There's a ghost in Netflix's newest batch of Unsolved Mysteries
Netflix’s Unsolved Mysteries reboot wasn’t quite able to distinguish itself from the modern-day glut of true crime series, but it still made for gripping TV. It comes back later this month with six new episodes that work to unravel the death of a political insider, the disappearance of two children, and the paranormal ripples seemingly brought on by a 2011 tsunami in Japan. It’s the latter that’s likely to pique the interest of old-school Unsolved Mysteries fans, concerned as the original series was with the supernatural. (More episodes on spontaneous combustion, please.)
Below, watch an eerie trailer for the new episodes:
Unsolved Mysteries’ first volume, released over the summer, saw a few of its mysteries inch closer to clarity thanks to tips submitted by viewers. “With Volume 1, many tips have come in for the Rey Rivera case (‘Mystery on the Rooftop’), as well as for Xavier Dupont, the fugitive wanted by the French police (‘House of Terror’),” reads a statement from executive producers Terry Dunn Meurer and John Cosgrove. “We’ve forwarded all those tips to law enforcement. With the Alonzo Brooks case (‘No Ride Home’), the FBI announced a $100,000 reward and exhumed Alonzo’s body to do additional testing. We continue to hope that an arrest will be made in that case. I think the big surprise was all the tips that came in about the UFO episode. Many people contacted us to verify that they had witnessed the same UFO as the interviewees in our story.”
And now we’re jealous that we never got to see the UFO.
Unsolved Mysteries’ new episodes hit the streamer on October 19. Read synopses for each of them below:
“Washington Insider Murder,” directed by Don Argott
In 2010 the body of former White House aide John “Jack” Wheeler was found in a Delaware landfill. Police ruled his death a homicide, and a high-level investigation produced few leads. Wheeler, a well-respected Vietnam veteran who worked with three president administrations, was spotted on security camera footage the night before he died, wandering office buildings and looking disheveled. No one has come forward with information, and there are no suspects in his murder.
“Death in Oslo,” directed by Robert M. Wise
When a woman was found dead in a luxury hotel room in Oslo, Norway, it appeared to be a suicide. However, several pieces didn’t add up: she had no identification, her briefcase contained 25 rounds of ammunition and no one reported her missing. Who was this woman, and could she have been part of a secret intelligence operation?
“Death Row Fugitive,” directed by Robert M. Wise and Clay Jeter
In the 1960s repeat sexual offender Lester Eubanks confessed and was sentenced to death for killing a 14-year-old girl in Mansfield, Ohio. After the death penalty was abolished in 1972, he left death row and participated in a program that allowed him to leave prison grounds. In 1973, while Christmas shopping with other inmates, Eubanks escaped. Information about his whereabouts surfaced in the ’90s and early 2000s, but Eubanks has managed to evade capture and remains a fugitive on the U.S. Marshal’s 15 Most Wanted List.
“Tsunami Spirits,” directed by Clay Jeter
In 2011 the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan killed 20,000 people and left 2,500 missing. Following the disaster, many residents of Ishinomaki, one of the worst communities hit, experienced strange phenomena. Taxi drivers spoke of “ghost passengers.” Others claimed to have seen the dead or been inhabited by lost spirits. As a local reverend observed, the tragedy enabled them to “see what’s not supposed to be seen.”
“Lady in the Lake,” directed by Skye Borgman
When JoAnn Romain’s car was found outside her church in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, police were quick to say she walked into the nearby freezing lake and drowned herself, despite the fact that an intense search did not recover her body. Seventy days later, when JoAnn’s body was found in the Detroit River, 35 miles away, her children were convinced their mother was a victim of foul play. They have a list of suspects and continue to search for the truth.
“Stolen Kids,” directed by Jessica Dimmock
In 1989, two child abductions occurred within months of each other at the same Harlem playground. Police and locals were put on high alert, but they found no trace of the missing toddlers. Heartened by the case of Carlina White—a woman who was reunited with her biological parents 23 years after being abducted as a baby—the mothers of Christopher Dansby and Shane Walker hope for any information about their sons.