Werewolf George (Russell Tovey), vampire Mitchell (Aidan Turner) and ghost Annie (Lenora Crichlow) are sharing a house Bristol. None of them are particularly happy about their predicament. Annie may be the ghost, but is herself haunted by the memory of the fiance she has lost. Mitchell wants to go straight but is tempted by the throbbing pulse of every sexy neck he passes by. And George, the mild-mannered janitor (or hospital orderly), is agonised - literally and figuratively - by his monthly transformation into an uncontrollably vicious creature.All the way through Being Human I was thinking: *this* is what Torchwood was supposed to be like. Clever and dark and funny and sexy and nasty, atmosphere-heavy and special effects-light, with proper characters, played by proper actors, trying to figure out the answer to proper dilemmas, which, while slightly different to what we might actually face - unless any of "we" happen to be a werewolf, a ghost or a vampire - serves as proper metaphors for the frightening inside of us. Tovey's character and performance were particularly nuanced; while the central metaphors of Mitchell and Annie's existences are the controlling but familiar force that sex, love, or more chemical addictions have over our lives, George represents a more terrifying thought: that inside each one of us lives a beast, unknown, alien and yet part of us, something that cannot be controlled, that will escape us, and will cause unspeakable destruction. Unspeakable destruction which, as Mitchell points out whilst cleaning up after one of George's rampages, will mean a trip to Ikea - "You know how I feel about that".
BBC3, Sundays, 9pm.
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6 comments:
I find it's better to be frightening on the outside rather than the inside.
I LOVED this even more then the pilot. And I really loved that. Really pleased that the change of cast hasn't destroyed it, and may have enhanced it. I thought all the characters had grown by the end of the episode and it is much closer to the edge then the original. As someone who detests Ikea I cheered at that line...
It looks a bit silly from the trailer, but from your description it sounds intriguing. Must check it out.
Mm, surprised myself by rather enjoying this as well (after complaining vociferously that it was going to be stupid, ahem, oops).
Really enjoyed it. Properly funny, properly nasty (especially Lauren and Herrick).
Loved it, too. I previewed the first episode and the rest of the series and included a Q&A with Russell Tovey, Toby Whithouse and the producers back at my place. You can also see the pilot and the YouTube prequels at this entry, too.
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