The Haunting of Bly Manor returns to the screen just in time for Halloween with a familiar cast but a new storyline. This series centers on themes of self-blame, grief, accepting change, and coming to terms with loss.

The plot kicks off with a slow start focusing on the nanny, Danny. We begin to learn about her background, and the demons she fights within herself. She moves to Bly to run from her past. Danny decides that through caring for two newly orphaned children, Miles and Flora, she can make a good difference in the lives of others. While she seems happy and kind, one small trigger can set off a panic attack which shows that she can’t run from her problems. The first few episodes make the viewer think that this show is just like every other horror movie. It introduces a house with a haunting history, characters who seem to be hiding dangerous secrets, and shadows that seem to move throughout the house at night. However, this show isn’t about whether the characters can survive in a haunted house, but what they learn about themselves throughout the journey. For those who do enjoy the haunting aspect of the show, they won’t be disappointed. There are enough scary dolls, hidden scares, and unexplained events to satisfy any horror fan.

This season takes a different perspective than the previous one of this anthology series. Shifting away from the ghost hauntings of the Hill House, this season focuses on the histories that haunt its main characters, and the journeys they take on attempting to reconcile their past. The show does keep to its tradition of revealing truths about the characters through flashbacks on key moments in their life. The writers do a good job of revealing a few details to keep the viewer interested, but not all of the information so that the ending is a surprise.

The Haunting of Bly Manor is more of a show about the human condition than it is about ghosts. The haunting aspect is an allegory for the aspects of ourselves that bind us to past mistakes. Many of us dwell on regret and fixate on what could have been if only we had made a different decision – wishing to start anew in life.