Headscratchers / What We Do in the Shadows (2019)

• In S01E08 of the series, Jenna slowly discovers she's invisible - but only to humans at first. So why can the crew doing the documentary see her?
  • There's nothing indicating the crew can see her. All we know is that they know she's there. Presumably, if they couldn't see her, the heard her and followed her sound.
  • It is also likely that while they couldn't really see or hear her, their equipment could see and hear her just fine and they used that. It's kind of like the opposite of the whole "vampires have no reflection" rule.
• Why were Laszlo and Nandor unable or unwilling to break open the animal cages with their strength? The cage was large enough for them to transform into human form and it wouldn't have taken much to bend the bars wide enough to undo the latches.
  • Both of them can be pretty clueless and can selectively focus too much on the wrong thing at the wrong time. This could go as far as them not thinking to break-out of the cages because it would be rude to break someone else's property.
• Why can Laszlo say some religious-based words with some reverence (e.g., saying "adieu" to Justin in "Manhattan Night Club"), but Nandor hurts himself when he tries the same? Is it just a difference in characters and sensibilities, or is there something else going on? (Irreverent use of words like "God" by the vampires is understandable—it's a sin, and the vampires are unholy, so it works.)
  • Given their supernatural nature, the holiness of a given word is probably subjective for them. If they aren't aware of it having holy connotations or are using it in a vulgar way, it probably won't cause them harm or issue. Using a word they believe to have holy associations in an earnest way however, causes them harm. Otherwise, they'd have to constantly watch what they say, to avoid the various religious phrases and words from hundreds of different cultures and languages.
  • Or, in the "adieu" example, maybe Nandor knows more French than Laszlo does. If Laszlo only learned "adieu" as "goodbye" in French, rather than as the parting phrase "To God", then it just doesn't register with him that the word has anything to do with holiness at all.
  • The show is extremely inconsistent with this. In one scene, Guillermo says he'll keep his fingers crossed and the vamps are quickly discomforted, since crossing your fingers is a discreet Sign of the Cross. But in a later episode where Nadia and Laszlo are watching his old-timey pornos, he undresses a girl and she says "Zounds! I'm indecent!" "Zounds" may sound like a cutesy old-fashioned exclamation, but it's short "Christ's wounds," yet it didn't seem to bother him.
• Why doesn't Nadja change Jeff/Gregor?
  • It is likely that she wants to enjoy him for a bit before she does and he ends up dying before then every time.
  • Either that or she isn't really interested in committing to their relationship deep enough to ever make him immortal, kind of like how someone is having an affair, but is using that other person as someone to have sex with on the weekends rather than commit to a concrete partnership.
  • It is also likely that she did sire him in a past life, only for his head to get cut off at some point. Beheading is one of the methods of vampire killing, after-all.
  • Or Laszlo keeps beheading Gregor to prevent Nadja from turning him. After all, once she turns him, he'd be protected under the laws against killing another vampire.
• Are the camera crew human?? While their invasiveness of privacy are likely based on Rule of Funny, some of their shots seem downright impossible. How do they survive? Sure, a few of them have been implied to have died, but I also wonder how they get people to actually ask questions for them. Also, during the scene where the vampire gang were hunting down the truck to rescue one of their mates... how did the camera crew get in the truck!?
  • In the trial episode, some members of the camera crew are still trapped in the well. They are shown to definitely be human. Colin comments they are in trouble, presumably of the other vampires eating them after finding the others escaped.
• Why do they tolerate Colin's presence? He's constantly feeding on them, and they outnumber him by enough that they should be able to kill him even if his telepathic powers are significantly more powerful than we've ever seen them to be.
  • Extra-canonical material says Colin pays the vampires' rent, which would be reason enough^note (however Guillermo manages to pay his rent, it's probably not enough to pay the whole house's rent). Episode 7 then has Nadja confessing her and the nightwalkers' (platonic) affection for Colin. It's a more extreme case of Vitriolic Best Buds than some, but ultimately, this is a show where yelling, "I'M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU!" is how vampiric spouses show affection for each other. That the main trio would truly care for Colin in spite of his (and their) antics isn't that surprising.
• Why was Carol so hideous? There's been no suggestion that WWDITS vampires have clans the way Masquerade vampires do. So why did she look so different from other vampires?
  • The Orgy introduced different types of vampires, like babadooks and Chinese jumping vampires, in addition to the psychic varieties. It stands to reason that there are other distinct types of vampires in the WWDITS universe, with Carol as just one more example of vampiric diversity.
• So, are the vampires idiots in-universe, or is this simply the sort of comedy where smart people do things that would be considered stupid in the real world?
  • Seems more like it's the sort of comedy where everyone is an idiot, although some idiots get themselves into more idiotic messes than others.
  • It seems to be the case that becoming superpowered immortals lends to quite a few vampires becoming lazy, absent-minded, and hopelessly out-of-touch. They barely have to try to do anything and they have all the time in the world, and often they barely even have to take care of themselves. Things are so easy for them as vampires, they don't need to bother keeping themselves sharp.
• How did Laszlo manage to survive through the actual 80s without ever having noticed the song "Come On Eileen", if he could catch a snippet from a passing car decades later and recognize it as a tune he'd written? That song was one of the biggest one-hit wonders in pop music history, and back in the day it was almost impossible to avoid its signature fiddle riffs.
  • Probably a Rule of Funny, since Laszlo seems to be the one that is slightly less out of touch with pop culture than the others, it could also simply be a gap of knowledge, since they all seem to have very selective memories depending on their interests.
• So in the intros we see Laszlo and Nadja dressed in various period appropriate fashions over the centuries, but in 2019 when the series is set they’re always in quasi-Victorian costume. Why? Have they just fallen into a nostalgia phase for this decade?
  • Simon the Devious says some vampires fall into a rut and lose touch, with the implication that it's true of our crew. Simon's crew, incidentally, shows what more contemporary (and more successful) vampires look like.
  • Alternately, they're dressing that way because they're being filmed by the camera crew, and want to look fancy by the standards of their vampire peers who might see the footage someday.
  • Another possibility is the fact that dressing in ways that strayed from the norm was more frowned upon for most of history, compared to the rise of alternative and historically-inspired fashion in the past few decades ranging from Rococo & Victorian-inspired Lolita fashion to full on reproductions of historical pieces. Even in the photographs from the 80s or so, they appear to be in goth/punk style clothing rather than something more mainstream, which may have been the closest they could get to dressing how they wanted at the time. It's probably more likely that they've simply grown out of touch, but it could also be that they can now get away with dressing how they do now and have bystanders assume they're just cosplayers or fashion history enthusiasts.
• How did Nandor survive in the Wellness Center while away from his ancestral soil and not drinking any blood?
  • He may have packed some of his ancestral soil to take with him. Or it's possible he was just convinced that putting up with those things to be the requirements for becoming "human" again.
  • The Wellness Center cultists are clearly peddling some weapons grade denial. I would bet you that all of them have a bit of their ancestral soil tucked away somewhere. Not to help them sleep, oh no no no. Just ordinary human nostalgia. Carrying around a bagful of dirt from your homeland is a normal thing that normal humans do to be normal.
• How does Guillermo survive without any sleep? He states that he's basically always awake, and humans need sleep to survive.
  • Maybe he’s exaggerating how little he sleeps?
• How does Guillermo manage to overpower vampires in hand to hand combat? We've seen plenty of examples of vampires have superhuman strength and speed. Nadja sends 200 pound men flying with a slap, kills a woman by kicking a ball at her, and rips out hearts in the blink of an eye. How is Guillermo outmuscling vampires?
  • I don’t know if it’s just me, but the show seems to be *heavily* implying that certain bloodlines of vampire hunters are themselves superhuman.
• If killing a vampire kills all their childer, then how is Deacon still alive (undead) after his sire Petyr was sizzled to a crisp? He wasn't given any final libations that resuscitated him like the Baron, he's definitely dead.
  • The Baron still being alive seems to be a lucky coincidence that our idiot protagonists are applying confirmation bias to. This is backed up by their regularly not seeming to even know how their powers work. We can see this with Jenna leaving both Laszlo and Nadja confused when she asks what happens to their clothes when they transform into bats. And later, the vampires seem convinced that any human that is over-hypnotized is a lost cause, yet Sean seemed to bounce back relatively easily after they over-hypnotized him. Vampires are often as ignorant about their own natures as they are the world around them.
• Why is Laszlo so uncomfortable about finishing his ghost's "business?" He's been portrayed as gleefully and unabashedly pansexual from the very first episode. If anything, you'd think he'd be excited (or at least nonchalant) at having experienced a completely novel form of masturbation.
  • It could be a reverse of If It's You, It's Okay. While Laszlo would usually happily do "business" with anyone else, the thought of doing it with himself revolts him.
• Does Derek still need his glasses? Does he just wear a pair of non-prescription ones due to being so used to wearing a pair? Has there been any non-energy vampires who also wear glasses (sunglasses not included)? It's cool there are characters who do wear glasses; I'm just wondering if regular in-show vampirism wouldn't automatically enhance/correct one's eyesight.
  • It's certainly part of established canon that the vampires of this universe have heightened senses, but if you feel like getting bogged down in the details then you have to think about the mechanisms through which this stuff operates. If Derek is myopic or hypermetropic, which are both often caused by the shape of the eye as it sits in the socket, then I'm not sure vampirism could do anything to change that. It might, for example, improve his hearing or night vision, but I doubt it can change the length or shape of his eyes.
• Laszlo claims he's lived in America with Nadja since 1861, and that he hasn't gone back to Britain since then. He also claims to be the Jack the Ripper. The 5 canonical Ripper murders took place in 1888 in London, meaning at least one of these claims must be false.
  • Part of the reason it gets harder to remember things as we age is because there's just so much to remember—you might remember the exact date and place you met your best friend, say, at age 16, but by age 60 all you remember is that it happened the summer you turned ten. Vampires, living for much longer, have all the more time and events to keep track of—if Nandor can forget how to speak the language he grew up with, Laszlo can forget a quick one-year holiday he took to London, or else misremember the year he moved to America.
• If Guillermo wants to be a vampire so bad, why can't he go to anyone other than the three vampires he lives with, and offer himself as a free meal? Is he not tasty enough (AKA not a virgin)?
  • As we see with Jenna, there has to be a special ritual to turn a non-vampire which includes drinking a bit of the siring vampire's blood, so it couldn't be done by accident. Additionally, as shown with Derek, if the vampire who sired the new vampire isn't around to show them the ropes, the new vampire will likely get themselves into trouble, and it's probable that most vampires don't want to sign up for babysitting duty. Finally, I feel like Guillermo just really, REALLY wants to be turned by Nandor, specifically. The reason he finally gave up on that and went the easy route, I.E. attempting to bribe Derek, was likely due to Nandor crossing the Moral Event Horizon.
  • Clarified in Season 5. It is considered taboo and extremely insulting for a familiar to be turned by a vampire other than their master. While Guillermo didn't know that, it stands to reason that most vampires wouldn't even entertain the notion of dishonoring a relatively elder vampire like Nandor.
• If the vampire code is to not kill anyone, why are the vampires afraid of being offed by the baron in the Baron's Night Out episode? There seems to be a heavy climate of fear in general.
  • There might be certain special circumstances that allow it, such as the executions from the Vampiric Council. Also, Nandor mentions that he would kill Guillermo if the latter got himself turned by another vampire—it seems if a vampire is powerful enough or if the offense is great enough, killing other vampires may be justified.
  • The Vampire Code seems to only really matter if the local vampires can actually enforce it. The Vampiric Council just gave up on trying to enforce the code against the Staten Island Crew, because Guillermo simply made it too difficult to follow through on. The Baron, as a tremendously old and powerful vampire, may simply be too strong for most vampiric authorities to do anything about. He can basically do whatever he wants, because most vampires have no ability to stop him. It's basically Might Makes Right, and everyone just focuses on trying to keep vampires like The Baron amenable and in a good mood.
• Just why does Lazlo always say the word "bat" aloud whenever he transforms? Is he just doing it be dramatic? Is it a holdover from his early days as a neophyte vamp that's simply become habit? Or is it a crutch and he really can't transform without telegraphing his attack?
• In the Pride Parade episode, why didn't Nadja just go to Laszlo for sex? I can think of absolutely no reason to turn her down. She's in her wife's body and he also will do it with anything that moves.
• Why was Nandoor under the impression that he did not need oxygen?
• How can the vampires throw up that much substance when they only eat a popcorn kernel or a single beat of pizza? I'm sure ruleoffunny is the easiest explanation, but is there any way it's biologically possible?
  • Keep in mind, vampires are constantly drinking human blood, and it is heavily implied that they do not use the bathroom or have any other way to excrete excess matter.
• Okay. So, even though it seems to be directly at odds with his earlier characterization, Guillermo can't bear to kill humans and therefore decides to stop being a vampire. Fine. Why on earth doesn't anyone suggest an alternative way of getting blood, such as raiding a blood bank, or hypnotizing the people at blood drives to give him their blood? What about knocking a person out, or hypnotizing them into a docile state where they'll forget they were bitten by a vampire, and simply drinking a non-lethal amount of their blood? Hell, the main characters have blood just lying around the house, as evidenced by the glass Guillermo drinks from to finalize his transformation. He obviously doesn't have a problem with the rest of the housemates killing humans to feed, so why doesn't he just sustain himself on their leftovers?
• In the penultimate episode of Season 3, Donal Logue is among the party of vampires tricked into believing that Nandor has been slain by Nadia, and is therefore dead. In the very next episode, he is shown painting an updated portrait of the main cast, including a very much alive Nandor, and no mention, reference, or acknowledgement is made of the previous episode's events. Not even the usual comedic side interview.