What We Do in the Shadows Season 4 Episode 3 Review: The Grand Opening
What We Do in the Shadows Season 4 Episode 3, “The Grand Opening,” explores new character dynamics and business ventures for our vamps to hilarious results.
“The Grand Opening” serves as a springboard for future seasonal arcs, including the potentially burgeoning romance between Nandor and Guillermo. Guillermo’s well-thought-out scheme to find a loophole via the Djinn is creative and a unique way to approach the Nandermo relationship.
NADJA: Um, if any of them try to start to kill you, just let me know, and I will send someone down to take your place.
That said, here’s hoping Nandermo isn’t too much of a punchline, and the writers give it the grace and heft it deserves.
Nandor thinking only about Guillermo when he utilizes his new flesh sword is a delightful twist. Perhaps this unlocks inherent romantic feelings for Nandor and isn’t a catalyst for “false” love.
Natasia Demetriou steals the show on the acting front, somehow making Nadja simultaneously more loveable and badass than she was before. One might argue Nadja is the soul of What We Do in the Shadows (and that “one” is this reviewer). Without her, the boys would flounder — at least Laszlo and Nandor.
LASZLO: What hath the dark lord wrought? Musical theater is the lowest of all entertainments. I forbid it.
Nadja and The Guide’s dynamic receives further exploration in “The Grand Opening,” and it’s fun to watch Demetriou and Kristen Schaal bounce playfully off each other. Both women are comedy geniuses, and their different styles mesh well in unexpected ways.
Additionally, “The Grand Opening” deepens the bond between Laszlo and his adoptive son, Colin Robinson. What We Do in the Shadows thrives on the captivating relationships between the core cast, and last season mined the nuances of Laszlo and Colin Robinson’s blossoming friendship. Season 4 flips the dynamic on its head, with Laszlo playing a father figure to baby CR.
Matt Berry continues to surprise as Laszlo, infusing the pompous but endearing vampire with surprising depth as the narrative expands his worldview. Mark Proksch layers on the funny as Colin Robinson, approaching the character from a similar yet vastly different place than the character’s adult counterpart. The pair’s relationship is bursting with love and hysterical repartee.
DJINN: Ninety percent of my business is penis enlargements. Most clients don’t mind buying new clothes to feature the updated package.
Guest stars like comedic mainstay Fred Armisen and the delightful Affion Crockett remain on par with our leads, adding a hilarious new dimension to the show’s vast universe. We need more scenes with Richie Suck, and we needed them yesterday.
Overall, “The Grand Opening” pushes the seasonal narrative in a fun direction, giving our main characters plenty of meaty storylines of which to take advantage. Natasia Demetriou proves she’ll always be a comedy powerhouse, while Kayvan Novak and Harvey Guillén’s palpable chemistry keeps viewers on the edge of their seats.
The cast knocks it out of the park as usual, and the biting, bloodsucking dialogue is in a league of its own. There isn’t another show on TV like What We Do in the Shadows, and it’s unlikely that a series akin to it will follow on its heels.
This show is unadulterated, whimsical escapism with a sharp intelligence seldom seen in comedies. Colin Robinson would undoubtedly give it a good rating on his YouTube channel.
Stray Observations:
- We need a full-length Richie Suck album with a music video for “For My Corpsef*ckers.” It’s time we see what draining a four-top at Fuddruckers looks like in 4K.
- Who knew Avengers: Infinity War and South Pacific in LEGO form were heaven-made matches? Colin Robinson breached an unexpected niche in the nerdy marketplace.
- Laszlo has never been hotter this season. If Colin Robinson doesn’t buy him a “World’s Best Dad” mug for Christmas, we’ll write a strongly-worded letter to FX.
- Richie Suck and Doctor Tom Schmidt could carry a spinoff. It would be fun to watch Tom take advantage of Richie solely for his musical prowess, not because he’s a vampire.
- Perhaps we’ll see teenage Colin Robinson on next week’s episode. One can only hope we’ll bear witness to Laszlo parenting an unruly adolescent. It will undoubtedly yield comedic fruit.
What did you think of this episode of What We Do in the Shadows? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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What We Do in the Shadows airs Tuesdays at 10/9c on FX, with next-day streaming on Hulu.
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Melody McCune
Melody loves TV. Maybe too much. Besides being a Senior Writer for Tell-Tale TV, she's the Managing Editor for Geek Girl Authority, an Independent Contractor for Sideshow Collectibles, and a Senior Writer for Eulalie Magazine. Additionally, she has bylines in Culturess, Widget, and inkMend on Medium. To top it all off, she's a critic for Rotten Tomatoes and CherryPicks.