Forget the Hype—Penny Dreadful Is the Century’s Defining Fantasy Series

In an era where 'original' TV tends to mean either a direct adaptation or—let's be honest—a lightly repackaged franchise, Penny Dreadful managed to actually do something different. I know, wild concept. It jammed together a bunch of big-name Gothic legends—think Frankenstein, Dorian Gray, Dracula, and friends—but then spun them into its own pulpy, unhinged story rather than just retelling the same old public-domain bedtime tales.

If you've never seen it, don't beat yourself up—it quietly aired on Showtime from 2014 to 2016, mostly avoiding the spotlight. But what it lacked in awards buzz and magazine covers, it made up for in genuinely killer production: harrowingly detailed sets, jaw-dropping Victorian costuming, and one of the best horror casts TV has ever pulled together. But the real trick was in the genre-mashing: monster gore one minute, psychological thriller the next, all wrapped up in that decadent, candlelit period atmosphere. Personally? I'll plant my flag and say it’s probably the most underappreciated dark fantasy TV series of the century. (And no, the spinoff Penny Dreadful: City of Angels doesn’t count. Let’s agree that never happened.)

The Bloody, Bonkers Ensemble

If Victorian London monsters and bloodbaths sound up your alley, here’s the pitch Showtime used to entice viewers:

'Explorer Sir Malcolm Murray, American gunslinger Ethan Chandler, scientist Victor Frankenstein, and medium Vanessa Ives unite to combat supernatural threats in Victorian London.'

Cheesy as it looks typed out, that’s actually a pretty solid summary. But let’s break down who’s who on the monster mash guest list:

• Eva Green as Vanessa Ives (the heart of the show, fighting literal demons more convincingly than most leads fight hangovers)
• Josh Hartnett as Ethan Chandler (he shoots things and has secrets—plural)
• Timothy Dalton as Sir Malcolm Murray (wealthy explorer, monster hunter, and probably never used a tube of hair gel in his life)
• Harry Treadaway as Victor Frankenstein (you know the name; he’s less mad scientist, more sad scientist)
• Billie Piper as Lily/Brona Croft (she evolves—trust me, spoilers are earned)
• Reeve Carney as Dorian Gray (never ages, ever curious, basically social media influencer vibes in a waistcoat)
• Danny Sapani as Sembene (mysterious, loyal, knows a lot more than he lets on)
• Rory Kinnear as John Clare / The Creature (Frankenstein’s rejected child, but far deeper and more tragic than that sounds)

The creative boss here was John Logan—yes, that John Logan of Gladiator, The Aviator, and two Daniel Craig Bond movies. Basically, this show had heavyweight writing and wasn’t afraid to lean into the operatic, the freaky, and the deeply melancholic.

Career Highs and Gothic Vibes

I can’t oversell Eva Green in this. Vanessa Ives is basically a haunted, ferocious, totally unpredictable summation of everything this show did well—and Green went all-in on the melodrama and possession scenes. There’s one mid-series exorcism moment that still sticks with me; it’s a clinic in ‘give it everything you’ve got or go home’ acting. Meanwhile, Rory Kinnear managed to make The Creature more poetic and sympathetic than any previous take—half Shakespeare, half Percy Shelley, all existential crisis. This isn’t just ‘ooh, spooky monsters in London!’—it’s big, tragic, achingly human stuff.

That’s actually the show’s neatest trick. You come for the fangs, the claws, and the goo on the floor, but you end up rooting for the monsters—or realizing that the regular people are actually much worse.

Monsters, Metaphors, and Margins

Strip away the furs, corsets, and rivers of blood, and Penny Dreadful is basically about what happens when society pushes people (and monsters) to its edges. Characters like Vanessa, Ethan, The Creature, and even Frankenstein himself are all outsiders; each one is judged more for who they are than what they’ve done.

Let’s be clear: this show tackled some surprisingly heavy social topics—class, gender, sexuality, race—using all the trappings of monster mythology. Want a case in point? Sir Malcolm is so rich and powerful he can play monster hunter as a hobby, while others (like Vanessa, Lily, or The Creature) are just fighting for the right to exist without being burned at the stake. Dorian Gray? He gets to break all the rules because he’s rich and charming and, yes, impossibly white. The show doesn’t just lay out power imbalances—it rubs your nose in how unfair the system is.

But the best part is that Logan and company give everyone—not just the posh old dudes—some real agency. Women, queer characters, people of color—they all take the fight to their tormentors instead of just running for cover. It’s progressive without ever turning into a lecture, and the show’s weird heart bleeds for all those who don’t fit ‘proper’ Victorian society. As a result, it’s both smart and, at times, really moving—without ever letting up on the pulpy monster fun.

It’s hard to think of another show where you come away with more sympathy for the things that go bump in the night than the ones lighting the torches. Penny Dreadful isn’t just great horror—it's sneaky, biting, genre-defying television.