My Review of Being Human's 4x03: "The Graveyard Shift"

Written by Jamie Mathieson
Directed by Philip John

Hal (re working in a burger bar): “Kill me. Seriously, kill me now. You can tell Annie I attacked you or something.”
Tom: “Maybe later if you work really hard.”

Ah, poor Hal. There were plenty of things he probably should’ve anticipated with moving in with Annie and Tom but even he wasn’t expecting to have to work in a burger bar with the latter. Still, his deadpan reactions to his new employment status never ceased in being funny.

It’s the third episode in and already, Tom and Hal just work as a dynamic. By wisely not mirroring George and Mitchell’s friendship and taking a variation of antagonism, mistrust and growing respect, it’s hard not to enjoy any scenes between this vampire and werewolf and this episode was ripe with some great moments.

Hal might see his new working status as a form of drudgery but he certainly generated some humour with his care towards lettuce cutting, table cleaning as well as the interesting little wager between him and Tom in relation to which one of them can attract a female customer. Surely, you’d want either of them, right ladies/gents?

Michaela, the attempting to be deep Goth with bad poetry was an interesting enough test subject. She more or less dismissed both Tom and Hal’s terrible attempts of flattery, until she realised both of them were of the supernatural persuasion. It’s amazing how in this case actually being either a vampire or a werewolf can suddenly do wonders for dating prospects.

Of course, as a character, Michaela managed to be both quite amusing and annoying in equal measure. Both Tom and Hal soon realised she was a pain in the backside but found themselves forced to open up to her when Fergus and his goon wanted to teach Tom a lesson and it certainly worked a treat.

I think having Michaela being turned into a vampire by Regus after Fergus knifed her was an interesting enough move. Michaela seemed to take a fondness to his humour and Regus himself managed to make a vampire and acquire a girlfriend in one go. It’s just too bad for him that he’s also going to have to listen to his lover’s rather terrible poems as a result but it’s better than winding up in a Hoover bag as what became Fergus’s fate in the end.

Speaking of Fergus, much as I like Anthony Flanagan as an actor, I am really delighted he was staked in this episode. I don’t think I could’ve tolerated his thuggish brutality for another five episodes and it might be nice for Annie and company to have other threats towards Eve than the vampires and the Old Ones.

Hal being revealed as an Old One wasn’t an entirely shocking reveal, considering that the episode opened with a flashback to his violent history with Fergus but even I was a tiny bit surprised that he considered stepping aside while Fergus and his cronies taught Tom a lesson. Of course, it was nice that he changed his mind.

Whether Tom and Hal want to admit it or not, both of them made massive steps towards accepting the other in this episode. They managed to work well together in the burger bar, Tom chose to ditch some of his stakes and Hal of course rejected the chance to become a Lord in favour of staking Fergus and remaining as an ally for Eve’s protection.

However to address an elephant in the room, while Tom and Hal are building a rapport towards one another, Annie allowed her own mistrust towards them affect some of her judgements. She nearly left Barry with Eve and she was rather sharp with Hal as well when he couldn’t properly name her former friends.

That being said, the events of the episode did bring the three of them closer together so while the dynamic Annie may have with the lads is different, it’s still every bit as fun to watch as it was back in the first three years with Mitchell, George and Nina. Heck, they even found a programme that they can all sit down and watch together.

Last but not least, aside from the mysterious Kirby crossing over to our world and inevitably set to cause friction in the next episode, who exactly is the mysterious man with a burnt arm that’s a threat to Eve? Oh, let me guess, if it’s not an Old One, it’ll be Kirby won’t it? I did like Regus trying to help the gang out again with Eve, even if his attempts of getting a payment were a bit creepy.

Also in “The Graveyard Shift”

Fergus reckons that Ivan, Wyndham, Jacob and Hetty (or was it Herrick?) are all afraid of Hal. I guess we should be too if he jumps off the wagon.

Fergus (to a maid, re Hal): “Sometimes I think the only demon worse than him must be the one he’s fleeing from. I’m not scared of him. Don’t tell him I said that.”

Hal seems to listen to classical music and Radio 4 as part of his routine. He also doesn’t like living in tents, caravans and barns. It’s also best not to mention some bad investments he’s made as well financially speaking.

Annie (re Eve): “Why can’t you just leave her alone? She’s just a normal baby.”
Fergus: “Do you really believe that or is it just desperation?”
Annie: “Which one keeps her alive?”
Fergus: “Neither I’m afraid.”

Annie: “What happened to your face?”
Regus: “My lunch fought back. I’d rather not talk about it.”

Regus got his own just desserts when his attempts of hacking into Annie’s sex memories backfired on him.

Hal: “It’s quite a thought.”
Michaela: “Isn’t it?”
Hal: “Yes, me still here in a year.”

Annie (to Hal): “Their names were Nina, George and Mitchell and this was their home and they were my friends and they would’ve listened to me.”

Both Hal and Tom seemed to have a disdain for Nuts magazine and a sense of chivalry towards women. They also chose Antiques Roadshow over The Real Hustle.

Hal: “I’m not a performing monkey.”
Tom: “Hal, stop being such a wally.”
Hal: “I’m a vampire, he’s a werewolf, any questions?”
Michaela: “Are you seeing anyone at the moment?”

Regus (re being a good guy): “It’s fun, isn’t it?”
Hal: “Yes, sometimes it leaves me feeling positively giddy.”

Annie mentioned her previous working in a bar and her relationship with Saul, while Hal brought up Ivan and Daisy at the end. Oh and next week’s trailer seemed to have more continuity on the Box Tunnel massacre.

Michaela (re Team Edward t-shirt): “I assume you’re taking the piss.”
Regus: “Well, I started it.”
Michaela: “You’re a funny vampire.”

Michaela: “You’re not very good at being a vampire, are you?”
Hal: “I try not to be.”
Regus: “Ignore him. He’s never happy unless he’s miserable.”

Chronology: A week has passed since “Eve Of The War”.

After two somewhat darker episodes, “The Graveyard Shift” is definitely the more lighter of episode we’ve had so far this season. Three episodes in and it’s nice that the new cast are more than able to keep the momentum going but again, we need to see Annie be a bit more kick ass, considering the amount of threats that are coming Eve’s way.

Rating: 8 out of 10