The Strain?

[geezer butler]

What did you guys think about the series premier? I didn't think it was great, but thought it was interesting. I'll give it a chance.

[bromstaker]

I liked it. Reasonably faithful to the book thus far. These vamps are ferocious, and are gonna get real nasty looking.

[charp13]

My only regret is that I didn't record it & watch it without the 3,000 commercials! It was pretty good! I like the main characters, especially the old guy in the pawn shop     And I like the premise. The monsters are also pretty cool! I am definitely going to keep watching, and I need to plan ahead and watch it an hour later so I can FF through the commercials/previews of other shows on other channels.  There was one commercial break that was SO loooong....I for got what I was watching! Ha! 

[RICKH]

I thought it was well done.  This show and Salem provide some great spooky fun for Sunday nights.

[Dr Spankenstein]

Loved it.  The head vampire dude reminded me of Death from the Frighteners. 

[zombiehorror]

When I heard the premise for this show I just kind of blew it off thinking, "Isn't this just like a prequel for The Omega Man?" but after hearing a lot of good buzz I've decided to check it out.  Dvr'ing first episode tonight.

[horrorhunter]

[poseablemonster]

I thought it was very good.  My wife is a big fan of the books, so we've been waiting for this for a long time.

[twilitezoner]

I really like it so far. Its great to see menacing vampires again.

[The Invisible Woman]

The Strain Trilogy is a book series written by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan, the third of which was released a few years ago. I really enjoyed the books and had not been that creeped out by a vampire book since I read Salem's Lot in middle school. Earlier this year, when I heard that FX was making a series based on the books, I was super stoked! It is a great story with unique, interesting characters. Ephraim Goodweather is the ultimate tragic hero. I think Del Toro and Hogan do an excellent job of mingling the ancient vampire myth (you know, more like an animated corpse) with our modern fears and troubles (widespread epidemics, overpopulation, etc.) The vampires in The Strain are not subtle and are certainly not romantic (which I like). I think very highly of the book series and the authors, and I think that the show will do it justice. If you have not watched it, at least give it a look.

[Anton Phibes]

....Original idea? Am I the only one noticing the first episode is a neat lifting of a little book called "Dracula"? Demeter rolls in with everybody dead...airplane rolls in with everybody "dead". Box of earth carrying King Vamp brought over from Old country (same as Dracula). Whether intentionally intended as an homage, or subconsciously---It's Dracula.

[AlwaysWitty]

....Original idea? Am I the only one noticing the first episode is a neat lifting of a little book called "Dracula"? Demeter rolls in with everybody dead...airplane rolls in with everybody "dead". Box of earth carrying King Vamp brought over from Old country (same as Dracula). Whether intentionally intended as an homage, or subconsciously---It's Dracula.

It is, in fact, an intentional homage. Del Toro was inspired by the notion that Stoker's novel had a firmly modern setting with modern technology and society contrasting against a monster who represented old world superstition and brutality. With The Strain he's attempted to do something similar, bringing the vampire myth to the present day and relating it to today's fears and technology and culture.

There will be more similarities to Dracula down the road for those of us who know the story well, but in other ways it really does blossom from being a mere Dracula homage into something that can stand on its own two feet just fine.

[BrotherD]

My wife and I are watching, and really enjoying it (and, surprisingly, she's more of a fan of the show than I am!).

We're three episodes in, and I'm really enjoying the main character. It seems as if the writers are working real hard to create a character completely apart from anything horror or supernatural before throwing him into the scary, which I appreciate. It makes the character more real and someone we can invest in more easily.

The pawn shop owner, however, starts in the world of the supernatural, and I'm still having a hard time buying into his story. Maybe it's because we don't get to go on the journey-into-the-unknown with him as he's already been there, done that.

I'm more intrigued by the pest control officer, and am looking forward to seeing how he will tie into the larger story.

The series does suffer from some overly CG-ey CG, which does dangle the show almost too close to camp. And Sean Astin? I've been a fan of his work for years, so it's great to see him in a horror show.

[zombiehorror]

It's a mixed bag for me but then again I've only watched the first episode.  Dracula isn't the only thing The Strain mimics, there are tons of "inspirations" for the plot of the show (and novel I would imagine).....then again nowadays truely original ideas are a dime a dozen.

[geezer butler]

I'm sticking with it too. Difficult to judge after 3 episodes, but I think there's an interesting blend of Gothic horror and sci-fi detective story going on.