Welcome To Derry’s Horrifying Opening Scene Sets The Tone Of The Series

This post contains major spoilers for “It: Welcome to Derry.”

A child sneaks into the local theater to watch Morton DaCosta’s “The Music Man” in “It: Welcome to Derry.” This child, Matty (Miles Eckhardt), tragically goes missing that night, where he’s last seen fleeing the theater. Of course, we are privy to the insanely bizarre chain of events that Matty experienced that night, right after hitching a ride out of Derry, Maine, a place he wanted to desperately escape. While Stephen King’s “It” is chockfull of gruesome moments involving children, Andy and Barbara Muschietti’s new prequel series makes it clear that no one is safe here, as there are no limits to It’s monstrosity.

Later on in the episode, we learn that Matty used to be friends with three other kids — Lilly (Clara Stack), Phil (Jack Molloy Legault), and Teddie (Mikkal Karim Fidler) — who gradually realize that there’s more to Matty’s disappearance than meets the eye. There’s real grief and regret here, as some of them realize that they could’ve been kinder to the boy, who seems disturbed by something even during these flashbacks. After Lilly hears Matty singing through the pipes in her bathroom, the hauntings begin, all of which carry Pennywise’s signature tendency to exploit deep-rooted fears. We do not see the dancing clown in the flesh yet, which adds to the anxiety of battling something that cannot be explained.

Going back to Matty’s attempt to leave Derry, we see him hitch a ride with a family of four (parents and two kids), who gently assure him that he will be safe with them. “Anywhere but Derry,” Matty whispers, when asked where he wishes to go. But what ensues is pure nightmare fuel, setting the tone for a very dark show about the cyclical evil that haunts Derry.

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It: Welcome to Derry leans into surreal, gross-out horror to great effect

There’s no reason to assume nefarious intent when the family treats Matty with kindness. But this so-called veneer of normalcy cracks soon enough: the kids start acting creepy (the girl submerges her hands into a box full of raw liver) and the parents make inappropriate comments about their own children. This is Pennywise mocking the safety and normalcy associated with the traditional family unit, where every sanctified bond is subverted with perverse glee. Matty tries to shield himself, but is forced to witness yet another twisted event: a demonic birth inside the moving car.

We’ve seen children in peril in Muschietti’s “It” movies, but this opening sequence doesn’t hold back on the gross-out gore or over-the-top theatrics. It is somewhat reminiscent of exploitation horror, especially when the mutant demon baby (who can fly!) is birthed in a pool of blood/pus, and starts wreaking havoc with the umbilical cord still attached to it. There’s a surreal freneticism to these events, as this is just a peek into the horrors It has been unleashing on Derry since it landed on Earth. While “It: Welcome to Derry” will examine Pennywise’s origins, the events of 1962 are a miniscule part of the creature’s reign of terror.

Georgie’s death in “It” is supposed to be a gut-punch, but it sets the stage for the Losers Club to face and combat It. But “It: Welcome to Derry” concludes its first episodes with three dead children, all horrifically torn apart by the same mutant baby that Matty witnessed before his disappearance. There is no hope here, as Pennywise is too vicious a presence for anyone to stand up against, let alone a group of frightened children who recently lost their friend to a primordial entity.

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Read the original article on SlashFilm.