Tuesday 28 February 2012

Into Every Generation (A belated review of Ep1 Grimm)

I am a big fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and one thing that has always stuck out to me from that programme was the line ‘into every generation a slayer is born.’

This is true.  Ok, maybe a slayer isn’t born to every generation.  What I mean is a lot of teenagers go through that supernatural (usually vampires) phase and each generation of teenagers will hook onto a new franchise/film/programme.  Buffy belongs to my generation, Twilight is probably this generations.

I finally got round to watching the first episode of Grimm, a little late I know.  At first I wondered if this was an attempt at the new generation.  The next Buffy, it is after all created by the makers of Buffy, although I must point out not Joss Whedon (the genius mind behind such creations as Buffy, Firefly and the upcoming Avengers film).

Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t.  If it is, then these things have come on a long way since good old Buffy.  Is it me or is the theme of a small girl being abducted and kept in a creepy house actually quite scary?  Maybe it’s not and I’ve just reached that age where the realism hits me.

Anyway, Grimm.  What an interesting concept; the family of Grimms can see what others cannot; all manner of creatures and it is their duty to document them and, I assume, handle them when need be.  In the first episode we meet Detective Nick Burkhardt and his partner Detective Hank Griffin.  Burkhardt discovers that he is the last Grimm as a girl out jogging in a red jumper is torn to pieces in the woods.  Shortly afterwards a small girl, also in a red jumper, is snatched while walking to her grandfathers.  That’s right, you guessed it, Little Red Riding Hood.

I admit I was fascinated by this premise.  A small shiver of anticipation went through me at the concept of a modern Little Red Riding Hood and a new view on werewolves.  They aren’t called werewolves in Grimm but they’re done a whole lot better than they are in Supernatural (whose werewolves are basically people with sharp teeth).  

The first episode was done well.  It introduced us to the characters nicely as well as a wonderful gothic feel of woods, moonlight and the creaky, beautiful American houses in Portland, Oregon.  It focuses on a well known fairy tale and a well loved villain, the Big Bad Wolf.  You feel as if you are in your comfort zone but able to welcome new ideas into the story.

Unfortunately I feel nothing for Burkhardt so far, in fact I haven’t warmed to any of the characters yet.  The names given to the ‘werewolves’ and other creatures haven’t stuck, and I wonder when they will and the first episode left a lot of unanswered questions, more than it should of.

This doesn’t mean that I won’t watch the second episode, sitting patiently on my Sky planner.  In fact I find my mind keeps returning to Grimm which must be a good sign.  I will give Grimm another go.  I am also a little curious to see how far these fairy tales will take the series.

Grimm is a cross between Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Castle, it has hooked into that popular and intriguing crime and troublesome but thrilling supernatural gap in the market and I can’t think of any other programmes that tick all of these boxes.

Has anyone else watched Grimm?  I’d be interested to know what other people thought.

2 comments:

  1. Have it on the planner myself. It's not really my genre but the 'style' caught my eye. I'll let you know how it goes

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  2. I didn't have hopes for it but it made me interested in the second episode so it's worth a go! Be interesting to know what you think :)

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