What We Do in the Shadows has become one of the funniest comedies on television that’s not just a dream come true for horror fans, but it plays with traditional tropes of the genre in exciting new ways, particularly through the inclusion of vampire and ghost relationships in season 2.
It’s not uncommon for topics that are as popular as vampires to get parodied, but What We Do in the Shadows is simultaneously ridiculous and restrained when it comes to its approach. It’s built an impressive universe that’s full of fantastic characters that both feel like classic vampires, but are also completely unpredictable. The show’s first season has a lot of fun as it lampoons modern problems that these vampires face with their acclimation to society, but the second season goes even further in the area.
After What We Do in the Shadows gets a good hold on vampires as a subject, it’s slowly broadened its perspective to include more supernatural creatures. The first season looks at werewolves and the second season premiere tackles necromancers and zombies, all in ways that satisfy and subvert genre expectations. The season 2, episode 2, "Ghosts", explores the subject matter of ghosts and séances as What We Do in the Shadows dips into dark magic and the more mystical aspects of the supernatural.
What We Do In The Shadows Season 2: Vampires & Ghosts Relationships Explained
What We Do in the Shadows’ second episode of the season looks at the vampires as they perform a séance and entertain the idea of ghosts. Nadja is a believer, but the rest of the vampires are skeptical to such an idea. This skepticism quickly vanishes after the vampires consider that since they all died when they became vampires then they should all also have ghosts. This turns out to be exactly the case, and their séance produces ghostly duplicates of everyone. It’s a strange, but logical way for there to be two versions of each character.
The episode uses these ghostly versions of the cast as a way to reflect on who these characters have become since their deaths, which prompts some useful soul searching for these vampires. However, it also prompts them to help their spectre counterparts accomplish unfinished business in a strangely cathartic way. It’s a creative and refreshing way to tackle ghosts on the series, as well as a unique twist on both vampire and ghost lore, but in a way that genuinely makes sense. This episode of What We Do in the Shadows approaches many typical ghost stereotypes like ectoplasm and the idea of unfinished business, but the installment also brings up some unique premises, like how they can inhabit inanimate objects or that animals like horses also have ghosts.