What We Do in the Shadows: The Curse

May 4, 2020 10:35 AM - Season 2, Episode 4

While the vampires fear they've been electronically cursed, Guillermo tries to thwart a deadly threat to his masters.

What We Do in the Shadows Season 2 Episode 4 Review: The Curse -- What We Do in the Shadows' vampires take on curses, crosses, and MAILER DAEMONs. (Tony Sokol for Den of Geek)

“The Curse” deals with an internet hoax from the dawn of the world wide web. Nandor (Kayvan Novak) is the oldest of the vampire housemates on Staten Island. To say he has a problem keeping up with the times is an understatement. But he tries. He even has email. Of course, it’s on Hotmail, but time passes so quickly when you’re an immortal who has the time to check it?

Soundtrack to the episode from Tunefind.

posted by filthy light thief (15 comments total)

Meanwhile, the Mosquito Hunters visit just a normal family.

Possible spoiler, if you didn't see it coming, also 20mb GIF: how we do in the shadows.
posted by filthy light thief at 10:36 AM on May 4, 2020 [3 favorites]

I'm confused, what's the possible spoiler? Is it that we see the documentary camera guy?
posted by oh yeah! at 11:30 AM on May 4, 2020

Yeah, I was kind of surprised Guillermo wasn't prioritizing telling Nadia about her offspring's former roommate.
posted by Pope Guilty at 11:48 AM on May 4, 2020

I'm confused, what's the possible spoiler?

I realize this is a place to discuss the episode, so it's not necessary, but I still felt kind of bad making the first comment about the "nice, normal (racially diverse) family" showing them to be (retro) zombies.
posted by filthy light thief at 12:11 PM on May 4, 2020 [1 favorite]

Anyone else getting a strong energy vampire vibe off of Jenna's roommate? When she was droning on about constellations right before the vampire twins woke up it sounded very Colin Robinson to me.
posted by Ragged Richard at 2:28 PM on May 4, 2020 [3 favorites]

And where is Jenna, anyway?!

I would love to see Jenna back, but Beanie Feldstein is kind of a big deal now.

I knew the vampire hunters mission would go horribly awry, but I did not see them stumbling into an actual nest. It was all so well done. Did we lose any of the hunters?
posted by gladly at 2:43 PM on May 4, 2020 [1 favorite]

They couldn't find Derek, but I'm not sure if he was killed, turned into a vampire, or was just hiding in the house.
posted by filthy light thief at 9:07 PM on May 4, 2020

This was delightful. I love this season way more than the last one.
posted by tautological at 9:39 PM on May 4, 2020

Ditto -- and I can't yet put my finger on the reason. Maybe everyone is inhabiting their roles more naturally, or the writing is improved? Or both? The prior season wasn't bad, but this feels so much more natural (though that may not be the correct word).
posted by filthy light thief at 10:07 PM on May 4, 2020 [1 favorite]

One thing I like is that a lot of things that felt like one-off (or retired) jokes are coming back quickly, with a different spin on them: Jeff Returns (but Nadja is completely disinterested in last season's romance angle), Nandor Was Born in Iran (but instead of last season's immigration joke, we get a soppy warlord-and-his-horse backstory, I 100% approve of this use of Farsi), Vampire Hierarchy Drama Continues (with no impact on the story because Guillermo kills the vampires seconds after they arrive on screen), Guillermo Is Unappreciated (but it turns out he's a real badass). Last season all the familiar things just reminded me of the movie. This season even the familiar things come back at a bit of an angle.

Also...I needed this show a lot more now than I needed it in 2019.
posted by grandiloquiet at 8:38 AM on May 5, 2020 [7 favorites]

Count Fandango? I wonder if his first name is Clem.
I liked Guillermo kicking ass.
I emailed the addresses mentioned; the yahoo one(s) bounced, but not the AOL one, yet.
posted by Pronoiac at 1:36 AM on May 7, 2020 [6 favorites]

Have we seen these vampires before? I recall there were some vampire girls in one of last season's episodes when they went to some vampire event.
posted by ckape at 1:46 PM on May 8, 2020

Arise! Arise!
posted by Catblack at 7:39 PM on May 10, 2020 [1 favorite]

This is probably my favorite episode of the ones that are out so far (ep 6). Nandor getting a chain email and believing it %100 is just a priceless situation
posted by FirstMateKate at 8:31 AM on May 17, 2020 [2 favorites]

Guillermo kicking ass is delightful. I especially liked the gag when he fives the attic vamps the finger and SCUBA's out the window.

Then the cameraman realizing that he's now all alone.

Nice to see Abigail Savage in an acting role again, she's usually in the sound department.
posted by porpoise at 8:08 PM on June 7, 2020 [2 favorites]