Tell-Tale TV Series Premiere Panels: Van Helsing

Syfy’s newest drama, Van Helsing, takes us to a world overrun by vampires. Humanity’s only hope may lie in Vanessa, at least the military seems to think so. What other reason is there to safe guard a not dead, not alive woman?

What did you think of the two-hour premiere? Join the discussion by leaving your thoughts in a comment below.

Our panelists are:

• Caralynn Lippo, staff writer for Tell-Tale TV
• Allison Nichols, senior writer for Tell-Tale TV
• Arlene Allen from Talk Nerdy With Us

Give it to me straight. What did you think of the premiere?

Arlene Allen:  I loved it! It exceeded every and any expectation I had of it. I was hooked almost from the get-go.

Caralynn: I liked it more than I was expecting to. I thought it would be a complete rip-off of any number of vampire and/or post-apocalyptic shows, but it felt pretty unique.

Allison: I didn’t care for it. It never captivated me. I never connected with any of the characters, and I’m still trying to understand the world. This was a miss for me.

What’s the show’s biggest problem?

Arlene: Overall, none really. I was just a tad worried about it turning into The Walking Dead with vampires, but by the end of the second episode, I lost that vibe. Axel needs to loosen up a bit.

Caralynn: It’s hard to judge only one episode in but there seem to be A LOT of extraneous characters from the get-go, all introduced at once. All of those survivors that they let into the facility — who are they, and why should I care about them?

Allison: We need to care about these characters, and right now, I don’t. Arlene and Caralynn both make good points. Axel isn’t likable, and there are so many random survivors. The blonde who has the standoff with Vanessa can definitely go.

What/Who do you want to see more of?

Arlene: Obviously, Vanessa. Axel, if he chills a bit. I would love to know more of the backstory of the head vampires.

Caralynn: Definitely Vanessa. My biggest single complaint about the premiere itself is that she’s in relatively little of that (I feel like there was almost more focus on Axel than Vanessa so far).

I did enjoy Axel and Vanessa’s interactions though. Seems like an obvious ‘ship forming. I mean, that shower scene. Come on.

Allison: I’m very curious as to how the vampire uprising started. I mean have they always been here, or did I miss something? I get that a volcano went off, and then things went to hell, but there are a lot of question marks in between.

I don’t feel like I understand this world yet, and I feel like learning more about what led up to the rising would be helpful.

What was your favorite moment/quote?

Arlene: My favorite moment was when Vanessa knocks the daylights out of Tommy. I loved the interaction between Vanessa and her daughter as well.

Caralynn: It’s a tie: Vanessa realizing she has powers when she pulls that knife out of her hand. That was pretty badass. I also really liked the former-vampire crawling out all covered in blood, encountering the group, and explaining that Vanessa’s blood had cured him. That was a neat twist.

Allison: Vanessa kicking Tommy’s ass because I felt like I knew more of who Vanessa was after that. I didn’t have a clear sense of who she was before that scene. Also, it was really badass.

Don’t forget to share your thoughts on the premiere of Van Helsing below!

Van Helsing airs Fridays at 10/9c on Syfy.

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