What We Do in the Shadows season 4 review: More of the same, thank god

Season 3 The Shadows: What Do We Do? The ending was a thrilling cliffhanger. Of all the things that could have happened, Laszlo (Matt Berry) pushing Guillermo (Harvey Guillén) into a coffin bound for London with nothing but Oreos and Pedialyte was something that nobody saw coming.

This was a shocking act, resulting in nearly everyone from our cast being isolated and unable to communicate with one another. Nadja (Natasia Demetriou), and an unwilling Guillermo were sent off to London. Nandor (Kayvan Novak) began a solo journey to discover himself. Laszlo decided to remain at home to care for Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch), who was recently reborn in his baby form.

It left many fans shaking, screaming and wondering what the next season would bring to light. However, Season 4 reveals a time skip which sees Nadja Guillermo and Nandor return to the house they vacated after a year.

How you feel regarding this time skip depends on how much you invested in the plot of the finale to season 3. It was disappointing for me as I spent a lot of time speculating on what season 4 might bring. It was a great show. The Shadows: What Do We Do? The third season saw them feel more confident and well-defined in their respective roles. The show could have explored how the codependent vampire mass (and one person) fared when they were left alone. Circumventing that undercuts the emotional weight of the season 3 finale; there’s little payoff to the turmoil that these new circumstances must have thrown the characters into.

Russ Martin/FX

Still, it’s hard to stay disappointed with a The Shadows: What Do We Do? that’s firing on all cylinders. Much as I would have liked to see the characters grow on their own, the show really is at its very best when the main cast is together, and it quickly reminds you of why it’s still one of the best comedies on TV. It hasn’t lost a bit of its sharp wit and ability to comedically blend the supernatural with the mundane, and it provides plenty of new scrapes for our central cast to get into.

Even though the characters are mostly still the same old eclectic group that we love, they’ve definitely done some growing and changing. The changes that have occurred in the last year are evident immediately. Guillermo now has an off-screen girlfriend, and Laszlo is playing the long-suffering dad. Though Nadja and Nandor spent last season fighting over who would take charge of the Vampiric Council’s East Coast branch, both their interests have shifted in season 4, with Nadja eager to open a vampire nightclub and Nandor on the hunt for a new wife.

Based on the four episodes provided for review, these storylines seem to be the ones that will define each character’s arc throughout the season. The most engaging one involves Laszlo’s attempts to parent Colin Robinson, whom he refuses to acknowledge as being the same person as the previous iteration and simply refers to as “boy.” Laszlo made an effort to spend more time with Colin Robinson in season 3 because he secretly discovered that Colin Robinson was nearing the end of his life cycle as an energy vampire, and that theme of finding real affection in a bond born of obligation is present in their new father-son dynamic as well.

Laszlo has slowly become one of the most emotionally mature and compassionate central vampires. He does this in unusual ways. Laszlo is more than just an ordinary British gentleman. His adventures with Jackie Daytona have led to him showing kindness towards Colin Robinson. That’s why, even though he’s ill-equipped to take care of anything, including himself, his sense of duty toward a dear friend makes this new role feel natural for him.

Russ Martin/FX

Laszlo exposes Colin Robinson, in an effort to make him more excited about activities such as swordplay or art theft. However it appears to have proved futile. Colin Robinson, now played with Proksch’s head CGI-ed onto a real child’s body, is a boy with thoroughly childlike tendencies. Laszlo is disgusted that he develops an interest in musical theatre. Still, Laszlo eventually grows to accept Colin Robinson’s interests, boring as they may be. It’s not unlike their season 3 dynamic, which began with Laszlo humoring the energy vampire out of pity but ended up being genuine friendship. Though Laszlo plays the part of exasperated caretaker and Colin Robinson is a deeply strange child with “a Sondheim lyric for every occasion,” the two obviously care about each other. (Colin Robinson also mispronounces Laszlo’s name in a way that’s extremely hard not to be charmed by.)

Laszlo learns how to care for someone else while Nadja, Nandor focus on their own goals. The conflicting vampire desires were the root cause of their central power struggle in season 3. Nadja, having had very little power in her human life, constantly craves it in her eternal one, while Nandor’s warlord past led him to believe that power was the only thing that would make him happy. Now, after the events of season 3, both have realized that vampire bureaucracy won’t lead to fulfillment for either of them, leading them to set their sights on new goals.

Nadja converts the Vampiric Council chambers to a nightclub for vamps. It is something she enjoys and that allows her to have a lot of fun while making a difference. The Guide, Kristen Schaal), is often paired with her in this storyline. Kristen has been literally waiting for vampires’ return since the beginning of last year. Though initially against the nightclub idea, The Guide ultimately comes around and gives her wraiths over as the nightclub’s primary employees. (And, because I know you’re wondering: Yes, the show Does touch upon worker wraiths’ rights.) Nadja and The Guide make for a fun duo, although the latter’s voice sometimes doesn’t feel as well-defined. Nadja’s interaction with Guillermo and Laszlo is often kept to a minimum. Luckily, Demetriou — a performer so funny that she can literally play off herself — is still a delight to watch on her own.

Russ Martin/FX

Nandor also accidentally takes a Djinn back to his ancestral home, which is both helpful and destructive in his quest for a wife. The show is careful to show that Nandor has had both “girl-wives” and “guy-wives,” in case anyone needed to be reminded of the vampires’ fluid sexuality.

Nandor’s season 3 existential crisis was a significant moment of character growth for him, as an ex-warlord who still fondly reminisces on all of the pillaged villages in his past. His season 4 storyline continues to show the impact of that crisis. Nandor’s unique blend of insecurity, flippancy, and total lack of self-awareness makes it obvious that his dogged search for a wife is actually still a search for happiness. The Djinn also quickly becomes one of the series’ best side characters, and I hope he sticks around.

Guillermo, as usual, is by Nandor’s side every step of the way. Of the main cast, Guillermo has changed the most since the very beginning of the show, going from a meek, subservient familiar to an expressive, self-assured… well, he’s still a familiar, but it feels less like that than ever. For a long time, his relationship with Nandor felt more like a partnership rather than a familiar master-familiar dynamic.

Russ Martin/FX

This is what Season 4 does even more. Guillermo is trapped by Nandor’s reluctant affection for vampires, even though he tried to leave in the past. In this season, though, he’s often glimpsed talking to a presumed love interest on the phone. We don’t get to see who it actually is over the first four episodes (which makes sense given that the fake documentary is mainly about the vampires), but that in itself gives a sense that Guillermo is starting to really carve out a life for himself independent of the vampire house. It’s an intriguing direction for a character who’s always struggled to truly liberate himself from the vampires, even after his desire to be turned has seemingly been put on the back burner. Guillén also continues to deliver one of the strongest performances on TV, simultaneously embodying the soft-spoken familiar and ruthless vampire hunter. At this point, it’s hard to even imagine that Guillén wasn’t always meant to play this role.

Although the characters may have changed markedly, season 4 The Shadows: What Do We Do? doesn’t quite deliver on the dramatic premise that its season 3 finale suggested. It quickly returns to what its best is: making us laugh with these ridiculous vampires living their lives. This is simply more of the exact same. But that really doesn’t matter when “the same” is so good. Many people found comfort in the show during the COVID-19 epidemic. And it’s still comforting, in a way, to know that it will stay true to what it’s always been.

The Shadows: What Do We Do?FX premiered season 4 on July 12th. FX premiered season 4 on July 12th.