“Bag Man,” directed by Kimani Ray Smith and written by Leon Hendrix and Miao is definitely the better of the two stories, in part because it obviously starts as a genre homage to the Breakfast Club. Five students of varying social status must spend Saturday morning in detention, but there is a very contemporary wrinkle. All are suspects in a cherry bomb incident that triggered the school’s new automated lock-down system. When they arrive, there is already a mysterious bag in the room that just radiates bad vibes.
Admittedly, the narrative follows a familiar horror arc, but the execution is brisk and energetic. Hendrix and Miao come up with enough new, ironic wrinkles to keep it interesting for experienced genre viewers and the cast hits the right notes, especially Doralynn Mui as Zee, the catty “good girl.” Having recurred on Riverdale and guested on Sabrina, this must be pretty comfortable terrain for her.) Regardless, even though we know where it is all headed, it is still a macabrely amusing ride.
The titular bullied transmasculine teen of “Elliot,” written by Stephanie Adams-Santos and directed by Chase Joynt (who also helmed the upcoming Billy Tipton doc) could relate to movies like Carrie, Sleepaway Camp, and more recently Some Kind of Hate, but at times this episode risks becoming an afterschool special. The lesson is laid on rather heavily, but there are still some creepy moments, especially down the stretch.
“Bag Man” is all kinds of fun, while “Elliot” also has its moments. Yet, both reflect the distinctive tone Miao set for the series, beyond the commitment to diversity. It is that eerie atmosphere that makes the series’ return for a new season (the second on the CW, but the third if you count its first life on go90, whatever that was) so welcome. Off to a pretty good start, Two Sentence Horror Stories is still recommended for fans of horror anthologies when the season premiere airs this coming Tuesday (1/12), on the CW.
