Truth Seekers isn't very scary, but it's got some solid, sustained spookiness

The Hollywood Reporter

The Amazon series reuniting Nick Frost and Simon Pegg, that they co-created  with James Serafinowicz and Nat Saunders, "is meant to be a tongue-in-cheek look at the TV ghost-hunting genre, but it simultaneously wants to creep you out," says Daniel Fienberg. "As shows aspiring to similar duality go, Truth Seekers isn't anywhere near as funny or scary as HBO's Los Espookys, but as single-agenda shows go it's still funnier than Fox's short-lived Ghosted and scarier than Hulu's likely-to-be-short-lived Helstrom." Fienberg adds: "The show spells out what's happening in the second half of the season and, as so often occurs in this genre, the answers are less satisfying than the ambiguity preceding it. By that time, though, I had enough affection for several characters that I cared what was happening on their behalf well beyond the rather by-the-numbers 'Oh no, somebody is opening up a portal someplace portals ought not go' narrative."

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• While it works as a spooky drama, Truth Seekers is underpowered as a comedy: "The jokes, often couched in (Nick) Frost’s trademark droll delivery, are barely there; more like an afterthought than the backbone of the series," says Rebecca Nicholson. "Anyone expecting the nimble wit of the Cornetto trilogy – Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World’s End – might find this lacking; and, though it tries to pack out the story with warmth, it suffers from a lack of fun. It skirts around the appealing shoddiness of old ghost-hunting “documentaries”, now funnelled into those Facebook clips where self-anointed explorers wander around abandoned mansions, but lacks the inclination to see the funny side in them. As the series progresses and the various strands begin to knot together, it becomes more bogged down and convoluted, and the pace starts to lag, which is strange, given that the episodes are so short. By the end, it is all so operatically nutty that I was half-grateful it was over. Still, it shook me up on more than one occasion. As TV horrors go, Truth Seekers is worth adding to the 'will make you wish you had watched it with the lights on' pile."
• Truth Seekers quickly reveals itself to be a genuinely creepy bit of horror, with ghost stories that are tragic and poignant, startling and violent
• Truth Seekers feels deeply lacking, like it’s going through the motions of comedy-horror
• Truth Seekers offers ghosts, gags and satisfying reveals
• What starts as a comedy-horror with a surprisingly dark edge stretches into a roughly-sketched conspiracy
• Nick Frost and Simon Pegg didn't try to capture the essence of their earlier work: "No, we always try to keep it fresh. I’m not someone who dwells on our stuff," says Frost. "I hope our best stuff is to come, and I’m always searching for that. But it’s unique that our characters have changed and aged as men, fathers and husbands, like we have, and our fans have aged with us as well."