The Addams Family vs The Munsters

Hello everyone, happy October 1st!

The spookiest time of the year is officially here. Although Halloween is almost a month away, I like to binge-watch scary movies and shows all month long. Horror and psychological thrillers are my favourite genre; nonetheless, during this time of the year, I also enjoy classic TV shows like The Addams Family. 

I grew up watching The Addams Family (1964-1966); a few Halloweens back, I shared a Wednesday Addams inspired costume. I always loved the original Addams show, but this year I'm also binge-watching The Munsters (1964-1966) for the first time. I watched a few episodes of the 80s remake growing up, but I did not particularly enjoy it. 

Both The Addams Family and The Munsters are two unique horror-themed sitcoms, which premiered the same week in 1964. The Addams family are humans who do not behave traditionally, while the Munsters are monsters whose behaviour is quite normal. Both families were unaware of how other people perceived them. In fact, in their eyes, it was they who were dealing with the oddballs of society. 

Charles Addams came up with the idea of doing a bizarre and macabre look at the typical American family, turning it into a one-panel comic for The New Yorker magazine beginning in 1938. The comics were so popular that they inspired the TV show. The Munsters, on the other hand, was born out of Universal Pictures’ classic monster films that terrified audiences of the 1930s and 40s with characters like Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster and The Wolf Man. 

Both shows inspired remakes, animated series, movies, and merchandise. Both are still loved by fans today. The Addams Family 2 was released in theatres today (01/10/2021) and is also available on-demand, and The Munsters is getting a reboot with Rob Zombie's new film sometime in 2022.

Are you familiar with both TV families? Which family or character is your favourite? If you enjoy this sort of article, let me know in the comments section below.