How long, oh lord, how long?

When I first heard about this series, I was excited buy understandably apprehensive. Seriously, Nurse Ratched is one of the most chilling characters in the history of cinema. And somehow, Miloš Forman manages to make her even more terrifying than she is in the book.

I mean, when Louise Fletcher hits the screen in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, the temperature plummets.

Providing her backstory, therefore, becomes a fantastic idea and a lofty goal, one that could end in disaster if not handled right. That said, Ratched has indeed received a shit-ton of bad press. I’m not sure what these folks were watching, but it couldn’t possibly have been what I watched. One Mashable article listed 10 Unanswered Questions from the Season 1 finale.

8 of those were answered or at least hinted at, so somebody wasn’t paying attention. As for the remaining 2, I’m perfectly willing to wait for the next season (which is, y’know, kinda the point). Sadly, word on that front doesn’t exactly look promising. According to an article from The Direct, Ryan Murphy looks to be leaving Netflix for The Galactic Empire Disney. This time last year, Sarah Paulson said in Varitey that she didn’t know if Season 2 was forthcoming.

Speaking of, my adoration of Sarah Paulson started with Murder House. Huge fan of Ryan Murphy as well. His hand can be seen all over the place in Ratched, reinforcing a bleak AHS Asylum and Freakshow tone and feel. And based on the writing, you’d think that Evan Romansky has worked with Murphy for years (he hasn’t).

Sure, Ratched has weak spots. The first half hour drags some, but if you power through it, you will not be sorry. The season finale is not much of a cliffhanger, which is fine, but it’s also less effective than the rest of the series. Also Dr. Hanover’s story arc doesn’t quite pull off its attempt at irony and becomes disappointingly anticlimactic. But overall these things remain minor and never break the overall spell the story otherwise casts.

Amongst the subplots that come as fine surprises are the Bonnie & Clyde relationship of Edmund and Dolly, Sharon Stone and Brandon Flynn as Lenore and Henry Osgood (recalling Gloria and Dandy from Freakshow), and the scene-stealing Sophie Okonedo as Charlotte Wells.

The show’s most enjoyable aspect may well be the human awfulness oozing from most of the characters. We’re talking Maltese Falcon, Mildred Pierce,  Nightmare Alley film noir levels of reprehensible that serve to heighten the straight-up horror elements.

Murphy does this by the ton in the aforementioned Asylum and Freakshow. Similarly almost everyone in Ratched has something(s) to hide, some ulterior motive, someone they want dead, some delusion/illusion they will do anything to maintain.

These people are Just. Not. Good.

And so, having rewatched this first season of Ratched, I’ll rewatch One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest and await Season 2. While I’m at it, maybe I’ll bust out Double Indemnity, Detour, and I Wake Up Screaming.

Again.