The folks out at A&E sent over a copy of the newest season of Hoarders–season two, part one, specifically–as we go forth into the lives of people who have one big problem–their houses. And you’ll get plenty of drama and astonishing sights, which will be downright amazing in many cases.

If you ever thought your house was messy, you’ll be thoroughly astonished by what you’ll see in the first part of the second season of Hoarders: rotten food everywhere, stacks of garage sale miscellany, broken items, and perhaps worst of all, the trash. Trash, deep and thick–not just piles either, but knee-deep, waist-deep in some cases, drifts of random detritus.

And it’s dismaying to see these people with their condition (Hoarders will go out of its way to assure you that they do have a disease in its way), trying desperately to recover from said condition. It’s sad, in many cases–some people can’t even stand to throw away so much as a button or an old box without searing emotional pain. Looked at by itself, it’s a compelling and yet exploitative all at the same time. Your heart goes out to people in this situation and yet, at the same time, you’re almost enraged at A&E for putting people out on display like this.

And yet, sometimes, it can even be funny–one episode featured a hunt for a set of missing false teeth. But any laughs you may have had will promptly curdle in your throat as something horrible happens. That episode with the false teeth? Funny…until you discover the first dead cat on the floor. I say the first, because there will be more than one.

It’s a disaster, in a great many ways. It’s not only the sorrow of what these people live with, but also the horror of watching the cleaning. Not only do these people find it so difficult to part with anything, but their family doesn’t seem to be much of help in many cases. There’s a lot of yelling, a lot of accusations, lots of shouting and all sorts of uncomfortable drama flying around in several directions.

But if drama is your particular cup of tea–not to mention the satisfaction of watching horrible messes turn into clean houses–then Hoarders: Season Two Part One is going to be just what you’re after.

The Screenhead Ten Scale hands this dramatic horror a seven out of ten for being powerful drama, and yet in a lot of ways, like a messy house, gone out of control. There’s a lot here that’s exploitative in the worst sense, and yet, there’s still value here. It’s not perfect, but it will be worthwhile in many ways.