The original British version of Being Human starred Aidan Turner as Mitchell, a reformed vampire whose murderous rampages are legendary and whose impulse to kill is barely suppressed. For the most part, Being Human balances its comedic elements with its darker supernatural ones, but Mitchell is usually at the heart of that darkness. He forms close friendships with George and Annie, the werewolf and ghost with whom he shares a house in Bristol and later Barry in Wales, and these relationships are the backbone of the show. Mitchell's spiralling descent in series three is a brilliant piece of genre television, although it tilted the show firmly towards bleak horror drama. Being Human treats vampirism as an addiction complete with group meetings for blood addicts, and even Hal, Mitchell's much older successor as the vampire of the trio, struggles with his bloodlust. Hal's arc is similarly well-written as he also tries to retain his humanity, and the villainous Herrick is a scene-stealer in earlier series. Still, Being Human's nearly total destruction of Mitchell's character was a series highlight and proved it could take its sympathetic vampire from comically angsty to legitimately terrifying.
