The recently dissolved rundown town of Castle Rock, Maine is controlled by the Shawshank State Prison. It's the town's main employer. The warden commits suicide and the new warden Porter reopens an abandoned wing of the prison. Guard Dennis Zalewski finds a mystery prisoner (Bill Skarsgård) locked in a bunker who refuses to give his name and only says Henry Matthew Deaver. Henry Matthew Deaver (André Holland) is a defense lawyer in Texas. He returns to Castle Rock after Dennis calls him and takes up the mystery boy's case. His adoptive mother Ruth Deaver (Sissy Spacek) suffers from dementia and he's wrongly suspected in the death of his adoptive father. Alan Pangborn (Scott Glenn) is the former sheriff who has been living with Ruth. Henry's childhood neighbor friend Molly Strand (Melanie Lynskey) suffers from her own mental issues and takes illicit drugs to alleviate the symptoms. She intents on using her inheritance to renew the town. In the second season, nurse Annie Wilkes (Lizzy Caplan) is on the run with her daughter Joy (Elsie Fisher) and they arrive in Castle Rock. Pop Merrill (Tim Robbins) is the head of his crime family and adoptive father to Somali siblings, Abdi Omar and Dr. Nadia Omar.
This is an intriguing series especially for Stephen King fans who recognize various Easter eggs scattered all around town. The first season creates a nice murkiness which permeates this town and this series. The narrative gets a bit muddy. I would prefer a clearer story telling but it is intriguing nevertheless. The second season comes with a whole new story. It's an anthology series and I really like Lizzy Caplan's Annie Wilkes. Overall, it's one of the better TV series in the Stephen King world and fully supports his darker sensibilities. As with many shows nowadays, it's canceled after two seasons for whatever reason. This is a show that could have mined the King library for more stories.
