r/netflix – *SPOILERS* I finally finished watching (no pun intended) “The Watcher” last week, and here’s why I am not a huge fan.

For those that have not yet given the show a watch and would like to do so without any prejudice then please watch all the episodes before reading through the rest of this!

Overall, a decently put together cast and executed show albeit with some major plot holes and in my opinion a poorly executed ending (I'll explain this as well).

Bobby Cannavale did a good enough job playing the role of Dean Brannock – Naomi Watts (playing Nora Brannock) on the other hand was all a little bit too intense for me and her age as a mother didn't really work for me in this context. I would've preferred someone like Emily Blunt but I understand there's salary and availability to take into account (Personally i think a John Krasinski and Emily Blunt duo as parents would've killed it taking into consideration their performance in A Quiet Place).

Much of the surrounding cast really fit the whole creepy crawly nature of the story, particularly the surrounding neighbours BUT .. One thing I just couldn't fathom was the introduction of multiple paths and explanations for who The Watcher was and why they would be watching the families positioned at 657 Boulevard. There were small interactions between the neighbours in particular that left me wanting further expansion and conversation – One scene in particular where John Graff (played by joe Mantello) and Roger Kaplan (played by Michael Nouri) interact, Kaplan broadly states he thinks he knows of John and alludes to the past – This is then just brushed past and we never hear about this again. Like I said, plot holes and plenty of them.

My biggest pet peeve of the whole series was the way in which they executed the ending. In the actual case, the family that ended up purchasing the house from the original owners advised that from 2019 onwards they have not received any letters from anyone titled The Watcher, or letters of that nature.

Does that not make so much more sense as an ending and give that much more power to the downfall of the main character Dean Brannock, who by the end has "assumed" the alias as a "watcher" of the house dropping off mail to the home only to be caught in the act by his wife Nora. I just think in terms of effect, it would bear that much more weight if I was someone who was essentially traumatised for years by a stalker sending me letters that I sold my house because of it, and then following this the new owner did not even suffer the same fate. I'd be going crazy thinking why was it me? Why not them? Who was it? This would just have been so much more devastating and effective as an ending and they'd have so much potential to showcase Dean's collapse rather than his stepping into the role of a Watcher.

Just a plain old example of how moving too far from the truth can sometimes actually hinder your story and message rather than enhance it, and this is reflected in the ratings also (I've used IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes for comparison).

– IMDB – 6.7/10 >>> https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14852808/

– Rotten Tomatoes – 31% Critics ; 41% Audience >>> https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_watcher

All in all, if you recasted both parents, sought to fill the plot holes raised by the surrounding characters and stuck to the true outcome of the case then you have a pretty solid show on your hands, but instead we are left with something that's a bit of a fantastical mess.

SOURCE FOR THE WATCHER CASE OUTCOME – https://www.thecut.com/2022/10/the-watcher-657-boulevard-update.html