Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Fridays, I will be reviewing Freddy’s Nightmares, a horror anthology show which ran in syndication from 1988 to 1990. The entire series can be found on Tubi!

Let’s go to prison!  Is Freddy coming?

Episode 2.21 “Prisoner of Love”

(Dir by Richard T. Schor, originally aired on March 4th, 1990)

A flakey Episcopalian named Father Jarvis (Vincent Baggetta) is appointed the new chaplain of Springwood Prison.  Jarvis has just returned from Haiti and has a rather liberal outlook towards prison reform.  When he falls in love with Death Row prisoner Violet (Maria Richwine), he gives her a Haitian drug that will make it appear as if she’s died.  He promises her that he will dig her up from the prison graveyard before she suffocates.  Unfortunately, Jarvis oversleeps and Violet suffocates in her coffin.

Still, another prisoner named Brenda (Tara Buckman) overheard Jarvis talking to Violet and she decides that she wants the same drug.  Jarvis gives it to her but it turns out that Jarvis is also being haunted by the ghost of Violet.  Violet says that she can’t move on until Brenda forgives her for killing Brenda’s boyfriend.  Brenda finds herself being held captive by the crazed Father Jarvis.

This episode was the second-to-late for Freddy’s Nightmares and, unfortunately, it’s not very good.  Between the histrionic acting and the predictable plot, this story really makes you wish that Freddy was doing something more than just introducing it.  As it was, this episode really reminded me of how limiting the show’s format was.  Whenever something scary happens, it’s always a given that it will turn out to be a dream.  It’s predictable and a little bit dull, unless it’s one of the rare episodes in which Freddy actually played a role in the story.

Next week, we will finish up Freddy’s Nightmares!