It is 1781, and a battle of the Revolutionary War pits a young soldier, Ichabod Crane, against his yet-to-be-beheaded adversary, the Headless Horseman. In this first scene of Sleepy Hollow’s pilot both soldiers end up dying. Fast-forward 232 years, and Ichabod Crane awakes from the dead in a modern-day Sleepy Hollow. We also meet the other main protagonist, Lt. Abbie Mills, whose ill-fated encounter with the Headless Horseman tells us that Crane isn’t the only one who has mysteriously risen. This coincidence will lead to an inevitable pairing-off between Lt. Mills and Ichabod Crane.

An adaptation of Washington Irving’s short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”, the FOX show departs from its source as well as its cliché premise of “quiet town suddenly shattered by supernatural events” by mingling the original gothic story with religious mythology and American history.

Sleepy Hollow stands in the great tradition of genre TV that explores supernatural and fantasy subjects: Supernatural, X-Files, Buffy TVS, Charmed, and Twin Peaks. The music of the title sequence is reminiscent of Danny Elfman’s style and is a subtle shout-out to Tim Burton who also adapted Irving’s story in 1999. As the episodes go, the show ceases to be just an amalgam of its influences and stands on its own two feet.

If there are few spectacular deaths and gory moments (amazing John Cho appearance), Sleepy Hollow’s scare tactic doesn’t rely on shock value. The horror is hidden and springs from the woods and caves of the town. An invisible evil force is behind this. A force that resurrects vengeful witches, spreads disease and controls what happens to be the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

The show tackles contemporary basic fears of foreign invasion, disease and doomed future. Though it handles such twisty themes, the show doesn’t take itself too seriously. Ichabod Crane anachronistic situation is a natural source of comic relief. We see his bewildered 18th century self struggling to adapt itself to modern life. His outdated accent, clothes and haircut contribute to the show’s overall quirkiness.

The banter and relationship between Abbie Mills and Ichabod Crane (played by fresh faces Nicole Beharie and Tom Mison) is why we care about the story, and why we stay in Sleepy Hollow with them.