Although Widow’s Bay season 1 was basically perfect, the second outing of the Apple TV horror/mystery/comedy hybrid needs to highlight one underrated supporting character from season 1. Some shows come burdened with a lot of hype pre-release, while others arrive seemingly out of nowhere and stun viewers with their unexpected success. Apple TV’s utterly unique genre blender Widow’s Bay is one such series.
Clearly inspired by David Lynch’s classic quirky murder mystery Twin Peaks, Widow’s Bay also borrows liberally from the books of Stephen King and the movies and shows of Mike Flanagan, particularly 2021’s Midnight Mass. From this description, one might presume the show, which focuses on the titular, supposedly haunted island community, is a dark, predictably grim horror story. However, in an ingenious and unexpected subversion of expectations, Widow’s Bay is also a warm, charming workplace sitcom.
Cut from the same cloth as Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Office, or Parks and Recreation (in whose writer’s room Widow’s Bay creator Kate Dippold first cut their teeth), Widow’s Bay essentially asks viewers what it would be like to be the mayor of Amity Island, or the head of the tourism board in Derry, Maine or Salem’s Lot. It is easy to laugh at the short-sighted bureaucrats in horror movies who always insist that the beaches must be kept open and the haunted hotel has to keep accepting bookings, but Matthew Rhys’s Mayor Tom Loftis is a sympathetic, human protagonist simply trying to help out this seemingly doomed town.
Thus, the stage is set for a show that bounces between genuinely creepy supernatural horror and deadpan comedy, as Mayor Loftis and his assistant Patricia attempt to plan social mixers and clam bake potlucks as sea hags and undead slashers roam the streets of the island. With a masterful balance of horror and comedy that calls to mind classics like the alternately creepy and cozy Arachnophobia, Widow’s Bay is a must-watch, but one that doesn’t have sufficient screen time to explore all its heroes in depth.
Jeff Hiller’s cheerful office worker Dale never receives the spotlight he deserves in season 1, even though the series finale sees the agreeable clerk make a dark discovery that could push him into the spotlight in season 2. Throughout much of season 1, Dale is a background figure who primarily spends his screen time offering his quickly dismissed thoughts on Tom and Patricia’s latest plans, but the final episode of the season promises a bigger season 2 role for him.
What makes Dale’s limited season 1 role notable is the fact that most of the characters in Widow’s Bay are granted unexpected depth and complexity. Stephen Root’s Wyck starts out as a boorish thorn in Tom’s side, only to become an unexpected ally when the mayor realises the outspoken veteran fisherman has been right about the town’s curse all along.
Season 1 has not one, but two episodes devoted to Patricia that ensure she is much more than just Tom’s sidekick, and Tom’s elderly, absent-minded secretary Ruth plays an unexpectedly pivotal role in the conclusion of the show’s story. Thus, it is noticeable on a re-watch that Dale is left lingering in the background of the show’s plot so far, and his bombshell discovery in Widow’s Bay’s season 1 finale means that the next outing of the series can now give him the plot focus he has earned.
