Being Human Series Four scares up disc release

Article first published as Being Human Series Four scares up disc release on TheTVKing.

The British series Being Human, not to be confused with the American remake that airs on SyFy, had a very dark fourth series last year. As the season begins, Nina (Sinead Keenan) and Mitchell (Aidan Turner) are dead, leaving an unraveling George (Russell Tovey) and Annie (Lenora Crichlow) to care for George and Nina's baby, Eve, as well as stop any forces that may seek to harm what's left of their small band.

Unfortunately, since the baby is the first known to be born of two werewolves, there is an evil gang of vampires that would definitely like to get their hands on her, fearing a prophecy that says the baby will wipe out all of the blood suckers from the face of the Earth. Griffin (Alex Jennings, Whitechapel, The Queen), the new head vampire, isn't about to take any chances, so he orders a death sentence.

The season is full of revenge plays and all-out war. There are a variety of new characters tossed into the mix. There are good guys, like the Vampire Recorder, Regus (Mark Williams, the Harry Potter films), and there are bad guys, like Cutler (Andrew Gower, Monroe), a vampire far more suited to the modern world than Griffin, and thus, more dangerous. There are also those who we aren't sure which side they are on, including the mysterious Mr. Rook (Steven Robertson), who is just getting started in his own tale when the series ends. We go deep into a vampire nest, and venture into a dystopian future. In the end, grave sacrifices must be made to save others, and the fate of the entire world hangs in the balance.

Besides the larger story arcs, Being Human undergoes a transition in its basic premise. At the start, the idea is to see how a vampire, a werewolf, and a ghost could live together. With Mitchell dead, that leaves a hole in their threesome. This defeats the purpose a little bit, and it's not an imbalance that will be preserved.

So we meet the newest central cast member, Hal (Damien Molony), a vampire who has also been living as part of a very similar trio. However, his werewolf pal is now dying of old age, so it seems an appropriate time for him to transition into a new group. Hal is not the only possibility of who might become a new housemate, with others introduced as candidates, too, and the make up of the group does undergo a transition in series four.

Between Hal and the return of Tom (Michael Socha), now upgraded to main character, there is an infusion of new blood into the main cast. Annie and George need the extra help to fulfill their own destinies, and, without giving too much away, the end of series four sets up yet another shake up for series five, which should air later this year. Annie, especially, gets to shine in series four, so I look forward to seeing who will step up in the next run of episodes to match her.

Series four has been released on DVD and Blu-ray in a three disc set. All episodes are present, and it is ripe with extras, including a trailer, prequels, sequels, and deleted scenes. We are taken behind the scenes in a featurette, and interviewers with the people who make the show are included. It's quite a bit for a short-format series, and definitely much better than some other recent British releases

Being Human Series Four is available now.

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