Within the "Friday The 13th" universe are two types of fans. The first, and majority, will accept anything that is thrown at them. The second, a smaller but more devoted group, cling to the legends and myths set forth in the original 1980 film. That would be me.
So, I was both excited and skeptical about "Crystal Lake," until I watched it.
Let me start with the good points, and those I credit to the fact that one of the Executive Producers, was Victor Miller, who I did not know was still alive. It was Miller who penned the original "Friday The 13th " screenplay. So, when it came time to replicate scenes from the past, like the killing of that horndog Barry, and that slut, Claudette, who was the reason Jason died, every detail was there, down to the camera shots. I was impressed. That opening full moon, the counselors singing "Down In The Valley" and "Michael Row The Boat Ashore,' was frighteningly accurate, and I have to hand it to the creatives for this.
Linda Cardellini, as said, makes one empathize for Pamela. But the first mistake made by the show was to update the time. Jason, as fans know, drowned in 1957; this show moves it up to 1971. And while the camp scenes are impressively shot, particular when Cardellini dives into the lake to save Jason, there is a sense of being in the wrong time. Which does not leave her time enough to get back at The Christies, who are featured in the series, and do the things to the camp that Annie learns about at while riding with Ennis, the truckdriver, diner, in the 1980 original.
Now, the addition of Gwndolyn Sundstrom as Grace Snell, a friend for Jason, is a great idea, but it should have been kept in the 1950s. Her performance is one of the better ones, too, and at 14, she could become the next Daveigh Chase, but hopefully without Chase's problems and tragic demise.
Spoilers here--Grace, on the day Jason dies, witnesses not only his death, but the reason for it--Barry and Claudette Ka noodling in the storehouse. Like most fans, we all know what a slut Claudette is, and that she deserves it, but Grace does not kill Claudette completely; Pamela, who has had Claudette admit her culpability to her recently, comes in and finishes the job, and when Claudette gets it, boy, do we applaud!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Proof lies in more screen time being devoted to Claudette's death.
Now, if all of this had stayed within the time rubric of the 1980 original, "Crystal Lake" would have been a nigh perfect series, especially if it had stopped at episode 6. But the last two, involving Stepfordism, genetic testing, and Jason being some kind of super-hero mutant, with Pamela having to flee an organization, adopting the name Voorhees, was just too much. Let me tell you what should have happened,
What would have made more sense was for the creators to follow the text of the comic strip, "Pamela's Tale." Pamela is a girl from the wrong side of the tracks who takes up with a boy from there, Elias Voorhees, and is knocked up by him. When Elias sees how deformed Jason is, he takes off, leaving Pam on her own. So, she goes to NYC to become a nightclub singer? Are you kidding? With nothing but cooking skills, she will stay in the Crystal Lake area. This eventually leads her to Camp Crystal Lake. Had the producers stuck with this, they would have had a first-class series. Oh, and Pam should have gone after The Christies, too.
One more thing. When making the original film, I read, Betsy Palmer wanted Sean Cunningham, the director, to put her in the scene in Trudy's diner, when Annie walks in. This would have been something--a cameo by Betsy Palmer, and then she turns out to be the murderess. What an idea! Too bad a NYC tabloid critic revealed Palmer's presence in the film in a review.
"Crystal Lake" is surprisingly worth watching. But devoted fans just will not accept the incongruities.
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