‘Los Espookys’ is the Spanish language horror comedy you didn’t know you needed

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Los Espookys is a fun name for a show. It’s fun to say. It’s fun to write. However, Homeboys From Outer Space is fun to say and to write, but that show was not good. Fortunately, Los Espookys, a new comedy on HBO, is also fun to watch. Also, making it stick out from most of the comedies you are going to see on American TV, it’s a Spanish-language show.

Note, this is not a show from Latin America that has been brought over to American TV and plopped down on HBO. It was created by Julio Torres, a Saturday Night Live writer, and Ana Fabrega, who I previously knew as Esther, the partner of the lady who lives in the woods on At Home with Amy Sedaris. Fred Armisen has a role. The show is Spanish because that happens to be the language these characters speak. It’s the world they live in. It feels striking, because it is rare, but it doesn’t feel like a gimmick. It just is.

Now, while I took a few years of Spanish in college, these days my Spanish is “pobre,” which is one of the Spanish vocabulary words I still remember. That means I’m reading the subtitles during the scenes in Spanish (some scenes are in English with Spanish subtitles, and weirdly I still read the subtitles in those instances, if only to try and spruce up my Spanish). In comedy, that’s not great. I’m not able to focus on character’s faces when they talk as much as I would like, and I’m sure some of the humor is lost on me in terms of delivery or what have you. If I spoke fluent Spanish I know I’d like this show more, but that’s a minor quibble. Los Espookys is still a really funny, really enjoyable show.

As of this moment, only two episodes have aired, but I liked them both quite a bit. Here’s the premise of the show. Three friends, Renaldo, Andres, and Ursula, love the macabre. They love horror movies and gore and all things “spooky.” They also have a creative streak, and an unusual amount of skill when it comes to makeup, costuming, and building all matters creepy. In a roundabout way, this leads to the three of them, and also Ursula’s odd sister Tati, to start a business where they use their skills to create horrifying, macabre situations out in the world. I don’t want to spoil too much, but just to give an example in the pilot they are hired by a priest to help him fake an exorcism. Also, Armisen plays Renaldo’s uncle Tico, who is the world’s greatest valet.

This is a supremely goofy show. It’s silly and absurd, but really funny. Andres and Tati in particular, who are played by Torres and Fabrega respectively, are ridiculous characters. Los Espookys is not a show tethered to reality. That makes it a pretty fun romp, at least through two episodes. I definitely intend to watch the rest of the first season, of which there are six episodes total. Oh, did I mention Andres is the heir to a chocolate empire? That’s the kind of show this is. If you want a fun, silly watch this summer, and either know Spanish or don’t might reading subtitles, check out Los Espookys on HBO.