User reviews

Seasons 1 & 2 are awesome. Great cast, great writing.

The Season 3 cast and writing is a huge down grade. About halfway through Season 3 it becomes almost unwatchable.

Ichabod Crane (Tom Mison) is a devoted soldier for George Washington during the Revolutionary War. It's a fight not only against the British but a fight against pure evil. His battle against the headless horseman sends them both into the present. He partners with local cop Abbie Mills (Nicole Beharie) in Sleepy Hollow to fight evil apparitions. Her sister Jenny Mills (Lyndie Greenwood) is an unscrupulous antiquities dealer. Frank Irving (Orlando Jones) is the police captain. Ichabod's love Katrina Crane (Katia Winter) is a witch. Henry Parrish (John Noble) has a devastating relationship to Ichabod. The fourth season gets a reboot in Washington, D.C. Abbie is gone as Ichabod and Jenny joins a new group to battle tycoon Malcolm Dreyfuss (Jeremy Davies).

This show starts strong. Mison has some fun as a fish out of water. Beharie has a fun platonic chemistry with him. The plot gets more and more convoluted. By season three, the twists and turns have tied the show in knots. The constant injection of new characters left the show in a muddle. The reboot in season four actually works for me. I like the new group and I like Jeremy Davies as the new villain. It regains some stability and good momentum. However, it didn't regain the lost audience.

I just watched the pilot of Sleepy Hollow and was pleasantly surprised. I really enjoyed it, I like the modern reboot of this classic story. I like the way they have taken the era in which the original Washington Irving story takes place, which gives a nod to the man and story itself and skillfully brings it into the modern day.

Sleepy Hollow blends in elements of magic, horror and mystery. The production values are great, the casting and acting also spot on and I love the creative license they have taken with the story. It's crazy, fun and full of surprises. One of which I really like, is the apocalyptic angle. I also really like the supernatural aspect of it, I'd love to go into more detail, but I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't watched it yet.

I'm glad to see the networks finally embracing genres like horror -"The Walking Dead" is a great example of how, if done well, and taken seriously, a genre TV show can be a big hit with a large demographic. I'm certain I'm not alone in being over the so called "reality TV" which is neither reality nor proper TV. I'm also sick and tired of the endless cop procedural's that seem to dominate network TV. It's time for new ideas, even if they come from old stories.

If they keep up the good writing, develop the characters properly, keep high production values and hold onto the show runner for more than one season without replacing them, I can easily see this show be a success.

****ORIGINAL REVIEW****7/10**** This is a non-spoiler review of the pilot episode.

"Sleepy Hollow" is a modern depiction of the "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", a short story by American author Washington Irving.

The name of the main character, Ichabod Crane, is preserved but his persona is very different than the book. The mysterious Headless Horseman is alive and well also, but his significance is altered in a more global way.

The main actor (Tom Mison) is very sympathetic and looks good in the part. Like his accent too. The production has high values, looks very cinematic, with good visuals and fast, interesting editing.

The story progresses rather quickly and after the first episode you will know the whole story. Not any true mysteries after that, but I do hope it'll get more interesting.

I will watch the next episodes. Most of the shows I'm watching are on seasons finale, so not so many alternatives.

Overall (for the pilot): Recommended

****UPDATED REVIEW****9/10**** This is an update review after seeing 1x08:Necromancer

After a couple of mediocre episodes, the series picks up with episodes 1x07 and 1x08 where we starting to get some real answers about what is really happening.

This was a show visually intriguing from the beginning but in the last couple of episodes becomes very artistic and might even become a classic for some of its scenes.

You really see the fight, Good vs. Evil, to become more intimate. More personal. You now see clearly aspects of this, eternal fight, that other movies and series want to avoid.

Ichabod Crane is trying to adjust to his new reality and, between some grotesque scenes and imagery, Tom Mison's performance and style makes it fun to watch!

Overall: If you are bored from all these same-o procedural police series, Highly Recommended.

The first season is great but I've never seen a show go off the rails so quickly.

I saw some promo-pictures of this, and thought it looked nicely dark & grim, perfectly up my alley. Then I watch the episode and they start it up with a nice classic rock song! It set a really good mood for the rest of the episode, I got some heavy Supernatural vibes, only here the main protagonists are NOT two hot boys, but rather one man with a British accent who has awakened after being dead for 250 years, and a young black cop woman in the process of getting transferred to the FBI. The main cast had good chemistry, not in the romantic/sexual way, but more like the start of an interesting friendship. Which I appreciated! Too much forced romances these days. The guy's dead wife is kind of still in the picture, so I doubt there'll be any romance between the main cast any time soon.

All in all the first episode showed great promise. It was deliciously dark, grim and even somewhat gritty, but with some nice aesthetics. Wes Craven is great at creating atmosphere, and there even were a few jump-scares and goose-bump moments there, without it crossing too far from urban fantasy into pure horror. I would say it's a suspense urban fantasy with horror elements.

I do recommend it for those who enjoy shows like Grimm, Supernatural, etc. It may not be drama-ish enough for the Vampire Diaries crowd, and is not as horror filled as an American horror story. I wouldn't say it copies anything (other than the original sleepy horror movie, of course, though it has it's own interesting spin on the whole thing) and it seems creative and interesting! Plot being what seems mainly focused on, and it had some snappy lines here and there, showing it may have some decently talented writers.

So, check it out!

Thus show started great but went off track like all others do. Icabod wasn't Icabod long he became to modern to fast and the show like charmed, in my opinion went way off track I lost interest quickly.

I really wasn't expecting much of this show, but I wanted to watch it anyway since I love shows like Supernatural and Grimm. But man, I'm so glad I did watch. It's seriously amazing. I love that they included so much more than just the headless horseman idea. I was really having a hard time seeing how they were going to keep the show going, but after seeing the first episode, I have no trouble believing this show could go on for a while. I've never seen either Tom Mison or Nicole Beharie before, but both were amazing as Ichabod Crane and Abbie Mills respectively. I'm also pretty sure I saw Sebastian Roche as George Washington, but it's not listed on IMDb. If it was him, I'm hoping we see more of him in that role; he's one of my favorite actors.

I'm really looking forward to the rest of the season (and praying FOX doesn't screw things up and cancel the show like they seem to do whenever they get a good show going). I definitely recommend this for anyone who likes stuff like SPN, Grimm, Once Upon a Time, etc.

As soon as I heard about this new show, I marked it in my phone to remind myself to watch it. As a big fan of the supernatural, I was looking forward to this for a few months now. As a heads up, if you go into this expecting something serious and believable, well, just walk away now. It's meant to be entertaining, and boy is it ever. I thought this show was going to revolve around strictly the headless horseman..but I was pleasantly surprised to find out that there's more involved, such as demons and whatnot. And as a huge fan of demonic movies such as Insidious and Sinister, I am now really looking forward to where this show takes us. I don't expect it to win any Emmy's or anything, but if you're bored on a Monday night, this is more than good enough to fill an hour out for you.

Sleepy Hollow is a loose adaptation of Washington Irvine's tale The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, with a contemporary setting and an apocalyptic premise.

Whilst its not an exceptional series it does offer up some genuine originality. The story plausibly builds on Irvine's tale offering some interesting plot twists and turns and a well structured story line.

On the downside the complexity built into the story can see it come undone at times, confusing the viewer, as it oscillates between supernatural events and a broad cast of characters. I'd also add some of the "candy coated", revisionist history, is a bit tiresome at times, too.

What really lifts this series above the ordinary, for me, however is the exceptional screen presence of Tom Mison. Mison's, Ichabod Crane, is larger than life, moving easily from expressing refined awe and polite outrage, as he discovers the "new", New World. He's intelligent and observant too, with a wry wit and at times, amusingly stuffy, old world charm, that's impossible not to like.

Were it not for Mison this series would, for me at least, only rate a five out for ten. His performance however, really helps to bring this series to life. Six out of ten from me.

The first season was surprisingly great. I thought with such a premise as this, it would undoubtedly be a trainwreck, but i was pleasantly surprised, i even felt the need to tell people how good it was after watching that epic season 1 finale. However it has only gone downhill from there to the point where after just 2 seasons it is a steaming pile of crap that i am no longer emotionally invested in. It started out as one of the few genuinely scary shows on TV, with its depictions of moloch and purgatory as the especially thrilling and well done parts. However it seems that over time, the talented crew of writers and animators that made the first season so great have been replaced by rank amateurs, and what was once poignant and well done is now campy and cringeworthy. Even the VFX are just... bad. Like at points almost scorpion king level bad. Pandora and the hidden one are the worst thing this show has ever done, and that includes that weird turning Ichabods witch fiancé evil for no apparent reason thing. And they celebrate it, as if the weird stupid shît they have done since their first season is something to be proud of. Like speaking to the hologram of thomas jefferson while doing a completely unnecessary nonsense crossover with bones, of all things. Why on earth would you want to remind people of that godawful mess? Let alone treat it like its one of your selling points?

I have a suggestion for any viewer. Watch the show until John Noble leaves. Then stop watching there, so the entire show is not ruined forever.

Its witty , funny, fast paced and the action scenes are quite impressive and it does share the same pace and chemistry as the Tim Burton movie. It seems to be going the way of the X files complete with their own version of Deputy director Skinner ( Orlando Jones) and a plot leaning toward a conspiracy that not only threatens the town of Sleepy Hollow but the entire world. The problem with this series may lie with the limitations it seems to be setting on itself by drawing a lot of reference to the Bible. Is there going to be a connection to the Illuminati? There is a lot material that could be explored and the two main characters in Officer Abbie and Ichabad Crane seem to have a lot of questions surrounding them which is a good thing because it gives us the rest of the season to explore. Now with the way the horseman's appetite for heads is going it is safe to say that everyone except the two main characters are going to be expendable (yet another parallel to X files). I for one would like to see how far this series can go.

I taped this before I had to go out to California for a funeral. A week later, on a boring Saturday evening I decided to watch the Pilot. It takes a lot to make me a fan, and within the first 15 minutes, I was hooked. Now, I have to add five more lines for my review to be submitted. Really? Watch Johnny Depp's Sleepy Hallow first (which was excellent), then watch this TV series. But only if you are not familiar with the story. It will allow you to compare and decide if you prefer a two hour movie or a weekly show. I like the psychic aspect of it and how people keep denying that these things happen. This is now getting down to the last show (they only made six shows to start out to test the waters), I hope this will continue because I love the script writers perspective and they keep it fast-paced. If every episode was a chapter in a book, then I'd keep on reading for the next adventure. I have had so many paranormal experiences that the only far-fetched thing I dismissed was the man who showed up in the future, and the Book of Revelations. I do not believe in the scary new testament stories, but it makes good script. Very entertaining! Enjoy the experience.

The television series Sleepy Hollow is very loosely based on a short story written by American author Washington Irving. First published in 1820, 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow' is the tale of Ichabod Crane - a school teacher who unsuccessfully competes with Abraham Van Brunt for the hand of Katrina, the daughter of a wealthy farmer. On the night of his rejection by the girl, he is chased by a headless horseman, and is never seen again. This leaves Abraham (who it is later implied was the horseman) to marry Katrina.

The story has been adapted to the screen many times, but with the very little success. By far the best being director Tim Burton's 1999 version - Sleepy Hollow, starring Johnny Depp and Christina Ricci.

That being said, I was looking forward to seeing what direction this show would take after first reading about it a few months ago. I wasn't expecting too much, but I've always been a sucker for a new sci-fi or supernatural show.

As is the case with most screen adaptations of Irving's story, the only resemblance to the original is that it is based in the fictional town of Sleepy Hollow,and that some of the characters share the same names. As I said earlier, very loosely based.

Without giving too much away, Crane and the Horseman rise from their separate graves at the same time some 250 years after they killed each other in battle. The Horseman (as is pretty standard) is after his head, and it is up to Crane to stop him. The kicker in this, is that the Horseman is actually one of the biblical Horsemen (Death), and if he gets his head back, it will somehow trigger the beginning of the apocalypse.

Naturally, immediately after his resurrection, the Horseman starts beheading people and Crane is arrested on suspicion of the murders. After his arrest, he meets Officer Abbie Mills (who witnessed the Horseman kill her partner), and realising that Crane is important, goes against her superior's orders and teams up with him to stop the Horseman.

After just watching the pilot, I have to say, I'm pretty impressed. While perhaps a little far-fetched, the premise of the story is interesting, and open to many possibilities further down the track. The production values were high. The script seemed pretty solid and the acting and interaction between the actors was surprisingly good considering it is just the first episode. Tom Mison in particular did an excellent job as Ichabod Crane.

Sleepy Hollow definitely shows lots of promise, and if you're a fan of shows like Supernatural, Grimm, Once Upon a Time and the like, I highly recommend you give it a try.

Constantly repeating the whole storyline and the current story arc in the dialogue of every episode (I'm now in S2E3) ....another sign of the increasing simplicity of the human race, who don't register this or in fact, need it to follow the series. Thank goodness for double-speed play! Yaaawn.

REALLY enjoyed Sleepy Hollow!

I would say its current IMDB rating (7.3) seems a little too low, and thus it's underrated.

If you're a horror fan and haven't seen it, I recommend it. All in all, I'd say it is:

A kind of a cross between... The Da Vinci Code, Raiders of the Lost Ark, a touch of Locke and Key, a dash of time travel, and all your favorite/fun horror tropes/archetypes, mixed into adventures of the week, along with some longer evolving themes.

ALSO:

The dynamic between the 2 lead characters reminds me of that 1990's show: Due South.

In that show you had an archtype Canadian Mounted Police officer (Attache of the Canadian Embassy on loan, unarmed, but accompanied by his pet Husky!) who is sent to work with a US police officer on US streets, for some weird reason I can't remember...

And as you can imagine the humor ensues from the weirdness and culturally out place Canadian Mounty character, who is also at the same time highly charismatic.

So ya: I think we totally see the same dynamic play out here with Sleepy Hollow's 2 main characters a lot.

And... I guess that whole shtick could get annoying to some after a while, but not me: I really liked it, and wish they had done even more with that (even more of the main character's reactions to modern technology and social conventions, fashions...).

FINALLY:

Last episode of S1 was amazing, with a twist I totally did NOT even guess at or see coming!

So was genuinely shocked when the twist happened, which is refreshing.

I also like how they really amped up the creepy-horror factor of some of the people in "purgatory" in that last episode of S1. It sent some good horror chills I always enjoy.

Anyways...

Here's to hoping S2 and other seasons are also this good!

GF and I will start on S2 this weekend and looking forward to it, with some popcorn and a few drinks!

I tried to like this, I really did. I sat through seven and a half episodes so I gave it every chance, but I realised that it wasn't going to get any better and, more importantly, it wasn't adding anything to my life.

When I first heard about this series I thought what's not to like? A decapitated equestrian careering through mistily atmospheric forests in 18th century upstate New York. Fantastic! Literally.

Based on, or more accurately inspired by, the 1999 film of the same name, this version adds the element of time travel bringing the hero of the piece, the marvellously monikered Ichabod Crane, to contemporary America. So I was anticipating all sorts of time space continuum swashbuckling and mystery.

Unfortunately, the series has come up short.

First, the good. It started well after some impressive trailers had promised much. Also, the effects are impressive and seamless. You really can believe there is a skilled jockey thundering through manicured semi-rural USA without benefit of his head. And, where atmospheric shots of misty forests are required they certainly are… well…misty and atmospheric. However, once you've seen one headless horseman you've kind of seen them all and, as we get to see him early on, the potential for any suspense has been lost.

But that's about as good as it gets. Whilst there is a vague story arc running through the series about the horseman being the vanguard for his three mates of the Apocalypse, each episode features a self- contained plot, normally a slightly facile murder mystery. The plotting is not particularly ingenious and certainly lacks the coherent structure and satisfying resolution of Tim Burton's film, which clearly served as the starting point for the TV series. On the upside, and unusually for US produced shows with an historic element, the use of language is well-observed for time-travelling Ichabod, who generally sounds authentically of the 18th century and does not slip into any obviously contemporary speech patterns or idioms. Also, his lack of knowledge and surprise at the many changes between his time and contemporary America provide a satirical commentary that could have been explored further.

'Sleepy Hollow' is not a star vehicle and unfortunately it shows in the performances. Tom Mison as the central character brings all the authentic 'Britishness' of a 18th century English gentleman soldier that you'd expect with a fair dash of handsome swagger, but his continual insistence on wearing his original two-hundred-year old clothing renders him rather too self-aware in his movement; all collar- up and stiff neck, his performance quickly becomes very one-paced and irksome. Nicole Berahie, who plays his 21st century sidekick simply lacks the charisma or depth to merit the part. It might have been better to cast Lyndie Greenwood, who plays Berahie's disturbed sister, in the sidekick role as she dominates the screen far more effectively in her scenes.

Finally, 'Sleepy Hollow' is one of many US series that suffers from DIMS (dreadful incidental music syndrome). This afflicts many of what I would categorise as 2nd and 3rd division shows and is characterised by continual noise – let's call it muzak – throughout the whole playing time. It's probably all created by one person with a keyboard and a computer and mostly does not comprise what we would recognise as music at all. More, it is a collection of sounds designed to tell us, the viewer what we should be experiencing at any given time…excitement, suspense, resolution, relief, romantic interlude and so on. It is over- used and shows: 1) no respect to the viewer to work out what is going for themselves and 2) a complete lack of confidence from the producers in the script. I really feel that there should be an orchestrated (see what I did there) campaign to stamp out DIMS from television.

'Sleepy Hollow' is a game attempt that falls short and remains firmly in the 2nd division of the pantheon of US TV series. However, it is now into its fourth season so, clearly, there is an audience for this kind of fantasy, which is probably just about deserved for the production values.

really great and exciting by pilot, definitely worth of watch. if you're a fan of shows like Supernatural, Grimm, Once Upon a Time and the like, I highly recommend you give it a try.

When grisly murders begin happening, Ichabod helps Lieutenant Abby Mills with stopping the Horseman from bringing his supernatural army from the dead. Eventually, I'll come back and write a review for the 1st season. I hope this show lasts. So what are you left with? A really good show that when you watch the first episode your incentive to watch the next episode is that longing to know whats gonna happen next, but isn't from a cliffhanger or a twist. It's just that its a good show.

I just watched the first episode and I have to say this show is going to rock. I was glued to my seat waiting to see what was going to happen next. Lets keep our fingers crossed they don't cancel this show. Sleepy Hollow has always been a legend that I connect to my favorite time of year, Halloween. I look forward to every Monday now to see what terror the head less horse man brings to sleepy hollow.

Sleepy Hollow- 10 stars out of 10 stars Acting- 10 stars out of 10 stars

What terror will the legend bring next week? not sure but cant wait to find out!

Like many series, they start out strong and slowly devolve into a lost story that doesn't even resemble what it started as. I loved the whole historical drama although highly fictionalized. The first season is all about a combination of Washington Irving's tale and the Founding of America. Brilliantly done and had they stayed in that vein it would have been amazing, but perhaps there wasn't enough material to continue that storyline. Season 1 is a 9 out of 10. Season 2 is salvageable but the beginning of the end was obviously soon to come. The writers, turned characters into something that made zero sense, they turned Mills into a sanctimonious, condescending hypocrite. The actress played it well. In addition, this is where the virtue signaling bore its head. I tried so hard to finish Season 3, but by episode 16, I was ready to poke my eyes out. It flat left its original plot and became nothing more than a long, drawn out, painful supernatural knock off. When a series gets to the point you couldn't care less if the majority of characters live or die, you know you should stop watching. For me, I got down to the only redeemable character, Crane and the rest I truly wanted them to die off.

Started exceptionally well with a great premise

Four seasons, four horsemen, great incorporation of mythology and popular culture only to deteriorate into another uninspired, predictable and bland formulaic supernatural drama.

This could and would have been so much better focusing on the horsemen and much more engaging.

The casting cannot be faulted being dynamic and diverse if not somwhat too readily changeable.

Pace is too fast in places with the viewer left guessing and somewhat flat character backgrond exploration.

With a budget of 4M USD per episode that is greater than Grimm's 3-3.5M USD per episode and perhaps better choice, the loss of showrunner Mark Goffman at the end of season 2 is plainly evident.

A real shame as this had all the right ingredients, but changing the Chef halfway through ruined the meal.