Servant Season 3 Episode 1 review: A thrilling, suspenseful masterclass in horror (Spoilers)

Apple TV+ just dropped their newest season of Servant. The hit show has come back for its third season with suspense and thrills to keep the audience on the edge of their seat. It provides a healthy dose of shock and fright to provoke a feeling of uncertainty.

For those unaware, Servant was created by Tony Basgallop and is about a financially well-off couple named Dorothy and Sean. The two are distraught by the death of their newborn son and seek counseling with a reborn doll. Later, the two hire a nanny named Leanne Grayson.

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It’s time to unpack the Servant episode Donkey and why it’s great.

Note: This article contains spoilers.

Servant Season 3 premiere

Nell Tiger Free as Leanne Grayson (Image via Apple TV)

Closed in

In the season's opening, fans see Leanne waking up in her room, still paranoid and traumatized by Aunt Josephine's actions in the previous season. She becomes worried about the cult coming after her and fears for her life to the point that she cannot even leave her house in a Rear Window-type direction.

She becomes obsessive-compulsive and even collects bugs in her bathroom almost as a hobby. This makes the audience even more uncomfortable as they are close in with her in this small space, whereas everyone else is enjoying themselves outside.

Watching Leanne at home alone is even tenser when a burglar breaks in, leaving the audience wondering what may happen next.

The diary

In the episode, Leanne is encouraged by Dorothy Turner to write in her journal to vent her feelings. After she suffered a paranoid attack, she seems to draw a series of birds all across the pages of the journal.

What first seemed innocuous and strange was something of a premonition, almost. The rest of her family is out, and Julian (Rupert Grint), whom she previously had a sexual encounter with, is attacked by a flock of birds.

This would indicate that anything Leanne draws in her diary may come to life and inflict pain on her loved ones. It makes one wonder what the future holds for the following episodes.

M. Night Shyamalan’s direction

What’s truly unique about this episode is how M. Night Shyamalan uses his steady hand at directing, keeping the audience on edge without truly jumping out in full force for a scare, like a pleasing appetizer. It seems that the next couple of episodes will be the main course.

The director has always had a penchant for chilling films, and he puts his directing chops to the test with this masterclass.

Edited by Yasho Amonkar