This makes me so sad, for a variety of reasons! While I’ve supported “Penny Dreadful” throughout the last few years, my access to the show’s new and original content has been limited to online clips due to my home state being out of the public stations’ range. Horror hosting, in my opinion, is an extremely underutilized medium of story telling and it’s been on the decline in recent years; which is why I’m so quick to lend my support to those brave men and women keeping the art form alive. This is why I was beyond thrilled that Penny Dreadful herself got in touch with me to review the ninth and final season of “Penny Dreadful’s Shilling Shockers.” Yes, that is why my emotions are all over the place, happy to sad – because my first real taste of greatness would also be my last.
“Penny Dreadful’s Shilling Shockers” has been on the air since 2005 and it is a 2x Rondo Award Winner for Favorite Active Horror Host, and was the vehicle that got Penny Dreadful inducted into The Horror Host Hall of Fame in 2014. Fans around the New England sections of The United States have adored this series due to its use of traditional monsters and villains, the cast’s ability to laugh and love on and off camera, and for the show’s catalogue of surprise titles that have been been long forgotten. Every episode is a unique adventure, filled with gags, magic and macabre – all interlaced with the golden oldies of horror mostly from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. The films featured in season nine consist of The Devil’s Messenger (1961), Jesse James Meets Frankenstein’s Daughter (1966), I Bury the Living (1958), The Blancheville Monster (1963), Vengeance of the Zombies (1973), Creature from the Haunted Sea (1961) and Monster from a Prehistoric Planet (1967).
Season nine of “Shilling Shockers” stars Danielle Gelehrter as Penny Dreadful, Magoo Gelehrter as Garou and Ivan Bernier as Dr. Manfred Von Bulow. The final season also features a number of cameos, most importantly seen with director Rebecca Paiva returning to her role as Luna 13. I think it is absolutely wonderful that the team of four had all returned to write, direct, produce and star in the final slew of hosting gigs. For information about “Penny Dreadful’s Shilling Shockers can be found at the accompanying link. It also has portals to where you can purchase the complete ninth season on DVD and a list of station’s broadcasting the show in case it is available in your area. https://www.shillingshockers.com/.
At this point I struggle to find words to describe my viewing experience of “Penny Dreadful’s Shilling Shockers.” Quite simply, season nine is fantastic and, being that it’s the final season, it’s definitely the best way to go out on top. In the age of modern technology and the viewing audience looking for something eye catching, I support the production team here for fully understanding their product and never going overboard with it. When horror hosting, there’s always a tendency to get to comedic with the content and then the content suffers for it. I think one of the reasons why “Penny Dreadful” has been so popular is because the decisions made behind the scenes have always been so on point. Season nine features a continuing story line followed by standalone episodes and the scene cuts are great introductions and breaks from the movie that’s being hosted. They read more like mini-short films or a full fledged web-series instead of random skits and I love that.
Every actor, every character is a standout talent, but I’m still in love with Penny Dreadful. The actress, Danielle Gelehrter, is outstanding and, not knowing anything about her, I feel like there’s some sort of classical training in her background. She’s refined and expressive and plays a subtle witch without beating you over the head with it. She’s by far my favorite character actress in the universe created with “Shilling Shockers.” And, I think the final season will be a fond farewell to Magoo Gelehrter, who passed away in May 2014. Several other occurrences sidetracked the show for a number of months, which is why we’re getting the final season two years later. If anything, the season nine compilation is a great keepsake to fans of the show, and Magoo specifically, who filmed all of his scenes during his battle with cancer – with love for you.
This is a collectors’ item and a great addition to your DVD shelf. I highly recommend season nine, and all seasons of “Shilling Shockers,” to anyone who is a big fan of horror hosting. It’s a stark reminder of how much fun the genre can be. It’s a throwback. “Shilling Shockers” is well produced, well acted and more importantly – an educational tool for horror fans. Still so sad that my introduction to the show was the characters’ exit, but I hear that Penny Dreadful will return in some form or another in just a little while. Until then, buy this: https://www.shillingshockers.com/! Final Score: 7.5 out of 10.
