(Warning! The subject of this article contains material that may be disturbing for some, discusses sensitive topics, and is NOT made for kids. Viewer and parental discretion are strongly advised.)
"Backovic Said, "Film, in the right hands, is a weapon." He was Right."-Fictional Critic A.K. Meyers on his obsession with the titular cursed film in Cigarette Burns, Season 1, Episode 8 of Masters of Horror
You Know What's Really COOL?!
Oh, sure, sure! Horror shows like Stranger Things and The Walking Dead are pretty cool and all. But, you know one horror show that's really cool? Masters of Horror!
Welcome back, Young and Young-at-Heart explorers, to You Know What's Really Cool, where we here at Something Niche try to bridge generations by introducing new generations to some of the forgotten hidden gems of yesteryear. These could be tv shows, video games, or whatever else that were either screwed over out of the starting gate and fell into obscurity, or those that were beloved for a time but have slowly become more and more obscure amongst the inattentive digital age kids.
Today, we will be taking a look at our first live-action cable tv drama on this show, as well as our first TV-MA show (hide the kids). A seemingly small horror anthology series that had many big names attached to it. A show simply called Masters of Horror.
As with a lot of the topics on this show, Masters of Horror was a series that lived a rather short initial shelf life, but which still left an impact on those who saw it. Originally airing on the Showtime Cable channel for a brief 2 season run, Masters of Horror brought some of the most legendary directors in the horror genre together for a creative think tank of unique tales of terror.
Even though we may not be anywhere close to Halloween, I've still taken the opportunity to share this strange piece of obscure 2000s horror with you, my wonderful audience, having just finished watching it in its entirety after starting it last Halloween. Plus, just because it isn't spooky season yet doesn't mean you can't have fun getting scared!
So, make sure you don't read this article alone! Because this, is the terrifyingly tantalizing terrific tale of Master of Horror!
Dare to Watch...
Unlike the last couple of shows we covered on this show, Masters of Horror tells its story in a much different way (other than it not being made for kids, of course). In fact, Masters of Horror doesn't really tell a story; it tells multiple stories.
Indeed, Masters of Horror is what we call an anthology series, a show that tells a different, self-contained story in each episode that gets quickly resolved. This had actually been a common form of storytelling within shows from the genre, with many other classic shows like The Twilight Zone and Tales From the Crypt following this format.
However, Masters of Horror adds a nice bit of merit to its production values, as many legendary horror filmmakers lend their talents in order to create each unique story, including John Carpenter (Halloween), Dario Argento (Suspiria), the late, great Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) and Takashi Miike (Audition).
Each episode varies in tone, setting, thematic elements, and of course, primary threats. Said threats can be from either the supernatural or the very real monsters that live in the darkest recesses of reality. A lot of these works were also adapted from short works of horror fiction, including the works of H.P. Lovecraft.
But not only did the show bring back all of the legendary horror directors from yesteryear, but also a lot of the grindhouse sleaze from their earlier works as well. In its native U.S., the TV Parental Guidelines system slapped the series with a big TV-MA for graphic violence, explicit sex and nudity, and indecent use of foul language and/or suggestive dialogue. And they were NOT kidding!
This admittedly may make the show a bit too much for some, but for those brave enough, Masters of Horror is a unique piece of 2000s terror that'll put a smile on any horror fan's face. And perhaps it's time to explore how it came to be!
Assembling the Scream Team
As we already discussed, Masters of Horror had many creative cooks in the kitchen, but the metaphorical head chef of the series was one Mick Garris. Garris, like all of the directors he collaborated with on this series, is a veteran of the genre, having adapted Stephen King's The Stand and The Shining into tv miniseries during the 90s, as well as directing the cult film Sleepwalkers, based on one of King's unpublished stories. Ironically however, he is probably best known in mainstream pop culture for co-writing the Disney cult classic Hocus Pocus.
"Well, obviously, it's something you think about a lot, if you're making it." Garris explained in a 2019 interview on what he finds appealing about the genre. "But I think it has a lot to do with the people who love it. And the people who make it are, more often than not, outsiders; they don't feel accepted and they don't feel like a part of society and-maybe not like monsters-but they feel like "the other".
The general inception of the series came from a surprisingly mundane place; a dinner party. Yes, during the early 2000s, Mr. Garris would often invite several fellow filmmakers to an informal dinner in Sherman Oaks, California, where they spilled the beans on new projects. One party notably even involved a young Guillermo del Toro wishing "Happy Birthday from the Masters of Horror" to other guests at the restaurant.
Garris would continue to invite many new guests to his dinner parties over the next few years, and he would eventually explore the idea of making a new anthology series with his colleagues and eventually pitched the idea to his guests at these dinners. Not everyone involved would ultimately direct episodes of the series, however, including the aforementioned del Toro, though he would later produce a similar series called Cabinet of Curiosities for Netflix.
Bid my Blood to run
Ultimately, Masters of Horror would be picked up to air on the Showtime Network, and was funded by IDT, later Starz Entertainment, Nice Guy Productions, and Industry Entertainment. Production for the series was mainly done in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, including at locations such as the Robson Square Campus of the University of British Columbia.
A couple of episodes, produced by J-horror filmmakers, were also filmed abroad in Tokyo. Kadokawa Pictures collaborated with the production companies on these particular episodes. One of these two episodes, directed by Takashi Miike, was notably pulled from airing on television before it's scheduled premiere due to containing content that was deemed a bit too disturbing for American audiences.
"Everyone kept telling me that America's a free country and that I could really do whatever I wanted." Miike reflected in a 2019 interview. "It's cable TV, so don't hold back and make it as scary as possible. So, I did that, and then when I showed it to the producers in Japan, they were like, "I know we told you that you could do anything, but this is going too far. This is too far."
We'll elaborate more on Miike-san's controversial contribution to the series later. However, relating to his previous words, pretty much the entire production crew was basically given free rein to work on their contributions to the series. However, the Showtime network did lay down a couple of minor ground rules; no male full-frontal nudity, and no child-on-child violence (though violence against children by adults and vice versa were still strangely allowed).
While different directors worked on each episode, the whole series retained a few select crew members from episode to episode. David Fischer worked as production designer on the majority of the episodes, while the makeup effects for much of the series were designed by Howard Berger and Greg Nicotero; two-thirds of the legendary K.N.B. Effex Group. Berger and Nicotero, like the directors of the series, are established names in the horror genre, having provided make-up effects for Evil Dead 2 From Dusk til Dawn and Scream, among others, and later going on to work on the impossibly-popular The Walking Dead. They have also worked on non-horror productions such as Sin City, Spy Kids, Transformers, and strangely enough, designing the Turbo Man costumes and effects from the Christmas comedy Jingle All The Way!
Masterpieces Completed
After the first batch of episodes were in the can, Masters of Horror rose from under the bed just in time for the Halloween season of 2005, with its first episode-Don Coscarelli's Incident On and Off a Mountain Road-releasing on the Showtime Channel on October 28th of that year. Promos for the series promoted it as a selection of "1-hour movies"-a truly apt description for a series that had this much horror-related merit to its name!
The series even treated its episodes as such, with every episode getting their own stand-alone DVD release complete with bonus features! In some international markets, several episodes even got limited theatrical releases! Tie-in media was also produced, including a comic book adaptation of the first few episodes by IDW.
The first season of the show proved successful, receiving favorable reviews for its tone and atmosphere. It also proved to be a darling at the Saturn Awards, where it tied with the Syfy miniseries The Triangle for the award for Best Television Presentation. It also nabbed a Creative Arts Emmy for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music for composer Edward Shearmur's chilling opening theme (one of the most memorable I've personally seen).
The show was able to earn itself a second season, where several of the directors came back to create new mini movies for Showtime, along with being joined by a few new faces. It debuted the following October with Tobe Hooper's The Damned Thing.
Sadly, this season would end up marking the beginning of the end for Masters of Horror, as the reviews and ratings were much less favorable. Fans and critics took issue with what they felt was a shift in focus to a slightly more tongue-in-cheek tone, ultimately causing Showtime to hit the brakes on the series after its second season. The final episode, Norio Tsurata's Dream Cruise, brought the series to an early grave on February 2nd, 2007.
Despite this, Mick Garris shortly thereafter started a new horror anthology series called Fear Itself, which was broadcast on NBC, and has been labeled the unofficial third season of the show by fans. Sadly, this show proved to have an even shorter run, as it ran into the misfortune of being released so close to the 2008 Summer Olympics. This caused NBC to preempt the series constantly, with 5 of its episodes never making it to air as a result. The series was ultimately cancelled abruptly after only a single season.
Much of the general fanbase of the series cast the blame for the show's abrupt cancelation as a result of the comparatively subpar second season, but it's limited availability probably didn't help as well (as did the fact that the second season aired on Showtime around the same time the much more popular Dexter premiered). Furthermore, horror franchises that weren't Saw or trying to be a copycat of it hadn't quite become mainstream successes yet, and the genre as a whole wouldn't get the huge following it has today until the rise of social media and widespread internet culture during the 2010s.
But This is when the Supposedly Dead Killer...
However, just because no more episodes were being produced, Masters of Horror wasn't quite headed to the lost media vault just yet. A couple of years after the show's cancellation, the series returned in reruns on the Chiller Network, a sadly now-defunct cable channel dedicated to horror programming. Via Chiller, Masters of Horror was able to amass a few new fans that have allowed the series to establish a cult following.
As the streaming age hit, the series later made its way to several services for a new generation to discover. For the past few years, the entire series has been made available to stream on multiple services, including Amazon Prime, YouTube TV, Tubi (which is how I experienced it) and Plex.
Although the series has yet to have achieved the same level of mainstream recognition as its contemporaries, Masters of Horror is still looked back fondly on by those who've seen in. Be it during its initial prime, or via reruns or streaming. Several members of the online horror community continue to rank their favorite stories from the series even to this day, and hail it as a truly underappreciated gem of the cable age.
And it shouldn't be hard to see why! Masters of Horror was the very definition of a passion project, made by auteurs for fans. It assembled a group of the brightest and best of the horror genre under one roof in order to create their own little niche brand of horrific chaos on film, just as they did in the golden days of yore. In fact, a lot of these episodes were even hailed as returns-to-form for a lot of their directors, as several of them had come out of a creative rut during the new millennium!
It's also a series that brough the anthology series back to television with gusto! And in doing so, it allowed each new episode to tell a different strange tale. No two episodes of the series are alike, and provide many strange and terrifying world to explore. And just because you don't like one episode, doesn't mean you'll hate the next.
Many different subgenres of horror are touched upon in each episode. Everything from zombies to vampires to slashers to Lovecraftian abominations are covered, making sure that there's something for every type of horror fan; even a couple for fans of foreign horror!
And in recent years, much like the yesteryear directors who came out of retirement to work on the series, Masters of Horror has become a nostalgic time capsule of 2000s horror; an era that wasn't afraid to get a little mean and stylish, and rarely took any prisoners compared to today. No taboo subject is off limits, and its storylines are able to touch on the darker sides of reality and fiction in engaging ways.
Yes, it's style may have gotten a bit cheesy over the years, but that only adds a nice little bit of newly vintage charm to it for new generations. And it's certainly a perfect antidote for those who feel burned out by a market that tries too often to play things safe, offering a daring experience for the most hardcore of gorehounds!
Highlight Episodes
There are many stories within Masters of Horror that provide visceral thrills and chills; so many that it may be hard to pick a place to start. Luckily, that's what I'm here for! Here are the episodes of the series that you should actively put high on your priority list with this series!;
Incident on and Off a Mountain Road
Directed by Don Coscarelli (Phantasm)
A woman named Ellen (Bree Turner) ends up losing control of her car on a secluded road in Oregon. Ellen soon finds herself at the mercy of monstrous Moonface Killer (Jon DeSantis), who traps her within his backwoods shack alongside the insane Buddy (Angus Scrimm). Can Ellen muster up the courage and will to escape this nightmare in this classic survival tale? And is there more to her than we thought?
While the show's premiere episode may not be the most original of the bunch, it is the one that ironically seem to encapsulate everything that was uniquely cheesy about 2000s horror. Plenty of darkly fun visuals and surprisingly high-calibur performances insinuate this tale, and there's even a few fun plot twists that'll keep you on edge.
Overall, a fun way to start the series!
Dance of the Dead
Directed by Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre)
Adapted from a short story by Richard Matheson, Dance of the Dead follows the tale of a young woman named Peggy (Jessica Lowndes) in a post-apocalyptic United States (in 2018!). Peggy gets entangled with a biker gang led by the drug-addicted Jak (Johnathan Tucker), who are in debt to a nightclub run by a sleazy MC (Robert Englund) that tortures zombies into performing at their shows.
Everything about this episode is wonderfully-cheesy, from the crazy visuals to a roided-up score by Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan. All of the characters are also surprisingly likeable, and Robert Englund, in spite of a rather limited screentime, truly steals the show-something to be expected by the guy who brought Freddy Krueger to life!
Everything in this film almost feels like a feature-length Linkin Park or Static X mosh pit video, allowing for some cheesy moments and flair that perfectly encompass the now-vintage grunginess of the 2000s. Well, vintage in its own strange "I can't believe we used to do this" sort of way.
Plus, the story still manages to be surprisingly engaging in spite of its flaws, with a lot of great character development coming from Peggy in particular.
Of all the episodes, this might be one of the few that could've spun off into its own (likely to be cult classic) series!
Jenifer
Directed by Dario Argento (Suspiria)
Adapted from a horror comic story, Jenifer focuses on a police officer named Frank Spivey (Steven Weber), who rescues the titular Jenifer (Carrie Fleming), a deformed young woman. However, Frank soon finds himself strangely infatuated with Jenifer, leading to a series of hair-raising circumstances that may imply that Jenifer may very just be the monster she appears to be.
A unique offering from the series that manages to bring a lot of Dario Argento's established Giallo horror tropes to the 50 States. Jenifer is a tale of madness and mystery that'll leave the truly morbidly curious among us intrigued.
It also acts as a bit of a subversion of the classic Beauty and the Beast story, adding a strange, fairy tale-esque element to the story that makes it even stranger...and as a result, a much more unique viewing experience. It's really a perfect starting point for those unfamiliar with the Giallo subgenre.
Cigarette Burns
Directed by John Carpenter (Halloween)
In a desperate attempt to save his struggling theater, Kirby Sweetman (A Pre-Walking Dead Norman Reedus) works with film collector Mr. Bellinger (the late Udo Kier) on a global journey to track down a lost film that allegedly drove those who viewed it at its initial premiere insane. However, Kirby slowly discovers that he may have gotten more than he bargained for as the mystery slowly descends into blood-soaked madness.
A fan favorite episode of the community, and for good reason. Cigarrette Burns is a true master class in terms of escalation. Our morbid curiosity swells alongside Kirby's as the dark mystery grows deeper, ultimately leading to a climax of pure shock and viscera insanity.
It also doubles as an excellent analysis over the power of film, and the unintended consequences of using it to play God. Truly a wonder of terror.
Fair-Haired Child
Directed by Willliam Malone (House on Haunted Hill '99)
A social outcast named Tara (Lindsay Pulsipher) is kidnapped and held captive in the basement of a disturbed couple, who's resurrected son Johnny (Jesse Haddock) has fallen victim to a horrific curse that causes him to transform into the titular horrid beast. After Tara and Johnny take a liking to each other, they must team up to escape their captors and overcome Jesse horrible curse until it's too late.
If there is one thing I can call this episode, it'd be atmospheric. Everything in this episode oozes with well-executed gothic horror and a truly memorable titular creature. It also manages to insert a tragic romance into the narrative with Tara and Johnny's relationship. I actually found myself caring deeply enough for the two, and wanted to see them beat the odds
It's basically like Sixteen Candles...if it were written by the Manson family!
Pick Me Up
Directed by Larry Cohen (The Stuff)
Two serial killers, one who kills those he picks up, and one who kills those he gets a ride from, get involved in a high stakes turf war over their group of latest potential victims. As chaos and tension continue to mount, the recently divorced Stacia (the unsung Fairuza Balk) gets caught in the middle of their twisted game that spans across the miles.
You'd think that the director of cheaper exploitation films would end up delivering on of the lesser episodes of the series. But this episode proved me wrong!
Pick Me Up is a true tale of cross-country suspense with a great selection of charismatic leads. Not only do we pray for Stacia's safety, but we oddly get engrossed in the antics of her two captors as well. The stark age difference between the two also gives way to a great "Old Vs. New" generational conflict that makes things even more exciting.
Plus, this episode even has one of the most shocking twist endings of the series that'll leave you breathless!
Imprint
Directed By Takashi Miike (Audition)
Hoo, boy! Remember when I mentioned that one episode that was banned from broadcast from being a bit too disturbing? Well, here it is.
Imprint focuses on an American journalist named Christopher (the late Billy Drago), who returns to 19th-century Japan in search of a woman he fell in love with on a previous trip. However, as Christopher continues to try and search for his beloved Komomo, he soon finds himself in a world of horrific depravity.
For those who want a bit of Oriental delight with their horror, Imprint is certainly a unique experience among the entire series. It has plenty of mystery, intrigue, and plot twists that only get even more insane as the episode progresses.
Be warned though, as this series does contain a few scenes that are not for the faint of heart, even when compared to a lot of other episodes in the series.
Family
Directed by John Landis (An American Werewolf in London)
Harold (the late, great George Wendt) lives a normal life with his normal family...made up off preserved remains! Things start to change when a new couple moves in close by, with Harold developing feelings for the woman. It now seems that Harold must keep his secret under wraps at any costs as his insane life gets turned upside down.
The second episode of the series directed by Landis after the also enjoyable (but derivative) Deer Woman, this episode wins out due to its more subdued sense of humor and genuine sense of malice. George Wendt comes off as both engrossing and terrifying in this performance, as we dive into his messed-up head.
There's also another great twist ending that'll leave you in stiches!
The V Word
Directed by Ernest Dickerson (Demon Knight)
Here, we see the series' take on one of the most classic of horror monsters; vampires!
Justin (Branden Nadon) and Kerry (Arjay Smith) are two thrill seeking teenagers who break into a mortuary, only to cross paths with Mr. Chaney (Michael Ironside), a former pedophile teacher turned vampire, who manages to turn Kerry. From there, Justin then gets turned, and must suffer through a moral dilemma as he struggles to maintain his humanity while also dealing with a stressful home life.
While this episode is normally not a popular choice among the fandom, I myself see it as an underrated entry into the series. Much of the story elements they go with are definitely well-intertwined with coming-of-age responsibility, and we actually start to feel rather bad for Justin as he struggles to stay human.
Mr. Chaney also comes across as a genuinely menacing threat, and a memorably scummy villain thanks to Michael Ironside's performance. While the episode's symbolism can get a bit cliched and on-the-nose sometimes, the story is just engaging enough to come off a genuinely creepy and entertaining.
We all Scream for Ice Cream
Directed by Tom Holland (Fright Night)
Masters of Horror once again gives their own twist on classic horror monsters, this time teaming up with the director of our inaugural Stranger Sinema episode to deliver its own take on killer clowns.
After being murdered in a horrible prank gone wrong years ago, Buster Dawkins (William Forsythe) returns from the grave as a spectral ice cream truck driver who gives children ice cream treats that have the power to melt their likenesses when eaten. After Layne (Lee Tergesen) becomes aware of this incident from his past coming back to haunt his neighborhood, it's up to him to set things right or die trying.
Definitely one of the most unique episodes of the series, We All Scream for Ice Cream, despite being flawed, is tightly held together by a genuinely likeable protagonist and a memorably tragic-but still menacing-performance by William Forsythe as Buster.
However, what really steals the show is the impressive Body Horror makeup effects, which are some of the bets in the series, depicting Buster's hapless victims helplessly melt away into bloody piles in a matter of seconds.
Best way I can describe this strange episode? Flawed, but fun!
The Black Cat
Directed by Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator)
Our last highlight of the series answers the question of what would happen if a horror actor were to play Edgar Allen Poe. In this case, Jeffrey Combs (late seen on Something Niche in The Frighteners) steps into the shoes of a fictionalized version of the legendary American poet as we see him being terrorized by horrific delusions while writing one of his stories.
Jeffrey Combs' performance truly carries this episode, in which mystery and terror only continue to mount and mount as it goes on. We see Mr. Poe go insane as he attempts to overcome his writer's block and see his life fall apart around him.
And as an added bonus, the period setting gives off a Gothic atmosphere that's been sadly lacking in a lot of works these days and makes Poe's descent into madness feel even more authentic!
If nothing else, this episode is definitely a perfect remedy who were left disappointed by 2012's The Raven!
Lowlight Episodes
With a good chunk of the series being in the "Highlight" of this retrospective, you'd think that Masters of Horror would be a series that's practically perfect all around. But no, a few episodes do get lost in the shuffle a bit when it comes to quality.
Here are some of the lower-priority episodes for you to watch when seeking out Masters of Horror.
Chocolate
Directed by Mick Garris
The first of two episodes directed by series frontman Mick Garris, snack food industry worker Jamie (E.T.'s best friend Henry Thomas) finds himself in a psychic connection with a woman from far away after eating a special chocolate. It's now up to Jamie to solve the mystery as he continues to go insane.
Of al of the episodes of the series, this one honestly feels rather out of place with the rest of it. Much of the tone feels more akin to a thriller, and not a very well-executed or mysterious one at that. Sure, it has its moments, but it really takes a while to truly get going.
Ultimately, this episode certainly proves why Mick Garris isn't as much of a "master" of his craft compared to those he worked with on the series.
Haekel's Tale
Directed by John McNaugton (Henry: Portrait of A Serial Killer)
Adapted from a short story by Clive Barker, Haekel's Tale recounts the discoveries of an Industrial-Era young man named Ernst Haekel (Derek Cecil), who has discovered the ability to re-animate the dead. However, after his discovery, young Haekel soon finds himself in a world of occult mystery, seeing the firsthand consequences of playing God.
While the concept of this episode is certainly intriguing, and the episode itself has moments of mystery, it ends up getting lost in a sea of shock value for shock value's sake towards the end. And unlike Imprint, there doesn't seem to be much of a method to the madness.
While not the worst episode, it's definitely one that could've had the potential to be a heavy hitter.
The Damned Thing
Directed by Tobe Hooper
In a small Texas town, Sheriff Kevin Reddly (Sean Patrick Flanery) soon finds his community fall under the spell of a horrific unseen force; one that had previously torn his childhood family apart. It's now up to him to solve the mystery and origin of this mysterious force and protect his family before it's too late.
While the episode does have its moments, much of the story beats of this episode have been done better in many, many other works, with very little being done with the story in order to diversify it from the lot. This episode also suffers from an unfortunate level of shaky cam, which, while it worked well in the more over-the-top Dance of the Dead, comes off as rather jarring in a more contemporary tale.
Not only that, but the reveal of the creature is extremely weak and cliche, causing an already unoriginal plot to completely peter out.
Ultimately, a reminder that even some of the bests of the genre mess up from time to time.
Pro-Life
Directed by John Carpenter
A pregnant teen named Angelique (Caitlin Wachs) attempts to get an abortion. However, her pro-life family tracks her down to the clinic and attempts to put a stop to it. But is it possible that Angelique's secret may be darker than anyone could imagine?
Honestly, the only thing I can call this episode is predictable. Every story beat that the episode tries to keep under wraps can be scene from a mile away, and ultimately feel like cop-outs that cause its characters to come off as rather stupid.
Not even a great performance by Hellboy himself, Ron Pearlman, can save this truly uninspired demon film.
Pelts
Directed by Dario Argento
Another reminder that even the best can trip up sometimes. Pelts focuses on a fur trader named Jake Feldman (Rock N' Roll legend Meat Loaf), a sleazebag who falls into the possession of several enchanted racoon pelts that causes those within possession of them to fall under a spell of greed. Feldman attempts to profit off of these pelts while attempting to get the affection of an exotic dancer named Shanna (Ellen Ewusie), resulting a sinister string of unusual deaths.
A few episodes in this series admittedly come off as preachy with their morals, but Pelts ends up suffering even further thanks to a lack of genuinely likeable leads. Everything about the protagonist is forced and repulsive, and the imagery can come off as rather pretentious and try-hardy at moments.
Save for a few creative deaths, much of Pelts is certainly on the lower end of the series' spectrum of quality. Something that's sadly disappointing, giving Argento's involvement and the presence of Meat Loaf and horror legends like Sheriff of Elm Street John Saxon.
Right to Die
Directed by Rob Schmidt (Wrong Turn)
After his wife is badly disfigured in a car accident, Cliff Addison (Martin Donvan) must make the difficult decision to pull the plug. Shortly thereafter, however, her spirit comes back to plague him with haunting images of her mutilated body.
Yeah, from the description alone, you can tell that this is going to be a rather cliche story. And while this episode does have some moments (like a decent, but predictable, twist ending), it's basically as run-of-the-mill and forgettable as they come.
Honestly, at some points, it even feels like a Lifetime Network movie!
The Washingtonians
Directed by Peter Medak (Species II)
Often considered by the general public to be the worst episode of the series, and with good reasoning.
The episode starts out with a promising concept; Mike Franks (Johnathon Schaech) comes across a horrific discovery; George Washington was a cannibal! Now, he must fight a group of cannibalistic cultists to protect his family and get the horrific truth out.
Unfortunately, everything in this episode causes it to come off as an unintentional comedy, especially when it comes to the performances of the titular cult of cannibals, which at times, feel more on par with a Disney Channel movie than an actual horror story. Their goofy uniforms also don't make anything scarier.
Ultimately, this episode ends up coming across as a "so bad its good" work of fiction rather than the genuinely mind-bending thriller it was clearly trying to be. Something that certainly earns it its critical ire and makes it more of an episode to watch under the influence and laugh at than get genuinely scared of.
Learning From the Masters
So, in the end, while it may have its fair share of flaws, Masters of Horror is a true hidden gem of television that's certainly worth any gorehound's time! It's the very definition of a true passion project, assembling some of the best of American, European, and Asian horror alike in order to create a unique set of mini-movies for horror fans everywhere!
Each episode provides a different experience, and if one episode isn't your cup of tea, there's definitely one or two more that'll certainly pique your interest in one way or another. And the varying level of subjects and tones will certainly ensure that there is something for everyone to check out!
But above all else, Masters of Horror is a series that dared to bring back a dying art form; the anthology series. It invited many creative icons together under one roof in order to bring this old, tired art form into the new millennium with gusto, introducing a new generation to a different type of show that had more than just one story to tell. And each director used what they know in order to expand the pallets of any young horror fan lucky enough to check in.
It honestly feels a shame that more series haven't come out like this, and that the ones that do often get swept under the rug far too quickly. And it would be excellent if there were a new horror anthology series for the streaming age, as many talented filmmakers have popped up in the past couple of decades since Masters who can provide their much-needed services! And names like Michael Dougherty (Trick R' Treat), Robert Eggers (The Lighthouse), Mike Flanagan (Doctor Sleep), Scott Derrickson (The Black Phone), and Andre Ovredal (Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark) are just a few of them!
But what about you? Did you ever watch Masters of Horror? If so, what are your personal favorite and least favorite episodes? Are you interested in checking it out after this article? Would you like to see more horror anthologies during the streaming age? Please share your thoughts in the comments section and tell all of your friends and family about Something Niche! And have a scary day!
In Memoriam:
Tobe Hooper
Larry Cohen
Stuart Gordon
Masters come and go, but Horror never dies!
Sources:
Clasen, M. (2019, December 19). Mick Garris: A conversation with a master of horror - horror movie. Horror Homeroom. https://www.horrorhomeroom.com/mick-garris-a-conversation-with-a-master-of-horror/
Decker, D. (2025, October 29). 20 years ago, a cult TV show gave a generation of horror legends their due. Inverse. https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/masters-of-horror-20-year-anniversary
Kurland, D. (2019, September 26). [interview] Takashi Miike looks back on his controversial “Masters of horror” episode, “imprint.” Bloody Disgusting! https://bloody-disgusting.com/interviews/3585910/interview-takashi-miike-looks-back-controversial-masters-horror-episode-imprint/
Vasquez Jr, F. (2024, March 3). “Masters of horror” gave us new movies from the best horror filmmakers of all time [TV terrors]. Bloody Disgusting! https://bloody-disgusting.com/editorials/3801962/masters-of-horror-gave-us-new-movies-from-the-best-horror-filmmakers-of-all-time-tv-terrors/
Writer, S. (2005, October 21). Horror masters’ dinners lead to ... Tribune. https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/2005/10/21/horror-masters-dinners-lead-to/28529655007/
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