Demons: They Bite Review

This weekend I got my first look at Demons, the badly named UK paranormal adventure series. Aside from the fact that single, simple word TV titles make them difficult to look up on the web, Demons just doesn’t accurately describe this amusing cross between Buffy and Primeval.

The show revolves around Luke Rutherford (Christian Cooke), a young man who is the last in the Van Helsing line but doesn’t know it. The story lays out the idea Abraham Van Helsing and Jonathan Harker were all real and that they were all coopted by Bram Stoker for his book Dracula. Like the slayers of Buffy and the hunters of Supernatural – battling the forces of darkness isn’t a career choice – it’s a destiny that is thrust upon you, and when destiny calls you have no choice but to answer.

Luke’s call comes when his godfather, Rupert Galvin (Philip Glenister) comes to town. Rupert drops the bomb about Luke’s past and puts him on the lookout because the bad guys have also discovered that the last living Van Helsing is in their midst and that means trouble is afoot. Or in this case, a nose!

In “They Bite,” Luke comes up against Gladiolus Thrip (Mackenzie Crook, The Office, Pirates of the Caribbean) a supernatural bounty hunter with an 809’s rocker fashion sense,  birdlike face, a ceramic nose and an “it’s all about me” attitude. He sends his creepy henchman after Luke and the henchman lets loose a furry gremlin and the chase is on. Several chases, actually.

The action in Demons is on the comical side with just enough angst to keep you from laughing too hard. It’s funny when the gremlin eats a mop, but not so funny when the henchman traps Luke’s girlfriend in an elevator.

When it comes down to it, whether you like the show or not pretty much rests with young Luke himself. He’s got the charm and the boyish good looks and the combo of innocence and innate hunter abilities is always a good mix. And like Buffy Summers and John Connor — he’s tasked with saving the world in between homework assignments and parental problems. The only thing missing for me is the buddy aspect. Sure he has Rupert (not unlike Buffy’s Rupert Giles) and the mysterious blind pianist, Mina Harker, but neither of those relationships delivers the angst in the way that the two Winchester brothers do.

Still, I enjoyed what I saw and I’ll definitely be back for more next week. I like Luke and I like the look of the show. The monsters are more Doctor Who than X-Files and that could be good or bad depending on your point of view. At this point, I’m interested to see where it goes. As long as they can ramp up the angst factor and not go anymore comical than they’ve already gone — I’ll be with Demons until the end.

Demons airs every Saturday on BBC America.
Photos: BBCAmerica