from Jonathan Klotz
| Updated
Big-budget gothic horror series are so rare that they can be counted on the fingers of one hand, and it’s even rarer that one was allowed to run long enough to tell the complete story from start to finish. 10 years ago Penny Dreadful debuted on Showtime, introducing viewers to a dark Victorian London where ghosts are real.
Dr. Frankenstein is the main character and everywhere you look there is a cult worshiping a demon looking for a new victim. There was nothing like it Penny Dreadful ever since, and it’s a wonder we got this weird, uneven series at all, where every frame looks like a work of art.
Penny Dreadful takes full advantage of public gothic horror
Penny Dreadful begins with multiple stories that sometimes intersect: the main plot involves Malcolm Murray (ex-James Bond Timothy Dalton) searching for his daughter with the help of her childhood friend Vanessa (Eva Green), a spirit medium. Along goes the story of Victor Frankenstein (Harry Treadway, he was Narek in Star Trek: Picard) and his creature (another Bond alumnus, Rory Kinnear) as they quietly lurk on the fringes of society.
Finally, we have Dorian Gray (Reeve Carney) in all his sometimes helpful, sometimes devil on someone’s shoulder hedonistic glory. There’s also Ethan (Josh Hartnett), an American in London who crosses paths with the enigmatic nobleman for mysterious reasons.
Like Alan Moore’s The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and To Hugh Jackman Van Helsing, Penny Dreadful takes full advantage of the classic symbols available in the public domain. That’s a big part of the fun of the series, which ends up featuring werewolves, vampires, Jekyll/Hyde, Jack the Ripper, and a few others whose names would be spoilers. Stay as blind as possible to the various twists, betrayals and surprise appearances if you can help it.
Penny Dreadful has no detractors, season 2 is universally loved by those who have watched it
Penny Dreadful Season 1 is the weakest of the three, while Season 2 earned the rare distinction of a 100 percent fresh rating while taking the story in a wild new direction. This is thanks to Dr. Who is Billie Piper, who gave the best performance of her career, and the creative team of the series, who found the right balance between sinister and dark humor. Season 3 moved parts of the story to America, replacing Victorian London with the Wild West, and despite the drastic changes in setting, it still works.
Every single season has been nominated for and won multiple awards, including a Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Eva Green as Best TV Actress for Season 2. It may not be a fancy award, but when you’re making a horror series, there’s no greater honor than fan recognition your job sucks.
There is a spinoff series featuring major Star Trek celebrities
The three seasons tell the whole story of Penny Dreadfulbut years after the series ended, it returned with the spinoff, Penny Dreadful: City of Angelsstarring Natalie Dormer as Magda. She’s a shape-shifting demon that’s up to no good in 1938 Los Angeles.
It only lasted one season, but while the original series featured Shazad Latif, recognizable as Ash Tyler in the Star Trek: Discoveryspinoff features Ethan Peck, On Discovery Spock, to the side The next generation Brent Spinner. Steeped in Mexican folklore, it’s not as funny as the gothic horror of the original Victorian London, but it’s still a well-acted, beautiful series that stands out today.
Originally a Showtime series, Penny Dreadful released and is now available on Pluto TV in addition to Paramount+. Penny Dreadful: City of Angels only available for purchase through Amazon, YouTube, AppleTVand Voodoo. If you’ve never seen the original and want something delightfully different, or crave a big-budget gothic horror series that manages to tell a complete story ten years later, there’s still nothing better.
