‘What We Do In The Shadows’ Season 4 Premiere Non-Spoiler Review – “Reunited” & “The Lamp”

Jemaine Clement’s What We Do in the Shadows returns with its fourth season. I got the chance to see the first two episodes earlier this month, followed by two more episodes earlier this week.

The premiere episode is titled, “Reunited”. It is written by executive producers, Stefani Robinson & Paul Simms, and is directed by co-executive producer, Yana Gorskaya. The second episode of the two-part premiere is titled, “The Lamp”. It is written by story editors, Wally Baram & Aasia LaShay Bullock, and is directed by Gorskaya.

In this review, I will be discussing What We Do in the Shadows Season 4 Episodes 1 & 2. There will be no spoilers here, as the title of this article suggests. Nonetheless, please read ahead at your own discretion to avoid any possible revelations.

Overall Plot Synopsis for What We Do in the Shadows Season 4

According to FX Networks’ Press Room, here is the synopsis for What We Do in the Shadows Season 4.

In the shocking Season Three finale, Nandor, Guillermo and Nadja left Staten Island to go their separate ways while Laszlo stayed home to care for the creature that clawed its way out of the chest cavity of the deceased Colin Robinson — aka Baby Colin.

This season, the vampires return to Staten Island to find their mansion on the verge of total structural collapse — and with no money to repair it. While Nandor’s eternal search for love finally yields results, Nadja finally realizes her dream of opening the hottest vampire nightclub in the Tri-State Area. Laszlo struggles with the question of nature versus nurture as he tries raising Baby Colin to be anything other than an energy vampire. And even Guillermo finds himself on a powerful emotional track that touches on his love for his family, and for others.

With such terrifying locations as the secret supernatural Night Market, the Jersey Pine Barrens and a wedding altar, and with more strange beasts, surprising guest stars and tap dancing than ever, Season Four of What We Do in the Shadows continues to make the case for blood and comedy. And this time with just a touch of home renovation.

FX Networks Press Room

What We Do in the Shadows Season 4 Premiere Episodes Loglines

According to FX Networks, here is the logline for the What We Do in the Shadows Season 4 premiere episode — “Reunited”.

The vampires return from their world travels to find their mansion on the verge of collapse, and a freakish new creature in the house.

FX Networks Press Room

Also, here is the logline for the second episode in the What We Do in the Shadows Season 4 premiere — “The Lamp”.

Nandor’s search for love is finally successful, and Nadja realizes her lifelong ambition of opening a vampire nightclub.

FX Networks Press Room

Discussion

While it could be argued by some fans that What We Do in the Shadows had a lovely conclusion in its third season, the show is far from over. With the series renewed for fifth and sixth seasons, Clement’s beloved horror comedy aims to cover more stories. Season 4 breathes new life into the main characters that we all know and love. In a way, the premiere episode, “Reunited” — the shortest out of the season’s first four episodes thus far — reintroduces everyone.

Teased in last year’s Season 3 finale, we now have a Baby Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch) to deal with; The Guide (Kristen Schaal) remembers her purpose as a vampire; Nadja of Antipaxos (Natasia Demetriou) looks to be her own leader; and Nandor the Relentless (Kayvan Novak) and Guillermo de la Cruz (Harvey Guillén) must both deal with fulfillment of sorts, whether it is marital love or what not. After all, as Nadja says at one point, this return home is “a change of direction”; and as Nandor adds, “We live in a time of miracles”.

Think of it similar to how NBC’s Community finds a way to keep the show progressing, welcoming new members into the group, and in the case of What We Do in the Shadows, that person is The Guide. Although, I will cover the character development later in this article.

Grottophilia: Sexuality Out of the Shadows

This two-part Season 4 premiere holds so much sexual tension, now more than ever — with the exception of Colin, of course. I cannot stress this enough. There is no restraint vampires’ mansion and in the Vampiric Council Headquarters. For instance, while we have known since the first season that the main three vampires’ sexual nature is quite confident and open, we now learn that Nandor’s wives are classified into two categories: girl wives and guy wives. I mean, an entire Season 1 episode dedicated to a vampire orgy party? This is old news; so do not be shocked when Laszlo Cravensworth (Matt Berry) and Nadja have sex while Nandor narrates to the camera (or perhaps vice versa).

I am not entirely sure what happened in the one year between the Season 3 finale and the Season 4 premiere episode. All we find out for sure is that the mansion is dilapidated, with Laszlo having stayed behind learning to work on repairs. When Nandor, Nadja, and Guillermo return, we see them falling through the floorboards and into the flooded basement. At one point, Nandor and his human partner search for Baby Colin in this basement with water filled up to the waist. Here, I could not help but think of one important term in American Gothic: grottophilia.

Understanding the Uncanny/ Unknown

In University of Windsor associate professor Carol Margaret Davison’s 2010 essay of Papers on Language and Literature, titled, “Gothic Architectonics: The Poetics and Politics of Gothic Space”, she refers to grottophilia as “a conscious or unconscious preference … for an adventure within a contractive enclosure”, that is, “the compulsion to seek out and investigate diminishing space [akin to] a return to the darkness of the womb”. Like the venture down into the basement, What We Do in the Shadows Season 4 seems to, in this manner, search for a rebirth of sorts.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, “grotto-” is defined as a cave, cavity, or hollow structure, while “-philia” means, well, love. The series is literally finding new ways to spice up its life, much in the same way that the vampires are through their sexual pursuits. After all is that not what its very title, What We Do in the Shadows, aims to do? Since the premiere of the pilot, Clement’s show has aimed to bring everything to the light. Let’s try to dive into that a little more with his characters.

The Crew of What We Do in the Shadows

What We Do in the Shadows is created for television by Jemaine Clement. The series is based on the feature-length film of the same name written by Clement and Taika Waititi.

Clement, Waititi, Paul Simms, Garrett Basch, Eli Bush, Stefani Robinson, and Sam Johnson serve as the executive producers of the show. Yana Gorskaya, Kyle Newacheck, and Marika Sawyer act as the co-executive producers. Ingrid Lageder, Sarah Naftalis, and Derek S. Rappaport are the producers.

Zach Hagen, Jake Bender, Zach Dunn, Shana Gohd, and William Meny serve as the co-producers. Ayo Edebiri is the consulting producer.

Gayle Keller serves as the casting director; while Allison Jones and Ben Harris are credited as original casting directors. Jenny Lewis and Sara Kay are the Canadian casting directors. Briana Dunlay is the casting associate, while Krista Fraser is the extras casting director.

DJ Stipsen is the director of photography, while Michael Storey and David A. Makin are additional directors of photography. In the second episode, Storey serves as the DoP.

Gorskaya and Dane McMaster serve as the editors, while Wally Baram and Aasia LaShay Bullock are the story editors. Hannah Anaya and Wendy Nomiyama serve as the assistant editors.

Mark Mothersbaugh, John Enroth, and Albert Fox score the music for the series. Nora Felder is the music supervisor. Steve Griffen is the music editor.

Shayne Fox is the production designer. Kerri Wylie is the set decorator. Aaron Noel and Andrea Raymond serve as the art directors.

Laura Montgomery is the costume designer. Sarah Milk is the makeup department head, while Tamara Harrod is the hair department head.

Mohammad Ghorbankarimi and Stephen W. Pugh are the visual effects supervisors, while Amanda Lariviere and Malorie Moriana are the VFX producers. Thomas Calderón is the VFX editor, while Vince Filippone is the VFX assistant editor.

The Cast of What We Do in the Shadows

Kayvan Novak, Matt Berry, and Natasia Demetriou portray the series’ three primary traditional vampires, Nandor the Relentless, Leslie “Laszlo” Cravensworth, and Nadja of Antipaxos, respectively.

Harvey Guillén portrays Guillermo de la Cruz, Nandor’s familiar-turned-vampire hunter-turned bodyguard. Mark Proksch portrays Baby Colin Robinson, an infant version of the series’ energy vampire. Kristen Schaal plays series regular/ special guest star, The Guide.

Jason Sklar and Randy Sklar play Toby and Bran, stars of Go Flip Yourself, respectively. Faisal Butt portrays Kelvin. Jesse Camacho plays the head vampire of the Worldwide Supreme Vampiric Council.

Emily Mitchell and Griffin Wurster portray Baby Colin. In the second episode, Mitchell and Wurster are joined Willow Rae Astbury and Daxton Lund as Baby Colin.

Episode 402 Cast Members

Anoop Desai plays a Djinn, an ancient wish-giver, while Parisa Fakhri plays Marwa.

Kamiran Aldeo plays Ahmed, while Christina Dixon plays Alice.

Shiva Safari plays Roshni, Potential Spouse No. 4. Hailey Imany plays Darya, another potential spouse for Nandor. Tig Fong plays Kublai, Potential Spouse No. 11, while Nadine Djoury plays Mina, Potential Spouse No. 14.

Sam Al Esai plays Crew Guy Kevin. Laiko Foroughi plays Nasrin. Sarah Khasrovi plays Zahra, while Al Roberts plays Freddie. Fereshteh Samimi plays Armani, while Bahareh Yaraghi plays Reem.

Performances and Character Developments

Berry’s Laszlo has an important role in the season, acting as a father figure to Baby Colin. While his previous dynamic with the adult version of the character had strains here and there, he does have love for Colin. Alongside this, I enjoy his scenes with Schaal’s The Guide in the second episode as Cravensworth attempts to search into her mind via hypnosis.

His role in the psychological aspect of the series is interesting as he mentions having differences with Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis who posed the argument that women are to blame for human nature. Instead, Laszlo uses his vampiric abilities to teach The Guide that there is an answer within her that is preventing her from reaching her full potential.

Demetriou performs so well as Nadja, especially in the premiere episode. Her character desires self-realization by taking on a leadership role, and as we will see, she will not let anyone get in her way. She, like The Guide, finds her full potential; and all I can say for now is that she is a badass.

The Two Men People Want Together

Guillén and Novak are tremendous both apart and together as Guillermo and Nandor, respectively. Nandor has a hilarious re-entry/re-introduction in the series this season, and yet, the way he treats Guillermo never gets old. (The part in the premiere episode about crying or pooping nearly had me crying from laughter.) With that said, Nandor presents Guillermo with an important, possibly life-changing question. I feel the direction this specific scene is heading will define whether or not their relationship will remain in the shadows or come to the light.

I appreciate that Guillén aims to return as “a brand new Guillermo de la Cruz”. His role in this season is not as a familiar, nor as a vampire hunter, nor as a bodyguard, but as someone new. For now, we do not know what that is; however, I am sure that Guillermo is reticent about his opinions on Nandor’s choice of partner. I feel as if their subplot this season will be a story of love that has reached a point to the likes of The Bachelor.

The actors perform well together in these first two episodes of What We Do in the Shadows Season 4. How they go about taking something secret out of the shadows are both laugh-out-loud funny; notably, Nandor’s “secret” room and Guillermo’s rubbing of the genie lamp. Out of all the characters, the writers made these two to be absurdly comedic, more so when sharing a scene together.

“New” Group Members

Proksch is uncanny as Baby Colin. What makes me laugh the most is how he is used as Cravensworth’s science experiment. Look out for this character’s choice of literature, as this is what sold me into wanting to see what the writers do with him.

Schaal is to The Guide in FX’s What We Do in the Shadows what Jim Rash is to Dean Craig Pelton in NBC’s Community: a new addition to the group who deserves a chance. In this season, the character learns that being The Guide is an identity, not a profession. This vampire exists to literally guide our characters and herself as well. A mysterious connection to Guillermo is teased in the second episode, and I am curious as to what exactly about their relationship we can uncover as the season progresses.

Final Thoughts on the What We Do in the Shadows Season 4 Premiere

If you are looking for answers, you will not get them right away. “Reunited” and “The Lamp” provide excellent pace as a two-part What We Do in the Shadows season premiere. Season 4 will be a psychosexual expedition into shadows not yet explored. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg, as the writers intend to bring more of the show’s essence to the surface. I wonder what other Gothic elements can be found…

Jemaine Clement’s What We Do in the Shadows Season 4 makes its return via FX on July 12th and streams the next day via Hulu!

Have you seen Clement’s series? If so, then what are your thoughts on it so far? Let us know! For more What We Do in the Shadows updates as well as comedy, fantasy, and horror-related news and reviews, do not forget to follow The Cinema Spot on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!