Being Human (UK)



""So, a werewolf, a ghost and a vampire decide to live like humans do. They get jobs, a house, and a TV license.""

- Herrick

Being Human is a BBC Supernatural Soap Opera created by Toby Whithouse (of Doctor Who and Torchwood fame) about a pair of friends: Mitchell, a Friendly Neighborhood Vampire; and George, a geeky and uptight Wolf Man. They already work together, as a porter and cleaner at a hospital, but decide to get a place together, thinking that it will help them set up the routine and structure each of them needs to overcome their curses and live as normally as possible. However, on moving to a new house, they discover that it is haunted -- by the ghost of a young woman called Annie, who has major confidence issues and is unclear on the circumstances of her death.

The Pilot aired to great reviews in 2008, as part of the rebranding of BBC Three. It was renewed for six episodes, despite initial misgivings on the part of the executives, because of the unexpected love for it.

The series was retooled, causing much fear in the people who loved the Pilot, but the changes that were made seem to be for the better.

The second series began filming in late summer 2009 and started airing in early 2010. It was eight episodes long, two more episodes than the first series. The third series, which incorporates a setting change from Bristol to Barry Island, Wales, aired in 2011. The fourth series remained in Barry Island, and finished airing in March 2012.

There's a Canadian-made remake, which re-sets the story in Boston. It started airing on Sy Fy in January 2011.

There is a web spin-off, Becoming Human and a fifth series has been scheduled for some time in 2013.

Not to be confused with the 1994 film of the same name. Or a Portal fanfic by Insane Guy of DOOM.

Provides examples of:
"Josie: Oh right, I thought perhaps you were a wizard or something.
 * Abandoned Hospital: Or at least Abandoned Hospital ward.
 * Accidental Kiss: Mitchell and Annie.
 * Accidental Murder:
 * Actor Allusion: Perhaps it's good we only learn McNair's first name after he's been killed. The cognitive dissonance upon finding out it's is significant for Wire in The Blood fans.
 * Affably Evil: Ivan. Also Herrick.
 * Alternative Character Interpretation: In-universe example: when watching Phantom of the Opera, Mitchell and George can sympathise with the Phantom running from a Torches and Pitchforks wielding mob.
 * Aliens in Cardiff:
 * Vampires plotting world domination in Bristol.
 * Series 3 reveals that similar things are going on in Wales as well. Possible Stealth Pun Lampshade Hanging?
 * Amnesiacs Are Innocent: A vampire resurrected without his memories is innocent and unaffected by religious items.
 * And Your Little Dog Too: In the first episode of the series (i.e. the one after the pilot) Mitchell receives this threat nearly word for word with regards to George when he chooses to side with humans, not vampires.
 * Anyone Can Die: Dear God.
 * Apocalyptic Log: George's prequel is camcorder footage of an American tourist with George. First it gets dark out on the moor, then we see the full moon, then they hear approaching howling, then they see a sheep that's been torn apart. After running further the camera gets dropped, and we hear the werewolf attack, and later see George bleeding from a shoulder wound and the American gruesomely killed.
 * Arbitrary Skepticism:
 * Apocalyptic Log: George's prequel is camcorder footage of an American tourist with George. First it gets dark out on the moor, then we see the full moon, then they hear approaching howling, then they see a sheep that's been torn apart. After running further the camera gets dropped, and we hear the werewolf attack, and later see George bleeding from a shoulder wound and the American gruesomely killed.
 * Arbitrary Skepticism:
 * Apocalyptic Log: George's prequel is camcorder footage of an American tourist with George. First it gets dark out on the moor, then we see the full moon, then they hear approaching howling, then they see a sheep that's been torn apart. After running further the camera gets dropped, and we hear the werewolf attack, and later see George bleeding from a shoulder wound and the American gruesomely killed.
 * Arbitrary Skepticism:

George: A wizard? That's ridiculous.

Josie: Once you've dated a vampire you change your criteria for what's ridiculous."

"Annie: Give me back my FUCKING baby!"
 * George is rebuked for this again in series 2, by Nina, for describing a possible cure for lycanthropy as "insane".
 * As Himself: Sir Terry Wogan as Sir Terry Wogan in Series 2 Episode 2.
 * As the Good Book Says: Kemp is good at this. Evidently the audition for his part involved reading out a random Bible verse and seeing how many people had fled the room by the end of it.
 * Mr. Snow gets some nice creepy lines too.
 * The Atoner: Mitchell.
 * Hal also fits.
 * Babies Make Everything Better: Despite the possible risk of
 * Back From the Dead:
 * Badass: Mitchell, Hal, McNair, Tom. George and Annie have their moments too.
 * Bad Future:
 * Beastly Bloodsports: Vampires in this universe take the traditional dog fight and crank it up a notch. The result? Werewolf fights.
 * Because You Were Nice to Me: Brutally subverted by Herrick and . He points out that really what he wants is to   but invokes this trope as the reason he's going to spare her and promptly leaves. Then
 * Beware the Nice Ones: When Annie gets angry, she gains telekinetic powers. Really awesome telekinetic powers. And blue eyes.
 * George frequently lapses into this as it gets nearer the full moon, as well as the time he took sedatives to prevent his transformation. In that instance, while it worked, he began to exhibit mild Tourette's and issues controlling his anger while in human-form. George believed that the wolf inside him knew what he'd done and was pissed off as a result.
 * Annie storming into the warehouse in The War Child, curb stomping several of the Old Ones and then uttering the following words;

"George: ...That would have made more sense."
 * Beware the Silly Ones: Kirby is camp and acts like a caring uncle, but he's a manipulative serial killer who manages to drive the house apart, (temporarily) kill Annie and comes very close to killing Eve.
 * Big Bad Ensemble: As of season four, Cutler and Fergus. Unusually for this trope, they're working for the same Bigger Bads, the, but in vastly different ways and in competition to each other.
 * It ends in episode 3 though, when.
 * Perhaps a better example would be the fact that there are currently two seemingly-unconnected parties out to kill Eve: the Old Ones, as represented by Cutler and Fergus since they're not in the country yet, who want to destroy the girl prophesied to kill them all, and an unidentified woman from the future, represented by  since she's apparently stuck in the afterlife, who knows something no-one else does which means the baby has to die. Bigger Bad Ensemble, perhaps?
 * Big Damn Heroes: The way Annie takes out Kemp and
 * Big No:
 * Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Taken Up to Eleven by . He gets very close to his victims, becoming almost part of the family, so he can kill them later, making sure to orphan the child first before he kills them.
 * Bi the Way: Seth mentions a male student, a couple in the park and a threesome with Herrick; all Mitchell's, ahem, conquests. Although he was talking about blood, it's far from a stretch to assume that sex was involved, especially given that Mitchell has stated he finds it "difficult to separate them".
 * Blatant Lies: Mitchell and George's landlord Owen wonders why their flat is almost entirely empty, the real reason being that George is a werewolf and accidentally destroyed most of the furniture when he transformed the night before. Eager to make up an excuse, George gives a long rambling explanation about minimalist living. Owen says he would have just thought they were redecorating.

"Hal: We found a dead dog... in the oven."
 * Hal isn't much better when he wants to leave work early in series 4.

"Annie: They were really angry when I They said they don't have a form for that..."
 * Bloody Murder: Werewolf blood is toxic to vampires.
 * This isn't introduced until Series 4. Before that, Lauren was happily munching on Werewolf blood.
 * Body Horror: Werewolf transformations. It's not pretty, it's not quick and it's definitely not painless. They just feel every one of their bones breaking and their major organs failing. Werewolves actually look worse half-transformed than when full-wolf.
 * What happens to a vampire when.
 * Bondage Is Bad:
 * George and Nina rescue Adam from a vampire sex party. Justified because Adam is a child, at least technically.
 * A season earlier when George buys a cage for the wolf and the ironmonger thinks he's buying it for BDSM. Everyone thinks it's perfectly normal, except George who's pretty weirded out.
 * Bottle Episode: Season 3 episode 5 takes place almost entirely within Honolulu Heights.
 * Break Her Heart To Save Her:.
 * Break the Cutie: Kirby does this to Tom and Annie when he tries to fragment the group, driving Tom to run away and drink heavily for the first time in his life. He actually breaks Annie so much she disintegrates.
 * Bullying a Dragon: Vampires, as a species, tend towards doing this to werewolves 27 days out of every 28. The other day (or, rather, night?) werewolves win very, very hard if the two are trapped together. Especially potent cases exist where a group of Vampires decide to run 'dog fights', and bully the dragon on the 28th night as well. See the Fur Against Fang entry below.
 * Bury Your Gays: Dan was bit and killed by his lover Carl, a vampire who had, up until then, abstained from blood. Not wanting to curse him with being a vampire, Carl let Dan die in lieu of turning him.
 * Bus Crash:
 * , as well as Wyndham, apparently killed in revenge by.
 * California Doubling: Filmed in Barry, near Cardiff, and the Welsh road signs highlight it. The Welshness is lampshaded to much glee in the new series.
 * Casual Danger Dialog:
 * Lauren after : "Well, he won't be staring at my tits when he speaks to me any more".
 * The Inquisitor asking for more light and wondering about the order of the execution of vampires ("Do we start with the children first?") in the beginning of S2E4.
 * Cerebus Syndrome: For something that was originally conceived as a comedy series, Season 2 is basically the bleakest eight hours of television this side of Torchwood: Children of Earth.
 * Celestial Bureaucracy: The afterlife that doesn't involve the men with sticks and ropes is an interminable series of waiting rooms and forms to fill out.

"Cara: Herrick didn't kill me. He chose me because I was special. He made me part of the master race!"
 * Chekhov's Gun: You can't Rent-a-Ghost with a living thing.
 * Tom's hoarding of strange objects and his enquiry about cooking oil from his interview.
 * Chekhov's Gunman: In the first episode George briefly bumps into a strange man hanging around in the woods who looks as if he might be waiting for a rape/murder/both victim to show up. He isn't and he's quite important in the second episode.
 * The Chosen One:
 * Cluster F Bomb: Lampshaded in Series 3 Episode 7 when Tom questions George about it.
 * Comically Missing the Point: In one episode George is considering moving out with his new girlfriend, and he and Annie are arguing about it. However, Mitchell can't get past the fact that Annie blurted out that George considered wearing skinny jeans at one point.
 * Continuity Nod: George and Mitchell love The Real Hustle, in one episode it being moved to a different time precipitates a breakdown. In Series 4 ep 3 Hal and Tom watch it together for a moment but neither like it; they instead switch to a program they both enjoy, Antiques Roadshow.
 * Cursed With Awesome:
 * In the first post-pilot episode Mitchell says he only became a vampire willingly to save the lives of his men (in World War One); the immediate reply by the Big Bad and fellow vamp is "How noble of you; cursed with immortality whilst they withered and died in hospitals and old people's homes".
 * McNair feels this way about being a werewolf. "When bones break, they repair stronger, when skin tears, it heals tougher." George is mentioned to pack a pretty powerful punch an episode later so this is possibly true.
 * Darker and Edgier: Not that the first series was a musical comedy, but the second series already appears to be heading in definitely took a darker direction. And then we hit Series Three...
 * And Series 4.. good god Series 4!
 * So far, Series 4 seems to be injecting some more comedy back into proceedings.
 * Say that again.
 * Dating Catwoman: Mitchell/Lauren, Mitchell/Daisy, averted with Mitchell/Lucy.
 * Dead Man Writing: Tully's message to George in the second series finale.
 * Deconstruction: Of all the excuses Vampires use to justify their crimes.
 * Defector From Decadence: Mitchell turns his back on the other vampires after Lauren, who he'd turned into a vampire, attacks one of his colleagues. Borders on My Species Doth Protest Too Much.
 * Despair Event Horizon: And then again at the end of season three, when he
 * pushed Cutler past this by . Had this not happened, Cutler may not be so evil.
 * Deus Ex Machina: Annie
 * Devil but No God: There's something in charge of the life after death. Annie has apparently gotten it really angry by not accepting death. But the afterlife that awaits everyone is a blood red corridor with "Men with sticks and men with ropes" waiting at the end doesn't sound too heavenly.
 * People who have been generally good and are accepting of their death tend to enter a door with a beautiful blue light. It's possible there is a good afterlife, we just haven't seen or heard of what's behind the door.
 * Digging Yourself Deeper:
 * George is pretty good (or bad, he'd probably think) at these. Especially when Tully is about...
 * When Annie tries to warn Janey that Owen is a murderer, she accidentally implies that she's going to cut Janey's feet off. Janey is understandably freaked. The fact that Janey knows Annie is dead probably doesn't help things.
 * Disco Dan: Gilbert, lanky Manc who died in The Eighties.
 * Distant Prologue: The Cold Opens of series two and three are flashbacks to Mitchell's Mysterious Past (except one that shows Ivan recruiting Daisy).
 * Series four occasionally does the same, one such prologue being some centuries in the past.
 * Does This Remind You of Anything:
 * Near the end of S1E2, Tully's interactions with George look and sound a lot like attempted rape.
 * Mitchell's very chilling line "Once a smoker, always a smoker". Word of God has said that the series deliberately equates lycanthropy and death to drug addiction.
 * George's situation is similar to someone who got a treatable but incurable STD as a result of being attacked.
 * Mitchell's former gang's attack on George is played out a lot like a gay-bashing.
 * Series 3, the vampire leadership is living in South America, plotting future world domination from their hiding places, while covert operatives run a underground railway to ferry vampires there who have attracted too much attention. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ratlines_
 * The Nazi parallel comes back in a later episode:
 * The Nazi parallel comes back in a later episode:


 * And then is made more or less explicit in Making History with
 * Do Wrong Right: When George finds "Mr. Sands suck cocks" written on the bathroom mirror in the building where he teaches English as a second language, his response is to take out a marker and correct the grammar.
 * Dreaming the Truth: Molly, Sam's daughter.
 * Dying As Yourself: Lauren asks for an assisted suicide with this justification.
 * Emergency Transformation: Mitchell refuses once, but gives in on a later occasion.
 * Enemy Within: This is how George sees "the wolf". He's probably right, but avoiding the problem doesn't help.
 * Mr. Fanservice: Mitchell. Vampire + smokes + Irish accent + perma-stubble + dark past + The Atoner = ultimate bad boy.
 * Hal is fast becoming this. A dark haired pretty boy vampire with OCD tics, and who happens to like doing push ups shirtless.
 * Evil Feels Good: All vampires seem to suffer from this.  in Series 4 implies this is partly why he became a serial killer.
 * Facecam: Rather Narmishly when George nearly transforms in public. The dodgy teeth don't help.
 * Faking the Dead:.
 * Falling in Love Montage: Tom and Allison.
 * Fan Boy: Graham in series 3 to Mitchell. Mitchell is not pleased, and it does not end well.
 * Fan Disservice:
 * Any time a character appears naked, they're either covered in blood or in excruciating pain.
 * Anything involving a naked Herrick.
 * Fantastic Racism: As noted in Fur Against Fang, vampires hate werewolves.
 * Fantastic Science: Jaggat's motivation for helping Kemp. Unfortunately she's prevented from letting scientific rigour get in the way of Burn the Witch.
 * Fate Worse Than Death: Being a Type 4. You'll be alive enough to feel pain, but dead enough to survive without your major organs,  You're trapped in your body for several weeks after 'death,' until it decays enough that it simply can't sustain your soul any more, during which time it can't recover from any injuries you sustain, and you can feel yourself decomposing on the inside.
 * Faux Affably Evil: Herrick tends to act like this, as well as several of the other vampires and in Series 4.
 * Fingerless Gloves: Mitchell wears them. Began as actor Aidan Turner's attempt to keep warm; looked so hip they stayed.
 * Foe Tossing Charge: Well, more of a "Foe Tossing Strut". In the series one finale
 * She repeats this trick at the end of Series 4.
 * Foreshadowing: Hal curses at Tom after he gets Tom's blood on him.
 * Foe Yay: Mitchell/Herrick, complete with a lampshade hanging from Lauren.
 * Plus Mitchell/Lauren and George/Tully. Hell, pretty much the only villain there's no Foe Yay with is Annie's murderer Owen, which is ironic, as he was her fiancee.
 * Daisy/George, which seems to border on Dating Catwoman.
 * Daisy/George, which seems to border on Dating Catwoman.

""You walked unharmed from a plane crash.""
 * Forgotten Birthday: While not the only factor this led to Tom attacking Hal.
 * To be fair he was being manipulated by Kirby.
 * For Want of a Nail: If Leo hadn't heard Eve's voice telling him to visit the War Child, Hal would be basically Hitler. Yeah.
 * Freudian Excuse:  implies during his Motive Rant that he hates to see happy families because his own family tore itself apart when he was a kid.
 * Cutler is only evil because  and he wants to make his vampire-dad proud.
 * Friendly Neighborhood Vampires:
 * Played mostly straight (Mitchell) and subverted (Herrick, Daisy and Ivan).
 * As of Series Three, Mitchell is also a subversion, or at least a deconstruction.
 * Fur Against Fang: Vampires loathe werewolves, for whatever reason: they'll call them "dogs" and "freaks" to their faces, and beat up werewolves with no provocation. Mitchell is treated with suspicion by the other vampires for hanging around with George. What werewolves think of vampires isn't as clear -- werewolves seem to be extremely rare -- but they mostly seem content just to give the "psychotic bastards" a wide berth.
 * It's probably got something to do with the fact that a werewolf is almost defenceless against vampires twenty-seven days out of twenty-eight, but on the right night, they can tear even powerful vampires to shreds. It may also be pheromonal. Several times vampires take a whiff of George and act revolted. Then again Daisy had no problems doing the dirty (well he was as well) with George.
 * It may be a case of hating what you fear. Despite their bluster and bravado you get the feeling that the vampires who beat on George do so due to the little bit of fear his kind brings out in them. Even Herrick looks fearful about facing a werewolf in close quarters with no escape route. Technically Werewolves are their superior killing-wise. McNair's comments about the curse sometimes being a blessing imply that it's not just on full moons that werewolves are much more threatening than normal humans are to vampires - and Mitchell's reaction to being punched by George in the same episode seems to support the suggestion that werewolves become much tougher with numerous changes.
 * Genghis Gambit: Cutler's plan revolves around revealing the existence of the supernatural to mortals, then convincing them that vampires are the lesser of two evils.
 * Genre Savvy: Cutler in Season 4 is particularly so, suggesting that vampires take over the world by turning humans against werewolves first to distract them, rather than idiotically invading Britain as the Old Ones plan. He also befriends Tom by freeing him from a police cell, convincing him that he is a "good vampire" and reducing the chance of getting violently staked by him.
 * Ghost Amnesia: Annie forgets that Owen killed her. Most ghosts seem to forget their deaths in the short term, judging by the shock when they notice.
 * Ghostly Goals
 * turned out to be
 * Glamour Failure: Vampires don't show up on film, which makes the vampire pornography... surreal.
 * Good Shepherd: The hospital chaplain.
 * Good Times Montage: At the end of S3E1, once.
 * Go Through Me: Lampshaded when Regus chooses to help the house-mates protect Eve from a vampire hit-squad. He's fully aware that as a scholar he's got no fighting skills and will barely slow them down, but it's the thought that counts.
 * Hand or Object Underwear: George frequently does this after stripping naked prior to his transformations. He does it even when nobody else is present, which indicates a certain amount of discomfort with himself.
 * Haunted Headquarters: Mitchell and George are able to find a city centre house dirt-cheap because it's haunted by Annie. They don't want to stay there after she moves on.
 * Headbutt of Love: Done several times between different characters.
 * Heroic BSOD:
 * Annie, in S1E5.
 * Also briefly happens to George and Mitchell after Annie is forced through the door at the end of series 2.
 * in S3E8.
 * at the end of series 4.
 * Heterosexual Life Partners: Mitchell and George.
 * Hilariously Abusive Childhood: Tom. Series 4 repeatedly demonstrates just how maladjusted he is after years of being raised by McNair in isolation. A good example is his clear surprise that people actually celebrate their birthdays by having parties, something he claims never to have had as McNair didn't believe in them.
 * Historical in Joke: Seth, one of Herrick's lackeys, is revealed in Series 2's ARG to have been the infamous Highgate Vampire who prowled Highgate Cemetery and was sighted many times in the 1970's. Having such high-profile media attention is probably why the other vampires regard him as being a total moron.
 * Holier Than Thou: Kemp, to he- er, to infinity and beyond.
 * The afterlife (a mix between Celestial Bureaucracy and your standard hell dimension) should prove an UN-pleasant surprise...especially as everyone winds up in the hands of "The men with sticks and men with ropes and men with black black feathers on their black black wings".
 * Holy Burns Evil: Vampires can be repelled by crucifixes, Stars of David and reading scripture from the Bible, cringing away and being unable to look directly at holy symbols. Using combinations of these makes the effect more powerful. However if there are multiple vampires the repelling effect becomes weaker. If the holy symbol is covered than it has no effect on the vampire, and vampires can bypass the symbol's effect if they've recently drunk blood.
 * Home By Christmas: The Old Ones figure that they can land their vampire troops on the coast of Britain and simply march inland, slaughtering all opposition until they have conquered the country. A modern vampire keeps pointing out that the plan is stupid and with modern communication humans will be able to coordinate their defences and the invading vampires will face an army within hours of starting the attack.
 * Horny Devils: Series 4 introduces Yvonne, a succubus unaware of her nature. Succubi in this universe are the daughters of demons and women. They become irresistible to men once they touch her, at which point she will appear to them in erotic dreams and obsess over her. If they are taken away from her presence for long enough, the effect fades. If a succubus sleeps with a man he will die. They can also see ghosts, of course, as they are supernatural creatures.
 * Horror Hunger: Blood addiction. It causes a craving similar to drug withdrawal, and even once that passes vampires still want to feed due to basic addiction, and because if they drink blood they don't have to constantly remember all the people they've killed.
 * And Hal says that going back to it after coming off it makes it even worse.
 * Humans Are Bastards: The vampiric justification for running amok sucking blood.
 * Hybrid Overkill Avoidance: Vampires are unable to turn werewolves because werewolf blood is poison to them. No explanation has been offered for why no other supernatural hybrids exist, but werewolves who attack vampires in wolf-form seem more inclined to kill them than turn them, and a (less-than-trustworthy) ghost dismisses the idea of werewolf-ghosts as 'ridiculous' without offering much explanation.
 * Werewolf ghosts have been seen to exist briefly, but they've all made the transition to the afterlife straight away.
 * I Ate What: The Horror Hunger in this show can lead to this. Both  experience this at the hands at one another, with their love interests   and   being the "what". The former leads to   Monster Sob Story and the latter is a result of it.
 * Idiot Ball: In "A Spectre Calls" a mysterious stranger enters the house and quickly pits the flatmates against each other. Granted, Hal doesn't trust him and Tom is rather naive, but Annie has no excuse for falling for Kirby's machinations because this is the third time this has happened to her. Do the names Tully and Herrick not ring any bells?
 * I Cannot Self Terminate:.
 * I Hate You Vampire Dad: Lauren hates Mitchell who hates Herrick.
 * Subverted by Cutler towards  - he's kind of bipolar on the hate issue there.
 * I Know You Are in There Somewhere Fight:
 * Subverted with Mark, the hospital chaplain, to since the verbal sparring is there, just not the fisticuffs.
 * Word for word in the series 2 finale from George, also without the punching. Would you hit an angry Mitchell?
 * Improvised Weapon: At the start of series 4, fearing an attack by vampires on the house, George has constructed crucifixes using any spare material in the house, including twigs tied together.
 * Indirect Kiss: In the first episode, Annie kisses a bottle her former fiancée has been drinking from because she can't kiss him any more.
 * Industrialized Evil: Herrick kept humans locked in a cellar for feeding... and forced them to stay hooked into IV's to keep feeding easily. Like a wine cellar.
 * Series 3 had a vampire couple who "adopted" willing blood donors into S&M styled bondage. Still racked up a body count, yet the donors were still completely consensual.
 * Infant Immortality:.
 * Invisible to Normals: Annie, when she's in a down mood or because of unknown, external, supernatural forces.
 * Irishman and A Jew: Mitchell is an overconfident Irishman, George is a shy Jew.
 * Ironic Echo: Several long-delayed ones from Cutler to Hal, after.
 * I See Dead People: Ghosts, vampires, werewolves, zombies and succubi can all see ghosts. Mediums can only hear them.
 * I Shall Taunt You: One of strategies for trying to get
 * It Always Rains At Funerals: the funeral of
 * It Got Worse: Every. Single. Time.
 * Jacob Marley Apparel: Annie's stuck in the outfit she died in.
 * But considering she died in 2007 and people are still wearing leggings, she thinks she was pretty fashion-forward.
 * Just Friends: Annie with both of her flatmates. Played straight with George as their relationship strongly resembles that of squabbling siblings. With Mitchell it seems to be slightly more ambiguous and could go anywhere. Until Season 3, that is. Annie and Mitchell are a couple now.
 * Kavorka Man: Gender Flip. Yvonne the succubus is a Kavorka Woman.
 * Kid Seeing What Kids Shouldn't See:
 * Bernie seeing the Snuff Film.
 * George starting to transform in a school. Poor Molly...
 * Killed Off for Real: Staking a vampire is supposedly a permanent death with no chance of a resurrection. The Series 3 finale does this to.
 * The first episode of Series 4
 * And as of the end of Series 4,.
 * Knights Templar:
 * Jaggat's organisation seems to think that its mission against supernatural creatures is a holy one, though Jaggat seems to lean more on the For Science angle.
 * Kemp is this trope personified though. While the others are really just a bunch of poor luckless idiots brainwashed by Kemp's dogma who really only want to help, Kemp is this trope in its most psychotic form.
 * Last Name Basis: Mitchell, Herrick, Tully, McNair and Kemp.
 * La Résistance: A network of humans and at least some werewolves fight against vampires
 * Legal Jailbait: Adam is physically in his mid-teens, but is chronologically in his 40s, and the actor is 20.
 * Limited Wardrobe: Annie is forever trapped in the clothes she was wearing when she died, although there is some variation. It's not definite, but it seems as though the clothes get more form-fitting the stronger and more confident she becomes, and when she's more insecure and scared, she has more layers to hide herself in.
 * Looking for Love In All The Wrong Places: All of the main characters have made some spectacularly stupid romantic choices.
 * Magic Pants: Averted. Poor George doesn't get Magic Pants when he transforms into a werewolf.
 * Mama Bear: A vampire tried to kill Eve, so Annie telekinetically tore the knife from his hands before killing him. The next person to make an attempt on Eve's life wisely decided to trick Annie into undergoing ghostly dissipation first. Annie dragged herself back into reality just to stop him from laying a finger on her semi-adopted daughter.
 * Man Behind the Man: Professor  Jaggat
 * Manipulative Bastard:
 * Nina, in "The Longest Day". She plays the social worker like a fiddle and it's brutal to watch.
 * in Season 4 is the epitome of this. He completely plays Tom and Annie, and once he realises he can't guide Hal, he manipulates Tom and Annie into driving him from the house.
 * Masquerade
 * Master Race: The more evil vampires consider themselves to be this. Dominating humans openly has been a topic of discussion for centuries, but nothing has come of it so far. Herrick & Co. managed to "recruit" quite a few new vampires in preparation for some kind of takeover, but it didn't work out.
 * May December Romance: Might not apply as they're both vampires but Ivan was 237 years old in 2010, whereas Daisy was still human during WWII, making her less than 100.
 * Meaningful Name: Lia..
 * Also "Eve"  in season four, and stated to be the first of her kind.
 * The Messiah: Eve is the War Child; prophecied to defeat the vampires and prevent the takeover of Earth.
 * Million to One Chance: McNair, prior to becoming a werewolf, was chosen by Herrick to be the victim in a cage fight. McNair won out of sheer luck.
 * Also "Eve"  in season four, and stated to be the first of her kind.
 * The Messiah: Eve is the War Child; prophecied to defeat the vampires and prevent the takeover of Earth.
 * Million to One Chance: McNair, prior to becoming a werewolf, was chosen by Herrick to be the victim in a cage fight. McNair won out of sheer luck.

"George: That was pathetic! We were, like, the world's gayest ninjas."
 * Mind Over Matter: Ghosts seem to be able to do this as standard. Annie tends to throw things (accidentally or on purpose) around when she's angry, and  uses it to stop a man's heart.
 * Mind Rape:
 * Owen pulls a Sylar-worthy feat of "mundane" Mind Rape on Annie in S1E5. First, he does it as he's comforting his current girlfriend, who's freaked-out because a ghost was talking to her, trying to warn her about him. Second, he denies Annie's very existence whilst he's looking her straight in the eye with a shit-eating grin: "I don't see... anything". Then he twists the knife by admitting that he was cheating on Annie when she was still alive. Evil. Annie ends up in a Heroic BSOD till George pulls her out of it.
 * Bonus points for the fact that the actress playing Annie had no idea what the actor playing Owen was about to say. When she gets all freaked out and is leaning against the wall looking horrified? That was Lenora Crichlow's actual reaction!
 * Mistaken for Gay:
 * George and Mitchell, more than once, but most notably by the estate agent in the pilot. George is indignant, but Mitchell has fun playing along just to make everyone uncomfortable.
 * Reality Subtext made it even funnier when you consider the actor playing George is actually gay in Real Life.
 * Monsters Anonymous: Mitchell's attempt at reforming all the vampires in the city. Surprisingly, it worked.
 * Monster Mash: You've got a vampire, werewolf, and ghost girl living in the same house. How is that not awesome?
 * Monster Sob Story: Cutler
 * Mood Whiplash: The whole of S 04 E 01 seems to be made of this, to the extent where you don't know if you're laughing or crying.
 * Never Trust a Trailer: Only a minor example: In most promotional material (such as the picture at the top of this page), Annie is depicted as slightly transparent with a faint aura. Neither effect is present in the show.
 * Nice Job Breaking It Hero:  may have resolved one problem but as it turns out in series 2 the repercussions involve   Though things are tentatively getting better... wait... Nope, actually it's getting back to worse.
 * Annie staking the vampire who was going to silence by turning  was arguably done with the best intentions. However it then leads to , and even worse,.
 * And Herrick
 * Nightmare Fetishist: Number Seven, and his six (rather short-lived) predecessors, who gets off on being a self-replenishing blood bag for a yuppie vampire couple. To put his role into perspective even the Fangbangers on True Blood get more respect from the vampires.
 * Non Action Guy: George is a nerd, somewhat meek, and soft-hearted. When he attempts a rescue with Annie, it's hardly pulse-pounding action, and he knows it:
 * Non Action Guy: George is a nerd, somewhat meek, and soft-hearted. When he attempts a rescue with Annie, it's hardly pulse-pounding action, and he knows it:


 * Having become annoyed at being targeted by vampires following killing Herrick, George attempts to fight back in the first episode of series two. Sadly ineffective, and there was something unsettlingly desperate in it.

"George: No, I'm not going paint-balling again, not after last time."
 * No Name Given:  Herrick,   Tully and   McNair only ever are referred to by their surname. We only learn their first names   And let's not forget John Mitchell, who is almost universally known by his last name.
 * Cutler is known by his last name through most of S4, it isn't until the second to last episode we find you his first name.
 * Nonhuman Lover Reveal:
 * George is interested in his colleague Nina, but is unsure how much he should tell her about his condition, or when. Supernatural Angst ensues.
 * A variation occurs in series 2 with Annie and Saul; each of them is hiding a supernatural secret. It ends badly.
 * Noodle Incident: After Annie suggests the gang do something to bring them closer together after a crappy couple of weeks:

"Annie: Oh, fucking hell!
 * Hal once had an incident with a budgie that ended with him sending a letter of apology to the circus. He's also not allowed Kia-Ora, for reasons his house-mates won't discuss.
 * No Swastikas: When future!Hal is revealed to have become mutant Hitler, his symbol is the Chinese character for "middle" (中). Possibly a subtle implication that China Takes Over the World?
 * Not Afraid of You Anymore:
 * Gut-wrenchingly subverted with.
 * gets another one of these in series 2 when she stands up to the Men Behind the Door.
 * Not That There's Anything Wrong With That: The estate agent mistakes George and Mitchell for a gay couple, and then tries to back-pedal furiously after accidentally making a homophobic comment.
 * Off the Wagon: When normal people fall off the wagon, they only end up hurting themselves (unless they're a drunk driver). When Mitchell falls of the wagon, it's practically an 11th Circle of Hell.
 * One Scene Wonder: Action-movie obsessed vampire Kane from series 4, who constantly tries to spout cool one-liners. Including calling his fists "Shock" and "Awe".
 * Opening Monologue: Each episode of the first series kicks off with a framing monologue, typically from Annie, George or Mitchell.
 * The Other Marty: Two-thirds of the main cast (Annie and Mitchell) got recast between the pilot and the main series, as did Herrick and Lauren.
 * Our Demons Are Different: At least some people, when they go through their door, find themselves trapped in a blood-red corridor with "Men with burning. Men with sticks. Men with rope. And men with black, black feathers on their black, black wings." We've yet to have anyone actually call them "demons", but come on...
 * Series 4 introduced Yvonne, a succubus. According to Hal, succubi are created when a "demon" mates with a human woman. Yvonne later says that her mother described her father only as "beautiful and cruel".
 * Our Ghosts Are Different: Annie's visibility depends on her self-confidence. Normally, only other supernaturals can see her -- but as she becomes more confident, she becomes visible to ordinary humans as well. She does not need sleep and can't eat or drink but frequently prepares food and hot drinks. She can go insubstantial when needed, and can teleport. When a ghost finally resolves what's keeping them earthbound, a door to the afterlife appears, waiting for them. They can also be exorcised, which apparently makes them disappear. She cannot change out of the outfit she died in, although its exact appearance varies according to her mood. She can touch and move physical objects normally (and apparently teleport them with her) and sometimes move them telekinetically as well.
 * Our Vampires Are Different: The vampires, like those of Blade and Underworld, have an Ancient Conspiracy dating back hundreds of years. They create more of their kind by turning humans but a bite on its own will not do this, the victim needs to ingest vampire blood to turn. A stake through the heart reduces them to dust, though this seems to work like a human knife wound; it may or may not be instantly fatal depending on how severe it is and a less-severely staked vampire might recover if given prompt medical attention. They consume the life force in a human's blood, not blood qua blood, therefore donated blood is no good. Blood dependency is a psychological addiction for vampires, not necessary for survival; they can eat and drink normally too. As a clear subversion of most vampire traditions, they can venture into the sunlight, although Mitchell does admit he's not a "fan" of sun. In bright sunshine, Mitchell dons sunglasses and a heavy leather jacket, although this may be more of an appearance thing than a precaution against the effects of sunlight. They can also be killed by, and so very possibly by a gunshot wound as well, although this is unlikely to be an option in the UK. They need an invitation to enter homes but mobile homes don't count. Really old vampires, called Old Ones, like Wyndham (supposedly a thousand years old) can enter homes uninvited and are unaffected by crucifixes. Vampires can also ignore the repelling effect of holy symbols if they've recently consumed blood.
 * Our Werewolves Are Different: These werewolves are humans cursed to transform into savage, near-mindless beasts, closer to man-wolf than wolf-man. They only transform on the night of the full moon, whether they can see the moon or not. Anyone who survives a werewolf attack becomes a werewolf themselves. The curse is transferred by any wound, not just a bite, and the attack always leaves a very visible scar. The transformation can be partially suppressed by staying in a pressure chamber, although so far all attempts to do so have had unpleasant results. One attempt to incapacitate the wolf-form with tranquillisers subsequently caused violent urges and uncontrollable swearing while in human form, presumably due to the wolf's repressed rage. Vampires can detect werewolves, probably by smell, though werewolves can't always detect vampires. As fellow supernatural creatures, werewolves can see ghosts. Werewolves are apparently far rarer than vampires in this universe. Werewolves do carry some latent effects even while in human form, such as sharper senses leading up to and just after a full moon, and rapid (or at least, rapider) healing, in evidence after . If two werewolves have a child, it will  . With extreme effort, it is possible for a werewolf to partially change without the full moon,  . Werewolf blood is also toxic to vampires, burning them on contact and killing them if they consume it. This was never a problem before the fourth series, though...
 * Our Zombies Are Different: They are created when people find death's portal blocked at the moment of their passing and their soul eds up trapped in their decomposing bodies. They retain all original intelligence and personality, can live pretty normally at the beginning, and can feel pain (at least before the nerve endings have finished decomposing). They die a few weeks later when their bodies completely break down, whereupon they pass into the afterlife like normal. Zombiism is not contagious and they have no craving for brains or any other body part.
 * Paedo Hunt: Mitchell and George end up on the receiving end of one following a misunderstanding.
 * Painful Transformation: Werewolves go through this.
 * Papa Wolf: McNair. Literally.
 * George takes this to extremes in series 4.
 * Paranoia Gambit:.
 * Pinocchio Syndrome: The basic premise of the series.
 * Poorly Disguised Pilot: The episode that introduces Adam is a Poorly Disguised Pilot for Becoming Human.
 * Poor Communication Kills: In the third series, Nina and Mitchell both fall victim to this. Nina doesn't talk to George or Mitchell about, and Mitchell doesn't tell his best friend or his girlfriend about the prophecy he got from Lia , despite the fact that he has proven time and time again he completely trusts George. Both these events lead directly to one character's death in the finale.
 * Power Perversion Potential: George's sex performance increases considerably the closer he gets to transforming, complete with growling.
 * Annie can read people's minds while they're having sex. Or eating.
 * Power Trio: Mitchell is Id, Annie is Ego; George is usually Superego, though his werewolf side is pure Id.
 * Precision F Strike

George: Might want to choose some better Last Words?"

"Mitchell: Did you ever try to write anything in blood? It's totally impractical."
 * Prophetic Fallacy:
 * Protagonist Centred Morality: In Series Four, the same Annie who was once horrified by the thought of Vampires killing people seems more than happy to let Regus and his new girlfriend off with their blatant plans to go become a multi-murdering couple, just so long as they do so out of town.
 * Psychic Powers: Mediums can hear ghosts talking.
 * Putting On the Reich: The Old Ones in the Bad Future seem to have deliberately emulated human dictatorships (most noticeably Nazi Germany) in their décor.
 * Rape Is Funny When Its Male On Male:
 * Real Life Writes the Plot: The entire plot-line that ended with was originally conceived when Aidan Turner was cast in The Hobbit and the producers knew that they were about to lose him to Hollywood, but they still wanted to give him a good send-off.
 * Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Mitchell is over a century old, but looks like he's in his mid-twenties. Herrick, the vampire who turned him, is older, although we don't know by how much
 * We find out in season 3 that Herrick is 158 having been born in 1843 and turned at the age of 47.
 * Generally averted compared to other vampire series. McNair states that anything over a hundred is older than most vampires and most vampires we meet don't appear to have been turned that long ago and the only vampires we know are canonicly over 200 is Ivan (237) and the unseen Richard Turner, who is at least 389 years.
 * There's the Old Ones, in South America. Mitchell objects to joining them on the basis that, being just over one hundred, he's not an "old" one by vampire standards. Wyndham, claims to be a thousand years old and we don't know how much older other Old Ones might be.
 * Played straight with Hal, who was born in the late 15th century and became a vampire in 1514.
 * And with Regus the Vampire Historian, who mentions he's spent 400 years studying their lore.
 * Mr Snow, the apparent leader of the Old Ones. He is so old that all modern Vampires trace themselves back to him in some way, with Hal claiming that he's literally become part of their DNA. And while it may be hyberbole when he claimed to have met Christ, being over 2000 years old seems like a very definite possibility.
 * He also claims to have been old when the pyramids were young.
 * Replacement Goldfish: Mitchell gives a literal one to a lady doctor.
 * Roaring Rampage of Revenge:
 * Romantic False Lead: Sam for George in Season 2.
 * Self Fulfilling Prophecy: . Also
 * Serious Business: Do not insult Annie's tea. Well is is Britain.
 * Seven Minute Lull: Happens to Mitchell and George in S1E3.
 * Sex Is Violence: Stated numerous times to be the case for Vampires.
 * Shiny New Australia: Herrick was going to give Mitchell South America.
 * Shipper On Deck: Lia in the first episode of Series 3 says Mitchell and Annie would be "adorable" together. (Though she might well have been planting the idea in Annie's head for her own nefarious purposes...)
 * Shout Out:
 * The Real Hustle sure gets mentioned frequently in series 2 -- Mitchell and George seem to cherish watching it together as one of the only semblances of normality they've managed to get the hang of (note the reaction when they discover when it's been rescheduled).
 * in tribute to Mitchell and George, episode 3 of season 4 has Hal and Tom watch it for a moment before deciding to change the channel. They then find a show they both like (with Annie joining to watch with them)... Antiques Roadshow.
 * Mitchell calls Nina Inch High Private Eye.
 * "There's a werewolf called Nina on Buffy" - although the character who says it is actually talking about a character on Angel.
 * There are also characters called Hannigan(-Spiteri) and Wyndham (as in, Alyson Hannigan and Wesley Wydham-Price).
 * George, when : "No! That's not true!"
 * Annie refers to her ghostly ability to teleport as "Rentaghost- ing"
 * Sick and Wrong: What Annie basically said when she allowed Regus to
 * Sinister Minister: Kemp. Very sinister.
 * Skewed Priorities: A common source of humour.
 * Sick and Wrong: What Annie basically said when she allowed Regus to
 * Sinister Minister: Kemp. Very sinister.
 * Skewed Priorities: A common source of humour.

"Mitchell: He's a twat!
 * Sliding Scale of Vampire Friendliness: In the lower middle. It's possible to be good... but it's like going off a hard drug while it walks around you.
 * Smug Snake:
 * Owen. Not only does he feel no remorse over murdering Annie, he actually feels empowered by it, as if getting away with it made him special and powerful. Annie sets him straight, though.
 * On the Supernatural side of things, both Seth and Cara, who are just the right mix of stupid and arrogant.
 * And then there're Kirby and Fergus from season four.
 * Snuff Film: Vampires create homemade pornography ending with the murder of their victims, then pass it round.
 * Spot of Tea: Annie continues to compulsively make tea even though she can't eat or drink, and leaves it all over the house.
 * Springtime for Hitler: George fails spectacularly to set up a bad date with Kirsty. He takes her to a 3 1/2 hour German film, only to find out she absolutely loves them, and was waiting to see the film herself.
 * Strange Girl: Plenty of 'em.
 * Stronger With Age: Vampires, apparently also ghosts and werewolves. Inverted with Zombies.
 * Sufficiently Analyzed Magic: Professor Jaggat is hard at work on this. Experiments in preventing werewolf transformation show progress but are less than successful. Much less.
 * Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Hal, for Mitchell. Both are vampires with terrifying reputations and histories, who've sworn off drinking blood and live alongside ghosts and werewolves in spite of the prejudices most vampires hold towards other supernatural beings.
 * Suspiciously Specific Denial: In Series 3, despite the mounting evidence to the contrary, Annie adamantly denies Mitchell having anything to do with
 * Super Loser: George.
 * Supernatural Angst: The entire show is this trope...
 * Supernatural Soap Opera
 * Take Over the World: Herrick's grand plan.
 * Take That: Professor Jaggart wrote a book about Intelligent Design called God's Blueprint. Her colleagues drew cocks on her labcoat, and it's referred to by Nina as "600 pages of bullshit".
 * That Came Out Wrong:

George: Well he's my twat!

Mitchell: You know, I'm sure that sounded much better in your head."

"Annie: Like I have a whole new... skillset?"
 * The Farmer and The Viper:
 * The Glomp:
 * The Men in Black: The Series 4 finale introduces a group of humans who work to make sure humanity is unaware of the supernatural; not even vampires are aware of them apparently. They wear grey suits though.
 * The Mountains of Illinois: This is often lampshaded, and on fan forums, much of a Conversational Troping.
 * These Are Things Man Was Not Meant to Know: There's a secret only the dead know. Telling it to a living person does nasty things to their mind. Annie tells it to Owen to stop him pulling a Karma Houdini.
 * They Killed Kenny: Annie was killed as a human before the series began, returned as a ghost, fulfilled her unfinished business, refused to pass on at the last second, was forced to pass on via exorcism, briefly returned for just long enough to kill the man that exorcised her before being dragged back in, was rescued by Mitchell, dissipated into nothingness after being tricked into severing her ties to the friends that were keeping her on this plane of existence, managed to pull herself back into reality and is still going strong.
 * Three Amigos: Annie, Mitchell and George; then Annie, Hal and Tom
 * Title Drop: A couple of times.
 * Together in Death: George and Nina, and it's implied that  joins them, along with.
 * Took a Level In Badass: Annie after she refuses the opportunity to "pass over", although arguably the process began when
 * Took a Level In Badass: Annie after she refuses the opportunity to "pass over", although arguably the process began when


 * Torches and Pitchforks: When Mitchell is accused of paedophilia the neighbours don't quite storm the house, but the comparison is made explicit with Mitchell and George watching an old black and white vampire film, specifically a torches and pitchfork scene.
 * Tourettes Shitcock Syndrome: George develops symptoms of this after sedating his wolf side.
 * Transformation Is a Free Action: Subverted in series 1's final episode, but not for lack of trying.
 * Transhuman Treachery: Vampires; we haven't seen enough werewolves to tell, but it seems like they avert this.
 * Transformation Trauma: Mitchell's narration talks about this in S1E2. Since the organs end up changing size the victim ends up having a heart attack, along with temporary liver and kidney failure. That -- on top of the usual bits you'd expect to grow out -- leads to lots of painful screaming during transformations (up until the vocal cords get stretched out of shape, anyway).
 * True Companions: If there was ever a term which described the relationship between the three main characters, it's this.
 * Two Guys and A Girl: The main trio (without Nina), then Annie, Hal and Tom.
 * Pearl, Leo and Hal also count.
 * Undead Child: In series 1, the little boy; in series 2, the ghost baby.
 * Unholy Matrimony: Daisy and Ivan. Also Cara and Herrick (at least according to Cara).
 * Vampire Bites Suck: In the first post-pilot episode. The reason given is mostly because being a vampire is Cursed With Awesome and (Incredibly Lame Pun coming up) Blessed With Suck.
 * Vampire Invitation: Vampires have to be invited in to step past the threshold of a house. In series 4 Cutler can't even enter a hotel room without being invited by the journalist who just entered.
 * We find out in the finale of Series 4 what happens to Vampires if they don't get invited first..
 * Warm Bloodbags Are Everywhere
 * Well Done Son Guy: Cutler has only ever wanted to make the Old Ones  proud of him.
 * Well Intentioned Extremist:.
 * Werewolf Infectee: Nina, after George's showdown with Herrick
 * Wham Episode:
 * Episode 21, "Though the Heavens Fall" involves . If that doesn't count, I don't know what does.
 * The Season 3 finale....
 * Season 4's first episode. George and Nina's baby is
 * Episode 4 of Season 4. A contender for the man with the burned arm, the nemesis of Eve, is revealed:
 * The Last Episode of Season Four.
 * What Could Have Been: The pilot, one of several shown to promote the relaunch of BBC 3. Annie was a lot more housebound (the first subplot would have been her trying to fight this), the vampires would have worn suits and driven limos, rather than hiding in plain sight, Annie's fiancée did not own the house, and the comedy was slightly more camp. Not necessarily better or worse, but certainly different.
 * The Last Episode of Season Four.
 * What Could Have Been: The pilot, one of several shown to promote the relaunch of BBC 3. Annie was a lot more housebound (the first subplot would have been her trying to fight this), the vampires would have worn suits and driven limos, rather than hiding in plain sight, Annie's fiancée did not own the house, and the comedy was slightly more camp. Not necessarily better or worse, but certainly different.

Also, the original concept of the series was about a recovering sex addict, someone with intermittent explosive disorder, and an agoraphobic. The vampires were more professional and upper-class, led by a business suit wearing, good humored Mickey Bricks, and had private get-togethers in expensive restaurants, reminiscing good-naturedly about being testaments of history. And how they're going to take over the world with blood and fang.
 * What Do You Mean Its Not Symbolic: Despite all the supernatural goings-on, the show is actually a symbolic look at people trying to reacclimate into normal society after events that turned their worlds upside down. Mitchell is a recovering drug addict with severe mood swings, George is HIV positive with rage issues, and Annie is a former shut-in trying to reconnect with the real world after leaving an abusive relationship. The metaphors become especially prevalent during season 2, when Mitchell begins a blood addicts support group, George, and Annie, so long invisible to normal people, becomes giddy at the prospect of working at the pub down the street.
 * What Happened to The Mouse: Adam turns up
 * What If the Baby Is Like Me: Nina's major set back about having George's baby was not that the baby would be a werewolf like them, but that motherhood would turn Nina into her emotionally abusive mother.
 * Wise Beyond Their Years: Molly, Sam's daughter.
 * You Can See Me:
 * In the pilot, Annie is so astonished Mitchell and George can see her, she asks twice and waves her arms around for good measure. The scene was refilmed for S2E8, but got deleted. Fortunately, it's up on Youtube.
 * Heartbreakingly inverted after Annie, having got used to the idea that she's now visible to normal people, suddenly finds that she once again isn't. While trying to talk to the guy she's fallen in love with.
 * You Make Me Sic: George is a bit of a grammar nerd, correcting the 'peedo' graffiti in season 1 and graffiti against his teaching skills in season 2. Later episodes show he got this from his father.
 * Your Approval Fills Me With Shame: In Series 3, Mitchell is annoyed at having aquired a Loony Fan over his involvement in
 * Zombie Apocalypse: Well... actually, it's a Vampire Apocalypse. This is what the Old Ones are causing and what the heroes are trying to avert.