AMC has maintained a nice stable of hits since they first started getting into quality scripted programming a little over a decade ago. Everyone knows about their critical hits like Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul and Mad Men, not to mention the cultural juggernaut that is the Walking Dead franchise. It would be a shame, though, to disregard some of their lesser known properties that offer up some of the most entertaining stories around. The Terror first descended upon audiences a couple of summers ago, as the period piece provided a steady sense of psychological and environmental dread that stems from being marooned in the arctic with unknown terrors in the vast expanse. Some segments of the audience found this initial season to be too slow compared to what they thought they were getting, but those who have a greater affinity for the artful psychological unraveling of the human mind found themselves transfixed the entire time. The Terror: Infamy serves as the next installment in this anthology series which finds the show tackling the historical horror Japanese Americans experienced during World War II as framed by a chilling, heartbreaking ghost story.
The Terror: Infamy throws you right into the deep end as the opening scene features a Japanese-American woman (Yuki Morita) in a traditional white kimono walking outside to end her life. This is not a simple case of depression, though, as unnatural, jerky movements and a shade of terror in her eyes points to something more supernatural and sinister in nature. It is at her funeral where we meet Chester Nakayama (Derek Mio), a young Japanese-American man who lives with his family on Terminal Island near Los Angeles off the coast of California. He works as a fisherman with his father, Henry (Shingo Usami), but he dreams of exploring the world with his Spanish-American girlfriend Luz Ojeda (Cristina Rodlo). Chester is photographing the somber event, but he finds that the developed prints come back with blurred faces alongside perfectly clear ones. Chester has no reason to be suspicious, but the audience knows that this community is in serious trouble. Although the title might clue you in to the fact that evil spirits are not the only threat set to decimate these people.
As the events of Pearl Harbor unfold in the premiere, Chester and all of the people in his community are rounded up and shipped off to internment camps, which serves as the main setting for the season. While the events of the show primarily center on the Nakayama family, the horrors that Japanese-Americans experienced at the time are explored with great respect. The tattered morale and battered dreams of these prisoners serve as an especially good backdrop to showcase the yurei, or spirit, that plagues our central characters. Horror fans will appreciate the unsettling body horror including twisted limbs and snapped necks. All of this is not done to be exploitative, though, as this is a show that leans heavily on being respectful of cultural history. As the season progresses, the yurei’s backstory is unveiled in a way that is truly heartbreaking. Kiki Sukezane gives a haunting performance as the spirit Yuko that plagues the family throughout the season. The story of Yuko and the larger story of racist panic rings eerily relevant to events in our current cultural conversation. The horrible way in which the American people treated Japanese-Americans at this time is one of the biggest blights on our country’s history, and it is really powerful to see this show tackle this in such an honest and nuanced way. Our country often has a way of forgetting its own history, so it feels especially satisfying to have this dark chapter immortalized in such a well-told story that honors Japanese history.
The Terror: Infamy is a show that excels on all technical levels. Showrunners Max Borenstein and Alexander Woo take great pains to provide the show with some truly marvelous production design and stunning cinematography. It is also satisfying to have this story told in a way that respects history by not injecting any unnecessary white people into the narrative as a white savior. Our core cast all offer up some truly magnificent performances, with special attention paid to Shingo Usami in a heart wrenching portrayal of someone who loses faith in the American dream. Derek Mio’s Chester also has a character arc throughout the season that is a tough one as he deals with spirits and confronts his own personal history. George Takei is also a welcome sight as Chester’s grandfather, which allows him to deliver one of his best performances in recent memory. If the show had not taken such painstaking measures to honor the real-life horror of this time period, the supernatural elements never would have worked as effectively as they do. Having this baseline of tragedy allows the thrills to sink in even more as it confronts humanity’s lack of compassion. This entry into The Terror franchise offers up truly unsettling moments on both the supernatural and historical fronts. The result is an extremely compelling season of television that should be considered essential viewing to those who appreciate daring narratives.
Video Quality
The Terror: Infamy comes to Blu-Ray with an eye-popping 1080p presentation that pushes the format to its limit. The series is filled with intricately curated sets and gorgeous, bleak cinematography that is presented with perfect clarity on this disc. From the more brightly lit scenes to the numerous darker, shadowy sequences, the skin tones and facial details are incredibly rendered in a way you could almost mistake this for a 4K disc. Subtle facial features are readily visible, such as the terrifying makeup that reveals various levels of decay and lends itself to intricate texture. Colors from the blood and costumes pop off the screen alongside the varied lush landscapes. Black levels are very deep and never betray the objects on screen. No instances of compression artifacts crept up during the viewing. This is an immaculate presentation that perfectly showcases a beautifully shot series that deserves such treatment.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray disc comes with a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track that is quite lively. This spooky series engages in some truly chilling environmental effects that keep the surround speaker filled with enveloping sounds.. There is some nice ambient activity in the rear channels, especially during moments where tension is building to a nice scary payoff. The dialogue primarily stays in front center channels and is reproduced clearly. The track does a good job of making sure neither sound effects nor the score ever overpowers dialogue. The score from Mark Korven brings a delightful eeriness to the series that fills up the room on this track. When the thrills kick in, there is some heft to the low end that is appreciated in a series such as this one. This track has a substantial dynamic range that should please fans of the series.
Special Features
There are no special features included on this set.
Final Thoughts
The Terror is a series that has gone under appreciated for way too long. Both seasons that have aired thus far have ranked as some of the best content to come out of their respective years. The Terror: Infamy takes an American tragedy and finds the perfect entry point to blend a terrifying, and at times heartbreaking, ghost story into the narrative. Lionsgate Home Entertainment has thankfully chosen to continue releasing the series on Blu-Ray, which looks and sounds fantastic this time out. I cannot say enough positive things about the series. If you happened to be in the camp that found the first season too slow, trying giving this perfectly paced entry a shot. Highly Recommended
The Terror: Infamy – The Complete Second Season is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Lionsgate Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
