'Widow's Bay' is cursed but manages to be both funny and frightening

A widower mayor tries to transform a small New England island into a tourist destination. His staff and family create constant comedic friction, especially with his lonely, awkward assistant and his troubled teenage son. Townspeople resist the plan because they dislike the cost of modern conveniences and because they distrust the mayor’s ability to manage daily life. The island’s long history includes plagues, storms, killer clowns, and recurring violent episodes tied to a centuries-old curse. When a travel writer promotes the island, the supernatural danger intensifies, shifting the tone from safe comedy to genuine horror.

"When people ask me to name the scariest movie I ever saw, I always tell them Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, a 1948 romp I saw on TV as a kid. It's a slightly embarrassing answer, but in recent days I've had two other people tell me the same thing one a 30-year-old woman, the other an 82-year-old man. We all agreed that what makes it so terrifying is that you think you're safely watching a dumb comedy, then Boo! You're actually in a horror movie."

"Juggling laughter and fright is the strategy of Widow's Bay, a new Apple TV series that has rolled out about half of its 10 episodes. Created by Katie Dippold who wrote the Ghostbusters remake and countless episodes of Parks and Recreation this amusing, sometimes nerve-wracking show has a soothingly retro feel. Looking back to horror stories of the '70s and '80s, it's like a Stranger Things intended for grown-ups."

"Matthew Rhys stars as Tom Loftis, a widower who's the mayor of Widow's Bay, a small, cozy-seeming island off the New England coast. He's got the kind of quirky, exasperating staff you find in TV comedies, most importantly his lonely, awkward #2, Patricia that's wonderful Kate O'Flynn who hits him with aggrieved zingers. It's Tom's dream to turn this sleepy island into another Martha's Vineyard crawling with tourists who drink cappuccino, read The New York Times, and make the place "happening.""

"These superstitious locals also know something Tom works hard to deny. Widow's Bay is, um, cursed. It has a centuries-long history of plagues, ruinous typhoons, killer clowns talk about mixing comedy and horror not to mention all manner of supernatural visitations. Every few years, the island goes violently crazy. When a travel writer pens a glowing newspaper article on Widow's Bay, th"

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