Nerdy Plea For 'Sleepy Hollow' Fans


BY MELISSA HARKNESS


It was renewed for a second season after only three episodes aired, it's is the surprise hit of the Fall TV season and it's kind of like a Monday night answer to "Grimm," another great show. And yet, there are still too many supernatural genre nerds who have not gotten into "Sleepy Hollow."

So why aren’t you watching? And really, why should you bother to catch up with only three episodes left in the season?

Let me tell you my reasons.

First, this isn’t quite the story you may think it is. I understand, you already know the "Legend of Sleepy Hollow," but really you don’t know this story at all. You see, in the show, Ichabod Crane (Tom Mison) is a British professor turned soldier who changed sides during the American Revolution. Doesn’t sound very exciting?

Well, did you know the American Revolution was really a fight between good and evil? According to Ichabod, it was. The British Army was full of demons bent on our subjugation. George Washington, the Freemasons and a few select witches knew the truth though. They all played pivotal roles in enticing the good-hearted Ichabod over to the right side of the fight. This ultimately led to Ichabod and the Horseman killing each other on the battlefield.

Obviously, they only stay dead for about 200 years or so. Also, the Headless Horseman is really one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and who doesn’t love those guys?

The Horseman and Ichabod are mystically bound together and both reawaken in the modern-day Sleepy Hollow to continue their long fight. With amazing guest stars like John Noble, Clancy Brown, and the occasional reappearance of John Cho there is everything to love. Ichabod teams up with Abbie Mills (Nicole Behaire), a police officer with her own hidden supernatural experiences. Together they set out to save not just Sleepy Hollow, but the entire world from the always impending doom of the Apocalypse.

And hopefully along the way they will also learn the truth about some unresolved issues from Ichie’s past. Like, why didn’t he know his wife was a witch and just why does the Headless Horseman hate him so much anyway?

But in a small town full of the supernatural who can be trusted to help them? Enter all manner of colorful characters, like Andy (John Cho), Abbie’s possibly insane sister Jenny (Lyndie Greenwood), and Abbie’s boss Capt. Frank Irving (Orlando Jones). This show just has charm and fun scattered everywhere one looks.

Additionally, Ichabod is truly horrified at our modern ways and tells us so in proper British fashion. He is frequently aghast at all he sees, from the fact that we pay for water all the way to donuts. And what we don’t know about the Revolution infuriates him much to Abbie’s amusement. And when Ichabod meets the Internet...well you just have to be there. And of course, each week we have to tune in to see if Ichie will ever get new clothes or cut his hair. As far as I’m concerned, Tom Mison can wear whatever he wants. I like his ratty coat and his boots. They’re just fine with me.

Lastly, we have the ever hilarious Orlando Jones, who live tweets every episode on his twitter account @TheOrlandoJones. That alone adds so much to the general level of fun this show exudes. He loves to help us poke fun at every character in the show, including his own. Join us in "Sleepy Hollow." It’s a fun town, I swear.

You can catch up this week on Fox on Monday, January 6, at 9 p.m. with "Necromancer." On Thursday, January 9, at 8 p.m., there is also a 2-hour special. Then, the next new episode, “The Vessel” airs Monday, January 13 at 9 p.m, followed by a two-hour finale on January 20.