The youth of today
The Hexings review
Rating – 
I saw this show advertised on one of the many podcast subreddits I frequent. At first I was intrigued by the cover art and then the premise sealed the deal. So as soon as I could, I eagerly pressed play, hoping that the show wasn’t going to be another let down (which for some reason, an awful lot of shows like this tend to be).
Coincidentally, as I was finishing the episodes that have been released, Laura from the show reached out to me about a possible review. Timing eh? I usually like to have about ten episodes to get through before I review a show, but Season one of The Hexings is only nine episodes long! Therefore, using the privilege of being the only writer on this blog, I decided it would jump the queue, and here we are. But back to the review…
So what’s it about?
Emily is a “Digital Anthropologist” (no, I’ve never heard of one either). Apparently it’s someone who studies online behavior. Her main field of interest are so called “online challenges”. You know the ones, unusually excited teenagers scoffing spoons of cinnamon, eating washing up pods or giving themselves burns with ice cubes and salt.
After hearing about a strange case in her old high school called “The Hexing Challenge”, she discovers that there is something very strange going on behind this craze. Maybe it’s more than teen girls acting up in class.
Soon the threads spread like mycelium, and Emily is discovering similar stories that date back decades. There is always a connecting theme though. Girls wearing their hair a certain way, and mysterious disappearances.
Is it any good?
Overall, it’s an outstanding show. For the most part the acting is very polished and, with the exception of one or two wobbly bits of dialogue, the inhabitants of the town are perfectly believable. Here and there is also the odd line of script that just doesn’t make sense to me either. These may seem nit-picky, but as you just know by now, the better the show, the more details I call out.
The sound design however, is stunning. It reminds me a lot of The Lovecraft Investigations. Until the next chapter of that comes out, you’re in safe hands with this show. You really do get the feeling you are walking through the forest, or exploring empty buildings. I get the impression that the dialogue is delivered on location, rather than using effects in the recording studio.
I think the comparison to TLI is justified because it has that same blending of historical fact with fiction, and yes, I managed to resist the temptation to google events from the story.
There is a real creeping dread that seems to seep into the story as it develops. Connections get made, and there seems to be much more at play than originally thought. The oppression of the antagonist grows as Emily digs deeper, and I suspect she will be in real danger very soon.
There is also a call back to one of my favourite creepypastas. I’m not going to tell you which one though. As the saying goes, “if you know, you know”, and i don’t want to spoil anything. This is a bit of a strange inclusion though, because so much of this story is original I wonder why bother with what (at least at this point) seems a throwaway thing to include.
Final thoughts
Yes, I have been critical, and yes, this podcast hasn’t received full marks. It is well worth your time to check out. I mean, I binged all the five episodes released to date all over again. It’s very enjoyable indeed, and it holds up to repeated listenings, which is something that not all audio dramas can say.
This year has been amazing for dramatic podcasts, I can’t actually remember time where so many have come out in a relatively short space of time. With so many great shows already, I can’t wait to see what the last few months of the year have to offer.
You can get The Hexings here:
For more great reviews, I recommend GreatPods