Unsolved mysteries It has been around since 1987, making it an early pioneer of true crime television, a genre that has become even more popular in recent years thanks to streaming. Netflix is resurrected Unsolved mysteries In 2020, the fifth entry in the format will be released this week. While Volume Five is the shortest season to date, it’s also probably the weirdest, and that’s saying a lot, because Unsolved mysteries No stranger to the bizarre and bizarre.
This time, only one episode of “Park Bench Murder” sticks to the classic true crime formula, tracking down an extremely puzzling double murder. Old-school host Robert Stack would frame such cases by addressing the audience and solemnly asking for their help in solving the case, a task now handled by on-screen text at the end of the episode.
Elsewhere, however, things lean more towards the “mysterious” part Unsolved mysteries;While it would have been nice to see more bizarre true crime cases – and let’s be honest, these tend to be the scariest stories – this mix feels like it was handpicked for a pre-Halloween binge.
My Paranormal Partner tells the story of a paranormal researcher whose spiritual mentor (the unlikely name is “Becky”) helps him investigate hauntings, while other researchers follow him to verify his findings. “Mysterious Massacres” delves into a recent spate of cattle mutilations on Oregon ranches, while “The Roswell UFO Incident” explores the famous 1947 alien spacecraft crash in New Mexico.
In each case, questions are raised and the evidence is confusing, but—as always Unsolved mysteries— leaving the audience to ponder what they believe to be true. Most of the people who appear on My Paranormal Partner seem to believe that Don Phillips is indeed communicating with spirits, but viewers aren’t given much evidence. We hear a fellow researcher talk about Don’s ability (with Becky’s help) to determine the image inside the sealed envelope, but we don’t actually see the test take place. The biggest rant, however, was probably when someone fact-checked Don’s purported ghost Becky’s account of her death and came up with nothing, and determined that Becky had lied to Don and was probably a demon, while viewers Then I wonder if maybe Tang made it up.
Other episodes offer more satisfaction, with “The Roswell UFO Incident” repurposing footage from 1989 Unsolved mysteries An episode on the same theme (complete with an old-school Robert Stark cameo!), but updated—well, not really any new evidence, unfortunately, but proving that the fascination with Roswell is as old as it is decades ago Same as before. The episode shares archival interviews with Roswell eyewitnesses and the stories passed down by their descendants for generations; it also lays out government responses over the years, from the initial perceived cover-up to more recent investigations into UFOs, or as they are now known, “Decryption” of “UAP”) reports. Part of the episode is about UFO believers debunking debunkers, and while once again no clear answers emerge, it lends credence to Roswell’s claim to be the “grandfather of them all” in cold cases.
But the strangest, most compelling episode is “Mysterious Mutilations,” which begins with a warning about horrific animal violence—well-deserved, given the disturbing photos and videos documenting cattle mutilations over the past few years. . The entire clip is imbued with an unnervingly accessible air, with interviews with ranchers matter-of-factly describing what it’s like to find one of their cows badly damaged, and the real what the hell-As highly credible experts explain, in all cases, the animals were found drained of blood (but no blood was found around their bodies) and there were no traces or evidence of a predator causing their deaths . UFO? An evil cult? Top secret government experiment? Unsolved mysteries Not even pretending to know, but especially in this episode, it was horrifyingly thrilling no Understanding becomes the main reason to watch.
Unsolved mysteries Now streaming on Netflix.
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