Series Review - Hemlock Grove (2013-2014), The Strain (2014)

No, I didn't forget to post last night.  After watching 10 episodes of Hemlock Grove in a 3-day period, I needed a good night's sleep to mentally digest it.

Hemlock Grove (2013-2014) originally aired it's first season last year on Netflix.  Famke Janssen was probably the most well-known actress among the cast, but the rest of the cast was mostly almost as talented.  Dr. Pryce is probably one of my favorite characters, a brilliant scientist who prefers dealing with people as little as possible, and has trouble dealing with emotional outbursts.  Dr. Pryce, as we learned last season, is the brains behind the Godfrey Institute known as The White Tower, a huge skyscraper in the middle of a middling-sized Pennsylvania town.  The Godfrey Institute is a biotechnology company owned by Ms. Godfrey (played by Famke Janssen), wife of the late Mr. Godfrey, founder of the Godfrey Institute, who is also mother to Roman Godfrey, a troubled young man nearing his 18th birthday.  Roman and his mother are upir, which is a foreign word for what is basically a vampire.  These particular vampires may go out in sunlight, and aren't necessarily any more hurt by a wooden stake through the heart than, well, anyone else.  However, they do require a lot of blood, at least, once reaching their 18th birthday and all.  Ms. Godfrey is several hundred years past her 18th birthday, however Roman is not.  Roman was also, as of last season, unaware that he was an upir (although he now knows what he is).  Last season, Roman befriended a young gypsy lad who happens to be a werewolf.  Oh, not the giant, bloodthirsty things with jaws and claws, no, this gypsy named Peter basically just turns into a good-sized wolf.  Last season was all about stopping this ferocious vargulf which is basically a rogue werewolf.  This season, Peter is in danger of becoming one himself, and the threat is completely different this time, but I won't give away anything else.

I enjoy Hemlock Grove because of several reasons.  One, the vampire and werewolf myths are a little different than the standard mainstream drivel proposed by Twilight and such.  Two, Famke Janssen is a pretty good actress, and is very believable as the rich-bitch vampiress head of a corporation.  The rest of the actors and actresses are fairly decent, and there's at least a little bit of nudity here and there.  I'm not fond of the two male leads, namely Roman and Peter, who just happen to be a little too petulant and a little too young to carry the show, in my opinion.  Still, I suppose they are believable in their roles, even though I haven't seen them in anything else, which puts me at a disadvantage as far as evaluating their acting skills.  The rest of the cast seems fairly talented in their respective roles.

I will say, however, that while last season was tense, dramatic and suspenseful, this season did not seem to be.  There seemed to be fewer cast members and less action this season, as well as fewer episodes to watch.  I will also say, as a tiny bit of a spoiler, that I am glad Famke Janssen's character was not only brought back this season, but seems to have fully recovered from her bloody death last season, as well.  All in all, the second season just wasn't as good as the first.  Hopefully season 3, whenever Netflix gets around to making it, will be better than season 2, and Famke will play a larger role.  Both seasons are, of course, available on Netflix.

The Strain (2014), also happens to be another series about vampires, but that's giving a little bit away, so forget I said anything.  Penned at least partially by Guillermo del Toro (yes, the Hollywood director, producer, whatever-er), which I only found out recently from a friend, this series is based on several books.  Beginning with a plane coming in to a New York airport and landing, then ceasing all contact with the control tower and sitting silent on the runway for an hour, the Strain follows the head of the CDC canary team (which I guess is a first-response team) trying to isolate, contain and control the spread of the infestation, which they are unable to identify as of yet.  Seeing as I'm only watching the second episode right now, this series is only just getting started.

I don't normally like vampire movies, series, or books because the vampire myth has literally been overdone to death, but whenever there's a new take on any sort of monster, I sit up and take notice, mainly because I love monster movies.  The Strain is a different take on the vampire myth, or I wouldn't even be watching it in the first place.  So far they are primarily focusing on the CDC's investigation of the incident at the airport, the 4 survivors from the plane, and the finding of these tiny, bloodthirsty little parasitic worms that are apparently the cause of the illness that killed all the rest of the people on the plane.  Had I continued with my biology degree and schooling, I could have been in Dr. Ephram "Eph" Goodweather's (the head of the CDC canary team) shoes, so I can identify with his character quite well.  This series seems a pretty exciting mix of tracking down the viral contaminants mixed with the characters' lives.

One thing that bugs me, however, is the situation with Dr. Goodweather's wife and son.  The man's the head of the CDC canary team, which is pretty much the first contact the CDC has with new diseases, and he's basically letting his soon-to-be-ex-wife live in his house while she has sex with her new boyfriend, and the boyfriend is remaking his former den into a game room on Dr. Goodweather's dollar.  Frankly, I wouldn't think the head of the CDC's canary team would be such a pussy, but meh.  At least the character has some depth to him.

The series is based on several books (as my friend informed me), so there's a lot more of this series to come, which seems like a good thing so far.  I've only seen two episodes, but both have been rife with tension and suspense, and quite enjoyable.  There's even been a little action here and there, that seems to be moving the plot along quite nicely.  Also, my friend says the minor characters that are getting introduced, are going to have huge roles to play in future episodes, which is always good to know.  You can watch the Strain on FX on Sunday nights at 10 pm.  There's even been a little nudity tossed in here and there, to keep the geeks like me happy.  :-D

That's all for this weekend.  Catch you next week with a movie review, perhaps, and maybe an update on what's going on with The Strain!  Enjoy the summer doldrums until the fall season comes!

Oh, speaking of doldrums, I had the chance to watch Battle of the Damned with Dolph Lundgren last evening, and I passed on it after watching the first ten minutes.  Now look, I know Mr. Lundgren is an action hero, a martial artist, and supposedly has an IQ of 160 and speaks several languages, which is at least several more than me...  And yes, I know the man is in The Expendables foe the foreseeable future, and that movie series is all about the action, but...  Should he really be doing crappy Syfy movies in between the major blockbusters?  Especially ones that make him look like a geriatric hip-replacement patient dressed up in combat gear while trying to hobble home from the hospital?  Meh, I'm not in charge of his career.  Maybe he really needs the income.  Probably has an addiction to buying new and unusual chess sets.  Yea.  Pfeh, who doesn't, right?  Right.