Vampire show 'Moonlight' bites
A SyFy Portal critic doesn't put the new CBS series on the side of the Angels.
"The new CBS vampire detective drama Moonlight is too dull to be seen."
This diplomatic line appeared in the first paragraph of Robin Brownfield's fairly scorching review of the 28 September premiere episode of the new CBS vampire drama Moonlight.
The premiere, "There's No Such Thing As Vampires," introduced Mick St. John (Alex O'Loughlin, The Shield), a vampire private eye trying to keep other vamps from dining on the living. Beth Turner (Sophia Myles, Underworld) is an internet news reporter (?!) investigating, what she discovers to be, vampire killings. Shannyn Sossamon (A Knight's Tale) plays Mick's undead wife, Coraline. Jason Dohring (Veronica Mars) is Josef Konstantin, a 400-year-old vampire.
According to Brownfield, the opening was clichéd and amateurish; the narration listless and distracting; the lead bland (despite a valiant effort); the main supporting players dull and hollow (save for Sossamon, who "played Coraline with a crazed ferocity"); the dialogue sub-standard; and the plot generic.
"Still," Brownfield admitted, "there is a slight gleam of potential in all the murkiness."
The episode's final scenes suggested that Moonlight might be redeemable. "If the writers come up with more creative stories and give me reason to care about the characters, I can see it running as long as six episodes."
(That's not even enough for a DVD collection.)
Not having seen the show myself, I'm not prepared to take Ms. Brownfield's scathing indictment as scripture, especially when the reviewer does the following:
(1) goes back & forth between calling the lead character "Mick" and "Nick," who's played by Alex "O'Laughlin/O'Loughlin."]
(2) includes WAY too many references to Angel, the under-appreciated, critically-acclaimed WB series co-created by Joss Whedon.
"I have to say that I may be judging the show unfairly," she confided, "because a 'vampire detective show' has a lot to overcome with the legacy of its predecessor. It's Angel without the heart, brain or soul...It's Angel without a personality...This series is white bread Angel."
Her mantra is a touch ironic, whether or not she was aware of it: Angel co-creator David Greenwalt was Moonlight show-runner briefly before bolting for "personal reasons."
As I stated earlier, I haven't seen the show, but I'd bet I'm a bigger Angel devotee than the reviewer, and I also know that Angel was itself a retread--of the early 90's Canadian-made series Forever Knight (whose main character was named "Nick"). In fact, Joss Whedon had woven shadows of Knight into his universe as earlier as Buffy's first season; and I can see Knight's influence in the description of and images from Moonlight.
So, if you would, set all the Angel business aside when chewing over Ms. Brownfield's review. It's likely that her impressions are accurate, since they match up closely with those of other 'Net reviewers. In fact, she's actually much kinder and more forgiving.
Moonlight airs on CBS Fridays at 9 p.m. ET.