📺 Five years after the film of the same name, New Zealandian directors, writers, and comedians Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement have returned to revamp (pun intended) the concept as a horror-comedy mockumentary. The series has the same theme and spirit as the beloved film, doubling down on the creators’ signature absurd comedy. The show ran for six seasons, with the final episode airing mid-December last year. But it’s not too late to jump on the bandwagon.

Three vampires walk into a bar… A documentary crew follows a trio of vampires — Nandor (Kayvan Novak), Laszlo (Matt Berry), and Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) — who have lived together for over a hundred years in a gothic mansion in New York City, after arriving in Staten Island as part of European immigration waves. Despite over a century in the US, they have failed to get with the times.

Our absurd heroes: Nandor is a bloodthirsty Ottoman warrior who led armies and destroyed enemies — he may be the oldest of the three, but he’s also the most naïve and childlike. Lazlo was a chaotic and nihilistic English nobleman who indulged in everything, turned into a vampire by his wife Nadja, who has prominent Greek-Roman roots and a strong personality. The mansion is also home to another type of vampire, Colin Robinson (Mark Proksh), who instead of feeding on human blood, feeds on their energy by boring them to death with tedious conversations. Alongside the four lives Guillermo (Harvey Guillén), a shy young Mexican man who has served Nandor for years, hoping that someday he’ll turn him into a vampire.

The series mocks popular vampire myths by depicting the tediousness of immortality, sapping all seriousness that may come with it through the ridiculousness of their personalities, creating a unique comedic experience. For example, when the trio first arrived in the US, their main goal was to conquer the New World and establish vampiric dominance over the continent — but they kept getting distracted by daily trivialities like keeping the mansion clean, dealing with neighbors, understanding advanced technology, getting caught up in government bureaucracy, and even falling in love.

The show relies on situational comedy and self deprecating humor, taking a sarcastic approach and an indifferent narrative tone. The dialogue is clever and brilliantly original, packed with subtle jokes that mock contemporary human culture. The performances hit the nail on the head across the board, with clear character development throughout the seasons. Most reviews praise the smooth transition from the big screen to the small screen, a consensus that earned the show positive ratings, 193 award nominations, and 28 victories.

One of the series’s standout features is the music, especially the end credits song selections. We recommend watching through the credits instead of rushing to play the next episode, though we’re sure you’ll find this difficult. It’s worth noting that the series revived Norma Tanega’s 1966 hit You’re Dead by using it for their opening theme.

DISCLAIMER: This series is far from family friendly — many episodes contain explicit language and depictions of nudity.

WHERE TO WATCH- All six seasons are available on Disney+, or watch the trailer on YouTube (runtime: 2:09).

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