Watching: "What We Do in the Shadows"

Loosely based on the 2014 film of the same name - a film usually found, I am guessing, on the "all-time favorites" list of anyone who has ever seen it, it's that good/funny - the TV version of "What We Do in the Shadows" keeps the basic mockumentary premise of live cameras that follow the day-to-day lives of housemates who happen to be vampires. Moving the action from Australia to upscale Staten Island, New York, the series features housemates Nandor (Kayvan Novak) - the unspoken leader of the group - as well as married couple Laszlo and Nadja (Matt Berry and the freaking-hilarious Natasia Demetriou), all centuries-old European vampires relocated to the States to ostensibly take over America. Also along for the ride is housemate Colin Robinson (Matt Proksch), an emotional vampire who feeds on human emotion and is so white/vanilla he's practically invisible. Not bound by normal vampire constrictions, Colin has a day job in an office, where he feeds daily on the emotions of his co-workers - either by sucking the life out of them with incredibly long/boring stories, or being so annoying, he feeds on the energy of their white-hot anger. The final house resident is Guillermo (Harvey Guillen); Nandor's human familiar, Guillermo has been in service to his master for over a decade, his only goal to one day have his master turn him into a full-fledged vampire for his loyalty and service (hint: it ain't ever gonna happen, dude). Typical episodes include a lonely Nandor trying to apply for U.S. citizenship when he finds out his home country dissolved in 1401; the visit of The Baron, a scary and ruthless vampire royal come to check on the progress of Nandor, Laszlo and Nadja in taking over America, and a chubby local virgin college girl Nadja takes under her wing (pun intended) as a possible fledgling vamp. The pilot was good, every episode since laugh-out-loud funny, the series proving a more-than-worthy successor to the brilliant film; season two is already on the way. With top-quality effects that will make you believe these vampires can float, turn into bats, or even host a vampire orgy, "What We Do in the Shadows" is a brilliant show with bite (yep, did it again) deserving of the massive love and affection it (and the film) gets from its fans; having seen all ten episodes of season one, my heart already bleeds (okay, I'll stop) for season two. (FOX/TV-MA) 9.5/10 stars