This review contains spoilers.

If films like “Get Out,” “Ready or Not” and “Saltburn” have proven anything, it’s that we can’t get enough of disturbing psychological horror or thrillers with a “fish out of water” protagonist.

Enter the latest addition to this genre: “Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen.” The new Netflix miniseries is the first project executively produced by Matt and Ross Duffer post-“Stranger Things.” But don’t expect anything “Upside Down” from this show — the only similarity is a whole lot of nosebleeds.

“Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen” follows Rachel and Nicky, a betrothed couple, in the days leading up to their wedding. Rachel is a superstitious woman with a complicated background who cannot shake a sense of doom as she prepares for their big day. 

Rachel’s status as a newcomer in an enigmatic and secretive family is the typical setup for the “Get Out” horror subgenre. Yet, at every turn, “Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen” defied cliches and subverted my expectations.

The first episode opens in medias res: Rachel walks down the aisle on her wedding day, followed by a quick cutaway to a blood-soaked hallway. 

The show then returns to the present, in which Rachel and Nicky drive to his family’s cabin five days before the wedding. In the first 15 minutes, we are bombarded with bad omens: dead dogs, a serial killer and a truck with “just married” painted in red letters on its trunk, to name a few. Fortunately, most of these omens are resolved within the episode. This, along with the frequent jump scares, gave it an indie horror video game feel.

From the outset, the chemistry between the two leads, Camila Morrone and Adam DiMarco, is palpable. Rachel and Nicky seem like the perfect couple, and they are oddly wholesome despite their contrasting dispositions, like a grittier version of April Ludgate and Andy Dwyer’s romance on “Parks and Recreation.”

Nicky is extremely receptive to Rachel’s fears, subverting the cliche of the protagonist being dismissed as paranoid. He is appropriately concerned when she describes a creepy encounter at a dive bar, and comforts her without minimizing the experience.

After episode one, the show becomes a slow-burning psychological horror. We are led to suspect Rachel is going to be murdered by Nicky’s sinister family, à la “Ready or Not.” 

Although the family is initially presented as villains working to sabotage Rachel, their facade is gradually peeled back to reveal dysfunction and lies, but not necessarily danger. 

Nicky’s brother Jules (Jeff Wilbusch) and his wife Nell (Karla Crome) did not have particularly strong chemistry, but they shine as standalone characters. Jules’ internal character development and Nell’s friendship with Rachel add layers of humanity to the family.

The only character that occasionally detracts from the show is Portia, Nicky’s sister, played by Gus Birney. Birney’s performance grew on me for its comic relief, but it was jarringly over the top. Portia’s early contribution to the show is introducing the “Sorry Man,” a potentially supernatural killer lurking in the woods. 

By episode four, I was certain “Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen” was a well-executed, largely unoriginal addition to the psychological horror genre. But the show subverted my expectations again: The family’s behavior, the “Sorry Man” and the reason for Rachel’s sense of impending doom are all explained by the end of the episode, which is only the halfway point of the series.

Suddenly, the show sets up a new conflict involving a curse and a question of soulmates. Rachel is forced to work with members of the family, who shift from antagonists to helpful sidekicks. In another defiance of cliche, the family accepts her dilemma as reality, despite its absurdity.

Later on, rifts form between her and Nicky as he copes with the reality of his parents’ imperfect marriage. The entire family is forced to face their flaws, and some are not up to the challenge.

This reckoning is their demise. In the finale, tension boils over in the bloodbath foreshadowed by the show’s flash-forward opening scene. Even though the show subverts tropes at every turn, it ultimately reaches the conclusion that was known from the outset.

“Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen” is a compelling exploration of marriage, love and family trauma in “Ready or Not’s” clothing, and it had me hooked from start to finish. That said, the show doesn’t always convey a clear message about its many themes, especially surrounding the question of soulmates.

Overall, the show was an impressive breakout for creator and showrunner Haley Z. Boston. “Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen” proved that, at least as executive producers, the Duffer Brothers have still got it. I am excited to see what the future holds for them and Boston creatively.

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