Unsolved mysteries returns to Netflix for the fourth volume of its reboot from executive producer Shawn Levy, also executive producer of Stranger Thingsamong many other things, this time with five new episodes that, following the tradition of the series, cover everything from historical topics, unsolved murders of the present and touches of the paranormal. There is no Robert Stack lending gravity as the intoning host/narrator. But the iconic, wobbly theme music remains, and there’s more connective tissue with the involvement of Terry Dunn Meurer and John Cosgrove, creators of the original Unsolved mysteriesAn interesting note: the titles of the series have been modified with a nod to the color palette, typography, and visual aesthetic of Stranger things.
UNSOLVED MYSTERIES – VOLUME 4STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?TO
Opening shot: Images from the 1959 film Jack the Ripper It appears before a cut to contemporary London and a double-decker bus adorned with advertisements for a visit to the Jack the Ripper site. “People have heard the name Jack the Ripper, even if they don’t know what Jack the Ripper did…”
The essence: The first installment of the fourth volume of the new series. Unsolved mysteries The book methodically addresses the crimes of the 19th-century serial killer. In the early hours of August 31, 1888, Mary Ann “Polly” Nichols was found murdered on the streets of Whitechapel, a poor neighborhood in London’s East End, with a deep wound running from her chest to her abdomen. It was a gruesome discovery, but the side streets and dark alleys of Whitechapel were quickly hit by another, equally horrific murder. Like Nichols, Annie Chapman was poor and had turned to sex work to earn a living—or at least the cost of a bed for the night. She was found horribly mutilated, her uterus removed. And as Scotland Yard’s investigation faltered, news of the murders went viral in the media of 19th-century London.
Guiding us through the story of Jack the Ripper in Unsolved mysteries Crime historians Lindsay Siviter and Adam Wood, author and historian Paul Begg and author and tour guide Richard Jones point out how the public was fixated on the grisly facts of the crimes as much as on the shreds of circumstantial evidence, such as a leather apron discovered near one of the crime scenes or a swatch of bloody cloth believed to belong to one of the victims. Moody reenactments explain much of the footage here, with frequent cuts to interviewed experts and Unsolved It draws on both current true crime documentaries and procedural-style murder shows to depict the movements of Jack the Ripper’s victims, including on-screen timelines and visits to the original crime scenes in the modern-day East End.
“Dear Chief, I keep hearing that the police have caught me, but they’re not going to fix me yet.” As letters attributed to “Jack the Ripper” began to circulate, police were no closer to determining either the killer’s identity or the reasons for his actions. But as the death toll continued to rise and efforts to apprehend him continued, investigators also used techniques that were either in their infancy or completely unknown at the time, such as crime scene photography and attempts to discern a mental profile of the killer.
What shows will it remind you of? Pick the one you want. When it debuted in 1987, Unsolved mysteries was the only network series that did this sort of thing. But in our era, true crime is an industry unto itself. Some recent examples include Never seen again, Nobody saw anythingand Archives of the unexplainable.
Our opinion: Another innovative element of the original Unsolved mysteries The series’ main hallmark is its ability to get answers to its questions through crowdsourcing, and this new version successfully brings that aspect back. It’s a little old to delve back into the Victorian-era saga of Jack the Ripper without any new leads or fresh evidence. But then again, the gruesome murders remain one of the most high-profile unsolved cases of all time. Could someone streaming the series have Jack the Ripper’s identity hidden in an old steamer trunk or a pile of physical evidence forgotten in a corner somewhere? Maybe yes, maybe not. But while Jack the Ripper has become a tradition, the killer’s story also includes many of the highlights favored by today’s true crime documentaries. Bloody murder scenes with tons of unique and gruesome details (“The killer took the woman’s uterus and left kidney”), a group of people being targeted for their gender and occupation, and a certain amount of hysteria, both in the news of the day and as the legend has spread through numerous works of fiction. It’s no surprise that we also have docuseries about serial killers named “Ripper” in a sort of dark homage to the original culprit.
In other words, a subject like Jack the Ripper is still just as worthy of being a crime as Unsolved mysteries In itself, it does, as it offers solid, straightforward episodes that are easy to consume in one sitting, that don’t fall into sensationalism and keep the focus on how the crimes outlined could still be solved.
Sex and skin: There’s nothing here, but observers’ descriptions of the bodily harm Jack the Ripper inflicted on the killer’s female victims are appropriately gruesome.
Parting shot: Like the original series, the new version… Unsolved mysteries The documentary ends with a plea from the producers (there are no cuts to a live call center like in the old days, but still). “If you have any documents or artifacts related to the Jack the Ripper murders, go to Unsolved.com…”
Sleeping Star: At one point, criminal historian Lindsay Siviter recites from memory a portion of the 1888 letter “From Hell,” which is often attributed to the real Jack the Ripper. Siviter even pronounces the R for maximum effect. “I’m sending you half a kidney that I took out of a woman. I kept it for you. The other piece I fried and ate. It was very tasty. I may send you the damn knife I took it out with…”
Pilot’s most typical phrase: “It happened over 135 years ago and yet we are still trying to solve the mystery.” Truly one of the most infamous “unsolved mysteries” in history.
Our calling: STREAM IT. The new version of Unsolved mysteries has retained what made the original series so compelling while refreshing it with techniques borrowed from true-crime storytelling in the modern streaming era.
Johnny Loftus (@glennganges) is a freelance writer and editor based in Chicago. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift.
