Paranormal State

Paranormal State on Pluto TV is exactly what you’d expect from a free streaming channel dedicated to one A&E series, repetitive, low-budget, and oddly watchable at 2 AM. It’s essentially a 24/7 loop of the original show that ran from 2007 to 2011, following the Penn State Paranormal Research Society as they investigate haunted locations with EMF readers and night-vision cameras. The production values haven’t aged well; the dramatic zooms and ominous music feel almost quaint now. But the sincerity of the student investigators, especially the earnest leader Ryan Buell, gives it a weird charm that slicker paranormal shows lack. Occasionally, Pluto tosses in a few spinoffs or similar archives, but don’t expect variety. This is a single-program channel, pure and simple. If you want to watch Paranormal State live, it’s a comfort-food loop for ghost-hunting junkies. The signal is reliable, commercial breaks are mercifully short, and the whole thing feels like stumbling onto a forgotten cable channel in a motel at 3am. Not groundbreaking, but for those who want to watch Paranormal State online without paying, it’s exactly the right kind of trash. Entertainment TV United States has plenty of polished ghost shows. This isn’t one of them, and that’s precisely its appeal.