Blood Drive
Season 1 Episode 5: “The F…ing Dead”
Directed by Roel Reiné
Written by Harrison Weinfeld, Daniel Zucker
Created by James Roland
Starring Alan Ritchson, Christina Ochoa, Thomas Dominique, Marama Corlett, Colin Cunningham, Andrew Hall, Darren Kent, Renee Castle
Syfy
Air Date: Wednesday, July 12th, 2017, 10pm

Just look at the title for this episode and you’ll know why I love Syfy’s latest original show, Blood Drive. This team of writers assembled by show creator James Roland are clearly making entertaining television they want to see, and they know their target audience. Last week, Grace (Christina Ochoa) and Arthur (Alan Ritchson) barely escaped Kane Hill, an asylum overrun by sugar crazed inmates. Grace’s sister wasn’t there, but they did find out that Slink (Colin Cunningham) is much more than just the psychotic connoisseur of the Blood Drive. Meanwhile, Christopher (Thomas Dominique) was tortured by Heart cyborg Aki (Marama Corlett), in scenes that felt like the mutated offspring of 50 Shades of Grey and Caligula.

Check out my review of Blood Drive Episode 5 below.

Grace and Arthur have Slink cornered, and she’s trying to beat information about her sister out of him. At the same time, it appears poor Christopher’s torture is over as Aki reveals his new eye, a $20 million cybernetic one that makes him look like the Terminator. A pair of revenge seeking siblings show up at Blood Drive looking to kill Slink. Instead of the direct approach, the pair spread a virus through kissing the “crazed circus.” The show has a 50s vibe right away, opening with Slink in a “Mayberry”-style black and white sitcom before a horde of zombies intervene. Then we get bubblegum pop music as the two do their thing.

Grace is quickly realizing that there is so much more to Slink than meets the eye, and Colin Cunningham is just killing it this episode, chewing the scenery in all the right ways. Turns out the virus the siblings are spreading is The Dionysus Strain. Stage 1 is euphoric abandon, and luckily the Blood Drive has a “Suck Bus.” Soon, Arthur is infected and Grace is forced to form an uneasy alliance with Slink. The pair (Jack & Diane… cute) are the last remnants of another small town Heart experiment gone terribly wrong. After euphoric sex comes the “Bluege”… awesome, and then the ripping each other apart. Slink has the research to craft an antidote and needs Grace and Arthur to get it. In order for Grace to keep infected Arthur on task, she has to… well… poor Alan Ritchson.

This show is so great because of all the little touches. Including “fluffer” and “power bottom” to acceptable positions, along with CEO, made me laugh out loud. Alan Ritchson holding back the bluege covered horde screaming “they’re coming,” before straining his face and changing his connotation of the saying, hilarious. And call me crazy, but Aki and Christopher may just have the cutest and most bizarre romance on TV.

Blood Drive is the kind of show where when a pack of sex-zombies is finally stopped by what is essentially a giant climax on all their faces, you simply accept it, laugh, and move on. This was a hilarious detour of an episode, a break from the “drive” part, and gives a ton of clues to what else is going on with Heart Enterprises and Slink’s background. Everything is so gloriously filthy and unabashedly not ashamed. And buried under the “bluege” is some really clever political dialogue. As with every episode’s end, I cannot wait for next week.

Blood Drive picks back up next Wednesday night at 10:00pm ET on Syfy.

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Video

BLOOD DRIVE | Season 1, Episode 5: Sneak Peek | SYFY

Introducing: Julian Stark, the family guy. The family guy with a violent plot twist, of course. Wednesdays at 10/9 on SYFY.

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