Day Twenty-Five
I have a confession.
As much as I lurve science fiction and fantasy, I don't do horror. Can't do horror. Generally stay away from horror at all costs.
There are exceptions, of course. At one time, I owned almost every title Anne Rice ever published. I'm a dedicated fan of Poe, "The Pit and the Pendulum" being one of my all-time favorite stories. The first graphic novel I ever read was The Crow (which is much darker than the movie).
Movies or books that continually ratchet up the tension and suspense without moments of release get me. My levels of anxiety are naturally high - pile on more and more, and pretty quickly I'm trying to crawl out of my skin.
I mention all this because of the newest drama on BBC America - The Fades.
It is supernatural fantasy horror with ghosts that kill and eat humans and a group of people trying to stop them from taking over the world. It is NOT about zombies. It's funny without being campy, and is (at least to me) really truly scary.
I'll be honest - I didn't think I would like it. I didn't know too much about it, though, so I gave it a chance. I recorded the first episode (and the Nerdist special that aired right after) and waited almost a week to watch it.
No, that's not quite right. I had free time to watch it before then, but I refused to watch it at night. The first afternoon I had free, I watched.
Oh. My. Cheesus. I was blown away.
The story is engaging and intriguing. The characters are brilliant and flawed and masterfully played by a very talented young cast.
That looks like so much marketing copy. Here's what the website says:
"Written by Jack Thorne (“Skins,” “This Is England ’86,” “Shameless”), “The Fades” is a coming-of-age fantasy drama showcasing the supernatural skills of a reluctant teenager named Paul (as played by Iain De Caestecker, formerly of “Coronation Street”).
[...]
Thorne says of the show: “What makes ‘The Fades’ different is that it is a fantasy show rather than a science fiction show. It’s about fairly ordinary people, none of these people act or behave like they’re superheroes. “The Fades” is about the world itself being an extraordinary thing and how you battle it. This old school fantasy element combined with some pretty original characters - I hope is what will make people want to watch." "
However you categorize it, I fucking love it. By the middle of the first episode, I was rooting for these people. Iain De Caestecker does an amazing job as the reluctant... I hesitate to say hero, but that's what the character is. Paul has been thrust into this impossible situation. He's only getting the basics of the story. He has no clue what's really going on. And when the weird shit starts happening all around him, he makes the decision to go toward it, to not run away.
His best friend Mac, played by Daniel Kaluuya, is endearingly annoying. I was afraid he was going to just be annoying, but as the series goes on you can see why he does what he does. He's the dork we all knew in high school, or quite possibly, the dork we were in high school.
And I have a serious crush on Jay, played by Sophie Wu. The character straddles the line between popular and real, and Sophie plays that awkwardness beautifully.
Unfortunately, it's only a six-part series. Fortunately, the Brits are quite adept at giving a fully-fleshed story in such a short run. Next Saturday, January 28, they air the third episode. If you missed the first two and don't have BBC America On Demand, there are a few videos on the site but... You won't get a good idea what's going on, so you're kinda out of luck unless you can bribe a friend that has them recorded or has access to On Demand. Or, you could just buy the DVD. Trust me, it's worth it.
As much as I lurve science fiction and fantasy, I don't do horror. Can't do horror. Generally stay away from horror at all costs.
There are exceptions, of course. At one time, I owned almost every title Anne Rice ever published. I'm a dedicated fan of Poe, "The Pit and the Pendulum" being one of my all-time favorite stories. The first graphic novel I ever read was The Crow (which is much darker than the movie).
Movies or books that continually ratchet up the tension and suspense without moments of release get me. My levels of anxiety are naturally high - pile on more and more, and pretty quickly I'm trying to crawl out of my skin.
I mention all this because of the newest drama on BBC America - The Fades.
It is supernatural fantasy horror with ghosts that kill and eat humans and a group of people trying to stop them from taking over the world. It is NOT about zombies. It's funny without being campy, and is (at least to me) really truly scary.
I'll be honest - I didn't think I would like it. I didn't know too much about it, though, so I gave it a chance. I recorded the first episode (and the Nerdist special that aired right after) and waited almost a week to watch it.
No, that's not quite right. I had free time to watch it before then, but I refused to watch it at night. The first afternoon I had free, I watched.
Oh. My. Cheesus. I was blown away.
The story is engaging and intriguing. The characters are brilliant and flawed and masterfully played by a very talented young cast.
That looks like so much marketing copy. Here's what the website says:
"Written by Jack Thorne (“Skins,” “This Is England ’86,” “Shameless”), “The Fades” is a coming-of-age fantasy drama showcasing the supernatural skills of a reluctant teenager named Paul (as played by Iain De Caestecker, formerly of “Coronation Street”).
[...]
Thorne says of the show: “What makes ‘The Fades’ different is that it is a fantasy show rather than a science fiction show. It’s about fairly ordinary people, none of these people act or behave like they’re superheroes. “The Fades” is about the world itself being an extraordinary thing and how you battle it. This old school fantasy element combined with some pretty original characters - I hope is what will make people want to watch." "
However you categorize it, I fucking love it. By the middle of the first episode, I was rooting for these people. Iain De Caestecker does an amazing job as the reluctant... I hesitate to say hero, but that's what the character is. Paul has been thrust into this impossible situation. He's only getting the basics of the story. He has no clue what's really going on. And when the weird shit starts happening all around him, he makes the decision to go toward it, to not run away.
His best friend Mac, played by Daniel Kaluuya, is endearingly annoying. I was afraid he was going to just be annoying, but as the series goes on you can see why he does what he does. He's the dork we all knew in high school, or quite possibly, the dork we were in high school.
And I have a serious crush on Jay, played by Sophie Wu. The character straddles the line between popular and real, and Sophie plays that awkwardness beautifully.
Unfortunately, it's only a six-part series. Fortunately, the Brits are quite adept at giving a fully-fleshed story in such a short run. Next Saturday, January 28, they air the third episode. If you missed the first two and don't have BBC America On Demand, there are a few videos on the site but... You won't get a good idea what's going on, so you're kinda out of luck unless you can bribe a friend that has them recorded or has access to On Demand. Or, you could just buy the DVD. Trust me, it's worth it.