Being Human: Not Just Another Remake

The SyFy channel’s supernatural hit, Being Human, returns to television Monday at 9PM for its second season.

For those of you who don’t know, Being Human tells the story of three friends (a vampire, a werewolf, and a ghost) who live together and try to conduct normal lives despite their circumstances. The series stars Sam Witwer (BSG, The Mist), Sam Huntington (Superman Returns), and relative newcomer Meaghan Rath. The SyFy series is an Americanized remake of the popular British show whose fate is undecided due to the departure of star Aidan Turner (The Hobbit).

I’ve been a fan of the UK version since it first premiered in 2008, so when I heard that it was going to be adapted for American audiences I was un-thrilled. For years I had been watching it on BBC America and couldn’t understand why my fellow compatriots couldn’t do the same.

As the show’s premise for the US version was revealed to be pretty much the same, I became even more bewildered. I began to wonder if the “Powers that Be” felt that we Americans were too stupid to watch the exact same show with a British accent, and that we needed a “dumbed down” version of the show just for us. The US version premiered in early 2011, and I was determined not to watch it on principle.

My opinion changed this fall when I discovered that the SyFy channel was having a season one marathon of Being Human (U.S.). I decided to watch the show out of curiosity, to see how alike/different it was from it’s UK sister. I was hooked in 15 minutes.

Not only did the show have the same basic set-up, problems, and storyline, but it actually seemed scarier and even more suspenseful. Were there differences? Of course there were, but they were mainly cosmetic. For instance, the main difference I noticed was that the characters’ names had been changed, but it isn’t an important alteration.

With several vampire/werewolf shows already on television, the question is: why should you care about this remake? After all, this show doesn’t have a young girl torn between two handsome vampiric brothers. It doesn’t have teens trying to hide their true nature from classmates. It doesn’t even have psychic waitresses who discover they are actually fairies. On its surface, Being Human is exactly what I described in the synopsis above. But in truth it is so much more.

Rife with supernatural creatures, turf wars, and feuds, Being Human is, at its heart, about what it means to be human. How do we, as people, get through life? As humans we love, we struggle, and we suffer painful losses. Just because you have fangs, can walk through walls, or change into a ravenous beast does not necessarily mean you no longer experience these things.

Aidan, Sally, and Josh are meant to be adversaries, but have become the unlikeliest of friends. Together the three struggle with what it means to be a monster who strives to live as humanly as possible. The audience watches as they attempt to fight against their natural urges in order to hold on to their humanity. Anyone who suffers from vices of their own can relate to the their struggles.

As the series delivers all the thrills, gore, and sex that one may expect from a supernatural show, the true message of Being Human manages to shine through. We all have our demons inside. It’s how we handle them that define who we are.

Written by Tiffany Brown (@Angelized_1st)

Tiffany is a sci-fi/horror geek who loves debating the religious undertones of “The Matrix” trilogy, or the concepts of race relations in “Blade.” Now living in Los Angeles, Tiffany enjoys spending time outside, or ice skating. Lover of books, movies, and television, she can be seen reading anything from Harry… More »