Escape the Night

It works fairly well as a YouTube Red show. It has a lot of star power, and there is some character arc for some of the characters, such as the sorceress in the second season. The deaths can range anywhere from meh to downright terrifying. However while it has star power, I feel it does lack some complexity. Whodunnit, which seems to be a heavy influence on this show, had a lot of complex murders, even though it did lack star power. The budget does seem to increase every season, and I do like giving them personas. I do wish, however, their personas factored into the show a bit more. If you're a fan of shows like "Whodunnit," I suggest giving this one a look. Both of them are fairly similar.

Escape The Night is a fun time, if you have the right season. At this time we only have four seasons, which may I add, are very distinct and different from one another. In this review I will go in depth into each season, in its highlights and falls.

Season One- The first season is the most dark of them all. The season follows more unknown youtubers (Shane Dawson being the most well-known) as they try to navigate a haunted house stuck in the 1920's. The cast consists of Shane Dawson, Sierra Furtado, Matt Haag, Oli White, Andreaschoice, IJustine, Glozell Green, Eva Gutowski, Joey Graceffa, Lele Pons, and Timothy Delaghetto. The deaths, while dramatized, are actually quite frightening and dark. The experience is great and you find yourself really invested in the plot, rooting and disagreeing with different characters. Overall= 9/10

Season Two- The second season is much less dark but a lot more vibrant, less focusing on the natural terror, opposed to the supernatural. This season had much bigger names (Liza Koshy being the largest). The season takes a similar approach to the first, as to being locked in a house, but now they are stuck in the Victorian Era. The cast includes Alex Wassabi, Andrea Russet, Destorm Power, Liza Koshy, Gabbie Hanna, Tyler Oakley, Tana Mongeau, LaurDIY, Jesse Wellens, and Joey Graceffa. The deaths and challenges are much less frightening, but do not underestimate it. The season was full of twists and turns and so far fetched from its predecessor. Overall= 9/10

Season Three- The third season deviates from the shows original roots. Rather than having no idea or objective, the show tells the Youtubers what is going on right from the get go. The cast is subjectively the same popularity as Season 2 (Colleen Ballinger being the largest), but it more includes beauty influencers rather than mainstream. The cast consists of Safiya Nygaard, Manny MUA, Joey Graceffa, JC Caylen, Rosanna Pansino, Guava Juice, MatPat, Nikita Dragun, Colleen Ballinger and Teala Dunn. The show tries to return to its dark roots, but the monsters are so surreal that it makes the season more/less unbearable. Overall= 5/10

Season Four- The fourth season brings back the all star challengers whos lives were lost too soon. The season has no time frame, but similar to season three, it starts with an objective, rather than a never ending cycle. The All-Stars consist of Colleen Ballinger, Alex Wassabi, IJustine, Rosanna Pansino, Gabbie Hanna, Timothy Delaghetto, Joey Graceffa, Tana Mongeau, Destorm Power, and newcomer, Bretman Rock. While the season is interesting on paper, the acting, as well as the sets and monsters leave much to be desired and it is found quite uneventful and boring. Overall= 5/10.

Escape the night has its highs and lows, but as the seasons progress it seems to lose its original dark core.

Overall= 7/10

What can I say about this apart from, "this is why youtubers should never be able to make a TV show. EVER." The costumes, furniture, landscape, and accents ruin the theme, not to mention that all the characters are based on stereotypes, and I find them all horribly annoying. (note that I've only watched one episode, but felt I needed to write this)

I really like this series, the concept was very interesting same with its lore, however to some people's taste of the show is very different, and i kind of get what they are saying, because first, some of the parts are going too quickly, and i think i recommend some acting to save the show from being too bland and boring and definitely needing less controversial characters, overall to me i really enjoy the show, it just needs more creativity and less dying and annoying characters, ahem.. Gabbie- but anyways im looking forward to season 5 hopefully Joey picks promising characters and more creative writing, I crave for more :D.

Here's the thing: I've only seen one episode, because I saw it was 1920s-themed and I absolutely 1920s-themed things, and it's kind of a murder mystery, so that seemed fun. But. This isn't really a show I would continue watching. If it was scripted, had a reasonable plot, and the actors all stayed in character, this would be sooooo much more fun to watch. I mean, come on - the period fashion, the house, it could all be remarkably well-done if each character was scripted with lines that resembled the lingo they used in the 20s. But in the first episode, one of the "actors" says, "we're YouTubers, not mathematicians," and that was where I kind of lost the joy of watching it. Ditch the whole "we traveled back in time from 2016" theme, give them all a script, add a plot, make sure they stay in character, and you've got yourself a show I would watch in a heartbeat.