What's on My TV: Vampires

Besides books I’ve read because I gave the TV shows a chance, like True Blood & Vampire Diaries, vampires don’t feature in my reading. So, this preference is only apparent in the TV shows I watch.

Jul 07, 2024

What’s on My TV is, literally, what’s on my TV when I’m decompressing after work or during the weekends. Sometimes, I’ll talk about a film, but I’ll almost always talk about old series and new reality shows I choose to binge-watch.

Most people might not know that I’m pretty into vampires and think I’m more into zombies. LOL. I read Bram Stoker’s Dracula very early—before high school! I think the 1992 movie greatly impacted me, so much so that I looked for the book. I wasn’t really into the gothic or classic horror genre before then, although I was obsessed with R.L. Stine and Fear Street books.

After Dracula, I found an Anne Rice book in my sister’s things. Eventually, I figured out where to find the entire Vampire Chronicles—the Stella Maris high school library! So I moved from hanging out in the grade school library to there during my last year there. Besides books I’ve read because I gave the TV shows a chance, like True Blood and Vampire Diaries, vampires didn’t feature much in my reading as an adult. I can only think of one series I currently read that has vampires in it—the Dresden Files. (New book, when?) So, this preference is only apparent in the TV I watch.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

I will admit something that diehard fans of this series will probably roast me for: It was good but not wholly captivating. During the last few seasons, I found my attention wavering, and I wasn’t very drawn into the story—so much so that I barely remember the end of the series.

But I did enjoy watching Buffy! I think I started watching it while recovering from my stroke, along with Veronica Mars. That combination was a bit too much for me—so young adult—but I nevertheless enjoyed the binge-watch. I appreciate the characterization of Giles as a hero librarian and of Willow as a witch, as someone who studied to be a librarian and now identifies as a witch. What I didn’t like was Buffy’s characterization of vampires. Although typical—superhuman, heightened senses, healing powers, drinks blood, lives forever—they didn’t seem special enough to have a generational Slayer dedicated to their race.

Verdict: At this point, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a classic. If you like vampires, this should be first on your TV list.

Hemlock Grove

Let’s get this out of the way before I waste your time. Verdict: No. Do not watch this show. It is garbage. I don’t even know why I watched it to the end.

I wasn’t familiar with the Brian McGreevy book it’s based on—but I knew Eli Roth produced the show, and I recognized the actors who play the vampires, Famke Janssen and Bill Skarsgard. I guess that was enough name recognition for me to give it a chance. I kept waiting for the series to get better, but the plot was twisted so much, and the storylines all felt like fan fiction ideas. I guess Netflix also realized it was garbage later because I looked for it on the platform, and it’s not there anymore. Apparently, it was removed on October 22, 2022.

Vampire Diaries/Originals/Legacies

I watched Vampire Diaries when it first came out because I have a girl crush on Nina Dobrev. That’s it! I don’t think I watched all the episodes or seasons. I think Paul Wesley, who plays one of the two lead vampires, looks weird. And I don’t like the characterization of Ian Somerhalder’s Damon, even though the actor does look attractive. I also started reading the books this series was based on and could barely get through the first book—I think I was too old for it.

It’s funny how the books were too “young” for me, but I rediscovered this universe when I came across Legacies on Netflix. Legacies is a spinoff of the spinoff of Vampire Diaries, The Originals. It follows the life of a young supernatural who’s a—wait for it—vampire, werewolf, and witch by blood. Legacies drew me in so much that I binge-watched it and then looked for The Originals to binge-watch that, too. I don’t know if I’ll look for Vampire Diaries and do a rewatch, though. Is that how much I don’t find the male leads attractive? Maybe!

Verdict: Even though these shows are on this list because they feature vampires, the portrayal of witchcraft on these shows interests me the most. However, their characterization of vampires is more involved and much better than Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s. I would say that The Originals and Legacies are good to binge-watch, but only if you’re already familiar with Vampire Diaries.

First Kill

I didn’t read the short story this TV series is based on, but I loved First Kill so much! Too bad it was cancelled after one season. I hate that this series was canceled—it’s like when I loved Journeyman, and then it was canceled.

Even though it was very much young adult, it felt like a fresh take on the genre. I love how vampires in this universe heavily emphasize family—but not how vampires do in Vampire Diaries/The Originals/Legacies. It’s not necessarily just about ancestry but also about legacy and tradition. It’s sort of like family in the Supernatural series. In this show, a teenage vampire must make their first kill—hence the series name—after their 16th birthday to enter adulthood. The lead character is wrestling with this tradition as she meets the new girl in school, who happens to be the daughter of a monster-hunting family. She needs to go through a similar tradition to become an official Hunter.

Verdict: Please look for it and watch it if you like vampires! Plus points if you’re LGBTQ+ friendly because the romantic leads in this series are lesbian.

Van Helsing

Early admission to prevent embarrassment: I haven’t finished watching this series. I don’t know what it is about the fight scenes in this show that I can’t take, because I watch other similar shows. In any case, I’ve been continuing to watch this show, but for some reason, it’s not an easy binge-watch for me.

I haven’t read the graphic novel it’s based on, but I do enjoy the particulars of the universe the show portrays. I love considering it an alternate reality to the one True Blood portrays. Everyone knows that vampires exist, and the vampires have taken over the world—now what? I also like the nod to the original Dracula story.

Verdict: It was very enjoyable, if not very binge-worthy. I recommend it if you like vampires and have an affinity for the original Dracula.

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What We Do in the Shadows

Let’s end with something completely different, as Monty Python likes to say. What We Do in the Shadows is probably the most entertaining show on this list, if only because it’s the only comedy-forward one. It’s also the only one not based on an original work of literature, instead the original was a film of the same name. There’s also a New Zealand series with the same name set in the same universe.

I love What We Do in the Shadows because it makes vampires seem more human than they’re usually portrayed—and that makes sense because vampires were human first before becoming immortal. The little plot complication they introduced regarding Nandor’s familiar Guillermo being a descendant of Van Helsing is incredibly fantastic.

Verdict: Among all the shows on this list, this is the one I would recommend to someone who isn’t a horror or vampire fan. Watch it and have a good laugh!

Which Vampires Will You Invite Into Your TV Room?

Do you like a vampire-related show that wasn’t mentioned here? Tell me all about it! Let’s talk more soon.

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