The Strain - Series Premiere - Recap: Here Comes the Strain
Recap and review of The Strain - Series Premiere - Night Zero:
The idea of Guillermo del Toro coming to television with his acclaimed novel series, The Strain, which he co-wrote with Chuck Hogan, should have inspired more enthusiasm than this pilot could muster, especially since del Toro paired with former Loster co-showrunner Carlton Cuse for the project. Say what you will about how it ended, but I'd argue Lost was a genuinely great show for the majority of its lifespan, and that should be enough to inspire at least some cautious optimism in The Strain.
That said, I find that what I enjoyed about "Night Zero" was the craft. Far more than the storytelling behind it, it's the craftsmanship that makes the premiere as visceral and memorable as it is. This is in large part thanks to del Toro, who not only directs the pilot, but is given well over 70 minutes to do it. And he uses ever valuable minute of screentime to fill the scene with darkness and foreboding. A lot of television shows go for this kind of brooding, Gothic horror sensibility, but very few are able to carry it off. For example, Penny Dreadful is exponentially better at this sort of filmmaking than WGN America's Salem, and while it's probably unfair to compare the two, I feel the comparison isn't entirely unwarranted. There's a grotesque nature to the sort of horror that has become popular on TV these days, and The Strain plays right into what that section of the audience wants. There are some truly gruesome visuals here, and although this might not have the budget of one of del Toro's films, he does an absolutely stellar job in making this world feel as vibrant and as contrastingly normal/nightmarish as he needs it to feel. Of course, the issue here is that del Toro isn't directing every episode of The Strain, so the question remains as to whether or not subsequent directors for the series will be able to match the high bar del Toro has set for the series. That said, I'm confident enough in how this pilot played out to believe that the people behind the scenes know what they're doing, even if del Toro won't always have his thumb in the proverbial pie.
And that's okay, because even while the writing didn't immediately engage me, the cast certainly did. House of Cards alum Corey Stoll is fantastic in the lead role of Dr. Ephraim Goodweather, the head of the CDC Canary Team in New York City. As the story starts, Goodweather and his team are brought in to investigate an airplane that has stalled on the tarmac, and whose occupants are all dead and cold to the touch as the result of what is presumably a viral outbreak of some fashion. And so Goodweather gathers his team, which includes Dr. Nora Martinez (Mía Maestro) and CDC administrator Jim Kent (Sean Astin), to look into the mystery. Of course, Goodweather has his mind taken from the task by the various issues going on in his personal life, such as his marriage counseling sessions with wife Kelly (Natalie Brown), or his struggles to be an attentive father to 11-year-old son Zach (Ben Hyland). And throughout it, Goodweather is a man who seems gifted with a ton of book smarts, but not a whole lot of life smarts. He can't tie a tie, he's terrible at being punctual, and he's not exactly good at the whole fidelity thing either. But he's relatable as a sort of everyman who is neither exemplary nor incompetent. He's just a guy, and he just might be the right guy for this particular mission.
Credit: FX
Along the way, Goodweather encounters Professor Abraham Setrakian, a Holocaust survivor and full-time badass whom we meet when he foils a robbery at his pawn-shop in NYC. He's a guy who knows a lot more about the cause of this outbreak than he's leading on, and he's hardly the only one who knows more than he's telling. But then, this is a show where, presumably, everyone has secrets, which is why it's such a good thing that this ensemble is as formidable as it is. Stoll is an incredibly gifted actor who imbues a downtrodden everyman with a certain gravitas he might not have had if played by a lesser actor (that said, his wig is ridiculous and needs to go). Bradley is a wonderful fit here, showing yet another dimension to his abilities as an actor after Game of Thrones and Broadchurch, each of which played to different strengths. I'm really excited about the character specifically because of this casting, and also because of a decades-spanning backstory that suggests Setrakian has encountered the supernatural being behind this entire calamity. Hell, Setrakian just might be the key to stopping all-out war.
Credit: FX
But that's about all I'm going to say about that, as there's a lot to discover if you haven't watched the pilot yet (which you should, since I'm not sure there's anything quite like it). Seriously, this show has The Walking Dead cornered when it comes to purely atmospheric scares. In much the same way you might be scared when expecting our heroes to get jumped by walkers at any moment, The Strain has the constant threat of a demonic creature of mysterious origin presumably lurking around every corner, looking to shove his horrific appendage down the throat of anyone who might get in his way. The Master, as he's called, is altogether familiar as a horror trope (the mysterious, damn-near omnipotent being of unfathomable horror) and refreshing as a television antagonist. This is because del Toro makes it understood that the show isn't so much about the Master, or even about the mythology behind the Master, but rather how that long, storied past comes to bear on the present, and on these characters.
Credit: FX
This is a rich show, and if I'm being vague, it's only to keep from spoiling much of what happens in this premiere. But if you get the chance, definitely check out The Strain. I don't imagine it'll be everyone's cup of tea, but it's a unique genre drama that has a lot more going for it in the creative department than many shows of its ilk.