Nov 1

Nov 1 #31DaysofHorror: A Recap

Sometimes, you just need to challenge yourself. I’ve been slowly pulling my life back together after giving up full time teaching. Returning to Sketchy Details was a huge part of that. It’s just running a media criticism site exercises very different parts of the brain than teaching did. I’ve written often enough throughout my life to regain my footing again, but the rigidity of a schedule makes things quite a bit different overall.

Writing a new piece every day for 31 (now 32) days in a row is a lot. My goal was not just to write, but review 31 pieces of horror-related content for the month. That means watching/playing/reading and analyzing content back to back to back. I had planned on doing more TV, for example, but it just wasn’t an efficient use of time while also teaching after school/extracurricular music and theater programs six days a week and building/installing the yard haunt. I knew I would have at least two gaming posts thanks to Dead by Daylight, but really had intended to spend the time going in on Doki Doki Literature Club. I also planned on reviewing more new releases in theater, but time was not on my side, either; I only saw Hell Fest and had a rare moment of “if you can’t say something nice” hold me back. Further, I did want to get to more than just Headless Horseman for live haunt reviews, but money and time was not on my side.

In total, 30 of the 31 days met my goal. The one exception was 21 October. I was overwhelmed after agreeing to go to two parties two days in a row and just couldn’t get something done more substantial than a brief apology and a preview of my yard haunt’s lighting. 30/31 is still an A, so I’m happy with what I did.

Here’s a rundown of the good, the bad, and the why of #31DaysofHorror. Recommended means I think anyone could have a good experience with it; Maybe? suggests a more niche audience or something with a big flaw that I still enjoyed; Probably Not means I wouldn’t watch it again or encourage you to watch it at all.

Film:

Recommended:

Terrifier 10/2

The Cleanse 10/8

Truth or Dare 10/10

What We Do in the Shadows 10/11

Raw 10/12

Fear, Inc. 10/15

Tales of Halloween 10/16

Prodigy 10/18

The Devil’s Candy 10/19

Errementari 10/25

A Dark Song 10/27

Beyond the Gates 10/29

Maybe?

It Comes at Night 10/3

Venom 10/7

Don’t Kill It 10/9

Stephanie 10/24

The Ritual 10/30

Anitibirth 10/31

Probably Not

Hereditary 10/1

Blair Witch 10/4

The Midnight Man 10/5

Malevolent 10/14

Unsane 10/23

American Poltergeist 10/26

TV:

The Curious Creations of Christine McConnell 10/28

Gaming:

Probably Not:

Dead by Daylight: The Hallowed Blight Event 10/20

Book:

Maybe?

Five Nights at Freddy’s: The Silver Eyes 10/13

Haunted Houses:

N/A:

My Haunt 10/21

So which was my favorite discovery in October? Honestly, I think it’s The Cleanse. It’s cute, creepy, character-driven, features wonderful animatronics, and doesn’t overstay its welcome. I also had no idea the film even existed before finding it on the Huluween programming slate. The Curious Creations of Christine McConnell is a close second just for not having that I didn’t know that existed surprise factor.

Moving forward, Sketchy Details will be on a five day a week publication schedule. I have more planned, but I’m not ready to announce.

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