The Strain: Three Things We Liked About Del Toro’s Vampire Tale, And Two We Didn’t
Del Toro's latest was a mixed bag.
This article is more than 2 years old
Good: Abraham Setrakian, Elder Badass
Every good vampire tale needs a vampire slayer, and The Strain looks to serve that up in the form of Abraham, played with aplomb by David Bradley, who we loved last year in the role of original Doctor Who actor William Hartnell in the An Adventure Through Space and Time TV movie. Here, he’s a mysterious pawn shop owner who realizes the significance of the dead plane and sets out to warn the people in charge that bad things are a’coming unless they act quickly to stop them. He’s also saddled with the role of “Mr. Exposition,” but if you’ve got to have somebody on hand to explain what’s really going on to people who aren’t listening, you could certainly do worse than David Bradley.
Abraham’s introduction is also one of the best parts of the whole episode. A pair of thugs — including Weevil from Veronica Mars! — come in to hock an obviously stolen watch, and we’re told vampire expert Abraham pays good money for silver. (Naturally…) Abraham lowballs them for the watch, which pisses Weevil and his imposing comrade off, so when Abe turns his back, Weevil tries to grab a handful of money from the till. That ends with Weevil’s arm pinned at a painful angle and Abe pressing a knife against his brachial artery. Abe gets his cash back, plus a free gun from the other guy. Can we just make this whole show about Abraham?
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