This page contains various reviews of the TV series "Kindred: the Embraced, in which Mark Frankel played the role of Julian Luna. Below you will find the reviews as they were written... (hopefully) ..... as with any review, some are positive and some are negative.... Either way, we hope that in providing this information, you might find that your interest is peaked and you will seek it out and decide for yourself. If you have already seen it, perhaps you'll be interested to see which reviewers, if any, agree with your assessment.....

DALLAS MORNING NEWS
March 31,1996

'Kindred: The Embraced,' premiering Tuesday on Fox

By Manuel Mendoza

Back-stabbing gets a whole new meaning in "Kindred: The Embraced,'' Aaron Spelling's application of his sex-and-suds formula to the world of vampires.

In contemporary San Francisco, five Mafialike clans of bloodsuckers make up a shadow society. They have penetrated every aspect of modern life, from the entertainment industry to the police department, and their leader, Julian Luna (Mark Frankel), controls many of the city's business operations.

But there's conflict: Two of the clans are at war, one wants to overthrow Julian and a cop (C. Thomas Howell) wants to shut the clans down.

What marks Fox's Kindred as a Spelling series is that the people are pretty and spend equal effort plotting against, and sleeping with, each other. In other words, if you strip away the bloodletting, "Kindred'' is like Spelling's other recent additions to network TV, "Savannah'' on the WB network and "Malibu Shores'' on NBC. It's "Melrose Place'' in a different setting.

That show is Spelling's current prototype - one that takes the suspension of disbelief to ridiculous heights with overwrought melodrama that at best comes across campy or comic-bookish. "Melrose'' has entered its baroque phrase, which means it's now intentionally unintentionally funny.

"Kindred'' plays it mostly straight, with only occasional winks at the potential cult audience out there. Sometimes, the show has it both ways; a bloody tear from Julian is but one example.

Stylish bloodletting has been in fashion for at least 20 years now, dating back to the Catherine Deneuve/David Bowie/Susan Sarandon film "The Hunger,'' so Spelling's embracing of the genre is a natural.

The 90-minute premiere - airing Tuesday before the series moves to its regular 9 p.m. ET Wednesday slot the next night - takes a while to get going and then drags at the end. In between, it shows potential. The characters and clans are well-defined, though if the show goes the way of Melrose, their motivations could switch at a moment's notice.

Kindred also has a handsome noir look and a complex historical background, including a set of strict rules for the vampires, that could make for rich exploration.

Of course, you have to overlook the overacting, the contrived plots and the obvious fact that characters this dumb and emotional couldn't possibly be this powerful. Yet if it doesn't devolve "Melrose''-style, it could put some bite into prime time.

'Kindred' deviates from game
By Cliff Hicks

On Tuesday night, Fox showed off its brand new show, "Kindred: The Embraced." What many people don't know is that the show is based on a role-playing game that has been played since the early 1990s.

"Kindred: The Embraced" is a soap-opera/drama series based on a Mafia-like group of vampires who have managed to hide their dark secret from society.

"Vampire: The Masquerade" is the first of White Wolf's five-part "World of Darkness" series of role-playing games, in which the players assume personas they create. The others include: "Werewolf: The Apocalypse," "Mage: The Ascension," "Wraith: The Oblivion" and "Changeling: The Dreaming."

But some differences exist between the television show, "Kindred: The Embraced" and the role-playing game, "Vampire: The Masquerade."

In "Vampire," there are seven clans, not five. For television, two clans, the Malkavians (mentally deranged vampires) and the Tremere (the Machiavellians of the vampires), were removed.

Also, some scenes occur during sunlight, which, according to the game's rules, is hazardous to vampires, causing them to burst into flames. The rationale given in the show is that the sunlight has to hit them directly, and the scenes occur at dusk.

Across the Internet, the players' main complaint has been that the Nosferatu, who are horribly disfigured in the game, didn't look all that bad.

"You'd think if they'd get good special effects, they could afford to do the makeup for a real Nosferatu," said Darren Lanian, a Vampire player from Maine.

Reactions from players have been mixed. Some have lambasted the show for not sticking close enough to the game mechanics, while others have lauded it for sticking as close as it has.

"Poorly acted, poorly written, just for gamers, no others need apply," said Rochelle Dvorak, owner of Comic World.

The one thing just about everyone likes is Julian Luna (played by Mark Frankel), who is very much what most people see a Prince as.

Each city is run by a vampire-like mob-boss-type figure who is the Prince of the city. The Princes are usually very politically dominant, making today's politicians seem gentle.

Players' other common agreement is that while the players may love the series, without previous knowledge of the game and its background, viewers may be lost.

Only time will tell whether "Kindred: The Embraced" makes it. But as Shelly Minzer, a Vampire player from San Francisco, said, "they (the actors) have got to stop acting like it's 'Melrose Place' and more like it's 'The X-Files'."

PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS
April 2, 1996

'Kindred: The Embraced,' premiering Tuesday and Wednesday on Fox
 Ellen Gray
 

"You know, I knew we were going to get along when you ordered your steak very, very rare,'' says the cop to the vampire, early in Tuesday night's 90-minute premiere of Fox's "Kindred: The Embraced.''

The vampire (Kate Vernon), who's already polished off an appetizer in the ladies' room, where she ran into an attractive and unwitting blood donor, smiles politely, apparently oblivous to the single crimson drop on her white dress. No matter. The cop (C. Thomas Howell) doesn't even notice.

That's Aaron Spelling for you. Damn the dry-cleaning bills: His vampires wouldn't be caught dead dabbing themselves with club soda.

The combination of Spelling's name in the production credits and a plot inspired by a role-playing game called "Kindred: The Masquerade'' is not one I'd normally embrace, but the darkly stylish "Kindred'' is oddly compelling and (dare I say it?) potentially addictive.

Even to one who never succumbed to lure of "Dark Shadows'' or Anne Rice or even "Dracula'' in all his movie incarnations, the vampires - particularly the prince, Julian Luna (Mark Frankel) - were immediately 10 times more interesting than the human cop, Frank Kohanek. (Howell, probably best remembered for the best-forgotten "Soul Man,'' would have to drink a ton of blood to acquire the amount of charisma Frankel exudes in one tortured glance.)

"Kindred,'' which starting Wednesday night slips into the more appropriate 9-10 p.m. ET spot vacated by "Party of Five,'' is, like "Party,'' set in San Francisco, although it's hard to imagine the orphaned Salingers and the warring Kindred existing on the same planet, much less the same city.

"The Kindred's'' San Francisco is a surreal place where vampires live and work side by side with humans who seldom seem to notice the deception the vampires call "the Masquerade.'' One thing that makes that possible is that the rules have changed a little. Yeah, a cross through a vampire's heart will still kill (I'm not sure about silver bullets), but like the underworld organization it most resembles, the Kindred generally preys on its own kind. Blood contact with a vampire doesn't necessarily kill a human (although it may leave us woozy) and any vampire who wants to "embrace'' a human is supposed to get the prince's permission.

Without the cheat sheet supplied by Fox, I might have been quickly lost in a tangle of Kindred "clans'':

- The Ventrue: Julian Luna's clan, the aristocracy (the network calls them "Kennedy-like,'' but I'm guessing JFK or Bobby, not Ted, for Julian).

- The Torreadors: Artistic types, led by Lillie Langtry (yeah, I thought she was dead, too), a beautiful vampire played by Stacy Haiduk. In the first two episodes, Lillie can mostly be found wrapped around Julian.

- The Nosferatu: The only ones who look as if they could really stand more time in the sun. Headed by Daedalus (Jeff Kober), who's Julian's hit man, a post he seems uniquely suited for (although in Wednesday night's episode he reveals a sweeter side).

- The Gangrels: Bikers and rockers, led by Cash (Channon Roe), who becomes Julian's bodyguard.

- The Brujah: Their name sounds as if it comes from "brouhaha,'' and the Brujah certainly seem to like kicking up trouble. Of all the Kindred, they dress (and act) the most like mobsters.

SCIFI.COM ONLINE MOVIE REVIEWS

Kindred: The Embraced
A prince must keep the peace between five clans of vampires

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Kindred: The Embraced
Fox Network
Starring C.Thomas Howell, Mark Frankel
Premieres April 2, 8 p.m. ET/PT
Regularly on Wednesdays, 9 p.m. ET/PT

Review by K.H.

A man is chased across a roof by two mobsters who pull him down and shove a stake through his heart. As dawn approaches, Detective Frank Kohanek (Howell) and his partner arrive on the scene...just in time to see the mobsters leap off the building and vanish as the other man bursts into flames.

Frank knows something strange is happening, and it has to do with mob boss Julian Luna (Frankel). However, he has no idea that Julian is actually the ruler of five clans of vampires, collectively known as the Kindred. The Kindred hide themselves by masquerading as humans...if the masquerade were to be revealed, the humans would hunt down the Kindred and kill them. As prince of the Kindred, Julian must keep the peace between the clans and protect the masquerade, two things which often go hand in hand.

But Frank and Julian's ex-lover, Alexandra -- a powerful vampire in her own right -- have fallen in love. Frank discovers the truth, but Alexandra has made Julian swear not to kill him. Alexandra is hunted by the other Kindred for revealing the masquerade, leaving Julian to form an uneasy truce with Frank. More importantly, one of the clans is itching for war...

At its best, Kindred: The Embraced is a cross between The Godfather and Melrose Place with vampires. While it's way too serious, it is a promising new series for Fox.

As with all good vampire stories, Kindred creates its own rules for vampires. Stakes through the heart and nasty sun stroke are still good ways to kill a vampire, but they eat food, end up in bed (a lot) and don't usually kill their victims. Kindred may lose some vampire fans because there aren't a lot of throats being ripped out or other fun special effects, but others will enjoy this latest take on the undead.

While Kindred has a lot of possibilities, there are a couple of problems. The series deals with five clans of vampires, and it's all very confusing. The clan names are tossed about in the dialogue and it takes a while to figure out who's who. Viewers who stick with the series won't have any trouble keeping track, but the first episode is confusing.

The larger problem has to do with the character of Frank, who appears to be pulled straight out of a bad cop film. Since Frank is set to be mainstay, this is a significant problem. Luckily for Kindred, there's more at stake with the antagonist than the hero. Frankel's Julian is the kind of multifaceted character who's both good and evil. He walks a thin line as he tries to protect his race while living by special rules.

Kindred has the potential to be a fascinating series if it concentrates on its vampires and stays away from the silly cop stuff that's been done to death before. -- KH