‘Creepshow’ Season 4 Episode 6 Review – Campy Zombies And Horrifically Brutal Fae

Micaela Nyland as Kaitlyn in “Baby Teeth” – Photo Credit: Michael Courtney/Shudder

This week, Creepshow‘s fourth season comes to an end. And what an end it is. In the first story, a bookstore owner unearths more than she could have possibly imagined when she finds George Romero’s unpublished comics in her attic. In the second story, an insecure mother afraid of her child growing up incurs the wrath of the Fae in the most horrific way possible. It’s a mixed bag of an episode; one half campy delight, the other half brutally horrific despite its uneven script. But it’s quintessentially Creepshow and offers an ending befitting such a solid season.

“George Romero in 3-D!”

Written by Todd Spence and Zak White and directed by Greg Nicotero, “George Romero in 3-D!” is exactly as campy and bloody as you might expect. When desperate bookstore owner, Sarah (Kyra Zagorsky), finds George Romero’s unpublished horror comics in her attic, she thinks she’s found a miracle. But little does she know of the horrors that are about to begin. Now, with an invisible army of ghouls walking the earth, Sarah, Martin (Graham Verchere), and Dawn (Megan Charpentier) learn that maybe, just maybe, there was a reason those comics went unpublished. It’s not a season of Creepshow without some kind of George Romero pastiche, and Spence and White deliver quite a whopper here.

Imagine a world where Romero’s creations literally come to life. And imagine a world where Romero, himself, might play a role in their defeat. That’s the world of “George Romero in 3-D!”. It’s a delightful watch from start to finish—campy, bloody, horrific, and full of B-Movie cheese in the best way possible. But there’s also a very sweet little love story between Martin and Dawn. A little slice of humanity at the center of this over-the-top gorefest. Sebastian Kroon’s performance as Romero easily steals the show here, though, alongside Spence and White’s clever use of 3-D comics. The less said about the specifics of the story, the better. But rest assured that it’s a wild ride from start to finish, and could’ve easily made for an entire episode of Creepshow all on its own.

“Baby Teeth”

Written by Melanie Dale and directed by John Harrison, “Baby Teeth” offers a brutal combination of a mother’s fear of change and the dangers of the Fae. Shelby’s (Alison Thornton) controlling mother, Miranda (Rochelle Greenwood), just can’t accept the fact her daughter’s growing up. And so she saves every little relic of her daughter’s life that she can. But what if the act of saving those relics isn’t as harmless as Miranda believes? While Dale’s script never manages to make either of its leads particularly likable, it relishes in its mythology to the point that it’s easy enough to get swept up in the story. And when combined with Harrison’s direction and the excellent creature design of the Fae, “Baby Teeth” ends up being one of the most horrifically brutal Creepshow stories this season.

On the one hand, you can kind of sympathize with Miranda. It’s never easy watching your child grow up and having to come to grips with the fact that they’ll eventually leave you. But, as is often the case, she takes that fear to a frankly unsympathetic level. And it’s her smothering of her daughter’s independence that ultimately leads to the thing she fears. It’s a familiar idea that’s given a very Creepshow twist. It’s just a shame the script itself doesn’t have the time to develop Miranda or Shelby into anything other than caricatures. If it had, the horror might’ve been even more effective. As it is, the story mostly succeeds entirely because of its brutality. The fae is just so horrific, and its actions are so unspeakably brutal that the story’s final few minutes are sure to stick in everyone’s brains long after the credits roll.

Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, Creepshow ends its fourth season with a mixed bag of stories. The first offers a delightfully campy romp filled with George Romero easter eggs, invisible zombies, and a metric ton of gore. It’s silly, over-the-top, and endlessly fun. Meanwhile, the second story suffers a bit from its uneven script but succeeds based solely on its unspeakable brutality and brilliant character design. Like most Creepshow episodes, the season four finale offers a grab bag of tones, ideas, and even quality. But it’s never anything less than fun, and easily delivers a finale that’s worthy of such a solid season of television.

Season four of Creepshow is available now on Shudder and AMC+.