Monster: The Ed Gein Story debuted on Netflix earlier this week with the third installment of Ryan Murphy’s Monster anthology series bringing to the streamer the story of convicted murderer and suspected serial killer Ed Gein. The series, which stars Charlie Hunnam as Gein, quickly became Netflix’s number one television show. However, despite its popularity, the series has been met with sharp criticism and now, Netflix has added an overlooked biographical drama about another serial killer that makes Monster: The Ed Gein story as well as Murphy’s other Monster installments look bad in comparison.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Originally released in 2017, My Friend Dahmer is based on the graphic novel of the same name from cartoonist John Backderf. Backderf was friends with Jeffrey Dahmer in high school and new the now-infamous serial killer until the time he began his killing spree in 1978. Rather focusing on the more sensational aspects of Dahmer’s story, My Friend Dahmer takes a more human approach that is less the story of a serial killer and more a look at who Dahmer was before he became the monster he’s known for being. The film was well-received and currently sits at 87% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Monster: The Ed Gein Story Is a Weird, Odd Series That Muddles Its Message
While the series is called Monster: The Ed Gein Story, one of the major criticisms about the series is that it’s less about Gein and more about his weird legacy, specifically with films like Psycho and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, though there’s never been any direct evidence that Gein inspired Psycho at all, either the book or Hitchcock’s classic. The series also is inaccurate in many of its details about Gein, leading to a highly fictionalized story that never seems to settle on how it’s approaching the killer, resulting in a finished product that is just, in a word, weird.
The Ed Gein story also isn’t the first time that Monster has gotten criticism for how it approaches the story of infamous killers. The first season, The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, was hit with similar critiques, with some critics noting how Murphy attempted to avoid glorifying Dahmer and critique culture that does, but fell well short and instead, became exploitative in its own right. The show also received backlash from the families of Dahmer’s victims who felt retraumatized at the experiences of their loved ones being used for entertainment.
In contrast, My Friend Dahmer received praise for its accuracy and empathetic but troubling conclusions. It’s a sharp contrast to Monster and its approach to serial killer stories and its quiet addition to Netflix shines a light that makes Netflix’s own series just look bad.
Both Monster: The Ed Gein Story and My Friend Dahmer are currently streaming on Netflix.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image courtesy of Lucasfilm. -
Courtesy of Pathea Games -
Courtesy of Sony Pictures Entertainment / Aniplex / Crunchyroll
