So Murky does a much better job that PH because it doesn't raise the stakes above the original. It keeps them local and personal (for the most part).

A big problem in fiction (Marvel movies and the Dresden Files are good examples) is constantly trying to raise the stakes. Previous entry you saved the neighborhood? Now its the city, then the country, then world, then universe, then multiverse. But the problem with that is, you can't really care about the nebulous concept of the world or above. If you don't care about the people being saved, the stakes don't matter.