What We Do In the Shadows (1×04) Manhattan Night Club Review

For our review of the last episode of What We Do In The Shadows, click here.

Synopsis: The vampires venture into Manhattan, to make an alliance with an old friend who is now the king of the Manhattan vampires. (IMDB)

This week’s episode was a slight regression compared to that of the last three. Manhattan Night Club follows the group of vampires as they realize their attempts to takeover Staten Island have not garnered the results they had intended and have left them with just over five houses that they hold dominion over. Their need to broaden their control causes them to travel into Manhattan and reach out to other vampires in an effort to join power. Their search leads them to a Manhattan Night Club ran by a fellow vampire named Simon the Devious (Nick Kroll).

Before their meeting, the vampires dress in their finest robes accompanied by lavish capes as was Simon’s one rule in previous years. Lazlo seizes this opportunity for extravagant style by completing his outfit with a large hat constructed from the skin of a dead witch. In what serves as a running joke throughout the episode, Nadjia reveals that the hat is obviously cursed and has brought about mass amounts of death, famine and fire anywhere it has traveled to which Lazlo quickly denies.

Once the parties become reacquainted with one another at the club, Nandor explains to Simon his need for a joint attack on Staten Island and New York City. Simon’s responds quickly by revealing that the single reason he even took their meeting was to take Lazlo’s (cursed) hat. Reluctantly, Lazlo gives Simon the hat as a token of their collaboration but in a devious move that helps Simon live up to his name, he kicks the vampires out to never be seen again. However, they receive the last laugh as the night club explodes into flames killing all inside once they leave proving once and for all the hat is in fact cursed.

The secondary storyline revolves around Guillermo who tags along with Nandor to the night club and angrily leaves after an awkward encounter between Nandor and another vampire over eating Guillermo. He slowly begins to realize what the audience already knows that familiars are no more than vampire pets and until he is turned it will never change. As an apology, Nandor gives something Guillermo has wanted for a long time – to fly over the New York skyline. This moment is bittersweet as Nandor drops Guillermo while flying but manages to have him land on an abandoned food truck only breaking his arm, neck and legs.

Personally speaking, the fact that this episode didn’t contain enough Colin Robinson for my taste which impacted it overall. That being said, the group is no closer to realizing their domination of Staten Island than before and it remains to be seen what other obstacles await them in their journey to do so.

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