Tales from the Crypt (TV Series) Lover Come Hack to Me (1989) User Reviews

Family Secret

[claudio_carvalho · 6/10 · 16 July 2012]

The opportunist Charles (Stephen Shellen) gets married with the heir Peggy (Amanda Plummer) that has inherited a large amount from her parents against the will of her Aunt Edith (Lisa Figus).

They travel for their honeymoon and they have to stop for the night due to a fallen tree on the road and a severe storm. They find an abandoned house nearby the location and they decide to spend the night there. Charles discovers soon a dark family secret of Peggy.

"Lover Come Hack to Me" is a gore episode of Tales from the Crypt. Amanda Plummer performs her usual role of an unbalanced woman and the twist is unexpected. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Lover Come Hack to Me"

Be Careful What You AXE For

[mattressman_pdl · 7/10 · 9 October 2008]

Episode five of the first season is a nice, Gothic story of a young woman who has recently married a man who is only after her vast fortune.

Peggy and Charles have just gotten married, and they're both ecstatic. Peggy has found love and Charles has found Peggy's money. But an accident on the way to their honeymoon leaves the two stranded and looking for a place to crash for the night. What they find, a large, empty house, may prove more trouble than it's worth as Charles sees what appears to be the ghost of Peggy's mother murder Peggy's father.

This episode takes a while to get under the skin, but once it does it is hard to shake. Seemingly simple and quaint, the episode takes a dark, clever turn as the end is revealed and their wonderful honeymoon is tragically CUT short. Amanda Plummer is amazing, as is the rest of the cast. An underrated Crypt Classic!

Decent tale from the crypt.

[poolandrews · 6/10 · 23 March 2007]

Tales from the Crypt: Lover Come Hack to Me starts on the wedding day of Charles (Stephen Shellen) & Peggy (Amanda Plummer) as they tie the knot & then head off for their honeymoon, however later that night during a torrential storm they are stopped in their tracks by a fallen tree in the road. The both head to an old abandoned house nearby for shelter & to spend their first night together, things go well at first until Charles learns of a dark family secret...

This Tales from the Crypt story was episode 5 from season 1, the first of three Tales from the Crypt episodes to be directed by Tom Holland I quite liked Lover Come Hack to Me which by the way I also think is a great title. The script by Michael McDowell was based on a story from 'The Haunt of Fear' comic book & is a good tale, although definitely horror in tone it doesn't have the dark sense of humour a lot of Tales from the Crypt episodes do but that works well with the story at hand, the twist at the end isn't the most spectacular, creative or memorable but it's still a decent one none the less. At less than 30 minutes the build up is swift & pretty effective considering the time restraint.

This one looks great with a spooky old run down house complete with plaster falling of the walls, a dishevelled look throughout, dust everywhere & a really nice atmosphere as the storm rages outside. There are a couple of very bloody murders but their not that graphic. The acting is pretty good as usual.

Lover Come Hack to Me isn't the best tale from the crypt but it's a decent one all the same, worth spending 30 odd minutes of your life with.

Getting married can be very detrimental to your health!

[callanvass · 7/10 · 27 September 2013]

An opportunist named Charles (Stephen Shellen) marries a wealthy woman named Peggy (Amanda Plummer) who has inherited her parents money, much to the dismay of her Aunt Edith. Charles plans to kill Peggy on their honeymoon to become a rich man, but is Peggy really the oblivious woman, Charles thinks she is?

This episode is no great shakes, but I still really enjoyed it. It's got the patented black humor that the Crypt series is well known for, and the solid storytelling. This one actually has more suspense than a lot of other episodes do. The old house they stay in has some terrific atmosphere. It also has a really eerie dream sequence that actually managed to creep me out a little bit. I'll give credit to Amanda Plummer for that. She's actually scary enough as it is, by just being her. I definitely wouldn't wanna dream about her! Stephen Shellen plays his manipulative character well. When push came to shove, I actually empathized with him more than I did Amanda Plummer (!) I highly doubt that was intended, but it just happened for me. There isn't a lot of gore, but there is quite a bit of blood splashing, courtesy of a lot of hacking. They sadly cut away from the full impact, so all you see is blood splashing.

Final Thoughts: It's good entertainment, and that's all there is to it. it's not on my favorite list, but I do enjoy it a lot. Check it out if you see it on the net, or T.V!

7.2/10

Scores high in the cheese department

[SleepTight666 · 6/10 · 27 June 2009]

Another fun, silly episode that is not entirely great but still managed to give me a few chuckles and impress me a little more than the previous one.

The episode scores high in the cheese department, the dialog is just plain cheesy. But the surprise twist is actually nice, although I did see it coming.

The guy who married her for her money had it coming, he was planning to murder her after all. Although he did end up fancying her before she axed him.

The sex scenes were nicely done, and even a bit creepy. Although the second one was a little drawn out.

I dig this one.

[shellytwade · 7/10 · 27 March 2022]

A slight improvement over the last episode but still not a complete classic. Amanda Plummer is always fun to watch though and her husband character has a good amount of 80's sleaze coming off him. The setting is definitely a strong point too. 5 episodes in you can tell this is going to be a classic show.

"Sleep tight, Charles..."

[Foreverisacastironmess123 · 7/10 · 23 December 2013]

The weird atmosphere of this one is so tense and offbeat. And the way the characters get stuck in the middle of nowhere in the dark and stormy dead of night and just happen to find a conveniently abandoned strange decaying mansion right in front of them, just reminds me a little of the setup of awesome 80's monster-fest "Spookies." Who the hell would ever care to consummate their marriage vows in such a creepy old dive like that anyway? Amanda Plumber's performance was seriously bizarre and freaky, the way she spoke all soft and innocent like a little girl. And she was so repulsive when she says "We made a child, and she's this big!" That's one suspiciously timid bride! But yes, it's apparently all an act designed to lure her unsuspecting new husband into an elaborate kind of trap... "Peggy" was like a black widow spider. That sex scene is so outrageously over the top! Their flipped-out carnal midnight romp is so passionate that it somehow manages to crack the grandfather clock!!! I don't think it suited Plumber at all when she's trying to be all alluring, but she is one of those actresses where you really buy it when they get all worked up and crazy, as anyone who's ever seen the opening to "Pulp Fiction" is sure to agree! She plays a perfect psycho, and is excellent in the big insane twist moment of the episode. The buildup to it is decent, but to me it's really the only thing about this tale that makes it actually worth watching. It's also possibly, blood-wise, the goriest moment in the whole series - and it's definitely one of the most gloriously demented! The axe she uses to commit the brutal deed makes the one wielded by the killer Santa in "And All Through the House" look like a freaking toothpick! But was it really all that hard for the poor guy to just leap out of the bed? Stephen Shellen was good enough as a Fabio-looking male gold digger with schemes of his own, and no idea of what he's getting himself into. It's such a contradictory little moment for "Charles" in the part of the story where he's having an astonishingly accurate dream of what's soon revealed to be Peggy's mother murdering her husband many years earlier, and his feelings are actually hurt when he thinks she's blatantly cheating on him, even though he clearly has nothing but contempt for her and in fact later plans to murder her himself! And is it just me, or does that entire sequence make no sense whatsoever? It doesn't! There's nothing at all mythical that's ever established in the plot, so why would he even have such a vision? Maybe the place was, 'haunted' in some way by the madness of the sick ritual.. The whole storyline of this tale is ridiculously vague and weak but unlike some, I don't hate it, I find every show of the first season to be very enjoyable and good, and one truly exceptional, because well everything about the show was so new and full of creative enthusiasm at this point, and you can really feel that a lot in all the episodes including this one. What it lacks in suspense, it makes up for with one helluva wicked, blood-drenched and splatterific finale!

Remember know your brides background, if you don't you just get axed and hacked up in an old family tradition!

[blanbrn · 9/10 · 25 June 2007]

In my opinion "Lover Come Hack To Me" is one of the better episodes of tales and one of the first happening in the first season. The plot is nice in this episode and you can tell the writing is good as the story unfolds with secrets and the story told reveals a gruesome family history. Anyway you have a new married couple Charlie(Stephen Shellen) and Peggy(Amanda Plummer)who after their wedding decide to take their honeymoon to a private getaway. It's on a dark rainy night which is a perfect setting for a tales episode they arrive upon an old castle like a mansion style house. Once inside the drama and tension starts to build in this episode as the two make hot and passionate love which keeps Charlie at bay, because his real goal is to murder Peg for inheritance money, anyway Peg says they just conceived a child. Very strange thing next Charles starts to dream and see the images and passions of back to the night that Peg was conceived and oddly it happened in the same house. Yet Charles sees that in the dream Peg's mother gives her lover a brutal fate after making love. When Charlie awakes he then discovers Peg has the same thing in store for him, as she's just continues an old family tradition of hacking the lover after conceiving! Overall really a well written episode that tells a story and reveals the secrets and it showed good drama and tension. It proves everyone has secrets and skeletons in the closet and you should know a person's background really well because family history carries on!

"Beware of skeletons, unless they're yours truly."

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 13 August 2022]

Peggy (Amanda Plummer, "Pulp Fiction") is an heiress who impulsively marries the slick, studly Charles (Stephen Shellen, "The Stepfather"). He unfortunately turns out to be your standard-issue gold-digger who hopes to do away with her and blame the murder on a "robber", but after a perfect night of passion in an isolated old house, he experiences a change of heart. Little does he know that Peggy is determined to keep a dark family tradition alive.

Given that the talented Ms. Plummer has always excelled at playing fragile, eccentric, or downright insane characters, you *expect* a certain bizarre, sadistic twist, and ultimately this episode (written by Michael McDowell) doesn't have a *lot* of punch in its punchline. But it's well-directed (by genre pro Tom Holland of "Fright Night" and "Child's Play" fame), decently atmospheric, has some pretty sexy scenes (Plummer does look pretty enticing after getting herself all dolled up), and lathers on lots of gore for those who crave it. There are also lingering shots of Shellens' backside for those who are interested. But the main reason this really works at all is because Ms. Plummer just goes for it like she so often does. She's simply wonderful.

At least this is an episode that safely lives up to its title.

Seven out of 10.

This one didn't know when to end....

[planktonrules · 4/10 · 2 July 2021]

"Lover Come Hack to Me" is a frustrating episode of "Tales from the Crypt". I liked the first 80-90% but then there was a double-ending....it seemed to end (well) but then continued (which wasn't so good).

Peggy (Amanda Plummer) is an heiress who lives with her aunt. However, the aunt is apparently not pleased when she leaves with her boyfriend to get married. What happens next just seems pretty gory and overdone.

I think had the show ended with the guy figuring out he was a ghost, it would have been fantastic. But to make this a false ending and then include one that just seemed gratuitously bloody instead seems like a mistake to me. Not terrible but why this ending?!

Another worthy episode

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 9 March 2011]

Smarmy sponger Charles (well played to slimy perfection by Stephen Shellen) marries the flaky and virginal Peggy (an excellent performance by Amanda Plummer) for her family's substantial fortune. The couple spend their honeymoon at an old abandoned house. However, Charles is unaware that Peggy's family harbors a very dark and deadly secret. Director Tom Holland relates the absorbing story at a steady pace, does an aces job of creating a strong spooky atmosphere (the dark and stormy night at some creepy old place set up may be clichéd, but boy does it work like a sinister charm just the same), and delivers a handy helping of graphic bloodshed. Michael McDowell's perverse and engrossing script boasts a real corker of a nasty surprise twist ending. Moreover, this episode has a pleasingly kinky edge to it that's highlighted by a couple of sizzling, if none too explicit sex scenes. As a sweet added bonus, Ms. Plummer shows off her tasty slim figure when she strips down to her undies to make love to her husband for the first time. Plummer and Shellen both do sterling work in the lead roles, with able support from Lisa Figus as the concerned Aunt Edith. A solid and enjoyable show.

Low point of first season.

[TheScottman · 4/10 · 24 April 2006]

The show had great episodes, this is not one of them. It's not a terrible episode, it's just hard to follow up "The man that was death.", "All through the house", and "Dig that cat, he's real gone."

This episode is about a couple that has just been married Peggy (Ammanda Plummer) and Charles (Stephen Shellen). In the first five minutes you find out that Charles only married Peggy for her money. The two go on their honeymoon and their car breaks down on a dirt road and they have to seek refuge in an old abandon mansion. Charles soon finds out a secret of Peggy's family...

In my opinion you should watch this episode, but just don't expect the same feeling as the rest of the episodes in the first season.

Twisted, and in a good way

[bellino-angelo2014 · 8/10 · 5 June 2021]

The episode begins with a young couple (Charles and Peggy) that marry and then they travel to their honeymoon. Unfortunately, there is a thunderstorm and a tree just fell on the road. So, they don't have any other choice that go in an abandoned house that happens to be the same house where Peggy's aunt went on her honeymoon. And after nearly 5 minutes of passionate love making just as the clock bells the midnight hour Charles goes down stairs and sees the past couple that went there (and ends with a murder). When Charles goes upstairs, he notices that Peggy is slowly turning in the younger version of her aunt and after picking the axe, she does exactly the family tradition.

I really enjoyed this episode most than the previous ones as the twist at the very end (when Peggy's aunt comes with her in the mansion) was unexpected but explained what was the purpose of that family: after marrying someone, they kill him so that they can still have their money. Not exactly a nice family tradition, but a nice episode nonetheless.

Amanda Plummer and axes

[BandSAboutMovies · 5/10 · 3 November 2023]

Directed by Tom Holland and written by Steven Dodd and Michael McDowell (Beetlejuice, Thinner), "Lover Come Hack to Me" is based on the story "Lover, Come Hack to Me!" Haunt of Fear #19. That was written by Bill Gaines and Al Feldstein with art by George Evans, colors by Marie Severin and lettering by Jim Wroten.

"It's good to have you back, you horror-hungry humans. You know by now who's here to feed your fear. It's me, the Crypt Keeper with another flesh-creeping scream story for your shivering pleasure. I'm calling this bite of bitter bile: Lover Come Hack to Me. So plump up that coffin pillow and settle back your bones. We're going to take a little ride to honeymoon hell!"

Peggy (Amanda Plummer) has married her fiancee Charles (Stephen Shellen), who informs her aunt Edith (Lisa Figus), who worries about her rich niece that she's out of a place to live after the honeymoon. On the way to that vacation, their car breaks down and they end up in an abandoned house where they make love and notice a gigantic axe on the wall. Charles actually falls for her, overcome by a woman he was never attracted to. That night, Charles has a nightmare where he watches Peggy kill another lover. It's actually her mother and he tells her about what he saw when he wakes up. It was all not a dream and he pulls out a gun. There are no bullets and she kills him, secure that he has given her the gift of a daughter and that she won't need a man ever again.

Amanda Plummer would play a killer again - spoiler - in So I Married an Axe Murderer.

Lover Come Hack To Me

[a_baron · 8/10 · 8 November 2014]

This is far from an original idea; newlyweds stranded on their wedding night and their choice is to sleep in the car or to take a short walk through the rain to the mysterious house yonder where they effect entry only to find that while it is empty there is a fire waiting to be lit and upstairs a bed that beckons them. There is also an axe on the wall, and they are not your average honeymooning couple. For one thing, Charles has married Peggy purely for her money; as she is played by the gorgeous Amanda Plummer, he is clearly greedy and blind in equal measure.

There is obviously going to be a twist in the tale, and indeed there is, but it is not the sort of twist you would expect, which is probably why it is a twist. Perhaps this setting is a little too perfect, and perhaps Peggy is not quite the little innocent Charles thinks, even though she is a virgin? The sex scenes are not overly gratuitous, but the nudity would have been more than desirable if she had taken off her clothes rather than he his.

Decent enough to watch, but the writing's way too simplistic

[svens-729-835860 · 5/10 · 16 November 2019]

"Do you love me?" asks woman. "I love you" says man. "... for your money" mutters man under breath.

That sums up 50% of the lines in the first 15 minutes of the episode.

I've found the writing in Season 1 a lot weaker than the other seasons (and understandably so), but this one just felt more repetitive and 'tell over show' than others.

The end twist felt weird, but so did the whole story. It had no impact from the constant discussion of wealth in the beginning, and I felt like it didn't invest enough oddity into the "family tradition". It had room to expand into something occult or supernatural, but just stuck as a tradition; nothing more or less.

Realistically, not bad, but not great. Worth a pass.