The Terror

2018–20192 seasonsTV-14English

HorroRated verdict

Recommended

2010sAnthologyPsychologicalSurvival HorrorIsolation

Created by: David Kajganich, Max Borenstein, Alexander Woo

Collections

Anthologies Psychological Survival Horror Isolation Slow Burn Creature Features Gothic

Why it’s HorroRated

The Terror is one of the most formally ambitious horror anthologies ever produced for television, combining meticulous historical research with creature horror in ways that neither element undercuts the other. The first season, set aboard the Franklin Expedition's doomed Arctic voyage, builds sustained dread of the highest order with performances from Jared Harris and Tobias Menzies that anchor the human cost throughout. The second season takes a different approach and is equally unnerving. Highly recommended.

Synopsis

The Terror's first season follows the crew of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, the ships lost in the Canadian Arctic during the 1840s Franklin Expedition to find the Northwest Passage. Trapped in ice for two years, the men face starvation, scurvy, lead poisoning, and a creature from Inuit mythology that has been following them since they entered its territory. Based on Dan Simmons's novel, the show treats both the historical record and the supernatural element with equal seriousness.