‘Creepshow’ Recap: ‘Time Out’ / ‘The Things in Oakwood’s Past’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Matthew Barnes as Tim in ‘Time Out’.

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 305 of ‘Creepshow’.

​One would think that a series such as Shudder’s Creepshow, would eventually run out of terrifying new concepts to explore. After all, there’s only so much that scares mankind, and only so many monsters that one can put on display in a fresh and dynamic manner. But the fact of the matter is, our fears are nearly endless, and that reality… is going to give this series seasons of material to work with. Since there are so many fears that we harbor, that we barely acknowledge when we encounter them because they don’t hold the weight they once did, or because pondering upon them will indeed send us into a panic. Such as say… our fear of time.
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Because deep down, we know we are on the clock and the timer is counting down and while we don’t acknowledge that fear all that often because of that panic potential… it’s there and we will worry about it, and the terror that comes with knowing we’re on borrowed minutes, was explored in great detail in this week’s edition of the show. In fact, ‘Time Out’ examined that specific aspect of our fear of the clock, by way of a unique parable involving a young man named Tim. For when we catch up with him here, he’s cramming for a huge exam at school so he can solidify his future in law and he’s simply out of time. Or so he thinks. For the arrival of a cabinet that his grandmother promises can give him the time he needs, turns out to be a gift humanity would fight wars for. Because an hour in there, equates to minutes out here and that allows for Tim to not only become an expert in law, but a pioneer in the industry.

But of course, this cabinet comes with a few strings attached, since Tim is living a lifetime away from the rest of humanity when he is inside it, and his health suffers accordingly and well… this is a tale that of course ends badly for Tim when his aging mind prompts a critical error. But what matters more here, is that this story really does prey upon our fears of time and its ravages. Since Tim is forced to deal with the horrors of his health coming into decline because of old age, and of course, the terror that comes with the realization that we are on borrowed time and no matter how hard we fight it… we cannot escape it, is hammered home here in an impactful manner. Which makes this quite the philosophical horror story for certain, one that honestly gives the viewer a measure of pause since it does motivate one to reflect upon their own life and the time, we worry we’ve wasted. 

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Danielle Harris as Marnie Wrightson in ‘The Things in Oakwood’s Past’.

Yet as this series is wont to do, it had so much more to explore about time and our fear of it and the second vignette found a way to blend real-world concerns once again into a compelling and animated story entitled ‘The Things in Oakwood’s Past’. Now in this particular tale, we are thrust into the idyllic town of Oakwood where an important celebration is about to take place. For a two-hundred-year-old time capsule has been uncovered and its contents are about to be revealed to the world. That is until the town’s historian/librarian, a woman named Marnie Wrightston, starts to dig deeper on the mystery surrounding this capsule and well, what she finds terrifies her. Because history informs her that there is something supremely sinister about this capsule and if her father, the mayor, were to open it as planned… it would likely unleash a form of hell upon their small town.
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Which of course… is what happens. Because this is Creepshow, and you must have that payoff and boy, is it worth the wait. Since we are indeed treated to a powerful evil that’s been waiting two centuries to feast upon human flesh, and that brings forth a gory animated sequence that pays homage to Lovecraft and Heavy Metal. But all of that aside, the key to this story is its underlying theme of history and time. Specifically, how we are terrified of the fact that history tends to repeat itself more often than not, because of humanity’s ignorance and belief that time marches on and leaves bad things behind, and those fears are being realized in Modern America, courtesy of the horrifying return of Neo-Nazis and the hardcore fascism that some were working to install and even the pandemic fits in here. Since we’ve seen photographs and editorial cartoons from a century ago, speaking to the problem that is the anti-vaxxer, popping up in our feeds and well, this also gives us great pause… since it leaves us wondering what it will take for mankind to pay better attention to its mistakes from yesterday. 

But where this episode truly shines, is in its push to not offer any easy answers on these issues. It simply presents the terror in the raw and asks the viewer to ponder upon solutions and that’s powerful as well. But all commentary aside, the fun factor is also present here, since the first vignette does play into our fantasies, since so many of us have imagined the possibility of having all the time in the world to better follow our own pursuits and uh, you simplify cannot go wrong with an animated horror story that features a trio of acting icons. For Ron Livingston and Danielle Harris and the incredible Mark Hamill headline the Oakwood vignette, and uh, let’s be honest, the WGON-TV shout out in that segment, was a true delight. And now that this journey through terror has come to an end, we are definitely left wondering… as to what other fears this series is going to explore when it returns for more gore and mayhem, come next week. Until then, kiddies.   

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Mark Hamill and Ron Livingston as Mayor Wrightson and Mac in ‘The Things in Oakwood’s Past’.