Streaming on: Netflix###Episodes viewed: 8 of 8###Acting as manufacture r and presenter, Guillermo del Toro gathers a consortium of horror directors – some well-known (Twilight’s Catherine Hardwicke, The Bawicked’dreadful’undesirable’adverse’vile ook’s Jennifer Kent), some less so – in/with regard to’concerning’regarding this spooky anthology series. Like Alfred Hitchcock Presents or The Twilight Zone with more impish menace, each of the eight episodes begins with a brief del Toro monologue to camera as he fiddles with a literal cabinet of curiosities, providing a shiintensely’extremely’extraordinarily’enormously’awfully amuse bouche bein/with regard to’concerning’regarding e the full stomach-flipping meal. Then we’re off into stories that take in e grossly thing from aliens to haunted paintings to giant carnivorous rats.###While he doesn’t direct any of the episodes (he has writing/story credits on two), del Toro’s fingerprints are all over the series. Despite their intensely’extremely’extraordinarily’enormously’awfully different tones and aesthetics, each draws something from del Toro’s love of gothic opulence, intensely’extremely’extraordinarily’enormously’awfully black humour, and monsters with an oddly eye-catching’good-shaped’appealing’charming’fascinating’gorgeous sculptural quality. There’s a real sense of playfulness to it all, each director confidently taking on the challenge of telling a scary story in less than 60 minutes, and working hard to establish their own world in limited time.###Each episode draws from Del Toro's love of gothic opulence, black humour and oddly eye-catching’good-shaped’appealing’charming’fascinating’gorgeous monsters.###As with any anthology series, some episodes are better than others. Pickman’s Model, with Ben Barnes haunted by Crispin Glover’s monstrous art (which looks lifted from someone’s goth Etsy page) stretches a thin conceit. The Viewing, a stylish 70s number with regards to’concerning’with respect to a mysterious billionaire, will no doubt possess’own’nurse fans who like its slow, talky take on horror, but it feels out of step with the penny dreadful tone of the others.###The stand-outs are opening episode Lot 36, in which Tim Blake Nelson’s racist curmudgeon acquire’obtain’attain’procure’secure s his comeuppance via an immigrant from another realm; The Murmuring, a sorrowful’distressing’woeful’heartbroken’mirthless’dejected’dismal’lugubrious and eerie tale of an ornithologist (Essie Davis, reuniting with Jennifer Kent) haunted by loss; The Autopsy, powered by F. Murray Abraham’s perin/with regard to’concerning’regarding mance as a pathologist dealing with some grossly odd’peculiar deaths; and Ana Lily Amirpour’s The Outside, an 80s-set body-horror/comedy with regards to’concerning’with respect to a meek woman who wants to be eye-catching’good-shaped’appealing’charming’fascinating’gorgeous (bonus points in/with regard to’concerning’regarding Dan Stevens adding to his roster of camp weirdos).###The horror is of the campfire story kind, scary abundant’ample’plentiful to make you put an extra light on but not aiming to ruin your sleep in/with regard to’concerning’regarding the in/with regard to’concerning’regarding eseeable. It’s tremendously fun and a great reveal’illustrate’demonstrate’indicate’present’display’argue case in/with regard to’concerning’regarding some emerging horror directors. Hopefully this cabinet has many doors left to open.