HOLLYWOOD—The promos for this dramatic thriller have been hitting the airwaves for the past two months, and I must say I was intrigued by the concept. I was always a fan of the headless horseman, particularly the tale that Tim Burton told in 1999 with his flick “Sleepy Hollow.” To see that tale, re-interpreted on the small screen in a present setting is clever to say the least.
The two central characters of the series are Ichabod Crane (Tom Mison) and Lt. Abbie Mills (Nicole Beharie). Abbie’s partner finds himself in a dicey situation when he comes face-to-face with the headless horseman, which leaves Lt. Mills in a horrified state of mind. When Crane is awakened from a few centuries long coma, he finds himself lost in a world where technology and culture has dramatically changed. The town of Sleepy Hollow is not as welcoming to him, as it was in the good ole’ days, as he finds himself arrested and thrown in the slammer. It’s there that he meets Lt. Mills and the duo spark common ground about the infamous fiend who murdered the sheriff of the town. There is great chemistry between actors Mison and Beharie; they mesh so well. Some actors work well others not so much, these two actors grace the screen with such fluidity that it’s nice to see.
Crane has a fascination with the changing geographic make-up of the city, especially the countless Starbucks. It’s a jab at our culture. I mean let’s face it there is a Starbucks on nearly every corner in major metropolis cities like Chicago, Los Angeles and New York. An important development involving our hero Mr. Ichabod Crane is when he recognizes a priest who also happens to be an enemy of the headless horseman who exacts vengeance by chopping off his head. His murder leaves Captain Frank Irving (Orlando Bloom), Lt. Mills and Crane a bit puzzled.
Abbie divulges a bit of her past to Crane which peaks his interest. She is not an open book; there are things about her past that will surely be revealed in each episode, as well as Mr. Crane himself. She is planning to resign from her post and leave the town of Sleepy Hollow, until the latest string of incidents peak her interest.
Both Crane and Mills believe that they have been drawn together for a reason. In an interesting twist, she recollected memories from her past that involved her sister. As the siblings walked through the woods, they spotted four white trees and a voice that haunted them. The incident caused the sisters to be a bit rattled; Abbie regained her mental state, her sister not so much. The series is loaded with tons of mystery. That mystery is a driving force for the series which sucks the audience in within a matter of minutes; as a spectator you are drawn to want to know more. There are supernatural elements at work; there is suspense, action, drama and even comedy. It’s not easy for many series to incorporate so many various emotions in one show.
Her desire to do some investigative research pays off when she discovers that her former sheriff was digging into the town’s past and actually believed what Abbie encountered as a child really happened. It appears Andy (John Cho) is working alongside the headless horseman and promised to take him to find the item he had been searching for: his HEAD! The tense shoot-out at the cemetery was quite epic to say the least. It does appear that the horseman is not a fan of the daylight hours and only appears at night, might be important for all citizens to take that in consideration.
The episode concluded with an unexpected death involving Andy who received a visit from a ghostly spirit that snapped his neck, just as Mills and Crane entered the jail cell. She noticed the being in the reflection of the mirror before it shattered. The series is indeed off to a wicked start, looking forward to what spooky places it takes the audience. “Sleep Hollow” airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on Fox.
By LaDale Anderson
