First aired on AMC between June 2019 and August 2020, and subsequently cancelled following the completion of the storyline of the original novel, NOS4A2 is an ambitious, suspenseful and thoroughly bingeable adaptation of Joe Hill’s 2013 dark fantasy horror novel of the same name, so it is a real shame that Acorn Media’s new NOS4A2 – Season 1 and 2 box set is DVD only, as it is a series that deserves a full HD Blu-ray release.
The supernatural horror series follows promising young art student Vic McQueen (Ashleigh Cummings), who discovers the ability to discover and track down lost things by riding her bike over a mysterious and long-demolished bridge, visible only to her. Teaming up with Maggie (Jahkara Smith), a free-spirited librarian who uses a bag of Scrabble tiles to determine the location of missing items, they attempt to use their powers to track down the sinister Charlie Manx (Zachary Quinto), a seemingly immortal child abductor who feeds off the souls of children and uses his Rolls Royce Wraith to transport his victims to Christmasland, a dark and twisted place “where every day is Christmas Day and unhappiness is against the law”, or so he claims.
Over the course of its 20 episodes, NOS4A2 offers up an ambitious and faithful adaptation of Hills’ source novel (helped by the fact that Hill serves as executive producer), led by excellent performances from Ashleigh Cummings, Zachary Quinto, Jahkara Smith, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, and with plenty of twists, turns and plot strands for fans of the supernatural horror genre to sink their teeth into.
Bonus features are sadly on the short side (most are just a couple of minutes long), and there are no commentary tracks included, however the extras that are offered give viewers a good flavour of the making of the show, Joe Hill’s inspirations and the process of adapting the book for the screen.
All in all it is a home entertainment package that should have been better (no Blu-ray and a lack of bonus features), but the show itself is definitely worth checking out if you are a fan of the genre and are looking for something a little different for your next box set binge.
