As a long time fan of Tanya Huff’s Vicki Nelson series of books (aka The Blood Books), I approached the new Lifetime TV series with some trepidation. I wasn’t so much worried about how the supernatural elements would translate to the screen. With almost every network leaping on the current genre revival bandwagon, this show would only succeed if the three main characters were successfully portrayed. You would have to believe and more importantly, you’d have to care. 

Three episodes in and my fears have been mostly laid to rest. Vicki Nelson, a Toronto PD detective who chose to quit the force rather than ride a desk after developing Retinitis Pigmentosa (a condition which means her night and peripheral vision is gradually failing) is played to perfection by Christina Cox. She has the right combination of toughness, vulnerability and looks to carry off the part. Dylan Neal as Vicki’s ex-partner detective Mike Celluci does a great job with a character that could have come across as stuffy. Finally Kyle Schmid’s portrayal of graphic novelist Henry Fitzroy, who also happens to be a 450 year old vampire and the illegitimate son of Henry VIII, is sexy, seductive, playful and dangerous. These three have a wonderful chemistry together that really makes the show come alive. My only casting reservation at the moment is Gina Holden’s Coreen who is unfortunately stuck with the sidekick role, but hopefully her character will be given something meaningful to do as the series continues. 

The two part pilot episode is a reasonably faithful adaptation of the first book in the series, Blood Price. Vicki is walking home from a date when she witnesses an attack on a young man by a cape-wearing figure. She gives chase but the figure vanishes and unfortunately she’s too late to save the victim. The cops arrive, including Vicki’s ex-partner Mike Celluci, and they discover the victim has bite marks on the neck and is drained of blood. The following day Vicki gets a visit from the victim’s girlfriend Coreen, who is not happy with the police investigation and wants Vicki to take the case. As the body count rises Vicki is drawn to the theory that a vampire is at large in the city. When she continually spots the same man as she carries out her investigation, she discovers that Henry Fitzroy is indeed a vampire but not the person responsible for the murders. He has his own reasons for not wanting a vampire killer on the loose in his city. 

The two become partners and as Henry faces an old enemy, Vicki becomes more open to the previously unknown supernatural elements around her. They discover that the killings have a purpose and they must stop the perpetrator or face hell on earth. 

The series opener introduces all the characters and sets up the Vicki/Mike/Henry love triangle. There are plenty of sparks among the three leads and as Vicki’s relationship with the frustrated Mike is rekindled it feels real. Vicki’s and Henry’s mutual attraction is also believably handled. Standard vampire conventions are dispensed with – Henry wears a cross, has a reflection, and has no aversion to garlic. There is plenty of snappy well written dialogue. The only thing that lets the episode down is a fairly poor villain which shows the obvious lack of a decent budget.

Episode 3, Bad Juju, deals with voodoo and zombies and is not based on any of the original books. Vicki is visited by a young woman named Angelique who is searching for her missing brother. After Angelique and her escort are attacked, Vicki attempts to defend them but the assailant seems unresponsive to her attacks, kills Angelique’s escort then knocks Vicki to the ground and takes off after Angelique. The police arrive with Celluci in the lead, resulting in a heated discussion about Vicki’s involvement. This leads to a magic moment where Vicki storms off indignantly, and Celluci calls out “Garbage can, 12 o’clock” just in time for Vicki to avoid a collision. Vicki turns to Henry for help, who identifies her assailant as a zombie and advises Vicki to drop the case. Kyle Schmid gets his chance to shine here with Henry’s “don’t forget what I am” speech. As they are drawn further into the investigation, it becomes apparent that Angelique may not be what she appears, and Vicki becomes the victim of a voodoo curse.

This third episode manages to improve on a good beginning with some brilliant throwaway dialogue such as Vicki and Henry questioning a barman, “I’ll have a beer, and him…you don’t want to know”, and Henry’s comment on zombies in the movies, “don’t trust the movies – look what they did to vampires”. Hopefully the series has a sound base to build from, and if they can avoid the old Kolchak trap of each episode turning into a “monster of the week” formula, it could be around for a long time to come.