Review: Shudder's Animated 'Creepshow' Special Delivers Two Fresh Scary Stories

The latest stories to the Creepshow universe hit Shudder‘s horror streaming platform last Friday. The animated Creepshow special featured two new stories written by Stephen King and his son, Joe Hill. The special was a great way to tide fans over until season 2 premieres. Season Two is currently in production after it was put on hold due to the world wide pandemic.

The first story, entitled “Survivor Type,” features the voice talents of Kiefer Sutherland. Based on a short story by Stephen King and adapted by Greg Nicotero, the story centers on a man with a dark past who struggles to survive alone on an island after a plane crash.

This story maybe animated, but that doesn’t take away any of the grotesque aspects of it. While marooned on an island, the man tells his story to viewers. From his story we learn he is a surgeon, who will do anything to survive. After amputating his own foot, he begins a descent into heroin fueled madness. When hunger begins to consume him, he takes matters into his own hands.

“Survivor Type” feels like a classic King story that focuses on the main character’s sanity. The fact that it’s done in animated form doesn’t take away any of the creepy and unsettling details. Viewers will be pleasantly surprised by this scary story, and it is a welcome addition to the Creepshow anthology.

The second Creepshow story, “Twittering from the Circus of the Dead,” based on the short story by Joe Hill and adapted by Melanie Dale. This one stars Joey King (The Act) as a teen who is live tweeting her family road trip. We learn that Blake (King), like most teens, is not enjoying her time with her family. While along for the trip, Blake continues to complain to her followers about the lameness of it all. However things seem to change when her family stops at circus roadside attraction.

Even though things seem off at first her family begins to enjoy the weird show they are watching. The Circus of the Dead features zombies, lions and a fishnet clad ring-mistress. While I thought that “Twittering from the Circus of the Dead” began a little slow, it did help to contrast the family’s demeanor and personalities before hell breaks loose. The story is creepy, gory and fun, with interesting lore that could be explored in greater lengths. However, I also enjoyed that this story’s ending is sort of open ended. Suggesting that things could get even crazier after the story concludes.

Overall, I thought these stories are perfect additions to the Creepshow banner. Both of these segments are fun, fresh, and more than deliver on story and the scares. 4/5

★★★★

You can check out the trailer below and the Animated Creepshow Special is now streaming on Shudder. (Also available on Shudder Canada, Shudder UK and Shudder ANZ) Be sure to follow ScaryNerd for more of all things horror.