Moonlight (1.14)

Friday, May 2nd, 2008 @ 9 PM
CBS
Moonlight - Season 1 - Episode 14 - "Click"

CBS

A rising Hollywood Starlet is murdered after she hires Mick as part of her security detail. (CBS.com)

Manatee: I know last week I tore this show apart. I shamed myself by admitting that I would watch it again, and then CBS lets me down. As you can see from the photo that I have chosen above, this show is about the murky, dark, scary underworld of Los Angeles vampires. What has been so attractive about this series is seeing a new, different side of LA then the glamed up super-celebrity world of HBO's Entourage. However, episode #14 from Friday is making it hard for me to stick up for this series... again.

There were "celebrities" left and right, and paparazzi (I knew it was only a matter of time before paparazzi revealed their true selves - vampires! haha, alittle LA humor) trailing right and left. They filmed the "usual" LA spots - fancy outdoor cafes, shiny new cars, studio lots. I liked the downtown loft at night (mostly because no one in their right mind goes downtown after sunset, unless of course you are a vampire), the unpretentious beach apartment, the outdoor parks, the beach, the morgue. What happened to those? I used to forget it took place in the entertainment capitol, while still celebrating LA's architecture and it's dark underbelly. "Click" was too "industry" as they say here in LA. It had the "riped from the headlines" feel of Law & Order, only ripped from the "Perez Hilton" headlines (if you don't know Perez Hilton, check out: perezhilton.com, that will answer all your questions).

The episode was shot almost entirely during the day. It was too bright for my Friday 9 pm eyes. Though the story did revolve around a murder, the tone was still a little too light and fluffy for me. I want the dark morbidity back. The writing and characters were so cliche. The brooding Emo rock star with long dark hair, a purple velvet blazer, and the record that's almost hit. The Hollywood Starlet with the short skirt and fast car (did the teaser remind anyone else of CSI Miami?) who drives Beth crazy with jealousy. The psycho stalking paparazzi who blackmails the starlet. The money stealing manager. The overzealous security man who says "trust me," and then turns... oh wait, that's just Mick, vampire; America's Sweetheart; your favorite Friday night PI.

Just on a story level: how, all of a sudden, did Mick turn into security as opposed to a PI? And why did he take such a liking to the starlet? The writer created this character to make Beth jealous, to stir a little controversy between her and Mick... and the new ADA Benjamin Talbot (Eric Winter) - I smell a threesome.