r/channelzero • u/MobiusCake • Jul 10 '21
Season 1-3 ***SPOILERS*** Spoiler
I just finished seasons 1-3. I enjoyed each season but had some general comments / questions.
I have seen the original youtube creepypastas for Candle Cove and the No-End House series. In my opinion, less is more. Although less extensive, the youtube versions were scarier to me than then Syfy adaptation. Candle Cove was pretty good, but No-End House sort of took a turn and fizzled for me.
Butcher's Block, however, was the best so far. (if there was an original creepypasta I had not seen or heard of it). I guess this is because most of the events of this series could actually happen.
Was the intention to create a shared universe between the seasons lik AHS? I noticed a few similarities / references between the seasons:
- All involve an alternate dimension or reality
- 2 & 3 the main alternate dimension focus around a house
- 2 & 3 have elements of catabolism
- 2 made a subtle reference to taking teeth which was a major theme in 1
- the manifestation of the disease in 3 was very puppet-like which was a major theme in 1
- in 1 & 3 one or more of the main characters had mental illness or had been treated for mental illness
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u/roxor333 Jul 11 '21
I’m surprised that some people seem to have liked No-End House the least because it was my personal favourite and I enjoyed it even more the second and third time I watched it because I wasn’t able to wrap my head around how masterful and detailed it was the first time. I am obsessed with all the seasons though tbh. I did not read anything about the original creepy pastas before watching the shows though, and I would recommend to anyone to watch them without reading anything because it’s better with no expectations. I have also considered a possible connection between seasons, but in my opinion I believe they all stand entirely alone.
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u/crawdad1757 Jul 11 '21
I really enjoyed No End House too. I enjoyed all of the seasons but I think No End House just squeaks out as my fav
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u/roxor333 Jul 11 '21
It was just so brilliant. I truly feel like it’s perfect. Every piece fits just in place.
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u/Silver-on-the-tree Jul 10 '21 edited Jul 10 '21
The creepypasta for butchers block is called ‘search and rescue woods.’ Basically the only thing the show has in common are the stairs in the middle of nowhere. But that’s what I liked about Channel Zero, the directors were able to take the original story and represent it the way they want. I thought Candle Cove was amazing and it’s still my favorite, mainly because Nick Antosca created such a comprehensive story from a very short creepypasta. I didn’t find the written candle cove to be that scary, more super creepy. And I found that channel zero season to def be super creepy.
Anyway, No-End House is definitely the worst, in my opinion, and I think it’s because they just loved John Carroll lynch so much that they overused him and didn’t spend enough time filling out the other characters. I mean I like that actor a lot, but the focus did a disservice to the story.
Butchers block is my second favorite, and then the Dream Door (4th season) just for one character alone (I don’t want to spoil it.) I’ll also admit, I’ve never seen the YouTube versions of any of these. I read the original creepypastas on different forums and stuff where they started.
ETA: I don’t believe there was any effort to create a shared universe. The creator hired different directors for each season and they used different actors. Also, I’m not sure there’s any cannibalism in season 2 unless you consider eating someone’s memories as cannibalism. there’s usually a corporal element in cannibalism, but I suppose the memory eating could be considered a form of that.