And yeah, I know the actor left the show, but let’s be honest, the way Vaun and the rest of the Sun Hunters were written out was painfully dumb and really unfair.
And yes, I also know he was never part of the original plan, that role was meant for Quinlan. But once Vaun existed, it would have been so damn interesting to see more of him interacting with show Quinlan and the Sun Hunters.
I still love imagining what that dynamic could have been like.
Binge-watched FX's the Strain (like ten years late, hello dead fandom) and while it definitely has a lot of flaws (or at least in some aspects, things I don't care for) I really enjoy it! Hopefully there are still people in this fandom despite how long it's been since the show finished. (Think that the Reddit is still pretty active but most of it's just hate for Zach)
Some thoughts under the cut
° Bought the first book bc I've heard it's very different from the show and that it offers a more thorough deep dive into actual vampirism than the show does. Also heard that the quality of writing swings majorly, so a bit dubious in starting.
° Unpopular opinion, apparently- I don't hate Zach. Annoying, yes, but a lot of kids are annoying. A little shit, also yes, but his dad is also a little shit so. Apple doesn't fall far from the tree, there. Not unexpected behaviour for a kid who is in denial of losing the parent that was most involved in childcare. Or, except the nuking New York part, though I guess for an irrational child who would only understand a WMD as a distant concept only observed in fiction, pressing a button to piss your dad off would probably be relatively easy.
°Now Ephraim. I do hate Ephraim. And that's not any detraction to the show- he's just an asshole, made worse by the fact he is actually intelligent. I've met people like that and it's just. It's so annoying.
°Quinlan, Fet, and Setrakian are my favourites, in that order. Angel comes in second, as does Nora (I wish they hadn't killed her off that way. That felt sort of stupid). Dutch and Gus come in third.
° I also consider the Bread Van its own character, it was also a favourite of mine. I was devastated when it died.
°Did the show get cancelled? It seems like there are a lot of plot points that seemingly get dropped (though, noticed that there are points early on that lead nowhere, like that whole DC bioweapon thing)
°Nora and Fet should have been a couple. I thought they were having a cute thing starting up around Red Hook and then she gets killed off. Ugh
°I get that by season two they are all silver-weilding strigoi exterminators, but sometimes watching them survive when EVERYONE around them dies. It's sort of like, "ah, I can almost physically see the brand label on the plot armour you are wearing, good sir". To a point where I was genuinely surprised Roman survived.
° I love Quinlan. He's absolutely my favourite. But also please stop monologuing at the Bad Guy™ when he is finally in front of you. I get the vehement repartee when you are faced with a proxy but. Sir, you've been working towards this goal for 2,000 years. Lock in already. Maybe it would have been too funny if the Master, so used to talking to his estranged son through puppets, tried to start up some witty banter only for Quinlan to come in guns blazing. But it also would have been nice to let him get a few good hits in on the Master before they were separated by the explosion, to better establish to Setrakian and the audience what a valuable asset Quinlan is.
(I do also feel like, he was pretty underutilized somehow? and his stats came across as fluid depending on what was necessary for the scene.)
°Also that speech Quinlan did at the prison? Feel like it should have been Gus doing the speech, show more of his attributes as a leader that we see in season 4 (also if I were a normal person in the vampocalypse and saw Quinlan, I'd be walking in the opposite direction)
°I don't get the point of Coco. Coco, why are you here? In this plot, in this show? Initially I was sort of intrigued that she was there, thinking that they maybe were adding someone with autonomy. Like an undercover journalist trying to gather dirt on him, maybe someone hired to do some corporate espionage. Someone to undermine Palmer and actively stoke his ego and petulance, without necessarily being a good guy. But no, she was there to be Woman.
°Also, what happened to Eve? Do I keep missing the scene where she leaves, or where she dies or something? She's just sort of there to drop Quinlan off for his playdate, picks up Gus and Angel and then she disappears. ????? Did I miss something?
°They did Vaun dirty. Like, even I have UV protective clothing, and he's supposed to be decked out in what one can safely assume is military grade gear. Maybe lose a few guys, but let them get closer to their goal! Maybe have Eichorst pop in, and Vaun gets to save Gus in a more dramatic fashion. My man, killed by a damn light show.
°Who names their child Eldritch? Was his mother part of a cult or something?
