Joe doesn’t have many friends, but he’s happy to hang out with models of his favourite movie monsters. A TV station and its happy daytime hosts are overwhelmed when an antique book accidentally summons a dark force.

Creepshow is back with a vengeance, with two of its strongest segments to date, crammed with Easter eggs for horror fans and some great guest stars. Based on George A Romero’s 1982 portmanteau movie – a love letter to EC Comics – each episode is introduced by The Creep and features two tales, framed as panels in a comic book.

Model Kid begins with a silent, Super 8 movie featuring Gill Man meeting the Mummy, but it’s all in the mind of horror fan Joe (Brock Hampton), a lovely kid who’s picked on by the neighbourhood bully. His loving mom is dying from cancer, and things get even worse when idiot uncle Kevin (a nasty Kevin Dillon – The Blob) and his abused wife come on the scene.

That’s all you need to know to enjoy this fun throwback to simple, ghoulish comeuppance short stories. The kid’s last name is Aurora, as in those wonderful glow-in-the-dark kits – make a note of that! Directed by showrunner Greg Nicotero (The Walking Dead) and written by John Esposito (Stephen King’s Graveyard Shift) it’s a strong opener that sets the scene for the new season.

Public Television of the Dead is even crazier, a period-piece look at WQPS Channel 13 in Pittsburgh. The star of the literary puppet show Mrs Bookberry’s Magical Library starts making unreasonable demands that will force Bob Ross-style painting show The Love of Painting with Norm Roberts to go off air. At the same time, Ted Raimi (as himself) takes his antique book onto The Appraiser’s Road Trip to be evaluated. Read that sentence again – Ted Raimi, ancient book – you know what’s going to happen.

Written by Rob Schrab (Monster House), this is an absolute blast of horror movie references and slapstick gory turns, and it knows exactly what boxes to tick to entertain its audience. What a rush!

Verdict: Funnier, more entertaining and more confident than before, this is the most fun you’ll have being shocked this week. 9/10

Nick Joy