The Netflix Original series, The Night Stalker: The Hunt For a Serial Killer, was based on Richard Ramirez, a notorious serial killer that terrorized California from 1984-1985. He went on rampages in which he committed murders, rapes, assaults, and kidnapping. He was ultimately convicted of 13 counts of murder, 5 counts of attempted murder, 11 counts of sexual assault, and 14 counts of burglary, although those are only a fraction of his actual crimes.

The series revolves around Ramirez’s crimes and explains in detail what detectives were thinking or how they were trying to piece together the identity of the Night Stalker. The series also shows the point of view of survivors and their encounters with Ramirez.

The Night Stalker started his spree in Los Angels in the 1980s, being the most vibrant and growing communicator with acquiring new skills on his killing spree. Every murder there was always something different about the scene, so it was hard to pin him to every murder. The star of the series, Detective Gil Carrillo, was an inexperienced kid from LA, who led the investigation with the legendary Frank Salerno (also interviewed for the series).

The best elements are when Ramirez enlightens both Carrillo and Salerno. Ramirez once left a pentagram and later tells his victims to swear upon Satan. They were invested into solving the case that Carrillo’s family had to go into hiding for their safety. They did not rest until he was caught, all their energy went into identifying his patterns, motives, and the evidence they had.

The shots of dripping blood and stabbing knives that lead into interview segments with survivors seem exploitative and set them into a mood by what had happened to them. Night Stalker details his depravity in a way the audience hasn’t seen before, but it’s another one of those series that’s too overly reliant on “true crime evil” stock footage like shiny knives and ominous shots of windows and backyards. 

Overall, the series does a good job at explaining the heinous acts committed by Richard Ramirez. The series is only 4 episodes long and tells the viewers exactly what happened in California at the time. It also honors the victims in a way that is respectable,e and the show also doesn’t try to make the audience feel pity toward Ramirez.