“The third instalment of Ryan Murphy’s Monster anthology show has just hit Netflix with huge viewership, once again setting out to disturb its audiences by exploring the lives and psychology of America’s most infamous serial killers,” writes streaming columnist NICK OVERALL.

“The lowest and vilest alleys in London do not present a more dreadful record of sin than does the smiling and beautiful countryside.”

That may be a quote from the famous fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, but it came to mind in frightening clarity when watching Netflix’s new series about a very real crime horror story.

The third instalment of Ryan Murphy’s Monster anthology show has just hit Netflix with huge viewership, once again setting out to disturb its audiences by exploring the lives and psychology of America’s most infamous serial killers.

In its third season the titular “monster” is Ed Gein, a man who earned himself the name “The Butcher of Plainfield” for a string of shocking crimes committed in Wisconsin in the ’40s and ‘50s. 

Gein gained notoriety after police discovered he had exhumed corpses from local graveyards, fashioning macabre mementos from their remains.

He also confessed to the murder of two women, but the true number of his victims is still disputed.

So notorious were these crimes that Gein’s story actually went on to inspire major horror films of the 20th century such as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Silence of The Lambs, even Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.

So what made Gein tick? It’s a question the show sets out to answer and the resulting viewing experience is harrowing to say the least.

In previous seasons the show has focused on the urban back alleys of Milwaukee where Jeffrey Dahmer stalked his victims in the ‘80s and ‘90s.

The second season then honed in on the glamour of Beverly Hills where Lyle and Erik Menendez murdered their wealthy parents, sparking one of the most watched court trials in history.

However, the Ed Gein story goes back further in time to the 1940s in rural America.

Gone are the claustrophobic cityscapes that conceal the crimes of the killers.

In this season, the setting feels far more unnerving, taking place at a farm well removed from prying eyes. Gein’s sins are separated from the populace by silent fields of snow, the horrors unfolding behind the doors of lantern-lit barns.

The production is top shelf. The setting and cinematography is expertly crafted and that’s to say nothing of the acting.

Sons of Anarchy star Charlie Hunnam plays the killer with ice-cold commitment. His performance may take a while to get going but Hunnam knows how to get under his audience’s skin over time.

He’s joined by Laurie Metcalf, who also delivers a remarkably eerie performance as Gein’s estranged mother.

There’s also an appearance from Addison Rae, an internet net celebrity who became famous from Tik Tok but has now turned her career towards acting.

The experience compared to her co-stars shows though and her casting may be more a case of creating spectacle than anything else.

Despite all of its slick production values though, what does a story like this actually achieve?

It’s a question that bubbles up with every new season of Monster. The first set of episodes focusing on Jeffrey Dahmer sparked huge controversy when the real-life families of victims spoke out saying they weren’t consulted about the show, some even feeling “retraumatised” by watching it.

The families of the Menendez brothers also slammed season two, calling the show “slanderous” and a “train wreck.”

Well no matter how much criticism is levelled at Monster it doesn’t stop this streaming locomotive always leaving the station. At this point, one has to wonder, do the creators care? 

The series amasses huge amounts of viewers and it seems that in its third season it’s far more self aware of what it’s putting out there for mass consumption.

One of Gein’s fascinations is a hyper-violent comic book the audience repeatedly sees him utterly consumed by.

As he reads it the camera inches closer and closer to his eyes until it is just centimetres away, leaving viewers staring directly into dilated pupils devouring what’s in front of them. It feels like Monster might just want its audience to catch a reflection.