Along with Dante's Cove and the Donald Strachey mysteries, one of the jewels in the crown for the gay-interest cable channel Here! before it turned its back on scripted entertainment and devolved into repeats and all-yadda yadda reality/talk show junk. While not as polished as the other two, it certainly had its moments and actually seemed to improve with each new season thanks to wacky additions and twists.
Season 1 is set in a small coastal town where a variety of guys are showing up with their blood drained and then walking out of the morgue. Intrepid reporter Thom (David Moretti) discovers a link between the victims and a sex club called the Lair, presided over by vampire Damian (Peter Stickles) and his minion Colin (Dylan Vox). Thom's probing proves to have dangerous consequences for himself, his boyfriend Johnathan (Jesse Cutlip) and best friend Laura (Beverly Lynne).
Season 1 is the least impressive of the three seasons Here! produced. The show worked better when it opened up the action beyond vampires, but for the first season vampires is all we get, along with a number of the old clichés - like Thom potentially being the reincarnation of Damien's old lover. Some other weaknesses are the fact that we have little concern for Johnathan since he seems to be stuck in a perpetual jealous snit and the writers do not seem to have any idea what to do with the Laura character. Meanwhile, Brian Nolan's Renfield-esque informer and Colton Ford's sheriff do not seem to have much to do.
On the plus side, there is some decent acting with Stickles and Moretti doing well, and Ford coming off surprisingly good. There is lots of male skin and the first episode showcases sexy Moretti in arguably the most erotic voyeuristic shower scene ever filmed. Yeah, baby!
Season 2 corrects some of the previous faults. It unloads some of the extraneous characters and adds some new faces. Amazingly, despite all of the build-up with the character, Johnathan is recast and then dropped in quick succession, leaving the central relationship between Thom and Damien. The story lines wisely expand to include ghosts, werewolves and, strangest of all, a killer plant. The special effects with the werewolf are weak, but given that the transformations end with cutie Matty Ferrero waking up starkers, all is forgiven. Acting improves a bit more, with Stickles becoming more sympathetic and Ford remaining solid. Unfortunately, the writing for Moretti's character is all over the place, making his character one of the most fickle in history and it proves a real challenge to the actor. Vox takes on the main villain role and he seems to be laughably channeling Joan Crawford in the late stages of her career.
Season 3 comes off the best as more of the kinks are worn off. Steven Hirschi joins up as a gorgon (the werewolf is out) and Ford gets his own storyline (and finally a nude scene!). Stickles is better than ever, but the writing for Moretti is schizophrenic and makes him unsympathetic. He sleeps with a sweet book shop owner so he can steal from him and place his life in danger, then seems oddly unmoved later at the ultimate fate of that character - a reaction reflected in his surprising reticence over the loss of his former boyfriend and best friend. What is up with this character - at least get him in the shower again to make us forget he is becoming a pill. Unfortunately it all ends with the requisite cliffhanger and Here!'s promised next season has never been delivered.
While not quite the gonzo guilty pleasure of Dante's Cove or as solid as Chad Allen's Donald Strachey mysteries, The Lair is a worthwhile guilty pleasure in its own right, whether it be for the great male skin or the wacky plots, it comes off much like a softcore gay-interest Dark Shadows, which is not really a bad thing. The fact that it kept improving makes its disappearance even more regrettable as there has been nothing similar to it to fill its loss or even its niche in general since then.
Season 1 is set in a small coastal town where a variety of guys are showing up with their blood drained and then walking out of the morgue. Intrepid reporter Thom (David Moretti) discovers a link between the victims and a sex club called the Lair, presided over by vampire Damian (Peter Stickles) and his minion Colin (Dylan Vox). Thom's probing proves to have dangerous consequences for himself, his boyfriend Johnathan (Jesse Cutlip) and best friend Laura (Beverly Lynne).
Season 1 is the least impressive of the three seasons Here! produced. The show worked better when it opened up the action beyond vampires, but for the first season vampires is all we get, along with a number of the old clichés - like Thom potentially being the reincarnation of Damien's old lover. Some other weaknesses are the fact that we have little concern for Johnathan since he seems to be stuck in a perpetual jealous snit and the writers do not seem to have any idea what to do with the Laura character. Meanwhile, Brian Nolan's Renfield-esque informer and Colton Ford's sheriff do not seem to have much to do.
On the plus side, there is some decent acting with Stickles and Moretti doing well, and Ford coming off surprisingly good. There is lots of male skin and the first episode showcases sexy Moretti in arguably the most erotic voyeuristic shower scene ever filmed. Yeah, baby!
Season 2 corrects some of the previous faults. It unloads some of the extraneous characters and adds some new faces. Amazingly, despite all of the build-up with the character, Johnathan is recast and then dropped in quick succession, leaving the central relationship between Thom and Damien. The story lines wisely expand to include ghosts, werewolves and, strangest of all, a killer plant. The special effects with the werewolf are weak, but given that the transformations end with cutie Matty Ferrero waking up starkers, all is forgiven. Acting improves a bit more, with Stickles becoming more sympathetic and Ford remaining solid. Unfortunately, the writing for Moretti's character is all over the place, making his character one of the most fickle in history and it proves a real challenge to the actor. Vox takes on the main villain role and he seems to be laughably channeling Joan Crawford in the late stages of her career.
Season 3 comes off the best as more of the kinks are worn off. Steven Hirschi joins up as a gorgon (the werewolf is out) and Ford gets his own storyline (and finally a nude scene!). Stickles is better than ever, but the writing for Moretti is schizophrenic and makes him unsympathetic. He sleeps with a sweet book shop owner so he can steal from him and place his life in danger, then seems oddly unmoved later at the ultimate fate of that character - a reaction reflected in his surprising reticence over the loss of his former boyfriend and best friend. What is up with this character - at least get him in the shower again to make us forget he is becoming a pill. Unfortunately it all ends with the requisite cliffhanger and Here!'s promised next season has never been delivered.
While not quite the gonzo guilty pleasure of Dante's Cove or as solid as Chad Allen's Donald Strachey mysteries, The Lair is a worthwhile guilty pleasure in its own right, whether it be for the great male skin or the wacky plots, it comes off much like a softcore gay-interest Dark Shadows, which is not really a bad thing. The fact that it kept improving makes its disappearance even more regrettable as there has been nothing similar to it to fill its loss or even its niche in general since then.