Bitten –1.01– Summons – A to Z Challenge – Day 02

“Once Bitten, Twice Shy”
‘I woke up one morning thinking about wolves and realized that wolf packs function as families. Everyone has a role, and if you act within the parameters of your role, the whole pack succeeds, and when that falls apart, so does the pack.’
- Jodi Picoult

Prologue
Well, this review falls under the category of 'Firsts' as this review is about the pilot.

OK, so this show is loosely based on a series of books written by Kelley Armstrong. I’d never read them but I do intend on reading them over the summer. I like werewolves. I love Laura Vandervoort. This show seemed like a no brainer. Usually, if a show is based on a series of books I tend to read at least the first one. This wasn’t the case for this show. I found out about it a little too late and decided to go with the flow. At times I feel like I’m missing something but at the same time nothing too important.

About the Show
Seasons: 1| No. of Episodes: 13 |Premiere Date: October 10, 2012| End Date: N/A |Status: On-Air

Genre(s): Action, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Story in a nutshell: The story centers on Elena Michaels (portrayed by Laura), a female werewolf who is torn between a normal life with her human boyfriend Philip in Toronto and her "family" obligations as a werewolf in upstate New York. Among her "pack" is her ex-boyfriend Clayton, who is responsible for her becoming a werewolf.

Best Reason to Watch: This show is my guilty pleasure. There is just so much eye candy and posterior nudity that my heart can barely take it. The story might be a little slow but it does pick up and really sets up the characters roles well. There are also some really awesome fight scenes throughout the show. The plot is intricate and engrossing (but warning, the pace can be a little slow at times).

Best Thing about This Episode: It has a balance of sexy fun times, a little gore and plenty of colorful characters, which makes for a good formula when it comes to having a guilty pleasure.
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Title: Summons | Writer: Daegan Fryklind| Director: Brad Turner
Episode Summary: Elena, a werewolf trying to live a normal life, is summoned home by Jeremy the leader of her Pack when they come under attack by an unknown enemy. But returning to Stonehaven means facing Clayton Danvers, the only man Elena has ever loved, and the one who betrayed her by changing her into a werewolf.
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Awards
Character of the Night
• Elena

Best Character Interactions
• Elena and Logan
• Elena and Phillip
• Elena and Diane

Best Line
•Elena: You’ll have to do better than that if we’re tracking a mutt (to Clay)

Best Scene
• Elena surprises Phillip in his bathroom and entices him into coitus.

The ‘What a Way to Start the Show’ Award
•I really like the opening title sequence for the show. But the scoring of it is what pulls it all together. It’s simple and it also has some cool visual clues as well. I like when a show throws in a little meta, especially when the meta is clever.

The ‘Ominous Foreshadowing’ Award
•Elena’s necklace gets quite a few close ups, so yeah it must be important.

Highlights
Memorable Moments
1. Elena eats like a pig (has a high metabolism, side effects of lycanthropy)
2. Elena likes to hunt rabbits in her werewolf form (that becomes important later on)
3. All the girls ogling Clayton as he teaches his anthropology class.
4. Elena’s socially awkward moments

Notable & Quotable
• Phillip: Is this what they mean by suffering for art? Am I suffering for your art?
Mysterious Stranger: Tell me what you know about the Danvers family.
Bar Fly: The creeps in the country? They’re hot but weird.

• Clayton: I’m not so interested in what we’re hiding. I’m interested in why we’re hiding it.

• Logan: Are you insane?
Elena: I don’t know. You tell me, you’re the shrink.
Logan: Psychologist.

Superb Scenes
• Clayton teaching his anthropology class.
• The summoning montage.
• Pete, Logan and Elena talk about why it is important to go back to Stonehaven.
• Elena and Diane have drinks while discussing Phillip’s other sister’s wedding.
• Elena finally makes it to Stonehaven.

Lowlights
• The CGI rendering of the wolves was very grainy and distracting.

Miscellaneous
My Favorite Main Character
• Clayton

My Favorite Side Character
• The Sheriff

WTF Moments
• They open the show with a rather steamy sex scene.
• Logan is a werewolf AND a therapist.
• Phillip goes to a sports’ bar to drink beer and watch golf? Who does that?

Burning Questions
1. What exactly is a Mutt?
2. Why is Elena so important?
3. Why is Elena unhappy being a werewolf?

Tasty Tidbit: Elena looks a lot like Phillip’s mother; I think someone has a secret Oedipus complex.

Side Notes: I thought they did a really good job with the transitions between scenes. A lot of shows that I watch have been having a major problem with sloppy transitions so it was refreshing to see thoughtful choices.
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Grade: B-
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Comparable Shows
If you like shows that feature werewolves, I suggest that you check out one, some or all of the following TV shows: The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and/or Teen Wolf.
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Up Next: If you are looking for a new show about time travel, be sure to check out my blog tomorrow because I will be writing about Continuum.