666 Park Avenue | TV Review

666 Park Avenue

Photo: Patrick Harbron

After the success of American Horror Story, ABC tries it hand at a horror TV series but a predictable story keeps 666 Park Avenue from delivering on its promises of terror.

Unemployed architect Jane (Rachael Taylor) and lawyer Henry (Dave Annable) apply for an open Resident Manager position at the Drake Apartment complex. The job comes with cushy perks of a swanky apartment and generous bosses in building owners Gavin and Olivia Doran (Terry O'Quinn and Olivia Williams). Of course, there's a catch. Gavin has contracts with his tenants that seem a bit Faustian. For example, the former Resident Manager made some sort of exchange to be a violin virtuoso and when his ten years were up, the building, quite literally, consumed him. It's not clear what Gavin and Olivia want from Jane and Henry—though Henry's position in the Mayor's office is probably a factor—but the wealthy couple is quick to shower their new tenants with parties and gifts. While the unmarried young lovers are quite happy to receive the attention, we know that this will all come at a high cost.

So much of 666 Park Avenue has a familiar ring to it. From The Devil's Advocate to Rosemary's Baby to The Shining, there seems to no ground in this drama that hasn't been tread before. This hobbles any sense of suspense that 666 Park Avenue is going for. Every twist seems telegraphed. Every scare is expected. Even talented members of the cast like Lost's O'Quinn seem to be sleepwalking through this bore of a pilot. With a story that constantly feels ten steps behind, it's impossible to get invested in drab characters whose fates already seem sealed.

666 Park Avenue airs Sundays at 9pm on ABC.