Idk why but I LOVE the small touch of the light coming through the mom’s sun hat on the day they buried the first kitten, shining on her face when she appears with the purple box at the end.
Your reactions are great - empathic, articulate, and you really notice details that hadn't even occurred to me. I wish my old eyes could spot the ghosts that hide in some of the backgrounds, but even when some reactors show a circle around them, I never, ever see them. I bet you will, though!
You are the best reactor/reviewer ever. You have the intelligence and the depth of emotion and you really pay attention and just GET IT. I would do anything for you to react to the show LOST! I think you'd absolutely adore it.
Many people don’t catch the little insides jokes in this episode referring to Twilight. Adult Shirley is played wonderfully by Elizabeth Reaser, who played Esme in Twilight. In this episode she names one of the cats Jasper, and when Kevin (Shirley’s husband) is trying to talk her out of doing Nell’s “funeral prep”, he suggests letting “Carlisle” do it. Jasper and Carlisle are both vampires in Twilight. 😂
The reason I love this show is because it is just Family drama with sprinkle of horror as the allegory of grief. Just so good. Episodes to come have so much emotional impact as well
What can I say about Shirley? Many of us are drawn to establish mastery over our wounds so they lose the power to hurt us. To cover them up with a better picture, one might say. This show really delves into the subjects of family trauma, grief, and compartmentalization and I love it ❤ Edit: hey, you came to the same conclusion! 😄
I totally agree with you that it should have been Nellie's choise, but I also think that if she'd seen Luke coming to her wedding like that her heart would have broken a bit and it would have cast a shadow over the wedding and reception. This show is so good at tugging at the heart-strings :)
I agree. I also can't help but think that people are harsh on laying all the blame at Shirley's feet. Luke could have turned down the cash and told her "too bad" and still gone to the wedding. He chose the drugs he could buy with the money over his closest sister's wedding. Given that he made that choice, I agree that Shirley made the right choice, because he would have likely done something that ruined the day Nell got to have even though he wasn't there. It's so tragic, all around.
@@Keeshya6 I don't know if it would've been so easy for Luke to turn it down. Don't get me wrong, I understand your point, but I have to stick up for Luke here too. Firstly, I assume that, after everything he's been through (running away from rehab, borrowing money, etc.) he maybe already had low self-esteem when he got there being on drugs, knowing he should've been sober and because of that Shirley's words have a completely different effect on him that makes him more likely to believe her when she says that he's in the wrong place because he's high and he should leave and in his mindset and being in his condition it would've been harder for him to contradict her. Secondly, she's offering an addict (!) money. and if you combine those two things (1. "she is right, i shouldnt be here" and 2. "100 bucks for drugs")i can understand why he left. but as you said, It's tragic all around.
I love that you are already so invested in the story and especially the characters! Really enjoyed your reaction! I already wrote this on the first reaction, but i think i can already say that this is going to be one of my favorite reactions to this show, and i've watched A LOT! Can't wait for you to continue this emotional rollercoaster
You are genuinely one of the best reactors I’ve ever seen watch this show. And I’ve seen them all because I love this show so much! 😭 I love how empathetic you are to these characters and how deep of an understanding you have of each of their struggles and plights.
This show is brilliant in so many amazingly subtle ways besides the obvious. Like the way the sun is shining through on moms face through the hat at 16:04 (during the whole kitten in the box scene when they’re outside) is exactly the way her face is lit when she rises up on the slab in Shirley’s embalming room at 29:27. The mom is also holding the box there, and her face is lit just the way it was the last time she saw her mom holding the box. Like the sun is shining through the holes in her hat on her face.
one great detail is that the five siblings are supposed to represent stages of grief: Steven is denial, Shirley is anger, Theo is bargaining, Luke is depression and Nell is acceptance love this show
I've seen this fan theory dozens of places, and as cool as it is and as much as I like it, I'm not sure how well it matches up. It's difficult to see how any of the children clearly represent acceptance or bargaining, and I personally see denial as the dominant characteristic of Steve, Shirley AND Luke, depression fits Nell better, and anger goes with Theo the "clenched fist with hair". I'm curious to see how/if Sophie thinks they line up. (Not that it matters, but even Dr Kuebler-Ross has said that her model describes the stages a person receiving a fatal diagnosis can expect to experience in any order not just 1,2,3,4,5 and not the people left behind)
If you do react to Bly Manor, and I hope that you will, don't expect it to be the same as Hill House. If that makes sense :) It's horror, and it's drama, but the themes are different and so is the atmosphere. I think it's good but a lot of people seem to have gone into it expecting the same as Hill House and ended up not liking it, likely because of that.
it's just inferior in every way. and yes, Hill House set the bar insanely high. basically, impossibly high. but Bly Manor was just not it for many reasons. if it was as solid with characters as Hill House i think people would have liked it better. but it fails on that front. the theme is fine. everyone understands it. but it's just some characters just don't have the depth they do in Hill House.
@@vincentdarkrosrayne Interesting. I actually like Bly Manor more than Hill House. I think the pace in Bly Manor is better and the accent is more on the story than the characters, which I like. I like some of the characters in Hill House, but the story\plot itself is not as engaging as in Bly Manor to me.
that's not the experience i had with any of the folks i've talked to. yes, hill house is objectively scarier and has more jump scares, but bly manor is a much more nuanced story imo, with better pacing, and a better backstory. obviously, that's just how opinions work, but it's still interesting to me that our experiences are so entirely different.
@@alexie5201 yeah, i felt the exact opposite. and i definitely didn't feel attached to the characters in Bly Manor. The Chef and the House Assistant were the best characters, in my opinion. and their chemistry was great. but the show tries to force focus on two relationships i just didn't care about and didn't really feel any chemistry. maybe it's the actors. because the actor that plays as the chef just does really well with engaging with the other actors. iZombi was my first time seeing him and his great chemistry along with the other lead actress (who excels in that same area) made me excited to watch that show because the characters are so great. and i feel the characters is a super important part of these shows and that's why Bly Manor falls off for me. it focuses less on the characters and more on the story of the house and trying to build up a mystery that, we as the audience, know just isn't really existent. TL;DR Bly Manor has a lot of holes and pacing issues, imo. Hill House has very little to no holes which is why i consider it a masterpiece. Bly Manor isn't bad, tho. it's solid. but i wouldn't put it anywhere near the same pedestal as Hill House
@@vincentdarkrosrayne To each their own. I wasn't attached to any Hill House characters, except for Nell, her story was heartbreaking. I still love the show though, and I consider it one of the best shows ever made. Both series are great, really, but in a different way. I just happened to connect with Bly Manor's story more.
after watching this show 20 plus times , I just now noticed that Theo is reading The Lottery by Shirley Jackson when Nellie asks her to play tea party. I find new stuff all the time
glad you are getting into this show. it's in my top 3 all time favorites. and it's funny because you're also reacting to another one that's in that list which is Charmed. New Girl might be a bit long but then again you are reacting to Once Upon A Time which is probably number 4. so a lot of fun content for me to look forward to just from this channel.
I cant wait for the reacrions this was peak netflix and the director 🙌 this show was as good quality as game of thrones as far as character writing and horror being a backdrop not the main thing it is truly film making with true professionals its insane
Awesome show but I really don't get everyone's hate for Bly Manor at all, it's a different vibe completely. In my opinion it's a Gothic Romance not a horror show, it's suppose to be creepy atmospheric but has a love story underneath it all. I think too many people went into it with false expectations thinking it was suppose to be really scary just like Hill House but it's a completely different show. It's personally my least favorite series I've seen of Mike Flanagans by comparing it to the other shows he's done but in no way does that mean it's bad or that I don't like it cuz it's still a good series. It's like saying in amongst a stack of grade A papers it's an A- therefore it's awful which is ridiculous. If you don't like it fine but don't go around telling every reactor on youtube it's horrible, don't watch it. I got done watching the reactions from the Raggedy Pack channel where many of their viewers were telling them not to watch Bly, it's crap don't even bother. They were hesitant to watch it because of this but decided to try it anyways and ended up really loving the show. Let people form their own opinions please.
Midnight Mass next? Some more TV ideas: Smallville Kyle XY Castle Mentalist Emily in Paris Orange in the new black The Vampire Diaries The Order Supernatural One Tree Hill Forever Point Plesant
Hi Sophie, Haunting of Hill House is incredible; unfortunately, the sequel is not, not sure they’re really connected except they’ve used a lot of the same actors. Enjoy.
You are literally the only person that thinks that. Also its not a damn sequel??? Are you stupid? Its just an expanded universe, Mika Flanagans shows are completely different shows. Also Bly Manor, Midnight Mass, House of Usher, they are all great.
The Haunting of Bly Manor is not a sequel to the Hill House, just another serie created by Mike Flanagan. He did use some of the same actors but they do not have a connection.
they are not connected. they are independent stories. similar to how American Horror Story goes on to different stories but while using several of the same cast members. i do like that idea. but you are very correct in the fact that Hill House is leagues ahead of the other stories. people say Midnite Mass is the second best so i need to give it a watch. it's one of the few i didn't catch.
Ps: My reaction to Episode 5 is now over on Patreon for anyone wanting to skip ahead! www.patreon.com/SoFieReacts
Idk why but I LOVE the small touch of the light coming through the mom’s sun hat on the day they buried the first kitten, shining on her face when she appears with the purple box at the end.
Your reactions are great - empathic, articulate, and you really notice details that hadn't even occurred to me. I wish my old eyes could spot the ghosts that hide in some of the backgrounds, but even when some reactors show a circle around them, I never, ever see them. I bet you will, though!
You are the best reactor/reviewer ever. You have the intelligence and the depth of emotion and you really pay attention and just GET IT. I would do anything for you to react to the show LOST! I think you'd absolutely adore it.
i really want to see her reaction to Lost as well , it would be great
@pariamtzv Right?! She's like the ideal LOST reactor lol. Really hope it happens one day 🙏
Many people don’t catch the little insides jokes in this episode referring to Twilight. Adult Shirley is played wonderfully by Elizabeth Reaser, who played Esme in Twilight.
In this episode she names one of the cats Jasper, and when Kevin (Shirley’s husband) is trying to talk her out of doing Nell’s “funeral prep”, he suggests letting “Carlisle” do it.
Jasper and Carlisle are both vampires in Twilight. 😂
I missed that, good catch!
How did I not catch that, that's hilarious
Your eye for detail and nuance is so good.
The reason I love this show is because it is just Family drama with sprinkle of horror as the allegory of grief. Just so good. Episodes to come have so much emotional impact as well
What can I say about Shirley? Many of us are drawn to establish mastery over our wounds so they lose the power to hurt us. To cover them up with a better picture, one might say.
This show really delves into the subjects of family trauma, grief, and compartmentalization and I love it ❤
Edit: hey, you came to the same conclusion! 😄
I totally agree with you that it should have been Nellie's choise, but I also think that if she'd seen Luke coming to her wedding like that her heart would have broken a bit and it would have cast a shadow over the wedding and reception. This show is so good at tugging at the heart-strings :)
I know it's messed up but I think I would have done the same thing had I been in Shirley's place
I agree. I also can't help but think that people are harsh on laying all the blame at Shirley's feet. Luke could have turned down the cash and told her "too bad" and still gone to the wedding. He chose the drugs he could buy with the money over his closest sister's wedding. Given that he made that choice, I agree that Shirley made the right choice, because he would have likely done something that ruined the day Nell got to have even though he wasn't there. It's so tragic, all around.
@@Keeshya6 I don't know if it would've been so easy for Luke to turn it down. Don't get me wrong, I understand your point, but I have to stick up for Luke here too. Firstly, I assume that, after everything he's been through (running away from rehab, borrowing money, etc.) he maybe already had low self-esteem when he got there being on drugs, knowing he should've been sober and because of that Shirley's words have a completely different effect on him that makes him more likely to believe her when she says that he's in the wrong place because he's high and he should leave and in his mindset and being in his condition it would've been harder for him to contradict her. Secondly, she's offering an addict (!) money. and if you combine those two things (1. "she is right, i shouldnt be here" and 2. "100 bucks for drugs")i can understand why he left. but as you said, It's tragic all around.
I love that you are already so invested in the story and especially the characters! Really enjoyed your reaction! I already wrote this on the first reaction, but i think i can already say that this is going to be one of my favorite reactions to this show, and i've watched A LOT! Can't wait for you to continue this emotional rollercoaster
You are genuinely one of the best reactors I’ve ever seen watch this show. And I’ve seen them all because I love this show so much! 😭 I love how empathetic you are to these characters and how deep of an understanding you have of each of their struggles and plights.
This show is brilliant in so many amazingly subtle ways besides the obvious. Like the way the sun is shining through on moms face through the hat at 16:04 (during the whole kitten in the box scene when they’re outside) is exactly the way her face is lit when she rises up on the slab in Shirley’s embalming room at 29:27. The mom is also holding the box there, and her face is lit just the way it was the last time she saw her mom holding the box. Like the sun is shining through the holes in her hat on her face.
one great detail is that the five siblings are supposed to represent stages of grief: Steven is denial, Shirley is anger, Theo is bargaining, Luke is depression and Nell is acceptance
love this show
Haunting of Hill House
Haunting of Bly Manor
Midnight Mass
The Fall of house of Usher
In that order. These are Mike Flanagan masterpices!
Add Occulus and Doctor Sleep!
15:00 you mentioned stages of grief; the siblings represent those stages.
steve: denial
shirley: anger
theo: bargaining
luke: depression
nell: acceptance
I've seen this fan theory dozens of places, and as cool as it is and as much as I like it, I'm not sure how well it matches up. It's difficult to see how any of the children clearly represent acceptance or bargaining, and I personally see denial as the dominant characteristic of Steve, Shirley AND Luke, depression fits Nell better, and anger goes with Theo the "clenched fist with hair". I'm curious to see how/if Sophie thinks they line up. (Not that it matters, but even Dr Kuebler-Ross has said that her model describes the stages a person receiving a fatal diagnosis can expect to experience in any order not just 1,2,3,4,5 and not the people left behind)
Maybe they rotate between the show
If you thought episode 2 was emotional, wait until episode 5, "Two Storms", especially the last minute.
If you do react to Bly Manor, and I hope that you will, don't expect it to be the same as Hill House. If that makes sense :) It's horror, and it's drama, but the themes are different and so is the atmosphere. I think it's good but a lot of people seem to have gone into it expecting the same as Hill House and ended up not liking it, likely because of that.
it's just inferior in every way. and yes, Hill House set the bar insanely high. basically, impossibly high. but Bly Manor was just not it for many reasons. if it was as solid with characters as Hill House i think people would have liked it better. but it fails on that front. the theme is fine. everyone understands it. but it's just some characters just don't have the depth they do in Hill House.
@@vincentdarkrosrayne Interesting. I actually like Bly Manor more than Hill House. I think the pace in Bly Manor is better and the accent is more on the story than the characters, which I like. I like some of the characters in Hill House, but the story\plot itself is not as engaging as in Bly Manor to me.
that's not the experience i had with any of the folks i've talked to. yes, hill house is objectively scarier and has more jump scares, but bly manor is a much more nuanced story imo, with better pacing, and a better backstory. obviously, that's just how opinions work, but it's still interesting to me that our experiences are so entirely different.
@@alexie5201 yeah, i felt the exact opposite. and i definitely didn't feel attached to the characters in Bly Manor. The Chef and the House Assistant were the best characters, in my opinion. and their chemistry was great. but the show tries to force focus on two relationships i just didn't care about and didn't really feel any chemistry. maybe it's the actors. because the actor that plays as the chef just does really well with engaging with the other actors. iZombi was my first time seeing him and his great chemistry along with the other lead actress (who excels in that same area) made me excited to watch that show because the characters are so great.
and i feel the characters is a super important part of these shows and that's why Bly Manor falls off for me. it focuses less on the characters and more on the story of the house and trying to build up a mystery that, we as the audience, know just isn't really existent.
TL;DR Bly Manor has a lot of holes and pacing issues, imo. Hill House has very little to no holes which is why i consider it a masterpiece. Bly Manor isn't bad, tho. it's solid. but i wouldn't put it anywhere near the same pedestal as Hill House
@@vincentdarkrosrayne To each their own. I wasn't attached to any Hill House characters, except for Nell, her story was heartbreaking. I still love the show though, and I consider it one of the best shows ever made.
Both series are great, really, but in a different way. I just happened to connect with Bly Manor's story more.
after watching this show 20 plus times , I just now noticed that Theo is reading The Lottery by Shirley Jackson when Nellie asks her to play tea party. I find new stuff all the time
glad you are getting into this show. it's in my top 3 all time favorites. and it's funny because you're also reacting to another one that's in that list which is Charmed. New Girl might be a bit long but then again you are reacting to Once Upon A Time which is probably number 4. so a lot of fun content for me to look forward to just from this channel.
I cant wait for the reacrions this was peak netflix and the director 🙌 this show was as good quality as game of thrones as far as character writing and horror being a backdrop not the main thing it is truly film making with true professionals its insane
14:55 “from denial to anger..stages of grief” YES!!!! the 5 siblings represent the 5 stages of grief
yeah this show is pretty heavy
You are in big trouble 🙂. This show is absolutely amazing, but it is heartbreaking.
Oh, if you think this one is emotional... You've got a big storm coming
Another series you may like is Midnight Mass
Lulu and her older actress are so similar looking
Girlll not Scary Beauty 😂😂😂 loved your reaction to this episode ❤️🔥
Are you sure the "ghosts" aren't real?
"the episode was very emotional"
guys... should we warn her about 5 and 6?
Awesome show but I really don't get everyone's hate for Bly Manor at all, it's a different vibe completely. In my opinion it's a Gothic Romance not a horror show, it's suppose to be creepy atmospheric but has a love story underneath it all. I think too many people went into it with false expectations thinking it was suppose to be really scary just like Hill House but it's a completely different show. It's personally my least favorite series I've seen of Mike Flanagans by comparing it to the other shows he's done but in no way does that mean it's bad or that I don't like it cuz it's still a good series. It's like saying in amongst a stack of grade A papers it's an A- therefore it's awful which is ridiculous. If you don't like it fine but don't go around telling every reactor on youtube it's horrible, don't watch it. I got done watching the reactions from the Raggedy Pack channel where many of their viewers were telling them not to watch Bly, it's crap don't even bother. They were hesitant to watch it because of this but decided to try it anyways and ended up really loving the show. Let people form their own opinions please.
Do you do all of your Playlists backwards? Makes them harder to watch...
Midnight Mass next? Some more TV ideas:
Smallville
Kyle XY
Castle
Mentalist
Emily in Paris
Orange in the new black
The Vampire Diaries
The Order
Supernatural
One Tree Hill
Forever
Point Plesant
After this show: Watch the fall of the house of Usher; Same creater, alot of the same actors, less horror, better story
Your cut ess compensates us for the horror
Hi Sophie, Haunting of Hill House is incredible; unfortunately, the sequel is not, not sure they’re really connected except they’ve used a lot of the same actors. Enjoy.
You are literally the only person that thinks that. Also its not a damn sequel??? Are you stupid? Its just an expanded universe, Mika Flanagans shows are completely different shows.
Also Bly Manor, Midnight Mass, House of Usher, they are all great.
The Haunting of Bly Manor is not a sequel to the Hill House, just another serie created by Mike Flanagan. He did use some of the same actors but they do not have a connection.
they are not connected. they are independent stories. similar to how American Horror Story goes on to different stories but while using several of the same cast members. i do like that idea. but you are very correct in the fact that Hill House is leagues ahead of the other stories. people say Midnite Mass is the second best so i need to give it a watch. it's one of the few i didn't catch.
It's whole different type of story and it's beautiful
Saying it's not incredible is definitely subjective. I personally really love Bly Manor, just in a different way than Hill House