DEAD OF SUMMER Ep. 1 “Patience” Recap

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Photo credit: Freeform

From the creators who brought you “Once Upon a Time”, here comes a teen-horror show ready to scare us during our summer vacation.

Photo credit: Freeform
Photo credit: Freeform

The official synopsis:

Set in the late 1980s, school is out for the summer, and a sun-drenched season of firsts beckons the counselors at Camp Stillwater, a seemingly idyllic Midwestern summer camp, including first loves, first kisses—and first kills. Stillwater’s dark, ancient mythology awakens, and what was supposed to be a summer of fun soon turns into one of unforgettable scares and evil at every turn.

Episode 1: “Patience” Recap

Warning: Spoilers Ahead

Films and television shows that aim to scare and thrill are often hard to pull off and worse off, always stereotypical, albeit a few exceptions, “The Walking Dead” and “The Strain” to name a couple.

“Dead of Summer” opens with a historical peak back into the history of Camp Stillwater. There is a mystery man playing a piano, while a whole flurry of men with muskets come in trying to pull him away from playing, cut to a lake full of bodies, bleeding.

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Photo credit: Freeform

Okay, they got me hooked in and made me want to stick around for the rest of the pilot episode. Some familiar faces from “Once Upon a Time” are here, including Elizabeth Mitchell as Deb Carpenter and Elizabeth Lail as shy, awkward Amy Hughes who’s a newcomer to the camp as a counselor.

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Photo credit: Freeform

Deb has reopened Camp Stillwater since it closed in ‘84 and and has brought back some of it’s former campers to become counselors to restore it to its glory! Of course, when one assembles a group for a horror franchise, there has to be the handsome guy, the loner, the videographer (not sure his tech is completely accurate in ‘89), the popular girl, the gay guy, the sidekick girl and of course the new, shy girl.

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Photo credit: Freeform

The clothes and tech may be a little off for a show set in ‘89, but I can forgive that. The characters are introduced and interesting enough to follow. We follow Amy in flashbacks to how she got to join Camp Stillwater back in her school days. She was starting a new school and met a new friend, who really wanted to go to this camp, to escape her strict mom. Fast forward to her friend falling out of a house, because she was afraid of getting caught drunk at a party and her mom being right about ruining her future.

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Photo credit: Freeform

So awkward Amy fulfilled her dead friends wish to come to Camp Stillwater. Strange things start happening while the counselors are preparing the camp, one being finding the dead body of the groundskeeper after he had warned Amy that she shouldn’t be there.

The Sheriff seems to be a little shady and his sidekick, Garrett AKA “Townie” has secrets of his past camper status of his own.

Photo credit: Freeform
Photo credit: Freeform

All in all, there are some eerie revelations throughout the episode, with the found footage being shot  by Joel. There are what seem like ghosts appearing on screen, that Joel sees, but ignores.

The pilot was enjoyable, and I look forward to watching the second episode! What did you guys think of the first episode? Will you be watching? Let us know in the comments!

“Dead of Summer” airs Tuesday nights on Freeform at 8/9c.