Dracula, the TV series

[cactuswatcher]

It's difficult to know where to begin on this one, other than to say it's both very familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. As far as influences go, you can see TV's Revenge (by way of Arrow) and Dark Shadows, the video game series Assassin's Creed, the old pen and paper role playing game Vampire: the Masquerade, vaguely the Bram Stoker original book Dracula, and almost nothing of the many Dracula movies save vulnerability of vampires to sunlight rather than just more limited powers . It's not campy. It's not Angel. It's not Vampire Diaries.

The effort to be mysterious in this one is so successful, that it's difficult for most of the first episode, to understand what's going on, or why anything is happening. There is some specific evidence late in the episode, but the whole thing remains very murky and loaded down with many characters doing things for reasons we're not supposed to know yet. There aren't any heroes here. Very few people who've been introduced can be called anything close to good. Nobody is looking for redemption.

I suppose you could call it the start of a very gruesome story for Halloween, which is probably the reason it premiered so late in the new season. But I'm not sure there is actually going to be much of a story. Oddly you can see several arcs beginning in the episode, but the only story here (Dracula's love life) seems like it's going to be a minor part of the action.

While it's certainly a different take on the Dracula story, it didn't exactly draw me in or make me want to see more to find out what everything means. It wasn't bad, but like SHIELD it lacks focus and enough interesting points to keep people watching. Oddly it's very mysterious without being much intriguing at all. Score for the episode C

Comments

[ann1962]

I meant to catch that. Mostly to see if Meyers is as uneven in this, as he was in The Tudors.

[cactuswatcher.livejournal.com]

I didn't notice any problem with his acting, but the part is a little odd. ;o)

[ann1962]

In The Tudors, sometimes he was very strong, and he disappeared into the role. But other times, it was strained and he appeared to be phoning it in. Very up and down.

[atpo-onm.livejournal.com]

Oddly it's very mysterious without being much intriguing at all.

That about sums it up for me. I wasn't even going to tune in, being kinda into a zombie / vampire overload mode, but then I reminded myself that I didn't tune in to The Good Wife when it first appeared because I was in lawyer show overload, and now-- one of my very favorite faves. So, avoided presumptions and, like you noted, not bad, but-- not grabbing me.

Oddly, like with MAoSHIELD, this seems to me like it should be presented on a really big TV. Is television production actively attempting to become more like movies, assume that people have really big screens and good sound in their living rooms?

Credit where due, absolutely fabulous production values, surprised me as it did in like regard with Sleepy Hollow. The score was a bit intrusive at times, but was very nicely composed from a musical standpoint. Again, if I was watching this on a 100" screen, would that intrusiveness still be present? I know back in my audio sales days, I spent a fair amount of effort trying to have customers not pair a small screen with a big audio system, and vice versa. The brain tends not to like the effect of either of these inappropriate mixes.

Interesting. I'll tune in for the next week or so to see where it goes, but overall this initial offering is a 5.5 out of 10.

[cactuswatcher.livejournal.com]

absolutely fabulous production values

I feel about the same about Reign. Well, maybe the costumes are at times underwhelming. But I think it too would look good on a bigger screen.