American Monster

I was looking for something to watch after Evil Lives Here, and was so happy to find this amazing show! The home movies and interviews with the families really set this show apart! They take you from the victim and the killer's early lives right up to the moment of the 911 call with every important detail and event, without revealing which is the victim and which is the killer, although it's easy to guess at times. Other times, it's absolutely shocking. Every case is unique, and indeed, a monstrous killer is exposed in each carefully crafted episode. The ambience is perfectly set, from the happy baby/child photos/videos, through the troubled times that build up to the violence, to the cruel act itself. The background music is a heart-breakingly beautiful melody, alternating with ominous sounds and music to make our hearts race. The aftermath reveals the victim's families' and friends' thoughts and feelings, as well as the fate of the murderer. In this series, every case is solved to satisfaction, with no loose ends. Between the velvety narration, families' assistance and law enforcement, by the end of the episode, we come to know everyone involved in the case, almost as if we'd met them personally. This show gave me goosebumps. I was left wishing for more episodes of this addictive show when the series ended. In my humble opinion, this is the cream of the crop of the true crime genre!

I love this series and am glad that it has managed to stay on for a while now. However, this is one of those series where the narrator was the icing on the cake. For me, changing the narrator this past season really negatively impacted the show. It's similar to how I would feel if they changed the narrator on the series Snapped from the Oxygen channel. I'm not sure what the reasons are behind it but if it's possible to get the original narrator back I really wish you would.

This show spends most of the time telling you about people's lives, from as early in their lives as possible. I don't care about the unrelated sweet sixteen party that happened 20 years before the crime.

One of the best season 1-6, for some reason season 7 is falling flat. Prior years, I was engaged, the story and the telling were riveting. Not sure what has changed, but, change it back.

This is definitely one of my favourite series on the ID channel. The home videos is what really drives it home for me. I haven't seen any new episodes in a long time though or any promotions for a new season so I'm getting a little nervous it might not stick around. If you love true crime then you'll like this series.