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frederik_wittke 's review for:
Nightmares and Dreamscapes
by Stephen King
"Nightmares and Dreamscapes" is an okay collection at best, when taken as a whole. There is the occasional gem in here, as usual, but most of the tales in here are forgettable and even the highs in here never reach the level of the best stories in Skeleton Crew or Night Shift. Here are a few stories that stood out to me (whether that be positive or negative):
"Umney's Last Case" - easily the best thing in here. A great concept and great execution.
"You Know They Got A Hell Of A Band" - this one appears to be a fan favorite from this collection, and I can definitely see why. Like with Umney's, it's a great execution of a great premise.
"The Moving Finger" - I liked this one especially because it feels like something right out of Night Shift; just a good old horror story with no real deeper meaning, just a creepy situation.
"The Night Flier" - was a total waste of an absolutely off-the-wall concept that is very disappointing.
"It Grows On You" - somehow I made my way through this one without falling asleep. If there is a good idea in there, it is deeply, deeply buried.
"Dedication" - this story was gross and - what's even worse, considering the content - perfectly pointless.
"Chattery Teeth" - more Night Shift vibes in this one. It's a dumb concept, but somehow King pulls it off wonderfully and it's one of my favorites here.
"Rainy Season" - another favorite. Very bizarre but really enjoyable.
"Head Down" - I decided to skip this one after reading the first couple pages.
"The Doctor's Case" - proves that King isn't all that great when doing an Arthur Conan Doyle or Agatha Christie type mystery.
"Sorry, Right Number" - one of my favorite short story titles, possibly ever, and one of the best in here too.
"The House On Maple Street" - finally, this story's ending was sort of hilarious to me, and I don't think it's supposed to be.
All in all, while nothing in here is painfully bad (except maybe It Grows On You - I don't feel I'm justified to judge Head Down, purely because it's an essay on a sport I don't care about), this is far from what King can do at his best. I'm giving this one 2.5 stars, like Skeleton Crew, although I do think that the strong stories in that one are stronger than the ones here; but unlike with Nightmares and Dreamscapes, there are absolutely some bad stories in Skeleton Crew.
"Umney's Last Case" - easily the best thing in here. A great concept and great execution.
"You Know They Got A Hell Of A Band" - this one appears to be a fan favorite from this collection, and I can definitely see why. Like with Umney's, it's a great execution of a great premise.
"The Moving Finger" - I liked this one especially because it feels like something right out of Night Shift; just a good old horror story with no real deeper meaning, just a creepy situation.
"The Night Flier" - was a total waste of an absolutely off-the-wall concept that is very disappointing.
"It Grows On You" - somehow I made my way through this one without falling asleep. If there is a good idea in there, it is deeply, deeply buried.
"Dedication" - this story was gross and - what's even worse, considering the content - perfectly pointless.
"Chattery Teeth" - more Night Shift vibes in this one. It's a dumb concept, but somehow King pulls it off wonderfully and it's one of my favorites here.
"Rainy Season" - another favorite. Very bizarre but really enjoyable.
"Head Down" - I decided to skip this one after reading the first couple pages.
"The Doctor's Case" - proves that King isn't all that great when doing an Arthur Conan Doyle or Agatha Christie type mystery.
"Sorry, Right Number" - one of my favorite short story titles, possibly ever, and one of the best in here too.
"The House On Maple Street" - finally, this story's ending was sort of hilarious to me, and I don't think it's supposed to be.
All in all, while nothing in here is painfully bad (except maybe It Grows On You - I don't feel I'm justified to judge Head Down, purely because it's an essay on a sport I don't care about), this is far from what King can do at his best. I'm giving this one 2.5 stars, like Skeleton Crew, although I do think that the strong stories in that one are stronger than the ones here; but unlike with Nightmares and Dreamscapes, there are absolutely some bad stories in Skeleton Crew.