As of recent, AMC's The Walking Dead hasn't been on top of
their A-game like a year ago. However, thank almighty gawd, Buddha, Allah or
whatever the hell you worship, that there are exceptional alternatives when it
comes to Horror Television.
No, I'm not referring to the disappointing Hugh Jackoffman
adaptation but instead, this obscure SyFy series that is part Blade, part Buffy
the Vampire Slayer and yes, of course, The Walking Dead.
Regarding the latter the comparison is obvious due to its
soap opera scenarios, situations and an ensemble of diverse yet, oddly
suspicious characters.
This adaptation of Van Helsing is primarily based on a
graphic novel as our titular (as in ambiguously named) character Vanessa Helsing
(Kelly Overton) awakens from a coma (Sounds familiar, Walking Dead fans?) only
to find herself during a Vampire apocalypse.
But fortunately, or rather unfortunately Vanessa discovers
that she has the attributes of a vampire. "All of their strengths, but none
of their weaknesses". Also, Van's bite can remove the infection from a
turned individual and this plays an important part of the series' narrative.
Throughout the first season, there's a copious amount of
infighting, double crosses and a few other twists, especially near the finale.
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| The weakest link! (And it's not just for wearing that Nirvana tee either!) |
Overton delivers as an apocalypse age heroine, who emotes a
motherly instinct during her quest to find her missing daughter.
There's not too many slow burns in Van Helsing thanks to
plenty of action sequences, drama and a few surprises to keep the viewer pulled
in.
If there's one caveat, it would go to the two characters,
who are displayed as heavily flawed archetypes. Now, I suspect Van Helsing of aping
a few tropes from that certain show with zombies shuffling, but the portrayals
are too blatant i.e. a modicum of stupidity and cowardice. Might as well have
them yelling:
Van Helsing may not be the perfect substitute for TWD
series, but its a good horror series that should not be overlooked!
Also recommended:
Salem
Ash Vs The Evil Dead (Highly recommended!)
The Strain
Penny Dreadful