Pretty much, yeah. Either you care about the characters and the show works perfectly, or you don't and it would be boring. In most horror the characters are little more than fodder, or at least all but the protagonist. This show is much different and uses it's length to connect you with the family and their dynamic, thus making the atmosphere more about creeping dread than all out scares. It takes patience and attention, but the payoff is worth it.
The Luke centric episode is a perfect illustration of this. Theyve built him up as a drug addled pariah, even blatantly showing this to you in the first episode where you notice him "stealing" from his brother. He's sweating, obviously going to get a fix. Only after the reveal of his action some 4 episodes later, as well as how theyve built up your sympathy for his childhood experiences contributing to his substance abuse, do you finally see and understand his character and his actions and it's heartbreaking. His childhood trauma coupled with his adulthood demons, both real and figurative, have fleshed out a completely different character than you were introduced to and they did in the manner of an expert magician using misdirection to have it happen right in front of your eyes. It's masterful storytelling, regardless of the genre.
