In episode 6 our vampire hunters continue to achieve not a lot. Fet (Kevin Durand) and new recruit Fitzwilliam bitch a bit, Zack sulks a lot and Abe dishes out some sage wisdom. Towards the end of the ep, Nora and Zack are attacked by Kelly and the Feelers (sounds like a 60s pop band) and take sanctuary in a church. Zack displays every trait of the annoying brat - he falls over, coughs loudly - but luckily, team Abe appear and chase off the vamps but not before Fitzwilliam gets bitten. Whoops. Can actor Roger Cross ever get a long term gig? Abe has to behead him. Meanwhile in DC, Eph (Corey Stoll) with his bald head has reached out to old pal Rob (Tom Ellis) who hooks him up with Leigh Thomas, a woman who can help get his anti-vamp virus mass produced. She likes what she sees - in more ways than one - so while poor lover Nora is left with Eph's kid and being chased by his ex-wife, Eph is getting some extra-curricular sex. Classy. However, his fun is short lived as a Stoneheart assassin tracks him down and kills both Rob and Leigh but only has a chance to wound Eph before Eph - now a Bond like assassin after throwing Barnes off the train last week - shoots him. Meanwhile, Gus, Angel and the nice girl from the restaurant fight some vamps while the Ancients call in that vampire dude with the giant bone. Decent enough - and the effects used to show the scuttling Feelers are great - but this instalment was hardly enthralling, a regular problem with the show. I spent more time pondering how Gus can afford so many Indian meals than the intricacies of the plot. Where does he get his money from?


Episode 7 is better with Eph somehow back in New York, even though he's now even more wanted than before and has been shot. Demoralised, he gets stinking drunk and almost has a fight with Fet. Fet is particularly p*ssed because Dutch's old girlfriend Nikki has turned up and it seems that Dutch is very pleased to see her. Is Futch a thing of the past? As usual, Abe keeps thing in perspective - "your romantic worries have no relevance," he tells Fet as the pair check out the factory where the Feelers were born. The pair are attacked by the little critters but are saved when the vamp with the bone turns up. Turns out his name is Quinlan and he's been hunting the Master since Roman times (we got a lovely little pre-credits with Quinlan, dubbed the Barbarian Gladiator, fighting in the arena). Also known as The Born, an unrecognisable Rupert Penry-Jones looks set to be a great addition to the cast and THIS TIME, IT'S PERSONAL! as the Master killed The Born's mother. It seems that Quinlan is some kind of half-breed - half vamp, half vamp like Blade. However, his chance to get the Master (now possessing Boliver's body after the old giant one died off) is short lived as Fet - setting an explosion off - only manages to separate them from their quarry, not blow the vampire up! As special effects go, this partial collapse was terribly done. In other news, something more horrifying to watch than the usual gore occurred when young Coco made a move on wrinkly old Eldritch Palmer. This was worse than Connery and Zeta-Jones in Entrapment. Hopefully, Eph will be true to his word and kill Palmer before we get a bedroom scene...

70s Rating: ***