Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Being Human U.K. Season Three, Episode Two: Adam's Family



This episode with a look at Adam a teenaged vampire and his family packing to move once again.  It seems that people are asking questions.  Adam is not happy about the decision to move but his father says that they have no choice.  When Adam says that he hungry and heads to the kitchen to feed from his mother, his father volunteers.

At the bed and breakfast, Annie has made everyone breakfast but Annie and George have to head off to work.  Before he leaves, George reminds Mitchell that he arranged an interview for him to be a cleaner at the hospital.  After a few bites of toast Mitchell gets up to leave which upset Annie, but he reminds her of his job interview.  Annie decides that she will be his guardian angel and follow him to his interview to ensure that he gets the job.

Fast forward to present day and Adam is in hospital feeding from his father.  Nina and George are forced to chase him down.  When Nina corners him, she tells Adam that she knows exactly what he is and tells him that he should be ashamed for feeding on a helpless old man. Adam admits that he was feeding off of his father and compares the act to breast feeding.  When George makes a remark about Adam's youth, Adam responds that he is 46.  Does something about being turned as a teenager instead of an adult restrict his ability to mature?  They decide to take him home so that Mitchell can help him.

At the interview, things do not go well.  Annie attempts to give Mitchell advice but ends up getting in the way, until he pauses to yell at her, making him appear to be extremely unbalanced.  He stalks out of the interview and meets, Richard, a representative of "the old ones."  He demands that Mitchell come with him.  It seems that "the old ones" are upset that Mitchell's behaviour in the tube could lead to exposure for all of them.  The police are actively looking for him.  Mitchell says that he can evade capture but Richard insists that he take one of his boats to South America and hands him travel money.  Mitchell takes the money but says that it's not an agreement to leave.

Back at the house, Adam is doing his level best to be the most annoying teenager on the planet. He makes rude comments to Annie about them having sex repeatedly.  In fact, sex is all Adam seems to be interested in talking about.  When George hears Mitchell downstairs he goes to tell him about Adam.


Mitchell has no interest in being around Adam and says that he is holding onto his sobriety minute by minute.  He fears the fact that Adam has not gotten off blood will push him over the edge.  Adam listens to the conversation and then comes downstairs.  Mitchell immediately tells him to stay away but Adam persists because Mitchell is the first vampire he has ever met.  When George tries to intervene, Adam once again makes some comment about George being weak.  George then decides to shame Adam for being a virgin and then informs him of how much sex he has had.  Really? I don't understand the need to engage in this chest thumping ridiculousness.

Nina calls and it seems that Adam's father has been calling for him.  When Adam and George arrive at the hospital, she tells Adam that this is probably the end for his father.  When he goes into the room his father asked what happened and promises to get out of bed.  Adam tells him to just relax and that he has weakened himself feeding Adam, to which his father replies that he his baby boy.  Minutes later Adam's father dies.  Nina and George realize that they are now stuck with Adam and debate taking him home but Adam has already snuck out of a window.

George and Nina run around town looking for Adam and just manage to grab him before he can feed on a teenage girl.  Back at the house, the hunger is driving Adam mad.  He begs Mitchell to help them understand.  Mitchell gives them Richard's number and tells them to take Adam to him.

When George and Nina arrive at Richard's they are treated little better than dogs.  Richard's wife gives Adam a glass of blood and dotes on him.  Richard explains that the blood is all given voluntarily. They are introduced to seven, a human who has agreed to be their blood bag, though he knows that this will eventually kill him, because it makes him happy.  George and Nina decide to leave Adam with Richard and his wife but as soon as they get back home they realize that they have left Adam in a bad situation.  I was not pleased to hear the term racist appropriated to talk about anti-werewolf behaviour.  Considering that Annie is the only reoccurring person of colour on the show, clearly, Being Human U.K. does not have a positive racial history.

Annie heads upstairs to hand Mitchell his phone.  Mitchell checks his messages and learns that despite the bad interview that the fake letter of recommendation Annie wrote him he got the job. Annie is excited but Mitchell tells her that she needs to live her life for more than she can do for others.  Annie says that without him and Nina and George that she would not exist.

Back at Richard's George and Nina break in and stop Adam before he can drain seven dry.  Richard and his wife are not at all pleased.  It seems that they feel that Nina and George do not understand vampire needs, which apparently involve leather play, sex and blood.  Finally they tell Adam that he has to choose and Adam chooses Nina and George.

When they get back to the house, Nina and George promise to take care of Adam but he does not see this as a solution after watching his parents die supporting him.  Mitchell hands Adam half of the money he got from Richard and tells him that he has to find a support group who will keep him on the straight and narrow when things start to get rough.  Adam says that he can go it alone now, and so they take him to the train station.  Nina and George watch as Adam is approached by the teen girl from earlier but when he rejects her, they are sure that he will be just fine.

I really felt like this episode was full of filler.  Adam is a character that I hope never returns to the show. He was immature and irritating.  The first episode was filled with so much growth and this one seemed to stall the story.  It's clear that Annie and Mitchell are negotiating feelings for each other by the pointed yet at times evasive commentary.  I want to see this progress a bit more.