BBC's Dracula Season 1 TV Show Review

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BBC's Dracula Season 1 TV Show Review

BBC's Dracula Season 1 Review

Gatiss & Moffat's colourful updating of Dracula blends horror and classic camp comedy to surprisingly good effect, delivering everything you would expect from the makers of Sherlock.

It seems like the BBC may be having slightly better luck with their more adult content (A Christmas Carol) than their lightweight and painfully throwaway War of the Worlds (or even Doctor Who), with this latest three-part series essentially reworking the classic Bram Stoker's Dracula tale complete with a decent serving of blood and violence, and an equal parts blend of reverence and irreverence, as it faithfully follows the familiar narrative whilst imbuing it with wonderful spark of modern ingenuity. Far from flawless - the 2020 retro-fitting of a time which was inherently sexist takes some time to get into a stride, and similarly, this interpretation of Dracula requires to you to try not to compare to either Oldman or Lee, as this is essentially a combo of them both, and that amalgamation is somewhat hard to picture - a fabulous protagonist gives it a Sherlock-ian edge, and a superior second episode (and twist) leave you immediately hoping this one gets renewed for further bloody adventures, even if its conclusion doesn't quite complete the promise left after said twist.

 Essentially reworking the classic Bram Stoker's Dracula tale complete with a decent serving of blood and violence, and an equal parts blend of reverence and irreverence

The story follows Jonathan Harker's voyage into the abyss, as he visits an ageing Count only to find the wrinkled old man looking more vibrant every day, whilst he himself appears to be increasingly drained. Recounted to an interested nun - who may or may not have some experience in the occult - Dracula's plans to voyage to London and wreak havoc appear unstoppable. But a certain Van Helsing may have something else to say about the matter.

BBC's Dracula Season 1

Dracula takes a little getting used to. Unlike the slick and tech-happy Sherlock update, it takes longer to find its footing, immediately both constrained by the source material and by its angle into the convoluted text. The reality is that the diary-form and viewpoints offered by the novel don't always leave an easy way in for filmmakers. Coppola's Dracula worked wonders to get around this, essentially repositioning the villain as more of an anti-hero, which helped with the woefully insipid character of Harker; a paltry protagonist (even before Keanu Reeves' portrayal) to endure until Van Helsing makes his appearance. BBC's Dracula doesn't have quite the same tricks up its sleeve, in some ways seeking to be more faithful to the source material (perhaps like with Sherlock), albeit putting their own spin on the language, characters and events.

As a result of this, the first episode (running at a whopping 88 minutes) doesn't really get going until its final few minutes, but when it does, your whole perception of the show might change. The clash with some nuns - and one particularly fantastic nun - is superbly tense, and it leaves the second episode unmissable. For those that come back, there's a rich reward: the second episode sees Dracula's famous voyage across the sea (often portrayed as little more than a ship's log of an increasingly high body count on the fated trip) wonderfully re-envisioned as almost a whoddunit Death on the Nile trip, only where the Great Detective Hercule Poirot is actually the bloodthirsty predator himself. And again, in typical Sherlock style, the modern twists land particularly well at the surprising conclusion; one which, unfortunately, the final episode can't quite make good on - despite giving it a damn good shot and, at least, commendably doing something undeniably different.

 A fabulous protagonist gives it a Sherlock-ian edge, and a superior second episode (and twist) leave you immediately hoping this one gets renewed for further bloody adventures

Claes Bang (recently in The Affair) is an interesting choice for Dracula, with his variable accent and at least initial lack of threat perhaps coming across as disappointing, but he comes into his own at the end of episode one and seems perfectly suited to the role come the second episode (also the twist on his absorption of knowledge, languages and memories through blood is a very clever addition). More impressive is Dolly Wells, who makes up for John Heffernan's (presumably intentionally) abortive Harker, and absolutely steals the show come the end of episode one. However much Gatiss and Moffat appear to be trying a little too hard to modernise Victorian sensibilities here, and not always landing their punches, Wells' nun is all kinds of awesome, and her script is utterly on point, providing a solid protagonist who steers the ship even when you're not completely convinced she has a worthy antagonist. And sure, the final episode's twists ultimately struggle out of time, but fingers crossed this isn't the last we've seen of these colourful characters.

Dracula
is an interesting choice for Gatiss and Moffat to tackle, and maybe even occasionally an inspired one, with further exploits of these characters arguably of more interest than the drained-of-blood Sherlock characters who eventually went a little bit too far off the rails. Engaging, entertaining, bloody and - sometimes - bitingly irreverent, the BBC have gotten 2020 off to a good start with this.


Scores

Verdict

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