‘Tremors 2: Aftershocks’ Turns 21!

As a child, it was not uncommon for me to see franchises out of order. After all, beggars can’t be choosers and I was not in a bargaining position. I think that is where my love of sequels started. Tremors 2: Aftershocks was one of those films. Released on April 9, 1996, Tremors 2 went the straight-to-video route (unfairly), but that didn’t stop it from living up to its full potential. It is everything a successful sequel needs to be considering it kept the comedy from the first, was action packed from the start, and threw in a twist to keep everything fresh.

The original Tremors breathed new life into the horror comedy genre. Tremors 2 took that and ran with it, delivering one of the most terrifyingly hilarious movies of the decade. While Kevin Bacon did not return for this entry, Fred Ward and Michael Gross came back and reprised their respective rolls. Newcomer Chris Grady came in and balanced Ward and Gross’ serious tone and they managed to re-create the same chemistry they had in the first one. The banter between these three is hilarious. Add in Helen Shaver, a former pin-up girl who Ward’s character, Earl, has been drooling over for a while, and you get some of the best comedic dialogue that you will ever have the pleasure to witness.

Cutting out the buildup and doubling up on the action is how a sequel is supposed to work. Tremors 2 did that from the start. Earl is hired to be a graboid exterminator. There is a bit of a graboid issue – apparently they are killing off oil miners and the powers that be need it taken care of quickly. Earl reluctantly agrees and it starts out as a piece of cake. Naturally, the graboids get wise to the plan and create some havoc. The creatures also happen to have an evolutionary trick up their sleeve and Earl soon finds out that he isn’t the “graboid expert” he thought himself to be.

What’s worse than a giant underground worm that can sense even the slightest vibration? How about a smaller, even more agile, heat-seeking creature on two legs! That is exactly what the graboids evolved into and send Earl and the team on a race against mother nature. Not only are these little bastards fast but they are also incredibly pragmatic and begin reproducing rather quickly. All they need is a meal and then one becomes two, two becomes four, four becomes…. well you get the picture. They’re worse than roaches or mice and they are hungry for blood.

Tremors 2 is an incredibly fun, and hilarious, sequel that finds its way in to my DVD player frequently. It holds its own against the original by having great chemistry with the cast, some gore here and there, and suspense that has you on the edge of your seat. It is great for a date night or for introducing someone into the horror genre that just wants to test the waters. Celebrate the 21st birthday of Tremors 2 today by throwing it into your own DVD player and having some fun ’90s nostalgia.