‘The Terror’ Recap: ‘Go for Broke’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

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There are a lot of benefits that accompany this magnificent era of peak television we are currently enjoying. For there is truly something out there for everyone right now, and there is always something new to watch, or binge and ironically, peak television’s greatest strength is also its greatest weakness. Because at times, there’s just too much to watch on a single night, or too much available and not enough time to get to it, and that means some shows simply slip through the cracks for us, and one such series that I didn’t quite get to enjoy during its initial run because of the unfortunate reasons I just outlined, was AMC’s The Terror.

Now, this a series is that premiered last spring, and what initially caught my eye when I saw promos for it, was the sheer fact that this show seemed as though it was going to commit to a genuine vibe of old school horror, and that seemed refreshing in its own right. But, alas, I missed it, and I never quite got around to watching it on demand before it faded away. But thankfully, with season two of this series arriving in a couple of weeks, it has resurfaced on Hulu and well, settling in to watch this one has me a little miffed with myself for missing it in the first place because this is quite the fascinating horror series when all is said and done.

Because it really does live up to its billing in bringing us an old school horror story, for the series premiere, ‘Go for Broke’, transports us to the Arctic in 1846 wherein the British vessels, Erebus and Terror are working to find a way through the Northwest Passage and it doesn’t take long for them to encounter some serious trouble with the elements since the ice is closing in, and it eventually freezes around the ships, locking them in place. Granted, while that’s a different kind of horror, what makes this story so unique and what draws you in, is the grand implication that something sinister is stalking this crew from afar, and with the crews being stuck, I’m sure it’s only matter of time before it closes in.

However, while that’s special in its own right, the fact that this story takes place in 1846, and Is lightly based off of the Sir John Franklin’s lost arctic expedition is what makes the old school horror vibe work so well for this story. Because this is an era where science and logical thought weren’t quite at the forefront of modern society, which means that sailors still believed in the unknown and cursed voyages and seeing hints of that here, and early conflict between the two crews leads one to wonder if this is going to be a story about how the darkness of man emerges when people are faced with a hopeless/desperate situation, or if there is indeed something evil waiting for them in the ice.

But the bottom line is, this is an impressive series premiere, one that truly takes the time to world build and setup the future of the story in seamless and fascinating fashion. Plus, the characters are vibrant and full of depth, and already I’m invested in their plight, and honestly, I love how there’s a sense of impending doom already surrounding this story and that makes the potential ghost/spirit themed story that’s about to play out too good to pass up. Which means I’m definitely ready for more, and it should be interesting to learn more about what exactly is hiding beneath the ice in this tale and see how the human mind resorts to imagination to rationalize what it doesn’t understand. So, if you’ll excuse me, it’s time to return to the chill of the arctic, to see what horrors await these intrepid crews. Until next time. 

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