Judge James is the Local Editor of the Victoria Advocate, James David Herd. In this column, he presents his opinions on all things entertainment, from movies to video games to everything in-between. Email topic ideas to James at jherd@vicad.com or call him at 361-574-1285.
I have watched the career of Mark Fischbach—also known as Markiplier—with earnest since 2014, right around the time the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” craze began.
In many ways, Fischbach has earned his spot on the online horror pantheon alongside greats like Kris Straub (who created Local58), Troy Wagner and Joseph DeLage (who birthed the Slenderman series Marble Hornets).
So, when I heard Fischbach starred in a series on Amazon Prime called “The Edge of Sleep,” based on the narrative podcast with the same name, I simply had to check it out. Besides, with Fischbach writing, directing, producing and starring in an adaptation of the video game “Iron Lung”—which you can bet your bottom dollar will receive a column unto itself—this series felt almost like a precursor to that film.
“The Edge of Sleep” follows Dave Torres (Fischbach), who has experienced debilitating nightmares for much of his life and now has a deep-seated fear of falling asleep. One night, his friend and co-worker Matteo (Franz Drameh) insisted they attend a party to help Dave move on from a nasty breakup. But upon their arrival, they find several of their friends dead. It soon comes out this is not an isolated incident—rather, everyone in their town, possibly the nation and/or the world—has died in their sleep.
It’s up to Dave, Matteo, Dave’s ex-girlfriend Katie (Lio Tipton) and a hospital nurse named Linda (Eve Harlow) to figure out why they’re the only ones left. However, they must stay awake while they’re at it. I don’t really want to reveal much more of the plot itself because there are some chilling surprises and devastating twists that make this series worth a binge.
“The Edge of Sleep” has six episodes, and each is about 20 minutes long, which is pretty unique when it comes to live-action dramas. The series was initially announced to release on Oct. 18 on a mystery streaming platform, but to the surprise of literally everyone—including Fischbach—it dropped early on Oct. 15 on Amazon Prime Video. Taking that into consideration, it certainly seems like the streamer was attempting to bury the series, or at the very least it’s not a priority for their marketing department.
That’s a real shame, because “The Edge of Sleep” takes a concept most of us take for granted—falling asleep—and morphs it into a primal fear. Especially once you’ve seen hints of what’s behind everyone dying when they fall asleep; let’s just say it’s the perfect (worst) thing to watch right before bed.
I really hope I’m wrong and Amazon greenlights a second season of “The Edge of Sleep” immediately. Because it doesn’t seem often these big studios give relatively indie, online creators a chance to reach an exponentially larger audience and allow them to create something truly unique. It happens, sure, but in this case, the story seems to be at a standstill. The narrative podcast was reportedly set to get a second season in 2022. But here we are in 2024, and no second season has arrived.
To see this adaptation being—in my opinion—sabotaged by its own streaming platform is disappointing. All this to say that, if any of my rambling has piqued your curiosity at all, watch “The Edge of Sleep” on Amazon Prime Video.
Afterward, if you fall asleep … don’t. Happy Halloween!
James David Herd is the local editor for the Victoria Advocate. James is a former associate and copy editor. He can be reached jherd@vicad.com or 361-574-1285.