As a fan of the Buffy/Angel tandem, I just had to check out "Moonlight". The lead character is Mick St. John: Vampire/Detective. In the opening scene, done in fake interview style, they set up THEIR vampire "rules". Direct sunlight sickens him, but no bursting into flames. Crosses and holy water can't hurt him. He flippantly states that that only flame throwers can do him in. And get this! A wooden stake through the heart won't kill him. I mean, if you're going to do a vampire show, at least stick with the classics! Certainly no one would have accused them of stealing THAT one from Buffy/Angel. And Mick is not now nor has he ever been evil, and they totally gloss over the whole soul / no soul good & evil thing. In fact, he's a self described do good kind of guy. Come on, vamps have ALWAYS been evil. At least Joss Wheadon creatively dealt with WHY Angel was a vamp with an, um, heart. As for the similarities, vamp Mick St. John can be stabbed or shot, but heals fast. He also does that quick disappearing act thing and can leap up or down a flight of stairs in a single bound. He even drives a cool vintage black convertible like Angel does. I was surprised they didn't at least give him a Saab or a Volvo! And they must have hired "Angel's" film editor because the flash transitions between scenes look as if they've been lifted from "Angel" itself. In fact, the flash transition thing was such an "Angel" trademark, I can't believe they so obviously "appropriated" it for a show that was already being compared to its well known predecessor even before the first episode aired. "Moonlight" even shares something with "The Rockford Files", my all-time favorite show. Both Jim Rockford and Mick St. John are professional L.A. detectives who take on cases that they don't get paid for! What do they do for cash? But while Mick has a very nice apartment, Jim live in a beat up trailer. Mostly, episode one showed no real purpose for the vampire angle. Angel/Buffy dealt with "actual" monsters, dark magic and the occult. "Moonlight" is really trying to be "Moonlighting". A detective show with the cute blonde and good looking guy, but it doesn't have the humor or great writing. My advice for viewers? If you're a Buffy/Angel fan, watch once for laughs. If you're one of the producers, write David Boreanaz in as a vampire cousin who shows up every episode with a certain blonde girlfriend in tow. And toss in Andy Hallett for little color!
