# Has anyone seen the BBC 'Being Human'? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 2, 2011, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218 "2011-03-02T15:35:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2011, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/21 "2011-03-03T12:05:27Z")
> [@limegreen](#): > > Vast? Wow. That’s such a culture shock. The smallest house I’ve ever lived in was 900 square feet (sorry, I don’t know what that is in metric) and the biggest was an old ramshackle 1920’s 3-story house in the hood that was about 21,000 sq. feet. You have lots of empty space, where we are densely packed. Try getting a home that big in the middle of Manhattan! It’s just regular market forces at work. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2011, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/22 "2011-03-03T12:23:05Z")
There’s now a spinoff series for the intarwebs called [Becoming Human](http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/becominghuman/). It being the BBC, non-UK people may not be able to see it but thus far you’re not missing much. It’s about another vamp-ghost-werewolf trio where the vamp is 16 going on 46 (he was turned as a teen and lived at home with his parents for 30 years until they died) who has gone back to high school to get on with his life/undeath, the ghost is a stupid fat kid with an egg fixation and the werewolf is a girl in denial. I haven’t seen all the episodes but thus far it seems to be focused on finding out who killed the ghost guy, who doesn’t remember. In other words it’s basically the teen version of Being Human. Episodes are quite short - about 10-15 minutes each. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2011, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/23 "2011-03-03T14:07:48Z")
The teen vampire in the Becoming Human series is the same one as in the second episode of the third series (the episode that aired on Saturday of last week). ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2011, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/24 "2011-03-03T14:26:45Z")
Sorry, I should add that I was referring to the BBC America broadcast (of the third series). ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2011, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/25 "2011-03-03T23:23:01Z")
Regarding the UK version’s house again (well the one from the first two series anyway) it looks like the front door doesn’t even have a doorknob, just a lock of some sort. Is this in any way common over there? It seems incredibly strange. As for US vs UK, I like the UK series better, but the US version won me over this past week when Aiden had a bad reaction to the garlic in Josh’s mom’s cooking Interesting that the “rules” aren’t even consistent between the two series, such as ghosts touching moving things (UK ghost girl does it all the time, US ghost girl barely can do anything) and vampires being seen on film/video (UK can’t, US can). ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2011, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/26 "2011-03-04T00:09:04Z")
> [@TBG](#): > > Regarding the UK version’s house again (well the one from the first two series anyway) it looks like the front door doesn’t even have a doorknob, just a lock of some sort. Is this in any way common over there? It seems incredibly strange. Yep. On the front door I’ve just got the door locks, plus the knocker/handle to pull the door shut. No knobs. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2011, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/27 "2011-03-04T01:16:27Z")
Out of curiousity, has anyone who watches either version of Being Human read the Rachel Morgan/The Hollows books by Kim Harrison? I like Being Human well enough, but it’s hard not to be reminded of the older book series - just replace vampire/ghost/werewolf roomies with witch/vampire/pixie roomies and swap dead-end jobs with accidental problems with being PIs who deal with problems for money. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2011, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/28 "2011-03-04T04:49:53Z")
I’ve seen them both too. The UK seasons are shorter, so the episodes cover a little bit more ground. I like the characters a lot, but for better or worse, it can get overly angsty. > [@Sister\_Vigilante](#): > > As far as I can tell, they’re copying the original plots but adding more “oomph” to them. It’s interesting to watch the original, and then the American “remake” of that episode. WOG says they’ve kept to the original more or less for the first six episodes, and then it starts to spiral completely away on to it’s own tangent after that. > [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > Horrible. The acting was Lost Room-level. At least the Lost Room had an interesting premise. Them’s fighting words! The acting was fine. If there was any flaw in the acting, it was that it was subdued. I definitely can’t see something low key as a archetypal example of bad acting. > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > The teen vampire in the Becoming Human series is the same one as in the second episode of the third series (the episode that aired on Saturday of last week). I was wondering where they were going with all that. A spinoff apparently! ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2011, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/29 "2011-03-04T10:11:44Z")
> [@TBG](#): > > Regarding the UK version’s house again (well the one from the first two series anyway) it looks like the front door doesn’t even have a doorknob, just a lock of some sort. Is this in any way common over there? It seems incredibly strange. Yup, that’s standard. Most doors here lock automatically when they’re closed, so the only way to open them is with a key - no point in having a doorknob. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2011, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/30 "2011-03-04T11:16:47Z")
I’ve been watching the BBC version - haven’t seen the US one - and I’m still on the fence. I want to like it, but it just never quite clicks with me. I don’t know why. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2011, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/31 "2011-03-04T18:23:06Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > I’m part way through the second series, and haven’t started watching the remake yet. The biggest selling point of the UK version imho is that Aidan Turner is gorgeous. Yep. American Mitchell is just creepy. > [@GythaOgg](#): > > Interesting note about the BBC version - the Nina character was supposed to have been killed off first season, but they liked what the actress did with her so much they kept her on. Nina rocks. Very appealing actress. Very believable, especially alongside the far more appealing George. > [@Candyman74](#): > > In my personal opinion, the American version lacks chracter, atmosphere, and acting ability. But that’s just an opinion. I think it’s pretty dire. > [@TBG](#): > > Interesting that the “rules” aren’t even consistent between the two series, such as ghosts touching moving things (UK ghost girl does it all the time, US ghost girl barely can do anything) and vampires being seen on film/video (UK can’t, US can). In the UK Annie couldn’t touch anything for a few episodes, she had to learn how. > [@Smeghead](#): > > I’ve been watching the BBC version - haven’t seen the US one - and I’m still on the fence. I want to like it, but it just never quite clicks with me. I don’t know why. It kicked in for me in the second season. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2011, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/32 "2011-03-06T23:48:38Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > In the UK Annie couldn’t touch anything for a few episodes, she had to learn how. Wasn’t she always making tea, even from the very start? That’s well beyond Sally’s capabilities. ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2011, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/33 "2011-03-07T00:20:24Z")
Seriously hardcore episode in the UK this week. I won’t spoil it for those who haven’t seen it, but it’s dark as hell. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2011, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/34 "2011-03-07T01:10:30Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > It kicked in for me in the second season. I’ve seen the second season. It didn’t have that effect on me. I’m still pretty bleh on the show. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2011, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/35 "2011-03-07T01:16:57Z")
> [@TBG](#): > > Wasn’t she always making tea, even from the very start? That’s well beyond Sally’s capabilities. I seem to remember George ranting amusingly about this in an early episode, that she was constantly making tea, so that there was never a clean mug available. George’s rants were usually one of the best things about the show. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2011, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/36 "2011-03-07T05:43:33Z")
I’m a big fan of the UK version, and have only seen the first couple of the US version. The thing about the UK version was that it seemed so much better than it should have been. It was pretty darn low-budget I believe, but the actors really sold it, and the writing was great. The Brit version’s got a certain sensibility to it. I doubt the US version will be as anti-religious as the original, for instance. Anyway, yes I think the Brit version is worth tracking down and watching. Definitely. Keep in mind it’s a low-budget show that wasn’t expected to be a big hit. Speaking of the houses in each version, the house in the Brit version freaks me out. You go out the front door and the neighborhood looks one way, then you go in the house and look out the kitchen window, it’s all different outside. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2011, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/38 "2011-03-12T23:04:04Z")
Reported. ---
**Author:** ![Batsinma\_Belfry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@Batsinma\_Belfry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Batsinma_Belfry)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2011, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/39 "2011-03-13T00:32:17Z")
I loved the first season of the UK version and faithfully slogged through the second season hoping it would improve. I figured the American version would be crap, but I found myself watching it before I realized what it was. Now, i’m hooked and so far like it better than the UK version. [me being shallow] With the exception of Mitchel in the UK version, the actors in the US version are easier on the eye. Although I mentioned in another thread that Mark Pellegrino is ookie looking, he’s a damn sight better than his UK counterpart. [/me being shallow] ---
**Author:** ![Annie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/858c86/32.png) [@Annie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2011, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/40 "2011-03-13T01:15:40Z")
My favourite aspect of the show-which I think the US series is developing nicely-is the friendship between the three. One great scene in s2 was where Mitchell (spoilering but really, not that spoily, very generic description) plops down on the sofa between Annie and George with a shit eating grin: “I met someone”! No vamp opera melodrama, just friends together. ---
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2011, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218/41 "2011-03-13T20:23:33Z")
With the noted exception of UK Mitchell being way better than his US counterpart, I think I like the US version better. Sally isn’t hotter than Annie, but the actress can deliver the euphoric highs and abyssmal lows of the character very well. I thought George’s constant whining and crying was tiresome, so I welcome Josh’s less-crying approach, and liked that they introduced his family into the story. Although Nina was very distinctive, Nora is uber-hot. Nina just looked off somehow, like she was part mongoloid or something. I have no doubt that Mark P. Is gonna rock as Bishop. I mean, the guy played Jacob on Lost AND Lucifer on Supernatural. We got the first full shot of the werewolf Josh this past episode, and I like it better than the UK version. It almost seems like the UK version spent their FX budget on the transformations and skimped onthe actual werewolf, and the US version is the opposite. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-seen-the-bbc-being-human/573218.md?page=3)