Blood Ties 1x01 Blood Price

[oyceter]

This weekend, delux_vivens evilly addicted me to Blood Ties, which has a 450-year-old hot vampire, a glasses-wearing female PI, a snarky goth girl, and a hot cop ex-partner of the PI in a trench coat.

The pilot may not hook that many people, since it's fairly standard set-up, including the introduction of Vicky Nelson, aforementioned glasses-wearing female PI, to Henry Fitzroy, aforementioned hot vampire and graphic novelist, and to the realm of the supernatural. It gives exposition on the rules of vampirism, explains Vicky's past history with the police and that she's slowly losing her vision (differently-abled heroine for the win!), and sets up the love triangle between Vicky, Henry, and Mike (aforementioned hot cop ex-partner).

I also watched the two-parter in which Henry is half-naked and bloody, and the one with a succubus.

So far, it feels a little like Angel, only with somewhat less sparkly dialogue. This isn't a critique, to be honest; Joss' dialogue is difficult to live up to. Plus, while there are some clunky bits, my main reaction was, "Hey! Dialogue that doesn't suck! Oh Heroes..." The snarky goth girl is fun, and while Vicky could have been the dreaded spunky and helpless heroine, I don't think she is. She's proactive, treats people with respect, and I very much like her relationship with her ex-partner. You can tell that they both still care about each other even when they argue, and you can tell they respect each other a lot as well. Yeah, there are several moments where she rushes off in the dark (she has poor night vision) without backup, but I am going to just handwave it as something all PIs and cops and whatnot on TV do.

Also, did I mention Henry is hot? And while he has had some quality angst so far, he doesn't seem to be a "sit there and brood about redemption" type vampire, a la Angel and Louis. Nor does he seem to be a "let all hell break loose and have fun" type vampire, a la Spike and Lestat. And he and Vicky have a really interesting relationship -- a lot of UST in the first episode, but she's clearly keeping him at arm's length for many good reasons. It's also not being played for angst or forbidden romance, like Buffy/Angel.

Finally, there is an East Asian female cop who doesn't show up much but is snarky, a South Asian female coroner who is geeky and cute (I think she is Mohinder's secret twin sister. They bond over supernatural forensics and share amazing doctor skills), and aforementioned snarky goth girl. There have been several unfortunate ethnic-based monsters of the week, but I've sort of given up on that now (hi SPN! hi Buffy! hi XF!). And did I mention that there are many women? And a female lead? Who is adult and has a job? And sexy glasses?

And I miss having a fantasy show to watch. I think I'm going to check out the Tanya Huff books these are based on, along with trying to catch up online.

Comments

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Are the characters on a par w/ Angel, Cordy, Wes and Gunn? Even close? Even a heroine half as fun as Cordy? *needs a new urban fantasy show*

[oyceter]

Umm... it's different. They all feel older and more adult. And while there isn't Cordy's dialogue, I really do like goth snarky girl and Vicky, who does get some good lines. I'm not sure if Vicky's half as fun as Cordy; she's very no-nonsense and practical. But I like her. It's hard to compare the characters too, just because I have five seasons of characterization for one show and four episodes for this.

It really does feel a lot like S1 Angel though, and I think there's a lot of potential for the characters and the relationships. And I think the gender issues will be much less skanky.

[vonnie-k.livejournal.com]

Ooh. I'd heard about this series but had dismissed it as a low-budget silly vampire show (the fact that it's on Lifetime was probably the biggest factor.) Your description makes it sound interesting!

I googled it and Christina Cox, who is the lead, has been in EVERYTHING. I remember her from a couple of S2 episodes of Due South! I like that she's played by an actress in her mid-30's whereas the vampire guy actor is *young* (only 23! He's just a baby!) And the ex-partner is Doug, Pacey's gay brother from Dawson's Creek! *is delighted* OK, I'm gonna have to check it out now. As if I didn't have already too many shows to watch. Oh, man.

[oyceter]

I know! I thought it would be cheesy and low budget as well, but it's really not. At least so far, the monsters and effects have been about the same as the ones on Angel, and the one that hooked me (1x06) had a neat little twist at the end that I enjoyed.

Also, yes, I really like that the vampire looks young and she's in her 30s -- there's even a joke in ep. 1 on how people seeing them together will think she's robbing the cradle!

I'm not sure if you'll be hooked by the pilot; it's pretty expository. Try 1x06 to see if you'll like; I'm goign to see how the rest of it is. Plus side is that only 16 episodes are out so far!

[estara.livejournal.com]

Did you know that in the books Henry makes money as a writer of romance with a female pseudonym? I think they thought that wouldn't be butch enough on TV. In the books Tanya Huff has no problem making him tough enough to handle that.

[hysteriachan.livejournal.com]

...they cut that? ;_; That was such a fun touch!

[oyceter]

Oh man! That would have been really cool. I saw the later points about graphic novelist being more visual, which makes sense, though in my head, I am fanwanking so that he writes shoujo manga or something.

[kitsuchi.livejournal.com]

Tanya Huff is the funniest, snarkiest writer I know and I am totally psyched to hear they made a tv show! And it actually sounds good! Very excited now.

[oyceter]

It has been pretty good so far! And you can check the episodes out online.

[jinian.livejournal.com]

Wow, I had no idea they were making a TV show of those books. They're not bad at all, though I'm kind of over Huff in general.

[oyceter]

They are! I've heard about Blood Ties but sort of dismissed it because of the channel. But it's actually pretty good!

[lavendertook.livejournal.com]

I've read the first 3 books in one volume--they're really fun. As I understand it, the show has taken the basic set up of the main characters but gone its own way with the plots. I really need to see the show--I'm waiting for them to come out on dvd to see them.

[oyceter]

Oh interesting!

I'm sad they're not on DVD yet, but it seems like they only aired half the first season last year and haven't renewed the show either.

[magicnoire.livejournal.com]

This is the show I watch in (not-so) secret. When it premiered earlier this year, I admit my biggest hurdle was the fact that it airs on Lifetime but to my surprise, it's the show that's consistently keeping me happy this fall.

(The Asian cop shows up more in what Lifetime is calling season 2, which is really just the second half of the original season 1.)

[oyceter]

I really enjoyed the episodes I saw! And there were some twists in there that were pleasantly surprising.

I am glad Asian cop shows up more; I really liked her banter with Mike.

[kintail.livejournal.com]

Yay, Blood Ties! I caught about the first four episodes all out of order when it didn't yet have a stable timeslot because most of the fall season hadn't started and about three Canadian cable channels were carrying it, but then I lost track of when and where it was playing. Your post reminds me of how much I enjoyed them, and makes me want to catch up.

I particularly love that it is set in and filmed in Toronto (as opposed to set in Big US City and filmed in Vancouver), so I can recognize so many of the landmarks and see that they're actually using this city almost like a character itself. I think that's related to the diverse casting, too -- Toronto is so multicultural that if they're going to make such a point of saying/showing Look This Is Really Toronto, Eh? to anyone who knows the city, they have to reflect that in the diversity of races of the characters, too.

I have been annoyed by some of the ethnic-based monsters also. My partner who has read the books (many years ago) says that those first episodes were each an adaptation of a whole short novel, and so they'd very soon have venture into original-to-tv plots. I've been curious to see how that may or may not change the portrayals of race issues due to being written now, when it's set, instead of the early nineties.

In conclusion, so much love for Vicki and her glasses and being thirty-something and kicking so much ass in her own way.

Thanks for the link to the episodes online!

[oyceter]

Yeah, I really like that it's in Toronto, and am also hoping for either better-researched ethnic monsters, or plain old monsters that don't kill the one-off POC. On the other hand, I'm less mad about that than I would be because of some of the semi-recurring WOC on the show.

[(Anonymous)]

I've seen a few episodes of this, but it's too much effort to acquire it, so I decided to wait until it's aired in the UK.

I've also recently started reading Tanya Huff's 'Summon the Keeper' series and I'm considering reading the Blood Ties series as everyone seems to like it better than the tv show.

[shewhohashope.livejournal.com]

That was me.

[radiotelescope.livejournal.com]

Ha, two posts in a row where you tweak my secret vices... although I only started watching Blood Ties a couple of months ago, whereas Ann Maxwell has been awesome since I was in high school.

BT has got people kicking ass and being sarcastic, and I like it.

(The Vicky Nelson books are about the only Tanya Huff I *haven't* read; I tried one and didn't get into it. I may go back and pick them up. I may not.)

Note: I'm getting Blood Ties off the iTunes Store, for two bucks an episode. (Cheaper for a season pass.) This season is my personal experiment with "try stuff off iTunes when I feel like it, and don't worry about TV schedules." Working so far.

[oyceter]

I have really liked it so far. Also, hey, I didn't realize it was on iTunes! I may just do that to support the show and hopefully get better quality episodes.

[morgan-dhu.livejournal.com]

For me, Blood Ties has been the best of all the sf/fantasy/supernatural shows this season. I may be biased by the fact that Huff is one of my favourite sff writers and I have long been a fan of these books.

You're right, in that this is not Angel, because this series is not about epic heroes - which was the underlying tone of both Buffy and Angel, what with all the destinies and curses and predictions and ancient societies created to protect humanity from the demons. It's rather about something smaller but equally important - everyday heroes who are brought face to face with extra-ordinary situations. Vicki (or Cellici for that matter) is not a Chosen One, but she kicks serious supernatural butt anyway.

Even Henry is a fairly ordinary vampire, as vampires go - no curses, no special delivery souls, no special angst over a bloody history. He accepts being a vampire, and adapts to live comfortably in a modern age.

And the complex interrelationships between all of the characters become, over time (I've watched all of the series so far) just as rich and nuanced as anything on Angel or Buffy.

I'm a huge fan.

BTW, if you find you're enjoying the show, please let the US station that's carrying it know - they have not committed to continuing the show for another year at this point.

[oyceter]

Yes, I think you've hit on what I like about the show. And part of that is why it reminds me of Angel S1, which I geekily still love, because that's the season on the show that's less about destinies and shanshus and whatnot and more about making friends in a big city and saving individual people.

I think I'm going to try buying eps off iTunes as support!

[oracne.livejournal.com]

I watched the first few of this and enjoyed it. Am hoping to catch up with them soon, now that the book's in. And before the revisions arrive.

[oyceter]

Yeah! I'm looking forward to having something I'll... look forward to. Heroes is becoming more of a chore lately, sigh.

[delux-vivens.livejournal.com]

*eyeroll*

moi? i dont know what you are talking about.

[oyceter]

Yes, you, you evil siccer of half-naked Henry pictures and video clips!

[parallactic.livejournal.com]

The South Asian coroner is one of my favorite characters. I've discovered that I have a thing for coroners in supernatural mysteries.

The series is a lot of fun. I like Vicki for how prickly and determined she is. When Henry's doing the Vampire Mystique bit I roll my eyes, but otherwise he's easy going for a vampire and a nice change from the normal brooding or mayhem. Coreen, the Goth Girl, adds a nice counter-balance to the series.

[oyceter]

She's so cute and dorky! And she talks to her corpses!

I really like the sense of humor that the series has so far. It's a nice change from the usual supernatural brooding.

[denynothing1.livejournal.com]

(here via a link from yhlee)

I have been surprised but delighted by how much I like this show -- the main draw for me is a competent, brave female lead (with glasses!) and the relationship between Vicki and Henry. It's fascinating that he looks so much younger than her, yet is actually several hundred years older. The way she reacts to his shameless flirting, and tries to deal with her attraction to him, is fabulously USTy and fun.

And I love Canadian shows that are *set* in Canada -- DaVinci's Inquest did that with Vancouver, and, as someone said above, in both shows, the city becomes a character.

It takes a bit to get into the story, but I remember tuning in for what I thought was going to be mindless (but pretty) vampire fun, and then at some point thinking, "Wait, this is *really* interesting." Yay!

[oyceter]

Yeah, I really like the Vicki-Henry relationship so far, especially how it teeters between being sexual and not (or at least in the eps I've seen). I really like that she's all practical when he's madly flirting as well.

[maeve-rigan.livejournal.com]

Blood Ties is still on my "guilty pleasures" list, but I find I can't give it up, like chocolate. The writing is improving, but the main draw, I admit, is teh hotness of the two guys. Vicki--whatever happened to her progressive blindness storyline anyway? Even the night-blindness no longer seems to be a problem. But yes, I also want this show to succeed because it does have a female lead.

Is there a "save our show" campaign yet?

[oyceter]

Ha, since I am coming over to it from Heroes, I have to admit, the writing is actually a draw! At least they are snarky and subvert genre tropes at times!

No idea about any campaigns...

[seraphcelene]

I spent the past weekend watching the first season while recovering from a hangover in bed. Imagine my surprise at finding that you've been hooked as well. It's engaging and I wasn't actually prepared for that. Of course, I forgive lost considering the might hotness of Kyle Schmid. *swoon* Plus, girl in glasses. Kick ass girl in glasses. Gotta love it. It's all very Anita Blake to me, especially Vicki, but we can forgive that and get around it because it's fun and tongue in cheek and snarky and they seldom take themselves too seriously.

I watched the new season on Monday and I'm ready for more. Wow. All that and after I firmly rebuffed Moonlight without even giving it a go.

[oyceter]

Anita Blake as in...? I haven't read any of them. Does Vicki get too Mary Sue-ish?