LOS ANGELES >> Can vampires be funny? After six seasons of “What We Do in the Shadows,” the answer is a resounding yes.
Like the 2014 film by Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement that it is based on, the series is a mockumentary that follows a group of vampire roommates, Laszlo Cravensworth (Matt Berry), Nadja of Antipaxos (Natasia Demetriou), Nandor the Relentless (Kayvan Novak) and Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch), and their familiar Guillermo de la Cruz (Harvey Guillén). The vampires here are much like the ones you’ve seen in movies and read about in books: they’re immortal, blood-sucking creatures who kill mercilessly. But the series, like the film, shows that vampires are also multidimensional — vulnerable, emotional, funny, absurd — and completely out of place in the modern world. “Shadows” was often at its best when we saw the characters trying to blend in and act like everyday citizens of Staten Island, New York.
But what differentiated the FX series from its source material was how it expanded the vampire universe and our understanding of it. Case in point: the creation of energy vampires like Colin Robinson, who feed on emotional energy instead of blood. It was the perfect analogy to our tech-driven, capitalist, corporate society where meetings, office small-talk and bureaucracy often feel like they can drain us of our life force.
Now, the show is coming to a close, and not just in our world. In the “Shadows” universe, Guillermo and the vampires are saying goodbye to the documentary camera crew that have followed them for the past six years. For the vampires, it’s just another day as immortal beings; we learn they’ve been through this before, having shot a documentary in the 1950s. But for Guillermo, it’s bittersweet; he’s trying to come to terms with the news, what it means and what’s next for him.
The other question it raises: How do you come up with a perfect ending for a show? Guillermo ponders this and the finale plays with it. We see the boom mics, cameras and operators emerge from behind the scenes and a clapperboard close the documentary, but a twist at the end of the episode opens the possibility for more — will Guillermo start a new life as a vigilante with Nandor or leave the vampires behind?
We don’t know for certain, but for now, L.A. Times staff writer Tracy Brown and television editor Maira Garcia discuss the finale of the series, favorite moments and what made the comedy so special.
Maira Garcia >> All good things must come to an end, to quote Nadja of Antipaxos, or was it Nelly Furtado who said that originally? In any case, we’ve come to the end of the road for “What We Do in the Shadows,” one of my favorite comedies of the past decade. Tracy, you’ve heard me wax on about this show and my love for Jackie Daytona and Matt Berry probably more than you ever wanted to hear, but its quirkiness, ongoing jokes and macabre humor were always my kind of humor.
Now that the finale has aired, I’m curious to hear what you thought of the episode and how it ties things up? We’ve seen the characters occasionally break the fourth wall by addressing the camera directly or acknowledging the documentary crew, but this was a wrecking ball.
Tracy Brown >> I wouldn’t have had it any other way. I thought the episode was a very wild and fitting “Shadows” way to wrap things up. One of the things I’d asked showrunner Paul Simms before the season started was whether the finale was a period or more like a semicolon so I knew we were getting an episode more like the latter. Still, I wasn’t sure what to expect because series finales are tough — just look at all the best/worst lists that have been published. It was fun to see the show just skewer the whole idea of endings and closure and sticking the landing. Of course Guillermo got caught up in his feelings about the “documentary” coming to the end because it’s a very human thing to reflect on the crossing of milestones and to want the passage of time to mean something. And he experienced a lot of growth and change over the course of the show. But for the vampires, it’s just any other day. One of my favorite gags in the episode was the vampires revealing that this documentary (a.k.a. the show) wasn’t even the first time they’d let a film crew into their lives. The unreleased Maysles brothers film was great both thematically and as a way to revisit some favorite moments from the past.
How about you, Maira? What did you think of the episode? More importantly, how excited were you for Jackie Daytona’s return?
Garcia >> I was thrilled. Jackie’s been around town for awhile, as we learn. I think the nod to “The Usual Suspects” was another moment that had me in stitches (and don’t laugh, but it took me a minute to realize what I was watching — the movie came out in 1995! I can barely remember what I had for lunch.) I was curious how they would tie everything together, considering so much of this season has been about Guillermo — played by Harvey Guillén, a brilliant actor who I hope we see more of soon — beginning to let go of the roommates/coven that he’s been with for so long. First, he decides he no longer wants to be a vampire, and he gets a corporate job in finance, but that ends up not working out either, as we see in the penultimate episode. In some ways, he still seems to be finding his way, but it’s true, he’s grown so much. He went from a meek, subservient familiar to realizing he has Van Helsing blood, and has the ability to lay waste to vampires (which he does, to Laszlo, Nadja, Colin and Nandor’s benefit), to the infinitely more confident person he is now. His arc, including when he came out to his family in Season 4, was handled with care and it showed that you can be sensitive and kind, but also a no-holds-barred vampire killer when you need to be.
Brown >> Guillermo really was the beating heart of the show — literally! And I laughed when the Guide (Kristen Schaal) suggested turning Guillermo into a vampire for their perfect ending because it was a perfect nod to how most people probably expected the show to end before Season 5 happened. But I think for me that arc in particular really highlights what was special about this show. Guillermo standing up for himself to finally make his dreams come true on his own terms since his (toxic) boss had strung him along for years, only to realize the big life change wasn’t for him and that being OK. It was something very relatable wrapped up in the unabashedly silly vampire trappings of the show. “Shadows” was proudly a comedy through and through but it handled its deeper themes with care. Like the time in Season 3 when Nadja’s ghost felt so neglected that it jumped from her doll to possess various other things including a giant inflatable rat. A hilarious lesson on the importance of self care.