Look, I like it when Young Dracula goes dark. I loved the end of season two, and the moments in season three where things got just as bad. But the reason I like this is because of the stark contrast it creates with the normally pretty goofy tone of the show. The darkness wasn't an end unto itself, it was to flesh out the universe and show us that this world we take so lightly does actually have consequences and that the Black Comedy we're presented with has an edge of truth to it. It makes us actually concerned for the characters we enjoy watching so much.
The problem with season four is that there's no fun anymore. Everything is dark and depressing constantly. And it's not even particularly interesting about it. I could see the current plotlines working out if they were presented interestingly, but they're really not. The vamps-versus-slayers angle is played as cliche as possible with absolutely no attempt at moral ambiguity or presenting a reasonable rationale for why anyone does anything (and anything that looks like a reasonable rationale is immediately taken out and shot), and the wedding arc is constantly undercut by the fact that consequences don't seem to carry from episode to episode. (I mean, they must've done the tea thing successfully at some point, but this is never addressed.)
I also feel like the performances have gotten flat. Everyone speaks in the same dull monotone these days except Ingrid, the Count and Renfield, and even they're far more subdued than they were in previous seasons. Everyone just seems half asleep. This creates a new problem—not only is the show's world crashing down on a weekly basis but no one can bring themselves to seem like they actually give a shit.
Add to that the fact that the plot pivots around Erin and Malak, whom the show even concedes are one-note even without the performance issues mentioned above, and that Bertram, the most interesting new member of the cast, has been reduced from a Manipulative Bastard to Vlad's lackey, and you've got a thoroughly uninteresting show that seems to pride itself on taking itself far more seriously than it really deserves to.
Season Four: Darkness Induced Audience Apathy at its finest
Look, I like it when Young Dracula goes dark. I loved the end of season two, and the moments in season three where things got just as bad. But the reason I like this is because of the stark contrast it creates with the normally pretty goofy tone of the show. The darkness wasn't an end unto itself, it was to flesh out the universe and show us that this world we take so lightly does actually have consequences and that the Black Comedy we're presented with has an edge of truth to it. It makes us actually concerned for the characters we enjoy watching so much.
The problem with season four is that there's no fun anymore. Everything is dark and depressing constantly. And it's not even particularly interesting about it. I could see the current plotlines working out if they were presented interestingly, but they're really not. The vamps-versus-slayers angle is played as cliche as possible with absolutely no attempt at moral ambiguity or presenting a reasonable rationale for why anyone does anything (and anything that looks like a reasonable rationale is immediately taken out and shot), and the wedding arc is constantly undercut by the fact that consequences don't seem to carry from episode to episode. (I mean, they must've done the tea thing successfully at some point, but this is never addressed.)
I also feel like the performances have gotten flat. Everyone speaks in the same dull monotone these days except Ingrid, the Count and Renfield, and even they're far more subdued than they were in previous seasons. Everyone just seems half asleep. This creates a new problem—not only is the show's world crashing down on a weekly basis but no one can bring themselves to seem like they actually give a shit.
Add to that the fact that the plot pivots around Erin and Malak, whom the show even concedes are one-note even without the performance issues mentioned above, and that Bertram, the most interesting new member of the cast, has been reduced from a Manipulative Bastard to Vlad's lackey, and you've got a thoroughly uninteresting show that seems to pride itself on taking itself far more seriously than it really deserves to.