A lot has happened in one day as The Strain starts to get into the meat of its story.  Seeing all of the characters we met last week is great, but now we have to prepare for the event that will turn the New York night life into something out of a horror movie. 

As Dr. Goodweather and Martinez are starting to think they might have an idea of what has happened on flight 753, they could not be more mistaken.  As the survivors off of the ghost plane have been quarantined, the doctors have to fight the clock as their higher ups are working against them.  When a report came out from the airline saying that there was a carbon dioxide leak that caused the deaths of the 206 passengers, Eph knows that they are just trying to cover up for whatever is really happening. 

Since the missing box has yet to be accounted for at the airport and now another body has been discovered with the same ammonia smell surrounding it, Eph knows that the CDC has to get more involved as the victim's head was smashed in.  Being called in by his boss, along with the head of disease control, Eph is told that the airlines report is the reason for the deaths on the plane and he will back off or get fired.  Being emotional about his work, Eph knows that it is not right and the chances getting fired increase when he grabs his boss and yells in his face.  He just wants to save lives and make sure that all of the surviving families get answers, but he will make sure it is the truth. 

Gus has made his delivery of the coffin that he transported out of the airport.  Having a set schedule on the delivery, he arrives to an empty garage and is intrigued by the box in the back.  Trying to get a quick look at whatever it is he has transported, the box starts to shift and Gus makes way back home before he gets caught doing whatever it is he is doing.  Being seen by his brother as lazy, Gus makes sure that he is the head of the house when his mother is not home.  Wanting to do right by his mom, Gus lights a fire under his brother’s ass to make sure he knows that there will nothing going down in the house hold that he does not approve of.

The four survivors from the flight have been released to go their own ways, but there is still something that is bugging them.  A humming or echo in their ears is making it hard for them to concentrate, but they are out of the quarantine and happy to be back to their normal lives.  When rock star Gabriel Bolivar returns to his wild life, he finds that there is something much worse wrong with him as his hair suddenly starts to fall out and he has a hunger for the blood pumping through the veins of his groupies.  The pilot of flight 753 also does not feel right, but agrees to go to the hospital at Eph’s request to have testing done and figure out what is really wrong with him.  

With no answer from the coroner’s office, Eph and Nora have to head down to see what the autopsies have turned up.  When finding that the office is abandoned, the two try to locate any signs of what happened, but all they discover is that all of the bodies taken from the plane are missing.  Although Eph did receive a call from a disgruntled parent, thanking him for his daughters return, Eph was not able to put it all together as he has no idea that the dead are able to stand up and walk again.

A great episode that seems to focus on who is going to be the dominant characters of the show, as each one has to display their power in one way or another.  All of the characters from the novel has been set, even a quick look at Vasiliy Fet who I hope will be more prominent in the series as the outbreak overtakes the city.  Not a strong episode for Abraham this week however, as he has been locked away for carrying a sword into the airport when trying to warn the doctors about what is about to happen.  Anyway, looking forward to the next episode and hope everyone is enjoying the show as much as I am.

After months upon months of waiting, The Strain has finally arrived and I will have to admit that it was worth the wait.  With the opening episode of the series gaining some praise around the camp fire, it is more of a dream come true to see a vampire story come to life that does not focus on the love, but rather the blood.

"Night Zero" opens up with a plane beginning to land, but there is something banging around the cargo hold and it seems to have terrible intentions for the flight attendants who open the door.  When the plane finally lands it goes dark and nobody aboard seems to be panicking.  The tower calls in the CDC to investigate what happened on the flight, but not knowing what they are up against, they suit up and find everyone on board dead.  Without showing signs of a struggle or bruising of any sort, the bodies are shipped off to the coroner’s office and have a rush placed on their autopsies to determine what happened. 

Upon further review of the plane, doctors Ephraim Goodweather and Nora Martinez find an ammonia based substance all over the interior of the plane and take note that it is biological.  When a few people on the plane wake up from their slumber, they are sent into quarantine and questioned to the hilt about what happened.  Nobody seems to have an idea of what happened and are no help to the investigation.  Eph is determined to find out what happened and when the cargo hold had been emptied, they found a large wooden coffin filled with dirt.  Not being able to trace where this strange box came from, they bag and tag it for further examination. 

Across town, Abraham Setrakian is running his pawn shop like so many days before.  Listening to the news of a ‘Dead Plane’ landing at JFK, he knows that there is something amiss and will have to step back into action once again.  Fighting off the threat so many years ago, Setrakian does not think he still has the power to defeat the ancient foe, and tries to warn the members of the CDC about what he knows.  Being blown off at the airport, Setrakian knows that evil has been released on the city and will have to find a way to get help to destroy the Master who is looking for blood.

I was very impressed with the opening episode of The Strain.  I must admit that I was worried about all of the delays they had been going through, but they did deliver a powerful show.  Now I am a stickler for accuracy to the books if a movie or show is based off of it, and although the show does not follow the book completely, you can see that they are trying to build up the characters much faster and I will applaud them for this decision.

I did expect to see a little bit more about the eclipse in this episode, as there are banners and signs hanging all around in the show, but I think they will have to wait as you were able to gain the first look at the Master already.  If you are looking for a new show to watch and have a love for vampires, I would give this a watch.  Although it is not the conventional form of a vampire, you will have to trust me when I say that you will not be disappointed.  A new breed of bloodsuckers has been needed and The Strain has accomplished just that….so far.  Until the next episode, Stay Scared.

So, I've decided that since Supernatural is such a huge part of my nerd life, that it was time I wrote a  "What I've Learned" blog about it. Mostly because, seriously, this show is fantastic. I've always had a love of all things supernatural period. I mean, what kid didn't love vampires growing up? No, seriously…I wanted to be a vampire so bad. When I found out Dracula wasn't real, I was utterly devastated. The brighter side is that vampires live on through the media. So do a lot of other fictional creatures and well, Supernatural happened. 

Before I even got into the show I had a lot of friends who were totally into it and here I was, refusing to even watch it, because so many people loved it. I know, I know, it's kind of wrong, but I was resisting. Then, Mattie watched it. The more she and a few of my friends talked about Sam and Dean, and even Castiel, I got interested in it. Especially when Castiel came on the show, because many a Tumblr post from friends was about him. Finally, I gave in and started watching the show with Mattie, around season 4. Now, I know. that's a huge no no. But, guys, listen. I couldn't help it. For whatever reason, I was attracted to watching Castiel and Dean's interactions. The more the two bickered and the more Sam was adorably Sam, the show caught my interest and it was all over. Before I knew it I was watching the show religiously. And then Gabriel came onto the show. Now, you all know my love for Gabriel. If you don't, let me tell you, it's a very intense love. I think that's just part of my Shae-charm though, I get obsessive about certain characters and that's just how it is.

Right, well, the show is more than just about pretty actors, it's actually got a lot of lore and what not in it. Which is part of what drew me to the show. I love lore, I love the theology and stories about Angels and all that encompasses. This show totally brought all that and more to the table. Take for example, ghosts. Supernatural taught me that if there is a ghost around, you need some rock salt and some iron. Apparently ghosts do not like rock salt, nor do they like iron. Why? How? I'm not going to pretend to understand the fictional science behind this. It might be actual science, (if you believe in ghosts), for all that I know, it's totally legit and I am not going to argue with facts. Especially when it comes to advice from Sam Winchester. If you're being attacked by a ghost, just hit them in the face with something iron, and then make a salt circle and hide in it. Because that's just smart. The only down side, is that ghosts, if they're powerful enough they can throw things, create wind, and disturb the salt circle. So really, the best way to deal with a ghost is to not deal with a ghost. But if there is a ghost, the only way to successfully get rid of them, for good, is to find the body, pour rock salt on it, then lighter fluid, and then burn it. Unless, of course, the ghost in question has attached itself to an intimate object of theirs. Lot of salt and burning. Oddly, I'm okay with this. And yes, I have literally slept with the salt on my bedside table after watching a scary ghost movie. Truth.

Next is that vampires are not as awesome as I thought. Supernatural vampires have all their teeth sharp. Like, sharks, but super strong people-sharks. Forget the wooden steaks, the only way to kill an actual vampire is to cut off their head. I'm sure lighting them on fire doesn't hurt, but seriously, they're freaky. On another note, their vampires do share a common lore. In order to be turned, you don't have to be bitten, per se, but you do have to drink the blood of a vampire. It's a common lore that I've always loved reading about. Which is probably why I'm not too big a fan of True Blood. Actually, in fairness, I've never seen that show. So I have no room to judge it at all. That being said, Supernatural vampires retain beyond human strength, and minor seduction skills. They also follow the 'Alpha' vampire ideal. Where the master vampire that was the first, has control over any and all existing vampires, regardless of if he turned them or not. Crazy, right? Completely. It's along the same lines of the original Dracula story line. And it's those myths I grew up with, so it's somewhat nostalgic. Also, their werewolves are pretty cool. 

Supernatural explores a lot of monster myths, many of which I didn't even know about. The most popular, however, is their angels and demons story arcs. I'm a huge fan of angel mythology, and that of demons. Back when I was in college, I took a Bible as Literature course just so I had an excuse to research angels. Though, I'm pretty sure I don't need an excuse for that. The angels in the show are not what the modern depiction of what an angel is. Angels are supposed to be kind, life saving, self sacrificing beings. Unless they're in Supernatural, then the angels are kind of manipulative, selfish, jerks. Which is pretty fantastic. There's almost a human element to them. Yet, they still retain their otherworldly appeal. Their angels do have wings, but they are shown in the form of shadows. Nothing like what they're depicted as in art. Which I find fascinating since there is so many interpretations of what angels actually look like. Supernatural taught me, though, not to trust the angels. Granted, you can't trust the demons either. Except Crowley. You can always trust that Crowley is in it for himself and will do whatever he can to get what he wants. The end. 

Above all, Supernatural, while just a TV show, taught me about family. Not all blood is family, and not all family is blood. It's a strange and amazing concept. There's nothing Sam and Dean won't do for each other and that's how I feel about my family. Family is what you make it to be, what you choose for it to mean. You can't always pick who you're related to, but you can pick who you consider to be your family. Like the family I have and the one I have also created. For a show on the CW network, it's got a lot of deep insight that has really hit home. I think that is why I torture myself through every painful season finale, and every wondrous moment. 

Also, seriously, rock salt is a must to now own.