[@SteveVarleyShow]

thank you :)

[@rithvikk9143]

I have a theory that this is all symbolic. this story is about a man who did some nasty stuff to be rich and powerful and "sold his soul to the devil" to do so. the deaths of his children symbolize that at a certain point, his bloodline had to face the consequences of his decision. the ghosts are representations of the guillt he has for "killing" them. idk there are probably a lot more, but you get the jist. great show

[@mdouet]

Great episode and series breakdown.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

means much, thank you

[@ElonBillZuck]

❤

[@SFBenjaminK]

that little young skinny a** Indian dude he was cute😘 the series was good but wasn't THAT masterpiece like his others.....TOOOOOOO bad this gonna be his last one in NETFLIX & his contract with Netflix is over...so NO more of him in Netflix, I heard AMAZON called & asked him for a NEW contract with him basically anything he wants Amazon says they go for him, they dont have any Horror ...I didnt know that KATE she's wife of Mike Flanagan , that was kinda of shocked me

[@jmarquiso]

He's great in Midnight Club

[@shannonreynolds624]

Some say she's a minion from Satan but I don 't think that is who Verna is. I will admit that she seems like a crossroads demon like Crowley in Supernatural and does seem to be similar, however they are not. For one thing, people sought out Crowley but no one summoned her for a meeting where the person sells their souls. Verna, I believe she is possibly from Ancient Egypt or something Egyptian several times and I don't think that was an accident. Verna can be more that one thing: she could be representative of concept such as consequences, greed, selfishness, vanity/pride and the consequences that go with those things. She may have laid it all out for them in a beautifully and "this is too good to be true type thing, but they made that choice and where told ahead of time what the price would be and they were too young to really think about other people such as Lenora and who they are talking including in this deal. She could be anything including Fairies, but I think she is more like Osiris, who was an Egyptian God of the Underworld, probably more than one God, and he judged the dead by seeing how virtuous the person was. She did say that she wanted to see what they would do because they said they would change the world. They could have gone the other way too where they are successful but very much humanitarians and they do change the world in a good way and they chose not to. Who knows, if that had happened them maybe Verna would have given them more years or something since they did the right thing most of the time in their lives. But, they weren't, except for Lenora. I did like that scene with Verna and Leona because there was some tenderness shown and how mature Lenora was about the whole thing. Episode 2 was kind of gross.

[@Chadsolderbrotherbrad1111]

It was ok the ending was good

[@cccsssish]

I don't get the joke about Zach Gilford 🤔

[@SteveVarleyShow]

i really dont remeber what i said, what joke?

[@Didilady82]

I adore Camille/Kate, I hate whenever her character dies early. Carla bored me in her character.

[@SteveVarleyShow]

wow shocked carla bored you, first time im hearing that. thanks for sharing!