BEING HUMAN UK: On Being Original

BEING HUMAN UK Season 4 returns to BBC America this Saturday night and I must admit that I AM EXCITED. I’ve watched this genuinely original series since its inception and am greatly looking forward to learning where Creator and Writer Toby Whithouse plans to take the show after the departure of lead characters Mitchell and George and supporting character Nina.

It was bad enough last year when fans learned the sad news that dashing Aidan Turner (vampire Mitchell) was scampering off at the end of Season 3 to work with Peter Jackson in New Zealand (as a dwarf!) for the film THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY. But not long afterward it was announced that the adorable Russell Tovey (werewolf George) would be leaving the regular cast of the show at the start of the fourth season to work full-time on his other BBC 3 show, HIM & HER. Then Sinead Keenan (George’s now-werewolf and pregnant girlfriend Nina) revealed that she would not be appearing in Season 4 at all. In the scifi/supernatural genre, it is entirely possible that characters who disappear or are killed off will someday return, but for those aware of these actors’ conflicting job commitments, watching Mitchell’s horrific demise and George and Annie’s distressed reaction to it at the end Season 3 was particularly hard. Those leaving the show (save for Tovey whom it is hoped will occasionally guest star) are never coming back.

While there’s no doubt that that each of these three cast members will be sorely missed, for my money it was Russell Tovey as George who is the true heart of this offbeat supernatural drama series, and is the character whose departure will be the toughest to take. At least the wonderful Lenora Crichlow is continuing as ghost Annie! She is being joined by one familiar face and one brand new one: Michael Socha as werewolf Tom, who was featured in Season 3 and has now been upgraded as a series regular, and Damien Moloney as the new vampire Hal. Socha did a terrific job in his recurring role last season, so there thankfully exists some sense of continuity with his return.

All that said, the departure of so many lead actors does give Whithouse and his writers a chance to make the most of the BEING HUMAN’s changing circumstances, and I can only hope that they take full advantage of it to go in some new and exciting directions. Season 4 started airing on February 5 in the UK, and the first non-spoilery buzz that I have read has all been about the huge changes, with noises about the show still being quite good; however, I am waiting to see for myself. So beginning this Saturday I will be watching and reviewing Season 4 and posting in my blog and here on SciFi4Me.com.

Lastly, a word about the American version of BEING HUMAN. Except for Meaghan Rath who plays ghost Sally, I was quite disappointed in the quality of the acting and in the production values of the remake. In fact, I stopped watching BH-USA after 3 episodes because I just couldn’t stand it, and I don’t intend to start again. So don’t expect comparisons of the two shows in my reviews, this is my one and only statement about it.

Some good video links:

Creator Toby Whithouse speaks about Series 4.
You can watch the BEING HUMAN UK “The Stakes are High” Season 4 trailer HERE.

[Editor’s Note: The US version is being covered by Dustin & Molly in “Reviews for Humans” on this site.]