‘What We Do in the Shadows’ Returns With Even More Spooky Laughs – Review
Coming off the well-received first season, What We Do in the Shadows, returns on FX to an audience bloodthirsty for some spooky laughs. The first season had some big shoes to fill, considering it was based on the beloved mockumentary of Jemaine Clement and, Oscar winner, Taika Waititi. However, the “wacky vampires living together” premise proved to work on the small screen with the amusing adventures of new-comers, Nandor (Kayvan Novak) Nadja (Natasia Demetriou), and Laszlo (Matt Berry). The show also built on its predecessor by adding the hysterical “energy vampire,” Colin (Mark Proksch), and the subservient familiar, Guillermo (Harvey Guillén), while, also, setting their domain in the much nuttier land of Staten Island. All these changes actually worked. The show was able to keep the feel and comedic beats of the film, while adding various trials and tribulations that vampires may deal with, which delighted hardcore vampire buffs, like me.
Now, our quirky, vampires return this season with a new set of hurdles to comically defeat. FX gave us vamp loving fans, two episodes for the premiere, and right away, we feel right at home with familiar one-liners and ridiculous conflicts the housemates have to overcome. The first episode promptly keeps the Shadows tradition of bringing in stellar guest appearances, this time, with Joel Osment, as the beloved familiar of Nadja and Lazlo, and later on, with Benedict Wong as the shifty necromancer looking to constantly make a quick buck.
The real star of the premiere remains Guillén as Guillermo, who is now, not only a familiar, but the guardian of the vampire household, fending off council assassins seeking revenge on their master’s death. Guillermo has become increasingly efficient at killing vampires, something he keeps secret from Nandor, in fear of being regarded as a potential enemy. His arc of continually being denied his vampire turn, is amped up this season, with even more time spent on his character’s growing frustration. This leads to even more hilarious moments and perfectly timed looks to the camera, that Guillén mastered in the first season. Shadows clearly has a comedic breakout performer on their hands and, delightedly, this season appears even more focused on his character.
The absurd bits and humorous moments are brewing for episodes to come. FX has a terrific comedy on their hands and now more than ever, audiences have an opportunity to catch up and feast on this vampire satire. Hulu has the first season available for streaming and uploads new episodes the day after airing on FX. This is a perfect time to dive into a spooky adventure.
