'IT: Welcome to Derry' First Impressions: It's quite engaging so far

It is getting cold out there! I went for a short walk this evening and found myself absolutely freezing despite the layers I had on. Only to realise on the way home that it was -1 Celsius! So, instead of putting some effort into a photography post and some editing, I figured I'd warm up with some tea and check out IT: Welcome to Derry finally. Mostly inspired by another post I saw on Hive. I mentioned in their comment section how I think IT is a franchise that can actually benefit from going into the television series route to expand upon itself. Primarily because a television series can focus on giving us characters to care for and more depth into the whole world it's telling its story within. Where usually such films don't quite hit the mark and can become quite formulaic. I'm looking at you, Jurassic Park sequels!

Fortunately we are now in the era where television shows can be seen with a bit more attention and money. Where budgets are ballooning but streaming services are also desperate to find stories they can throw money at knowing it'll stick. Much like Hollywood thrived on nostalgia bait and reboots and sequels and prequels for a long time, streaming is finding its own way of going about this, one recent example is Alien: Earth. And here we have IT: Welcome to Derry. The horror genre is really doing well! IT: Welcome to Derry is a prequel series, telling the story of the events that came before the first IT film that released back in 1986. I think this is a good idea, starting with a concept that can give context leading to the initial story.

Given it comes before the original, the show takes place in the 1960s, and that makes for a pretty visual series that gives it a bit more interest to it visually. Where we are done with the 80s and 90s nostalgia wave that has been going around lately, as well as the more plain boredom of the present day settings. Going back to the 1960s, it's ripe for strange events and conspiracy theories. A time where radio still largely dominated over television. The media was heavily controlled. And the Cold War gave the world fears of nuclear escalation between NATO and the USSR. This meant more military activity. More conspiracies and discussions within citizens over what they're seen or heard through strange weapons tests and other curiosities. From aliens to government coverups.

Visually the show is really well made, though there are some moments where you can really notice the special effects side of things. Mostly with some of the exteriors that display locations that don't really exist. For the most part the show utilises real spaces, decent set design for interiors in particular. And a very soft lighting that makes the whole show look quite dreamy in a way. I like this stylistic choice, not many shows or films look like this and it does add to the more vibrant tones of the 1960s. I think the warmth and the hazy look also adds to that strange IT atmosphere. Where things do feel like they take place in an odd world where something just isn't quite right.

Much like the original film, the horror of IT: Welcome to Derry isn't quite your typical horror. It's something that displays oddities and little moments of strangeness. Where sometimes horrifying moments take place for the characters but not so much horrifying for an audience. I like it this way though, where it's not all jump scares, but more the strange hauntings that takes place and disrupts the lives of the youth in the small town. I think psychological horror is far more engaging that your more modern horror, so this side of things I think is being done quite well. Not that there aren't the odd moments of jump scare type moments. Naturally this leads a group of haunted children down a series of their own investigations to figure out what happened within the town in the past. I won't go too much into the story, but I am enjoying the world building it's providing, again speaking on those 1960s tensions, the conspiracy theories and government meddling. So far I'm quite engaged. I think this has the potential to fill that space of Stranger Things, with a similar atmosphere and set of characters and style. Especially now that that show is over.