"V Wars" Series Review: Not Horrible...But Also Not Terribly Good

"V Wars" tells the story of a vampirism outbreak that affects much of the world. The show is based on a comic book series of the same name by Jonathan Maberry. Ten episodes are currently available on NetFlix.

The series opens with BFFs-- scientist Luther Swan (Ian Somerhalder of "Vampire Diaries" fame) and pilot Michael Fayne (Adrian Holmes of "Arrow" and "Supernatural")-- heading to the Arctic. They are to check on the status of some missing scientists. Upon arriving, it seems everyone at the research station is dead from a mysterious virus. Unfortunately it also infects Michael and Luther. A long dormant prion is unleashed due to climate change. Swann appears immune but Fayne develops vampirism. The virus quickly spreads through the population. Society becomes fractured into vampires (known as Bloods) vs humans.

These vamps get big sharp teeth when they transform. They must drink blood and also develop super hearing, vision, strength and the ability to quickly heal. But other than that, they're just regular people. They can still go out during daylight and arent all sparkly (I'm looking at you "Twilight").

We meet a number of other characters including Fayne's girlfriend Danika Dubov (Kimberly Sue Murray) and her sister Mila (Luara Vandervoort of "Bitten"). Ava O'Malley (Sydney Meyer) is Fayne's 2nd in command. Kaylee Vo (Jacky Lai) is an investigative reporter who witnesses first hand what is happening. We also meet Luther's son Dez (Kyle Breitkopf).

The government is divided on how to handle the situation. Some want to exterminate the Bloods. Some (including Luther) are working on a cure. They develop a blood substitute that could keep Bloods from attacking humans. Needless to say, it doesnt go as planned. Those with the gene (even if they havent turned into Bloods) are herded into internment camps. Vigilantes take it upon themselves to wipe out the vamps. Treachery and double crossing abound. The show ends up on a cliffhanger (in the event there is a season 2). .

Grade: 3 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). TBH I had a hard time getting into the series. I started and stopped several times. It did pick up towards the end but I fear many people checked out before that happened. Ian Somerhalder ("Vampire Diaries") and Adrian Holmes ("Supernatural" and "Arrow") deliver good performances. I liked that vamprism is presented as a disease for which there may be a cure. The show has lots of parallels with our current Covid 19 situation as various government factions and individuals are at odds on how to handle the situation.

While the series has some good points, there's not much novel here. either. It feels very network TV-ish (which means it's not horrible but it's also not great either). NetFlix seems to agree as they canceled the show after one season. Ian Somerhalder took to Instragram during the pandemic and said there are still other stories to tell. Note: He also executive produced the series. If they do come up with more materials, I would tune in again but it's not at the top of my list of "must see TV".