Long before Freddy Kruger haunted teens' dreams and even before Jason Voorhees started hacking up coeds by the lake, Michael Myers was the original Halloween franchise survive right into the modern era.

RELATED: Halloween: 10 Hidden Details About Haddonfield You Never Noticed In The Original Movie

Over 40 years of movies, and counting, the series has had its ups and downs with both general audiences and critics. But what's the definitive ranking of the movies so far? Every fan has their favorites and critics themselves are often split on the movies. In an attempt to provide some kind of roap for a new fan, here are all of the Halloween movies ranked by their scores on aggregate site Metacritic.

Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers - 10

Paul Rudd in Halloween 6

The movie that almost killed the series for good, The Curse of Michael Myers suffered from franchise fatigue but also from a confusing conclusion brought on by reshoots that altered a large portion of the movie's main plot.

The original vision of the movie, revolving around ancient runes and a cult that s Michael, was eventually released as a Producer's Cut but, despite making much more sense, isn't regarded as much better than the theatrical version.

Halloween: Resurrection - 19

Busta Rhymes as Freddie Harris talking to someone in Halloween Resurrection.

After finally killing Laurie Strode, which is an act that would ultimately be erased from canon, Michael Myers returns to his old family home to continue his Halloween tradition.

RELATED: 10 Low Budget Horror Movies That Are Better Than Blockbusters (& Where To Stream Them)

Luckily for him, there's plenty of new candidates for the slaughter when a reality TV company wires the home with cameras to exploit the past horrors for ratings.

Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers - 28

halloween 5-cropped

Following on from the end of the previous installment in the franchise, Michael Myers recuperates for a year before returning to Haddonfield to once again terrorize the locals in the pursuit of his surviving family.

Halloween 5 would introduce the left-field cult elements that were somewhat resolved in the sixth movie but its drawn-out story was already testing the patience of both fans and critics.

Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers - 34

Sam Loomis looking at something in Halloween 4.

The beginning of a new trilogy of Halloween movies following the franchise's previous attempt to move beyond its famous killer, The Return of Michael Myers takes some creative liberties with the end of the original Halloween II and brings both Dr. Loomis and Michael back from their firey deaths with a few skin burns.

RELATED: Halloween: Michael Myers’ 10 Most Creative Kills, Ranked

The fourth installment also introduces Michael's niece, Jamie Lloyd, as the target of his maniacal rampage after killing Laurie Strode (for the first time) off-camera.

Halloween II (2009) - 35

halloween II (2009)-cropped

Rob Zombie's followup to his 2007 remake of the original Halloween actually breaks the mold a little and doesn't retell the story of the original sequel.

Malcolm McDowell's take on series mainstay character Dr. Loomis gets examined in a new light as a bit of a glory hunter in the media but it's mostly much of the same from Zombie and the sequel didn't do half as well at the box office as its predecessor.

Halloween II (1981) - 40

Halloween 2 1981 Michael Myers Stabs a Nurse

Proving that there is occasionally a bit of justice when it comes to critical rankings, the original Halloween II just beats out its pseudo-remake.

RELATED: 10 Masked Movie Slashers Who Have Nothing On Michael Myers

The original sequel brings back Donald Pleasance and Jamie Lee Curtis from the first movie in a continuation of the same Halloween night, in which Michael tracks Laurie Strode to the hospital that she's taken away to and proceeds to resume his usual murderous business.

Halloween (2007) - 47

Malcolm McDowell and Daeg Faerch in Halloween 2007

Rob Zombie's remake of the original classic focusses on the development of Michael Myers into a psychotic force of evil more than any of the movies before it and it was ultimately much more successful than other remakes of classic slasher titles such as A Nightmare on Elm Street.

Much more grungy than previous takes on the franchise, Halloween 2009 certainly doesn't skimp on the graphic kills and its sequel-spawning success shows that fans had been missing that aspect of the series.

Halloween III: Season of the Witch - 50

Screaming into telephone

50 out of 100 seems like the perfect score for an entry in the franchise that's still debated to this day as being either one of the best or one of the worst of the series.

RELATED: 10 Slasher Movie Villains In The Same League As Michael Myers

The main sticking point on either side is the fact that Season of the Witch is the only Halloween movie to not feature Michael Myers and its original story of a mysterious plot involving killer jack-o'-lantern masks undeniably makes it stand out from the vast majority of slasher movie sequels.

Halloween H20: 20 Years Later - 52

Laurie Strode staring at Michael Myers in Halloween: H20

As Halloween 4 marked the tenth anniversary of the original movie with Michael returning to his slashing ways, H20 marks the twentieth anniversary by forgetting Jamie Lloyd and everything that happened after the original Halloween II to bring back Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode for the first of two franchise retcons.

This time around, Laurie is living a secluded life as the head of a private boarding school before being once again tracked down by her demonic brother.

Halloween (2018) - 67

Michael attacks Laurie in Halloween (2018)

A total retcon overhaul of the franchise, the 2018 version of Halloween–much like the sixth Terminator movie that would follow the next year–erased every sequel from the confusing timeline and made only the first movie canon.

Halloween 2018 finds Laurie even more paranoid than the version of her from H20 and she's as ready as ever to take on Michael when he returns for his holiday tradition.