The man behind some of the most frightening movies of our time, John Carpenter, has returned to the director’s chair for the first time in thirteen years to bring us some new scares in the Peacock original series John Carpenter’s Suburban Screams. The six-episode limited series provides an inside look at the true stories of these haunted neighborhoods across the world, and this article recaps the entirety of Season 1 for your convenience.
Naturally, spoilers for the full season follow.
Each episode of Suburban Screams stands out on its own, following a different story. Inside each episode we get people telling the stories of what happened while reenactments play to John Carpenter’s narration.
Recap – What happened in John Carpenter’s Suburban Screams Season 1? (Episodes 1-6)
Episode 1 – “Kelly”
A group of friends decided to create their own Ouija board in an attempt to have some fun. The guys play around with the girls by making their surroundings do funny things. However, things quickly get weird when the Ouija board announces that there is a person present, and their name is Kelly. May told Dan that Kelly was her cousin who went missing a few years back. Regardless of everyone else not believing him, Dan hunted everywhere to find Kelly.
Finally, Dan finds Kelly, who is dead inside a sleeping bag.
Episode 2 – “A Killer Comes Home”
In the town of Miramichi County, a man went on a killing spree that sparked the local editor of a newspaper to cover the murders. Rick MacLean was part of the local newspaper when Alex Legere brutally murdered John Glendinning. MacLean had covered the story as a result of the minimal amount of murders that happened. After his arrest, Legere was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.
Three years later, Legere escaped prison and terrorized the city again, killing four people. Although MacLean never had a face-to-face with Legere, he and his wife were concerned that it could possibly happen as he kept publishing pieces about him. Even after his recapturing, the town of Miramichi was never the same, as they always wondered if he would break out again.
Episode 3 – “House Next Door”
Torrence Temple was smitten by his next-door neighbor Jennifer until one day, while looking at each other through their bedroom windows, a flickering of light happened, and she disappeared. Years passed, and the case had never been solved, nor had anyone moved into that house since.
READ: John Carpenter’s Suburban Screams Season 1 Episode 5 Recap
Dr. Kennedy moved into the house years later with his wife and two daughters. Torrence had his eye on Lisa, one of Dr. Kennedy’s daughters. The two had become really close until Torrence realized that strange things were happening in the house again. One night, in an attempt to find out what was happening, Torrence and Lisa (and her mother and sister) found themselves in danger from Dr. Kennedy. One thing led to another, and the Kennedy family disappeared just as Jennifer and her family had.
Episode 4 – “Bunny Man”
We entered a small town in Fairfax, Virginia where an axe-wielding man in a rabbit suit is the focus. After escaping from a prisoner transfer it is believed that The Bunny Man survived in the woods by only eating bunnies. After he was done with the bunnies, he would hang them gutted by a bridge.
Although the police thought The Bunny Man was dead after a run-in with him, three kids were found gutted and hanging by the bridge the following day. The urban legend ensued for years that if you went to the bridge at midnight on Halloween, you would run into The Bunny Man. We hear stories of his existence, why he did what he did, and whether or not people think he is still alive.
Episode 5 – “Happily Ever After”
A beautiful young couple decided to uproot their lives in Washington, DC, due to not feeling safe, and move to Charles County. Carlette and Brian brought her mother and two daughters for the ride. However, shortly after their arrival, things felt off, with Brian and Carlette’s mother starting to see ghosts.
READ: John Carpenter’s Suburban Screams Season 1 Episode 6 Recap
In a somewhat possessed state, Brian started to get angry and violent leading to Carlette kicking him out of the house. Although he was gone, these ghosts kept appearing, and Carlette’s mother and oldest daughter left her. Finally, after having had enough of seeing the ghosts, Carlette took her youngest daughter and moved out of the neighborhood for good.
Episode 6 – “Phone Stalker”
Beth moved to Long Island because it was safe. She met a man, got engaged, and lived happily ever after, right? Wrong. Beth caught her man cheating and broke up with him. However, her troubles didn’t stop there when a mysterious man started to call her phone and say obnoxious things, including threatening to kill her.
No matter what Beth did, this man would not leave her alone. It slowly started to take a toll on her mental health leading her down a bad path in her job and personal life. Although she never came face to face with the stalker, Beth feared for her life and moved to another city.
To this day, Beth’s stalker has never been found and continues to keep an eye on her every move.
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