Archive 81 (Netflix)

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EXCLUSIVE: Martin Donovan (Big Little Lies), Matt McGorry (How To Get Away With Murder), Julia Chan (Katy Keene), Evan Jonigkeit, and Ariana Neal (Hidden Figures) are set as series regulars in Netflix’s Archive 81 series, based on the supernatural horror podcast. They join previously announced leads Mamoudou Athie and Dina Shihabi in the series produced by James Wan’s Atomic Monster (MacGyver; The Conjuring Universe film franchise; upcoming Malignant and There’s Someone Inside Your House).

In Archive 81, when archivist Dan Turner (Athie) takes a mysterious job restoring a collection of damaged videotapes from 1994, he finds himself reconstructing the work of documentary filmmaker Melody Pendras (Shihabi) and her investigation into a dangerous cult. As Dan is drawn into Melody’s story, he becomes convinced he can save her from the terrifying end she met 25 years ago

Donovan will play Virgil, a secretive billionaire who recruits Dan for a mysterious restoration project. He presents himself as forthright, friendly and plain-spoken — but he’s clearly hiding a darker agenda.

McGorry portrays Mark. An eccentric trust-fund kid obsessed with his Mystery Signals podcast, Mark is Dan’s best friend. Outgoing, larger than life, self-absorbed yet kind, he encourages Dan to take the job that will give him an exclusive story for his podcast. But when their investigation gets them in over their heads, Mark steps up and shows his true loyalty.

Chan is Anabelle, a struggling artist and party girl who burns hot and bright. Loud, outrageous, and adventurous, she’s Melody’s best friend and fiercest protector — even if that sometimes runs counter to what Melody wants.

Jonigkeit portrays Samuel, a charming, enigmatic professor who cultivates a friendship with Melody — but his strange influence over the other residents in the building soon leads her to question his motives.

Neal plays Jess, a smart, independent, entrepreneurial ninth grader who strikes up a friendship with Melody. Stricken with a mysterious ailment, she asks Melody for help — a request that ultimately puts them both in danger.
 
Only 3 episodes in but enjoying what its giving out at the minute especially its welcomed slower pace and brilliant eerie sound design, its also got some decent directors behind it (Benson & Moorhead, al-Mansour) which shows, the cinema nods to Tarkovsky, Polanski and Roeg also come as a bit of a treat, good stuff for the more patient viewer.
 
Binged the rest and enjoyed it mostly but it did feel a bit stretched out and could of possibly rounded it all up in 6 episodes, liked the performances though and the way it got that sense of dread down was great, would definitely be up for another series.
 
4 episodes in and enjoying it so far. The music reminds me of those old Italian horror films. It's doing so much work that it's almost part of the cast.
 
Felt it dragged a bit for the first 5 or 6 episodes but was very intriguing/mysterious. Final 2 episodes really did ramp it up - thoroughly enjoyed it!
 
I really enjoyed this mix of horror and sci-fi, so much so that I binged watched it over 2 days! It wasn't particularly original as the concept has been done in other shows such as Fringe, which this reminded me of but with a much creepier overtone. I also felt the main male lead, Dan Turner, was a little bland at times, barely emoting (in my opinion) to what were truly bizarre things that were happening around him. I think the rat, Ratty, had more personality!!! The female Melody character was a lot more interesting and it was her story that the series thankfully revolved around. It was good but seemed a little short. It was just getting interesting and then it ended.

Hopefully Netflix will renew it for a second series because this is definitely something I want to continue watching as it exactly the sort of thing I enjoy.
 
This series seemed interesting and I tried to watch it but it was so scary that I gave up before I even finished the first episode. Is it getting any less scary afterwards? I'm interested to see what happens next, but I would still like to be able to sleep at night. :D
 
This series seemed interesting and I tried to watch it but it was so scary that I gave up before I even finished the first episode. Is it getting any less scary afterwards? I'm interested to see what happens next, but I would still like to be able to sleep at night. :D
I've not reached the end yet, just finished episode 6, but it does get more supernatural as it goes along. I'd say that episode 1 was relatively mild compared to what happens later on.
 
The series definitely has a creepy tone to it and I think it was that what kept me watching it as I really enjoy things that are a bit unnerving/unsettling.

The series felt a bit short though and started getting really interesting when Dan entered the Otherworld to search for Melody. However, I felt this was rushed and could have stretched to an episode or two. Also, after all what was said about the other world/dimension, the realisation of it was perhaps a bit underwhelming and not as weird as I was hoping it would be. Dan Turner seemed to cope with it with no issues at all (unlike say Olivia when she crossed over in Fringe to what was only an alternate earth). I feel they could have made these sequences a bit more eerie and other-worldly. Maybe the budget limited how much they could do with the concept?
 
I wouldn't say the series was 'scary' per se although the sparsely seen glimpses of the...

... demon/god/alien (since there is reference to a comet) are certainly unsettling... and I hope they keep it that way as revealing too much would lose much of the mystery, although I'm fine with things being revealed about its origins and motives from other characters.
 

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