Review: Being Human (USA) "Mother Told Me There Would Be Decades Like This"

Non Spoiler Review:

The focus is on Aidan attempting to track down Henry while suffering from visions of Bishop counselling him along the way. Josh is hounded by two extremely cliched detectives looking into Will's murder, which prompts him to make some reckless decisions. Sally learns her mother is on her deathbed.

This week was just awful. I really felt a lot of contempt for most of the characters, and I've reached a turning point with the series. It's the writing and the casting, and it doesn't help that the final season of the UK version is running parallel to this one now, so it's ripe for comparison.

Aside from a few scenes with the intriguing Henry, I was left disgusted with the mess of everyone else's behaviour. Sally's scenes with her mother were a real piece of work. I'm not sure what the writers intended, but the two of them came across as absolutely vile and shallow. The acting of the supporting characters—the detectives and Cecilia—was so bad it was distracting. A total write-off.

Spoilers Now!

Aidan attempts to find Henry by tracking down Bishop's progeny, while Josh gets a note from Nora telling him she has to go away for awhile. Then he finds out Sally's mother is a patient in the hospital and dying. Sally bosses him around to get things for her father, but he crosses paths with two detectives investigating Will's death and wondering if he was with Nora the night he died the week before.

Sally comes to see Rena, her mother, and sits with her suffering father, who is then called away by a nurse. She spies her mother walking down the hall and realizes she's died. They have a momentarily happy reunion, but Rena seems to be taking the whole death thing extremely well. Sally has to remind her they should check on her father. Later at Rena's funeral, Sally finds her flirting with their dead neighbour. Sally's mortified she had an affair. 

Aidan's return to the vampire fold is nearly complete, given he's now having visions of Bishop telling him he's fun again. Apparently he's had blood trips before and this is a normal thing. A flashback to 1918 Boston has soldiers Aidan and Henry returning to Boston and Aidan making introductions to Bishop. Bishop notes he has a touch of rebelliousness in him.

Aidan comes home to find Josh wanting a favor from his vampire police contacts. He needs Cecilia to make it all go away and admits Nora killed her ex boyfriend. Aidan sarcastically (and insensitively) dismisses his idea as absurd. But Josh kept Haggeman's rifle with silver bullets and everything will blow wide open if he's arrested and it gets discovered.

Josh then confronts Brynn and Conner who come clean about the three of them murdering Will. He tracks down Cecilia directly but she turns him down, so he suggests he can get her two purebred wolves—the ones who killed Haggeman—which would certainly raise her newbie vampire status. Cecilia promises to give the case her full attention.

Sally has Rena and her beau Gerry over for dinner with Aidan and Josh. It's all very awkward as Rena can't keep her hands off him. Henry shows up at the door and wants to talk to Aidan. He came back to help him run Boston and wants back in the family.

They go off walking and Aidan tells him there is no coming back. Henry's heard about Aidan and Suren, but he's fine with that. Bishop tempts Aidan to destroy him so they get in a fight. Aidan gets the upper hand and is about to kill Henry, but admits he misses him. Henry isn't willing to return to the shadows anymore, so Aidan says he'll find a way to make it right. The orphans weren't his to save, but Henry is. Phantom Bishop is pleased, given fathers can't kill their sons—the son always kills the father. He advises Aidan he's never been so scared for him as he is now. 

Josh goes to the storage locker to clean up any sign of him being there, but the two detectives just happen to show up and want to take a look at his videotapes. Cecilia shows up too, and glamors them that Josh is not their guy, makes them forget and sends them way. She wants him to bring Conner and Brynn to her. 

Sally and Rena chat after everyone has left. Rena is still an absolute bitch and admits to being sad finding her daughter in the same house she died in. Sally hopes she doesn't get her door because she's so messed up. Two peas in a pod, they are.

Josh tells Conner and Brynn to let Nora know the police investigation has been taken care of. They're impressed. But he gives Cecilia their address.

The Verdict:
This is the first time I've felt a real dislike for Being Human. The characters were so noxious—I can somewhat see why Sally is such an unlikable woman, given her mother is ten times worse. I'm trying to guess what the writers were striving for with Rena. Aidan and Josh were acting equally bitchy and sarcastic. There doesn't appear to be any love at all between them. 

This marks the first time in awhile everyone was together socializing under the same roof, but it lacked any joy or camaraderie at all—just a source of sarcastic barbs. Why is Aidan even bothering when he talks to Josh like he's a child (I thought Josh had some valid points, despite being panicked, as usual, but Aidan's sarcasm was pretty cruel given the circumstances). 

The detectives were horrible caricatures, even Cecilia, who's first appearance looked promising. The dialogue was contrived and static cop talk. We get a quick shocker dream sequence with Josh in the kitchen. Add to that, the cliche I absolutely hate—the appearance of dead Bishop counselling Aidan. Sorry, but I'm not on the Mark Pellegrino band wagon, and haven't enjoyed a single thing he's been in (Lost, Supernatural or Being Human). Arggh. I couldn't wait for this one to be over with. I'm grateful to have the UK version to cleanse my palette.