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Archive 81

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 16 Critic Reviews

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73

USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 24 Ratings

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6.7

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6.7	Your Score
6.7	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 24 Ratings

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Archive 81

Now Playing: Archive 81

Archive 81

Series Details & Credits

Netflix | Release Date: January 14, 2022

Summary: Archivist Dan Turner (Mamoudou Athie) becomes obsessed with the subject of the old videotapes he was hired to restore: documentary filmmaker Melody Pendras (Dina Shihabi) and her investigation into a cult in this supernatural horror series loosely based on the podcast of the same name.

Genre(s): Drama, Horror, Science Fiction

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Stream On

Recent Episodes

tbd
S1:E8. What Lies Beneath
Air Date: January 14, 2022
tbd
S1:E7. The Ferryman
Air Date: January 14, 2022
tbd
S1:E6. The Circle
Air Date: January 14, 2022

See all Seasons and Episodes

Metascore

73

Positive:

13

Mixed:

3

Negative:

0

Critic Reviews

83

The A.V. Club

Saloni Gajjar

Jan 13, 2022

Season 1 Review: Like most horror series and movies, Archive 81 requires some suspension of disbelief, but just give it time and it will slowly rope in the non-genre fans with its poignant specificity and drama. Read full review

80

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Rob Owen

Jan 11, 2022

Season 1 Review: “Archive 81” starts strong with creepy atmospherics, gets a little confusing in its mythology around episode six but then clears everything up in time for a cliffhanger in the eighth episode. Read full review

80

Wall Street Journal

John Anderson

Jan 14, 2022

Season 1 Review: "Archive 81," the Netflix series "loosely inspired" by the podcast of the same name, is a worthy addition to the catalog. ... The showrunner, Rebecca Sonnenshine, makes the right move. The casting is first rate. ... Are there a lot of narratives at work in "Archive 81"? Yes, but think of them as tentacles. Read full review

72

TV Guide

Keith Phipps

Jan 11, 2022

Season 1 Review: The brisk, tense, efficiently told first episode gives way to later installments filled with padded-out incidents, red herrings, and dead ends. Anyone hooked by the beginning won't be let down by the end, and the mood of unflagging dread helps keep the suspense high even when the story hits a lull. Just be prepared for some narrative dry stretches along the way. Read full review

70

CNN

Brian Lowry

Jan 14, 2022

Season 1 Review: "Archive 81" draws upon very old horror themes, including whether seeing is really believing, and how evil might be hiding in plain view. Like the videotapes themselves, there are glitches along the way, but unlike some recent entries in this genre (hello, "Brand New Cherry Flavor"), not enough of them to provoke hitting the "eject" button. Read full review

70

New York Magazine (Vulture)

Roxana Hadadi

Jan 13, 2022

Season 1 Review: Generously, this bounty could be viewed as a love letter to the genre. In execution, though, Archive 81 somewhat lacks a prevailing identity of its own, even as it masters slow-burning dread. Read full review

58

IndieWire Steve Greene

Jan 14, 2022

Season 1 Review: It’s not that the show would be better if it withheld more, but most of the steps building the world of “Archive 81” outward are done in a way that feels more obligatory than efficient. Read full review

SEE ALL 16 REVIEWS

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6.7

User Reviews

10

jer_tx

Jan 24, 2022

Dope show. Slow burn, rewarding ending. Good setup for a second season, definitely worth a watch

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

10

Bknut32

Mar 6, 2022

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I’m usually not a huge fan of the horror genre, but this was a welcome homage to the slow burn horror films that came out of the mid to late 20th century. The plot kept me on the edge of my seat and the acting was superb with a hell of a cliff hanger that sets up season 2 nicely.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

10

Toni45161

Jan 17, 2022

It's gripping and engaging. Twists and turns that one wouldn't expect. A perfect mix of horror, thriller and the psychological. It's fresh and captures the viewer from the get go. It's impossible not to binge watch, the acting performance was flawless and the visuals add to the totalIt's gripping and engaging. Twists and turns that one wouldn't expect. A perfect mix of horror, thriller and the psychological. It's fresh and captures the viewer from the get go. It's impossible not to binge watch, the acting performance was flawless and the visuals add to the total immersion. A throughly impressive show from start to finish, the wait for season two will be a hardship.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

7

ThisGuy1

Jan 18, 2022

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This was oh so close to an 8 or even a 9 out of 10. I was hooked by the end of episode 1. I watched three episodes one night and couldn't wait, so I watched the rest of the season the next day - finishing the series in one weekend. There were so many good characters, good acting, a preferred blend of atmospheric scares (lots) vs jump scares (enough to enjoy without getting bored/cheap), and several great mysteries. Outside of the finale, my only complaint was some of the dialogue. I'm not offended by swearing. However, there were several instances in the show where the swearing felt out of place. One of the main characters would be talking to another character - either someone trying to help them or a creepy "bad guy," but regardless, this character would be calmly talking to the main character - and rather than keeping their cool and keeping control of the conversation in order to get the answers to their questions, the main characters would scream/yell "WHY THE F--- blah blah blah?!" These moments would almost always pull me from being immersed in the show. Even so, not a huge concern and nothing that impacted my review.

Now, the finale did cause me to lower the rating of the show. It failed to execute. It answered just enough questions, but in incredibly lazy ways. By the end of the finale, I had more questions criticizing the finale than I did about the rest of the series. How/Why did Virgil - a man who owned a DNA/Ancestry business so he could find out about people's lineage - end up hiring the mom of the woman who he thought murdered (or caused the disappearance of) his brother? I may have missed it, but how did the portal open without a sacrifice (the caretaker/mom cut her hand to bleed on the statue and they took a jar of blood from the fridge, but I didn't see them spill any blood from the jar)? At the end, there were two rooms with lights (presumable portals), Melody was pulled into one by Samuel, then the light faded (presumably meaning the portals shut). Dan wasn't in a portal before the light faded, so how did Dan end up in 1994 (the writers have confirmed he IS in 1994 and not the other world)? Why did Melody arrive in the present but not Samuel when they were clearly in the same portal? So - after 7 hours of wondering who or what burned down Samuel's house with his family in it, which was eerily similar to how the Voss mansion burned down and the Visser apartment complex - the writers expected fans to be satisfied with Virgil's explanation for how Samuel's house burned down?! "The cult would do anything to bring the demon to our world, the coven would do anything to prevent it - and your family got caught in the crossfires." Sounds like a lazy excuse to avoid providing answers, most likely because the writers didn't think that far out in advance. Lastly - the finale neutered the primary antagonist. The demon's parallel world was essentially just a maze and instead of killing, torturing, or anything malevolent related to the people who get trapped there - he simply lets them exist and doesn't want them to leave because he's lonely? He poses no threat to the any of the characters and barely even attempts to prevent them from leaving. Kind of makes the entire conflict between the coven and the cult - who cares, let Kaleago into our world. Dude is just lonely and looks like a mouthless predator. Let him move to Vegas and be a magician. At least then the cult and coven will stop sacrificing people and burning down buildings.

The writer's have said they will address Samuel not being in the room at the end and the true cause of Samuel's house burning down in season 2 if it's greenlit - but I still believe these were errors (a mistake and a case of lazy writing) on the part of the creative team behind the show. And now that it's being called out as the shows only big flaw, the writers are scrambling to tease future corrections.

NOTE: Even after all of that is said... this show was obviously very enjoyable as I gave it a 7 out of 10. I would 100% watch a season 2 and hope they fix a lot of issues created by the finale.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

6

xdani

May 6, 2022

It's a decent mistery serie. Fist five episodes are really good they keep you hanging on the rest it's no that great.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

4

BOWi

Jan 22, 2022

I watched the whole thing because I thought that watching something different would be interesting, but the mysteries ended up being meaningless and I really regret giving a chance to this show. Most episodes were bad. The motivations of each characters are unclear, which makes it impossibleI watched the whole thing because I thought that watching something different would be interesting, but the mysteries ended up being meaningless and I really regret giving a chance to this show. Most episodes were bad. The motivations of each characters are unclear, which makes it impossible for us to feel engaged to them. The story, the screenplay, and the dialogues are so full of plot holes and non-sense that it is also nearly impossible to intellectually or emotionally engage with the series. I wish Netlix would bring back The OA instead of this. Also, other series like Dark are WAY better when with sci-fi, drama and investigation.

Some professional critics wrote that the show relies on our suspension of disbelief, but I think it relies on us switching our brain totally off. What a bad series! I kinda hope it get cancelled otherwise it's an insult to the OA.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

1

CasandraComplex

Sep 14, 2022

I would give this an even lower score if I could .. Dear Hollywood; there is a difference between creating suspense with minimalism and just plain have absolutely NOTHING TO SAY and zero sense of atmosphere. This is one of those shows that starts out with the painfully slow pacing that isI would give this an even lower score if I could .. Dear Hollywood; there is a difference between creating suspense with minimalism and just plain have absolutely NOTHING TO SAY and zero sense of atmosphere. This is one of those shows that starts out with the painfully slow pacing that is a technique to create suspense but then other methods are used to suspend the suspense. Here its just like watching a superstitious friend stare into an empty closet convincing her self that there is something in there when there is nothing. The pacing and pathetic offerings serve to be nothing more than annoying. Its like watching The Blair Twitt project mixed with Paranormal.. all a bunch of idiots bumbling around in collective hysteria. Come on baby, do the camera shake! Thats excellant story telling technique right there.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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Seasons & Episodes

73

Series Overview
Season 1

73
- Season 1 Overview
  Air Date: January 14, 2022
- tbd
  S1:E8. What Lies Beneath
  Air Date: January 14, 2022
- tbd
  S1:E7. The Ferryman
  Air Date: January 14, 2022
- tbd
  S1:E6. The Circle
  Air Date: January 14, 2022
- tbd
  S1:E5. Through the Looking Glass
  Air Date: January 14, 2022
- tbd
  S1:E4. Spirit Receivers
  Air Date: January 14, 2022
- tbd
  S1:E3. Terror in the Aisles
  Air Date: January 14, 2022
- tbd
  S1:E2. Wellspring
  Air Date: January 14, 2022
- tbd
  S1:E1. Mystery Signals
  Air Date: January 14, 2022