SueTube – Let’s talk TV with critic Susan Young

When last we saw the lovely Mick, he had become mortal and no longer feared the garlic.

Yep, our favorite (current) TV vamp can look at himself in the mirror and drink orange juice instead of a real Bloody Mary. But just how long will this last?

Oh, you know the answer. Really. You can’t have a vampire show with a used-to-be.

What’s this? Mick hanging out in the sun and eating a picnic lunch?
Mick (Alex O’Loughlin) enjoys what time he has left as a human with Beth (Sophia Myles), on “Moonlight” at 9 p.m. Friday April 25 on CBS. Photo: Adam Taylor/CBS

The episode is campy and over-the-top, so what wasn’t to love about it? We even get a vampire smack-down going at the end. If you want some backstage info, check out this CBS video:

Here’s the thing about TV criticism. You know you should objectively sit down and critique a show based on things like execution, acting, writing, and so on. And if I was doing that for “Moonlight,” I would have to admit that perhaps Alex O’Loughlin – who plays private investigator Mick St. John, a vampire seeking redemption – won’t be winning any Emmys for his performance.

Mick (Alex O’Loughlin), Friday night is our night. Photo: Cliff Lipson/CBS.

Even the premise is so tired it should be taken off the field in a stretcher.

Yet, I just can’t seem to quit the show. There’s something charismatic about Alex, a guy I had lunch with last summer (Check out the blog item Lunch with a Vampire). The Australian charmed me then, and he’s still oozing charisma. Come on. Watch this video

OK, maybe not exactly “Angel,” but not bad.

This past week, “Moonlight” won the People’s Choice award for best new TV drama. Thank you, YouTuber Twilightdew, for posting this with Alex talking all Aussie and stuff:

Last night, I sat huddled on the sofa as Mick tried to save Beth, the mortal he loves, and protect her boyfriend too. He failed on the second part of the exam, leaving the path open for him to pursue the sweet Beth.

Or, it would have if she hadn’t gotten angry with him for not sucking the life into her boyfriend Josh as he lay dying from a gangster’s fatal gunshots.

“Turn him!” she implored. But Mick knows better. He’s trying to become a mortal again with the help of his former wife/vampire Coraline. He knows that living as a vampire is no real life at all.

Oh, Beth.

Oh, me, for being addicted to this show each week. But sometimes, you’ve just got to a fan.

Here’s the thing about TV criticism. You know you should objectively sit down and critique a show based on things like execution, acting, writing, and so on. And if I was doing that for “Moonlight,” I would have to admit that perhaps Alex O’Loughlin – who plays private investigator Mick St. John, a vampire seeking redemption – won’t be winning any Emmys for his performance.

Mick (Alex O’Loughlin), Friday night is our night. Photo: Cliff Lipson/CBS.

Even the premise is so tired it should be taken off the field in a stretcher.

Yet, I just can’t seem to quit the show. There’s something charismatic about Alex, a guy I had lunch with last summer (Check out the blog item Lunch with a Vampire). The Australian charmed me then, and he’s still oozing charisma. Come on. Watch this video

OK, maybe not exactly “Angel,” but not bad.

This past week, “Moonlight” won the People’s Choice award for best new TV drama. Thank you, YouTuber Twilightdew, for posting this with Alex talking all Aussie and stuff:

Last night, I sat huddled on the sofa as Mick tried to save Beth, the mortal he loves, and protect her boyfriend too. He failed on the second part of the exam, leaving the path open for him to pursue the sweet Beth.

Or, it would have if she hadn’t gotten angry with him for not sucking the life into her boyfriend Josh as he lay dying from a gangster’s fatal gunshots.

“Turn him!” she implored. But Mick knows better. He’s trying to become a mortal again with the help of his former wife/vampire Coraline. He knows that living as a vampire is no real life at all.

Oh, Beth.

Oh, me, for being addicted to this show each week. But sometimes, you’ve just got to a fan.

Some people think this new series sucks, while others can’t get enough. Where do you stand on it?

I’ve watched three of the episodes with varying degrees of interest. But tomorrow night should show where “Moonlight” is going.

Sunlight’s never healthy for a vamp. Mick (Alex O’Loughlin) is injured in his search for a young woman who is believed to be hiding in the desert. Photo: Joel David Warren/Warner Bros.

Remember Mick. Moonlight good. Sunlight bad.

When the scorching sunlight depletes Mick’s vampiric ability to heal himself, Beth must rush to help him on “Moonlight,” which airs at 9 p.m. on CBS. I’m still on team “Friday Night Lights,” but I might just tape this one.

Click here to get a taste of tonight’s episode when Beth offers to make the ultimate sacrifice to save Mick’s life.

In the private dining room of Circa 55 at The Beverly Hilton, about six reporters gathered for lunch with the charismatic star of CBS’ new vampire series “Moonlight,’’ which had a major renovation from the presentation version sent out to critics and advertisers.

BROODING VAMP ALEX

The only actor left standing after the housecleaning was lead Alex O’Loughlin, a charming Australian actor best known in the United States for his role this season on FX’s “The Shield.’’

(Note to “Veronica Mars” fans: Alex’s new vamp pal will be played by Jason Dohring.)

Alex, 30, tells us his mom was devastated by the widely reported Internet rumor that he was one of many children fathered by the late AC/DC wild man Bon Scott.

“She wasn’t very happy being called a harlot,’’ Alex says. “And my dad wasn’t very happy either.’’

O’Loughlin just finished filming a movie with Kate Beckinsale and says after a dry spell he’s finally getting some juice into his career.

“I had sold my car and had to sell my motorbike,’’ Alex, who was being considered for such roles as James Bond, says. “Then I got the chance to go on `The Shield,’ which I love, and then this and two movies.’’

He’s so giddy about it all, he doesn’t even mind going to San Diego next week for Comic Con to boost “Moonlight’s’’ profile before it airs in September. He’s got all of the vamp folklore down solid and he’s waiting to show it all off

“(Producer) Joel Silver told me `You ARE going to Comic Con,’ ” Alex says with a laugh. “I’m ready.”

And it helps to have the beloved icon of vampdom on board, David Greenwalt of “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer”’ and “Angel.” David will be overseeing the series and keeping it in the right vein.

MOONLIGHT (L-R) Joel Silver Executive Producers , Alex O’Loughlin, David Greenwalt Executive Producers and Sophia Myles speak to the press at the TCA – 2007