The second episode of Gnomes settles into its stride with the cheerful menace of a garden ornament army that has decided Nompton is fair game. After the chaotic awakening of the previous episode, the town wakes to wrecked flower beds, a missing Gnome Queen statue and the sudden absence of caretaker Berty. Mayor Lachlan is in a proper flap because the expensive German loan piece was meant to be the centrepiece of Gnome-a-Palooza, and the local press is already sniffing about. Meanwhile, Senior Sergeant Arnold Kipps, still nursing the mother of all hangovers, decides the local teens are the obvious culprits. The episode balances the menace with small town bureaucratic panic and the growing suspicion that something far more ridiculous is afoot.
One of the standout sequences unfolds inside the local DVD store, a dusty shrine to physical media that feels like a loving nod to a vanishing world. The store owner, a mild mannered fellow who clearly loves his collection more than most people, finds himself hunted in his own store. What follows is a magnificently inventive kill that involves flying discs, spinning shelves and a final flourish that would make any horror comedy fan grin through their wince. The scene plays out perfectly, building from quiet unease to outright mayhem without ever losing its playful edge. Its equal parts inventive and absurd, and it showcases how the series treats its deaths as opportunities for creative mischief rather than mere shock.
Equally memorable is the fairy gnome assault on the young girl that forms the episode’s cliffhanger. One of the smaller, more delicate looking ornaments, complete with wings that should have been decorative only, corners her in a domestic setting that quickly turns nightmarish. The attack plays out with a mixture of genuine tension and darkly comic timing. The creature is tiny, cute, yet ultimately terrifying, and the sequence captures that classic Gremlins trick of making something adorable suddenly lethal. The girl’s panic feels real and the whole thing lands as both a jump and a laugh. It is a neat reminder that the gnomes come in all shapes and sizes, each with their own particular brand of nastiness.
Arnold’s investigation keeps the human side of the story engaging. He hauls the teens in for questioning, certain they are behind the garden vandalism and the disappearances. Their defensive banter and the mayor’s increasingly desperate attempts to keep the festival on track provide steady comic relief. Yet the real turning point arrives when one of the lads, Zayn, is out with is video camera and films the gnomes moving and then an attack on himself.
Mayor Lachlan’s secret about the town funds is revealed with the perfect blend of comic desperation and genuine stakes. Ellie McKay’s return to Nompton adds a layer of personal friction with Arnold that grounds all the absurdity. The worried neighbours, over enthusiastic festival organisers, and gnome journalists add to the cast of odd and amusing characters. Even though everything is eminently silly, we are becoming invested in whether these people will survive the night.
Night scenes use practical lighting and clever framing to make ordinary suburban streets feel suddenly hostile with the gnomes just out of sight. The gnomes themselves benefit from careful design work. Some are classic fishing rod types, others more elaborate festival pieces, and a few are downright bizarre. Their movement has a stop motion quality that enhances the Gremlins comparison without feeling like pure imitation and the sound of tiny footsteps, ceramic scrapes and those high pitched chattering noises create an atmosphere that is both unsettling and oddly charming.
The episode is brisk and never overstays its welcome. The story is moving quickly, but leave plenty to pull you back for the next episode. The tone stays consistently light hearted even when the violence escalates. Blood is present, the kills are inventive, and bodies are strung up in a ritualistic style, yet the overall mood remains one of cheerful chaos rather than grim dread. It is the kind of horror comedy that invites you to lean forward with a smile rather than hide behind a cushion.
Nompton is no longer the sleepy Victorian town it once was. The gnomes are out in the open, the evidence is mounting, and the festival is teetering on the brink of disaster. The DVD store sequence and the fairy gnome attack stand out as particular highlights, each delivering the sort of inventive mayhem that fans of creature features will savour. The cranked up Gremlins vibe is everywhere, from the mischievous puppetry to the gleeful mayhem, and it suits the material perfectly.
Where to watch Gnomes – Season1, Episode 2: