Tis slim pickin's this fall yall...and I don't mean the actor. The writer's strike has left a veritable wasteland of crap tv options in it's wake. But, wait now...all hope it not lost. There are a handful of horror options available. Here are a few:
Newbies:
HBO's True Blood.
Based on the popular Southern Vampire Mystery Series by Charlaine Harris, the story follows a small town in Louisiana after the world's vampires have "come out of the coffin". With the creation of a synthetic blood, called True Blood, the vampires of the world no longer need to stay in hiding. They are loud, they are proud, and they want the same rights as humans. The show centers around a young barmaid named Sookie Stackhouse who has a secret of her own: she hears people's thoughts. What would seem to be an awesome gift is more of a curse actually. Besides her friend Tara, her boss Sam, her grandmother, and her brother Jason, she is mostly alone trying to keep the world out. When she meets her first vampire, a courtly handsome guy named Bill, she discovers a wonderful thing...she can't hear his thoughts. Much to the chagrin of those around her, a romance starts and Sookie gets pulled into a supernatural world much darker and larger than she ever could have imagined.
So since it's HBO...there is plenty of boobs, sex, cursing, and violence to help balance out the romance. The men are swoony...I have read all of these books and love them...and the casting is spot on in all cases. Thus far, the show is staying pretty true to the novels. Spearheaded by Six Feet Under's Alan Ball, the show is taking it's sweet time in getting to the real meat of the story, which could cost it some viewers. Like Six Feet Under, it has what I like to think of as 'surreal naturalism' about it. We see the characters in often mundane situations that do nothing to further the plot...but do help slowly fill in the blanks on who they are and how they interact with the world. The sex in the show is a bit much...but I can live with it. I hope this show lasts...I think it has great potential to be trashy good horror fun with nifty special effects, no camp, and a healthy dose of sexiness.
Go mosey around the website and it's spin-offs for some good fun. They have set up dummy sites for different elements from the show like the Fellowship of the Sun (a religious group against the vampires), a Vampire dating service, a blog, and the American Vampire League lobby group.
Fox's Fringe:
I haven't watched this yet. From what I gather, it has an X-File vibe to it and therefore, some decent spook factor. I will let you know when I get to it...it's languishing in the queue.
Returning:
CW's Supernatural: I love this one. Like a good solid little horror movie each week. Nice special effects, good characters, decent dialogue, and some fairly spooky moments.
CW's Reaper: A bit campy, but generally a fun little show...and who can resist Ray Wise as the Prince of Darkness? Not I gentle readers, not I.
Did I miss any? I am not counting lame-o faux spookiness like Ghost Whisperer or Medium. Please.
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