Is It: Welcome to Derry worth the watch?

A red balloon 🎈 in Derry isn’t a sight you want to see. It: Welcome to Derry is a prequel to Stephen King’s IT series. Does this prequel float as a worthy addition to the Stephen King universe or does it sink under the weight of exception. Let’s pop the balloon and find out.

This blog will contain spoilers, adult themes, and explicit language!

Show Details

  • Title: It: Welcome to Derry
  • Where to Watch: HBO Max
  • Seasons: 1
  • Episodes: 8
  • Duration: 486 Min
  • Director: Andy Muschietti

Brief Summary of the Show

This is a prequel to the It films based off of Stephen King’s 1986 novel by the same name. It is set in 1962 in Derry, Maine.

The IMDB description is as follows: “In 1962, a couple with their son move to Derry, Maine just as a young boy disappears. With their arrival, bad things begin to happen in the town.” See the full IMDB page

Overall Thoughts

Overall, I thought the show was really well made. I enjoyed watching it and learning more about IT’s origin. I do think that eight episodes was the right amount. If there had been any more, it just would’ve been way too much to the show, and I do have to say that my favorite episode was the final episode.

I really liked all of the characters, and I thought everyone did a great job. Bill Stellan Skarsgård revived his role as Pennywise, and he was phenomenal as always. His portrayal of IT is immaculate, and he knows how to truly bring that character to life in all forms of IT.

The special effects were pretty well done with the exception of a few scenes which I’ll discuss in the episode breakdown section.

The theme song was very catchy, and I liked to analyze the opening credits as the story progresses. I feel like more and more details are noticed as you watch more of the episodes.

I will note that it has been some time since I’ve seen the IT movies, so there may be details that I missed that relate to other Stephen King works in that particular universe or the IT films themselves.

Episode Breakdown

Let’s break down each episode and discuss the plot and key events. This will be a mini deep-dive into every episode. The description will be what is provided in the episode details on HBO Max.

  • Episode 1
    • Title: The Pilot
    • Duration: 54 Min
    • Episode in 5 emojis:
    • Description: As four misfit kids vow to find their missing classmate, Major Leroy Hanlon arrives to a mixed reception at Derry Air Force Base.
    • Episode in 5 emojis: 🚗🩸👶🛁🎥
    • Key Events:
      • Matty gets into a car with strangers & the mom has a demon baby that kills them .
      • Lilly speaks to Matty via the drain in her tub, and she informs Teddy, Phil, and Ronnie that she thinks Matty is still alive.
      • The Hanlons - Charlotte, Leroy, and Will move to Derry since Leroy is a US Air Force Major.
      • Lilly convinces Ronnie, Teddy, Phil, and Susie to go to the movie theater because she believes Matty is still alive
      • The children see Matty in the movie, and the demon baby flies out and kills Teddy, Phil, and Susie.
    • My Notes:
      • First 10 mins wtf
      • Girl with liver
      • Demon baby
      • Set in 1962
      • Talking to the drain
      • Human skin lampshade scary
      • Teddy and Phil are dead and so is Susie like what??? I liked them
    • Fav Quote(s):
      • “Or I could shove a grenade up your ass and blow you up” - Phil
      • “I can’t go to the looney bin teddy. I couldn’t make it through goddamn sleep away camp.” - Phil

    • Thoughts: Here you meet who you thought would be the main characters, but alas that is wrong. This was a rollercoaster 🎢 of emotions are you fall in love, although it briefly, with Teddy, Phil, Ronnie, Susie, and Lilly as what one would think would be the main casts. However, that is cut short when 3/5 wind up dead at the end of the episode.

      This episode definitely sets up how the rest of the show will be. It lays the precendent of the air force base and Derry. It casts a dark light that only grows darker as the series continues.

  • Episode 2
    • Title: The Thing in the Dark
    • Duration: 66 Min
    • Episode in 5 emojis: 🤰👮‍♂️🫙🥼🚗
    • Description: While Charlotte and Will navigate their new life in Derry, Ronnie worries about her father’s fate.
    • Key events:
      • Will is the new kid at school.
      • The police believe that Ronnie’s father, Hank Grogan, murdered Teddy, Phil, and Susie.
      • Ronnie feels guilt and Pennywise gets in her head, and there is a terrible birthing scence where Ronnie feels guilt for killing her mother in child-birth.
      • Hanlon gets beat up which turns out it was a test from the general to see what kind of man he his.
      • Pennywise taunts Lilly with images of her father as a pickle human after he was killed in an explosion at the pickle factory a few years back.
      • Lilly gets sent back to Juniper Hills Asylum where she spent time prior.
    • My Notes:
      • New kid
      • This town is weird af
      • What’s up with Paul Bunyan?
      • I like Charlotte
      • So many birthing scenes
      • We meet Pennywise
      • Questioning a child without a parent?? Calling her crazy??
      • The general is weird. The beating was a test to see what kind of man Hanlon is.
      • ? dog food & cats love it too
      • Spaghetti os weren’t out yet like it says
      • The grocery store was trippy
      • Pickle face & pickle body & pickle monster 🥒
      • Top secret is looking for weapon — debilitating fear of anyone who comes near it
      • To the asylum we go… ew they’re creepy too
      • Oop raining means rebirth or development
      • They found the car from ep 1! (No they did not)
    • Fav Quote(s):
      • “Why’s the sky blue? My dad said because God is a boy otherwise it’d be pink.” - Richie

    • Thoughts: In this episode we meet Richie, who you will learn to love throughout the series. We are also traumatized by a birthing scene, so there are pros and cons to everything. The birthing scene is traumatizing, and it reminds me of the birthing chain scene in the A24 Film Men (which I hate). I do think it’s a good look into Ronnie and her psyche.

      Henry Grogan is the prime suspect for what occurred at the movie theater. It shows the racism that exists in Derry.

      We also see Lilly get sent to the asylum which even Juniper Hills is creepy af. A car found at the end which we learn more about in the next episode! We learn more about the native folks who are protecting the pillars that keep IT locked in Derry. It is revealed that they just accept that people will die by IT’s hands which is kinda like wow y’all can’t do anything?? Their main goal is to make sure IT stays in Derry and only Derry.

  • Episode 3
    • Title: Now You See It
    • Episode in 5 emojis: 🎪🔮🎁✈️🪦
    • Duration: 59 Min
    • Description: As Leroy, Pauly, and Dick search for a new dig site, the kids attempt to get visual proof of the phenomena they’ve been experiencing.
    • Key events:
      • Starts back in 1908 at a carnival where we are introduced to Frances (who is now the General) who eventually is chased by IT in a different form.
      • Dick Halloran has psychic abilities which General Francis Shaw wants to exploit to find IT.
      • Leroy Hanlon, Dick Halloran, and Pauly Russo go up into a plane to see if they can find IT, and IT gets into Halloran’s head and he almost jumps out the plane.
      • Leroy Hanlon cannot feel fear because he has a damaged amygdala.
      • Lilly, Ronnie, Richie, and Will go to the cemetery to see if they can capture proof of IT during a ritual that Richie suggested.
    • My Notes:
      • 1908 carnival
      • Eww the creepy twins
      • It says death as the boy gets closer to the creepy man
      • Eww the forest with the creepy ass old man — Frances nooooo
      • Car wasn’t from ep 1. It was from Bradley Gang shooting. Al Bradley from 1935.
      • The tall black guy has psychic powers
      • THE GENERAL IS FRANCES so he knows about the entity & has seen it & the young girl is also a towns person — the antique owner?
      • Finally see Pennywise’s box & him & the tower of kids & stuff
      • Dick Halloran tried to jump out the fucking plane. Pennywise was in his head.
      • Foreshadowing that something bad is going to happen
      • Richie is so funny
      • People don’t remember Derry when they leave
      • The major can’t feel fear. He has damaged amygdala. Halloran can get into people’s heads
      • The bike 🚲 riding is so fake like what in the green screen
      • Omg not Jesus
      • Gate is doing the weird thing like in beautiful creatures
      • Will, Richie, Ronnie & Lilly
      • Omg they actually got proof
    • Fav Quote(s):
      • “You saw IT. More like IT saw me.” - General Shaw
      • “Shit. I think I just broke both of my femurs.” - Richie

    • Thoughts: Let’s go to the carnival 🎪 where we see a creepy old man who is very scary. IT later takes this form in the forest to go after Francis aka the General. We see the history of Rose and Francis, and how Francis learned about IT’s abilities. He forgot about what happened when he left Derry, but it explains why he remembers once he comes back.

      The car 🚗 found is from the previous cycle with the Bradley Gang murders which we see in the opening credits. In the future state of the show, I discuss how the previous cycle is predicted to be the next season of the show.

      Omg I was shocked when IT got into Dick Halloran’s head and almost convinced him to JUMP OUT THE FUCKING PLANE!!! ✈️ That scene was crazy, but it did provide insight into Dick’s past and more of his abilities.

      The cemetery 🪦 scene was funny, and it was a nice touch of humor. It sparked fear as the kids get split up by IT. Then they entered what seems to be a never ending road to exit the cemetery. This reminded me of a scene in Beautiful Creatures where it’s a loop back around to the gate. They did get proof of IT which I actually wasn’t expecting!

      I think there is definitely foreshadowing of what is to come in the rest of the season.

  • Episode 4
    • Title: The Great Swirling Apparatus of Our Planet’s Function
    • Duration: 63 Min
    • Episode in 5 emojis: 📸🎣📄💊👁️
    • Description: As the kids face increasingly terrifying experiences, Charlotte attempts to advocate for Hank, and General Shaw escalates his efforts.
    • Key events:
      • The kids show their proof to the police chief, but they are not believed.
      • General Shaw gives the black soldiers a space for them that’s an old building in the woods, and Halloran and the others work to clean it up.
      • Will and his father Leroy go fishing, and IT takes the form of a burned-up Leory and tries to drown Will.
      • Lilly steals some of her mom’s medication, and she gives it to the others after they figure out that IT feeds off fear.
      • Marge sees her eyes bug out like a snail, and she freaks out and goes to the wood shop room. She cuts off one of her eyes with the saw and tries to stab a chiself into the other, and the other classmates and teachers find Lilly leaning over her with a chisel after wrestling Marge for it.
      • Halloran infiltrates Taniel’s mind to find out more about IT. We learn about the origins of IT which the natives refer to as The Galoo.
    • My Notes:
      • Bicycles 🚲 like in the first movie
      • Noooo the pictures changed well not the clown one
      • Who is the lady at the counter - feels intentional it zoomed in on her
      • The housekeeper lady is a little nuts like girl what??
      • Bruh if someone said that stuff like kids missing happens like so, I’d be leaving
      • Hmm the general gave them the barrack that’s in the forbidden woods so manipulative
      • What a morbid ass video to watch about an explosion
      • Love Will just hitting the rod on the water lol
      • Uh-oh he’s leaving Will alone in the water — are they in the forbidden woods too??? Or??
      • Omg I gasped when he got yanked under water. It was his own dad all burned up
      • THE RED BALLOON 🎈
      • Love how Charlotte goes up the police chief. She’s bold.
      • IT is in Dick’s head again
      • I really like Leroy too. He’s starting to understand what’s going on. I think they’re starting to have doubts about what they’re doing. Him and Dick
      • Plane crash? Fire? Something else coming?
      • Stop getting scared
      • Oh lord now they’re going to start taking random medication when something weird starts to happen. Probably Xanax
      • Uh-oh I think what’s her face (Marge) is going to prank Lilly to appease the Pattycakes
      • I don’t know if Grogan is going to make it home or not
      • I have second hand embarrassment already at what Tim is going to do bc of what Marge is doing to be friends with the Pattycakes
      • How does Lilly not hear Marge crying??
      • Omg ewww her eyeballs. Ah the view of it
      • No she dropped her pill & she’s getting it out of the toilet yuck
      • OH MY GOD SHE CUT OFF HER FUCKING EYEBALLS. That was so disgusting omg and horrible
      • Oh no they’re going to think Lilly did it omg that was so fucking gross
      • Now Will is spying on his neighbors with the telescope and he saw IT
      • The red balloon again 🎈
      • Dick is going to do more mind tricks this time on the Native American guy (Taniel) (in society of protect the entity of IT - guard the pillars) to see the location of IT. What the fuck. Is he possessing him?
      • Seeing the origins of IT — named The Galloo
      • There is a dagger that exists
      • Western wood is where IT lives.
      • Kids went looking for the missing stone I the dagger & daughter Nakani — Sesqui was the chief
      • Shape of thing they fear the most
      • Eww not the baby crawling out of IT’s chest to kill Sesqui
      • The cave is now the sewer I think
      • They broke off pieces of the dagger to cage IT in — 13 sacred shards — line It could not cross
      • Eww Dick clapping over was creepy af. He’s creepy af
      • The old creepy house from the new season/movie
      • Omg Marge’s eye is really gone. It was the snail 🐌 thing that Marge saw in the class and that’s why her eyes did what they did
      • Brain fog is product of fear to forget the monsters
    • Fav Quote(s):
      • “If you don’t let me see Hank Grogan right now, by tomorrow morning, I’ll have MLK, JFK, RFK, and a whole bunch of other FK’s breathing down your neck”. - Charlotte Hanlon

    • Thoughts: This is where The Black Spot is introduced which spoiler will bring carnage and sadness later on. I think this episode does a great job of showing Leroy more of what he’s gotten himself and his family into by moving to Derry. I really loved Charlotte in this particular episode. She’s bold and not afraid to tell it like it is, which isn’t common for women in Derry.

      Let’s talk about what we saw or more of what Marge saw. Trauma. 🐌 That’s it. I will not lie that my eyeballs hurt after watching the scene, and I definitely hid behind my eyes a little. 🫣 I guess I hadn’t paid much attention to the classroom scene where upon replay we see Marge cringe at the sight of snails. This scene was disgusting and watching Marge struggle to reach the saw was hard. I did honestly think she was going to slice her head in half and kill herself. Aside watching Lilly fish the pill out of the toilet was 🤢 even if it was a “clean” toilet.

      From this point on, my opinion of Marge has changed. In the first few episodes, she’s portrayed as selfish and craving popularity. She is vying for a spot on the Pattycakes, but her friendship with Lilly is harming her chance. Honestly I was expecting to experience a lot of second-hand embarrassment because Marge was setting Lilly up to be ridiculed in front of the whole school. Then Marge has this entire arc change after her accident. Marge grows to be one of my favorite characters in the series.

  • Episode 5
    • Title: 29 Neibolt St
    • Duration: 56 Min
    • Episode in 5 emojis: 🚎🏚️🗡️🔓⚰️
    • Description: As the military descends on Neibolt Street, the kids head into the sewers with their own objective.
    • Key events:
      • Matty comes back and tells Lilly and the others that Teddy and Susie are dead, but Phil might still be alive.
      • Will and his family will now be moving onto the Air Force base outside of town after Hanlon learns the truth about Derry. He wants Charlotte and Will to stay at home.
      • The prison bus crashes on the way to Shawshank and Henry Grogan is missing.
      • The military go to find IT by going through the house on Neibolt St with the one piece of pillar that Taniel has. Halloran gets sucked into a memory and IT gets into his head, and he unlocks a part of him that he’s had locked away.
      • The kids enter through the sewers, and Matty turns into Pennywise. Lilly finds the piece of pillar dropped by Taniel. On the way out, Leroy almost shoots his son because he thinks it’s a trick, but Paulie jumps in the way and dies.
    • My Notes:
      • Hope Taniel is okay
      • Eww the up close of her eye. Marge’s eye is gone fr
      • Marge is in her redemption arc
      • Is Matty back??
      • Oh yes what a great idea to remove the pillars
      • How did matty get away from the sewers & from IT?
      • Teddy & Susie are dead. Phil might still be alive 27 years between cycles
      • There is a big, bloody event at the end of IT’s cycle called the Ogry (?)
      • Eww the creepy cop in the window that Charlotte saw
      • Frances needs to listen to Rose
      • She still has part of the pillars
      • Will & them moving to Air Force base outside of town
      • The Juniper Hills Cleaner’s husband is weird
      • The prison bus crashed on its way to Shawshank & grogan may have escaped
      • Retta & Nesbit street is where the abandoned house is
      • How many pills are these children about to take?
      • Oh yeah a gas leak so here we send a ton of military people bc that isn’t suspicious at all
      • Dick disappeared when he jumped in the water
      • Eww that was like Uncle Sam ghost form IT
      • The kids are doped up
      • Taniel dropped the piece he needed to protect himself
      • Damn why he keep shooting at him just bc he ran??? Like kill the guy who knows the stuff
      • Guess Dick’s family also has powers. He gets transported to his grandparents house. Goes back to kind of state he was in as child
      • Dick has some box that does something
      • The kids are high af
      • Omg they’re seeing all their friends dead
      • Matty was actually IT and lured them down to the sewers omg. Now he’s morphing into IT clown form.
      • Oh no Lilly got left behind
      • The kids were real. Paulie Russo jumped in front of him so Leroy didn’t shoot his own kid.
      • Lilly is running in circles oh no
      • Yuck he morphed into her dad
      • Omg the freeze frame of IT stuck staring at her was disgusting
      • She found the piece that Taniel dropped & it protected her from IT
      • Grogan is having an affair with the psych cleaner lady!
      • Something attacked the bus
      • Dick halloran came out the entrance the kids went in
      • Whatever the box in Halloran is is open now
      • Leroy is medically fearless but he can still have some especially fearing for the safety of his wife and family
    • Fav Quote(s):
      • “Yeah I got it. Kill my gym teacher. I got it.” - Richie (I think)
      • “Duck and cover kiddos” - IT

    • Thoughts: This episode makes you think that there is hope Matty is still alive even when you know that’s not possible. A rife between the kids is starting to form as they realize how easily fooled by IT they were.

      This episode provides a deeper look into Halloran‘s life in his flashback. He’s seen again with his grandparents in the bathroom 🛁, and this time his grandfather brings him a box that’s locked. Halloran’s grandfather tells him that it’s time to unlock it. Halloran pleads not to unlock it. With this scene in particular we see more emotion from his character because for the most part he has been pretty stoic and not as expressive. However, in this scene, we see a lot of that emotion, especially in his eyes, which is one of the things they talk about in the extra portion of the show after the credits for this episode. There is also a clear power dynamic between Halloran and his grandfather as Halloran is sat looking up at him this entire scene. This is pretty interesting, and it shows how Halloran is powerless over his grandfather even when Halloran is physically stronger. In the end, IT is able to get Halloran to open this box he’s kept hidden. With it we see at the end that Halloran can see Paulie’s ghost. 🔓

      It is also revealed that Hanlon can not feel fear in the typical way, but he is deeply afraid of losing or harming his family. IT takes the form of his wife, and Hanlon has to shoot her in order to live. This decision is something he has to live with, so when he sees his son it’s hard for him to distinguish whether he’s real or not. Unfortunately, it is Will standing there and it’s too late for Hanlon to notice. At the last moment, Paulie jumps in the way and saves Will’s (and frankly Leroy’s) life, which unfortunately ends his own. This definitely has an emotional impact on Hanlon as he not only realizes he almost killed his son, but he did kill his best friend.

  • Episode 6
    • Title: In the Name of the Father
    • Duration: 57 Min
    • Episode in 5 emojis: 🩸🩹🍺🤡🎙️
    • Description: Plagued by dark visions, Dick gets a surprise at the Black Spot. Meanwhile, the kids each face their own challenges.
    • Key events:
    • The episode starts back in 1953 at the asylum where we see a young girl lured to the basement, and she’s encouraged to go by Ingrid. IT kills her.
    • Lilly wants to kill IT, and the others think she is crazy. There’s internal group conflict going on.
    • Henry Grogan is hanging out at the black people spot. Charlotte takes Ronnie and Will to see him.
    • Dick Halloran is drinking himself to death, and he’s seeing more dead around him. The dead wander back to where they died.

    • Lilly goes to speak to Ingrid Kirsch and learns that Ingrid’s dad was Pennywise the dancing clown.

    • My Notes:
      • Back to 1935 in the asylum
      • Going to the basement of the asylum. Creepy af
      • There’s the red balloon!! 🎈
      • Leroy just smacked Will across the face
      • Now we have the whole thing of Henry Grogan being missing
      • Lilly showing the kids the native thing she found in the water in the sewer
      • Lilly wants to kill IT
      • Ronnie called Lilly crazy & now she’s freaking out. Uh-oh internal conflict within the friend group
      • Dick Halloran acting strange. He’s seeing stuff??
      • Henry Grogan is hanging out at the barracks where the black people can hang
      • Charlotte brought Ronnie to see her dad
      • Richie is so adorable. I love him. He’s helping Marge change her bandage.
      • Her eye looks so rough and ouch
      • Of course the plane flew right into the cellar
      • Now Dick is drinking himself to death it seems like. He’s also hiding.
      • Eww he saw a dead soldier in the reflection of the mirror. He sees dead people & that’s what he unlocked when he unlocked the box of things he didn’t want to see no more.
      • Dead wander back to where they die. They don’t talk to him as long as he doesn’t regard them but if he opens the mouth the voices start. They know things that they aren’t meant to know. Like where to find IT
      • Lilly has the weapon thing in class & she’s seeing her dead dad in class
      • Richie & Marge are hearing voices in the pipes
      • Aww Richie gave Marge an eye patch.
      • Oh no I don’t trust the PattieCakes.
      • I love Marge. “I am a freak” and then charging at the pattiecakes was iconic
      • lol Richie is blowing kisses to pics where the airmen hangout
      • Lilly just went into house 108. Aka Mrs. Kirsch the maid at asylum
      • Her house looks creepy & abandoned. The neighbor next door was creepy too
      • Eww there is a photo of a guy that looks like pennywise that’s her father??
      • There is a picture of pennywise the clown in Mrs. Kirsch’s attic. She’s weird. There’s clown stuff all in her attic. She brought him back is what she thinks. She was the one in the cemetery. She’s looking for IT. Her dad was Pennywise the dancing clown. She was the woman from the beginning. Ingrid Kirsch thinks Pennywise is her dad. She watched the little girl get eaten. The red ballon 🎈 and blood was a nice touch in the black & white scene. Eww then Pennywise changed into the form of her dad. She’s crazy.
      • She’s (Ingrid) Periwinkle. She thinks her love for her father can reunite her with her father.
      • Lilly slashed Ingrid with the dagger thing bc Ingrid is plotting against the kids basically.
      • The screaming Lilly on the bike 🚲 is crazy with the bloody handprint on her back too. Really well done
      • Oh perfect the adults are talking about going into the sewers.
      • The police chief got fired & I think he knows where Grogan is & he’s goin to send all the vigilante men there & that’s the fire that we see in some of the previews & Dick’s visions
      • Did the guy drug Richie & Marge’s Coke?? Why are they still drinking it omg. Omg I think they’re drunk lmao
      • The dancing at the club was too happy and too fun.
      • Ingrid getting dressed as the clown!!
      • Uh-oh the vigilantes are showing up to the hangout spot.
    • Fav Quote(s):
      • “No who dies here ever really dies in Derry.” - Ingrid Kirsch

    • Thoughts: Overall, this episode starts off with a bang as we see a young girl at the asylum get killed. It provides some more insight into IT as we see him in the form of Pennywise. 🎈

      This episode starts to expand on the internal group conflict that has slowly been building up through the last few episodes. Lilly separates herself from the group and seeks out her “safe haven” person which is Ingrid Kirsch. We learn how delusional Ingrid is as she believes Pennywise (IT) and Pennywise (Bob) are the same person — her father. She even has her own clown costume, and her persona is Periwinkle. This freaks Lilly out (as it should), and she makes the rational decision to run. Her scream on the bike was so raw and real, and I do feel sympathy for her character. I know from reading stuff online she is annoying and people are divided on how they feel about her. I do think she makes stupid decisions, but I do like her character… most of the time.

      Henry Grogan is hiding out at the Black Spot until he can be snuck over the border into Canada. 🍁 We see that the group (with the exception of Lilly) comes together to see Ronnie and her dad. It was refreshing to see Ronnie reunite with her father. However we know the threat to arrest him or worse is still out there as the group gathers to find him. It’s the police chief who has now since lost his job, and he had a vendetta against Grogan.

      This episode ends on a very upbeat note which can only mean bad is coming. The kids (excluding Lilly) and folks are happy and dancing at the Black Spot, and we see the vigilante group show up at the last moment of the episode. The pit in your stomach drops as you know when you’re at your happiest the only way to go is down. ⤵️

  • Episode 7
    • Title: The Black Spot
    • Duration: 62 Min
    • Episode in 5 emojis: 🎪🔥💖🌋🩸
    • Description: A vigilante attack on the Black Spot unleashes long dormant forces. In the aftermath, Dick helps uncover another crucial artifact.
    • Key events:
      • It starts in 1908 with Periwinkle and her father Pennywise with the circus. Her father stumbles off, and IT kills him.
      • Vigilantes show up to the Black Spot, and they set it ablaze — kids and women inside and all.
      • IT shows up at the fire and so does Periwinkle since she was the one who told the vigilantes where Grogan was hiding out. She knew there’d be carnage for IT whom she believes is her father since his main form is Pennywise the dancing clown. IT reveals his deadlights form on her.
      • Richie sacrifices himself to save Marge. He puts her in a box and lays on top of it.
      • The military find one of the pillars, and instead of moving the perimeter back they burn one of the pillars in lava.
      • Will is under IT’s spell after he shows up at his house and reveals his true form which is the deadlights.
    • My Notes:
      • 1908: see periwinkle and her dads performance as Pennywise
      • Trauma showing young Ingrid her fathers bloody handkerchief and being like it was probably wolves
      • Bruh they locked them in the club. There’s women and children
      • The fire looks so fake
      • Is dick really just going to leave all the kids omg?
      • Now IT is at the fire too
      • Who was that one guy standing there staring at the fire?
      • Noooo Richie nooo omg. He put Marge in the box to save her and laid on top of it
      • You guys are like 10 what is going on
      • Ingrid is dressed as periwinkle at the fire and is talking to her husband Stanley when it comes up behind him
      • I was not expecting him to slice perfectly through Stanley’s face. Is that would it would look like??
      • Ingrid told them where Grogan was so she could see her “father”
      • How did Ingrid just realize It isn’t actually her father???
      • His whole head opens and he lures her in?? What is this?
      • Marge is alive but Richie is not. Devastating
      • Why didn’t the firefighter carry Marge out like what???
      • Also they let the kids come back in after the fire??
      • Richie also isn’t burnt to a crisp so I’m confused. Now it’s morning.
      • The victims killed in the fire are all up on Dick
      • IT said it was going to sleep & now Dick can’t feel it anymore
      • Dick could see the war chief in the fire & now going to use that to find one of the pillars
      • Stanley was the butcher; they planted it that Grogan died in the fire. They also said it was an electrical fire
      • Lilly looks tough like she’s been through something
      • Marge is wearing the eyepatch rich gave her
      • Now instead of moving the pillar they’re going to bring it back to base. What could go wrong?
      • Now the pillar is back at base to be tested? What in the world are they doing to it? Were they going to dump it in fire???
      • They wanted to use it against the American people. Want to make America Derry
      • The military burned one of the pillars in lava to melt it
      • IT woke up
      • IT called Will & he’s like mostly covered in blood. Did the mind thing on him
      • The episode felt disjointed. Kind of a let down
    • Fav Quote(s):
      • “Do I have face on my face?” - Pennywise
      • “You’d be shutting the barn door after the horse is already out.” - General Shaw

    • Thoughts: This episode was revered to be the best episode, but in my opinion it felt disjointed. I can’t wrap my finger around exactly why it felt so disjointed, but it just did.

      There were so many things that I think could have been done differently. I have a few gripes with the Richie and Marge scene. One is they are professing their love for each other like calm down you’re 12. The fire 🔥 itself looked so unbelievably fake to me. All the other effects in the show have been super well done, but the fire just looked so fake in comparison to the rest of the series. At the same time this episode dropped, Maddison Humprey, who is a content creator on Instagram and Tiktok, released a video with what felt like the same fire effect. The entire time I was watching that scene all I could think of was that video.

      We do see a lot of Ingrid’s delusion. It expands from the previous episode into this episode and culminates into IT using the deadlights on her. At the very end, IT goes back to sleep… temporarily. The military finds one of the pillars and Leroy is blindsided as they take it back to the base. He was told that all they wanted to do was make the barrier smaller, but instead he learns that the general wants to release IT into America. Once the pillar is destroyed we see IT wake up in his bloody, little box. His bloody form shows up at Will’s house and uses the deadlights on him. 🩸

  • Episode 8
    • Title: Winter Fire
    • Duration: 69 Min
    • Episode in 5 emojis: 🌁😵‍💫🥛🗡️⚰️
    • Description: As General Shaw pushes ahead with his mission, the Hanlons, Rose, Dick, and the kids realize it’s up to them to save Derry.
    • Key events:
      • Fog has fallen over Derry casting an eerie feeling.
      • IT mass - the children at school and leads them on a human caravan to the now open barrier.
      • Lilly, Marge, and Ronnie work together to save Will and stop IT.
      • Rose fixes Halloran some special tea that will help him calm some of the voices. In turn he’s eventually able to see only light ghosts such as Richie and the chief.
      • Rose, Taniel, Charlotte, Leroy, and Dick go after the kids. Taniel gets shot and dies.
      • Richie appears to help the others drive the piece of pillar into the border dropping IT. IT goes back to sleep for 27 years.
    • My Notes:
      • The final episode
      • Fog is falling over Derry; trees are dying
      • Creepy ass girl in the window
      • Omg fucking trauma as he rips his eyeballs out and his head off
      • Pennywise is ginormous
      • Now he’s mass hypnotizing the kids at school
      • It’s just the girls left: Ronnie, Marge & Lilly
      • Now there is just a ton of missing posters of all the kids from school
      • lol I love how all three girls fit on the bike 🚲
      • Eww IT has a hand pushing the pedals. And he has this carnival train car leading to the sewers
      • They stole the milk truck lol
      • IT called Leroy Hanlon
      • Where’s Charlotte??
      • All the ghosts are haunting Dick Halloran & they are all nasty looking. Dick is trying to kill himself
      • Dick sitting there with the gun in his mouth while Leroy pleads for help is crazy. Leroy even promised he’d kill Dick after if he helped him
      • I like seeing the emotion from Leroy. The man without fear is scared of losing his son/family
      • Charlotte is at Rose’s. Damn she’s beating up Leroy. I mean it’s deserved
      • The dagger is going to replace the missing pillar.
      • If IT makes it to a southern bank across the river to this specific pine tree then the pillars won’t be able to stop IT
      • Rose made Dick some special tea to help with the voices & help him locate the dagger. Why did she wait to tell him the one thing to avoid?
      • The dagger fell out the car. The transition from Dick to Marge was really cool
      • The dagger going in the bag back to Dick’s mouth was a crazy transition too
      • Lilly is being very protective of the dagger
      • The dagger can drive you insane & will fight back with a force so I’m sure this will go well for Lilly
      • The dagger is making Lilly fight with her friends
      • Now the girls are going to trade off the dagger as they go. It’s glowing in Marge’s hands
      • They found IT’s human caravan
      • Blood just poured out of IT’s circus car
      • The Fool, The Freak, The Failure
      • Can’t tell if the dagger is actually scaring IT away or not or if he is just taunting the girls
      • OMG. No not Marge
      • Margie Tozier who’s mom to Richie: First comes love, then comes marriage & Richie in a baby carriage. So obv Marge lives
      • Eww the freeze frame on his creepy open ugly as mouth. He froze before he got to Marge
      • Now all the kids fell from the sky. Concussed
      • Damn they almost got run over
      • This was too easy. Oh no did IT make it to the pine? Is that what Marge backed up into
      • Omg they shot Leroy & Taniel!!! Noooo Taniel is dead & military is coming for Leroy & Dick
      • Idk no it wasn’t Marge’s pine. Oh shit I think Dick is in IT‘s mind which is why he froze. Pretty cool transition into the eyes. IT is weak in this state
      • Okay how’d the military not see the kids?? Like what in the world. Nvm they saw them lol
      • Omg can the kids move any faster??? They are in slow motion it seems like
      • The dagger isn’t letting them move. The kids have to work together
      • The general is cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs
      • IT figured it out when he saw Dick’s hand when the military shoved him
      • IT recognized Francis. Dummy to think that he wouldn’t terrorize him. Welp the general is dead
      • Uh-oh Pennywise is a skipping to try to get outside the barrier
      • Omg Leroy shot Pennywise’s head off and the blood just went up and now a jack in the box head popped up
      • Oh no Leroy is out of bullets and now under IT’s spell
      • Omg the chief & Richie. He flipped IT off and ran to help the other kids
      • Why haven’t they been shooting IT the whole time. Well I guess they don’t have enough bullets. Damn IT got wings
      • They got the dagger in right in time as IT came flying at them and established the walls
      • Welp Richie is gone. Only there to help out the dagger in. But the kids did realize he was there after the fact.
      • Now IT is going through the faces and personas he used to scare the kids
      • Wow Marge only knew Richie for like a month. Also I saw that in her glasses when they first met we see his demise with the glare of fire
      • Dick saw Richie at his Rich’s funeral. He’s hugging his dad & Will
      • So maybe now Dick only sees the good people who pass away
      • Marge put the drumsticks on Richie’s casket
      • Richie has his arms around his parents & Dick tells him that the hand they feel is Richie’s
      • The paper airplane made it to Main Street. It is in the trees & Marge spots it
      • Aww Lilly finally has some real and good friends. She talks to her dad’s grave
      • Marge’s tells Lilly about future Richie that’s why he wanted to kill her bc past, present & future are all the same. He wanted to Kill Richie bc his death is like his birth
      • What if IT can go back in time & kill their parents before they’re born bc he sees time differently? Setting it up for season 2 is my guess
      • Dick is doing a lot better now. The root that Rose gave him really helped him. He’s going to London to a hotel. He’s going to The Shining & then Doctor Sleep Guess Grogan is still technically wanted so they’re going to Canada
      • Rose wants Leroy & Charlotte to help keep track of everything going on & protect the city. Others will come to try to let IT out & open the cage. It’ll be 27 years before it wakes up again. They buy the farm that Rose is selling. He goes to be Mike Hanlon’s grandfather
      • Omg Will & Ronnie kiss
      • Welcome to IT Derry Chapter 01
      • Now the crazy maid Periwinkle (Ingrid) is at the mental institute
      • She becomes the Old woman & she’s painting clown stuff. October 1988 26 years later
      • That’s where she meets the redhead girl in IT - Marsh
      • Deadlights: true cosmic form of IT — too hard for human brain to comprehend
      • Seeing Richie who sacrificed himself for his friends is very healing for Dick
      • IT was evil deity that was punished & sent to earth
    • Fav Quote(s):
      • “I want to kill the fucking clown” - Marge
      • “You know how to drive?” - Lilly “No but I watched him” - Marge referring to uncle
      • “You are a goddamn lifeboat” - Ronnie
      • “What do you see?” - Rose “A motherfucking miracle” - Dick

    • Thoughts: Wow! What a finale! I think this episode does a great job at wrapping everything up as well as alluding to the later films. At the very end, it shows sort of a path of what happens to the characters in the future. There are a ton of online videos and articles about how some of the characters relate to characters in the IT movies/next cycle. I am not going to be rehashing those here with the exception of Marge, Dick, and Ingrid.

      When Marge is revealed to be Margie Tovier aka Richie Tovier’s mom I was not expecting that! We learn that she names her kid after her first love which is a little sweet and a little weird. I absolutely loved Richie coming back and him flipping off IT is so in character. He also helped bridge the gap with the kids and bring them back to one cohesive unit. IT skipping towards the barrier was diabolical. Dick Halloran uses his ability to speak to Richie’s family to let them know he was there hit me in the heartstrings. Dick Halloran goes on to work at The Shining Hotel.

      Ingrid grows up to be the old lady that Bev speaks to. She meets her when her mom commits suicide. This is a direct relation to the film.

Watch or Skip?

You should definitely give this a watch if you like horror! I recommend having some knowledge of the original movies, but I think it could be enjoyable even as a standalone.

If you want to fully immerse yourself in the Stephen King Universe, I have linked the optimal streaming order. I recommend checking out the following account on threads: jamesboston.

According to the above account, this is the optimal streaming order: - Chapelwaite (Set 1850) - The Green Mile (1932) - The Shawshank Redemption (1947–1966) - 11.22.63 (Set 1960–1963) - Welcome to Derry (1962) - Pet Sematary: Bloodlines (1969) - Salem’s Lot (1975) - The Shining (1980) - Pet Sematary (1989) - It Chapter One (1989) - Needful Things (1993) - The Langoliers (1995) - Dreamcatcher (2001) - The Mist (2007) - It Chapter Two (2016) - Castle Rock (2018) - Doctor Sleep (2019) As of January 12, this list is pinned to the top of their profile.

If you want more resources to learn about the Stephen King universe, there is a Stephen King Wiki.

Future state

This show does set up for an additional two more seasons to further go back in time. I hope the next season focuses on the Bradley Gang area which is the shooting we hear about with the car and see in the intro of the show. It has been rumored that the next two seasons will be 27 years before this cycle and then 27 years before that cycle.

Closing Thoughts

I definitely recommend watching the entire episode as each episode has some extra information about the lore and how it was made at the end. There’s even a companion podcast that you can check out for more information and insight! 🎙️

Thanks for reading, and I’d love to hear your thoughts if you’ve seen the series and whether or not you agree with my thoughts!

Happy watching! 🍿

You’ll float too 🎈

Note: Artificial Intelligence, specifically ChatGPT, was used to assist in brainstorming the article title and formulating the introduction Written with StackEdit.

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