The monsters have returned, and I couldn't be happier. Oh, how sexy the vampire is! The rage and the loyalty of the werewolf! And the ghost! She's so... what? No, it's not "Twilight," don't be silly. This is something good.
"Being Human" is a popular BBC show that's entering into its second season on BBC America. Sort of a Buffy-meets-Friends-by-way-of-Torchwood, the show follows three unlikely roommates, apparently in their mid-twenties, all of them just trying to fit in the world around them with humor and friendship while doing as little harm as possible along the way, as are we all.
Of course, all of us aren't (respectively) a vampire, a werewolf, or a ghost. That I know of.
"Everyone dies," says Annie in the first episode. "Actually, can I start that again? Everyone deserves a death. I was going to die of old age. That was the plan."
Mitchell (Aidan Turner), the smoldering hot vampire, is actually a bit older than the other two -- he was bitten during WWI -- so he's a little more accustomed to his supernatural status than the others, but going cold turkey on human blood after some fatal dating mishaps keeps him edgy and nervous about relationships. George (Russell Tovey) is still coming to grips with changing from a mild-mannered, slightly geeky hospital orderly to a mindless, ravenous, slavering beast every month. And the apartment they chose turned out to be haunted by Annie (Lenora Crichlow), who is doomed to stay at the spot of her mysterious death and wonder what her ex is doing now. You know, the usual.
And, oddly enough, it is the usual. Yes, there is blood and violence and evil, but mostly this is a show about, well, being human. Instead of "vampire," "werewolf" and "ghost," think "sexaholic," "anger-management issues" and "neurotic" and you've got the idea for the show about roommates that creator Toby Whithouse originally presented before some brainstorming brought in the undead.
It would be easy to dismiss "Being Human" as just another vampire thing in a world of "Twilight" and "True Blood," but the show's constant emphasis on the human problems (and the witty dialogue and bizarre situations) keeps it fresh and engaging. For all that they're creatures of the night, they sound more like college roommates.
Annie: Maybe he's had a blow to the head.
George: I'm sorry?
Annie: Happened to my Nan. She got hit in the head by a radio controlled plane at a county fair. From that moment; obsessed with pygmy goats.
George: There wasn't a single bit of that sentence I understood.
Of course, no one, even monsters, lives in a vacuum. There is a vast vampire underworld and most of them don't share Mitchell's reluctance to bloodshed. Fighting against their revolution against humanity occupies most of season one, and Herrick, the vampire's local leader, ranks as one of the coolest, most casually evil villains on TV.
Herrick: Oh it is. That's Nanna, she's one of us. She sits there, reads the brochures. Good for appearances. You all right, Nanna?
Nanna: Oh, yes!
Herrick: Had an affair with Hitler, didn't you dear?
Nanna: Oh, yes!
George: Someone actually recruited an old woman?
Herrick: Well, you know how it is. You're out and about, you get the munchies, you'll eat anything.
The show doesn't really go for gut-wrenching horror but there's plenty of blood and gore and a fair amount of nudity although, granted, most of that is George. The characters are all very likeable, a season of six episodes keeps the story tight without wearing out its welcome, and the underlying questions about life, death, and how to deal with both add weight to a show that easily might have been campy and silly. Fans of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel" will find a comfortable home here.
Catching up is easy: the first season came out on DVD earlier this month, with extras but not, annoyingly, the original pilot depicting how the three first met. You can also get season one through iTunes and XBox LIVE Marketplace.
The second season is just starting on BBC America with the vampire revolution of the first season making way for a new threat: a religious group determined to wipe out the vampire scourge. Also, Annie wants a job.
Watch the first seven minutes of season two's premiere at BBCAmerica.com, and tune in Saturday nights at 10 to see what happens next.
