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What We Do in the Shadows Recap: Gum in the Gears

Season 5 Episode 4 Editor’s Rating3 stars ***

Photo: FX Networks Every once in a while, What We Do in the Shadows likes to remind its viewers that its protagonists are monsters. Usually, these moments are more about the wholesale murder that’s necessary for Nandor, Nadja, and Laszlo to survive. (This was a more prominent theme in season one than in subsequent seasons, fwiw.) But “The Campaign” takes a beat to delve into the dark heart of Colin Robinson, who — as I’ve mentioned before in these recaps — is secretly the sickest bastard of them all.

Colin sees an opportunity when, in a carryover from last week’s “Pride Parade” episode, Sean’s nine DUIs prevent him from running for Staten Island comptroller. (The upper limit, according to Colin, is two or three.) Now, I’ve been trying to figure out what exactly it is that a comptroller does. And as far as I can tell, it’s a sort of chief accountant who’s responsible for making sure that government budgets are being spent correctly. It sounds boring, meticulous, and ample with opportunities for pedantry — the ideal job for an energy vampire.

But Colin just got reborn. His adolescent brain is mushy and ill-equipped for rational decision-making. And so, in an impulsive, shortsighted move, Colin chooses the instant gratification of feeding on the audience at a debate rather than installing himself in a stable job where he can suck the will to live out of humans eight hours a day, five days a week (with benefits!). By doing so, he all but guarantees the victory of his opponent, Barbara Lazarro (Marceline Hugot, a.k.a. Kathy on 30 Rock), who promises to cut through the red tape and eliminate bureaucracy — “the gum that clogs the gears of every human endeavor” — forever. That’s why the Supreme Council of Energy Vampires had to call Colin in and threaten him with a 542-page document full of fine print and legalese.

The original-recipe Vampiric Council first appeared in season one, and as in that star-studded episode, “The Campaign” takes the opportunity to introduce some famous guest stars. The key character traits of the energy-vampire council members are that they speak in monotone, are fussy and clumsy, and never speak exactly in unison. And while I can’t speak to their personal aptitude with technology (or lack thereof), Jo Firestone, Hannibal Buress, Aparna Nancherla, Gregg Turkington, and Martha Kelly are all known for their deadpan comedy style, and as an ensemble they were perfectly cast. (I loved the matching tan suits, too.)

The thing I found truly perverse was the way that Colin rekindled his relationship with Evie Russell (Vanessa Bayer), an emotional vampire who must clean up on Facebook. Evie is also a callback to the first season of the show: She was introduced in the episode “Werewolf Feud,” first as Colin’s co-worker at an anonymous office job, then as a powerful adversary, then as his partner in a “why not?” sort of situationship. Evie’s been milking their subsequent breakup for the last four years, and to have Colin come back to her and present her with a plastic knockoff of the Heart of the Ocean from Titanic in front of a room full of embittered singles must have given them both a real rush.

Colin’s motivations are calculated; he just needs someone to stand next to him and smile. But the arrangement works out for Evie, too, given how pathetic and pitiable of a creature the silent wife standing next to the disgraced politician can be. They’re using each other to manipulate others and getting off on it. Like I said, they’re real sickos.

This ends up being a single-episode arc, as Colin (and the writers of “The Campaign,” career TV scribes Max Brockman and Shana Gohd) finds an easy exit from the narrative. In short, Colin Toobins himself on-camera during a Zoom campaign event, and Evie checkmates the situation by declaring that she must carry on her idiot “husband’s” campaign. She wins — not just the election, but also enough pity to gorge herself on for weeks. She’s happy, he’s happy, the Supreme Council of Energy Vampires is happy. The only losers here, as always, are every human that crosses their path.

Aside from Colin’s campaign, this week’s episode was light on the ongoing story line: Nadja’s back at the Antipaxan night diner introduced in episode two, reconnecting with her roots and remembering what it was like to have a human family. But that was mostly just an excuse to put Matt Berry in a series of ridiculous outfits and have him monologue about being an Englishman to the manor born. (To be clear, I have no complaints about that.) Nandor’s story line, about his attempts to befriend a Jewish guy at the gym played by Robert Smigel (a.k.a. Triumph the Insult Comic Dog), was similarly slight.

And all that is fine! In terms of jokes, every character — except for Guillermo, who’s barely in this episode — had a moment this week that made me laugh out loud: Nandor growling “very cool” when he finds out his new friend is Jewish. (Positive stereotypes are still stereotypes, Nandor.) Laszlo shaking the dog’s hand at the diner. Nadja pouring coffee directly onto the Greek salad. Colin referring to his supporters as “Colin-izers.”

The only problem is that What We Do in the Shadows is starting to repeat itself. Along with the callbacks I’ve already mentioned in the Colin story line, Nandor already had a gym-rat phase back in season three. As long as the laughs keep coming, I suppose it doesn’t really matter if we keep going back to the same scenarios — this is a sitcom, after all. But, as with our vampire protagonists, there’s a real risk of getting stuck in a rut if season five keeps looking to the past for ideas.

Craven Mirth

• “Hello, my sexy Greek extended family!”

• “I can speak 14 languages, as long as they’re English.”

• Normally we give out a “line reading of the week” award in these recaps. But this time, I’d like to give a special shout-out to the What We Do in the Shadows costume department, who killed it this week: Nadja’s blood-red vinyl dress with the puffy sleeves, which reminded me of Gary Oldman’s armor in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Laszlo’s coral board shorts, Kangol hat, and “Four Score and Seven Beers Ago” shirt. Nandor’s “juggler at Burning Man” workout pants and Twilight-esque pallor. All superb.

• “‘Kill Them! Kill them! Kill Them!’ How many times have I said that to you in Greek?”

• Nicidamongonicians. That’s a tongue twister.

• “A wet-headed, wide-bodied ignorant oaf with the brains of chewing gum … a pompous, perverted oaf … the King of Pigs. My king of pigs.” Talking about your husband like this is peak heterosexual culture.

• This week’s episode also had some special treats for the movie nerds. If you look closely, series EP Taika Waititi’s movie Hunt for the Wilderpeople appears on the marquee when Nandor and his new buddy Alexander go to the movies. And while the story that audiences ran away in fear as a train moved toward the camera in L’Arrivée d’un train en gare de La Ciotat has been largely disproven, a reference to a Lumiere brothers movie from 1895 in a mainstream sitcom is still pretty damn cool.

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