Netflix’s Underrated Show With 85% On Rotten Tomatoes Adapts An Iconic Book Series

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Even though Netflix’s The Midnight Club takes liberties with the original Christopher Pike novels, this actually improves the show. Mike Flanagan consistently creates some of the best horror series around, as evidenced by hits like The Haunting of Hill House, Midnight Mass, and The Fall of the House of Usher – all of which are consistently excellent from beginning to end.

Some people believe The Haunting of Hill House is Netflix’s scariest and best horror series, though it hasn’t reached the same level of popularity as shows like Wednesday or Stranger Things. Not all of director Mike Flanagan’s work gets immediate recognition, and one miniseries from 2022, in particular, deserves more attention as a truly excellent, yet overlooked, piece of television.

The Midnight Club was a bit different for director Mike Flanagan, and it stands out from his other projects. Unlike his usual work, which features long, thoughtful speeches, this show is based on young adult novels and relies more on quick, witty conversations between the teenage characters.

The Midnight Club Adapts Christopher Pike’s Best Books

Unlike shows like The Haunting of Hill House, Midnight Mass, and The Haunting of Bly Manor, The Midnight Club isn’t a typical horror or even a horror-drama. It’s a complex mix of character-driven stories, supernatural scares, fantasy elements, and thrilling mysteries, all woven together in a complicated plot.

Mike Flanagan’s The Midnight Club centers around Ilonka, a teenager battling stage 4 cancer, who seeks a potential cure at the enigmatic Brightcliffe Hospice. While there, she befriends other seriously ill teens: Kevin (played by Igby Rigney), Anya (Ruth Codd), Sandra (Annarah Cymone), Spencer (Chris Sumpter), Cheri (Adia), and Amesh (Sauriyan Sapkota).

While a few adults appear in the story, like the mysterious doctor at Brightcliffe and the caring nurse Mark played by Zach Gilford, the show mainly unfolds through the spooky tales shared by the members of the Midnight Club. Each night, they come together and one of them tells a scary story.

The Midnight Club’s Unique Approach Is Perfect For YA Adaptation

This clever technique achieves two things. First, it lets Flanagan showcase his range as a director, with each episode exploring a different type of horror. We see everything from disturbing body horror and a thought-provoking science fiction story to a traditional serial killer thriller, all while still fitting into the show’s overall narrative.

As a big fan of Christopher Pike’s books from when I was growing up, I really loved how The Midnight Club approached things. Instead of focusing on just one of his novels for the whole season, each episode tells a different story based on one of his books – and the show itself is inspired by The Midnight Club. I think this was a brilliant move because Pike’s stories are perfect for standalone episodes, and it helps smooth over the fact that his writing can sometimes be a little…direct. It really lets the strengths of his ideas shine!

Usually, short novels like these don’t lend themselves well to miniseries because they lack the extensive plot needed for multiple episodes without feeling stretched and artificial. But by the end of The Midnight Club, it’s clear that Flanagan cleverly turned this potential weakness into a strength for the show.

As a huge fan of both Christopher Pike and anthology horror, I’m really digging this show. Basically, each episode takes one of Pike’s books and completely streamlines it. They take the core story, strip away a lot of the extra stuff, and pack it into under an hour. What’s really cool is how Mike Flanagan amps up the dark comedy and makes these feel like a teen-focused Tales from the Crypt – seriously creepy, but with a fun edge.

Compared to shows like Are You Afraid of the Dark and Goosebumps, The Midnight Club is scarier and more intense, but it avoids the over-the-top style of Tales from the Crypt. Each spooky story reveals something about the person telling it, and also works as a great standalone horror tale. As these stories unfold, a larger mystery about the Midnight Club and the Brightcliffe Hospice slowly comes into focus.

The Midnight Club’s Cancellation Ruined A Perfect Adaptation Plan

The biggest issue with Mike Flanagan’s take on Christopher Pike’s books is a growing trend with streaming shows: cancellation. When The Midnight Club wasn’t renewed for a second season, Flanagan’s carefully planned continuation – which would have brought all the storylines together – never happened. He had originally intended season two to focus on a single book from the series.

Flanagan selected what many consider to be Christopher Pike’s finest work, the haunting mystery novel Remember Me. He told Variety he wanted to weave the story into the second season, combining the events of the book with the destinies of the characters in The Midnight Club.

L.J. Smith’s Remember Me is a particularly haunting and emotionally impactful novel among Christopher Pike’s young adult horror works. It focuses less on typical scares and more on deeper, philosophical questions, making it an ideal fit for Mike Flanagan’s storytelling style in season 2 of The Midnight Club. Unfortunately, the show was cancelled before this story could be adapted.

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2025-11-07 23:29