Two police officers patrolling the mean streets of Wellington throughout the night face a lot more creatures of horror than you would generally expect.
At first blush you might see Officers Minogue and O'Leary as NZ's answer to Mulder and Scully, but the truth is incredibly disappointing. Neither of our heroes in Wellington Paranormal really care that much. They have no curiosity about the monsters they're facing off against. They don't care if there is a greater truth out there to be discovered. Just give them a hot coffee each and make sure they finish their shift on time.
Wellington Paranormal is the laugh-out-loud funny series created by Taika Waititi (director of Thor Ragnarok) and Jemaine Clement (Flight of The Conchords). The show is a spin-off from their cult classic comedy film What We Do In The Shadows, which is, in itself, set to be re-made in the US as a TV show.
Like The X-Files and 70s classic supernatural drama Kolchak The Night Stalker, every episode on Wellington Paranormal we are introduced to a new monster of the week that needs to be stopped. Put aside an afternoon this weekend, pour yourself a hot cuppa, and get ready to laugh your way through this very binge-worthy horror-comedy.
Episode One - 'Demon Girl'
Monster of the week: Bazu'aal of the Unholy Realm
Minogue and O’Leary bring in what they think is another projectile-vomiting drunk teenager. But Sergeant Maaka realises she’s a demon who’s been visiting Wellington every 66 years. He invites Minogue and O’Leary to join his new Paranormal Unit and when the girl escapes from the station, our intrepid duo get their first assignment chasing the body-hopping demon across the suburbs, culminating in the gates of hell itself being opened in Wellington’s bucket fountain.
Episode Two - 'Cop Circles'
Monster of the week: Plant-based extra-terrestrial life forms
Minogue and O’Leary travel to the rural outskirts to investigate photographic evidence of a cow up a tree. Maaka suspects alien activity and sure enough, the two cops soon discover evidence of cloned farmers, crops circles and dangerous alien plants who inevitably chase them through a creepy cornfield. It turns out the country is far more dangerous than the cold streets of Wellington.
Episode Three - 'Things That Do Bump In The Night'
Monster of the week: Ghost and party guest kidnapper Raymond St John
Minogue and O’Leary get a fright attending a noise complaint at what appears to be a 70s-themed party in Kandallah: when they pull the plug on the record player, everyone disappears. With the help of medium Chloe Patterson, the cops go back into the house to see if it’s truly haunted. It is. They see an actual ghost within minutes, something the fake medium has never actually seen and she soon disappears. In trying to find Chloe, Minogue and O’Leary encounter a series of 70s ghosts trapped at a never ending party. Can they break it up or will they be doomed to listen to Tina Cross’s “Nothing But Dreams” for all eternity?
Episode Four - 'The She Wolf of Kurimarama Street'
Monsters of the week: She Wolf Sheena and her ex-boyfriend Dion
Responding to a callout from a freaked out pizza delivery guy who was attacked by a big dog wearing jeans, Minogue and O’Leary soon discover that a werewolf is on the loose in Lower Hutt. While chasing the wolf, they rescue a young woman called Sheena and take her in for her own protection, but soon discover she’s not the victim but werewolf itself. And when Sheena discovers her ex-boyfriend Dion (from What We Do In The Shadows) gave her the curse, she wants revenge and our cops could be collateral damage.
Episode Five - 'A Normal Night'
Monsters of the week: Evil clowns and vampire Nick
The Wellington Paranormal crew follow Minogue and O’Leary on a typical night when they encounter a series of incidents including a plastic bag mistaken for a ghost, some creepy clowns, some sort of ritual sacrifice, a pair of goths, and a theft from the hospital blood bank where the blood bank officer turns out to be the vampire Nick from What We Do In The Shadows. He glamours them into letting him go. Their hunt to recapture him eventually leads them to Taita Cemetery where Nick magically convinces them to forget everything they’ve seen that evening. Just another normal night for Wellington Paranormal.
Episode Six - 'Zombie Cops'
Monsters of the week: Zombie outbreak
We meet Minogue and O'Leary's nemeses in the form of Officers Donovan and Laupepe, who have arrested what appears to be a zombie. The zombie infects Donovan, who soon infects his partner while out on patrol. It’s up to Minogue and O’Leary to catch them before they get to Courtenay Place on a Friday night and start the zombie apocalypse. No pressure. So how do you find two undead cops going through the motions of their living jobs? Think like a cop! Hmm, how do you do that again?
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