It’s the Halloween season, so let’s watch season one of Friday the 13th: The Series.

“Lewis Vendredi made a deal with the devil to sell cursed antiques. But he broke the pact, and it cost him his soul. Now, his niece Micki, and her cousin Ryan have inherited the store… and with it, the curse. Now, they must get everything back, and the real terror begins.”

Our heroes go full Scooby Doo when they go after a pirate ghost in episode twenty-two, “The Pirate’s Promise.”

In a seaside town, a lighthouse keeper named Joe owns a cursed foghorn. He murders someone, uses the foghorn to summon a pirate’s ghost from the sea (!). The ghost takes the body and gives old-timey gold coins in return. While investigating, Micki and Ryan befriend a local historian, Dewey.

Somewhere… beyond the sea…

The pirate doesn’t just demand any victims, but specifically the descendants of those who once mutinied against him. There’s one last descendant in town, and it’s a race to find out who it is before the killer does. The missing descendant is Dewey, who’s killed by Joe. But, in the final confrontation with the ghost, the ghost reveals that Joe is also a descendant, and the ghost takes them both.

When the show is smart: This one ends with a dramatic coda back at the store, where Micki and Ryan take time to mourn their friend Dewey. It’s a nice moment that shows life and death have real meaning to these characters, and the folks they meet are more than just disposable slasher movie victims.

Sad times.

When the show is cheesy: I’m not an expert in these things, but “Angus McBride” just doesn’t sound like a cool pirate name to me.

Devilish dialogue: Micki: “It looks so cold. Cold and dead.” Joe: “You sound like sailor.”

Cavernous.

Trivia time:

– Although the show was filmed in Toronto, for this episode the cast and crew road-tripped to Lake Erie, to film on location at a rocky beach and an actual old-timey lighthouse. I did a little googling to find out which one, but it turns out the lake has tons of lighthouses.

Want to be a lighthouse keeper, and keep her by the sea.

Back in the vault: A fun episode, with a memorable monster and tons of atmosphere. The attempt at a mystery with a final twist is pretty predictable, but it’s an enjoyable ride getting there.

Next: Cop land.

****

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