A "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" reboot might be on the way, but nothing can quite capture the nostalgic allure associated with the seven-season original series. "Buffy" is the epitome of the teen fantasy genre on television, where the tough yet vulnerable female protagonist foregoes the damsel in distress role in favor of something more complex and challenging. What's more, "Buffy" also brought every monster imaginable out of the woodworks, while highlighting the confusing, exhilarating growing pains
of adolescence (which often take shape in the form of young love). So, if you're a longtime "Buffy" admirer, you'll find enough reasons to binge through "Grimm," the NBC fantasy crime thriller (now streaming on Prime Video) that has a few thematic overlaps with our beloved monster-slaying show.
For starters, David Greenwalt — who served as an executive producer for "Buffy" and co-created "Angel" — made "Grimm" alongside Stephen Carpenter and Jim Kouf. Now, if you've watched "Angel," you'll notice how the reformed vampire Angel (David Boreanaz) and "Grimm" protagonist Nick Burkhardt (David Giuntoli) sport immediate parallels. Both are private detectives who get involved in gruesome cases that are a part of their quest to defeat evil, paving the path for a monster-of-the-week approach to the evolving storyline. Moreover, Nick's identity is just as complex as Angel's, as he's the titular guardian figure who must maintain cosmic balance without exposing his true nature to the world at large.
The obvious overlaps between the shows end here, but "Grimm" has a lot to offer through its intriguing procedural structure that is pulled towards fantastical directions over the course of six seasons. Nick and his allies have to contend with a consistent sense of unpredictability throughout, which gradually warps into a grander, more dangerous fictional world. Without further ado, let's dig into what "Grimm" is all about.
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Grimm Follows Up Its Competent Early Seasons With An Underwhelming Hodgepodge Of Ideas
"Grimm" has always been an eccentric show. In fact, the show's core focus, Nick, is perceived as a strange man, as he is someone who "can see what no one else can" and can put an end to whatever darkness brews from time to time. While Angel's supernatural sleuthing stems from a more conscious attempt to chase redemption, Nick's actions are a part of his duty, as he is expected to fulfill his calling, no matter the cost.
Even as Nick keeps his identity close to his chest, he has to deal with monsters that threaten to upend the natural balance of the world, while also navigating his burgeoning humanity. This creates the perfect opportunity for oddball shenanigans, which the first few seasons dabble into without being conscious about being perceived as too thematically weird for audiences.
But this self-aware charm inexplicably fades by the third season mark, as the story starts leaning into superficial and literal fairy tale tropes to ham-fist fresh stories with all-too-familiar themes. As a result, we end up experiencing more of the same, where even the most impressive monster designs feel like pale echoes of their Season 1 counterparts. What used to be creepy and intriguing about a world teeming with monsters soon became trite and, dare I say, completely devoid of fear, which defeats the purpose of a fantasy show that mixed supernatural treats with the more grounded aspects of a crime thriller.
That said, you should absolutely stick around for more "Grimm" if you don't mind mildly derivative drama elements melded with a cheesy outlook that feels authentically charming. You can still expect a ton of unexpected twists and subversions, where the show's aesthetic blueprint urges you to abandon logic and embrace a more whimsical outlook that often borders on the ridiculous.
But hey, if that sounds a bit much for you, you can always be on the lookout for Peacock's upcoming "Grimm" reboot (!), which is set to entirely rewrite what we know so far and reinvent the fantasy-thriller from a brand new perspective.
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Read the original article on SlashFilm.
