serial murder theme

An individual murderer (as opposed to an organization) kills three or more people on separate occasions in service of abnormal psychological gratification, with a significant period of time taking place in between the murders.

Notes

There is no widely accepted and precise definition for this category of crime. Prefer to omit this theme if it is unclear whether a serial murder was part of the story. Do not use this theme if the murders are primarily motivated by, for example, good old greed (not an abnormal psychological gratification).

69 total · 8 choice · 47 major · 14 minor

StoryLevelMotivation
blackmirror6x02 choice The story concerns a series of gruesome murders that once took place in the otherwise peaceful town of Loch Henry.
movie: Frenzy (1972) choice The story concerns a serial killer dubbed the "Necktie Murderer".
movie: Ghost in the Machine (1993) choice The story is primarily about a serial killer, known as "The Address Book Killer", who continues plotting murders after he dies and his mind get transfered to a computer network in a freak occurrence.
movie: Psycho (1960) choice We learn that Bates was a serial murderer with a split personality.
movie: Seven (1995) choice The story centered on a serial killer trying to complete his masterpiece.
rbt1985e6x01 choice The story concerns a little town in which a serial killer, nicknamed "The Lonely One", was running amok. Three women were discussing their fears (or lack thereof) of becoming the next victim. The story ends with the implication that Lavinia was about to be murdered by him in her own home.
tftc1989e4x10 choice There was a serial killer on the loose as alluded to in the title.
tftc1989e7x11 choice The story concerns police inspector Jack Lynch interrogating screenwriter Warhol Evans as a suspected serial killer of women. In fact, Jack was revealed as the serial killer, and a collector of decapitated heads to boot. Jack and Warhol had long heated arguments about the psychology of serial killers. They were both experts on the subject owing to their respective profession, and Jack's hands on dabbling in the activity.
ahh1x02 major The psychologist Harold was interested in the minds of serial murders, in particular the one who was thought to be active on campus. Edwin turned out to be the serial killer women who was the talk of the college campus.
ahh1x21 major It came to light that Theodore was a misogynistic strangler of women. He strangled two women, and tried to do the same to Louise.