Dark new TV series Bitten to launch on SPACE TV January 11

Last year the publicity crew from Bell Media’s Space TV sent me some advance copies of their new drama Orphan Black. It was highly addictive and I became immediately hooked to what is already considered a critically acclaimed series.

Well, they did it again to me with the brand new action-packed, original thriller called Bitten. It premieres on Saturday, January 11 (9 p.m.). Based on the New York Times best-selling novels by Canadian author Kelley Armstrong, Bitten is set in a world where werewolves live undetected amongst humans. Drop dead gorgeous actress Laura Vandervoort (Smallville, Ted) sinks her claws into the role as the world’s only female werewolf, Elena Michaels, in this   one-hour series.

The series is eerily similar to the Montreal-filmed Being Human, which begins its fourth season on Space on Monday, January 13 (9 p.m.). This show deals with werewolves, vampires and a ghost.  The scenes of one of the main characters repeatedly transforming himself into a werewolf were frightening to say the least and this is no different on Bitten.

Shot on location in Toronto, Hamilton, and Hespeler, Ontario, the series follows Elena’s (Laura Vandervoort) dangerous struggle between the new life she’s created in Toronto and her loyalty to   The Pack (as in wolf pack), a.k.a her family. In the premiere episode entitled “Summons,” we first met Elena making love to her boyfriend Philip (Paul Greene). Suddenly she stops, tells him she has to leave and dashes towards an elevator. With another woman next to her texting away, Elena successfully controls her transformation to a werewolf until she gets into an alley.

The main cast of Bitten.

While Elena has left New York for a successful career as a photographer in Toronto, having left The Pack a year earlier, she is drawn back to her former life after the mauled body of a girl shows up on the outskirts of Bear Valley in upstate New York. Suddenly Elena is forced to choose between her new “human” life in Toronto with   Philip   and her past at Pack Headquarters, Stonehaven.  

At Stonehaven we meet Jeremy Danvers (Greg Bryk) , the head of the Pack and Clayton Danvers (Greyston Holt). He is also Elena’s former love. There is a bad blood between them, yet the reason for this is not shown in the first two episodes. Only at the start of episode two do we see a flashback set four years earlier with them as a seemingly happy couple. Did Clayton “bite” Elena and turn her into a werewolf?

The term “Mutt” is used often in this series. While The Pack swear not to kill nor let anyone see them transform, “Mutts” live by no rules and their aim is to destroy.

Bitten also stars  Joel Keller as Pete, Paulino Nunes as Antonio, Steve Lund as Nick and Michael Xavier as Logan.

Here is the trailer.