By Annette Quijada
Netflix’s current number one show is “DAHMER Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” and it’s quite disturbing.
Viewers should not be surprised by the gut wrenching feeling this show will give them.The show contains scenes that may be unwatchable for some.
The 10 episode series follows the crimes of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer played by Evan Peters.
The timeline of the series jumps from when Dahmer is back-and-forth caught to glimpses of his childhood and adolesence. Dahmer killed, dismembered and cannibalized his victims in his Milwaukee, Wisconsin apartment.
Evan Peters is well known in the horror community and he’s no disappointment in this series. Peters is best known for his various psychotic charcters in the infamous show American Horror Story.
Peters captures Dahmer’s early interest in anatomy including his non-chalantness when it comes to dismembering his victims.
Dharmer’s life and actions have been visited quite a number of times and has been told from several different angles.
The only enlightening thing in this version is how the incompetence of the police contributed to Dahmer being able to murder 17 innocent people from 1978-1991.
One essential character in the series is Glenda Cleveland played by Niecy Nash. Cleveland was Dahmer’s neighbor and was ignored by police when she called them to report on the odd things going on in Dahmer’s apartment.
The series shows the rivetting night of May 27, 1991 when Cleveland’s niece and daughter bump into one of Dahmer’s victims, 14-year-old Konerak Sinthasonphone.
He was trying to escape, but was drugged by Dehmar. When police finally showed up, they believed Dahmer when he said Sinthasonphone was his boyfriend.
Nash manages to show the pained and nauseated feelings Cleveland must’ve felt while being ignored by the police and having to deal with the constant smell of human flesh coming through her air vents.
Creator Ryan Murphy does well in trying not to glamorize Dahmer. More importantly the series captures the pain of the victims and their families. Murphy most importantly sheds the light on who the victims were as individuals and the fact that Dahmer had a preference of Black and brown men.
The popularity of the Netflix show brings up an interesting problem. These types of shows continue to glamorize monsters like Dahmer and keep them popular through new movies and series. It may be time to leave their monsters behind.