Reviews
[TV Review] “Scream” Episode 2.06: ‘Jeepers Creepers’
“Jeepers Creepers” was a pretty solid episode of Scream and continues its trend of being a vast improvement over the first season, but before I get into why this episode worked as well as it did one glaring flaw needs to be brought up: Why set a good chunk of the episode in a carnival and completely squander any potential it has for a chase scene? Just when it looked like the killer was going to get our quartet of leads caught in an exciting chase, they leave. Why even set a scene there at all? One can only hope that the series will return there for a legitimate chase scene. That’s my rant, but the episode gets docked half a skull for that missed opportunity.
While there was no real reason for the carnival setting, it did finally reveal Audrey’s past with Piper. After receiving a text from the motel concierge (who died three episodes ago) to meet him at the aforementioned fair grounds, Noah unwittingly walks into a trap and gets knocked out by the killer. He wakes up strapped into a roller coaster car with Audrey tied up behind him. Lo and behold, it was Audrey’s who knocked him out and tied him up, not the killer. It was all a ploy to get him to confess why he has been following her around lately. She certainly was the poster child for taking things too far, no? She could have just sat him down and asked him, but that wouldn’t have made for very exciting television.
It is revealed that Audrey was not Piper’s accomplice (I called it). She merely begged Piper to come Lakewood and feels guilty about it since it led to the death of so many people. While her methods may have been extreme, at least her secret is finally out in the open (with Noah anyway) so we can move on past that mystery. It is still puzzling that she still wants to keep it a secret from Emma, but now that Noah and the audience knows the truth the focus can move on to the killer.
A common theory among viewers this season is that Emma is the killer. While it is understandable that one would assume that (she only interacts with the killer when there is no one else around and the emails to Emma’s dad that were coming from Riley’s email address were coming from Emma’s computer), it’s still a highly unlikely scenario. For one, Audrey saw the killer recording her in the motel room a few episodes back. Second (and here’s the big one), it would be a High Tension-level cheat if Emma turned out to be the killer. It makes sense that Emma’s PTSD will cause her to hallucinate, but to have her be the murderer and not realize any of it? No. The only reason I’m worried is because when the killer calls her this week he (she?) tells Emma that he’s in her head and she knows it. Is that a literal statement? If that is the direction this season takes it would ruin an otherwise solid season just like High Tension‘s twist ruins an otherwise fantastic film. Don’t do it writers.
Emma was all about telling people who wasn’t the killer this week (first Audrey and then Branson), which was a little frustrating. You’d think that after last season she would be a bit more suspicious of those around her. That being said, it’s nice to see her staying strong after her upswing last week. Those who have been skeptical of her (myself included) as a Final Girl may finally be coming around to Emma. This is the Emma we have been wanting to see since the series began.
The real badass of the episode was Brooke, and boy did Branson get a little more than he bargained for with her, didn’t he? What we saw this week was Brooke taking matters into her own hands and it was glorious. After getting Gustavo to go through his dad’s file on Branson, she learns that he was dating Ms. Lang (a fact that surprisingly hasn’t been brought up until now), Brooke slyly tells Ms. Lang that she was with Seth the night of Jake’s murder and then seduces Seth into a trap. The reason Brooke is and always has been a more compelling character than Emma is that she is a stronger female character. Rather than retreat back into her shell like Emma has done in the past, she unhinges just a bit and goes full-on Catherine Tramell on him, except with a pair of scissors instead of an ice pick (What did that pillow ever do to you Brooke?). I’m not defending her bender here. She clearly needs to talk to a therapist, but where Emma has frequently been stuck in a period of stasis, Brooke has always taken action. It’s not always the right action, but it’s an action nonetheless. This automatically makes her the more interesting character. If there was an MVP of “Jeepers Creepers,” it was Brooke.
The missed opportunity with the carnival setting aside, “Jeepers Creepers” continues Scream’s trend of getting better each week. I have actually found myself excited when a new episode airs and wanting to find out where everything is headed. That is not something that could be said about every episode last season.
Random Notes
- Scream Thinks the Audience is Stupid Moment: Noah tells the audience that sometimes no one survives a horror movie. Oddly enough, Audrey seemed not to know that fact. You’re better than that Audrey.
- Why doesn’t Noah just show Emma the GIF? That would seem to make a lot more sense in convincing her of Audrey’s guilt.
- Emma, it’s not your crime board. You don’t just get to dictate what Noah does or doesn’t put on it. Make your own.
- Brooke’s dad and Kieran’s aunt seem to be hitting it off nicely. I expect we’ll be seeing more of them in the coming weeks.
- Gustavo’s drawing were for a graphic novel. He’s not that crazy you guys! Props to Kaitlin and John of the “Do You Like Scary Podcasts?” podcasts. They called it last week.
- “I know. She’s his age.” -Gustavo, when Brooke says it “makes 100% no sense” that Branson is dating Ms. Lang. His sassiness is endearing.
- “Playtime’s over, bitch!”
- “Jake was doing that? For me? What an idiot.” -Brooke was on fire this week!
- “JK. Now I believe you and you get to keep all of your man parts. Win win!” -I couldn’t not make a GIF of that.
- Somewhere in Time is Noah’s second favorite movie. I have no room to judge. Steel Magnolias is in my Top 10.
- “You love your Murder Board it’s what you do. It’s who you are!” -I don’t think any actor could have sold this line, but damn if Bex didn’t try her hardest. It still came off as silly, but props for trying.
- Branson got his hands cut off and the killer cauterizes his bloody stumps with an iron, so I guess he’ll be sticking around.
- Did that iron ding when it was preheated? I wish my iron did that.
- Brooke was giving us all kinds of face this week. Here was my favorite (sorry Carlson):
Movies
‘Corpus’ Review: A Seductive Slow-Burn Erotic Thriller With a Supernatural Twist [Fantasia 2026]
Director Corrin Evans‘ sweaty, immersive voyage back to the ’90s deftly bypasses nostalgic pastiche thanks to strong form and vision in his feature debut, Corpus. Evocative of 1998’s High Art in indie attitude, style, and themes, Corpus so effectively pulls you into its brooding vision of identity and intimacy that its supernatural elements become almost an afterthought in this slow-simmering psychological thriller.
Evans, who co-writes with Lily Cowles, opens Corpus with a discomforting attention grabber that sees a young woman, Wren (Yellowjackets‘ Nuha Jes Izman), put in an increasingly awkward, then disturbing position at a professional photo shoot. The scene abruptly cuts right at the cusp of sexual violence, setting in motion the overarching mystery that protagonist Sayo (Jeff Wahlberg) slowly discovers he’s been pulled into.
Corpus introduces Sayo as an aspiring photographer with an eye for composition, but one who scrapes by in New York City dealing drugs at nightclubs. His quiet routine gets upended with the return of Vince Marlowe (Brodie Townsend), a star on the rise and Sayo’s longtime crush. Vince convinces Sayo and their mutual pal Ross (Michael Vlamis) to accompany him to an exclusive party hosted by his affluent photographer friend Billie (Lily Cowles). Instead of a bustling gathering filled with prominent guests, though, Sayo is surprised to arrive at an isolated estate deep in the woods, with only Billie, Billie’s strange friend Cata (Ching Valdes-Aran), and Wren to greet them.
It’s the type of bait-and-switch that should set off warnings within Sayo, but his unresolved feelings for Vince override his sense of survival as the strange behaviors grow more sinister over the weekend.
Sayo’s loneliness becomes the epicenter for Evans’ sensual examination of modern relationships, intimacy, and gender norms. As such, Corpus favors slow simmering, sensual unease as Evans dials into the push and pull among its central relationships. More acutely, Sayo’s deep confusion takes center stage as he tries to navigate his perplexing dynamic with the object of his desire. Vince runs hot and cold. Flirtations and advances are sometimes encouraged, sometimes rejected. Not helping is the bizarre dynamic between Billie and her mysterious “friend” Cata. Or Wren’s new feral persona, a far cry from her timid opener.
Fixating so thoroughly on the intricacies of Sayo and Vince’s will-they-won’t-they adds meaty thematic depth, a haunting depiction of loneliness leaving someone vulnerable to different forms of manipulation. It’s here where Evans slowly, ever so slowly, layers in hints of horror. Sensuality and relationship drama take center stage, and while Evans’ strong grasp of form makes for a compelling watch that holds you firmly in its grip, its middle section is prone to pacing lulls.
So much so that by the time Corpus is ready to reveal its sinister horror surprise, it feels almost too little too late. The disorienting nature of desire and intimacy gives way to a full-throttle home invasion that lays all intentions bare and finally unmasks its horror, but it comes in a frenzied rush that can’t wait to conclude Sayo’s erstwhile romantic pursuits.
The restrained horror does frustrate in the wake of the film’s potent cold open, raising the expectation for a more energetic journey that never fully arrives, but what it lacks in supernatural scares it makes up for in style and atmosphere. Wahlberg makes for a complicated, sympathetic lead as the vulnerable romantic struggling to find his place in the world, let alone whether he’s destined for love or the friendship zone. The ’90s setting doesn’t just remove the pesky problem of smartphones when trouble arises; it lets Evans play with form and incorporate photography techniques that raise visual interest. Even the music adds rich texture. It all makes for a stylish debut with a strong voice at the helm, but it never pushes far enough into erotic thriller or horror territory to fully unsettle.
Corpus made its premiere at the 2026 Fantasia International Film Festival. Release info TBD.
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