As a child of the internet/tech generation, it’s not unusual to note the impact technology has had on your life. Especially as I’ve gotten more involved on social media, my eyes have been opened to new shows, movies, books, slang, people and all other sorts of awesome things. One of those is the BBC Three series In the Flesh. EVERYONE on Twitter and tumblr was talking about this and normally I like to rebuke people asking me to watch yet another show (I watched 25 TV series last year :/), but I gave in and after finishing the second series, I am glad to say that In the Flesh is one of the best TV shows on air right now.
In the Flesh, for those not in the know (which I assume is most of you), takes place in a post-zombie uprising world. The undead, or people suffering from Partial Deceased Syndrome, are now being brought back to consciousness through the hell of a special medicine that has been developed. It’s here when we meet the main character Kieren Walker, who is on the precipice of being reintroduced back into society. After being given a supply of medicine, contact lenses, and lots of therapy he returns home to a less than warm welcome. His parents are skittish around him, his sister is a member of an extremist group and the town is hunting “rotters” left and right. It’s during this time that he bonds with another undead named Amy and learns that someone from his past whom he thought dead, might be more alive than he thought.
I don’t even know where to begin telling you all about how good this show is cause there are so many places to start. As a horror fan, I’m always looking for new stories in this well worn genre and by gosh did I get that with In the Flesh. Warm Bodies, to my knowledge, is the only thing I’ve seen talking about zombies integrating back into society, but even that is because of love. In this show, the invention of medicine is what has allowed the zombies to come back. But its not as if this is met with cheers. What I love so much about this show is that it deals with even the smallest detail with respect and as realistic to the world as possible. Sure families are happy to have their deceased back, but that doesn’t make it easier. You see it early on when Kieren’s parents force him to sit at the dinner table despite the fact he doesn’t eat, just to have his company and a sense of normalcy and this sort of grounded reality is what fuels the show.
Because In the Flesh is so grounded, it allows the creator Dominic Mitchell and the writers to explore really heavy real world topics. In the first season alone, the show touches on acceptance, homophobia, jingoism, xenophobia, murder, radical groups, guilt from the past and much more…and all in three episodes. The second season keeps those themes and expands on it including religious aspects. I know there’s been lots of chatter about representation on TV (and there will be more) but I don’t know if you’ll find a more deftly written show that actually cares about its characters than In the Flesh.
Bringing these characters to life are some awesome actors. I want to throw all the awards at Luke Newberry who plays Kieren, our main character. This dude can ACT. Even though he’s playing a zombie, there’s something so soulful about his performance and he is the perfect guy to serve as our intro into this world. There are so many scenes I could cite here as examples of world class acting, but I want to leave them for you to discover. Just know that if ever there was a list of promising young actors, Luke Newberry should be featured. Helping him deliver this awesome performance are some wonderful supporting actors, chief among them are Emily Bevan as his best friend Amy, who provides much of the comic relief, and Harriet Cains as his sister Jem, whose reconciling of her past as a member of a militant group that hunted down zombies provides a startling comparison to Kieren’s reentry into society.
The technical aspects of this show are incredibly on point. All of us know that zombie themed things live and die by the makeup and the wizardry that the folks at In the Flesh perform is incredible. There are all the types of zombies: from the extreme undead to the regular undead. WHat tripped me out is that when the undead try to act normal they put in make up and contacts…so in any scene you can see a zombie wiping off their flesh colored makeup only to reveal a completely zombified visage underneath. I mean just look at this photo below. Both of these characters are zombies and underneath Kieren’s (the guy on the right) makeup is his zombie makeup. This is a kind of level of detail other shows would kill for.
All in all, I am so glad I was pestered into watching In the Flesh. It’s the perfect blend of great writing, awesome acting, and thoughtful issues that anyone can appreciate.
If you want to know how to watch this show, tumblr user whatisthecat has compiled some links which you can see below. You can also check out this post for other avenues.
Series One
Series Two
Episode One: BBC iPlayer | Stream
Episode Two: BBC iPlayer | Stream
Episode Three: BBC iPlayer | Stream
Episode Four: BBC iPlayer | Stream
Episode Five: BBC iPlayer | Stream
Episode Six: BBC iPlayer | Stream
– HERE you cand download the extension Hola to watch the BBC iPlayer outside the UK
We also discussed the show in depth (over three episodes of the Doctor of the Dead podcast). You can find them all at doctorofthedead.com (check out episodes 10, 12, and 14) We’re enormous fans and we desperately want this series to continue!