Directors: Rusty Cundieff (Mums), Greg Nicotero (Queen Been)
Writers:  Joe Hill (Mums, based on the short story by) Greg Nicotero (Mums), Erik Sandoval (Queen Bee), Michael Rousellet (Queen Bee)
Cast (Mums): Brayden Benson, Ethan Embry, Erin Beute, Lowrey Brown, Malone Thomas
Cast (Queen Bee): Kaelyn Gobert-Harris, Olivia Hawthorne, Nico Gomez, Hannah Kepple, Monica Louwerens

‘Mums’ and ‘Queen Bee’ Air Date: 24/09/2021
Creepshow: Season 3 is now streaming on Shudder.

Creepshow is back a third season which will feature 12 stories told across six episodes. If it feels like we just got an injection of Creepshow — we did! Season Two was back in April of this year. But as an anthology series, and one that can hit as easily as it can miss, more never hurts.

The premiere of Creepshow: Season 3 features the stories’ Mums’ and ‘Queen Bee.’ With the former being a safe and generic opener and the latter bringing a fresh, original story.

‘Mums’ focuses on Jack, a young boy (Brayden Benson) dealing with an extremist and rough father (Ethan Embry) who’s planning something that sounds a lot like a targeted political attack. When his father catches his mother (Erin Beute) attempting to sneak away, he takes away to get help for an apparent drug and alcohol problem, leaving Jack to await his mother’s return. 

Unfortunately, ‘ Mums‘ is a paint by numbers revenge story with one exciting aspect — the extremist father subplot — that’s left merrily in the scraps on the floor. As a season opener, I guess it works to set the tone, especially for newcomers. It’s based on a Joe Hill short, which I haven’t read, but I would have to hope it is a little braver and carries more subtext.