IT: Welcome to Derry

IT: Welcome to Derry is a solid horror series that really nails atmosphere and suspense, with Pennywise as terrifying as ever and the adult performances bringing real depth. The town feels alive, full of secrets that keep you hooked, and the storytelling mostly balances tension and emotion perfectly. Some of the younger characters' arcs don't hit as strongly, and a few moments drag or show slightly off CGI, but these are minor hiccups in an otherwise gripping show. Overall, it's a strong 8.5-9/10 - highly recommended for horror fans.

Episode 1. So, I just watched the first episode of the new IT series, and yes, I'll keep watching because I've always been a huge IT fan.

Honestly, I get that IT is all about imagination... it's meant to be something you experience through the eyes of children, where fantasy and fear blend together. That part I respect. But the way they used CGI and fake-looking sets... nope. It completely kills the vibe. It's overdone, unrealistic, and honestly kind of ridiculous at times.

As for the child actors, they're not terrible, but it feels like déjà vu. Like we've seen this exact lineup a hundred times before. Everything feels recycled and generic.

At this point, if we're going to rely that much on CGI, we might as well let AI make the whole movie and honestly, I think I'd prefer that over this cartoonish visual style.

Anyway, that's just my take after episode one. I'll keep watching and see how it evolves but let's just say, my expectations are officially on pause for now.

Episode 2 of IT: Honestly, it just confirms what I said in my review of the first one, the CGI completely kills the atmosphere. It feels like they're trying to make up for a flat storyline with visual effects, but it only makes everything look fake and lifeless. There's no tension, no real fear, nothing unsettling about it.

And again, it's all so déjà vu. The kids are OK actors but it's the same formula we've seen a thousand times: the bullied kid, the abusive parent, the depressed mom, the family trauma. It's like they're following the Stephen King cliché checklist, updated for 2025.

As for horror? None. Not a single scene feels scary or even suspenseful. Everything is so polished and predictable that you never actually feel on edge. It's starting to feel more like a sad drama about traumatized kids than a horror series.

Honestly, I'm just waiting for Bill Skarsgård to show up, because right now, even the plot feels painfully slow and uninspired. Nothing grabs you. If they don't start bringing real horror into it soon, this might just end up being another overproduced, CGI-filled flop.

It borrows a lot from the IT movies that came before, which makes it look cheap and tacky. These kids feel like Temu versions of the original kids. Two main boys in this episode are just knockoffs of Richie and Stanley from the original movie. The only good thing is production quality the rest is kinda "meh" and the acting is not good. It's not really scary or creepy it just feels random and considering the runtime is almost 55 minutes, the story seems slow. As a pilot it's meant to hook people and I'm personally not, but the series might get better.

I had high hopes for this series and hope it gets better. I'm not sure if it's meant to be scary but the visual effects just aren't doing it for me. It's comical at times when it's not mean to be?

I will hold out that the series gets better but right now I'm struggling to get into it. I want to clarify I haven't watched any of the IT movies, so it's my first intro to this franchise.

Just another piece of rehashed , revivalist guff ?

This is now in the franchise because of the early success of Stranger Things , which wouldn't have existed without , yes you've guessed it , IT !

As a result , they are both worn out tropes , containing the same juvenile drivel , badly packaged with over the top unrealistic, computer generated nonsense ( backed up with pointless AI ).

It's too easy , except for on the eye .