Ravenswood, ABC Familys new spin-off of the immensely popular Pretty Little Liars (2010-present), had potential. Riding on the creepy coattails of its mother series Halloween special, the show wasted no time establishing its darker, more supernatural tone. Unfortunately, the dramas attempts to thrill and chill fall flat, and by the end of the pilot episode, the main characters fateful plunge into the depths of Ravenswoods river drowns what could have been a perfectly satisfying teen show.
Ravenswood a suitably unoriginal title (the town neighbors Rosewood, where Pretty Little Liars is set) centers on Caleb Rivers (Tyler Blackburn), the parentless heartthrob of the original series. His ever-so-trusting girlfriend, Hanna (Ashley Benson), encourages Caleb to stay in the graveyard town to help out kindred spirit Miranda Collins (Nicole Gale Anderson), a ruggedly beautiful misfit on whom fingerless gloves and raccoon eyeliner have never looked more fashionable. Miranda has come to Ravenswood desperately hoping to connect with her last living relative a ghostly pale uncle who, like many of the towns residents, could have stepped right out of an episode of The Addams Family (1964-1966). Not so shockingly, Uncle Collins (Steven Cabral) lives and works in a funeral home. While its clear he has a skeleton (or two) in his closet, his expressionless, clipped dialogue gives the character about as much emotional nuance as the corpses he oversees.
Ravenswood itself has no shortage of hair-raising characteristics. Aptly described by Caleb as a town where people throw parties in cemeteries, Ravenswood is a place where mossy tombstones line the streets. And if thats not eerie enough, everyones ears seem to perk up at any mention of the areas flood-plagued past. Its certainly not the most logical place for two teenagers to settle down.
Although Caleb seems to have left behind his many sinister pursuers in Rosewood, he soon discovers that with a new town comes a new, never-ending string of puzzling enemies and inexplicable happenings. Theres a murderous widow, a vanishing tombstone that displays the faces and names of unwelcome visitors and someone (or something) lurking in the musty shadows of the Collins mansion.
No one is willing to disclose any useful information to Miranda or Caleb, save warnings to leave. The main characters, along with three friends, are united by a gloomy curse in a town soaked in death (another fitting line from Caleb). Mystery and suspense ensue.
If the phrase Pretty Little Liars spinoff is enough to make you roll your eyes, you will be equally unimpressed with the shows reliance on tried-and-true horror staples. The list practically writes itself. Cinematography reminiscent of the odd shots and angles of Twilight (2008), spooky old Victorian homes with creaky shutters (is it wind? Or something more ominous?), eternally rainy weather and a soundtrack replete with slow, discordant melodies and screeching violins plague every scene of the show. And anyone who has ever seen a scary movie knows nothing good ever comes from lone girls in basements.
Such calculated elements leave viewers far from the edge of their seats. Although ABC Family would not be a suitable home for the more believable terror of American Horror Story (2011-present), the watered-down anecdotes of Ravenswood fail to produce the same lasting thrill that Pretty Little Liars does. While many loyal fans of the pioneer series are continually dazzled by high-stakes drama piled on top of high school politics, teacher-student romances and eye-catching fashion, the heavier approach of Ravenswood does not have much to rest on.
Still, although Ravenswood does not exceed expectations, it will not necessarily let viewers down. Pretty Little Liars feeds off of a stubborn refusal to confront its central mystery who killed whom? a formula that might keep people tuned in to Ravenswood as well.
And since Pretty Little Liars purposefully drowns the issue with myriad plotlines that it abandons and picks up at will, the web of deceit has become so convoluted that a fresh start is needed to escape such a tangled knot. Ravenswood offers that blank slate for those looking for casual suspense without having to catch up. How long this will last, however, is yet to be seen.