Not so sleepy in Sleepy Hollow

Well, I’ve found a new favorite series…Sleepy Hollow, starring none other than Ichabod Crane and The Headless Horseman.  Okay, I know they’re just characters.  Tom Mison plays Ichabod Crane in a way I prefer much better to the nerdy, scared-by-his-own-shadow Ichabod Crane I’ve had etched in my head since I first read or heard about this story.  The Headless Horseman is played by none other than…well, I don’t know.  I guess he really is just The Headless Horseman.  Either way, he’s up to no good, which is exactly as I remember him.

Not since Tim Burton’s adaptation of Sleepy Hollow starring Johnny Depp have I been interested in any version of this story.  I enjoyed that version mainly because I really enjoy movies starring Depp and in Sleepy Hollow he was quirky and entertaining (just what he’s naturally good at, I suppose).

I sometimes dread this time of year because I know all the new shows and upcoming series will be vying for my attention and I just don’t have the time for even one more show.  I’m very thankful for the invention of the DVR, which will hold hostage all my recordings until I finally have the time to watch them.  Wait, I take that back – some shows will have to wait until I have the time to watch them, with the exception of the American Horror Story.  Yep, I’m a viewer who enjoys a series with a dark and twisted side.  I was hooked from the first season, stuck with it during the second (although aliens are my least favorite reason behind a plot twist) and this season the setting is in one of my favorite cities plus we get witches and Kathy Bates.  I’m thrilled and can’t wait for the show to begin. 

Like the American Horror Story, I won’t put off watching Sleepy Hollow, as long as it continues to feed my imagination.  I don’t know what it was about this show but it kept me entertained, made me laugh, indulged me with a new twist to an old story (or at least new to me) and actually surprised me more than a few times (which is great when so many shows are too predictable).  My first thought when the show began was how pleased I was that Clancy Brown was one of the actors in the show but that pleasure was short-lived and became my first real surprise.

I read a few articles and reviews about Sleepy Hollow, as well as comments posted by other viewers, and there were many adjectives thrown around about this show:  funny, scary, interesting, entertaining, edgy, twisted, inventive, sly, serious silliness, an entertaining spin, goofy but intriguing, and handsomely produced horror. 

While this show may have some farfetched scenes and ideas, it is true fiction which shouldn’t be taken too seriously and the basic storyline and dilemmas faced by the characters kept me intrigued.  I loved some of the story ideas this show seems to guarantee as the series moves along.  Too many shows become stale, are too predictable and don’t dare to draw outside the lines.  I appreciate shows like Sleepy Hollow and American Horror Story, which can intrigue and surprise viewers while fully entertaining them.  As twisted or dark as they may be, these shows feed my imagination, so that I want to run to my computer to begin writing my own fantasy horror series.  It wouldn’t be too farfetched for me to try, especially since Stephen King has been my author-idol since I was a kid, beginning with his psycho-thriller, Carrie, and my very first vampire scare in Salem’s Lot.  I think I’ve loved horror books and movies ever since, thank you very much, Mr. King.

It’s something to think about, anyway and it would be good to dabble in other genres.  As with any television or book series, I believe writers really shouldn’t become too predictable.